Blog at New Site- This One Soon to End

Hello!

I know I haven't posted in ages and so to encourage myself to do so more often I redesigned the blog but to get it the way I wanted I had to move it. You can now find the blog at mcwhereistand.wordpress.com! See you there!

Thank you and happy reading!

Michael :-)

Innocent Until Proven Guilty

Hi,

As I am sure we have all heard in one way or another within the last year, there has been a case in Florida which has garnered national attention: The State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin. I wanted to write the last weekend about what I could, but researching the case took much longer than expected. That turned out to be good as a lot of interesting things have surfaced since the end of the trial. 

I will do my best to remain impartial but as a Black man and a White man who knows the implication of this verdict, bias may slip into my logic. If you find it so, please bring it to my attention.

This will no doubt be the hardest post I have written so far as a man of logic and thought, and as a man who lives in a country where I am statistically more likely to be killed with no punishment for my destroyer just because I look a certain way and the assumptions that come with that. But that is why I must write it. And so, here we go.

Trayvon Martin

Martin was a college-bound 17 year-old teen

growing up in Florida.

George Zimmerman

Zimmerman is a 29 year-old former

neighborhood watch captain

For quick background information if you are not already familar with the case, see this CNN Fast Facts page.

The Beginning

What we know

Sanford, FL

This case began with George Zimmerman calling his local Sanford police one rainy night to report a suspicious person. In this call Zimmerman sounds like any concerned citizen. Based on the langauge used in the beginning he seems to believe the person is suspicious and only thinks they might be black, as his vision is impaired due to the rain. Zimmerman notes, after having seen Martin, that he has something in his hands and that he is in fact a black teenager. 

He has often been quoted saying ""These assholes, they always get away". This phrase could have multiple meanings, as break-ins had been happenning often in the neighborhood. Many have believed the phrase to be racially motivated, which juding from a Zimmerman MySpace page that has surfaced, could be very true. However, because of the meaning being hazy, it does not tell us anything about anything in the case. 

During this call, Zimmerman notes Martin begins running away and decides to follow him. The police on the dispatch makes clear that he does not need to follow him. However, Zimmerman still follows the teen. When trying to decide on a place to meet the officers that are enroute, Zimmerman decides to have the police call him when they are in the area. His intent then was to follow Martin and then call the police and tell them where he was, which is based on the facts that we know he continued to follow Martin and did not obey instructions to not pursue the teen. 

This is all we truly know about the beginning of that night and this entire case. Next in the story is the actual fight that lead to the loss of Martin's life. After that, however, comes what got the story national attention. The fact that Zimmerman was not even arrested. 

This part of the story is what is the most troubling for the entire scenario because it is essentially why the case is so ambiguous. Because of what we can only assume was lack of intelligence- and possibly racial profiling at the worst- the Sanford police department did not do a proper investigation of the crime scene and let Zimmerman go solely based on his telling of events, as the police chief acknolwedged, which you can find in the CNN Fast Facts above. 

What we don't know

That phone call ended at 7:13PM. Martin was fatally shot at 7:17PM. Those four minutes of time are where we know almost nothing and are part of the reason Zimmerman was acquited. Another large part of that acquital was the lack of forensic evidence usually found in crime scenes that was missing here, for whatever reason. 

We also don't know how the confrontation started, and to an effect that is of little meaning. Zimmerman was acquitted for self-defense, which in Florida means he feared for his life and had the right to kill to defend it. However, something I have not heard discussed is what if Martin felt the same way during the altercation? Would that have given him the right to fight back, as he seemed to based on Zimmerman's bruises? 

The Evidence- or Lack Thereof

What we know

The one thing we know is Martin is dead after being followed by Zimmerman and a confrontation which lead to him being shot. Some other pieces of evidence have emerged throughout the case that are worth mention. 

For instance, the testimony of Rachel Jeantel. As noted in Jelani Cobb's article on Jeantel, 

In Jeantel’s retelling of the night Martin was killed, he’d seemed fearful of the man following him around the subdivision and grew increasingly concerned that he was being followed, though he refused her suggestion that he run for safety. He momentarily thought he’d lost Zimmerman, she said, only to sigh, minutes later, “nigg[a] is still following me” 

Rachel Jeantel on Piers Morgan after the trial, I highly recommend watching this interview

Perhaps then this is the reason Martin began to run, as noted before. Not because of a crime he had committed and was running from, but because he feared Zimmerman. Not necessarily truth, but not refutable either.  

Her testimony also revealed that she was on the phone with Martin just before the altercation. With appropriate evidence and analysis, we would have Martin's phone and studied it to see if it could tell us anything about what happened and perhaps if Zimmerman attacked Martin first, which was her belief based on the abrupt end of the phone conversation which left Martin dead 1 minute later. This would be important because the jury believes Martin started the altercation, which was evident in juror B-37's CNN interviews and is the reason Zimmerman walks a free man. 

Another testimony that was useful was that of Dennis Root, a public saftey consultant who was an expert witness who testified that Martin was in better physical shape than that of Zimmerman. However, as pointed out in Yvette Carnel's article about Root as a witness, 

On the night of the murder, Trayvon Martin weighed 158 lbs and George Zimmerman weighed around 185 lbs, according to Wikipedia. Given that, it’s a stretch to believe that Zimmerman feared for his life at the hands of lighter and younger Trayvon Martin. And when one considers that Trayvon Martin had marijuana, a known depressant, in his system, Zimmerman’s story becomes even more unbelievable.

The point I wanted to make here is that Martin was lighter. If Martin was lighter than Zimmerman and not restricting his hands (which we can assume to be the case if Martin was banging Zimmerman's head against concrete as Zimmerman has claimed) then what was stopping him from throwing Martin off and, if he feared for his life, running? Perhaps he thought Martin had a gun. If that was the case the why did Zimmerman follow him? There seems to be some flaw in logic that Zimmerman has had when retelling the events. 

There is some evidence however, that seems to support Zimmerman's account that Martin was on top of him, as forensic analyst Vincent Di Miao noted. Di Miao also noted that there were inconsistencies in the forensic evidence, which could be the reason his account contradicts that of witnesses for the state. Something else that could be of note in the fact that his expert testimony is contradictory is that he was being paid a hefty amount to testify, as noted in the article. 

What we don't know

Larry Koblinisky

Perhaps the most disconcerting thing about this entire case, especially to look at it from an empircal and logical standpoint, is the entire lack of forensics and mishandling of what could have been powerful evidence, as noted by Larry Koblinisky, a respected foresic scientist, in his MSNBC interview about the case. 

Part of that evidence is the scream for help in the video. Despite the fact that 2 forensic scientists have identified the person screaming as Martin, I have not heard mention of that being used in the case, only that both sides can find friends of Zimmerman and Martin with no scientific evidence that say it is either Martin or Zimmerman. However, with those testimonies, and this eviedence, I would belive that that disqualifies Zimmerman's self-defense theory, but I am not an expert on Florida's laws to know for sure. 

One point that I found particularly interesting and saddenning then was that of Juror B-37 when she mentions in her interview that they mostly believed it was Zimmerman, despite not having any evidence to go on outside of personal opinion and the scientific evidence to the contrary. 

Conclusion

Based on the phone call with Jeantel as well as the forensics that are available as well as other evidence above, this is what I believe happened that night. 

1. Zimmerman was legitmately concerned about his neighborhood and called the non-emergency line of his local police to report what he believed to be suspicious activity.
2. During that call, he noticed that the person he saw was Black, which ignited prior racial tensions in him as evident in his MySpace profile, and then decided to pursue the teen.
3. Martin confronted Zimmerman after not being able to evade him- asking him what his problem was but not attacking him.
4. At this time, if Zimmerman had been afraid for his life, psychology would suggest he would pull his weapon on Martin, attack Martin, or return questioning to waste time for the arrival of police. The same could be said of Martin, except for the latter as he did not know the police were in route. However, if Martin intiated the attack, why would his phone have fallen out of his hand? This leads me to believe Zimmerman attacked Martin out of either fear or anger, but Zimmerman intitated the conflict.
5. Martin begins to get the best of Zimmerman and Zimmerman then takes out his gun. Martin begins to scream for help when he sees the gun and gets off of Zimmerman. Zimmerman shoots and kills Martin. How long Martin stays alive here is debateable and could lead to numerous truths.
6. The police, because of a racial profile of Martin based on Zimmerman's story and Stand Your Ground, let Zimmerman go and do a poor job of investigating the crime (the former because of Stand Your Groud, the latter because of the profile). You can see my former post about the lack of logic in racial profiling that leads to these sort of tragedies.
7. The lack of an indictment leads to national outcry and, after the case, the lack of a conviction.

However, the system has spoken. Innocent until proven guilty; and the proof was not given in this case. Now we must do all we can to learn from our past to better our future and to right the wrongs of yesterdays.

Outside of the case itself, I believe there are some implications and other topics around the case that need to be discussed as well.

Implications of it All

This case has ignited a much needed discussion in America: race. There has been a lot of thought I have seen from numerous places as I have come to college and been introduced to a new variety of people and viewpoints where people are mislead to believe we are a post-racial society or that discrimination is no longer a problem in this nation. However, this case and the tens, if not hundreds, like it that have emerged or re-emerged are sound examples to the contrary, as is the study I posted earlier about how often murderer's conviction rates tend to rely on their race.  

A sentiment that often stems from victims of this discrimination- or any oppression, really- is a desire to leave. As much as I understand that, we can't. We have to stay and we have to educate others- most who so badly want to understand- why things like this are so important and why we must learn from them. Only through that learning can we find understanding. If we leave, ignorance spreads and all the work against injustice has been for naught, and that in and of itself is an injustice. 

As alwaystheself (Crystal) notes in her blog post, "Dear America: It's Not You. It's Me" 

Yes, I know no country is perfect and every society has its baggage. I’m not wearing rose colored glasses. But I am wearing tears – and not just my own. I’m wearing my mother’s tears. My community’s tears. My allies’ tears. And the worst thing of all is that there is nothing new about this. We’ve been crying these tears for many lifetimes, for many generations. Here, in my sadness and pain, it would be easy to blame you, to say that you are the problem. But that would also be a lie. I am part of the problem. And I am also part of the solution.

As she acknolwedges, we are all a part of these struggles- for both the good and bad, the better and the worse. In that responsibility, we have to understand that no place is without struggles and these- ours- are truly some worth fighting against. 

Cynthia Tucker

A major part of the race discussion has been that Zimmerman is not White, but Hispanic. This is actually ignorance to the fact that you can qualify as both in Ameria (White Hispanic). However, if he was only Hispanic, I believe the Zimmerman case would have still garnered national attention. The problem intially was not that Zimmerman was racist, but the police. They did not investigate the murder effectively because of Martin's race. That 'benefit of the doubt' given to Zimmerman because he has White heritage and because Martin was Black are the main racial issues at play here and those racial profiles are on display at a highly institutional level. As Cynthia Tucker noted in her MSNBC post, 

Though Zimmerman racially profiled and followed a young black man who was minding his own business, six white women believed that Zimmerman acted in self-defense — or, at least, that the prosecution didn’t prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. That wouldn’t be as quite as painful if black defendants were given the same benefit of those doubts.

That is the struggle we are fighting against: perception. After all these years the color of skin still matters more than the content of the character and that can not continue if America ever expects to recover from this tragedy and prevent so many more. 

This is also the reason the case matters so much in light of black on black crime in the country. As Jelani Cobb stated in a New Yorker blog post, 

O’Mara’s statement echoed a criticism that began circulating long before Martin and Zimmerman encountered each other. Thousands of black boys die at the hands of other African Americans each year, but the black community, it holds, is concerned only when those deaths are caused by whites. It’s an appealing argument, and widespread, but it’s simplistic and obtuse. It’s a belief most easily held when you’ve not witnessed peace rallies and makeshift memorials, when you’ve turned a blind eye to grassroots organizations like the Interrupters in Chicago, who are working valiantly to stem the tide of violence in that city. It is the thinking of people who’ve never wondered why African Americans disproportionately support strict gun-control legislation. The added quotient of outrage in cases like this one stems not from the belief that a white murderer is somehow worse than a black one but from the knowledge that race determines whether fear, history, and public sentiment offer that killer a usable alibi.

The last part of his statement is really the strength of the statement. There is much work in black communities to tide the rise of black-on-black crime; those just don't get as much media attention, for whatever reason (I have many theories, not for this blog). The reason a "White" person killing a "Black" gets more apparent attention and outrage is because in that case, justice is less, much less, likely to be served.

It all comes back to education. Cultural divides and assumption in this country have gone rampant, only made worse by the ignorance spread so quickly through social media and consumed as true. That ignorance must be dealt with before it becomes our downfall. In the era of technology we have the tools to understand one another and we must use them. If the jury had more knowledge on race relations and certain phrases used in mostly black communities, their gaze would have been more discerning in more instances in this case. The same could be true of those who do not understand that assuming Zimmerman is racist because he is White is just as bad as him assuming something about Martin's danger level because he was Black- if that was the case. We need to learn to educate ourselves, especially as a people who chose to allow other citizens- despite their education levels- to judge us, so that these things truly can be dealt with appropriately and not quickly. Justice does not come in a morning. It comes through many nights. Through many tears. And through many triumphs.

This is Where I Stand. 

The Lack of Logic in Racial Profiling

Hello!

Ran across this on tumblr this morning and after I read through the comments, thought it would be perfect to post here. The video they are refering to can be found in this article http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/07/02/2245561/levar-burton-explains-how-he-prevents-violence-when-hes-racially-profiled/?mobile=nc or you can watch the video embedded below. 

obamacarekush:

raceandeconomics:

polymathblogger:

raceandeconomics:

"Listen, I’m gonna be honest with you, and this is a practice I engage in every time I’m stopped by law enforcement. And I taught this to my son who is now 33 as part of my duty as a father to ensure that he knows the kind of world in which he is growing up. So when I get stopped by the police, I take my hat off and my sunglasses off, I put them on the passenger’s side, I roll down my window, I take my hands, I stick them outside the window and on the door of the driver’s side because I want that officer to be relaxed as possible when he approaches my vehicle. And I do that because I live in America."

I’m glad Levar kept it real.

Levar is correct and it is good that he explains this. However, people are going to have very different reactions to this because they will have different opinions on how much of the blame for this unfortunate indignity belongs to bad cops and how much belongs to the black criminals whose existence alters the rational probability estimates people make when seeing black men.

I don’t actually mind if someone’s opinion on this blame-allocation differs from mine; I just don’t want them to pretend it’s 100%-0% or 0%-100% and I don’t want them to declare discussion of the question off limits.

That sounds a lot like some victim blamin horseshit

cool story using Bayesian probability to mask your racism

LTMC: @Polymathblogger: Arrest rates and conviction rates are not a proxy for criminal behavior.  You’re not accounting for several layers of subjectivity.  Arrest rates and conviction rates only indicate who the police are actuallychoosing to arrest, and who the prosecutors are choosing to charge, and who juries are choosing to convict of those crimes.  As I noted back in 2011:

Imagine you have two groups of individuals: call them A and B.  Let us assume that both Group A and B participate in behavior that is punishable as a crime at equal rates.

Now let us imagine that the police are allowed wide discretion in whom they investigate for crime.  Obviously, if the police decide to pay closer attention to one group rather than the other, they will discover more crimes within that group, and thus, make more arrests.  But remember that both Group A and B participate in behavior punishable as crime at roughly equivalent rates. Yet because the police pay extra-close attention to Group B, more of Group B’s members end up in jail.  This gives people the impression that members of Group B are more likely to be criminals, even thought Group A participates in illegal behavior at the same rate as Group B.

When police disproportionately investigate minorities for crime, as they certainly do, it should not surprise anyone that a larger percentage of the minority population stands convicted of criminal behavior.  It doesn’t mean non-Blacks aren’t participating in the same behavior.  It means they aren’t getting caught because the police aren’t subjecting them to a similar level of scrutiny.

This is why statistics without critical theory are not useful.  When you don’t evaluate the subjective elements in your data, you get bad conclusions, i.e. that there are more Black criminals, and thus,  the “rational probability estimates" of the general population are altered in response to heightened Black criminality.  There is no heightened Black criminality.  Just (conscious and unconscious) racist policing.

-------------------------
This post gets directly to the reason racial profiling is not just wrong, but dangerous. So many more crimes can be committed by a group of people, just because of our assumptions. This is a examplar of how our assumptions can lead us the wrong way and why logic should play a greater role in how we conduct ourselves as a society and education should be held to a higher regard. In a nation that should- and claims to- pride itself on its acceptance of others and strides towards social justice, things such as this are still a major problem.


Hopefully we see, through the logic placed in that last comment- not only how racial profiling is logically wrong and should not be blamed on the targets (as one other commenter illogically would have it) but we can also see that it is costing us numerous lives with so much more potential because after centuries and millenia we still haven't mentally evolved to the point where skin color isn't the largest determining factor in your initial view of someone.

This is Where I Stand.

As usual, if you would like to discuss or debate the topic, or if you would like me to attempt to write on an issue, email me at mlchrzan@outlook.com

Paula Dean and the Societal Complacency of Ignorance

Hi!
I realize it has been two months since I last posted and for that I am dearly sorry for those reading often! I have been touring with the University of Michigan Men's Glee Club and have recently been training to be an intern teacher with the Breakthrough Collaborative in New York City. Both have been great experiences, feel free to check them out in the links. I actually taught my first class today and it was amazing!

So! To why I am writing today. As you know I try to be impartial and logical in my stance on controversial issues. In that battle, I have been fortunate to meet others who can share that mindset at times and one of my good friends made a post today about the Paula Deen controversy I thought really captured what I try to when thinking about these issues. 

Paula Deen 

Her post was:  

"The world we live in..... So this whole Paula Dean thing 

With the minimal information that we as a society have been fed about this cooking ladies personality it has definitely stirred the pot. Regardless of whether or not her view of blacks was articulated correctly I do not fully know, with everyone doing he said she said.

I believe sometimes the democratic state of mind that we all live in sometimes removes our compassion and realistic factor, and our mouths get disconnected from our brain.

Everyone is quick to defend themselves and say what they won't tolerate and yet there are more important issues not being addressed at this current time.

What is still happening with the IRS? where is Charles Pugh?

It is clear that sometimes the black society can be like little cats, waive a ball of yarn in front of our eyes and we'll forget whats really going on.

I feel deeply for Ms. Dean and no not because i'm trying to take her side and say whether or not her comment was or was not right, but because she is little being dragged through media fire.

It is not our job to crucify but rather identify recognize and spread truth!

Take the big picture away from this moment, Yes there are still people who do not know how to correctly interact across cultures, how do we as people address this? Social justice isn't learned over night.

We are all humans that still have emotions whether or not we are right or wrong... Let her acquire the help she needs in her own time not push her wrong doings in her face. I pray peace in her life"

In times like these it is SO easy to be critical. It is, to an extent necessary. But instead of breaking down, destroying during these moments they should be critical periods for each to teach and learn about each other. Nothing, especially not social justice, is truly learned over night and we can no longer afford to be complacent in our ignorance, both of individuals and of cultures. It takes years of trying and conversations to learn and understand. And after all that work, you become even wiser to just how much you are still ignorant of and that is the beauty of learning. It never ends, and it never has to!

Lets not be distracted by the "ball and yarn" (which I would say applies to numerous identities of people, not just blacks) and instead really learn to work out our issues.

Let's take moments like this to talk about the fact that race is still a major issue in this world and how we can go about breaking down the barriers we have been taught to build around ourselves. After all, no one can teach anyone else about you but you.

Let's claim and master our own experiences and share them with the world; teach your understanding.

Paula Deen still has work to do. But as a society, will we teach her the errs of her ways or solely break her down for them? I would hope we can be wise enough to know that nothing will come f that that will better us. Remember, we all make mistakes, just as we all struggle.

I'm Michael Chrzan and...

This is Where I Stand.

As always, if you want to discuss or debate my stance, email me at mlchrzan@outlook.com

Domestic Terrorism & Hypocrisy

Hi Everyone,

First off, thanks for the now over 1100 views. That means- on average- 300 people read this blog a month. Hopefully, in some small way- that is me provoking thought and logic and positive change.

I wanted to bring to your attention a small artilce I read today by LZ Granderson of CNN about the gang violence in Chicago and looking at the gangs as terrorists instead of "just gangs". I am thinking about using this article in a larger writing later this month, so let me know what you think about it in the comments below or by emailing me at mlchrzan@outlook.com.

LZ Granderson

The article- titled "Treat Chicago gangs as terrorists" is linked here. From what I can piece together, it is strange to me how attacks on citizens by citizens is seen as no big deal- something to be handled by local authorities. Yet, we kill ourselves by the hundreds each day- especially in major urban centers riddled by gang violence. However, if someone from another country kills Americans- all hell breaks loose, such as in the Boston bombings case and I think Granderson does a great job of making us realize that hypocrisy. Gangs- American gangs- take more American lives each day than that one attack. Yet no tears are shed nationally for these victims and no stronger action is taken to disband these domestic terrorists (which gangs do fall under the denoted definition of terrorists). We must then ask ourselves- are we really that concerned with American lives? Are we really that concerned with life at all?

Because if we are, we are living a lie.

That's Where I Stand

Show You- Character and its Place in Applications

Hello,

I am so sorry I haven't written a post in so long. April is a very hectic month for me as far as student group performances and finals and papers and projects and just life haha. But recently there have been a couple of stories that have peaked my interest when thinking about social justice and keeping my theme of impartiality going I was curious to see if I could write on the story of one Suzy Lee Weiss.

Suzy Lee Weiss on Good Morning America

For those who have not heard the story that garnered her a spot on Good Morning America, feel free to watch the video above see the link in the next paragraph for her article. 

I'll start with her side. I can not find very much information on Suzy Lee Weiss (probably best). From what I can find she is a child from a well-off family and a high school senior graduating and apparently attending the University of Michigan in the fall, if the end of the GMA video is any indication. So keeping what I do know out of mind, I went back and re-read her op-ed titled "To (All) the Colleges that Rejected Me" in the Wall Street Journal. 

When trying to do so I found out very quickly that that would be next to impossible; she writes the articles based on the stereotypes she feels she lacks. She writes in the article "If it were up to me, I would've been any of the diversities: Navajo, Pacific Islander, anything." Her entire article is about how who she is has kept her out of her dream schools. I can understand where Suzy is coming from, however. She worked hard throughout high school- academically at least- and has some amazing numbers behind her to prove it. She apparently has also done some community service according to her interview. College admissions to these tops schools- and just in general- have become increasingly competitive and if that is what Suzy was trying to evaluate she did do that-although how she did it seems to be the problem and where her logic was flawed.

Now, onto the other side. In her article, Suzy using some very emotional language. She says things such as:

"I also probably should have started a fake charity."
"I would have gladly worn a headdress to school. Show me to any closet, and I would've happily come out of it. "Diversity!"

No wonder people are making a fuss; perhaps it is because of the tone of the writing. Suzy notes in her interview that she wrote this piece at the advice of her sister (who just so happens to have worked for the WSJ) the day she was "in tears" over her rejection from numerous schools. I believe that could be the problem. It doesn't seem like this is a satire. It is more like an emotional outrage of her trying to demerit anyone who had characterisitcs she felt she didn't that got them into the school instead of her. That is what can be best gathered from the tone of herarticle (the worst being that she is a racist. Let's not go that far). 

The admissions process and decisions for every school in this country are different. Thousands of students- some with those criteria she mentions and the numbers she has- get rejected. The thing to remember is that all the numbers and activities are not quotas to be filled. There aren't a certain number of spots for kids who did band, or choir, and black kids that did 4 extracurriculars, etc. There are just open seats and college leave them open to students who they feel will add to their environment- in any way. Diversity has more meaning than just ethnically. It is attitude, geography, socieoeconomic status, and many other things can be considered diversity and finding the right blend of diversities is what college strive for so that they can become these microcasms of learning and understanding our fellow men through interaction at great instituions of learning. 

Perhaps that is where Suzy was confused. When the colleges said "Just be yourself" they didn't mean be you. They meant show you. Show them who you are through your extracurriculars, through you're heritage, through your charity, through anything you can show us, show us your character and how you define yourself and shape the world around you. She shouldn't be angry because some students found ways to describe themselves- show themselves- and build that character that she so easily showed she lacked. 

In my research (read: Googling) I ran across one article response that truly spoke to what I believe logically follows from this topic. In the article its author, Kendra James, writes

In an ill-advised appearance on The Today Show, Suzy argues that the necessity of diversity means that colleges are judging applicants using factors (read: race) that the applicants have no control over. “Anyone can relate to this,” she says.
Actually Suzy, no, they can’t. I mean, we could start with fact that most of us don’t have the luxury of being able to cry over our failings publicly in a nationally published papers where our sisters just so happened to work once upon a time. Plus, in singling out diversity as your issue, you’re eliminating half the college applying population from your debate. By your logic, if a white girl with your background doesn’t get into an Ivy League college, it’s because there weren’t enough spots for white students that year. But, if a non-white girl with an identical profile is rejected, who do they blame? No one. They don’t have the excuse; they simply weren’t good enough. We don’t get to make ourselves feel better by engaging in a smear campaign against the fictional Cherokee girl that took our Ivy League slot.

Another of Suzy's quotes is 

Diversity is a wonderful thing. I think all colleges should have a holistic approach to every college applicant. I do, however, think that in this day in age we're being judged on things that we cannot control as opposed to things that we can.

The err in logic here is that we can control who we are and how we will represent ourselves and out impact on society. Even if it is in the smallest of ways- how those experiences build our character is what colleges want to know and what Suzy lacked. Her story speaks to a common misconeption about how we see achievements in the United States. You aren't being judged on what you did when applying to college, or to anything for that matter. You are being judged on what those things did to you and who you have become as a result of your experiences. 

I'm Michael Chrzan and That's Where I Stand. 

Justice. Is it worth it?

Hello!

Came across a really powerful video today and just had to share. It speaks to what I want to do, in a small part, with this blog.

Here is the link: http://vimeo.com/60349898

Justice is never not worth fighting for. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere; so we fight everyday and we struggle and we become a voice for those who are voiceless, a noise for those who can't beat the own drums or toot their own horns. We should never tire from demanding what is right in this world. And we can all debate what right is and where that notion comes from but in the end we all know the golden rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. And I would go so far as to extend it. Expect what is good for others as you would expect for yourself and when you see disparity, do what you can to help. It may not be much. But whatever you can.

If everyone on the planet jumped at the same time we could knock the Earth off it's axis a little. So if we all do a little something, something amazing could happen.

That's Where I Stand.

Cellblock v. College

Hi Everyone,

While perusing through Tumblr tonight, the following story caught my attention:

More Black Men in College than in Prison

In 2009, the DOJ’s most recent year for data on prison populations, there were more than 150 percent more black males in college than incarcerated. Given the declining prison presence of African Americans—incarceration rates fell sharply between 2000 and 2009, and remain on a downward slope—and the growing presence of blacks in higher education, the difference between the two populations is likely larger.

 The first thing that came to my mind was: YESSSS!!! Then I read the article..

While I am happy the numbers are there, the reality is so much more dismal and to see a pure lack of understanding for that in this piece is disheartening. Don't let the facts get in the way of the truth.

The way the author disregards the fact that black males are still disproportionately represented in community colleges and alternative higher education due to a lack of opportunity in public elementary and secondary education (which the research article he wrote this piece on acknowledges) is a disrespect to many who are working towards building up those systems.

For instance, at the University of Michigan, where I am currently an undergraduate, there are more International students enrolled than African American students, with one of the most African American populated cities (my hometown of Detroit) less than 50 miles away.

And this is not to say, of course, that those institutions can not serve those students well. But there is a definite lack of opportunity when compared to schools like Harvard, Berkley, or Michigan, further disenfranchising this community. 

Another fact that I believe should be included in the research and should have been a apart of his analysis is the fact that the research article implied that many schools did not report to the 2001-2002 data, which could mean that there has not been that great of a change, while the number of African American males incarcerated seems to have remained stagnant. This implies that nothing has changed, we still incarcerate many black males who are victims of a failing system instead of righting their path to truly see these two data sets become inversely proportional. That complacency is saddening.

I will say, however, the fact that more Black males are seeking higher education of any kind is elevating as a Black male to hear, but to say that this number makes everything ok, which is the sense I got from the article (especially the last line), shows true ignorance on the part of the author and anyone who doesn't ask for a deeper understanding of this complex issue.

I don't profess to have all the answers but as someone who is a part of these numbers and someone who will make it his life's work to change them for the better, that ignorance can not stand alone.
So That's Where I Stand.

Silver Linings- Seeing Small Light in the Tragedy of Newtown

Today, while browsing the internet and coming across some good ol' Sunday morning politics, I came across a story that ended with a statement from some who represents the NRA that not only peaked my interest but seemed so immoral that it couldn't get passed up.

"The National Rifle Association distanced itself Tuesday from a comment made by a lobbyist for one of its “chartered organizations” in Wisconsin, who said recently that gun rights proponents need only to wait out the “Connecticut Effect” before passing laws loosening restrictions on guns." (full story here)

"The brush-off came three days after Welch was recorded telling an audience at a Wisconsin state NRA meeting that the group has 'a strong [lobbying] agenda coming up for next year, but of course a lot of that’s going to be delayed as the 'Connecticut effect' has to go through the process.'" (full story here)

And here is an audio of his comment.



Wisconsin lobbyist Bob Welch, shown here in this 2004 photo handing out literature during his Republican primary run for the U.S. Senate.


Now, before I talk more on what I think, I went and looked up information on Bob Welch. I couldn't find much, but here is what I found. According to his lobbying firm:

"A graduate of MATC and Ripon College, Bob is a land-surveyor by profession, and served in the State legislature for twenty years. Bob was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1984, quickly rising to leadership positions. After ten years of service, Bob was elected to the State Senate in 1995, serving until 2004. The eventual sale of the surveying business allowed Bob and Jeanne to expand and diversify the services of The Welch Group. An active member of national political organizations, Bob has expertise in both national and international policy and business." (Source)

That's about all I can find that speaks to his character from him officially. I am trying to stay unbiased on forming an opinion of him, outside of this comment, but cant seem to find much. If anyone knows more please email me at mlchrzan@outlook.com. But right now, seems like he is no different from those who would knowingly surrender what is best for everyone in place of personal gain. Not my type of person and not one I particularly care for either.
 
So, now onto what I think, after finding all of this...

I hate that this is what had to happen to make this a reality with all my heart and soul, but do you know what's the glimmering sparkle of hope for the Newtown shooting? It's outside of the talk on gun violence (and violence in general) that has been LONG overdue.
 
It's that, for the first time in this type of situation happening, and it has happened FAR too often, I don't know the name of the shooter. I know little to nothing about the shooter. Every time someone talks about it, they talk about the tragedy of almost 30 lives being lost, a number of those being children. They talk about the 2 administrators that immediately ran to protect their students after they heard the first shot. They talk about the teacher who hid her 30 students in cupboards and took the bullet for them. They talk about what should be talked about so that we can finally enact common sense, positive, change that we all so desperately need. I hate silver linings. But I understand how dark it would be without them. Don't let the "Connecticut Effect" pass. Especially not before we get some shred of future peace and justice for those children and educators. Silver linings. Got to hate 'em.
 
So no, Mr. Welch, the 'Connecticut Effect' will not pass so that you can continue lobbying. Because people, the people who those you lobby to, are tired of the games and the antics that halt progress and, eventually, hurt us all. We're tired and we want change and we will get it.
 
That's Where I Stand

Intolerant of Ignorance- A Beautiful Quote

Happy Friday Everybody! 

Saw this on the interwebs and found it so inspiring and relatable to what I am trying to accomplish with my blog. (picture from Google)  

Maya Angelou 

“My mother said I must always be intolerant of ignorance but understanding of illiteracy. That some people, unable to go to school, were more educated and more intelligent than college professors.”
— Maya Angelou

We must work to abolish ignorance, especially willful and stubborn ignorance, and be open to learning from others. Everyone has a story to tell, a history to learn from, and we all have something we can learn from one another. Our stories are our collective history. We should strive to make it one we can be proud of. 

Happy a safe and happy weekend!