7.29.10
After a few shifts in my placement and a week away from the Pipeline program due to prior engagements that I committed to way back when, I can finally say that I've completed my first day with my researcher :)
I've been placed at Cal State Fullerton with Ruth and Sora, alongside a few of the other interns. To make sure that I complete my hours in a timely manner, I arrived at CSUF at 8 in the morning so I could get a full day's in. When I arrived, Mia and Lala (2 of the other lovely interns with the Pipeline program) were typing away at their computers. I met with Ruth to formally introduce myself and go over what projects she had in store for us during our time with her. We talked about transcribing interviews, a storyboard project, and an accomplishment binder for the organization she's affiliated with called WINCART, among other things. For the remainder of the day, I helped organize the files on Ruth's computer that pertained to the cancer research that was stored in libraries within the network, as well as did some research on a womyn named Henrietta Lacks and something called Hela cells. In my research, I learned that Hela cells, named after and found in the body of Henrietta Lacks, are the 1st human cells from which a permanent cell line was established, thus helping to shape the way medicine moved in the 2nd half of the 20th century and 1st decade of this one.
You see, ordinary cells kept in a lab have a limited life span...but immortal cells like Hela cells is cultured in a particular way so it has the ability to proliferate indefinitely (information taken from the internet).
Henrietta Lack's cells were changing the face of medicine, making way for things such as polio vaccine, chemotherapy, cloning, and gene mapping.
The problem: neither Henrietta or her family knew ANYTHING about ANY of this.
During a surgery prior to her death, doctors took her cells and used it for research without her consent, and to make matters worse, her cells were used to develop medical treatments only available to those who could afford medical insurance, not low-income families like the Lackses.
I urge you, reader, to take it upon yourself to do your own research on the life of this womyn. It's stories like hers that make the medical field a challenge to challenge, but necessary nonetheless. To humanizing the medical world and beyond...
------
More blogging to come. I'm catching up!!!
Alofa Atu,
Risa
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Realizations.
So this post is more for me to get the things that have been on my mind lately OUT of my mind and onto something concrete. Like this blog. No updates on the internship then what's going on with my heart these days.
Realizations for the Week (thus far):
- I am probably the only one in the program who didn't come into the program with a direct interest/connection to the health/medical field. I do, though, believe that with the organizing experience I have with working with youth of color pertaining to access into higher education, "health" has a politics about it that extends beyond hospital talk. Health embodies all aspects of our daily living, and advocating for educational equity for youth of color is no exception, so with that said, I am thankful that being a part of the Pipeline program is helping me to reflect and grapple with the intersections of my role in all of this.
- I didn't know much about what I wanted to do with my immediate life post-grad, but I did know one thing: I have no intention on applying for grad school any time soon.
Okay. Getting a bit vulnerable here. Here goes:
I burned out during my 4 years at UCSC: between classes that steadily became more rigorous each year and the immense organizing I did on campus, I fell in and out of poor health and lack of attention to the need for "Me Time" and self-care. Oh yeah. And then there was family, church, money problems, internal conflicts, ex-lovers, and counseling appointments that were supposed to relieve it all.
Or... how about the AUDACITY I have to be a 1st generation/working class/student of color at a 4-year university? (I hope you caught the sarcasm in that one).
Sarcasm not included in this one: 1st generation/Working Class/Students of Color everywhere STAND UP: we didn't need a Sociology class to teach us that the University wasn't made with us in mind. For most of us, college in itself is a constant reminder that we don't belong here. We are all products of our environments, so when our environment is run by a system that sets our kids up for failure, prison, violence and the military, how do the few of us who slip through the cracks and into the +400 seated lectures halls on a campus that seems light years away from home go BACK home after graduating (hopefully) from one of the hardest uphill battles yet....and look our family in the eyes, and tell them that in all that remains in us...after 4 years of fresh wounds and new skin...that we are confident that we have what it takes to do it all over again in grad school?
I don't want easy. I just wanted a break from school.
"Wanted". Past tense. As in: I don't want that anymore.
From the moment the orientation ended, I had somewhat of an epiphany. In actuality, it was closer to a really big realization. Nevertheless, it was something that I've never felt until I started the Pipeline program. Something that never hit me this hard during my 4 years at UCSC. Something that was never apparent during any of the arguments I ever had with my parents about what my future goals are after I graduate: that amidst every hardship I endured in college...amidst everything I've shared mere lines ago in earlier paragraphs of this post...I am accountable to myself and to the family and community that I've carried with me all the way to that graduation stage on June 13, 2010 when I say that everything about my college experience was worth it in the end. That the beauty really was in the struggle. And with the help of everything I'm soaking in from this experience with the Pipeline program, there's really no room to slow down now.
Extremely long background story short: I'm in the process of looking into different programs up and down California. I'm going to apply for grad school.
I feel like a 18 year old high school senior all over again.
Cheers,
Risa
Realizations for the Week (thus far):
- I am probably the only one in the program who didn't come into the program with a direct interest/connection to the health/medical field. I do, though, believe that with the organizing experience I have with working with youth of color pertaining to access into higher education, "health" has a politics about it that extends beyond hospital talk. Health embodies all aspects of our daily living, and advocating for educational equity for youth of color is no exception, so with that said, I am thankful that being a part of the Pipeline program is helping me to reflect and grapple with the intersections of my role in all of this.
- I didn't know much about what I wanted to do with my immediate life post-grad, but I did know one thing: I have no intention on applying for grad school any time soon.
Okay. Getting a bit vulnerable here. Here goes:
I burned out during my 4 years at UCSC: between classes that steadily became more rigorous each year and the immense organizing I did on campus, I fell in and out of poor health and lack of attention to the need for "Me Time" and self-care. Oh yeah. And then there was family, church, money problems, internal conflicts, ex-lovers, and counseling appointments that were supposed to relieve it all.
Or... how about the AUDACITY I have to be a 1st generation/working class/student of color at a 4-year university? (I hope you caught the sarcasm in that one).
Sarcasm not included in this one: 1st generation/Working Class/Students of Color everywhere STAND UP: we didn't need a Sociology class to teach us that the University wasn't made with us in mind. For most of us, college in itself is a constant reminder that we don't belong here. We are all products of our environments, so when our environment is run by a system that sets our kids up for failure, prison, violence and the military, how do the few of us who slip through the cracks and into the +400 seated lectures halls on a campus that seems light years away from home go BACK home after graduating (hopefully) from one of the hardest uphill battles yet....and look our family in the eyes, and tell them that in all that remains in us...after 4 years of fresh wounds and new skin...that we are confident that we have what it takes to do it all over again in grad school?
I don't want easy. I just wanted a break from school.
"Wanted". Past tense. As in: I don't want that anymore.
From the moment the orientation ended, I had somewhat of an epiphany. In actuality, it was closer to a really big realization. Nevertheless, it was something that I've never felt until I started the Pipeline program. Something that never hit me this hard during my 4 years at UCSC. Something that was never apparent during any of the arguments I ever had with my parents about what my future goals are after I graduate: that amidst every hardship I endured in college...amidst everything I've shared mere lines ago in earlier paragraphs of this post...I am accountable to myself and to the family and community that I've carried with me all the way to that graduation stage on June 13, 2010 when I say that everything about my college experience was worth it in the end. That the beauty really was in the struggle. And with the help of everything I'm soaking in from this experience with the Pipeline program, there's really no room to slow down now.
Extremely long background story short: I'm in the process of looking into different programs up and down California. I'm going to apply for grad school.
I feel like a 18 year old high school senior all over again.
Cheers,
Risa
Mini Reunion- Workshop #1
7.16.10
Still catching up on my posting. Forgive me, please and thank you.
July 16th marked the first day of workshops for the Pipeline Interns. Alongside the hours we have to complete in working with a Researcher and the hours we have to complete in doing community exposure with a non-profit organization, us interns must also attend weekly Friday workshops that give us tools we can use in our experience in the program.
I know it was only a week since seeing the girls last, but hey, a week is a long time! And with a group like this one, you'd be sad to not see them all the time too.
That's part of what I'm thankful for when it comes to the workshops: being able to see everyone and catch up on what we've all been up to, inside the program and out.
Not only was this our 1st workshop, but this was also my first time at OCAPICA. I appreciate the Pipeline Program for constantly switching up where we meet- not only does it expose us to all the different organizing spaces that exist in our community, but it also gives us a chance to learn more about the connections we each have to all of them. In the workshop, we talked more in-depth about the need and background on the Pipeline Program. Amanda, the Pipeline program Intern, also shared with us the different opportunities that can come out of whichever pathway we choose to take in the health/medical field. As corny as it may sound, the opportunities really are endless. Can each of us make it to where we want to be? I believe we can. Can ANYONE make it to where they want to be? If that was the case, then this reality of "injustice" wouldn't be something to fight against.
I've learned, though, in a very deep way that justice only exists because injustice existed first. Some of us are rooted in communities that are birthed from struggle and injustice. It's why we know the solutions in very real ways. It's why we fight the hardest. It's why the Pipeline program was conceived, having chosen all of us far before we chose it.
Thus, the movement continues on. Liberation is on the horizon. It's far, but I see it. And I'm not even wearing my glasses today.
Anxious,
Risa
Still catching up on my posting. Forgive me, please and thank you.
July 16th marked the first day of workshops for the Pipeline Interns. Alongside the hours we have to complete in working with a Researcher and the hours we have to complete in doing community exposure with a non-profit organization, us interns must also attend weekly Friday workshops that give us tools we can use in our experience in the program.
I know it was only a week since seeing the girls last, but hey, a week is a long time! And with a group like this one, you'd be sad to not see them all the time too.
That's part of what I'm thankful for when it comes to the workshops: being able to see everyone and catch up on what we've all been up to, inside the program and out.
Not only was this our 1st workshop, but this was also my first time at OCAPICA. I appreciate the Pipeline Program for constantly switching up where we meet- not only does it expose us to all the different organizing spaces that exist in our community, but it also gives us a chance to learn more about the connections we each have to all of them. In the workshop, we talked more in-depth about the need and background on the Pipeline Program. Amanda, the Pipeline program Intern, also shared with us the different opportunities that can come out of whichever pathway we choose to take in the health/medical field. As corny as it may sound, the opportunities really are endless. Can each of us make it to where we want to be? I believe we can. Can ANYONE make it to where they want to be? If that was the case, then this reality of "injustice" wouldn't be something to fight against.
I've learned, though, in a very deep way that justice only exists because injustice existed first. Some of us are rooted in communities that are birthed from struggle and injustice. It's why we know the solutions in very real ways. It's why we fight the hardest. It's why the Pipeline program was conceived, having chosen all of us far before we chose it.
Thus, the movement continues on. Liberation is on the horizon. It's far, but I see it. And I'm not even wearing my glasses today.
Anxious,
Risa
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Late, I Know. Hopefully Worth The Wait- Introduction and Orientation
So...I have no grand excuse as to why my posting is JUST starting right now. I'm on PI time? I am, but that's not really the reason. My apologies for the lateness: I hope I can make it up to you through what I share in this blog.
My name's Terisa. You can call me Risa. Nice to meet you, reader :)
So YES...I'm from the Bay Area. Born and raised (shout out to the Yay family who may be reading this), just graduated from college (GO BANANA SLUGS!!!), and now here in So Cal for the Pipeline Program. Can you say blessed? Hyped? Juiced? Excited? Scared? Anxious?
YES. To all of it.
-----
It's been about a month since the Pipeline had it's 2-day orientation. Held at Cal State Fullerton, the orientation was packed with all of the information our cohort will need to better understand our purpose and objective in this program. Workshops about Pacific Islander His/Herstory, Health Disparities Amongst the PI Community, Access to Health Care, and Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) were incredibly informative and eyeopening. As I continue to read through the notes that I took during each workshop, I find myself learning something new each time that I may have overlooked when I was in the orientation. Just goes to show how much learning can be done beyond the standards set up by traditional educational practices. With the inclusion of a panel featuring local community organizers in the field and another one featuring some of our PI peers, the Pipeline program has taken the need for more PI representation in the health field into its own hands and have created a program that I am more than thankful to be part of. I feel this way all the time when I participate in programs like this one: that feeling of learning what I WANT to learn...doing education in a way that's inclusive of everyone's learning styles and meeting them where they're at in terms of knowledge on what we learn.
It's this kind of education that the University should be giving degrees for.
I'm juiced to see what's in store for our cohort. The workshops. The Research. The Community Exposure. All of it. Bring it on.
Peace,
Risa
My name's Terisa. You can call me Risa. Nice to meet you, reader :)
So YES...I'm from the Bay Area. Born and raised (shout out to the Yay family who may be reading this), just graduated from college (GO BANANA SLUGS!!!), and now here in So Cal for the Pipeline Program. Can you say blessed? Hyped? Juiced? Excited? Scared? Anxious?
YES. To all of it.
-----
It's been about a month since the Pipeline had it's 2-day orientation. Held at Cal State Fullerton, the orientation was packed with all of the information our cohort will need to better understand our purpose and objective in this program. Workshops about Pacific Islander His/Herstory, Health Disparities Amongst the PI Community, Access to Health Care, and Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) were incredibly informative and eyeopening. As I continue to read through the notes that I took during each workshop, I find myself learning something new each time that I may have overlooked when I was in the orientation. Just goes to show how much learning can be done beyond the standards set up by traditional educational practices. With the inclusion of a panel featuring local community organizers in the field and another one featuring some of our PI peers, the Pipeline program has taken the need for more PI representation in the health field into its own hands and have created a program that I am more than thankful to be part of. I feel this way all the time when I participate in programs like this one: that feeling of learning what I WANT to learn...doing education in a way that's inclusive of everyone's learning styles and meeting them where they're at in terms of knowledge on what we learn.
It's this kind of education that the University should be giving degrees for.
I'm juiced to see what's in store for our cohort. The workshops. The Research. The Community Exposure. All of it. Bring it on.
Peace,
Risa
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)