Politics and Social Change Commons^™

In God We Trust, Andrew C. Nosti

SURGE

Almost everywhere I turn I can hear someone saying, “America is a Christian nation!” likely yelled or grumbled with impressive, and sometimes concerning, aggression. I can’t go through a week without this phrase popping up, usually closely accompanied by the notion that America’s founding has roots in Christian principles. [excerpt]

The Perennial Purple Heart, Anonymous

SURGE

Let’s talk about Veterans’ sacrifices. I must admit that I didn’t know much myself about veterans until one of my siblings entered the Navy. I’m very proud of his service, sacrifice, and dedication to protecting the United States. It’s probably not a common thought to all of us, but I think often of what it is like to be away during wartime serving our country. Military folks sacrifice a ton – whether it be lower pay, moving around a lot, being away from family for a long time, going into risky military operations, etc. These men and women sacrifice comparatively …

Fearless Friday: Jerome Clarke, Christina L. Bassler

SURGE

Today is Fearless Friday and we’re honoring the magnificent Jerome Clarke ’17!

Originally from Philadelphia, (aka the “city of Bromance”), Jerome is currently a Junior at Gettysburg College and is involved in countless activities and clubs, many of them geared towards social justice. [excerpt]

Object To Your Affection, Melissa J. Lauro

SURGE

Recently a guy in one of my classes defended objectification of women on the grounds that if he cares for a girl, he will treat her like he treats his most treasured objects; he used his coat as an example. He said that he loved his coat, he wouldn’t let it touch the ground, and he took great care of it; he would do the same for any girl he cared about, for “his girl.” [excerpt]

In The Absence Of Peace, Emma R. Okell

SURGE

Today, the Monday after the attack, all of the flags were at half mast. Everything continued as normal, as if nothing had happened. Yet there was an intensity in the air. I didn’t notice the increased police, but it was easy to feel the increased security. [excerpt]

Musings From A Biased Jew, Marli R. Horwitz

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Saturday was Yom Kippur, the day we as Jews repent for our sins. During the holiday, we fast to afflict our souls, to provoke in ourselves to confess and obtain pardon. As I sat in Hillel’s morning services, I reflected on the ways I have intentionally or unintentionally harmed others. [excerpt]

Challenging Homelessness, Elizabeth D. Marshall

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I had been homeless for about 28 hours. I sat on a sidewalk in Georgetown with a friend holding a cardboard sign that read, “Put a Smile on Our Faces” with a Dunkin Donuts cup at our feet. In the two and a half hours we sat there, hundreds of people passed, hundreds of people avoided eye contact, hundreds of people detoured around the lamppost on the street side of the sidewalk. A few people glanced at our sign. [excerpt]

Red Drops For A Rainbow, Zakiya A. Brown

SURGE

Splashes of pool water licked my ankles, scenting my coffee-colored toes with chlorine. Bareback guardians, robed in red, hovered high as flocks of fleshy tangible innocence skipped jubilantly across the pool deck and disappeared into a wet square pocket of sapphire. [excerpt of poem]

Fearless: Jessie Pierce, Jessie M. Pierce

SURGE

A vocal advocate for socio-environmental justice issues and a believer in the potential for social change in the developing world, Jessie Pierce ’14 fearlessly travels, volunteers, and researches to promote awareness and change. Studying abroad last year for both semesters, spending one semester in Denmark and one in India, gave Jessie the interest, skills, and drive to continue pursuing a deeper understanding of these issues while at Gettysburg. [excerpt]

On Learning And Unlearning, Katherine M. Patterson

SURGE

I remember passing our lunch lady–the nice one with a big bleach-blond afro. She was perched on an elementary-school-sized desk, eyes fixated to the television. I glanced at the screen on the way into my classroom while my teacher hesitated in the hallway, whispering to the other adults. She reentered the room a few minutes later to explain.

In the following months, my television provided me with one of the most formative, practical and comprehensive educational experiences of my life. First it was vocabulary building, with the words like “hi-jacker,” and “terrorist.” Then it was physics, learning that inertia is …

Fearless: Aleksandra Petkova, Aleksandra V. Petkova

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Consistently serving the campus community, conducting new research in psychology, and leading younger students to realizations about their own roles in fighting for social Justice, Aleksandra Petkova ’14 has fearlessly pursued opportunities to promote social change all four of her years here at Gettysburg.

What It's Like To Be A Radical Conservative, Stephanie K. Adamczak

SURGE

“What is your major?”

“Environmental Science.”

The snarky retort, “Don’t go joining GreenPeace now, you’re becoming a radical.”

I know there are many uses of the word “radical,” but in this context, I know that it is not meant as a compliment. Because I study environmental science and global climate change, this person associates me with radicals – those utilizing extreme methods to bring about extreme changes. [excerpt]

Porch Culture: The Stoop Of Entitlement, Marina K. Crouse

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To the class of 2017:

Welcome to Gettysburg. Welcome to the next four years of your life. Welcome to the school where you spend vast amounts of time at or trying to get into a Fraternity House. Welcome to the school plagued by porch culture. [excerpt]

Fearless: Nadejiah Towns, Nadejiah Z. Towns

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This week we would like to recognize Nadejiah Towns ’15 as a fearless fighter against poverty. This summer she has served as a Heston intern for the South Central Community Action Program (SCCAP) and has spent the majority of her time with the Work Ready program, a “welfare to work” organization that helps low-income community members gain the skills needed to by obtaining a reliable, professional job and become self-sufficient.

Brooks Better Not Come Back, Helena E. Yang

SURGE

Every time a new season of the Bachelorette starts, I tell myself that I won’t watch this season—that I won’t give in to the trashiness and the petty drama which is the Bachelor. But I can’t help it. Season after season I’m hooked and 17 seasons later… here I am. [excerpt]

Fearless: Professor Janet Powers And Linnea Goebel, Janet M. Powers, Linnea C. Goebel

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This week we would like to recognize Professor Janet Powers and recent graduate Linnea Goebel ’13 for their work in Bosnia this summer helping to set up a group of female embroiderers with an Amazon Marketplace account to sell their wares on the internet. [excerpt]

Fearless: Heather Thomas, Heather L. Thomas

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This week we would like to recognize recent graduate and AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer Heather Thomas ’13, who is returning to Gettysburg as the fearless new coordinator for the Adams County Food Policy Council. [excerpt]

Milking The System: Do Poor People Deserve Fresh Food?, Melanie M. Meisenheimer

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Poor Americans are all lazy, selfish people who must first prove their worth as human beings if they want to be able to feed their children.

It sounds harsh, stereotypical, and judgmental when you put it like that, and few people would feel comfortable saying that exact phrase. However, it’s a perception of poverty in America that I’ve found still has a strong grip on our way of thinking. [excerpt]

Until The Cops Come Knocking, Mauricio E. Novoa

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“Fuck the police coming straight from the underground/ A young nigga got it bad ‘cause I’m brown/ And not the other color so police think/ They have the authority to kill a minority” – Ice Cube, “Fuck Tha Police”

At some point in our lives, we have all walked down a street for some minute errand, and a few of those times we may have crossed paths with men in uniform patrolling the streets. Some who cross them may not think anything of it, but for others, they feel their eyes follow every step they take and distaste is exchanged …

Fearless: Christine Serwan And Sam Holmes, Christine M. Serwan, Samuel R. Holmes

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This week, we’re recognising the fearless work that Christine Serwan ’13 and Sam Holmes ’13 will be doing over the next two years during with the Peace Corps. [excerpt]

The Legal Limits Of Racism, Chelsea E. Broe

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When I heard the news that the Food Network decided not to renew Paula Deen’s contract after she admitted to making racist comments, I was happy. Not because she used racial slurs, of course, but because she was punished for it. Maybe I’m a cynic, but I like the idea of public attention being placed on wrongdoings. That’s the whole point of having free speech, after all: to have an open dialogue wherein all possible viewpoints can be voiced, considered, challenged, and criticized until they are ultimately decided to be acceptable or unacceptable. [excerpt]

Take My People To The Top, Nadejiah Z. Towns

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“…but what I really want to do is help the black people, especially the young black girls…” Did she just say that? Wait, can she say that? Is she wrong for feeling that way? I wonder how other people would feel it they knew she felt this way? So many questions began to run through my mind, but my reaction? I just sat there, nodding. Her body language told me even she knew there was something controversial about what she was saying. Not to mention that she whispered it, you know, the old hand over the mouth gesture. [excerpt …

Rape Culture Ruined My Favorite 80s Movie, Stephanie K. Adamczak

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I will admit that I wish my best friend was Duckie, I want to attend just one Saturday detention with Emilio Estevez, and I listen to an unhealthy amount of music from the Smiths and the Psychedelic Furs. Yes, I am a child of the nineties, but I spent many high school nights watching John Hughes films and attempting to dye my hair the perfect shade of Molly Ringwald red. [excerpt]

Fearless: The Class Of 2013, Center For Public Service

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This week Surge wants to recognize all of the Gettysburg College graduates who will use what they learned and experienced over the past four years to fearlessly promote change, seek justice, and challenge inequality after leaving Gettysburg College. The following list contains the names of all of the members of the class of 2013 who have been recognized by other members of the campus community as leaders of change, and we are proud to claim these fearless and inspirational students as our own. [excerpt]

Fearless: Diversity Peer Educators, Center For Public Service

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The Diversity Peer Educators was started in the Fall of 2012 with the vision of starting conversations about and advocating for diversity issues and inclusion on this campus. Right off the bat, twelve students (of all different class years) were trained in how to facilitate those conversations and lead activities that make those conversations a little easier. Now, there are seventeen DPEs fearlessly making change at Gettysburg College. [excerpt]

You Can't Always Get What You Want, Laura J. Koenig

SURGE

My parents used to tell me that I wasn’t entitled to anything—that I should be happy with what I have and not assume that I deserved something unless I had worked for it. Either way, entitlement is something that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. So what do I think I’m entitled to? I’m not really sure. Maybe I’m entitled to making my own choices about what I’m going to do after graduation or having friends that treat me well. Maybe not. [excerpt]

How To Know If You're An Extremist, Katherine M. White

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I’m a serious West Wing fan. I love it because it not only gives me a little insight into what is obviously a totally accurate depiction of what life is like working in the White House (right?) but it also makes me think. Take this scene from season 3 as an example:

Josh Lyman, the Deputy White House Chief, is stuck in the White House cafeteria with a group of high school students while the White House is under emergency lockdown. Since the students have been promised the opportunity to speak to influential people in D.C. during their visit, Lyman …

Fearless: Allan Kawala, Allan I. Kawala

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Allan Kawala ‘13 does not stand on the sidelines. He is an agent of change and is a leader at Gettysburg College and in his home country of Malawi. He has dedicated his life to making social change a reality. [excerpt]