Justice Project
This has been a crazy and long project. We started at the beginning of the year learning about different philosophies of justice and environmental ethics. Through this we learned all about different types and ideas of justice and we found some that we aligned behind. We then researched what happened with bears ears 4 years ago when the Obama administration turned it into a national monument and everything that has happened with it since then. We discussed and researched both sides of the aisle on the bears ears argument and then were assigned two groups half in support of the national monument and half against. I was put in the against group and although its not where my beliefs align but we still had to argue our points. We watched films on standing rock and a film called true justice which is about Bryan Stevenson's life and how he is a lawyer fighting for equality. It talked about how it is estimated that 1 out of every 10 people on death row is innocent and how he if fighting for justice. This was all to get us thinking about what we might want to do our projects on and it was all background research that helped us get started on the justice project.
Justice Monologue #1
I still remember seeing a text from my cousin in Portland saying “It is crazy here. It’s day 100 of the BLM protests.” I had been doing my best to keep up with what had been going on in Portland and the rest of the country. I just knew that stuff I thought I would never see before in my lifetime was happening in the very country I live in. People's basic first amendment right being torn away as cops and military presence beat them down with tear gas, paintballs, rubber bullets and riot shields at peaceful protests while they were only seeking justice for the people that were getting it worse than them. Seeking justice for the people that have been shot in the back seven times not even aware of what was about to happen, justice for George Floyd who had his neck kneeled on for 7 minutes effectively killing him as cops stood by and watched. Justice for an ER technician whose door had been busted down and shot before even having the chance to speak. I still don't understand how this is a discussion about how people believe that they stand for something just and they watch their fellow Americans get killed and treated like animals and all they do is stand by. How can you stand by and defend these actions, how do you live in a country that speaks about equality and justice for all but people get treated like that? How can you believe this is the America that our ancestors wanted? The only thing I can think of is what the Dalai Lama said “To my mind there is no doubt that the exercise of justice, far from being at odds with the principles of compassion, should be informed by a compassionate approach.” How can we fairly sentence one person to death no matter the crime, how does that not defeat the very purpose of justice. Is sentencing someone to death really any different than killing someone. It doesn't matter what you have done again as the Dalai Lama said “As I have already mentioned, it is vital to keep in mind the distinction between the doer and the deed.”
Justice Monologue #2
Systematic Racism’s Affects on Covid in Minorities
Leit S.
In the current climate of the US one of the things that I hear the most about is systematic racism. When you think about that and dissect the word it really seems to confuse some people. The idea is that over time as laws are passed and prejudices are passed on it continues to unfairly affect people of color and race. For example the way that it seems that police targeting people of color based on their skin is a key idea of systematic racism. There are many other branches of systematic racism and they all have different roots and things that have caused them, but I want to focus on environmental racism. Although this sounds strange and like something that seems virtually impossible because of the simple fact that something like the environment or climate can simply not be biased in any way there is a lot more than meets the eye. One of the key ideas behind environmental racism is the idea that people of color have been almost forced, due to lack of opportunities that directly causes a lack of income, to live in low priced housing areas that are almost always in much closer proximity to power plants and big polluters. As it says in the article “National Patterns in Environmental Injustice and Inequality: Outdoor NO2 Air Pollution in the United States.” “Nationally, population-weighted mean NO2 concentrations are 4.6 ppb (38%, p<0.01) higher for nonwhites than for whites.” Now even more specifically we can look at how a pandemic like the one we are currently in disproportionately affects people of color. As the CDC says “Long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put many people from racial and ethnic minority groups at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19.” Inequities such as health care access and poverty are some of the biggest factors. The systematic racism that has pushed these people into poverty is the same thing that is immediately disabling them from being able to get the access and care that they need in situations like this pandemic. When we refuse to address problems like this from the root and only look to cut off the head we miss a lot. These problems may have temporary fixes but the truth is when anything like this happens again they will be thrown back into the same problems. We are a country after all that claims we have opportunities and equality so at some point we need to start acting like it.
Leit S.
In the current climate of the US one of the things that I hear the most about is systematic racism. When you think about that and dissect the word it really seems to confuse some people. The idea is that over time as laws are passed and prejudices are passed on it continues to unfairly affect people of color and race. For example the way that it seems that police targeting people of color based on their skin is a key idea of systematic racism. There are many other branches of systematic racism and they all have different roots and things that have caused them, but I want to focus on environmental racism. Although this sounds strange and like something that seems virtually impossible because of the simple fact that something like the environment or climate can simply not be biased in any way there is a lot more than meets the eye. One of the key ideas behind environmental racism is the idea that people of color have been almost forced, due to lack of opportunities that directly causes a lack of income, to live in low priced housing areas that are almost always in much closer proximity to power plants and big polluters. As it says in the article “National Patterns in Environmental Injustice and Inequality: Outdoor NO2 Air Pollution in the United States.” “Nationally, population-weighted mean NO2 concentrations are 4.6 ppb (38%, p<0.01) higher for nonwhites than for whites.” Now even more specifically we can look at how a pandemic like the one we are currently in disproportionately affects people of color. As the CDC says “Long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put many people from racial and ethnic minority groups at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19.” Inequities such as health care access and poverty are some of the biggest factors. The systematic racism that has pushed these people into poverty is the same thing that is immediately disabling them from being able to get the access and care that they need in situations like this pandemic. When we refuse to address problems like this from the root and only look to cut off the head we miss a lot. These problems may have temporary fixes but the truth is when anything like this happens again they will be thrown back into the same problems. We are a country after all that claims we have opportunities and equality so at some point we need to start acting like it.
Justice Project
Dear Martin Heinrich,
My name is Leit Schafer, I am a senior at Animas High School in Durango Colorado. Although I do not live in the state of new mexico and therefore I am not one of your constituents I still wanted to write this about some of the stuff happening in the Chaco Canyon area. I would like to say first that I appreciate your stance on oil and gas and wind and solar with your thoughts of the green energy business soon to be the one running the economy. It is time that transition starts. More importantly I am writing this as a concerned enjoyer of Chaco Canyon. With around 91% of the land in the area being leased out for oil and gas it makes me sad to think what will happen to this place if the protections that are needed don’t soon get there. Seeing as you and Tom Udall have been trying to protect it as you recently did when the trump administration tried to move forward on a plan around Chaco Canyon as the rest of the state was and still is dealing with covid-19. As you and Tom said, “The Trump administration is wrong to rush forward with a plan for Chaco Canyon while Tribes, Pueblos and communities in Northern New Mexico are rightly focused on protecting themselves from coronavirus. The Trump administration is showing its true priorities in a decision that refuses to respect the wishes of the Navajo Nation and Pueblos who consider this land sacred, while clearing the way for oil companies to threaten this New Mexico treasure.” I feel like this is the perfect way to put it. Along with this though, people can clearly see where you stand and what you want to do but the question has to be asked with this new transition of administration, Trump losing and Biden winning how will you be able to work with these new people to actually make this a reality? As someone who has had the opportunity to explore cultural sites similar to this one and this one all around the country I hope something can change. The amount of history and pure life that is in these areas we won't be able to get back if it begins to disappear. We already know this, if we look at past examples such as Glen Canyon Dam and how it completely erased what used to be there. I hope you can find a way to make real change now that the opportunity is here and the cards are playing into your favor.
All the best,
Leit Schafer
My name is Leit Schafer, I am a senior at Animas High School in Durango Colorado. Although I do not live in the state of new mexico and therefore I am not one of your constituents I still wanted to write this about some of the stuff happening in the Chaco Canyon area. I would like to say first that I appreciate your stance on oil and gas and wind and solar with your thoughts of the green energy business soon to be the one running the economy. It is time that transition starts. More importantly I am writing this as a concerned enjoyer of Chaco Canyon. With around 91% of the land in the area being leased out for oil and gas it makes me sad to think what will happen to this place if the protections that are needed don’t soon get there. Seeing as you and Tom Udall have been trying to protect it as you recently did when the trump administration tried to move forward on a plan around Chaco Canyon as the rest of the state was and still is dealing with covid-19. As you and Tom said, “The Trump administration is wrong to rush forward with a plan for Chaco Canyon while Tribes, Pueblos and communities in Northern New Mexico are rightly focused on protecting themselves from coronavirus. The Trump administration is showing its true priorities in a decision that refuses to respect the wishes of the Navajo Nation and Pueblos who consider this land sacred, while clearing the way for oil companies to threaten this New Mexico treasure.” I feel like this is the perfect way to put it. Along with this though, people can clearly see where you stand and what you want to do but the question has to be asked with this new transition of administration, Trump losing and Biden winning how will you be able to work with these new people to actually make this a reality? As someone who has had the opportunity to explore cultural sites similar to this one and this one all around the country I hope something can change. The amount of history and pure life that is in these areas we won't be able to get back if it begins to disappear. We already know this, if we look at past examples such as Glen Canyon Dam and how it completely erased what used to be there. I hope you can find a way to make real change now that the opportunity is here and the cards are playing into your favor.
All the best,
Leit Schafer
Justice Project Defense
I was originally struggling with what to do for my justice progress then after Ashley and I met, with her input I decided to do it on the oil and gas drilling in the Chaco Canyon area. After having a very fruitful meeting with a member of SJCA (San Juan Citizen Alliance), a group of people from the san juan area that are concerned about some of the stuff that they see going on. It has now blossomed into a group of over 1000 members with a fairly large voice/presence in the area. They are so concerned with Chaco Canyon right now because of the simple fact that over 90% of the land is being leased out to oil and gas. The issue stems from the fact that with the amount of land being used and leased the history in the area is unarguably beginning to be erased. With enough traffic it will slowly start to disappear and one it's gone there is no coming back. The amount of culture and life that Chaco Canyon contains is immense and beautiful and I have been lucky enough to experience it. I definitely struggled with this project, one of my main concerns was the fact that I am in fact not a not a New Mexico citizen and so I struggled with figuring out who to write to and I almost changed my project a couple times. After struggling with that for a while I came to a realization that because of the fact that I don't live in New Mexico and so can’t vote there if I want my voice heard the best way to do it would be to write a letter. This was all of the information I was sent by a member of SJCA that I used.
In each of these emails there was a ton of information with one email containing 5 different links. It didn't all immediately connect to Chaco Canyon but all to similar stuff right in the same area. My project might not do anything and I won't even know if the letter even arrives. I am happy with what I have done. The simple act is that I don't have much of a voice so I have to reach out to people that do have a voice and can make change and hopefully influence them to make a difference. AS I said I am super happy with the research that I came across or was sent to me. I had more than enough for what I was doing especially because I wanted my letter to be more emotional and less fact but still based around facts. I wanted it this way because I want them to know that I care and I already know that they have the facts and it's not something I need to reiterate for them.
In each of these emails there was a ton of information with one email containing 5 different links. It didn't all immediately connect to Chaco Canyon but all to similar stuff right in the same area. My project might not do anything and I won't even know if the letter even arrives. I am happy with what I have done. The simple act is that I don't have much of a voice so I have to reach out to people that do have a voice and can make change and hopefully influence them to make a difference. AS I said I am super happy with the research that I came across or was sent to me. I had more than enough for what I was doing especially because I wanted my letter to be more emotional and less fact but still based around facts. I wanted it this way because I want them to know that I care and I already know that they have the facts and it's not something I need to reiterate for them.
Justice Project Reflection
I feel like I was fairly successful for myself in this project. I wanted to reach out to someone in a position of power and hopefully have my voice heard and answered. The one downside to the way I did this project is the fact that I possibly will never hear back or even know if it got to them. In the situation that it does then I will be extremely happy. I feel like I was unsuccessful in the case that it wasn't everything I wanted it to be. I am happy with the letter I wrote and I think it's a good piece of my writing but by the end I was starting to fizzle out on what else to say. I wish it was a little more fruitful and I wish I had used my time better to have more people look at it before it went out. I feel like I really showed up for this project compared to the others. I had a really good interview and idea early. I got on it early and had an idea formed that I was happy with. I also had a lot of resources and chose something that had a lot of correlation in my life and just the area that I live. The two things that I learned through this project was to get on it early which I haven't been doing this year. I have been slacking and falling behind and it has kicked me in the butt. I got on this project early but still not early enough. I am getting this close to on time and a lot more on time than a lot of other stuff but still not good enough. The other key thing I learned is just to reach out to people for help. Through getting help from Ashley I got set up with Mike and was able to get a really large amount of information from him. I have already started to reach out for my senior project and try to collect some research from people but I know that I need more. At this point all I need to do is more and more research.