How I Found Home

Sorry guys, but this has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with me. 

   Growing up I was always a bit of an outsider. I had a hard time finding a circle a friends, partially because I went to five elementary schools and when I did settle down in a school system, it was in a small town where everyone had known everyone since birth. I was a perpetual new kid, which both helped and hurt my social skills. To be honest, in all that moving no where really felt right. I was never really comfortable. I always stood out and was invisible at the same time. That's probably part of the reason I never saw the merits in joining a sorority when I was getting ready to go to college. Sororities were for preppy girls, girls who partied hard, and had lots of money. I was none of those things. I was the girl sitting in class with her nose stuck in a book, who only really spoke up to answer questions in class or to sing in the choir. That did not fit the sorority mold. Or so I thought. 

   When I went off to college at Virginia Wesleyan College I decided to make a change. I am naturally a boisterous, extroverted person and I was sick of repressing that side of me. So I didn't. I walked into VWC on my first day and spoke to the first person I saw. Then I spoke to every person I came across. I found friends amongst the other freshmen as well as the Orientation Staff. My new friends and I ended up hanging out with a few of the SOSers (as they were called) the night of Scene 1 Orientation and that is where I met Lynette and Lisa. They became fast friends of mine and when I came back for Scene 2 we hung out more and more. 

That's Lynette. She's basically my favorite human being.

   During Scene 2 Orientation I really clicked with Lynette and she started inviting me over to her room to hang out with she and her friends. Just so happens those friends were her sisters. To be honest, I was surprised in what I saw. These weren't the bleach blond party girls I had thought sorority girls to be. These were student leaders, artists, writers, scientists, actors, and so much more. Within the first two weeks of my freshman year, I had a new goal. I wanted to join a sorority. Not just any sorority though. These amazing women I had grown to love and look up to were members of Phi Sigma Sigma Fraternity, Inc. I wanted to be a Phi Sig and I refused to be denied. 

My first tagging of the Surf Board.

   The whole first semester of my freshman year I went to every recruitment event. I knew I needed grades to get considered and would need to wait until the next semester, but I wanted to make my interest known. Slowly, but surely, I watched a large number of my friends go Greek. My best guy friend, John, (within the first two weeks of school mind you) accepted a bid from Phi Kappa Tau. Lynette dragged me along to the Bid Card signing for IFC and I got to see him go in all dressed up and then come out looking so excited to announce that HE was going to be a PKT. On top of that, my female friends slowly started going Greek too. Stephanie, a girl on my hall I had bonded with over choir and Hanson, got her bid into Phi Sigma Sigma as we were walking to her room from the bathroom. That was definitely an interesting experience and I was so happy for her. As all this went on I waited. I had friends who were in the same boat. We had to wait until Spring Semester to go through Formal Recruitment because of the credit requirement and we were fine with that because we still got to hang out. 

That's John. Phi's gotta stick together. All the way to graduation.

   I probably spent more time in the then Phi Sig Suite than my own room. It was either movie nights or video games or talking about everything and nothing. I would not change it for the world. They were there for me even when I wasn't a sister when I needed someone. When Spring Semester finally arrived I was SO excited. Minus the fact that I couldn't hang out with half of my friends due to rules that attempt to keep formal recruitment fair. 

Phi Sig Suite Antics (Stephanie, Me, Emily)

   So Formal Recruitment started and I went to parties with each of the sororities for 3 days. Then came Preference Night. I was invited back to Phi Sigma Sigma's pref and I was overjoyed. Though I had enjoyed getting to know women in the other organizations on my campus I knew exactly where I wanted to be. To be honest, I cried during that ceremony. It was beautiful and I got to share with people I had become insanely close with. And then I had to wait. That night my friend, Christine and I, both slept in my room and by slept I mean we actually just stayed up the whole night in eternal anxiety. The next morning we received a call telling us to come to the Student Activities Office in a white shirt to receive our bids. When I walked into that office and opened the envelope to find a bid card from Phi Sigma Sigma I nearly cried, and by cried I mean I jumped up and down and squealed like a crazed school girl. That is still one of the best moments of my life. 

Picture of the Best Moment Ever. (2/9/09)

   The actual best moment came later though. It was when we lined up outside the Bid Day room to be introduced to our new sisters. I was first in line. I put myself there because I could not wait any longer. I walked into that room and I have never felt more wanted or loved than in that moment when 20 or so women that I admired so much rushed at me and hugged me so hard that I wasn't actually standing on my own feet at the time. I will never forget that moment. It is the single most amazing moment of my life to date. That was February 9, 2009. I was initiated into the Wonderful sisterhood of Phi Sigma Sigma Fraternity, Inc. on March 28, 2009. 

That's my Greek Family up top and down below, we rock for Kidneys.

   To this day I will always say that going Greek was my best decision in college. It brought so many things. I became a leader on campus (President of Equality Alliance and Pi Sigma Alpha Political Science Honor Society 2011-2012). I took part in philanthropy and charity (Rock-a-thon, Special Olympics, Relay for Life, and Marlins Make A Difference Day). I became friends with some of the most amazing fraternity men (Sigma Nu, Phi Kappa Tau, and Kappa Alpha Order) and sorority women (Sigma Sigma Sigma, Alpha Sigma Alpha, Alpha Kappa Alpha, and Zeta Phi Beta). We made a difference on our campus and we spoke out when we thought it necessary. There were good times and bad. I learned to fight for what I believed in and not allow people's judgements of me change who I am. I learned to be strong in my identity and own my choices. I became the woman that I always wanted to be. The woman that my sisters and the legacy of Phi Sigma Sigma helped form me into. 

My first year as an Alumni.

   Phi Sigma Sigma's open motto is Diokete Hupsula, which is Greek for Aim High. We were founded in New York, New York at Hunter College on November 26, 1913 by a group of women who wanted to be in the same fraternity for women and couldn't because they were not of the same faith. So they made their own, the first secular Greek organization. My founders were suffragettes, teachers, nurses, amazing and inspiring women. 100 years later, my sisterhood is still full of amazing and inspiring women who take life and make it what they want it to be. 

   I found a home with a group of women who accepted me for who I was and am. So, if you are heading off to college, don't count Greek Life out. We aren't all about hazing and cultishness. It's not paying for your friends. It's finding your place, your people. I definitely found mine because

Once a Phi Sigma Sigma, Always a Phi Sigma Sigma. 

And Then It Was Over...

Originally Posted: 11/13/12

         This past Fall I had the amazing opportunity to work with Organizing for America, the grassroots operation for Barack Obama's re-election campaign, as a Fellow and then Deputy Field Organizer. Interestingly enough, so did Leon. Actually, to my knowledge, our alma mater had 3 people working in the campaign in Virginia, which is incredible. I worked in the City of Norfolk with an amazing team of people I will never forget. I thought I would pop on here to give you all my thoughts on my experiences and what impact these teams actually have. I will leave Leon to tell his own story because his was likely very different from mine based on his home base. 

       First thing first, I have prior campaign experience. Let me give you a little perspective on my mindset going in. When I was just starting high school, a group of friends and I started a Young Dems Club at our school in Salem, VA (never heard of it? Most people haven't... It's in the Roanoke Valley.) and started volunteering with Tim Kaine's Gubernatorial Campaign right out of the gate in January. We did everything. Canvassing, phonebanking, attending events, passing out flyers, hanging door hangers, putting up yard signs, etc. Our first day, we got to shake hands with the Man himself, and his BFF, Mark Warner. It was mind boggling. The part that made me weary going into this campaign was people's utter lack of kindness when faced with differing opinions there. These people were my neighbors, they KNEW who we were. We explicitly stated we were part of the Salem High School Young Dems every time and they still cussed us out, slammed their doors, called us names, and hid from us. Southwestern Virginia is not a Democrat friendly place. I still look back on that time as an amazing experience that I would never replace, but it left me nervous about campaigning in Virginia. Even though I was in a completely different city, in a completely different area, I was nervous and careful going into this.

       I can easily say Norfolk proved me wrong. The people in Norfolk were incredibly kind and respectful. I had a few anomalies of that, but overall it was a much better environment. I started as a Fellow, unpaid staff. I went in because Barack Obama was the best choice for this country, because he is the only person in this ENTIRE country that has ever been able to make me feel proud to be an American. As time went on I was promoted to Deputy Field Organizer, which was a Godsend with all these student loans breathing down my neck. The volunteers were amazing. They just walked in sometimes on lunch breaks or right after work just to try and help. People bringing us food because they knew we were all 20-somethings, mostly from out of state, who did not have the time to run out and get food. People bringing us supplies just because they wanted to. There was one woman (she was incredible). She came in EVERYDAY to make calls for one of the Field Organizers. She was also one of the best dressed people to come in. By that I mean she owned more Barack Swag than any other person I have ever met. I had a volunteer that could knock every door in her neighborhood (hundreds of doors) in a day. She is an amazing person and kept our spirits up and our bellies full throughout my time there. The people of Norfolk are the most important reason that we were able to do what we did there and why Norfolk was the city that tipped Virginia in favor of the President.

       What Barack Obama has been able to do through the use of grassroots organizations throughout the country as a part of his campaign is unprecedented. I have never seen anything like this in the form of a Presidential campaign. It reminded me so much of state level campaigning it was insane to think that it was happening in every city and county in the country. We developed connections with the people, their neighborhoods, their neighbors. We discovered what these people cared about and what we could do for them. We fought misinformation and doubts. Grassroots organizations have so much more of an impact than I could have ever expected. Mitt Romney underestimated Barack Obama's ground game, us. I watched happen over the two months I was working there. People realizing that it is essential that they actually go to the polls, realizing that Romney really had a chance to be President if they didn't. I watched the people around me work long, hard hours passionately because each of them believed that every second could mean a win or loss. I, literally, watched and participated in the changing of the world. Talking to people is more important than putting up a yard sign. That contact is  everything. That is where Mitt Romney lost Virginia in my opinion. He put up a bunch of yard signs, made a bunch of speeches, but he never took the time to listen to people's stories or to really talk to them. 

Region 11 Election Results Watching - Photo Credit Grace Choi 

        On Election Day, once 7pm had come and gone, we sat in a room, about 25 of us, in Chesapeake with staff from the other offices and watched the results. It was nerve wracking. The thought "Did I do enough?" kept playing through my mind. The first big victory came. Tim Kaine would be Virginia's new Senator over George Allen. I thanked a few lucky stars and kept watching. The numbers were so close. Then out of nowhere, my Field Organizer exclaims "We Won!" For a second no one moved. We thought it was too early, only 11:13pm. But then it settled in and the jumping and screaming happened. Barack Obama had won the country, but not Virginia yet. We didn't go to sleep. We waited to see how WE had done. Eventually, every city/county had reported...except Norfolk. It was down to us. What we had done. We were watching the numbers with bated breath. They rolled in and we could not believe it. Norfolk was won. It was won with one hell of a margin. Everything we worked towards had been worth it. This happened at 1:00am. Romney waited another half hour to concede and Obama gave his Victory Speech shortly after 2:00am. 

(Photo Credits: Banez and Melissa) My Team, My Family, Region 11

       That was the best experience of my life. It will be for a long time. We had an impact. More voters turned out than ever before. Almost every precinct grew in numbers and increased their margins. Closing that office a couple days ago was the most bittersweet moments I have ever experienced. Volunteers came in and helped us and we had dinner one last time. Even before that the staff had our 'last lunch' before people started heading home, mostly to other states. It was an incredible experience. To be completely honest, I deeply advise that anyone who has a similar chance should take it. Just do it, don't think about it, don't try to get more than you are given out of it. Just do it. You'll thank me later. 

The Ignorant American Stereotype

Originally in the May 4, 2012 issue of the Marlin Chronicle

   When I was at National Model United Nations recently with our Model UN team, I had a great conversation with a Parisian student about the upcoming French Presidential elections. Out of nowhere she says that she is so happy that at least one American cares about what is happening in France. That statement struck me because if we are honest with ourselves, Americans are very ignorant of what is happening in other countries and how those occurrences are affecting us at home. How many of you do not even know who the current President is in France? Or who the current Prime Minister is in England? Likely very few of you could answer those questions without googling it on your iphone or Mac.

   There is a stereotype all over the world that the citizens of the United States do not care about anyone outside of their own country and, sometimes, I have to agree. Very few people in the United States even know what the capitals of other countries are, let alone their current events.  Over time I have tried to figure out what the reasoning is behind this phenomenon and there are several that have come to my attention.

   First and foremost is how our education system is structured. Students in the United States spend the better part of eight years without learning even a little bit about other countries in their history classes. No one takes World History until they are in High School and even then it is normally only two years, after that if college is not the next step that person leaves with basically no understanding of the countries outside their own and what effects they might have on the United States everyday. While in other countries the histories and structures of other countries are incredibly important to their education. Their own history emphasizes the interconnection of nations. What can we expect but people who only look so far as Capital Hill, if that, in their view of the world.

   Another problem is the focus of the media and news in the United States. How many times are we going to hear about some celebrity getting married or divorced or going to jail, but not hear about a civil war in Sierra Leone or revolutions springing up throughout the Middle East? What do you think is really more important to our everyday lives? It seems that media in the United States has degenerated to such a point you can barely even find out what is going on in the government in Washington, D.C. or your own state let alone anything that may be happening in the United Nations or other countries. A lot of political science and international studies students have just resorted to using other countries’ news stations. I know that I personally have Al Jazeera bookmarked and subscribe to BBC World News because I can’t get full coverage here in the US. What does that say about our priorities?

   To be fair, there are several people that do worry about what is going on in other countries. Some more informed than others, but they still are trying. An easy way to get informed right here on campus is to just venture into the Office of Intercultural Programming and talking to Lena Johnson or even just go up and ask a professor. More often than not you will find more information than you could ever expect and that stereotype could slowly be turned on its head.

Youth Voter Apathy in 2012

Originally Posted: 5/28/12 and in the May 30, 2012 Edition of the Marlin Chronicle

"Why should I vote? It’s not like it really counts anyway.”

    I have heard things like this more than any Political Science major wants to hear it. The apathy of our generation towards the political system has become almost our definition. I know that I am one of the only people at my alma mater that voted in state elections as well as the presidential elections. People just do not believe that they have a voice in the government. From the beginning of our academic careers we have learned about the electoral process and how important it is, somewhere along the way most people are convinced their opinions do not matter. One of the most frequent arguments I hear is that the existence of the Electoral College causes the popular vote to have no real power. I hear that people think all politicians are liars and that no matter their vote nothing will change. To tell the truth I have heard all the excuses that can be used and some that make no sense whatsoever.

    The truth is that the youth vote is the most important one out there. Let's admit it people. WE are the future of this country. Eventually, WE are going to have to take that responsibility and run with it. If our generation does not start going out and voting en masse as we should then we cannot complain about the issues we have to deal with later on when we do have to take the lead in government and the running of this country. Our generation needs to start taking responsibility and begin voting so that they actually have a say in what is happening in our country again. We may not all agree on how the country should be run, but we cannot say anything if we are not attempting to do anything constructive with what power we have in this system. We have power regardless of whether my peers want to believe it or not.

    The arguments I hear against voting are abysmally inadequate if you ask me. The belief that the Electoral College does not have to match the popular though somewhat true is still misguided. The Electoral College has to vote on the percentage that their state votes and the number of votes per state is the amount of congressional representatives each state is allocated (Senate + House Reps). The only way the popular vote may come out one way, the electoral vote may come out another, in most cases, is when there is a very close race. This was seen in the 2000 election between Al Gore and George W. Bush. This came when many people in my generation were right around 10 years old and it was one of the first defining moments in out political awareness. Obviously, it left a mark because so many of us think that the popular vote means nothing in any race.

    The next argument is just bunk to me. I have heard the phrase "All politicians are liars" more times than most people will ever vote in their life times. It is hard for me to believe that every politician in Washington is crooked. It is just statistically impossible. Yes, many politicians make promises they think they can keep during the election process, but many of them do not necessarily know the entire situation that they are getting into or there may be some situations that occur that derail their ability to follow through on the promises. This does not make politicians liars. It makes them practical and logically going after the more important and immediate problems put forth for them once they are in office rather than forcing through so trivial campaign promise they made. This can be seen in the most recent rants and ravings about Obama and how he has not come through on many of his promises. Of course, there has been an economic crisis, a couple wars, and several natural disasters, but how many people care about those issues.

    I hear the words “I hate politics” at least once a week. But do you hate politics or that it forces you to make decisions and discuss things with people who may not agree with you? People have developed such a fear of offending people or being offended that they do not want to debate even when necessary. The typical Political Science major, of course, does not understand this sentiment and will often get fussed at for inciting arguments when all they are doing is discussing their beliefs and wanting to learn about someone else’s beliefs. The Youth of this country need to get their act together and stop running and hiding from what really matters. We cannot just keep ignoring that our country is in crisis and eventually it will be our job to fix it. 

 

    Needless to say, I can only hope that my generation begins to head to the polls in full force in the future and take up the reins of our own future and country. As I have said many times, if you do not vote, you cannot complain because you did nothing to try and get your voice across or to support your beliefs. Also, do not just vote in Presidential elections, vote in state elections and local elections so that you can be represented at all levels of the government. The federal government is not the only government legislating and affecting your life. A good time to start is this November. Don’t just vote for President, vote for your Senators and Representatives. They affect you more directly anyway. Take hold of your future and wield your power as an American Citizen. Vote, rally, campaign. Show that we have a voice and that we are not the apathetic, uninformed kids the world thinks we are. Be the Change. Be the Leaders. Take Responsibility. Show them we are so much more than they think.

The World Will Start To Implode In 3, 2...

Originally Posted: 2/22/11

   To say that the recent uprisings and revolutions through out the Middle East and Northern Africa scares me would be an understatement. Several people believe that this is a good thing, more democracies will form, but we don't know that these countries will enter into democratic governments. Ever since the Tunisian Revolution in January it has been like a domino effect has been enacted across the region knocking out country after country. It has moved from Tunisia to Lebanon to Egypt and then on to almost every other country in the area as can be seen from the map. Part of what worries me about all this is that it took the revolution in Egypt to get the attention of the rest of the world. How many people in the United States knew that there was a revolution in Tunisia before Egypt got on the news? How many people even know that the March 8th Alliance, led by the Hezbollah, walked out of the Lebanese government and caused a collapse and re-election in favor of the March 8th Alliance and support of Hezbollah? I'll bet no one except those of us that were following those particular countries or Political Science professors who have feelers out at all times for great political distress.

   Don't get me wrong, more power to all these people who are fighting for their freedom. I am in full support of them and their causes, but I also fear the outcomes that could come of all this revolution. There is so little stability in the Middle East and Northern Africa as it is that in all truth I don't feel like the these countries are ready for democracy though I don't feel like they should be subjected to the horrible reins of dictatorship any longer. Unfortunately, I can't help but be pessimistic in the current era, what with the economic crisis, the growing animosities between countries, and the elevated polarization of ideologies all over the world. It seems like it would be all too easy for all the countries that are liberating themselves to fall into dictatorships or imperfect democracies all over again.

   One thing that scares me more than any of the stability issues is all the violence that has begun to occur in Libya. Though Egypt was relatively quiet and peaceful for a revolution with few actual casualties with these developments in Libya it seems likely that like revolution, the violence and suppression could spread as well. With all the dictatorial regimes in Northern Africa and the Middle East I would not be surprised is a counter domino effect begins to happen and violent suppression began to spread across the countries and governments causing these sights of hope in our eyes to devolve into sights of horror. I worry that these governments will care more about their power over the people than the people themselves and the country they rule over.

   Several people are, also, criticizing the government reactions, or delayed reactions, to these revolutions all over the Middle East and Northern Africa. Many people believed that people like President Obama would come out of the first day and declare support for the revolution and those protestors. When he didn't come out on the first day and then on the third day took a stance that left him wiggle room between his ally Murbarak and the protestors, some people became enraged and upset. Unfortunately, I believe that many people did not understand that Obama and several other world leaders were stuck between a rock and a hard place with the Egypt situation and all the other revolutions. Many of these leaders are United States allies and we cannot just go out and talk on a whim. The United States holds a privileged place in the world as the Superpower and due to this we pick up a lot of responsibilities that, as much as many of us would like us to, we cannot shirk or leave to the countries with the problems. The United States is not being silent, we are only saying what we can. Behind the scenes there is obviously more going on that we can't see where the world is locked in a discourse about what should be done and how to handle such a mass of revolution and how to make it work in everyone's favor and not spark some international war.

   I would like to give one positive not about all this craziness that is going on in the world. I have never seen news spread so quickly in my life and, truthfully, we only have social media to thank. With this emergence of social media and cell phones news about events like this has gotten to people around the world at astronomical rates. I, personally, was watching Tumblr explode with news about Libya last night. Something new was posted and flooded through the dashboards almost every couple minutes. The same can be said about Twitter and to an extent Facebook. The use of technology in such extents is a brand new tool for the protestors and people to get out the information of what it truly happening and the feelings of those revolting. It has become such a useful tool that now governments have begun to shut down the internet during revolution and protest as well as cell towers, such is the example of Egypt. It's an important new development and will be very interesting to see evolve.

   Overall, I am extremely (probably overly) scared of what is to come. Having no idea how all this could pan out and all the implications of what could happen if things go badly. Many people are able to be optimistic about such a situation since they don't live in those countries, but personally this is what I plan on going into as a job. Analyzing and predicting the ends of events like this. Since these events are so out of the norm I can't see a good outcome at all and that scares me. It makes me happy I was born in a developed country, but makes me wish everyone could be so that they could have the opportunities I have had. 

Violence is NEVER the Answer

Originally Posted: 1/8/11      

       To say that I'm disappointed by this recent act of senseless violence would be the understatement of the century. Representative Gabrielle Giffords was shot on Saturday while holding her first Congress on the Corner event of the new Congressional term. Democratic Rep. Giffords is the House Representative of the 8th district of Arizona and part of the Democratic Blue Dog Coalition. A man ran up to her and the group she was with and began to shoot indiscriminately at a pointblank range. Several people were injured including at least one child. There were initially rumors that Rep. Giffords had died as reported by CNN and NPR, but she was in surgery and no more information has been filtered out as of right now. Giffords recently took part in the rough 2010 elections where she and other democrats were targeted by Sarah Palin for supporting the Healthcare Reform and placed on a map on her web page. To say the least this calls the motivation of the act into question and definitely calls Palin's actions into question.

      What I find the most upsetting is that such an atrocity can occur and there are Americans out there singing the praises of the shooter. I lose more and more respect and faith in my country, the country I was born and raised in, every time an act like this one and many others occurs. I worry that these people who praise this person's "patriotic" act do not actually understand the depth of what has happened. It seems that the American people have become more desensitized to violence and killing than I have ever considered and I'm sure some psychologists and psychiatrists have considered. I am no fan of the 2nd Amendment or domestic terrorism. Yes, I'm calling this domestic terrorism. It was an act to incite fear in the populace with some political agenda behind it. I hope the person responsible rots in prison for the rest of his life quiet frankly. Violence is NEVER the answer in any case. It does not matter if a person feels that their opinion has been devalued and means nothing anymore, there are other ways of gaining more power and having your opinion heard. As for those idiots commenting on Palin's facebook and webpage about how great this is, I hope the FBI kicks in their doors and takes them into custody. Under no circumstances should people revel in the harm or death of one of their own. To say the least, this event has only brought me closer to wanting to live abroad.

America Is (Not) a Christian Country

Originally Posted: 12/26/10

"I don't care what you say, if you're a Muslim, you are suspicious." - A family member

  To say the least, this statement is no surprise in post-9/11 America. People have only just begun to learn things about other religions and, unfortunately, it has been in a bad way. More people than I can count have told me that all Islamic people hate Christians and are part of a violent faith. The problem with such statements is that they are completely false. Any one who has taken a World Religions class would know this. My experience in such a class was very informative. I've never been one to judge other religions and I find them incredibly fascinating to learn about. In the past 9 (almost 10) years since 9/11, the people of the United States have created this (not-so) new creation of 'us' and 'them.' 'Us' to most being White, Protestant/Christian, born in the United States citizens. 'Them' being, well, everyone else. The quote at the top of the page is something that I heard at Thanksgiving dinner this year. An adult in my family said this and a few others commented in agreement. I held my tongue to be respectful, but I did try to say something in defense, though as a young adult I was shot down as not knowing what I was talking about.

    In New York, there was a large uproar over an alleged "mosque" near the Ground Zero. Truthfully, everything was blown out of proportion and all the rumors were false. The mere fact that such a project could illicit such a horrid reaction from people is disappointing. Politicians even joined into the debate and made right fools of themselves. The truth of the matter is that it was not a mosque to begin with. It was in fact to be Muslim Community Center, which included a prayer room, but no true mosque. That is not the problem though, what if it had been a mosque? What difference does that make? The United States has the fastest growing Muslim population in the world. The Islamic faith is also one of the most peaceful religions in the world. The Christian faiths claim that they are so much more peaceful than Muslims, but the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, and several other violent acts can be attributed to Christian faiths. More recently, groups like the Army of God and the Ku Klux Klan have used Christian tenants as justification for violent acts against people they believe to be enemies to the Church, whatever church it may be.

  What I find so interesting is that people cannot seem to remember the First Amendment. Freedom of Religion is one of the most important parts of our Bill of Rights and is the reason many of our ancestors immigrated here. The United States is a Melting Pot for a reason and if we stop acknowledging that fact what will we come to? I know many people will argue that the Founders wrote the Constitution with Christian values in mind and that the Untied States was meant to be a Christian nation. In my opinion, the Constitution was written to endure and for the interpretation to grow with the country. Our country now harbors people of every religion and with that our Constitution protects all of them as American citizens.

    The real problem is that people do not seek out information about things outside their lives. People could be so much more understanding if they took the time and educated themselves in the very least the basics of other religions. Truthfully, it seems more thorough education about anything would save people and the world a lot of grief. Unfortunately, too many people do not take education as seriously as they should and more often then not people will make comments and talk about things they really do not have too much knowledge about. It'll only continue this way until people acknowledge they might be wrong and that their preconceptions could be entirely misinformed.

     What people need to learn is that one act by a small group can not be representative of the entire group. I would not say Christianity is a violent faith with my opinion based solely on the actions of the Army of God, a group accredited with several bombings and killings in the US. The same can be said for Islam in the case of 9/11. Every religion will have its extremists and often their form of the religion is an interpretation that is quite opposite of the central, majority belief. I hope that people will begin to learn this lesson or there might be more than extremist religious groups that we have to worry about in the future. 

Something Needs To Be Done

      This bothers me. THIS upsets me. SOMETHING needs to be done. Gun violence is on the rise. To be honest, it has been on the rise my entire life. I cannot remember a time where there was not a story in the news about some mass shooting or someone being shot or someone getting caught in the crossfire. I grew up in a world where it was not safe to go outside and play with your friends anymore. I grew up in a world where you could not even feel safe within the hallowed halls of your school anymore. Here's a statistic for you, exactly ONE year after the Sandy Hook shooting over 30,000 people had died gun-related deaths in the United States of America. One year. Need proof, there is a billboard that is counting each death. Here's a photo of it from December 13, 2013. Credit to the twitter user.

      And through all of this, we cannot even pass a bill for more background checks when buying guns. What is wrong with this country that we let this much time pass and do absolutely nothing? By no means am I suggesting we fully ban firearms from civilians. I'm from Virginia, a southern state, and I understand the uses of certain types of guns for self defense and hunting and the like, but for the life of me I cannot figure out what a CIVILIAN needs with a military grade weapon or even some more powerful guns. Who is invading your property? Seriously, do you have militants using guerilla tactics to try and steal your precious recliner? 

     You may ask what prompted this post. Well, I found an article this morning that really makes me so angry. ThinkProgress posted an article called "There Has Been An Average of One School Shooting Every Other School Day This Year,"talking about the frequency of school shootings in the United States so far in 2014. Every. Other. School. Day. What are we doing? Why are we letting CHILDREN suffer?

     Let me tell you the story of the world I grew up in. When I was 9 years old, Columbine happened. I did not really understand what happened back then, but that's when my friends and I stopped playing outside as much. It's when school started to look different. When I went to middle school and high school I moved to Southwestern Virginia where people value their guns pretty highly. I became friends with kids who were a lot like the Columbine shooters. Luckily, they never got bad enough to even consider taking the same path, but I knew those kids. They were my friends. The way to save them from that outcome was so easy. Just show them that someone cares. Anyone. Listen to them and it will do a world of good. While I lived in Southwestern Virginia, I lived about 45 minutes from Blacksburg. I was 16 when Henry Cho opened fire there killing 32 people. There was a time that day that they lost him and every school in my area went into lock down. My teachers let us have our cellphones out because so many alumni went to Tech that they wanted to know that they were okay too. That is my reality. That is the world I have lived in and those are just TWO incidents that have occurred. Between Columbine and Sandy Hook there were 31 mass shootings in the United States. That's between 1999 and 2012. 13 years. The number grows every year.

      It is time to push back. To Do SOMETHING. Action needs to be taken. People have tried and failed so often and it's insane that we let this continue. 92% of Americans are in favor of background checks, yet for some reason we can't get that passed through Congress. We need to regulate the sale of guns. We need to improve on mental health care in this country. We need to do better. If not for ourselves, then for the next generation. A generation that doesn't know a world without school shootings every year. Because even when President Obama was addressing this in his State of the Union and demanding action be taken, a shooting was happening on a college campus in Tennessee. If this trend isn't turned back we will see a day when the happy days are the ones where there isn't a shooting and that will be the big news of the day.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE.

So why not now? Why not start it with us.