Activism is a word that seems so large in nature. It wasn't until after i read Courtney Martins "Do It Anyway" , that i realized activism is so much more than i than i realized it was. To me activism was always the things you see on TV. The protestors laying in or lining the streets or those who put themselves in harms way. For some reason i never though of activism being small in nature. I never thought of myself as an activist, although i knew i was extremely passionate about things and did things to raise awareness.

In the book Courtney Martin suggests the older generation views todays activist as more passive, less involved and more self centered. My personal belief it that the older generation just doesn't view today's activist as such but also today's younger generations on a whole. I believe what today's older generation doesn't understand is that there is so much important stuff going on in the world with wars, ebola and such that news media does not report on much activism unless it seems it has to do with protestors in police brutality. Second, we live in an entirely different world than than our parents and grandparents. Technology has increased so much that studies were done and proved that alot of activism today revolves around use of social media. And finally i believe there is more happening in terms of activism on smaller scales with volunteering in local communities , etc.

I related most to Maricela Guzman, her story tugged at my heart and she turned a tragic life altering event into something she could make a difference in other peoples lives. That is exactly how I became active and passionate about something. For Maricela is was being raped for me it was having my whole life turned upside when my husband passed away at the age of 26 leaving me with a 2 yr old and then again just 18 months ago when i lost someone i loved from cancer. Sometimes you have to experience pain and heartache to be able to make the time in our busy lives to make a difference.

How i feel today on activisim is that we don't need to be out there lining the streets or hugging the trees. We can be making a difference in small gestures of kindness. We can pay it forward, we can make a donation to a worthy cause or we can volunteer our time in our communties. Activism is about making or promoting change. To try to make the world a little bit better than when we first were born. Sometimes just a kind word to someone is enough to facilitate a positive change that will have a steam roll effect.

Change is slowly coming on the "War on Drugs"

I wasn't sure if we were supposed to blog about the article we were to find regarding the "War on Drugs", but i figured what the heck, why not?

The article I chose , " 9 signs the War on Drugs is almost over", was written  for Alternet, by Tony Newman, a communication director for the Drug Policy Alliance, back in December of 2012.  He also followed up in 2013 with another article titled, "10 ways the War on Drugs changed forever in 2013".

In this article Tony Newman stated, " 2012 would go down in history as the beginning of the end to American longest failed war, the war on drugs".  That one sentence caught my attention, but after reading the article, two years later i feel we are still in the beginning , there has not been much forward progress on this front.

Momentum to change the War on Drugs did start in 2012, and since then we have seen a number of changes as stated in the article.  Colorado and Washington passed laws legalizing marijuana, California passed Proposition 36, which changed the "three strikes" mandatory minimum law. Latin American Presidents called for an end to the war on drugs and here in America we also saw some states pass the 911 Good Samaritan Law, allowing and encouraging people who witness an overdose to call 911 without fear of arrest. Politicians, started to change their stance on the "War on Drugs", including; Beto O'Rourke, Ellen Rosenblum and Andrew Cuomo started speaking out in regards to changing the laws and decriminalizing marijuana.  By 2013, 58% of the American population , the majority, want to legalize marijuana.

The article, makes you believe as a country we are headed in the right direction and change is occurring, but it is really?  Two years has passed since the article was written and very little change has happened since the beginning.  While it seems we came out of the gate fast,  somewhere coming down the front stretch, we start to stall.

We are still facing high incarceration rates, due to drug persecution.  Profiling is happening everyday in our inner cities by police officers wanting to make quick arrests.  These arrests are quick, not much work and allows the officers to sign, seal and deliver the arrest quickly, offering those officers the ability to move up in ranks because of the large number of arrests they made,  and the government is spending over $50 Billion a year on a war that is hurting people more than it's doing to help them.  No changes are in place to treat the addict, to help them become better members of society, we are still locking these individuals up and in some instances throwing away the key, but at what expense.

If we are going to truly end the "War on Drugs", then we need to start lobbying our congressmen and senators.  We have to have a voice.  It has to start somewhere and the more pressure applied to government, maybe the more they will react and make the changes that are necessary and quite honestly has been a long time coming.

The House I Live in

For some reason, this movie seems to have opened a can of worms so to speak.. So many people, with so many opinions.  None of them are right or wrong.. most are formed from our personal experiences or our upbringing.

The House I Live In, brought up a subject I didn't realize prior to watching the movie, that I had a lot of opinions on.  "The War on Drugs", is such a touchy subject for so many people.. but the truth of the matter is that the system is flawed.. people are being subject to extremely long prison sentences while to me more serious crimes carry a lesser sentence.  The movie has points about social class, ethnicity and inequality all playing a part in the persecution of "druggies" which is leading to the  overpopulation of our prison system.. The government, politicians and the media putting spins on the perception of drugs and the devastation they seem to think it causes to society.  While the war on drugs was in essence started to eliminate immigrants from living the "American Dream"  and taking jobs from white americans,  it was also used as a platform that was fueled by the media to elect Presidents or reelect them..

The system has to be changed.  We as a society are now electing and voting in favor of marijuana legalization.  This in itself should be enough for government to sit back and rewrite the laws.  The world is changing and as it changes and things become more acceptable so do the laws that prohibit them need to change..   I don't believe we should be locking up individuals for years and years.  We need to create a system that looks into and treats the reasons for these behaviors.. We don't lock up drunks just because they are walking down the road carrying a six pack.  The same should hold true for the war on drugs.  We should subject offenders  a way to come clean, to learn how to deal with life and the difficulties they face, to treat depression and to work with the families it affects.  I'm not saying that should they kill someone while high they shouldn't be imprisoned, just like a drunk driver.
However, something needs to change, its a broke system and if what was stated in the movie and police are profiling and spending their time arresting drug offenders, in order to get a quick bust, rather than spending weeks and months trying to solve a murder, there's a problem.  When the government is spending millions on fighting the "war", with not much success and corporate america is making big bucks off of the overpopulation of prisons, there's a problem

Work Smart .. Not Hard

Reading Mike Rowe's "Work Smart Not Hard", struck a particular cord in me.  When you think of the the title of the article,  it makes you think of many different things.. Like for instance, how often do you see people thinking they are working smart just so they don't have to work hard or trying to make a quick buck as easy as possible.

 Now, Mike Rowe is really looking at the quote based on those going to higher education and receiving their degree for more of a white collar job vs going out in the real world and getting experience in a trade working a hard job in the middle class.

What are my thoughts?  What is my personal experience?

I for one never went to college until this past May.  Why you ask?  One simple answer, if I want to move up in the company I work for I need a degree.  Is it important?  Maybe, circumstances in my life back then helped guide me to making the decision to go back to school.  Not necessarily for the advancement initially, but for something to keep me busy.  A way for me to forget the pain and sorrow.  Something to give me purpose.

However, if I look at my job , the amount of money i am paid, having never going to school for that coveted degree, than I have done good.  I can assure you, that i make more money that a lot of 2 income households these days and more money that alor of careers that required that 4 year degree.  Was it luck?  Maybe, I applied at a good time and was lucky enough to find a union job.  I was able to more than double my salary in less than four years.  I bust my butt, never taking my job for granted.  Working hard at the same time being smart, proving each day I deserve this job because of the hard work and work ethic I have.

Another example is my son, Cody.  He struggled in school, I could not wait til he graduated and the torture was over.  What a relief that day was!  He went out, got certified as a forklift operator, worked two years, 6 days a week, no benefits, pd holiday or sick time.  He busted his butt learning a trade in the warehouse industry. He gained experience and was finally able to get a union job, making more than $4 hour more than he was, with paid holidays, sick time and benefits.  He has a honest job, that requires being smart but also working hard.

I do believe we need people out there getting the 4 plus year degrees.  However, having it doesn't mean your gonna end up high on the salary scale.. where you can be working smart and not hard.  We also need those individuals who can go out and learn a trade and work hard.. without those jobs we wouldn't have things in stores or food on the table..Working hard can be working smart.

Noemi Famula, our little German girl

Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Noemi Famula.  Noemi hails from Hamburg, Germany and is spending a semester here at Cedar Crest College.

Noemi is 21 years old and has 2 younger brothers.  She is studying Early Childhood Education and is a senior.  While speaking with Noemi, I learned that in Germany, Parent Child Centers operate for only 4 hours a day.  Her major is slightly different in Germany, as its not just about teaching the child, but also about time spent with the family offering education, counseling and intervention.  Following graduation, Noemi is hoping to seek full time employment in her profession.

I find it amazing that thru the power of technology and yes Facebook, I was able to catch a glimpse into her life.  Having a son her age it was cool to see that no matter what country you may grow up in, there are so many similarities between young adults.  

I enjoyed my time spent getting to know who Noemi is.  I have always been fascinated with Germany and its culture and this was the perfect opportunity to satisfy my curiosity.  What better way then to actually talk to someone from there.  Thanks to Noemi, she was able to satisfy my curiosity about many different things.  One thing I was always curious about was their Government Healthcare system and how it differed from ours here in the United States.  I was also floored when she told me after her mom gave birth to her brother, she was paid to take a vacation.  Haha, how cool is that, somehow I got the short end of the stick on that.  

Noemi is hoping her time spent her in Allentown, PA, she can improve her speaking and writing of the English language.  Noemi is also hoping to learn and experience as much of the American culture as she can, during her short time here.  Now if only she would want to stay, I would hook her up with my son lol.  In all seriousness though Noemi is an amazing young lady, who as the weeks go by, I hope I am able to get to know her better.  I wish her nothing but happiness, good health and success!

My School -- growing up in Indian Territory

I grew up in the small town of Lehighton, PA, home of the Indians!!

After reading, "Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum", I would say the school system was built of the middle class theory.  Sitting here reminiscing about my school years, I believe the author, Jean Anyon is right, in the idea that it was all about the right answer.  Every grade received good or bad, was reflectant upon the number of right answers. The was no points for thinking outside the box. I, personally, don't remember ever being encouraged to think outside the box and very little discussion was ever made to the current events that were happening at that time.

I went to Catholic School during my elementary years.  The setting was definitely that off memorization.  We didn't switch classes, we had two grades in one classroom and had the same teacher for two years in a row.  I remember sitting writing notes from the blackboard day after day.  Information we were given was exactly what we were tested on.  Memorization was definitely the key back then.   The one thing I remember being different was that English was like those is the Executive Elite School.  We did a lot of diagraming sentences, especially in 7th and 8th grade. Class times, lunches and recess were definitely adhered to, per the schedule of the day.  We had limited projects, but what we were given we had explicit instructions of what was being looked for, however we had a Science Fair Project once a year that allowed us to be somewhat creative.

Upon entering high school, I crammed everything I could, in the first three years.  My senior year was  a matter of going in for two classes.  I was never pushed to do more nor did I.  I graduated, went to work, got married and had a baby.  I guess that is  what most people did back then.  Few classmates went on to higher education but i would think the majority did not.  Maybe it was the small town mentality, born and raised, never to leave. 

Fast forward 26 years,  for me the saying, "hindsight is 20/20", is so true.  I have often found myself wondering if had i gone to a  private school, would I have applied myself more?  Would I have gone onto a higher education?  With age comes insight and if one could turn back time and redo a period of one's life, mine would be to do those high school years all over.  To take it upon myself to find inner motivation to try harder, work harder and push myself to limits unknown.

about me

As I sit down to write something about myself i find it a little difficult. So many questions floating through my head.  What do people want to know about me? Do they really care?  So i am going to give you a brief look into my life.

My name is Lori.  I grew up in Lehighton and somehow ended up in the Lehigh Valley.  I have an amazing 20 year old son, Cody, who is my life.  We have a St. Bernard mix name Cali and two black cats, Licorice and Meow.  

There are day i wonder how did I get to where I am today.  Everyone's life has ups and downs, high points and low points. But have you ever wondered how you  muddled through those lows and are still standing tall. Well that's me.  My husband passed away when my son was just two, for many years it was just him and I against the world. I poured my heart and soul into him.. Fast forward 15 years and i meet an awesome guy.  Two years into our relationship he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. Exactly 7 months and 1 day he died in my arms, as the battle could not be won.. My passion is trying to raise awareness and money for such a horrible disease. A disease I watched turn a strong man of 45 years of age slowly die before my eyes, but never once did he give up.  Mike fought like no other and up to his last breath he was still fighting.  These events in my life helped mold me into who i am. I decided to go back to school to get a degree after 26 years.  I needed purpose and focus, this has helped provide that when i needed it most.  I'm not telling this for anyone to be sorry for me. My purpose is for you, if you are reading this, to feel inspired to love with every ounce of yourself, to never take anything for granted and most importantly to thank God for giving you another day to maybe get it right.  So many people would give anything to have those blessings we seem to take for granted.  I am happy to say thru all the darkness comes eventually the sunshine.  I am in a healthy loving relationship with someone I ended up knowing for over 20 years. Ironically, he was my husbands best friend, so its kinda funny how sometimes things go full circle.  I'm hoping I still have a chance at my fairtale ending even if its 20 years to late. 

My final message to you is tonight when you come home from school or work gather your family into your arms and tell them how much they mean to you.  For you never know when you won't have the chance.

Love

Lori