Humanities
"What
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For this project, we transformed the Commons into a maze of information where we attempted to answer the question, "Does America Have a Gun Problem?" We studied countries with similar socioeconomic systems as the United States and created a timeline comparing mass shootings in each respective country. We extensively researched the second amendment and other gun related legislation in the United States. To accommodate all view points on the subject, we included examples of "good guys with guns who stopped bad guys with guns," and we had a "gun safe" with information about different firearms and firearm safety. As a conclusion to the project, we had what we called, "The Trigger Room." The Trigger Room was a room where we displayed texts from people to their families and friends during mass shootings. There was a mural and a projection showing "triggering" photos and videos from mass shootings, hence the name, "The Trigger Room." All in all, I think we successfully produced an informative yet interesting project that was inclusive of all viewpoints and ideas.
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Project Reflection
What was your viewpoint regarding firearms, their uses and misuses, and legislation coming in to the project?
Coming into this project, my views on guns and gun control were pretty liberal. My experiences with firearms were non-existent, and for the life of me, I could not understand why anyone would want to own a gun. I was always eager to converse with anyone and everyone about gun control and why I thought their opinions were wrong, when in reality, I didn’t have the necessary facts or information to make a solid argument for why I thought I was right. I knew next to nothing about current gun legislation in America, but I was certain that a replica of Australia’s gun legislation would suit us much better. Although, after researching, I still stand by my original statement.
In what ways was that viewpoint challenged by our class conversations, your research, and the exhibition?
Before we began the research part of our project, we had multiple socratic seminars where we discussed gun violence and firearms in general. The conversations became pretty heated and often times led to yelling and people talking over each other. People left the seminars feeling upset and unheard and at the time, these seemed altogether unproductive. Looking back on them after the completion of the project, I feel the opposite. Although the seminars stressed me out and put me in a bad mood, they forced me to listen to opposing views. I heard about people’s “good experiences” with guns and I learned about what it was like growing up surrounded by guns. I learned about how people’s upbringing affects their views, which in hindsight seems pretty obvious. These conversations forced me out of my little liberal bubble and gave me some perspective.
During the research stage of the project my eyes were opened even more. While a majority of the numbers I found supported my ideas, I realized how easy it was for numbers to be manipulated and used out of context. A more conservative source might say one thing, while a more liberal source would say the exact opposite. Although my opinions remain unchanged, this realization led me to more frequent fact checking and the utilization of a larger variety of sources.
What adversity did you face during this project and how did you overcome it/make your way through it?
I would like to start answering this question by saying that I am the biggest people pleaser you could ever meet. I require constant reassurance and validation, and I can’t stand the thought of someone being displeased with me. Being in a leadership position, I quickly learned that it is impossible to please everyone. Everyone came into the project with their own thoughts and ideas, and to accommodate all of them would have been a miracle.
During the project, it was brought up that some people thought that the leadership team and I were being too controlling of the project while at the same time, not pulling our weight. This was difficult to hear because we felt the opposite. We felt that we were working extremely hard and that we were contributing everything we possibly could have to the project. After a couple of long “bench talk rants” with my friends on the leadership team, and a validating talk with Cyle and Libby about sexism and leadership skills, I felt much better. I would definitely still fall under the “people-pleaser” category, but after doing this project I learned that there is nothing wrong with a little disagreement and conflict among peers--as long as it is handled correctly. I learned that there will always be somebody who disagrees with you, and that that’s okay. I learned that no matter how hard you try to make everyone happy, it just won’t happen. Finally, I learned that having a close group of friends to scream with is completely essential in any difficult situation.
In what ways did you contribute to your group and the class as a whole? What can you point to in the exhibition that is yours (e.g. something you made, researched, etc.)
I feel like I contributed largely to the planning and execution of the exhibition. My group and I spent a lot of time organizing the project as a whole so we could make sure that all viewpoints and opinions were included and also to ensure that, as a class, we would be able to finish the project with the minimal amount of time we had. We spent a lot of time formatting documents, commandeering supplies, thriving, drawing diagrams, and asking for forgiveness over permission.
Another part of the project that I played a large roll in was the activism room. The goal of this room was to inform people about different activism groups. We analyzed three organizations pushing for stricter gun control, and three organizations pushing for more freedom in regards to firearms. My group and I spent a lot of time at Cady’s house where we made protest signs for our activism wall and completed research upon research upon research. We ended up building a wall about 7 feet tall and 15 wide where we made a collage out of the protest signs. (We had signs representing both liberal and conservative views.) If I’m being completely honest, the part of the project that I was proudest of was the part where I “power-tooled.” In order to build our activism wall, I got to use a drill, a driver, and last but not least, a fancy kind of electric saw...I couldn’t tell you the name of it to save my life. It was an adventure.
Coming into this project, my views on guns and gun control were pretty liberal. My experiences with firearms were non-existent, and for the life of me, I could not understand why anyone would want to own a gun. I was always eager to converse with anyone and everyone about gun control and why I thought their opinions were wrong, when in reality, I didn’t have the necessary facts or information to make a solid argument for why I thought I was right. I knew next to nothing about current gun legislation in America, but I was certain that a replica of Australia’s gun legislation would suit us much better. Although, after researching, I still stand by my original statement.
In what ways was that viewpoint challenged by our class conversations, your research, and the exhibition?
Before we began the research part of our project, we had multiple socratic seminars where we discussed gun violence and firearms in general. The conversations became pretty heated and often times led to yelling and people talking over each other. People left the seminars feeling upset and unheard and at the time, these seemed altogether unproductive. Looking back on them after the completion of the project, I feel the opposite. Although the seminars stressed me out and put me in a bad mood, they forced me to listen to opposing views. I heard about people’s “good experiences” with guns and I learned about what it was like growing up surrounded by guns. I learned about how people’s upbringing affects their views, which in hindsight seems pretty obvious. These conversations forced me out of my little liberal bubble and gave me some perspective.
During the research stage of the project my eyes were opened even more. While a majority of the numbers I found supported my ideas, I realized how easy it was for numbers to be manipulated and used out of context. A more conservative source might say one thing, while a more liberal source would say the exact opposite. Although my opinions remain unchanged, this realization led me to more frequent fact checking and the utilization of a larger variety of sources.
What adversity did you face during this project and how did you overcome it/make your way through it?
I would like to start answering this question by saying that I am the biggest people pleaser you could ever meet. I require constant reassurance and validation, and I can’t stand the thought of someone being displeased with me. Being in a leadership position, I quickly learned that it is impossible to please everyone. Everyone came into the project with their own thoughts and ideas, and to accommodate all of them would have been a miracle.
During the project, it was brought up that some people thought that the leadership team and I were being too controlling of the project while at the same time, not pulling our weight. This was difficult to hear because we felt the opposite. We felt that we were working extremely hard and that we were contributing everything we possibly could have to the project. After a couple of long “bench talk rants” with my friends on the leadership team, and a validating talk with Cyle and Libby about sexism and leadership skills, I felt much better. I would definitely still fall under the “people-pleaser” category, but after doing this project I learned that there is nothing wrong with a little disagreement and conflict among peers--as long as it is handled correctly. I learned that there will always be somebody who disagrees with you, and that that’s okay. I learned that no matter how hard you try to make everyone happy, it just won’t happen. Finally, I learned that having a close group of friends to scream with is completely essential in any difficult situation.
In what ways did you contribute to your group and the class as a whole? What can you point to in the exhibition that is yours (e.g. something you made, researched, etc.)
I feel like I contributed largely to the planning and execution of the exhibition. My group and I spent a lot of time organizing the project as a whole so we could make sure that all viewpoints and opinions were included and also to ensure that, as a class, we would be able to finish the project with the minimal amount of time we had. We spent a lot of time formatting documents, commandeering supplies, thriving, drawing diagrams, and asking for forgiveness over permission.
Another part of the project that I played a large roll in was the activism room. The goal of this room was to inform people about different activism groups. We analyzed three organizations pushing for stricter gun control, and three organizations pushing for more freedom in regards to firearms. My group and I spent a lot of time at Cady’s house where we made protest signs for our activism wall and completed research upon research upon research. We ended up building a wall about 7 feet tall and 15 wide where we made a collage out of the protest signs. (We had signs representing both liberal and conservative views.) If I’m being completely honest, the part of the project that I was proudest of was the part where I “power-tooled.” In order to build our activism wall, I got to use a drill, a driver, and last but not least, a fancy kind of electric saw...I couldn’t tell you the name of it to save my life. It was an adventure.
Below is the piece of the project that I was most proud of. It is a "Wall of Activism," which was displayed in our activism room. We copied protest signs that we found displayed at different events. We tried to represent all view points with the signs.