First Day of School!

Back in Grad classes! I just had two classes today. The first was better than the second.

First, Jack Donnelly's Intro to Human Rights. That guy is a riot. He does this weird pretzel thing with his legs under his desk, makes dry jokes as he runs out of breath, and breezes his hand (pinkie ring and all) through his white hair while talking. But, boy, is he brilliant. I had him for Int'l Political Theory last summer and basically hung on his every word. I'm looking forward to this class, too!

Here is the quick question I asked him after class. The basic concept of today that Donnelly lectured on is that while human rights norms are accepted pretty much across the board on the international level, the enforcement and implementation of human rights is done on a national level. In other words, all countries basically agree what are human rights, but not all countries believe they are improperly enforcing/implementing those human rights in their country to their citizens. So, I asked if this base premise (that nations enforce human rights) presupposes another "human right," the right to belong to a nation. Basically, this "human right" would be less of a universal right conferred from the fact that a being is human. Rather, it would be actually be a precursor to exercising one's human right that is due only because of our social-political constructs, namely, the way we have organized the world to be full of countries that have (1) territory and (2) sovereignty. Donnelly seemed pretty interested in this idea. He said that it was one of the weakest areas of human rights theory because it's unclear which takes precedent -- state territorial sovereignty or individual human rights -- and because not all people have membership to a state (refugees, asylum status immigrants, etc.) . True, true. Those reasons are what motivated me to ask the question in the first place. While I am interested in the strength (analytical logic) of the human rights theory, I actually was most curious about indigenous and minority groups that had/want their own territory, self-determination and self-governance within the dominant state.

Call me a groupie, but I am also going to audit Donnelly's other class - Ancient Political Theory.

Second class is Politics of Development. I was not as impressed. We watched some video clips, had some power points that made vast generalizations under poor logic. Worst of all, the professor posed some pretty scattered and unimpressive (hackneyed) questions in an attempt to generate discussion. Meh. We'll see how that goes.

Also - I applied to 13 internships today! Pick me, pick me! Must. Sleep. Now.

Razas

This post won't be what I want to be, but at least I am writing something.

A few weeks ago I was reading in a cafe here in Denver as the sun set in front of me and behind the mountains. My hair kept falling in my face. While still reading, I pulled my hair into a braid without thinking. I could tell a little baby girl behind me was watching me because I heard her father say Mira la raza, or, Look at her braid. I loved being a part of that moment for so many reasons and I keep playing it over in my mind.

Braids always remind me of the time I have spent living in the Andes. All of our girls, the mothers of our girls, and the professors at their schools wore braids. I often braided my own hair, but if I didn't the girls would do it for me, teaching me new patterns. In a place where I often stood apart, I loved that from behind I would blend in with everyone else: a thick, dark braid hanging down by back, wisps falling out in the wind. The moment here in Denver seemed even more connected to the Andes because I was watching the sun set over the Rockies, which are essentially the same mountains, just further along the fault.

It amazes me that this perfectly simple and practical, yet undeniably beautiful, thing can stand for femininity across cultures and time. How is it that all women and girls around the world just innately know how to braid their hair? Is it in the same category of universals as innate language, emotions, or grammatical syntax? Do men know how to do it? Of course there are so many ways to braid -- Americans braid with the weave coming in toward the center, Andeans braid with the weave coming out of the center, a heart-braid, a french braid, a four-strand braid. I can't help but feel an unspoken connection to another women I see wearing a braid because I know that we both stood that morning with our arms bent behind us, mindlessly twisting our hair into this raza.

I also love the symbolism of the word in Spanish. Raza. The word raza means both braid and race. To me that shows the concept that races should mix and feel comfortable intertwining, like a braid. The three strands of a braid are each interconnected and truly need the other strands in order to stay in place. Maybe I am too optimistic, but I like to think that interracial mixing could be as simple and natural as weaving a braid.

Happy 2010!

Happy New Year!

Break has been wonderful! Spent some time on the Cape. I saw some high school friends, but mainly just spent time with the family. Had a few days back in Denver, then up to Montana for a skiing New Years with college friend and her family. Loved it! I feel so lucky to be where I am right now and to have such loving friends and family.

I am not a huge fan of new years resolutions because I like to work on things continuously or make the conscious effort at the time, whenever I figure out something new I want to work on. But, that said, a few things I want to work on this year are...

(1) give Denver another shot. I think I have fallen into a pessimistic view of it and I am changing that around to be more optimistic. I will explore new areas, talk to more people, and do the things I moved here to do. That is, I will try to live a more balanced life taking advantage of the things the Rockies have to offer.
(2) learn more about Judaism and do something (buy a challah bread, light the candles, cook a nice dinner, go to services) to celebrate Shabbat each week. I hope I can find a temple I feel comfortable attending and I want to be learning more about Judaism as a way of life.
(3) read more novels, even as little as 1 page a night before crashing. I love reading and devour books. It has been so hard when I get to bed late, exhausted and I have already spent all day reading and looking at the computer screen. But I miss falling in love with characters, having good stories spinning around my head and good writing.
(4) Volunteer! I get to attend legal nights again this semester. I work as a volunteer translator for lawyers who don't speak Spanish at a free legal clinic. I couldn't go last semester because I always had class. I'm also getting involved in this cool organization that teaches human rights to high school kids. There is going to be a Youth Conference for the kids in April and I'm helping to plan the curriculum and the event. I'm really, really looking forward to this!

Some photos to enjoy --

Me with DK at the lodge at Big Sky in Montana
The trips.
The bridge on Keveney Lane, just down the hill from my parents' house

Lindsey, Andy, Louis, me, Mom, Diana. Notice the immature bunny ears ruining a perfectly nice photo.
The cute grandparents!

me!

Officially a 3L!

Wowzers - it's over and I'm a 3L now! I'm back at the grad school for Winter/Spring quarters, so I won't be back at law school until next Fall, 2010. Seems weird even just writing that. I'm thrilled. And relieved. And tired. So tired.

What'd I do today? De-iced my freezer (old-school, kind. Took forever, awfully annoying). Cleaned my apartment. Packed my bag for home. Printed out exam, handed it in. Bought used books at the bookstore for next semester. Bought books off half.com and amazon for next semester. Target stop for some essentials, like hand lotion so my dry hands don't fall off. Some quick stops looking for my new quest -- used cross country skis! Didn't find any but that's fine. Ate lunch, got some coffee and outlined my presentation. Then, wow, long 3 1/2 hrs of my/peer presentations. Finally got celebratory sushi dinner with hot saki and mochi for dessert. Yum!

Just can't believe it's over.

Yay!

Just finished an exam - 1 paper left!!

Happy Human Rights Day. :)