1/22/13- Gingerbread Tutorial, The Thirteen

Sarah Q.

CETA Notes

January 22nd, 2013

Gingerbread tutorial, The Thirteen, Girl Crushes.

On Tuesday our class period was split into two parts:

Part I: Gingerbread tutorial

Part II: experiencing The Thirteen

Part I.

A few Notes on the art of Gingerbread making:

I.  I don’t care for a tight cloistering of people, and my hobbit-like stature kept me from seeing most of the action.

A.  That, however, was completely ok with me because I am not a visual learner  

B.  Furthermore, I didn’t want to get flour on my mostly black getup (been down that road-- it’s a bad place.)

II. We did learn that this gingerbread is not particularly pleasant to consume

III.  I personally learned about one of Archie’s highschool friends who majored in my current course of study.

A.  He has been unemployed ever since

B.  That conversation ended much more bleakly than initially anticipated.

IV. If you are like me:

A.  I am so sorry.

B.   Kremena has been lovely enough to email us the written instructions.

V.  We must each have 10 tiles completed by Wednesday, January 30th.

A.  Baking junk is in the kitchen of Shearer

B.  Tiles are on the drying rack for size reference

C.  Consider using two meter sticks on either side of the dough when rolling it out for uniform thickness.

Part II

Considering Bianca Sprigg’s “The Thirteen”

I.  Bianca Spriggs has the most commanding, eloquent, and beautiful speaking voice I have ever heard

A.  I’m already excitedly nervous to meet her

B.  I think I may be in love with Bianca Spriggs.

II. “The Thirteen” strove to honor the lives of 13 African-American women who were lynched, or otherwise murdered, at the hands of racial intolerance in KY after the civil war.

A.  The presentation incorporated instrumentals, lyrics, spoken word, and visual aids that made for what seemed to be very intimate brush with, and partial understanding of, the lives lost.

B.  I cried a little bit. Several times. All the while begging any deity that would listen to keep a friend sitting next to me from seeing how damn sensitive I am.

III. The event concluded with a reading of the names of the 13 women lost, along with the region of Kentucky from which they hailed.

IV. Ultimately, “The Thirteen” seemed  a lamentation of hate, intolerance, and injustice, but also a celebration of life, love, and womanhood. The depth and darkness of mortality is the only lens through which the light of all being can be seen. I loved “The Thirteen,” and it makes me cry to think of it now. I’m a weenie. 

Race, History, and Urban Landscape- Danny Mayer, 1/16/2013

Race, History, and Urban Landscape- Danny Mayer

Three strands of presentation:

1)      Frontier History from Paddling the Kentucky River

2)      Lexington Racial History- Rich Shine (sp?)

3)      Marxist Geographer- Neal Smith

Frontier History:

                Kentucky- Open, common ground à “Terra Nova”-Settlers   “Great Meadow”-Native Americans

                Private Coorperations formed to trade goods to N.A. in exchange for the Land—Early Gentrification.  (i.e. Ohio Co, Transylvania Co., etc.)

                Settlers- All you need to do is put up a corn patch to claim the land.

                KY River early highway system- Cheap Iron, Salt, Coal, etc.

                To get W of Appalachian Mtns , either hike in or Float in along the KY River, either way à Lex!!

                Lexington an early hub for Finance, business, etc.—Athens of the West

Lexington Split up very early on.

Racial Lexington-Rich Shine (sp?):

                In 1860, slave population roughly 25% of total Lex pop. à African Americans only 10%  total pop now.

                Lexington a huge hub for slave labor—primarily for hemp production

                Pre-Civil War—White Landowners, legally, a higher tier than their African American counterparts, so the ethnic diversity in Lex. relatively fluid.

                Post-Civil War—Mass migration of African Americans to Lexington, and white landowners needed a way of placing themselves “above” the AAs à “Enclaves” or “bottoms” established.

                In the East End, some major enclaves merged and formed one, African American, commercial district.

                At first, these enclaves were on the outer edge of the city, but as the city continued to grow, commercial development skipped over them and continued to expandà The reason most of these enclave-remnants are “inner city”

        Racial Tension still seen in:

1)      The way we retell civil war stories.  (i.e. Hunt Morgan, a confederate raider, still memorialized. Cheapside still prevalent as a bar even though it was the place to sell African American women and young girls into slavery—hence the name “cheapside”, etc.)

2)      The way our town is set up. (i.e. Transylvania University and The Sayre School both face away from historically “black neighborhoods.” Thoroughbred park masks the East End, and it memorializes no African Americans, etc.)

Lexington Adjusted Median Wealth after 2009 Recession:

                                Black                                      Hispanic                               White

                                $5,677                                   $6,325                                   $113,149

                                53% Decline                        66% Decline                        16% Decline

Marxist Geographer-Neal Smith

                Gentrification-People of higher social standing (The Gentry) moving back into cities and displacing the poor.

                Gentrification language usually very offensive.  (i.e. “revival,” “reformation,” etc. ~ Totally ignores/puts down the people being displaced.)

                “Fair and Balanced” news outlets often spin these renovations in a positive light.

                Our “Inner City” is trying to complete globally, so downtown is becoming a “Wallstreet” of sorts

                The current downtown trend—Arts, entertainment for wealthy Lexingtonians

                Wealthy worry about “my property value going down!”  yet they forget the racist, classist notion that their property value is based on the number of socially underprivileged people living in their neighborhood.

Poverty in Appalachia

Community Engagement

Class Notes

02-08-2012

Jim Ziliak: Labor Economist/ Professor at UK/ Quantitative studies to help reform policy for programs targeting poverty areas in the U.S.

He got the idea for his book because little work had been done by economist on the economic situation in Appalachia. He wanted to see if things had improved since the 1960s.

Poverty measurements: Same since the 1960s, adopted from a 1955 survey on American spending habits.

- How much did the typical family spend on food? (was 1/3 of income at that time, now about 15% of income)

- The $$ amount spend on food x 3 = poverty line

- There is no adjustment for the poverty line depending on where you live

In 1960 about 22% of Americans were poor – In Appalachia it was 50% of Americans were poor.

10 years later national poverty average went to 11-12% and its pretty much stayed there.

Central Appalachia: Eastern KY, Mississippi Delta, Rio Grand, Black Belt Region, and a few Native American reservations. All persistently poor, which means that more than 20% of people there are persistently below the poverty line.

Very different ethnically across different regions, but still persistently poor.

In order to keep young, educated people in central Appalachia, should the government invest in people or places?

-If we invest in a place who is going to benefit? If we invest in Harlem County, it might drive people into the region but make life there more difficult for the locals.

-When you invest in people, people become more mobile.

Provide affordable higher education there? : Convert University of Pikeville from private to public? Research shows that higher education institutions help local economies. Might not do much in the short run, but it may help in the long run.

KENTUCKIANS NEED TO TAKE CONTROL OF APPALACHIA KENTUCKY.

Leadership matters in “growing your own” projects.

Eastern KY is lacking initiative and leadership by the state of Kentucky. It needs support from the individuals at the top and push from the bottom.

Is marriage the solution to poverty? Strictly economically speaking…

-45% of births in the US are out of wedlock

-1 in 2 babies are born on the WICK program. A lot of poor babies

-Single headed families are likely to be poor.

Families structures explain a lot about poverty structures in a area overall

Education can combat economic inequality in Kentucky.

Short run in combating poverty: economic stimulus and government spending money.

Long run in combating poverty: Equipping people and community with the capacity to address and attack poverty. Education must start young – preschool is critical

WE MUST OVERCOME SENSE OF HOPLESSNESS FOR EASTERN KENTUCKY – IT’S A HUGE MISTAKE. THEY ARE AMERICANS. THEY ARE KENTUCKIANS.

Class Minutes 1-25

Community Engagement

Class Notes 1/25/2012

Sarah: folklorist

Folklore: The way we communicate as a community and pass things on; ythe study of what communities value.

Community: common place, theme, and interest

Door-to-Door Folklore Project:

Ways to meet people: Food is a big part of folklore research! Churches, community centers, community service project, nail salons, barber shops

Purpose: speak to people whose voices are not usually heard. Where are gaps in previous class research?

Looking at immigrant groups: What traditions did they bring with them here?

Steve: Urban anthologist/artist/activist

Art in community development plays a powerful role in helping us humanize people.

Obama has deported more immigrants than any other president.

Who is a DREAMER? Eligible for the Dream Act

Dream Act: Path toward legalization for any immigrant who came to the U.S. under the age of 16 and has served at least two years in the armed forces or attended college for two years. –eligible to apply at this point. After applying, the process would take at least 8 years to finalize.

There is danger in “drive-by activism”. What are you going to give back to the community?

When you go into research and development acknowledge power dynamics in place and build trust.

Be yourself and be honest. They will respect you for that.

Community Engagement

Class Minutes

1-18-2012

Grant Summary on North Limestone: Issues with water quality

Needs Identified:

Immediate reduction in stormwater runoff and thereby pollution

A plan for improving the stormwater runoff and sewer system developed by environmental experts that we as neighbors can pursue with further grant funding

Expert advice about stormwater system improvement

Support and experience in engaging and educating the community

Solutions:

Installation of 30 rain barrels with soaker hoses to reduce runoff and use water effectively

Establishment of 40 native species plants in neighborhood rain gardens and/or other residential/business landscaping.

Professional stormwater planning, design, and management consulting services from EcoGro

Professional evaluation, design, and consulting to create a detailed project-oriented sustainability plan for the area of North Limestone and Loudon area.

Project manager with local marketing business as partner to maintain effective communication with residents

Community tours of progress (including rain gardens)

Goals of a neighborhood association: Deal with environmental, economic, housing, and landscaping issues

Rich Schein:

Schein was inspired to explore Lexington’s landscape after moving here from reading the book The Urban Frontier by Richard Wade The book explains how agriculture and urbanization grew up hand-in-hand, and describes slavery in Lexington, KY.

Cultural Landscapes….

Record of our urban past

Hold individual and collective identities

Make urban processes seem normal and natural

Allow us to change urban processes

Ways to look at landscape:

Landscape history: Who made it and why? When did they make it?

What the landscape means: to identity- to the individual and the society

The landscape as facilitator/mediator: particular political, social, economic, and cultural intention and debate

Landscape as discourse materialized

Landscape as identity and belonging: Cadentown, Lyric Theater, stone fences, etc.

Thoroughbred Park: Isaac Murphy Memorial Garden

Class, race, and gender are ALWAYS a part of the landscape.

Legacies:

Hampton Court on 3^rd Street: gate locked shut with Hampton Court on one side and Smith Town (black community) on the other side.

Legacies in landscape can physically affect the way we view things.

Lexington Developing Urban Form:

Original plat and “unsegregation”: Lexington was a grid with lots of lots. Homes from this period had slave quarters- blacks and whites lived side by side in close proximity

Alley life as segue to: Began the separation of whites and blacks. Black people often lived in alleys off of main streets. Big/small houses. Brick/wood houses.

The “towns” and agglomeration: Lexington by 20^th century was about 87% white and 13% black. Neighborhoods where free slaves gathered became known as “towns” and were mostly located on the outskirts of the city.

Formal Apartheid: Jim Crow (1907) Whites are no longer OK with living in close proximity to blacks. Do not want alleys with black populations behind their homes

Clearance, renewal, gentrification

The macro segregated city

Check out Ed Franklin’s dolls for inspiration on his Facebook page!

Class Minutes - 02/02/11

Class minutes for February 2nd:
• Shared a communal meal at the Sustainability House
• Kurt and Kremena will be in NYC next week
• Workshop with Bianca: Writing What You Know
◦ List 5 things you can remember seeing today
◦ Circle the most memorable and free write about it; Why did it stand out in your mind?
◦ Voluntarily shared what we wrote
◦ Draw a tree with your eyes closed and the hand you don't normally write with—this is the tree you carry in your heart
◦ Write a descrpition of the tree you just attempted to draw
◦ Adopt a community tree and write about it; email to Bianca and she'll send you thoughts back
◦ Empty out your purse, wallet, etc. and close your eyes. Pick out 3 things and write about them
◦ Pick one last item—write and ode to it, incorporating at least one of the other three
◦ Point of exercise was to celebrate the little things in life
◦ Things like these exercises can spark ideas, feelings, etc. that you forgot were there that can lead to a complex This I Believe Essay
◦ Community prompt: List 10 wrods at top of sheet that you associate with fear. Cross the first one out and free-write about it. Passed 5 times
◦ Point was to show collaboration: Working with a community you're going to be wading through lots of people's fears—Bianca hopes that we realize we have universial experiences even if we are leading very individual lives
• Clay read his This I Believe essay

Class Minutes - 01/19/11

Class minutes for January 19th:
• Sarah Milligan as guest speaker
• Paul Brown gives brief comments on his experience as an alum of CETA, stressing “working with,” not “for”.
• Sarah Milligan, folklorist, involved with the KY Folklife Program and the KY Oral History Commission (the only state funded commission of its kind).
• Folklore-identifying, documenting, and preserving tradition (while they change over time) through oral tradition, giving a sense of community and identity.
• Recorded through oral history, photography, observations and other methods.
• Briefly discussed assimilation of other cultures into communities: 2nd and 3rd generations of immigrant families forming their identities as not Italian or American, but as Italian American.
• Mention of PlaceMatters site and the general study of “sense of place” (a study of the physical and cultural influences that determine how we see our environment; “what you notice without noticing”).
• Brings up the question of how one is to determine “people’s [cultural and community] attachments”.
• Brings up the question of how to document a community in transformation.
• Patrick brings up distinction between cultural idiosyncrasy and community.
• Sarah clarifies that community can translate into any group of people with an element of cohesion.
• Kurt and Kremena assign Folklore Project.
• Kathleen shares her experiences as a CETA alum (Spalding’s Bakery and Mr. Needham).
• Collective setting of neighborhood boundaries: Race to Broadway, Loudon to 3rd.
• Sarah makes suggestion to ask questions around neighborhood in order to find important voices.
• Paul makes suggestion to speak with old real estate agents.
• Patrick suggests a contact list legacy, and to call people repeatedly if necessary.
• Griffin mentions Guy Huguelett.