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Here’s how you can disable cookies in common browsers:
1. Google Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies and other site data.
Choose your preferred option:
Block all cookies (not recommended, can break most websites).
Block third-party cookies (can block ads and tracking cookies).
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For Safari on iOS: Go to Settings > Safari > Privacy & Security > Block All Cookies.
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Who gets to define what “America” means? Politicians get a lot of air time. We wanted to hear what “the people” think. So in Fall 2021, we launched a contest asking UConn students to tell us what “America” means to them. We received a diverse array of responses in the form of short essays, creative writing, poetry, photography, and other forms of original artwork, from students across UConn’s schools and campuses. Of these, eight winners rose to the top based on their originality, creativity, and quality.
View the video below to hear Honorable Mention winner Lisbeth Peguero discuss “Everything But Apple Pie.”
Who gets to define what “America” means? Politicians get a lot of air time. We wanted to hear what “the people” think. So in Fall 2021, we launched a contest asking UConn students to tell us what “America” means to them. We received a diverse array of responses in the form of short essays, creative writing, poetry, photography, and other forms of original artwork, from students across UConn’s schools and campuses. Of these, eight winners rose to the top based on their originality, creativity, and quality.
View the video below to hear Honorable Mention winner Rianka Roy read her poem “Coming to America” and discuss the inspiration for this work.
“Coming to America”
Rianka Roy
Graduate Student, Department of Sociology
Class of 2024
As I stood at the airport, waiting for the doors to open to a new land, I held
My breath in suspense and awe. A man behind the counter was checking my papers.
Embracing an odd courage that I never knew I had, I
Recalled in wild excitement what I had read about this land. I remembered how
Immigrants, thousands and thousands before me,
Crossed perilous borders. Legal and illegal paths merged
And mingled into a dream of many colors whose borders were never real.
I was walking those paths. I was in history. I would be another brown streak on the canvas. But do
Sleeping children see their mothers, who live on the other side of a wall?
A wall made of bricks so heavy that they can pull your souls down to the dark depth of a pond.
Do I dare cross these bridges? Do I have the keys? Who do I have to walk with me?
Real histories are written in the sands of time, but are the grains too fine to see?
“Enter, please. Here’s your passport. Welcome to America.”
An ‘alien’ forever, perhaps legal, perhaps not.
My journey begins. Like others, I too shall build my destiny.
Who gets to define what “America” means? Politicians get a lot of air time. We wanted to hear what “the people” think. So in Fall 2021, we launched a contest asking UConn students to tell us what “America” means to them. We received a diverse array of responses in the form of short essays, creative writing, poetry, photography, and other forms of original artwork, from students across UConn’s schools and campuses. Of these, eight winners rose to the top based on their originality, creativity, and quality.
View the video below to hear Honorable Mention winner Jenna K. Trott read her poem “Because of the Brave” and discuss the inspiration for this work.
“Because of the Brave”
Jenna K. Trott
Graduate School of Social Work
Class of 2023
Home of the free because of the brave
Because of the ones with something to say
The ones who challenged what’s “right”
Who stood up And sat in
And joined in the fight.
Home of the free because of the brave
Because of the ones who helped pave the way
The Baldwins
The Parks
The Angelous and the Kings
And the ones who took on Uncle Sam in the ring
Home of the free because of the brave
Because of the ones without names to their graves
The ones who carried a nation on their back
Only for 200 years later be still under attack.
Home of the free because of the brave
Because of the ones knowing if Rittenhouse were black he wouldn’t be saved
Because of the Taylors
The Martins
The Rices and the Jones
And the ones unable to ever come home.
Home of the free because of the brave
Because of the ones fighting for a better tomorrow today
The ones waiting for Ms. Liberty’s kiss
For love
For life
For the pursuit of happiness.
Home of the free
Because of the brave
Because of those who stood their ground unafraid
The ones who pursue justice for all
For united we stand
And divided we fall.
Who gets to define what “America” means? Politicians get a lot of air time. We wanted to hear what “the people” think. So in Fall 2021, we launched a contest asking UConn students to tell us what “America” means to them. We received a diverse array of responses in the form of short essays, creative writing, poetry, photography, and other forms of original artwork, from students across UConn’s schools and campuses. Of these, eight winners rose to the top based on their originality, creativity, and quality.
View the video below to hear Exhibition Finalist Kyra Arena read her poem “Fly Away” and discuss the inspiration for this work.
Fly Away
by Kyra Arena
CLAS and NEAG (Double Majoring in English and Secondary English Ed.)
UConn Class of 2023
I see a glorious eagle menacingly swoop down and
Crush the rabbit’s neck with its talons.
Disturbed, I cry out:
“He can’t breathe!”
After a moment of grief, I fly away.
The next day, I saw the eagle
Circle above a nest of squirrels who
Dispersed in terror at the sight of their predator.
Never to be united, for the eagle was now between them.
Upset at their predicament, I fly away.
By the river I saw the eagle loom innocently,
Until he dived into the water, resurfacing with a fish.
The surviving fish have no place for refuge,
For their home is now a feeding ground.
My heart strings tugged, yet, I fly away.
I weep for the rabbit, squirrel, and fish
But remain blissful in my ignorance.
Until I hear the remaining animals say:
So what do savages do?
“Fly away.”
Who gets to define what “America” means? Politicians get a lot of air time. We wanted to hear what “the people” think. So in Fall 2021, we launched a contest asking UConn students to tell us what “America” means to them. We received a diverse array of responses in the form of short essays, creative writing, poetry, photography, and other forms of original artwork, from students across UConn’s schools and campuses. Of these, eight winners rose to the top based on their originality, creativity, and quality.
View the video below to hear Exhibition Finalist Cassandra Barrow discuss the inspiration for “Envy.”
The Meanings of Democracy Lab is pleased to announce our Spring 2022 Undergraduate Research Assistants!
Isabella Amata
Gvantsa Ambokadze
Musa Hussain
Julia Katsovich
Anika Kumar
Gabriella Pattavina
Nicholas Xenophontos
Xiao Xie
The team brings a diverse mix of research skills and interests, and will be sharing the results of their work together throughout the semester through the Lab’s website and social media channels, so stay tuned!
During Fall 2021, our Research Team analyzed the debate surrounding the use of “taxpayer money” to fund abortion. From debates about whether the Hyde Amendment should be repealed to whether Planned Parenthood should be defunded, Americans across the political spectrum have turned their attention to this question. While Americans’ opinions on the matter map closely onto their more general positions on whether abortion should be legal, they often think differently about the question of whether it should also be publicly funded, or as some think of it, funded using “their tax dollars.”
Most Americans do not give much thought to the myriad ways in which their tax dollars are spent, yet the question of how to spend public money is at the heart of what it means to live in a pluralistic democracy. Our dollars are an extension of our moral selves, and do work in the world that we feel at least some moral responsibility for — think about calls for ethical consumption or divestment campaigns. This is no less true of our tax dollars. But in a society that is both diverse and deeply divided on many moral issues, this creates a conundrum. Put plainly, should people who have grave moral concerns about something be required to contribute to it with their tax dollars; or inversely, should public services reflect the moral values of only some citizens?
In the coming months, we will be posting short research briefs produced by members of the Research Team, in which they explore how Americans think and write about this issue. They explore this question from multiple angles, by analyzing social media hashtag campaigns, newspaper opinion articles, and the newsletters of advocacy organizations. Follow along to see what we found!
The Meanings of Democracy Lab is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2021 Meanings of “America” Multimedia Contest. We received a large number of high-quality submissions, but these finalists distinguished themselves with their originality, creativity, and the overall quality of their work. We invite all members of the UConn community to join us in congratulating them, and to stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on future events where we will be sharing their wonderful submissions.
The Meanings of Democracy Lab, directed by Professor Ruth Braunstein of the Sociology Department, is offering five research assistantships for interested, high-achieving undergraduate students in Spring 2022. Research Assistants will work with Dr. Braunstein on research related to the contested moral and cultural foundations of American democratic life, including on ongoing projects on the moral meanings of taxpaying and on battles over American history and identity.
Students’ activities could include collecting and analyzing data and reviewing existing research, as well as disseminating information through social media and podcasts. No specialized research skills are required, but extra consideration will be given to students with the following skills/interests:
web data collection/scraping
digital storytelling
We will meet virtually on Mondays from 11:00am-12:30pm during Spring 2022.
Students will receive three units of 3000-level independent study credit.
The positions are open to rising sophomores and juniors. Preferred GPA is 3.6 or higher. Students from any campus are welcome to apply.
Call for Submissions: Meanings of “America” Multimedia Contest Open to Current UConn Students — $500 prize Submission deadline: November 28, 2021
The Meanings of Democracy Lab under Dr. Ruth Braunstein (Sociology) invites all current UConn undergraduate and graduate students to participate in the Meanings of “America” Multimedia Contest. Submissions may include but are not limited to: short essays (800 words max), creative writing, poetry, photography, or other forms of original artwork that answer the following question: What does “America” mean to you?
In 1937, Harper’s Magazine published a call for participants in a similar contest entitled “The American Way.” They wrote, “Our American traditions and ideals need to be restated and reinterpreted in the light of new economic and social conditions…They are often misinterpreted by people who have axes to grind, political or otherwise. Words and phrases like ‘democracy,’ ‘liberty,’ … and ‘constitutional government’ mean different things to different people.”
Sound familiar? While much has changed since 1937, those living in the United States today are facing a similar moment of reckoning, reflection and reinterpretation. Spurred by political division, economic transformation, and catastrophic events, people across the political spectrum are offering competing visions of what it means to be an “American” today. It is the mission of the Meanings of Democracy Lab to take stock of such moments, and use them as opportunities for community reflection on the failings of the past and the ideals that will guide the country into the future. And who better to steer us toward the future than today’s college students?
We encourage submissions that respond to our call “simply and freshly and explicitly, and if possible so as to rally enthusiasm,” as the 1937 contest put it. We are not looking for submissions that merely restate national mottos, but rather those that complicate or rework prominent symbols and ideas in light of new knowledge, personal experiences, and the like.
The first place winner will receive a $500 prize, and up to five honorable mentions will each receive a $100 prize. The winning submission will also be displayed in a public exhibition on the Storrs and Stamford campuses, alongside those of other finalists, and will be submitted for publication in the Daily Campus.
Instructions for Contestants: Please access the submission form where you can upload a pdf copy of your submission no later than November 28th. The results of the contest will be announced at the end of the semester. Please contact Dr. Ruth Braunstein (ruth.braunstein@uconn.edu) with any questions or concerns.
Interested in running a Meanings of “America” Multimedia Contest at another institution?
We would love to partner with you! Contact Dr. Ruth Braunstein at ruth.braunstein@uconn.edu.
