Justice

The Sake of Strangers

“I am a first-generation Latino who will be attending The University of Irvine this fall. It’s cool to say that I will be the first in my family to attend a four-year university, but it comes with a lot of pressure. In this poem, I wrote about my struggles with being a first-generation student and my battle with imposter syndrome. Acknowledging these emotions on paper is good and art is my therapy. I hope my poem makes people feel seen and gives others an insight into what it feels like to be a first-generation student.”

The Scapegoated Minority

“My piece shows a group of Asian Americans that are real people who have been victims of hate crimes in the U.S, both victims who have died, and those that have survived, in a courtroom in front of a judge depicted to be ignorant and dismissive of their injustice. I wanted to bring more awareness to the struggles the Asian community faces and how it gets ignored and how people will go out of their way to make excuses or turn a blind eye about it, rather than work to fix the problem at hand.”

Justice for Everyone

“My piece was inspired by the idea of breaking through racial prejudice, using broken glass to symbolize what we see and what some ignore. The crashed window symbolizes an opening, breaking with past injustice. The bright yellow center is the hope of all people respecting each other’s rights regardless of their mental health status, race, or thoughts. There are some people supporting mental health by wearing wristbands with the hotline for mental health, someone supporting black lives, hope, and stop for hate crimes. It is about the diversity of people uniting and demonstrating justice for everyone.”

sySTEMic- Chien-Shiung Wu

My illustration depicts “The First Lady of Physics”, Chien-Shiung Wu, as well as Tsung-Dao Lee and Yang-Chen Ning, two figures with significant contributions to parity violation. These individuals made a crucial contribution to physics by disproving the law of conservation of parity, outlining that the laws of physics must remain the same for two systems that are mirror images of each other. Lee, Ning and Wu all contributed to the conclusion that parity could not be assumed in all instances, particularly in weak interactions, however only Ning and Lee walked away with a Nobel Prize in Physics. Using the idea of two mirrored images behaving differently, I illustrated how the scientists were all crucial to the experiment, but only Lee and Ning were recognized/reflected. Wu would receive a Wolf Prize several years after the experiment, but it is no doubt that her contributions to parity violation were overlooked, exemplifying the gender bias that has been fostered not only in STEM, but also across the globe for several years. Wu was not only an incredible physicist, but also an advocate for equality in STEM, questioning if “…the tiny atoms and nuclei, or the mathematical symbols, or the DNA molecules have any preference for either masculine or feminine treatment” (Chien-Shiung Wu at MIT, 1964). Such instances of injustice can easily be excused as things of the past, but it is crucial that we acknowledge how gender discrimination has, and still does, prevail in the world.

Missing Kids of Color Diary PSA

“Our submission brings justice to the kids and teens of color who get kidnapped or taken everyday; no one ever speaks about them, and they rarely receive any news coverage. Furthermore, if they were white, then way more people would have heard about them.”

The Need for Lady Justice

In this piece I wanted to depict Lady Justice “looking” upon earth. Since Lady Justice is an important symbol used across the earth, I wanted to illustrate the aura of fairness, opportunity and justice that she exhibits. As people fight for justice across the world they look towards the symbol of Lady Liberty in their fight and I feel as though this is an important concept that deserves to be showcased.

Sy(STEM)ic Sexism – Rosalind Franklin

“Rosalind Franklin was a woman who made exceptional contributions to the discovery of the double-helical structure of DNA. Her utilization of X-ray crystallography was arguably the most important key regarding the discovery, however,  for a long time, she received little acknowledgement despite her efforts. Two scientists researching the topic became aware of the structure and published their realizations – Franklin was scarcely mentioned in their work. The scientists would go on to receive a Nobel prize for their discovery, while people debated whether Franklin would have received the Nobel prize if she were alive. Although her contributions are more well known, she was never alive to witness the fruits of her labor, teaching us the importance of discussing sexism in STEM.”

Black Lives Matter

I wrote this poem after the murder of George Floyd and the rise in the Black Lives Matter movements across the US. I decided to write a poem because it is a very expressive form of literal arts. When writing essays, we are always taught to be formal and objective, but in this poem I was able to write about the frustration and anger I felt, but also the admiration and hope I have for the Black Lives Matter movement without any repression of my words.

The Mermaids of the Sickened Sea

“My piece is inspired by the overwhelming pollution in the ocean that affects the life of sea animals. In my artwork you can see a mermaid looking solemnly into what has become of her ocean now filled with pollution and trash.”