Global Scholars Year Reflection

Reflecting on my experience in the Global Scholars program, I have to say it began my sophomore year, when, while reading The Sympathizer in English class, I was recruited interview the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Viet Thanh Nguyen, when he came to speak at Poly. Getting the chance to speak with a literary idol of mine and a renowned global writer was truly unforgettable, especially at a time when I was beginning to discover my own passion for memoir writing. On that day, I decided that when I became a senior, I would join Poly's Global Scholars program.

It has truly been one of the most unforgettable, life-changing experiences of my Poly career. Though I thoroughly enjoyed our speakers, from Reza Azlan and Jessica Jackley to Robert English and Kalyanee Mam, the most transformative part of my Global Scholars experience was without a doubt my grant proposal project. Having worked at Inquilinos Unidos over the summer, seeing both the profound good they do for their community and the extreme lengths to which they go to make ends meet, I was really moved merely by the opportunity to financially support them in a significant way. The work the Tenant Leadership Academy is doing to empower the community cannot be overestimated.

Without a doubt, though, bringing the Leadership Academy to Poly for my bilingual panel discussion, "The Housing Crisis: Affordable Cities Start in Your Backyard," was my favorite moment. Though they came late (trouble with the bus we chartered), when I saw the 40-or-so of them, who I'd only ever seen in Pico Union, march in with their shirts and signs, I knew I had done something significant.

Every step of the way, from that first summer meeting to our regular weekly seminars and the time I spent working on my proposal with all of my fellow Global Scholars and friends, was valuable. Not to mention the doors the program has opened for me in recent weeks, from talking housing in Spanish  with Ruben Tapia on Enfoque Latino at KPFK headquarters to talking political upheaval with Werner Herzog at his screening of Meeting Gorbachev at the Nuart. I'm so happy I had the opportunity to be a Global Scholar, and I want to do everything I can to support the program in the future.

Reflecting on "The Housing Crisis: Affordable Cities Start in Your Backyard"

On Tuesday, April 30th,  from 6 to 7:15, Ian Macleod and I hosted "The Housing Crisis: Affordable Cities Start in Your Backyard," the culmination of over 6 months of work inside and outside of our Global Scholars Seminar. The panel discussion that was the main focus of our event featured four guest speakers representing various groups and entities working to combat the housing crisis and promote affordable housing in Los Angeles: Bill Huang, the Director of Housing for Pasadena, spoke about the need for dignified, livable affordable housing; Alice Kimm, a partner in the JFAK architecture firm, which works to design affordable housing, discussed combating the the disturbing rise of homelessness; Clemente Franco, a housing rights attorney and President of the Board of Inquilinos Unidos, compared the relative effectiveness of different legal policies in place to protect tenants; and Jose Felix Cabrera, a Mexican immigrant and community organizer who has fought tenants' rights in the Westlake-Macarthur Park area for over 20 years—even while fighting—brought the human side of the issue into focus with his powerful words.

For all of our promotion in person, on Facebook, and even on the airwaves of KPFK, we got a solid turnout from Poly student and a pretty respectable number of audience members from the Pasadena area and the housing advocacy community. Though I felt truly honored to bring awareness and my passion for housing justice to the Poly and greater Pasadena communities, the most valuable part of the event for me was the members of the Inquilinos Unidos Tenant Leadership Academy who were able to attend (almost 40 of them!). Though they arrived around 25 minutes late due to difficulties with the bus they chartered from Pico Union (causing me a not insignificant amount of stress), inviting them to my school, having them in the audience, and sharing taquitos with them on the senior patio afterwards. During dinner (catered expertly by community member Evi Hurtado), I even got the chance to introduce my friend Noemi, the daughter of one of the women in the Leadership Academy, to all of my friends from Poly.

The attendance of the Leadership Academy tenants compelled us make our event fully bilingual, and with the help of IU Executive Director/my boss Luis Cabrales (who served as a translator on the panel), this ended up being to me one of the most memorable and powerful aspects of the event.

It was a truly unforgettable experience planning, organizing, and leading my event, and I'm extremely grateful to the Global Scholars program for allowing me to make it a reality. In the future, I hope Poly students continue to be aware of housing issues, and that Poly and Inquilinos Unidos can grow their newly-created partnership.

Talking Housing on "Enfoque Latino'

From writing and presenting our grant proposal to finding panelists, organizing and promoting our event, and securing last-minute logistics, my partner Ian and I have been working for almost 6 months on our GIP event, "The Housing Crisis: Why Affordable Cities Start in Your Backyard." On Thursday, with our event fast approaching, we had the opportunity as part of our promotional push to discuss our event KPFK with Ruben Tapia, the host of "Enfoque Latino." In Spanish! Luis Cabrales, my boss at Inquilinos Unidos (Tenants United) and an invaluable part of our event, had set the interview up a couple of weeks earlier, and since that time the notion of going on public radio in front of potentially thousands of listeners in Spanish had been nagging at the back of my mind.

Ian and I showed up at the KPFK building at around 9:30 for our 10 pm interview, and upon entering, we could immediately feel the family the family atmosphere that seemed to accompany the recording of nighttime Spanish talk radio. While "Nuestra Voz" (the previous program) was being taped, Ruben (an older Latino man with a deep, rich voice and a white beard), guests, and radio staff were hanging out in the common room, sharing snacks, and chatting in Spanish. The five-year-old running carefree through the halls of the radio station" seemed to highlight my own nervousness as I reviewed my notes and prepared for the interview.

I was shaking a little as I walked into the booth, and though I'd like to say that after my first answer ("gracias por invitarnos") I just let myself go and enjoyed it, the truth is I was kind of edge for the entirety of the interview. There were a couple of misconjugated verbs, and at one point Ruben asked me whether I had lost any friends in the course of my housing advocacy work. Thinking he was seriously overestimating the stakes of my work, I answered no—after all I hadn't had to testify against a childhood friend or beat up a family member after they betrayed me. Turned out he was just asking whether anyone I knew had been displaced by rising rents, to which I sheepishly answered yes. All in all, though, I think the interview went really well, and I'm extremely glad to have had the experience. I'm looking forward to seeing the fruits of 6 months of labor at my event in 2 days!

Reyna Grande and the Human Side of Immigration

Recently, renowned Mexican-born author Reyna Grande came to speak to the Poly community and Partnership for Success! about her experiences coming to the U.S. and assimilating into American society as child, growing up and finding her voice in America, and then rediscovering her own Mexican roots. Shortly after her father left her family's home in Iguala, Guerrero to find work, Grande came to America at just 9 years old as an undocumented immigrant. In a society where English was the default language, Grande initially struggled to find her place, even being forced by an elementary school teacher to sit in the back of the room by herself during class discussions. She explained the trauma of not being able to express herself during the Spanish-language portion of her presentation. She explained that as she began to master English, enrolling at Pasadena City College and eventually transferring to UC Santa Cruz to study creative writing, her knowledge of Spanish—her first language—was what suffered. In fact, her most recent novel, A Dream Called Home, was originally written in English, and she is working laboriously to translate it into Spanish as she herself relearns the language.

With the current wave of xenophobia directed toward immigrants, especially Mexican immigrants, Grande's story could not be more timely. Just in the last two weeks, President Trump has made multiple threats to completely close the southern border, seemingly without any consideration of the extensive economic—but more importantly human—repercussions of such a drastic action. Hundreds of thousands cross the Mexican-American border each day, and like Reyna Grande, they all have stories to tell. Their reasons for crossing include business, seeing family, going vacation, taking care of legal business, and so much more, and our current discourse risks making this an issue of inflated numbers and fear-stoking anecdotes rather than real people's lives. Beyond expressing her own story, Reyna Grande's work as an Mexican immigrant author is invaluable in our current political climate, and voices like hers must not only be heard, but amplified.

Hate and the Christchurch Shooting

Last night in Christchurch, New Zealand, a lone gunman stormed two mosques, killing 49 and wounding dozens more. The attacks, which were deemed to be meticulously planned, occurred during afternoon prayer at locations 5 miles kilometers apart, and the victims hailed from Muslim communities the world over. Muslims in Christchurch speak of a tight-knit community—there are only 40,000 Muslims in the entire nation of New Zealand—with a diaspora of worshippers and community members whose origins range from Malaysia to Syria to Palestine.

This attack is abominable and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. What is not, however, is isolated, anomalous, or in any way a break from alarming trends that have manifested themselves all over the world. The virulent Islamophobia that inspired this vile attack is unfortunately on the rise, egged on and empowered by the xenophobic right-wing populists who have used the most powerful positions in countries from Brazil to Turkey to our own United States to preach messages of hate.

I remember just months ago, when the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh was mourning a similar tragedy. To some degree, I know the fear, the anger, the sadness that my Muslims brothers and sisters are feeling right now. I felt it, too. And unfortunately, the two despicable acts of terror that caused these two tragedies are inextricably linked.

Global Perspectives: Last Week's AFS Panel Discussion

Last Sunday, myself and some of my fellow Global Scholar met at the Liu residence for a panel discussion featuring our very own Luca Contino and three other AFS students from Italy, Jordan, and Tunisia living across the Los Angeles area. Over the course of the afternoon, AFS students spoke on everything from their favorite cultural experiences in America to their countries' opinions on the Trump Administration and their nightlife back home. I was amazed to hear that in both Tunisia and Jordan, student take 11 subjects, including three languages (Arabic, French, and English). At the luncheon after the panel, which featured cuisine from around the world, I got the chance to meet Naji (the student from Jordan) and Youssef (the student from Tunisia) and we immediately hit it off. Luca has already become a close friend of mine this year, and I'm looking forward to making good on my tentative plans to take Youssef to a concert.

Arn Chorn Pond's Story

Last week, the Poly community had the honor of hearing from Cambodian Genocide survivor, master musician, and founder of Cambodian Living Arts Arn Chorn Pond, who came to Poly to present his book Never Fall Down (which I am planning on reading) to sophomores studying it in English class and to tell his story at a GIP Night. Arn was born into a family of Cambodian musicians in 1966, and he was just nine years old when the Khmer Rouge, a Communist/nationalist military bent on turning Cambodia into the agrarian Republic of Campuchea, violently seized power. Pond speaks fondly of the days before Khmer Rouge, when he would eat ice cream with his younger siblings and listen to the rock and roll that was a central part of Cambodia's thriving music scene.

All of this changed with the coming of the Khmer Rouge, who, led by the despotic Pol Pot, forced all of Cambodia's citizens out of the cities and into the countryside, where they proceeded to massacre anyone who countered their vision of a perfect agrarian Campuchea—whether because they displayed intelligence, had lighter skin, or even wore eyeglasses. Pond was able to survive by playing the flute in a band whose purpose was to distract prisoners from the sounds of killing, but after being transferred into combat as a child soldier, Arn defected and fled halfway across his country on foot to a refugee camp in Thailand.

At the camp, Arn was adopted by American missionary Peter Pond, who brought Arn back to his home in New Hampshire. Though Arn was grateful to have escaped the genocide in his country, he was driven into a deep depression by social isolation, racism, and loneliness in the United States. It was only through the process of beginning to open up to others about his past that he found purpose—and peace.

Arn currently works promoting and supporting traditional musical artists in his home country, and he travels the world sharing his music and his story. I was blown away by the incredibly optimistic and empathetic way that Arn sees the world and the people around him. I believe it is through survival of the horrors of genocide—and not in spite of them—that Arn projects such a radiant joy and remarkable strength of character.

Robert English on the Role of Russia in International Affairs

On February 25th, my fellow Global Scholars and I had the distinct pleasure of hearing Ian Kim interview Professor Robert English who offered an unique perspective on Russia’s extensive engagement in global affairs. Professor English received a PhD in politics from Princeton University and worked for the Department of Defense during the Reagan Administration, and he currently teaches international relations, Slavic languages and literature, and environmental studies at USC. In his discussion with Ian Kim and those in attendance, Professor English answered questions ranging from the future of Russian President  Vladimir Putin’s cult of personality to Russian intervention in the Middle East and interference in European and American elections.

Throughout the event, English attempted to expand the discourse surrounding Russian geopolitics beyond what can be easily ascertained in the news media by presenting something closer to the Russian perspective on many of the most pressing issues. The discussion began with a closer look at Vladimir Putin, which English deemed appropriate due to Russia’s historic tendency toward powerful autocracies headed by strong, charismatic leaders. English was quick to point out that one of Putin’s greatest influences—even beyond his experiences in the KGB—was the horrific the decade-long depression Russia experienced in the 1990s. According to English, Putin and many of his supporters blamed the policies of Western bodies like the International Monetary Fund and the Clinton Administration for Russia’s economic collapse and the rise of the oligarchy that controls much of Russian industry today. This balanced perspective, supported by a rare willingness to empathize with Russia and hold America and Europe accountable for their mistakes, made for an eye-opening discussion as Professor English took questions about Russia’s role in the Syrian Civil War, its support of radical right-wing populists around the world, and its worrisome nuclear proliferation.

Professor English ended the night with a story from the time he spent in Russia writing his master’s thesis during the Perestroika era. Over the course of his nine-month stay at a hotel in Moscow, he became increasingly friendly with the doorman, a grizzled Stalinist and WWII veteran who wore his combat medals from the Eastern Front every day as a symbol of pride. One day, the doorman approached Professor English to tell him to tell him a story about his time in WWII. English was expecting a diatribe on Russia’s military dominance or pivotal role in winning in the war; what he got was a full-throated appreciation of America for creating SPAM (yes, the canned meat), as the battle-hardened vet remembered it being one of the greatest things he had ever tasted while he sat stranded on the battlefield. Throughout his presentation, English emphasized the human lens through which geopolitics must be seen, and in the end, he suggested that interacting with Russia as a country full of people, rather than an offshoot of Vladimir Putin’s hostile posturing, might be the way toward achieving effective diplomacy.

Thoughts on the Role of the Individual in Affecting Change

Listening to filmmaker and humanitarian Sama Wareh tell her story at last week's GIP event, it was abundantly clear that she is an extraordinary individual. Her talk was nothing short of remarkable, and her work has clearly changed the lives of countless Syrian refugees. Yet listening to her speak, I couldn't help but consider the dilemma I've struggled with for the past few as I've watched countless extraordinary individuals give advice on mass media platforms telling me how I can be extraordinary, too. In Anand Giridharadas' book Winners Take All, which examines how private sector organizations have been able to maintain a favorable status quo over the last half-century by co-opting the role of "changing the world," he draws a stark difference between critics and "thought leaders:" critics—the Gore Vidals and William F. Buckleys of old—point out what is wrong with the system as a whole and call for collective action to achieve reform, while "thought leaders"—the Noah Yuval Hararis and Amy Cuddys of today—put the burden on the individual to make change. If you're a business leader or a profiter from today's society, the thought leader is a far more favorable type of intellectual. Rather than implicating you in the massive inequalities of our current global order and calling for a profound paradigm shift, thought leaders merely posit that if only there were more empowered individuals, they could use their innovation to make the world a better place (without taking anything away from the super-rich).

So this brings me back to Sama Wareh. While she is herself an undeniably inspirational force for change and empowerment in the world, her emphasis on the individual as the agent of change fits perfectly into the thought leader paradigm. Rather than focusing on the powerful global entities and persistent geopolitical factors perpetrating the Syrian Civil War, one of which is American private sector commitments in the Middle East, she focuses on what we as individuals can do to contribute. In this context, her TED Talk at UC Irvine can be read through a different lens. TED is sponsored by the global elites who profit from thought leaders and thought leadership culture, and their funding gives thought leaders a broad and powerful platform.

None of this is meant as a critique of Ms. Wareh. Her work is incredible and I have the utmost respect for her because of it. However, as we listen to the voices of the thought leader generation, it's important to consider who is promoting them and what system their ideas might unwittingly be promoting.

Sama Wareh on the Power of Art in Helping Syrian Refugees

Last Tuesday, my fellow Global Scholars and I had the great pleasure of hearing documentary filmmaker, educator, and activist Sama Wareh speak to us about her work with Syrian refugees and the power of the individual to make change. Her story was truly inspirational. Though she grew up in Orange County, Wareh always felt extremely connected to her Syrian family, whom she would visit whenever she could, and she gained an appreciation for nature from her uncle, a skillful practitioner of homeopathic medicine. Though she initially traveled to Syria to film her master's thesis (a documentary on the Syrian water crisis), her engagement with the country changed after the bloody Syrian Civil War began displacing thousands of Syrian citizens to nearby nations like Turkey and Lebanon. Outside of any governmental organization or nonprofit, Wareh took it upon herself to sell her art and raise enough money to Turkey and share medicine with refugees in need. As she became more and more connected to Syrian communities, she saw a need among young refugee children with PTSD and began to help them treat their trauma through art therapy. She was amazed to watch their art turn from graphic crayon drawings of beheadings and mindless depictions of the Syrian revolutionary flag to colorful flowers and pictures of their dreams of being doctors and mechanics. As of now, she has opened multiple schools in Lebanon and a community center for refugees in Greece, and she has presented her message of the power of individual action in affecting change on lectures around the country and even a TED Talk at UC Irvine.

Climate Change and Sustainable Solutions: A Night with Entrepreneur Aaron Fyke

With coal lobbyists heading the Environmental Protection Agency and global emissions continuing to rise despite dire reports of the climate passing one dire benchmark after another, speaking with hyper-competent and extremely driven professionals like Aaron Fyke is always reassuring. An engineer by training, co-founder of six alternative energy companies, and outspoken climate activist, Fyke is truly the kind of motivated entrepreneur we need as it becomes clear just how much we must cut emissions in order to avoid runaway global warming.

Though Fyke began his presentation with a sobering account of the potential destruction resulting from climate change, unlike your typical tree-hugging, fist-shaking environmental activist, he did not warn us that the only way to save the planet was for everyone to turn off the lights when they leave a room or take shorter showers. In fact, he rejected this kind of small-scale activism as unnecessary shaming and focused on larger-scale solutions, illustrating with fascinating graphs and figures how many types of alternative energy had already achieved "grid parity," or become cheaper than fossil fuel sources. In the face of his bleak vision of Earth's future, this optimism was comforting and he pared with a plea for those of us who want to affect real change to pursue a career path (not just in STEM) that could tie in to addressing climate change.

I walked out of Fyke's presentation wondering whether it was all enough. The gloom-and-doom warnings and business-friendly optimism seemed irreconcilable and left me wondering whether the powers of the market would be strong enough to solve global warming or governments and international bodies would need to take drastic action that could cut into the profit margins of major corporations. I hope the market forces are as potent as Fyke made them sound because global governments seem to be in denial or else taking far too little action to address what Fyke called the greatest crisis of the 21st century.

Why is British Parliament So Rowdy?

Last week in the British Parliament, Prime Minister Theresa May barely finished introducing her wildly unpopular Brexit proposal before she was drowned out by a chorus of boos and jeers from the opposite side of the room. Chief among her antagonists was Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who quieted the room in order to  brutally berate May for the ineffectiveness of her Conservative government and the unpalatability of her Brexit deal. Corbyn's side erupted in cheers, and the Speaker of Parliament, a cantankerous gray-haired Brit in a colorful tie banged his gavel shouting "Order!"

I found myself thinking that if only America's Congress was this way, C-SPAN would have as many viewers as the Super Bowl. Last week, Iowa Representative Steve King, a self-proclaimed white supremacist, couldn't get a fraction of the jeers and taunts that PM May's good faith efforts to follow through on a promise made to her people receive on a daily basis.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn mutters to himself that PM Theresa May is a "stupid woman."

Wondering how our legislative branch ended up so radically different from our mother country, I did a little research into the history and layout of the British Parliament. I discovered that the House of Commons, where British policy is debated, is only 70 feet long, and the front benches were built exactly two swords lengths apart to keep duels from breaking out. In addition, the rowdy, brutal, and frankly awesome insult-laden debates I was witnessing were a part of Britain's Question Time, a weekly occurrence in which the Prime Minister goes in front of Parliament to have her policy decisions lauded by her own party or excoriated by the opposition. By contrast, America's separation of powers means our president rarely speaks to our Congress outside of the annual State of the Union address, a polished and orderly opportunity to reassure America that the state of our country is strong.

Beyond the fact that the British approach to government is significantly more fun to watch than our lackadaisical Congressional meetings and debates, I also believe it holds serious benefits in the legislative process. In America, impeachment and the 25th amendment are the only ways to remove a president from office; in the UK, the opposition party can trigger a vote of no confidence to replace the ruling government. In the midst of the longest government shutdown in American history, with the president hopelessly out of touch with the Speaker of the House and Congress divided starkly along party lines, I think the original accountability mechanisms—some good old yelling—could go a long way.

Paolo Soleri and the "Arcology"

Arcosanti interior.

In 1946, Italian architect Paolo Soleri came to study in the US under a fellowship at Frank Lloyd Wright's summer home, Taliesin West, in Scottsdale, AZ. It was in this year and a half and the decades that followed that Soleri would develop the idea of the "arcology." This new type of urban plan was to draw from the disciplines of architecture and ecology in order to create a city that was energy and waste efficient, aesthetically striking, in touch with nature, and built to human scale. Soleri watched with dismay as American cities expanded rapidly outward into suburbs comprised of single-unit homes and connected by highways only traversable using gas-guzzling, human-isolating automobiles. As Soleri continued to develop his vision, it increasingly stood in stark contrast to the wanton sprawl of nearby Phoenix, AZ, built seemingly without purpose during the Sun Belt migration of the early Cold War.

Bell Tree at Cosanti gallery.

In 1970, Paolo Soleri moved his family from his home in Scottsdale to the Arizona desert between Phoenix and Flagstaff to found the community of Arcosanti, a sustainable "arcology" built from Soleri's own vision and intended to support 5,000 residents. Since 1970, Arcosanti has expanded significantly to include many single and family residential units, public spaces including a gallery and amphitheater where numerous musical events are held, and sustainable energy infrastructure. The signature arcs that make up Arcosanti's architecture were designed using cement-pouring techniques picked up by Soleri from Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin West. Much of the revenue for Arcosanti comes from the making of unique bells that are crafted in a foundry at Arcosanti, as well as Soleri's home and gallery of Cosanti in Scottsdale. Though Soleri passed away in 2013, around 70 people currently live at Arcosanti at any given time, and it has ambitious plans for expansion.

Taliesin West exterior.

Over winter break, I had the privilege of visiting Arcosanti and Cosanti, as well as Taliesin West, on a family road through Arizona. Soleri's vision seems to me to fit squarely under UN Sustainable Development Goal #11: "Make cities inclusive, safe, sustainable, and resilient." As my Global Scholars grant proposal with Ian McLeod is currently working on tackling this same goal by expanding affordable housing, I feel truly inspired by Soleri's work and want to keep his philosophy in mind as I move forward with my project.

Mixed-use amphitheater and apartment spaces at Arcosanti.

Birthright Citizenship: A Cornerstone of the American Constitution

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." These are the first words of Section 1 of the 14th Amendment, passed in 1868 at the height of Reconstruction to protect the rights of newly-emancipated African-Americans and other historically-marginalized groups like immigrants. It very clearly defines who an American is and then goes on to outline the rights of an American, which include, but are not limited to, the right to citizenship.

President Trump's threat to revoke the right to birthright citizenship is not just fear-mongering, race-baiting, or even downright xenophobia—it's an attack on our very Constitution. From our beginning we have been a nation of immigrants, a haven for the "huddled masses yearning to breathe free," and the children of these immigrants form the backbone of our republic. I don't have very high expectations at this point in the Trump president—their ideals seem to conveniently fall in line with Trump's every time he tweets a new policy decision—but if they have any conception of what truly makes our country great, I hope they'll take a stand against this blatant threat to the very foundation of our democracy.

SoundCloud Rap in a Global Context

Last Friday, some friends and I (including fellow Global Scholar Ian Macleod), Ubered to the Novo in Downtown LA to see one of our favorite up-and-coming rappers, Denzel Curry. Though he first gained attention on the independent music-streaming platform SoundCloud through his hardcore single "Ultimate," which featured a catchy double-time hook and a pounding bass drop, he has since transitioned somewhat into the mainstream and began taking on controversial topics like voter suppression and police brutality.

For Friday's concert, Denzel linked up with fellow SoundCloud rapper Kid Trunks, a friend of the late XXXtentacion and one of the foremost Asian artists on the scene, who often draws on his background to add an under-represented voice to the genre. After Trunks opened with some of his head-banging cult favorites and a tribute to X, Denzel came out to perform to his album in three acts. Between mosh-pit anthems, Denzel rapped, "When I sho
ot the sherif if he not demoted, then bang! / This for Trayvon and Tree / Burn the bush and chronic, speakin' honestly / We livin' in colonies, CNN sit-comedies" and called on the crowd "run with lions on the road to Zion" in lyrics that recalled the militancy of Black Power leaders like Huey Newton and Malcom X.

Recently, the egalitarianism and freedom from record-company demands has made SoundCloud a haven for teens making trap beats and dropping bars in their South Florida garages. Though this populist take on music has enabled many a mindless crowd-pleaser (like Lil Pump and Smokepurrp), it has also opened the gates to a worldwide market for independent rap music. Recently, I've expanded my rap taste to Saüd and AKA Keyz from the Persian Gulf, the Higher Brothers from China, Skepta and Chip from England, and Kwesta from South Africa. In an age of powerful record company tycoons and corporate consolidation, the freedom of SoundCloud provides a platform for independent artists from around the world to speak their truth over a bumping bassline.

Celebrating International Human Rights Day with UNA Pasadena

On Saturday, four Global Scholars and I convened on the Poly Upper School Library for an assembly featuring the illustrious Ryan Kaminski, the Senior Program Director for Human Rights at the United Nations Association. The UNA is a global non-profit organization created as an auxiliary to the United Nations in order to facilitate grassroots community involvement and diverse perspectives in places not in close proximity to official UN meeting places (almost all of the world).

Saturday was the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, published by the UN at its third meeting in 1948 and voted through by 48 of its then 58 members. The UDHS lays out a fairly concise list of 30 articles detailing the essential rights that all people of the Earth are entitled to, from equal protection under the law to health and education. The document was revolutionary for its time—a reaction to the global atrocities perpetrated during WWII—yet it remains entirely relevant to this day and holds up as one of the most influential legal codes in world history.

After Ryan's presentation on human rights, the five of us had the opportunity to mingle with Public Health major who had come from Cal State Dominguez Hills to attend the presentation and members of the Pasadena branch of the UNA. In the end we made origami lotuses, which can grow from the harshest conditions to sprout beautiful flowers, in order to celebrate the importance of fundamental human rights and the tremendous opportunities that protecting them provides for all humans to blossom.

An Inside Look at the Trump White House

Reflecting on my experience at the St. Albans School of Public Service, one of the most memorable moments came unexpectedly, during an event that I thought would go a very different direction. It was a Wednesday near the end of the program, and we were all looking forward to the night's programming, a panel and dinner focused on varying perspectives on the crisis in Venezuela. We had been reading about and discussing various aspects of the situation, from the history of Venezuelan socialism to Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian streak and corrupt administration to what could be done to save the Venezuelan economy from its record instability and hyperinflation; now it was time to meet four experts and survivors and hear them talk about Venezuela in person. The panel was a moderated by a conservative Venezuelan ex-pat and St. Albans parent who regaled us with stories of the Kennedys and the CIA and also included opposition leader David Smolansky, whose work mobilizing college students has earned him renown around the world and criminal status in Venezuela.

Alex and I posing with Mr. J.

Though these speakers and others on the panel presented harrowing stories and fascinating insights into the situation in Venezuela, the most memorable moment of the night came at the dinner reception afterward. My friend Alex and I happened to be seated at with with a former high-ranking member of President Trump's National Security staff who asked not to be named and to speak off the record (I'll call him Mr. J), and over a dinner of arepas and tres leches, we questioned him about the Trump administration's often-unclear foreign policy stance and how he thought it would respond to the international emergency worsening by the day in Venezuela. As the dinner progressed, however, it became clear that Mr. J was involved with far more than Venezuelan foreign policy, and in fact had spent a significant amount of time in intimate settings with the president, answering his questions and briefing him on international relations.

When it became clear just how much time our esteemed guest had spent with the president, the tone of the conversation shifted, and we entered the Fire and Fury portion of the night. As we put away plate after plate of Venezuelan cuisine—the irony of this considering the massive, government-sponsored famine currently occurring in Venezuela was not lost on us—Mr. J first corroborated the sort of rumors you read about on Vox or Vanity Fair, but then chimed in with some of his own stories, from darting into Trump's room on Air Force 1 to brief him during ad breaks in Fox and Friends to giving the President his McDonald's order during a meeting in which Trump was hungry and particularly distracted.

It was sort of incredible hearing Trump's "Leaking White House" coming to life before my eyes. Though the tales of Trump's love of Big Macs and ignorance of international affairs were throughly enjoyable, the most memorable story of the night had far higher stakes, and much greater implications for our national security. Mr. J was a holdover from the Obama administration serving under former National Security Advisor H. R. McMaster, and when we searched him up on Google, he was targeted by multiple alt-right websites and message boards as a top "Swamp Creature" in the Trump administration. Mr. J told us he had been harassed online and even had his home address posted, and he said the trolls were always looking for an opportunity to bring him down. They got that opportunity during Putin-congratulations scandal, when someone inside the White House leaked that the President had congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his very dubious win in a notably unfair and unfree election, when the first bullet point on his briefing read "Do not congratulate." Though Mr. J assured us he had nothing to do with the leak, the alt-right trolls already doing their best to smear his name blamed him for it, and their close proximity to President Trump was enough to convince him that they were right. So Trump offered McMaster, who was more establishment-leaning himself, an ultimatum: he had 48 hours to find out who the leaker was, or Mr. J had to go. The President himself had been experiencing significant disagreement with McMaster over his "America First" foreign policy and seemed to be looking for a way to get back at McMaster, who he knew to be close friend of Mr. J. McMaster protested that an investigation like that would take months, and even though he proved the leaker couldn't have been Mr. J (he hadn't even received the Putin call talking points), Trump still insisted McMaster fire him. So McMaster quit too.

Now our National Security Advisor is John Bolton, who wanted to "strike first" against North Korea and supports an invasion to topple the Iranian government. Which just goes to show you how much influence white supremacist trolls have on our very own President Trump.

Thanks for a night to remember, Mr. J.

Democracy in the Middle East: What is the Role of Elections?

It's become pretty routine for Ted Eagles to take me and small groups of SPS students out to think tanks for enlightening discussions, and last week's visit to the Washington, DC branch of Stanford's Hoover Institution was no exception. The diverse panel of experts in the conference room above New York Avenue where the event was held included Hussain Abdul-Hussain, the Washington Burreau Chief of Alrai, a Kuwaiti newspaper, Hanin Ghaddar, the Friedmann Visiting Fellow at the The Washington Institute's Geduld Institute on Arab Politics and an expert on Shia politics, and Dr. Aykan Erdemir, a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and former Turkish Parliament member (2011-2015). Surrounded by slogans like "free enterprise" and "improving the human condition" we heard this panel discuss recent elections in Turkey, Lebanon, and Iraq, and what the value of democracy is in a region where elections can hardly be categorized as "fair" or "free."

Of the three panelists, Dr. Erdemir's perspective was notably bleak. Since a failed coup rocked the Turkish political scene in the summer of 2016, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has overstepped more and more democratic boundaries, imprisoning journalists, rigging elections, and restructuring the Turkish government in his favor. Now that Erdogan has once again "won" the most recent election (there was widespread rigging of the news media in Erdogan's favor, with one of his opponents receiving a total of 15 minutes of air time and speaking from prison and there were reports of widespread reports of voter intimidation), he has taken even more liberties in his consolidation of power, giving himself a decree power that basically renders the Turkish assembly irrelevant. Although voter participation is at a record high of 85% in many elections, Dr. Erdemir voiced a widespread sense of Turkish defeatism that democracy can only function as a speed bump or temporary roadblock against Erdogan's frightening consolidation of power.

In Iraq and Lebanon, the situation is notably more complicated. Both nations are governed by parliamentary democracies, but their party systems are based on entrenched sectarian divides, with the Lebanese parliament literally divided by religion, with the ratios of representation based on a 1930s census, because Lebanon has refused to perform one since. The problems arise because voters are given a very narrow selection of candidates belonging to their religious group and thus are not able to exercise much democratic influence. This systemic stagnation is worsened by the immense control Hezbolah controls in the Shia population and in the government as a whole and by the Iranian efforts to help establish a religious "parallel state." Ghaddar saw the future of Lebanese democracy in independent Shia candidates who ran against Hezbolah candidates at great risk to their own lives and in the few "Civil Society" candidates running on platforms of Western liberal democracy, who a rising force in Lebanese politics, though they were only able to win two seats in the last elections.

The Mexican Ambassador Speaks on AMLO and the Future of Mexican-American Relations

Last Tuesday, on a "Ted Trip" with the St. Albans School of Public of Service, a group of about 10 students and I traveled to the Hudson Institute, a relatively conservative-leaning think tank in downtown Washington, DC, to hear a presentation from the Mexican ambassador, Gerónimo Gutiérrez Fernández. The date of the event, July 3rd was just two days after the extremely consequential Mexican election, which saw populist-leftist candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador win in an landslide with 53% of the vote, with the runner-up, center-right candidate Ricardo Anaya, winning less than 25%. For Gutierrez, who serves as a diplomat under the current president, centrist free trade advocate Enrique Peña Nieto, AMLO's election likely means he's out of a job, but he had a hopeful perspective looking forward to the future of Mexican-American relations.

AMLO, who won a majority in all but two states, represents a rising brand of egalitarian, nationalist populism that arose in large part from a general frustration, especially in the southern, more agrarian states, with uneven distribution of wealth gained from globalization and foreign investment. While tech hubs like Querétaro saw major development and a significant increase in standard of living, less-developed regions dependent on agricultural experienced below-average growth rates and a persistence of poverty and economic stagnation.

In the midst of a radical transfer of power, rapidly-changing national sentiments, and a growing battle over immigration exacerbated by President Trump's inflammatory rhetoric, Ambassador Gutierrez remained quite optimistic about the future of his country, its relations with the United States, and the negotiations to work out a "NAFTA 2.0" over the past year. While he did acknowledge that drug crime had risen under the Nieto government, which scores an approval rating of under 20%, Gutierrez was hesitant to criticize the lack of progress Nieto had made in negotiations with Trump, the inflammatory remarks Trump has made regarding Mexico and its immigration policy, and the overall dissatisfaction with the widespread corruption that has damaged Mexican democracy and led to the current AMLO administration. I always find it interesting hearing from appointed government officials, especially those whose job it is to represent their country favorably, because even when they are not officially on the job, they still feel obligated to paint the country they represent in the best possible light.

As a leftist myself, I am excited to see what AMLO will do once he assumes the presidency in December, and I hope the NAFTA negotiations are as productive as Ambassador Gutierrez would have me believe.

America and China: Two Insiders' Perspectives

On Friday afternoon, just as we were all ready to retire to our dorms for free time after hours of work on bills to be presented to a mock Congress, the St. Albans School of Public Service was paid a visit by two of the foremost experts on the future of Sino-American commercial relations, Senior Trade Representative for China Affairs Lisa Rigoli and Randall Phillips, the former top-ranking CIA official in Beijing. The husband-wife team had taken different career paths to their respective positions of authority, with Randall having always had his sights set on the intelligence community while Lisa gained experience in the private sector before being hired by the Office of the United States Trade Representative. Because Randall is retired, the height of his activity having been under the Bush and Clinton administrations in the 1990s and Lisa is currently working on hot-button trade issues like Trump's tariffs and protecting American IP, the two of them offered unique and informed perspective on China's past, present, future role on the world stage.

Although they presented different evidence, the general consensus between Mr. Phillips and Ms. Rigoli was that China has witnessed over a generation of economic growth, is currently experiencing a powerful wave of nationalism, and is poised to fill the void the United States is leaving in the global power structure through isolationist policies and ineffective diplomacy. Through actions like withdrawing from the TPP, the Paris Climate Accords, and the JCPOA, as well as an inconsistent foreign policy platform and consistent devaluation of traditional American alliances, the United States has opened a vacuum, and China under Xi Jinping intends to fill the role of global hegemon. The last three generations of Chinese have seen their country experiencing massive economic growth, and the momentum in China favors this trend continuing, especially since the poverty continues to decline and President Xi has consolidated his rule as "president for life."

From the perspective of Mr. Phillips and Ms. Regoli, America's largest trading partner should not be regarded as a threat per se, but rather treated as the formidable world power it is and kept under a watchful eye as its economic and geopolitical power continue to grow.

President Trump shakes hand with Xi Jinping
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-10/malcolm-turnbull-doesnt-have-to-picking-between-trump-or-xi/9135614

America's trade deficit with China has grown rapidly over the last three decades
https://www.economist.com/briefing/2017/03/30/averting-a-chinese-american-trade-war