Prison reform is a critical issue that has gained widespread attention in recent years. The current state of the prison system in many countries is plagued by problems such as overcrowding, inadequate resources, and inadequate rehabilitation programs. Moreover, there are concerns that innocent people may be imprisoned due to a variety of factors, such as a flawed legal system, biased juries, or insufficient evidence. The issue of innocent people being incarcerated is particularly concerning, as it represents a grave injustice. It is a tragedy for the individuals affected and their families, and it undermines public confidence in the legal system as a whole. It is, therefore, crucial that steps are taken to identify and release individuals who have been wrongfully convicted. Several measures can be taken to address this issue. One key approach is to improve the quality and accuracy of legal proceedings, such as ensuring that defendants have access to competent legal representation and increasing the use of forensic evidence. Additionally, reforms can be made to the criminal justice system itself, such as improving the selection and training of judges and juries and providing better resources for investigations and trials. Overall, the goal of prison reform must be to ensure that innocent people are not wrongfully imprisoned and that the criminal justice system operates fairly and justly for all.

Most people in life have one ride-or-die childhood best friend. The person that they met when they were about three years old and have been inseparable from ever since. Their families are intertwined somehow by a sport, hobby, or mutual connection. I am not that person you will meet. Growing up, I had many best friends. Having been playing softball since I was four years old, I was able to form many bonds and special connections as I aged. However, most of these bonds were artificial. I always made friends very easily. In each grade of elementary school, I had a best friend. We would exchange landline numbers in class or introduce each other to our parents at the pickup door once the school bell rang. That following weekend, we would eat dinosaur chicken nuggets with a side of Caprisun and Scooby-Doo fruit snacks, gallop in the woodchips, and calculate outfits for our Barbie dolls. I learned quickly that these friends would come and go, and when they made a new best friend, my heart was crushed. This was a continuous pattern up until sixth grade when I entered middle school. I quickly formed a close-knit circle of girls that I found common similarities with. One out of six girls turned out to be my best friend to this day, who would soon become my neighbor as well. Going through ups and downs of having people there for me who had my best interest up until college shaped me into the person I am today. The friendships that were formed out of love, loyalty, and companionship got me through stages of depression, grief, and anxiety. If it weren’t for them, I would not be as happy and feel as loved as I am today. This is why I believe that genuine relationships are the best thing you can have in life.

When the commencement of high school went into effect, I quickly gained tons of new friends. Being in numerous types of classes, on two sports teams, and in three clubs, I loved everyone. When graduating high school four years later, I remained genuine friends with approximately half of these people. I had your basic thirty-person friend group during my high school years until the middle of junior year when we naturally split up. Covid quarantine came into play and I felt like I had no one. I was lonely, constantly sad, and hopeless for a genuine connection. I learned that the people besides a few from this friend group were never my real friends nor did they have my best interest. My best friends were the ones that I still talk to every day even in college, the ones that I share core memories with that still crack us up to this day. The ones that we have been there for each other through boys, school, family issues, mental breakdowns, and most of all happy accomplishments. I became part of a new friend group towards the end of senior year where I was blessed with some of the best people I have ever met in my life. They are selfless, caring, kind, and reliable. They can always be counted on for a piece of advice, a good laugh, or to be there when desperate times call. 

Beginning a new chapter of my life, I was extremely anxious to start college. But, then I met my roommate. A funny story actually. We were both touring the University of South Carolina and bumped into each other. I needed a tour group to jump into and her family was kind enough to allow my mom and me to join in. We exchanged social media handles and decided to room together at Penn State. She is my rock. She has never once doubted me or done anything less than be an amazing friend. We literally do everything together, from going out on a Friday night to going to get our packages together at the Waring Commons. We both influence each other in the most positive way possible and have taught each other so many beautiful things about life.

The saying is true, you are truly the people that you surround yourself with and while I am self-dependent, the genuine relationships that I have built have the ability to stand against anything. I cannot thank these people enough for allowing me to grow while having them right there by my side.

“This I Believe Podcast”:

• Kindness is power
• Genuine relationships are the best thing you can have

Passion Blog:

• How the criminal justice system shapes society
• How the lack of care for climate change is destroying our Earth
• The rise of anti-semitism in culture
• How the variety of different cultures throughout the world form an amazing melting pot
• Self-care
• Adventuring into new experiences

Civic Blog:

• Discourse, Democracy, Rights, and Movements
• Education, Equity, and Stigmas (and sustainability)

My first potential topic for the history of a public controversy project would be abortion. The topic of abortion is present both historically and in modern society. While abortion has been a heated subject for a while now, the first public discussion was broadcasted through Roe v. Wade. In the decision of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (7-2) on January 22, 1973, that overly strong state restrictions on abortion are unconstitutional. The Court found that a set of Texas laws that criminalized abortion in most cases violated a woman’s constitutional right to privacy, which it found to be implicit in the liberty guarantee of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (“…nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”). The majority opinion was written by Justice Harry A. Blackmun. However, this past summer, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, sparking extreme public controversy. Justice Samuel Alito, who penned the majority opinion for the court, stated that the 1973 Roe decision and subsequent high court decisions affirming it “must be overruled” because they were “egregiously wrong,” the arguments were “exceptionally weak,” and they were so “damaging” that they amounted to “an abuse of judicial authority.” In other words, states now have the power to ban or regulate abortion. This ruling comes with much danger. If a woman wishes to get an abortion, they must travel out of state if they reside in a state where abortion is illegal. In addition, most states that illegalize abortion are neighbored by other states that do as well. This means that a woman might have to perform an abortion illegally, making it extremely unsafe for their health. Doctors are at risk of losing their medical licenses if involving themselves in abortion practices, creating another danger for them. Adherence to conventional morality, even outside of Christian conviction, encourages opposition to abortion on these consequentialist grounds. We propose a model (a four-factor model) in which attitudes toward religion, anti-feminism, sexual permissiveness, and abortion are separate ideas rather than just components of a single conservative factor.

My second potential topic for the history of a public controversy project would be gun control. While gun control is very apparent in present debates, it comes with historical controversy as well. Gun control refers to laws and rules that limit access to particular types of guns, restrict the ownership of certain firearms, or specify where certain firearms may be carried. Gun regulation is a hotly debated issue in the United States that sparks discussion about individual rights, state and federal oversight, and public safety. In order to reduce the high rate of gun-related violence and fatalities in the United States, proponents of gun control call for more regulations on the sale and transfer of weapons, while opponents contend that people have a constitutional right to bear arms. Currently, the controversy of gun control is such a heated debate due to mass shootings. Mass shootings have been the reason to so many deaths in the last decades. School shootings, concert shootings, mall shootings, and stray bullets that have struck innocent people as catastrophe. The reason why so many people have been unjustly killed is due to the legislation of gun control. Is owning a gun a constitutional right? Should people who wish to purchase a firearm receive thorough background checks? Should there be legislations placed against owning a gun? Would it be federal or by states? A project discussing this controversy would lead to very intriguing research and debate.

Below is the link to my TED Talk Slides for my Paradigm shift: the developments and shift of modern medicine over time.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1QIl97s63TqedSS6s0DWqumraVypPqSRhkcZ9yy0JBEI/edit?usp=sharing

Below is a link to my “Evolving Ideas” elevator pitch, regarding the paradigm shift in modern medicine.

https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_harris_the_benefits_of_not_being_a_jerk_to_yourself

Above is linked my favorite Ted Talk that I watched this morning from their website. The presentation was moving, informative, and intriguing. Not once did I become distracted or shift my listening from the speaker. I admire the speaker, Dan Harris, for what he says. First of all, he acknowledges every criticizing comment he has ever received. He then elaborates to say that he has never shared it publicly before this speech. It takes an immense amount of courage to be able to share and reflect every negative comment you’ve ever received about your work to a worldwide audience. His fans laugh, but admire him for his storytelling as well. He reveals his years-long mission to strengthen his relationships with everyone during his speech, which he delivers in a wise, humorous manner (starting with himself). He even makes fun of himself by saying, ” I thought we weren’t supposed to applause authoritarians here,” as the audience claps for his remarks. Harris shares what he has done and the types of programs that he has involved himself in in order to better himself. He advocates for meditation, explaining that his silent nine day meditation retreat was the only thing that led him to stop being selfish and boost his capacity for warmth, which is love and kindness.

Harris’s main point of his speech was that if you want to stop becoming a jerk to others, you must stop being a jerk to yourself first. He says that this was the ideology that began to spark his kindness to others. Harris focuses on mental health and participating in activities that root towards your own happiness. He emphasizes that strategies such as meditation, talking to a professional, and thinking to yourself can be a big help. The reason why I admire this Ted Talk so much is because I am a strong advocator for mental health. Like Harris, I believe that in order to be kind to others, you must be kind to yourself first. This can be proven with bullying. Studies have shown that most bullies aren’t confident in themselves and don’t love themselves, which is why they take out their anger on others. Harris delivers a purposeful message in a witty, sarcastic tone, where he can get his point across successfully while connecting with the audience. He shares his own story in order to impact others and enact a change amongst the audience.

For my Unit Two project, I am thinking that I can research a Ted Talk of modern medicine. I will pursue research by indulging in the change of medication over time as well as access to healthcare worldwide. I will craft arguments discussing the change of modern medicine, healthcare, and vaccines and how its change impacts our world today as well as the future of it.

In terms of my speech performance, I feel that my strengths were definitely the analyzation of the image. I was able to point out the commonplace and discuss it, rhetorically analyze the image, and discuss the purpose of the author. I talked about how the author drew emotion within the audience, how she used a woman of color wearing a hijab and the intent and importance behind it, and how the woman expressed vulnerability. In addition, I discussed how the author engaged the audience in wanting to change and reform. I mentioned the smaller text below with the main message and how the author used civic engagement by women who want to stand up for themselves in this generation rather than silence their voices. Lastly, I analyzed how the author used ethos, pathos, and logos within her civic artifact. The weaknesses of my speech were that I could have been a little repetitive in my speech and I could have got to the point quicker so that I would’ve had more time to discuss more of the analyzation of the civic artifact. My introduction was a little lengthy, but this was because I wanted to make sure that the listeners of my speech knew what I was talking about and knew the backstory of what they were listening to. What I learned in terms of strengths and successful approaches from my peers’ speeches was that they gave a lot of backstory about their civic artifact as well. For example, Ben’s speech. I learned so much about the analytics of the duck-and-cover tactic and I found his speech to be super interesting and informative. Every speech that I watched included a great analysis of the rhetoric appeals and how the author incorporated ethos, pathos, and logos. In addition, every speech that I watched, the speaker made sure to include commonplace, exigence and purpose as well. I thoroughly enjoyed watching all of them, it made me learn a lot about their civic artifact as well as my speech.

In 1869, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton founded the National Woman Suffrage Association. In 1926, Freida Kahlo made her first self-portrait that aimed to provoke deep thought and self-realization, especially amongst women. In the 1960s, Audre Lorde began publishing her poetry in magazines and anthologies to fight for everything she was able to achieve towards women’s rights. In 2012, Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the former Pakistan Taliban spokesman for her campaign to educate girls. In 2020, Kamala Harris was elected as the first female vice president and the first woman of color vice president, making history. All of these tremendous women have made historical impacts in efforts to advocate for women’s rights. Although, sadly, not much has changed. Living as a woman this day in age, your rights are not protected. This summer, the Supreme Court on Friday eliminated the constitutional right to obtain an abortion, casting aside 49 years of precedent that began with Roe v. Wade. The eradication of Roe v. Wade has determined that women barely have the rights to their own bodily functions in the United States. A vast majority of the world has stripped women of their rights. This civic artifact highlights the reality of women being suppressed in the 21st century in an extremely rhetorical method.

It is the day of your 18th birthday, you wake up with excitement as it is a huge milestone in your life. You can vote. In other words, you have the right to participate in the democratic process, a right that should be exercised by everyone. You have the freedom to vote for the next leader who will represent your ideas and beliefs in society. In 1848, the circumstances were different. Women did not have the right to vote in elections. Women did not have a voice. Until, Elizabeth Cady Stanton was introduced. Stanton was an American leader in the women’s rights movement who in 1848 formulated the first concerted demand for women’s suffrage in the United States. She advocated for the equality of men and women’s rights, specifically a woman’s right to vote. She worked alongside other activists fighting for gender equality, such as Susan B. Anthony, where they worked together for another 50 years after the initial convention. The two powerful figures organized campaigns, testified before lawmakers, and addressed crowds in lyric symphonies, conferences, and public places. By successfully securing rights for women and slaves, Stanton altered the social and political landscape of the United States of America for all time. Her unrelenting commitment to women’s suffrage led to the Constitution’s 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote.