#BREAKFREE
Segregration is legally over, but to this day we tend to seperate ourselves because; race, sexuality, religion, politics, discrimination, and stereotypes are still an issue. Before discussing what it meant to break free from personal issues we all faced, we had to start with accepting moments of vulnerability.
Inspirations
As we began our new journey of self expression, we started by diving into a "Stereotype Activity" in class. Our teacher set up four blank posters around the walls with four races; White, Black, Mexican and Asian. The goal for this activity was to write down every stereotpye that we've either heard, seen, or know about the race itself (as seen by the three images on the left). Regardless if whether or not we identified with the race or believed what we wrote, we were challenged to step out of our comfort zones and write everything that has been applied to the race. By doing this, we were able to acknowledge as a class how each race was percieved, and see for ourselves how stereotypes were in fact more prevalent than we anticipated.
In class we were assigned to a college level reading called "Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us". In the reading, the use of identity contingencies - the idea that forces us to face and overcome in a particular setting- affect our everyday behavior and result in more evident societal problems. The text goes on to explaining how stereotype threats, or the fear of what people might think of us due to our ; race, gender, sexuality, religion, age, etc. It's simple everyday activites that we purposefully avoid because of how we identify. Instances like an African American who walks down the street at night, with the fear of being potentially seen as violent. Or a white student in a predominantly nonwhite classroom with the fear as being precieved as "racist". It was interesting to read about real experiences from multiple different ethnicities.
Below is the PDF version of my annotated reading, with my ideas on certain identity contingencies mentioned throughout the passage.
Why #Breakfree?
While studying American History, we understood where a lot of the racism, discrimination, judgements, etc. came from. We were able to take our knowledge and apply it to our personal lives and how this might/might not have played an impact on us at one point of our lives. In order to breakfree, we had to acknowledge what we knew was the reality of stereotypes and make the issues go viral. This project is a movement that we called #BreakFree. Students created "That Cards", personal pieces, and viral videos on certain issues, to encourage viewers to "BreakFree" from misconceptions that we all face.
Writing Process
"That Moment"
Components of the BreakFree project began with the "That Cards". We began by picking a moment in our lives where we felt like we were discriminated, accused, given a certain stereotype, and told to write about that moment. "That Cards" helped each student in the classroom be able to share a story with our peers, because they were kept anonymous. However, still knowing that they'd be anonymous, we were all still very uncomfortable with facing our own truths. As a class we did several simulations that allowed us to open up to one another by answering the questions that our teacher had given us in regards to certain situations. Along with this, every morning in class we were asked a question that was out of our comfort zones, and as they continued to be given, more and more of us began to feel open enough to share our stories. In my that card I chose to talk about growing up with a strong work ethic because my mom was a single parent for years. Within my that card I go on mentioning how everyone assumed that my work was merely to avoid making the same "mistakes" my mother had, but in reality her struggles only pushed me to do well.
Personal Piece
Apart from creating a viral video, the personal piece was another major component of the project that each student had to work on. I originally had planned to perform a spoken word, but after days of stuggling to get words onto paper I realized that I should create an art piece that I was proud of. I've done many art related project in my 5 years of being at the High Tech High village, but this is one that I will cherish because of how personal it became to me. I didn't think that I had moment in life to share with the audience, my classmates, or my teacher. Sure my life wasn't perfect, but I felt like whatever brought me to be the person I am today was merely from maturing. I went with my Latina story. Not being judged by the community, rather my own family. My artist statement goes into specifics, which I will attach below. I think apart from making a product that reflects who we are, the real purpose of doing these personal pieces was for growth. We all had a story bottled up inside of us that we felt a need to hide forever. Feelings are real, stories need to be heard and this helped us to not only BreakFree from others but our own judgements as well.
Choosing color palettes that I felt would stand out
At this point I had struggled to think about what it was that I wanted to write for my image.
"Cansada De Ser Juzgada", which means tired of being judged in English
Group Video Project: Making Issues go Viral
The second portion of the project was to research the historical background of an unrepresented group. I was partned up with two people who had similar interests in gender related issues that we felt should be addressed in the community. Before going out to film, we worked for several weeks on a video proposal that we would then turn into a quick 5 minute presentation to pitch to the class. Gender norms were our main focus so we studied why tradition plays a huge part in what roles men and women play in their household, social circles, jobs, etc. We began with an introuduction that highlighted important historical content that would play a factor in why gender roles continue to stick around in such a progressive time in our country. Then came our motivation behind creating the video, which was the "Like a Girl" campaign by Always. We liked the idea of bringing in authentic actors that could give their opinions on issues like Gender Norms, and allow for the audience to see the issues being talked about in multiple different perspectives. We also seeked out a social pyschologist to help us understand why parents heavily influence gender norms onto their children.
​Click on the PDF above to view our proposal for our video project
The arrow above will take you directly to the presentation that we created on Google Slides
Storyboarding
Storyboarding allowed for our group to get a general idea of what each frame might look while filming. Although this did change when we began the filming process, it still was very useful for materials, actors, and equipment we would need. We focused on getting actors from the High Tech High village, because although our school seems to be very progressive, many teachers and students still believe in the traditional gender role ideologies. Our environment was in office like settings that were available to us in school, and the questions were all the same for the actors both male and female.
Your Gender Your Norms
The video on the left is our final product that my group and I created for our #BreakFree project. Although there were areas that could have brought out a stronger message, I am proud of the result. I think that a lot of the messages given by the expert contact and the actors were direct but hard-hitting.We were able to show a diverse audience which could also play a role in how completely different every response to a question was. This project targetted many social issues as well and I appreciated the fact that our videos were chosen by us, and we had the power to showcase the videos in any form. While there are hundreds of social experiments out in the viral community, it's refreshing to see that as teenagers we can help bring awareness as well.
Reflecting on #BreakFree
I never understood how big of an affect our personal lives could have on another person. Before the BreakFree project if I were to ever have the courage to share my story it was to be with those I've known for years. It's intimadating to put your story out into the open with the fear of judgement, rejection, and not being able to relate. I personally was afraid to come out and talk about the biggest impact that my parents had on me. They were divorced so their parenting styles and expectations of me were different that I began to limit who I was as a Mexican-American. Through my "That Moment", and personal piece I was able to go to the root of my problem which was self acceptance. At the end of the project I recognized that I have control over my emotions and opinions, and if I am proud of who I am than the rest shouldn't bring me down. This project allowed me to get in touch with my feelings, and realize that it's okay to be upset but speaking about why that is created a sense of relief for myself.
I was most passionate about my personal piece, and wasn't struggling with the artwork until I decided that I wanted a phrase added to my artwork. I knew that the artwork alone was fairly symbolic, but it didn't truly draw in the significance the Mexican-American culture has on me. I insisted on having the phrase in Spanish because I felt it went with what I was explaining through my artist statement as well. I spent hours looking for quotes from influential Latin women in history, looked through blogs designed by Chicana activists, and still I couldn't find the right words that expressed how I felt. I became fixated on it being completely in Spanish that I was loosing the meaning of what it was I wanted to say. I then scrapped the idea, and wrote one line in English, and the other in Spanish. As I showed above in the artwork, I was still incorporating the Spanish element but keeping the English language that I use on an every day basis. Through the hundreds of quotes and words that I wasn't drawn to, I was finally able to come up with something that was a reflection of who I was and what my painting meant.
I was fortunate enough to have a history teacher who taught reality and truths, rather than giving us textbook lessons that every traditional high school student recieves. Throughout the semester and working with BreakFree, we were still given lectures and simulations in class that gave me a better understanding as to why words are used the way they are and why people are treat others the way they do. I learned how the Native Americans were assimilated or removed from their culture by the English, how Mexicans were seen as a burden since the early 1900s, and why African Americans are still tied to derogatory terms used today. We've pusposefully segregated ourselves into categories because of the color of our skin, economically, politically, and we don't ever stop to realize why. I was most interested by the way white privilege is still unrecognized by our high school culture. A lot of U.S History targetted the way the whites purposefully rejected other ethnicites in ways that we view as inhumane. It brought a level of uncomfortablilty within a lot of my classmates and it wasn't for pointing fingers or blaming every caucasian for these events. It made me realize why the education system limits students from the truths behind historical events in histry, but by doing this we could potentially repeat such events that occurred in the past.
The #BreakFree project has not only allowed me to accept some of my personal issues with certain stereotypes, but also understand stories that my classmates had shared as well. It's important to raise awareness on issues because someone out there in the world might be able to relate to our stories and feel like they can share theirs too. I love the idea of making social issues go viral, and this project is showing the courage that teenagers have while sharing their moments of vulnerabilty and fear. I'm glad our class of 2017 was given the oppurtunity to do this project because we were able to see eachother on our journey and support one another. I'd hope that I can educate my family using BreakFree as a model of what I have learned. I have the tools to educate others about serious issues that I was once to afraid to defend. This project isn't just for students, or parents, it's for the world. We all have a story, now it's time to share it.
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Exhibiting at Queen Bees
I've been in the High Tech village since middle school, so I've been a part of many exhibitions. I definetly have memorable ones, but nearly all of them have been showcased at our school which isn't bad, but it's too easy. I think one of the reasons why so many parents and students loved this exhibition was because of how the venue really fit the theme of the project. We had out main exhibition at Queen Bees which is a cafe in North Park. Students worked to set up the main stage for the music performances, as well at the spoken words. We arranged the seating area to be very comfortable and calming, to give more of a poetry cafe feel. The back room where all of the other performances were being held was dimly lit and filled with art work created by the students. Organically, the guests flowed about the exhibition to the stations of their choice, instead of being forced to go to a certain area at a specific time. Students were also viewing their peers work, and talking about their own when they had the chance. Aside from the actual look of the venue being incredible, another reason why it went so well was becuase of the amount of time we spent working on the project. Students cared about the work, and we were all very proud to put our stories out for the public to hear and I think the adults were impressed with this. The amount of support that we had from our teachers Joanne and Mike pushed us all to make them proud for everything they have done for us this semester. I will always be grateful for this BreakFree project, and I hope it only continues after we leave.
