Wow! Four years just flew by. I came into school thinking I wanted to be a mechanical engineer or do international studies and I ended up getting interested in Afro-American studies as well as Chicana/Latina studies. I ended up doing some version of an ethnic studies major with an emphasis on race politics as I like to tell people.

Moving from little old Lodi to the Multicultural Learning Community was one of the best decisions of my life. I went into college not ever thinking about my own race to thinking about race on the daily.

I had some great professors including Friedman, Lindsay, Thornton, Werner, Shashko, Higgins, Shelef, Ringe, Loewenstein, Marquez, and some others who I didn’t have that I met throughout my four years: Goldrick-Rab, Ibarra… there are some great faculty at this university.

I took some great classes: Soul Music, Black Music, Black Feminist Theory, Politics of the World Economy, Politics of Revolution, Politics in a Multicultural Society, Intro to Latin America, Arabic, Spanish, I feel totally privileged and blessed to have been here.

I made some great friends. I lived in some great places. I saw some great sights. I heard great poetry and slam poetry and rap and world music. I fell in and out of love. I want to reflect on a few specific things I did and present some advice (take it or leave it) to whoever stumbles upon it.

I was involved with several different community and campus organizations. From reclaiming foreclosed houses with Operation Welcome Home and Take Back the Land (with the visionary Max Rameau), to working with the Student Labor Action Coalition, the Teaching Assistants Association, Associated Students of Madison, United Council, United States Student Association, and the Learning for the Empowerment and Advancement of Palestinians, to All Hands on Deck and Vote Mob, to the National Student Power Convergence, to Opportunity Nation and Young People For. I’ve seen a lot of community, campus, state, and national organizations at work.

I hope to someday work for one or several of them. I want to do political organizing in some way, shape, or form for the rest of my life.

The advice: I feel the need to tell people to get involved! Just do it! We only have, like 6o more years on this Earth and things ain’t getting any better for most people out there. In fact, I’d argue they’re getting a hell of a lot worse.

As a first year I listened to everything everyone I knew said and tried to absorb as much of it. My opinions are still malleable but they were extra-malleable back then. Now I think I am more comfortable with who I am, my race, my dedication to justice, equity, and freedom for all people regardless of how they identify, that I can not only listen, but be assertive in my own opinions.

Something that has really begun to irk me is the way that campus organizations are so seemingly divided. We are working for roughly the same thing–acknowledging that there is a great amount of racism on this campus and that white privilege does really limit the ability of people who are white to work with folks of other races because they unintentionally and intentionally oppress others–on campus at least I don’t think everyone can work together and I’m not sure it will ever work. I am hoping UW-Madison will be graced and uplifted by a model of interracial organizing we have yet to truly see.

Nationally, I see a lot of organizations trying to work on the same thing. Take student debt for example. There are organizations with millions of dollars and millions of people who are working on it and I don’t think we’ve even made a dent on the issue! Do we need to align our campaigns to make sure we are all at least using the same messaging? I’d say yes. But honestly, let’s take it a step further, and create a campaign with the same messaging, visuals, let’s share resources and connect our membership! Let’s devote research to new economic models, let’s fundraise collectively to support young interns and treat them with respect and dignity and pay them right.

Okay this is just starting to spew all over the place, the last thing I want to say is that lately I have been challenged a lot by the way people talk about the work we do. I don’t have any issue with people critiquing the work I do personally (in fact, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?).

I love a good challenge. I can’t really stand hearing people talk about me behind my back but such is life, life is too short, this shouldn’t be read as frustration or even an accusation  it’s just something I’ve been meaning to say.

I’m going to keep doing the same damn thing I’ve been doing this last four years: reading, writing, doing art, figuring out who I am and why I’m on this planet, trying to fight for climate justice, fighting for justice, equity, and freedom in race relations and for gender and sexuality justice, the whole nine yards.

One of the coolest privileges I had was traveling: going to a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon and traveling to Mexico to meet with #YoSoy132 were not only huge privileges but also incredibly humbling and transformative. I miss those kids in Lebanon so much and I hope to go back as soon as I can. When I think about how terrible things are in the United States that always puts it in more perspective. To my friends in the movement in Mexico, I am blessed to call you friends and I hope we can continue to work in global solidarity for more just and dignified immigration policy and generally for better living conditions for everyone world-wide.

Taking Astronomy was also a sobering experience this semester. What was at first just a routine way to fill a science requirement really opened my eyes to how expansive the Universe really is. It speaks to my experiences on Earth too: there’s a whole planet out there, and although sometimes my own conditions and others’ seem dire, there are lots of people facing incredibly rough situations out there too. Let’s do what we can to work to change the real conditions of everyones’ lives while at the same time having a little bit of fun and living a fulfilling life despite the fact we are just ants on another anthill in the entire Universe.

If you have questions or comments holler below. I didn’t set out trying to say much in this post I just want to thank everyone who has given me so much and allowed me to be the best I think I can be. I look forward to the next few years, hopefully traveling as much as I can, working for some organizations if possible, graduate school if I can raise the funds, and hopefully running for office in the near or distant future.

Love,
Maxwell