The Justice Project
Project overview
Throughout the last semester we have been studying justice through the eyes of historical philosophers. This has given me a different perspective on my own values and ethics. We looked at various issues of justice such as Bears ears to see if we could reach common ground. Over the semester we went through each theory of justice from utilitarianism all the way to John Rawls, Justice as Fairness.
Justice Monologue #1
The American Version of Justice
A black man born in Montgomery Alabama has seen and experienced the darkest ideologies of America. The constant stares and remarks behind his back. We still have our roots embedded in racism. This is evident through the court system in America.We convict African Americans and send them to death row more than any other race, even though they only make up a small portion of our population. Bryan Stevenson believes that the courts are kept racist through crooked cops and biased trials. There are no laws that prevent racial discrimination through a jury pool so this all happens legally. Minorities and people of poverty are treated unjustly in the US. Looking at this issue through the veil of ignorance it allows you to see the disadvantages that these people deal with everyday. People are born into race or poverty not by choice so we should do things as a country to encourage social growth. Instead our country actively disenfranchises these people through acts of Environmental Racism and mass incarceration. Rawls' justice as fairness takes into account the disadvantages that we as a country have created and wants to place everyone on an even playing field. In theory this form of justice would do away with systemic racism and the unjust court system in america.
Things as they are now are wildly unfair. People who are born into poverty often give up by the time they are in their teens because they know they will become victims to the system. They know this because they have seen it happen to those before them. Fathers and uncles in prison because of crimes they committed out of civil disobedience. Is it justice if a man is arrested for selling drugs, but he was selling those drugs to feed his family? Howard Zinn would call this Civil Disobedience. Making it illegal to sell drugs is a law that was formed out of good morals but people often have to break this law for the greater good. The law of man is more defining for people than the rule of law. This is why I feel the concept of deontology shouldn’t be present in our justice system. I feel that Finding the balance between individual liberties and law and order is near impossible in America. With our polarizing political parties wanting different Americas I find it hard to believe that we will reach a common ground. The issue of justice in America exposes our deep rooted issues in racism and bigotry.
Reaction
I was very nervous going into this assignment because this is the first monologue I have ever written. I felt more confident watching my peers because I could see the similarities between our monologues. Reading this aloud makes me feel much more passionate about the issues I spoke on. Reading the text was much more impactful than if I was just going to turn it in and forget about it. I also feel my writing was more refined because of the pressure of having to read it aloud. All the monologues were amazing and it shows the need for refinement in our justice system.
A black man born in Montgomery Alabama has seen and experienced the darkest ideologies of America. The constant stares and remarks behind his back. We still have our roots embedded in racism. This is evident through the court system in America.We convict African Americans and send them to death row more than any other race, even though they only make up a small portion of our population. Bryan Stevenson believes that the courts are kept racist through crooked cops and biased trials. There are no laws that prevent racial discrimination through a jury pool so this all happens legally. Minorities and people of poverty are treated unjustly in the US. Looking at this issue through the veil of ignorance it allows you to see the disadvantages that these people deal with everyday. People are born into race or poverty not by choice so we should do things as a country to encourage social growth. Instead our country actively disenfranchises these people through acts of Environmental Racism and mass incarceration. Rawls' justice as fairness takes into account the disadvantages that we as a country have created and wants to place everyone on an even playing field. In theory this form of justice would do away with systemic racism and the unjust court system in america.
Things as they are now are wildly unfair. People who are born into poverty often give up by the time they are in their teens because they know they will become victims to the system. They know this because they have seen it happen to those before them. Fathers and uncles in prison because of crimes they committed out of civil disobedience. Is it justice if a man is arrested for selling drugs, but he was selling those drugs to feed his family? Howard Zinn would call this Civil Disobedience. Making it illegal to sell drugs is a law that was formed out of good morals but people often have to break this law for the greater good. The law of man is more defining for people than the rule of law. This is why I feel the concept of deontology shouldn’t be present in our justice system. I feel that Finding the balance between individual liberties and law and order is near impossible in America. With our polarizing political parties wanting different Americas I find it hard to believe that we will reach a common ground. The issue of justice in America exposes our deep rooted issues in racism and bigotry.
Reaction
I was very nervous going into this assignment because this is the first monologue I have ever written. I felt more confident watching my peers because I could see the similarities between our monologues. Reading this aloud makes me feel much more passionate about the issues I spoke on. Reading the text was much more impactful than if I was just going to turn it in and forget about it. I also feel my writing was more refined because of the pressure of having to read it aloud. All the monologues were amazing and it shows the need for refinement in our justice system.
Justice Monologue #2
Forgotten on Sacred Land
Intro
We are led to believe that the United States is a place where everyone has a voice and everyone has the power to be who they want to be. Land of the free and home of the brave, but when the white man stepped foot on these shores a litteral and cultural genocide began. Native Americans have been given the short end of the stick for hundreds of years. We have tried to eliminate their culture, religion, language and individuality. Stipped of their hair and their birth names. Today we still can’t escape those issues, Natives have been moved from reservation to reservation. With shocking poverty and harsh addiction rates the reservations have become a grim reminder of what the natives once were.
Cultural significance
Within the last four years our current president has been actively disregarding the values and traditions of natives for his own personal gain. President Obama made Bears Ears a national monument so all sacred burial sites and artifacts can be preserved for the education of future generations. Our current president undid the lines that Obama had drawn to clear up space for resource extraction and ranching. With these new borders, Bears Ears has lost more than half of its original size. This leaves thousands of artifacts, drawings, and burial sites at risk. The disregard for cultural significance makes me extremely ashamed in my government. To the native people Bears Ears is a church. The natives have occupied bears ears for tens of thousands of years and the land is littered with thousands of historical sites. Another powerful connection for natives at Bears Ears is connecting with those they have lost and those that came before them. Dan Simplicio is an archaeologist and a member of the Zuni Pueblo tribe he has been studying the significance of bears ears for nearly 20 years. He says, “The spiritual aspect here is the people themselves who once inhabited these areas, and their presence is still here. They may be dead and gone, but we consider that part of their presence as an important link to the living native people.
Effects and my personal ethic
While Bears Ears is miles away the legislative decisions that trump has made may have an effect on us. With more room up for ranching and ATV’s the soil erosion is going to be increased significantly. This will cause more dust to be swooped up during wind storms taking the dust all the way to the snowy laplatas. When that bright orange dust sticks to the snow in our high country it causes it to melt faster because the dirt is absorbing more thermal energy. This goes to show how conscious we have to be with the use of our land. The people who are making the legislative decisions in our country have no regard for the effects and consequences of their actions. The only thing they strive for is efficiency. No man should be able to dictate the boundaries of sacred land. The natives have been in bears ears long before Europeans settled here therefore they should have the right to all the land. The cultural significance of bears ears is beyond Donald Trump and he has no right to shape and destroy the land because of his ideology and power.
Intro
We are led to believe that the United States is a place where everyone has a voice and everyone has the power to be who they want to be. Land of the free and home of the brave, but when the white man stepped foot on these shores a litteral and cultural genocide began. Native Americans have been given the short end of the stick for hundreds of years. We have tried to eliminate their culture, religion, language and individuality. Stipped of their hair and their birth names. Today we still can’t escape those issues, Natives have been moved from reservation to reservation. With shocking poverty and harsh addiction rates the reservations have become a grim reminder of what the natives once were.
Cultural significance
Within the last four years our current president has been actively disregarding the values and traditions of natives for his own personal gain. President Obama made Bears Ears a national monument so all sacred burial sites and artifacts can be preserved for the education of future generations. Our current president undid the lines that Obama had drawn to clear up space for resource extraction and ranching. With these new borders, Bears Ears has lost more than half of its original size. This leaves thousands of artifacts, drawings, and burial sites at risk. The disregard for cultural significance makes me extremely ashamed in my government. To the native people Bears Ears is a church. The natives have occupied bears ears for tens of thousands of years and the land is littered with thousands of historical sites. Another powerful connection for natives at Bears Ears is connecting with those they have lost and those that came before them. Dan Simplicio is an archaeologist and a member of the Zuni Pueblo tribe he has been studying the significance of bears ears for nearly 20 years. He says, “The spiritual aspect here is the people themselves who once inhabited these areas, and their presence is still here. They may be dead and gone, but we consider that part of their presence as an important link to the living native people.
Effects and my personal ethic
While Bears Ears is miles away the legislative decisions that trump has made may have an effect on us. With more room up for ranching and ATV’s the soil erosion is going to be increased significantly. This will cause more dust to be swooped up during wind storms taking the dust all the way to the snowy laplatas. When that bright orange dust sticks to the snow in our high country it causes it to melt faster because the dirt is absorbing more thermal energy. This goes to show how conscious we have to be with the use of our land. The people who are making the legislative decisions in our country have no regard for the effects and consequences of their actions. The only thing they strive for is efficiency. No man should be able to dictate the boundaries of sacred land. The natives have been in bears ears long before Europeans settled here therefore they should have the right to all the land. The cultural significance of bears ears is beyond Donald Trump and he has no right to shape and destroy the land because of his ideology and power.
Justice Project; Artist Statement
Justice Project Artist Statement
America struggles to give every person a fighting chance, this isn’t a secret. People who are born a different tone of skin or in poor areas have less of a chance at success. The actions of past leaders has left millions of Americans disanfrachized and vulnerable. This last year has caused great heartache and loss to thousands of families because of the irresponsibility of our government. Living in a place like Durango it was hard to see the effects in the beginning of the pandemic, but now it is hard to ignore. Not just people in distant towns and cities, now it’s affecting the people I love. My aunt is working tirelessly as the head ICU nurse at Mercy Regional Hospital. Everyday she puts on layers of PPE and she hasn't been able to see her son in weeks. My grandparents have also come down with the virus. Months ago it was hard to Imagine knowing somebody who has come into contact with it now it is making its way through our community. The recent surge in Covid cases has led me to focus on Coronavirus relief for my project. I have been working on screen printed t-shirts to sell, with all profits donated to the Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund. This response fund is run by the World Health Organization and has already donated millions to various causes to fight Covid.
From the beginning of this project I knew that I wanted to do something related to the pandemic but I was unsure at times what the best product would look like. I started off by wanting to educate people on the effects of covid 19. I planned on doing a research paper about the effects of covid 19 in the indigenous community. Then another spike in cases, one of the hotspots being our community. This made it nearly impossible to establish connections for interviews and do field work that I felt was crucial for a beautiful project. So I decided to move away from that idea, to pursue something else that would fight Covid. For inspiration I asked my aunt, Angela Peterson what would be the best way to help stop the spread of Covid. She said the best way was to donate money, because that money directly funds essential things like PPE. This pushed me in the direction of fundraising. I was excited to pursue this idea because there was already a group of students in class that planned to fundraise money to fight Covid. The students are fundraising by selling t-shirts designed by them. The only problem is they are ordering their t-shirts with the logos pre printed. I instead wanted to screen print the shirts myself this way I don't have to spend a fortune to get my t-shirts produced. I also feel that it will provide a more artistic feel to the shirts. Creating the design was my favorite part, I wanted to do a piece that was really simple so it appealed to a wider audience but at the same time it needed to portray a message about Covid. The final design for the screen print is the graphic to the right. I chose this graphic because it’s very simple yet it portrays an effective message. Mask up is something I am proud to represent and call my own.
America struggles to give every person a fighting chance, this isn’t a secret. People who are born a different tone of skin or in poor areas have less of a chance at success. The actions of past leaders has left millions of Americans disanfrachized and vulnerable. This last year has caused great heartache and loss to thousands of families because of the irresponsibility of our government. Living in a place like Durango it was hard to see the effects in the beginning of the pandemic, but now it is hard to ignore. Not just people in distant towns and cities, now it’s affecting the people I love. My aunt is working tirelessly as the head ICU nurse at Mercy Regional Hospital. Everyday she puts on layers of PPE and she hasn't been able to see her son in weeks. My grandparents have also come down with the virus. Months ago it was hard to Imagine knowing somebody who has come into contact with it now it is making its way through our community. The recent surge in Covid cases has led me to focus on Coronavirus relief for my project. I have been working on screen printed t-shirts to sell, with all profits donated to the Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund. This response fund is run by the World Health Organization and has already donated millions to various causes to fight Covid.
From the beginning of this project I knew that I wanted to do something related to the pandemic but I was unsure at times what the best product would look like. I started off by wanting to educate people on the effects of covid 19. I planned on doing a research paper about the effects of covid 19 in the indigenous community. Then another spike in cases, one of the hotspots being our community. This made it nearly impossible to establish connections for interviews and do field work that I felt was crucial for a beautiful project. So I decided to move away from that idea, to pursue something else that would fight Covid. For inspiration I asked my aunt, Angela Peterson what would be the best way to help stop the spread of Covid. She said the best way was to donate money, because that money directly funds essential things like PPE. This pushed me in the direction of fundraising. I was excited to pursue this idea because there was already a group of students in class that planned to fundraise money to fight Covid. The students are fundraising by selling t-shirts designed by them. The only problem is they are ordering their t-shirts with the logos pre printed. I instead wanted to screen print the shirts myself this way I don't have to spend a fortune to get my t-shirts produced. I also feel that it will provide a more artistic feel to the shirts. Creating the design was my favorite part, I wanted to do a piece that was really simple so it appealed to a wider audience but at the same time it needed to portray a message about Covid. The final design for the screen print is the graphic to the right. I chose this graphic because it’s very simple yet it portrays an effective message. Mask up is something I am proud to represent and call my own.
Project Defense
Justice Project: Project Defense
What did you end up doing for your project?
Originally I planned to do a research paper about the effects of Covid 19 on the indigenous community, but I ran into a handful of road blocks along the way one of them being another spike in covid cases. This led me to do something more fundraiser based. I liked the idea of selling t-shirts to donate money so I joined that group to hopefully share content on their web store. I designed a simplistic t-shirt with a hand screen printed design on the front. You can see the logo I made for the shirt in my artist statement. The logo has a simplistic yet powerful message that is easy to wear. Screen printing is tough and messy. The actual process of screen printing every individual shirt is very difficult and time consuming. To add to the fire my first batch of shirts were destroyed in the wash because they didn’t dry long enough. Through all of this I am still proud of the work that I have done. I hope to sell a good number of my shirts because all the money is being donated to the WHO Covid fund.
How did your project reflect your personal philosophy of justice?
Studying the philosophies of justice this semester has given me much more concrete ideals and philosophies about justice. Looking through the lense of these philosophers provided a perspective for many viewpoints and I believe I found mine. When writing my justice monologues I found myself referring to John Rawls the most. His philosophy of justice as fairness coincides with me. I believe that all people should be given an equal chance. When someone is born in a community where the education system is bad that gives them an unfair chance at life and that is injustice. For my project I also followed the theme for justice is fairness. The fund that I am donating to works to ensure equal medical treatment for all people regardless of social status, meaning all people will receive treatment for covid 19. Another reason I chose this route is because my Aunt who is the head ICU nurse said the best way to support front line health care workers is to donate.
Did you do sufficient research and background work to pull off your project, take an informed stance or succeed in your endeavors? Explain!
For now I feel that I have mostly succeeded in my endeavours of justice. The project definitely took an unexpected turn for me. I was originally planning on being part of the zine group but that didn’t work out so I pursued the t-shirt route and I’m super thankful I did. I guess you can't say that I'm completely done because I still have to print the majority of the shirts. Then the shirts have to sell. I hope to raise a substantial amount for the WHO.
What did you end up doing for your project?
Originally I planned to do a research paper about the effects of Covid 19 on the indigenous community, but I ran into a handful of road blocks along the way one of them being another spike in covid cases. This led me to do something more fundraiser based. I liked the idea of selling t-shirts to donate money so I joined that group to hopefully share content on their web store. I designed a simplistic t-shirt with a hand screen printed design on the front. You can see the logo I made for the shirt in my artist statement. The logo has a simplistic yet powerful message that is easy to wear. Screen printing is tough and messy. The actual process of screen printing every individual shirt is very difficult and time consuming. To add to the fire my first batch of shirts were destroyed in the wash because they didn’t dry long enough. Through all of this I am still proud of the work that I have done. I hope to sell a good number of my shirts because all the money is being donated to the WHO Covid fund.
How did your project reflect your personal philosophy of justice?
Studying the philosophies of justice this semester has given me much more concrete ideals and philosophies about justice. Looking through the lense of these philosophers provided a perspective for many viewpoints and I believe I found mine. When writing my justice monologues I found myself referring to John Rawls the most. His philosophy of justice as fairness coincides with me. I believe that all people should be given an equal chance. When someone is born in a community where the education system is bad that gives them an unfair chance at life and that is injustice. For my project I also followed the theme for justice is fairness. The fund that I am donating to works to ensure equal medical treatment for all people regardless of social status, meaning all people will receive treatment for covid 19. Another reason I chose this route is because my Aunt who is the head ICU nurse said the best way to support front line health care workers is to donate.
Did you do sufficient research and background work to pull off your project, take an informed stance or succeed in your endeavors? Explain!
For now I feel that I have mostly succeeded in my endeavours of justice. The project definitely took an unexpected turn for me. I was originally planning on being part of the zine group but that didn’t work out so I pursued the t-shirt route and I’m super thankful I did. I guess you can't say that I'm completely done because I still have to print the majority of the shirts. Then the shirts have to sell. I hope to raise a substantial amount for the WHO.