G is for Growth

Today I graduated from Urban Roots, the 9-week urban gardening and community organizing class that prepared me to assist block clubs in Detroit to start gardens. We received our seed packets today, as well as some useful resource books, a t-shirt, and gardening tools! I am happy to have completed the course because it really informed me about sustainable agriculture, organic gardening, and growing for social justice. I haven't gardened in over a year and am so excited to break ground this month. I will be posting pictures to update you on the progress!

On Wednesday we celebrated the grand opening of our Career Center at the School of Social Work. We gave tours of the office all day, provided breakfast and lunch for students, and had several speakers talk about the importance of career services for social work students. Everyone in the office was excited to see such a positive response. As a result of the grand opening, we are much more visible to the student body, which means I will be busy reviewing lots of resumes starting Monday!

Thursday night was very meaningful for me as well. It was the 31st annual "Take Back the Night" rally at the University of Michigan. This event is held every year to speak out against sexual violence. In demonstration of solidarity, women and men marched a 1.5 mile route around campus and Downtown Ann Arbor to demand everyone's right to safety. This was especially meaningful for me during the section everyone fell silent to remember those who were no longer with us because of sexual violence. Throughout the march I held a sign that read "We hate rape, not men." According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 6 women and 1 in 33 men in the U.S. reported attempted or complete rape at some time in their lives. While men are the perpetrators of most rapes, most men do NOT rape. It is important to see men as our allies. I encourage everyone who has a younger brother or son to talk to him about healthy relationships, the importance of communication, and the meaning of obtaining consent.

I am so excited to visit home this coming Easter weekend! I have four days of classes/work and then I'll be back in Wisconsin...until then I have a few papers to write so I better get working.