Citizens!

.  In one week from today, I will be sitting on an airplane flying to my home state of New Jersey for the summer vacation. Therefore, I thought it would be appropriate to reflect upon my semester in this final blog post. I have truly learned a lot about citizenship from my Citizens! Expository Writing course. Going into this class, I thought of citizenship simply as one's legal status in the United States. However, after reading the historical works of Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and an in-depth analysis of the Declaration of Independence, my view of American citizenship has expanded greatly. I have a new sense of appreciation and value for the foundational principle of equality. Prior to reading Danielle Allen's book , Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality , I thought equality meant the same, which gave the principle a negative connotation in my head. Allen's book debunks this perception and shows ho

My name is Jessica T. Lopez-Otalvaro and as an American citizen I consider myself blessed and privileged to have been born and raised in this great country. Some will never have the opportunity to enjoy the chance, others take different paths in life that lead them to land of opportunity through immigration.  My husband German is one of those fortunate people.  He was born and raised in Colombia and went to Spain to do his Master's in biotechnology. I also found myself studying abroad during college and we met at the University of Salamanca. As they say the rest is history, but certainly has not been easy. After a lengthy and very expensive year long process involving, sponsorship from a current citizen, revaccination just as a newborn baby because he was unable to locate his vaccination records from Colombia and interviews in the American Embassy in Madrid he finally made it here. What seemed like the hard part was only the beginning. He dedicated his first year to study En

In my final research paper for my US History class, I examine the immediate aftermath of September 11th, 2001, and its psychological effects on the people of New York. 9/11 is arguably the most tragic single day in American history as approximately 3000 innocent Americans were killed by the violent and cruel acts of 19 terrorists. The horrific sites of watching the iconic Twin Towers collapse and seeing people jumping to their deaths has and continues to pull the heartstrings of Americans across the nation. There was a great sense of fear that took over the country as citizens were uncertain of what the future had in store for them, and the country as a whole. Although the events of 9/11 presented the city of New York and the country as a whole with major problems in regards to infrastructure, mental health, and security, we, the citizens of the United States, were able to overcome this tragedy because we stood by each other during this terrible time. As citizens, we put our