The Link
In giving presentations to high school students on bullying and having the chance to connect with them during each presentation, and from students who came up to me after to share their stories or thank me for sharing mine, I started to realize what a unique position I have as twenty something year old grad student with a young face. I was able to connect with high school students on a level that their teachers, parents, and other adult figures in their lives may have missed. This occurred to me most outright when I gave a presentation to educators in Orange County on bullying--most of them hadn't seen the majority of the resources I was displaying in my Powerpoint. These were things that most young people could search for and find with little difficulty. That is what The Link is for.
The Link seeks to deliver relevant material on the topic of bullying that combines an educated understanding of the topic of bullying with a youthful edge and ability to navigate contemporary social media, with the intent of providing the missing Link in the communication disconnect between adults and youth in the important dialogue on bullying.
This song is called, “I Wrote the Book” by Beth Ditto, featured in my latest post. I’ll be posting more of her music, including tunes and perhaps music videos from her band, Gossip.
This a legit candid vid. featuring Beth Ditto of Gossip. For those of you who don’t know who she is or much about their music, I’ll be posting some of their tunes and some images that Beth has done for magazine covers, featuring how beautiful “bigger” women are—and really, what does that even mean?? We live in America and there are people of all shapes, sizes, colors, creeds, orientations and lifestyles. Don’t be a bully. Find beauty where you can.
Embrace diversity in all its forms. Don’t hate. Find love and the freedom to express yourself. Many people—myself included—have ink. It’s a form of expression that many people judge or discriminate by. Open your mind a bit and ask someone why they got the ink they have. You may be surprised— ink tells a story about the individual and their life just as the ink on the pages of a book tell that book’s story. Even if they just decided they liked a design in a book, that ink says something about that person. Remember that someone made a conscious choice to get tattooed, knowing that it was a visual and tangible form of permanence on their body. Take a second to think about that before you judge someone negatively based on the mere fact that they have ink at all. Try understanding rather than hating; it’s so much more rewarding.
Okay so yet another quote from a well-known individual. We’re getting exciting today.
(via thelabelproject)
As a law student juggling full time classes, an internship that I love, research for outside projects, human relationships, and doing my dishes, it’s easy to forget to take time to do the things that I love—things that reflect just me. While my busy schedule reflects who I am and who I’m working to become, self-love can easily get swept up and tossed around and sometimes I feel like I can’t get a handle on it. Sometimes I even lose sight of it for a while. It is so important to take the time to regain it and hang onto it—without it, the rest doesn’t matter; it will never be the best it can be without self love. I will never be the best attorney I can be, I will never be the best friend I can be if I can’t love myself.
Take the time to engage the parts of yourself that reflect you—engage your passions, even for a few minutes before you go to bed at night, or when you need a break from studying. Reading old cases upon old cases can be overwhelming and can wear down my confidence in myself, and in my intelligence, etc. Self-confidence comes from self-love. Do the things you love, do the things you are good at to rebuild the confidence that your rat-race schedule may wear down. I play my ukulele when I need a study break, and I make time to sketch and draw, even for an hour on my Friday night before I get back to studying. I read something that has nothing to do with my school/work life whenever I have the chance—even if it’s just a few minutes before I fall asleep at night. If running is your thing, do it. If photography is your thing, make time for it. Make time for yourself. You are the only person who will never leave you. Treat that person with love and respect.
(Source: thinkofbeauty, via thelabelproject)
I’m not one for generally quoting famous individuals, but this is legit.
I support people’s rights to choose what they do to their bodies and how they want to act for themselves, and I strongly support everyone’s right to be treated fairly and with due respect.
(via thelabelproject)
Stand up against bullies. Stand up for what is right.
Posted by a friend on Facebook:
The photo was taken in Hamburg in 1936, during the celebrations for the launch of a ship. In the crowed, one person refuses to raise his arm to give the Nazi salute. The man was August Landmesser. He had already been in trouble with the authorities, having been sentenced to two years hard labour for marrying a Jewish woman.We know little else about August Landmesser, except that he had two children. By pure chance, one of his children recognized her father in this photo when it was published in a German newspaper in 1991.
