By: Sarah Hovinga, Adam Secondo and Zach Bagley
Today was a full day - starting with a true DC cultural experience: the Metro at rush hour. We started the day meeting with Congressmen Garamendi and Denham at the Capitol. Coming from opposite sides of the aisle it was interesting for our group to hear different perspectives on how to make progress on complex national issues requiring both collaboration and compromise. From these meetings we made the quick walk over to the Supreme Court. Justice Kennedy, being incredibly generous with his time, engaged us from the minute he walked into the room with stories from his childhood growing up in Sacramento to his present day service in the Supreme Court. Amongst the stories he left us with a challenge - reminding us of the significance of agriculture and what's at stake if we, as agriculturalists, are not vocal about the work that we do - holding us accountable for the very reason we came to DC.
From the Supreme Court we jumped on a bus to make the quick ride to Baltimore where we spent the afternoon being introduced to the Black Lives Matter movement. Our first stop was the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African-American History and Culture, where we were generously guided by Joy Hall, the museums Visitor Services Coordinator, and her team. From the museum we traveled through the Sandtown/Winchester area with Sonce Reese, a resident of and advocate for the community. Following this up with a presentation on the history of racial segregation and discrimination by Dr. Betsy Nix, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Baltimore, we were sobered by the seemingly intractable realities, including the death of Freddie Gray, which exist in Baltimore.
Wendell Berry, the Farmer Poet, in his book - A Place on Earth said "...a man's life is always dealing with permanence - the most dangerous kind of irresponsibility is to think of your doings as temporary. That, anyhow, is what I've tried to keep before myself. What you do on the earth, the earth makes permanent."
We were reminded of this quote while reading the words of Lucille Clifton (pictured below) at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African-American History and Culture this afternoon.
Today and yesterday have been two very full days of travel and learning and stretching our perspectives. As we consider the impacts of this seminar on our futures we must not only be cognizant of the futures of the land and the people we live and work with, but both the past and the futures of those whose histories are inextricably intertwined with ours.
What a great day! I am so jealous. It was an honor meeting Justice Breyer when 42 went, but I would have loved to meet Justice Kennedy. Great advice about the importance of AG doing a better job of telling its story. The Baltimore experience sounds amazing... enjoy the ride! Ara Azhderian 42
ReplyDelete