Blog Feed

Click Here.

Wainting (Written as Tribute to my boyfriend) 

I knew the kind of man I wanted to marry the day my father told me that he was going to die, 

He said “Baby girl, good men always know when it’s time for their fight to end, but a better man never stops fighting.” 

He gathered himself without taking anything with him, 

Not even my embrace,

To let me know that even without him here/ I can still love, 

I’ve never had the audacity before now to wait for a heart,

But you said “Sleep on it” 

So I curled up on your chest and we taught each other patience that night,

Hoping that the weight of my tears on your chest wouldn’t wake you from your gorgeous slumber, 

Because  mornings can be so mortal, 

I just want to wake up to your smile,

Rustled locks and tired eyes, 

The sign on our door says “don’t disturb” because whoever has the audacity to wake me from this fairytale, 

Must have something more to offer me than you, 

And you fill the space between here and forever,

Because when I kiss you, 

I can taste the next 60 years of my life,

Waking up with your arms draped across my fatigued body is what I look forward to even in my dreams,

You are the first adult I've ever dated, 

The only man I've never had to lay before, 

You found treasure where thieves found trinkets, 

I feel prided in your arms, 

They used to take parts of me without asking, 

And gamble my bones for luck, 

But I found honesty in your touch, 

I've trailed your spin as straight as an arrow,

And have been astonished by the application of your mind,

Last night before day dream met fairytale, 

You were just as beautiful as the first time I laid eyes on your honey suckle skin and luscious lips,

Drenched in sunlight on the most beautiful day of my life thus far,  

So in the morning when I wake up,

With your arms draped across my fatigued body, 

And I tell you that I love you more than any one human heart can bleed, 

Don't blush or look away, 

Just hold my gaze, 

And see ME, 

Know that I will forever hold your heart and protect it with my own, 

And that I will always be yours,

At your disposal,   

I sat on the ledge of the fountain at love park, 

I wasn’t sure if you were taking a picture of the beautiful Philadelphia scenery or me,

But I will take what I can get from you, 

You are still the last person I kissed,

No matter how much my body or mind decides it wants to change as we carry each other in years, 

I will always be the same girl you fell in love with. 

I just want to fall asleep with your smile,

Rustled locks and tired eyes, 

Hoping that you’ll make space on your pillow for me, 

If not my face at least poem or 2, 

And you are the first adult I’ve ever dated, 

So if anyone should ever ask, 

I would describe you as a wealth of daisy’s and  sunday mornings, 

When we just lay in bed, 

Being as lazy as we allow ourselves to be,

Basking in the growth of our affluence of love, 

And when you get mad at me,

I know you won’t leave me and be so gone that even our “in-love telepathy” won’t carry my “I’m sorry” messages to you, 

And I love you for that, 

Because you’ve found the forbearance to wait for my mistakes to fix themselves, 

 

You will always be the last person I kiss, 

And I swear when I kiss you, 

I can taste the next 60 years of my life. 

 

​This is my video about the options for leftover embryos
(youtube)

Stem Cell research OP-ED.

Question: Is researching Stem Cells beneficial? Is it worth researching these cells?

Should scientist continue to work on the Stem Cell Research?

This is a debate that has been argued around in recent history. Stem cells are cells that help with the development in human organisms. These cells have the potential to create specific cells, such as blood, brain, muscle-cells and tissues. The research is  used for the  investigation of basic cells. There’s a side that believes that Stem cell research should be stopped in it’s entirety. There are people who believe that doing stem cell research is like  playing with the life and acting like God , meaning we mess with death. But is that the only reason why scientist shouldn’t continue to do stem cell research? That alone should not be the reason scientist should completely blow the project.

First of all there is a common myth that all stem cells come from  abortion. Fetal, umbilical and adult stem cells do not come from the embryos. Only the embryonic stem cells come from the affects of a abortion. One thing that should be clear is that embryonic stem cells are not human. But they are living organisms that have potential for life. The key word though is potential. Science Leadership Teacher Stephanie Dunda quoted “For it is up to the woman to decide if she wants her cells to be used for science. Theres no reason though why these cells should become a waste.”

Even with religions reasons one should not be against abortion should or hostile towards stem cell research completely. There are now new cells being used for research like Induce Pluripotent Stem Cells (IPS). They are the artificially made stem cells that do not come from the embryos like the adult stem cells. These cells must be used for advancement for fighting off life threatening diseases. 

In the Documentary Stem Cells Early Research by Nova, 13 year old Lauren Stanford suffers from type 1 diabetes. She can possibly have kidney failure and become blind in the next 15 -25 years.  The  scientists are trying to use the stem cell research to help fight off life threatening disease like diabetes,  Alzheimer’s disease and heart failure. With the development it will become possible to repair or replace damage organs completely.

In order to achieve the goals set by scientist, they are creating stem cells to fight off diseases. Although this will lead people to believe that humans will start cloning an embryonic cell or a human baby. No evidence though states that man wants to start cloning whole humans. They are only cloning stem cells that will lead to fighting off the diseases. As far as scientist know, they are not on the verge of cloning.

The stem cell research has become an interesting topic for years. But the right decision should be what’s beneficial for the future of man kind and that decision is continue to research on stem cells. It is not in-human to continue with stem cell research.

Timeline is HERE

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1DSzCBjVs5w-zxq7zMGQe74y8DiEgUYFeekPiPSpWSlg/edit

Imani,Jessica,and Symone

Jenn, Bernicia and Amanda

Link to Annotated Timeline

Jenn, Bernicia and Amanda

Link to Annotated Timeline

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1TI6_7xmW1sGeWwDWuL2EBXOjrteRb-fONHzC804sttA/edit

What companies one encounters in everyday life have a foreign slave influenced work force?

Rosalie, Jesse, Alejandro and I made a colorful representation of a world map. We then did research on different common brand names that are supported by slaves labor or low wage work in factories in third world countries around the world. For example, the clothing brand American Eagle is not made in America at all, but rather by young people in sweat shops in China.  Each brand name is pinned to the specific location it is associated with on the map and brief snippet of information about the work force there is included under the flap. Will you stop giving money to these companies? How do you avoid supporting slavery in everyday life? What are you willing to sacrifice?

Look for our map in the back of the class. Feel free to interact with the different flaps. Enjoy!

http://www.free2work.org/trends/apparel/ - Here is a link to a website and presentation about child and forced labor in manufacturing around the world.

A children story based off of Egyptian Slavery. Project completed by Lauren Thomas, Dillon Hershey, Lindsey Jones and Sydne Hopkins-Baker. 

Instead of a hard-cover book, we created a pyramid with the story's scene depicted. 

We then concluded our presentation with a game for the class based on our topic of Egyptian Slavery. 

Here is a link to our story if you wish to read it. 

Thank you! 

​What is Slavery? Slavery is being held captive against your own will. You are no longer a human, but a mere piece of existence. You are now someone else's property and need permission to do everything.

Does Slavery still exist? Slavery still very much exist. I say that because it actually does. People all over the world are being held captive against their own will. They are being compinsated for little to none for their work.

Is slavery always bad? i believe that no matter what kind of slavery it is, it is always bad. I say that because you are being held against your ow will. That means you can not due what you want.

New York Times: Child Sex Slave

Author: Aleema Numerad 

My name is Aleema Numerad and I am from Marondera, Zimbabwe. I am currently 17 years old. About 12 years ago, I was enslaved by a man that goes by the name of Ishmael Muradi. I have been bounced around doing the work of a prostitute for about 9 of those 12 years. Doing this time that I have been  here, I have been through much. I live in harsh living conditions, I have diseases and infections, and my body is being sold for high prices, while I have little to no money. In this letter, I will include how this all began and where it has all led up to.

Up until my seventh birthday, I had a wonderful life. I really did not want for much.  I had both of my parents in my life and my family was very much close. My father, who worked on big buildings, was the provider for my family. My mother was a stay at home mother. I have several brothers and sisters. Today I do not know if they are all still alive, but I know that before I left, they were. Until I turned seven, there was a steady income for my family. Around that time, the economy began to become terrible due to the corrupt government. Not to long after that, my father lost his job. He told us not to worry, but that is exactly what everyone in y family did. He started to get little gigs wherever he could.  That is until he came in contact with a man named Ishmael. Ishmael began to take advantage of my father after he realized how muck skill he had. Ishmael told my father that he was becoming indebt and he needed more payment. Since my father had no income, there was nothing my father could do about it. Ishmael knew that this was the case so he began to bargain with my father. 

When my father came home, he took my mother into a room where we all heard her began to cry. When they both later came out, they had my belongings with them. I asked what was going on and my father took and sat me in his lap. He told me that if I loved my family that I would go with Ishmael only for a little while. Every seven year old who loves their family would do anything for them. Although I did not like Ishmael, I would do anything for my family. After my father talked to me, he took me over to Ishmaels house. I knew there was something not right about this man based on the way he greeted me. I could tell my father also knew the same. He greeted me with an all to ready smile and a touchy hug. 

After my father left, I stayed with this ill manered man. I began to notice several men and young girls who came in and out the house all day. I suspected something, but not what it turned out to be. One day, Ishmael came into the house drunk and reaked ot alchohol. I was scared so I ran. But, no sooner than I hid, he found me. He then grabbed my purple dress and ripped it. I only remember that dress because it was the one my mother picked out for my 7th birthday. After he ripped my dress, he threw me across the room, where I hit my seven year old head. I started to bleed a little, but he didnt care. He came over and put me on his pissy bed. Afterwards, he got his big black body on top of me. I was nervous, but I did not fight back because of what he did to another girl. A young female by the name of Jenny came and refused him. When she refused, he raped her in front of her child and then snapped her neck. After he got on top of me, he sticked his thing into my not yet open area. After that, I blacked out. When I woke, I was bloody and broken.

Since that day, Ishmael had became my pimp. He had me working and doing things that I thought were impossible. I inhabited places where ther animals and rodents chewed at dead bodies. The smell would sometimes consume me and I would pass out. When I began to pass out, Ishmael would wake me up by peeing next to where I laid. When I, “acted up,” he would sometimes beat me and send me to is friends. After his punishments began, I started to get bounced around from one man to the next. When I returned back to him, he would later then handcuff me to his wall and watch me for hours. When this started to happen, I was so used to the abuse that I began to do every kind of drug that would numb me from the pain. I did not even care anymore.

When I turned 15, Ishmael started to take me to multiple cities and countries.  One of those places Included a place called a America. In America, I  encountered many people who was in the same line of work I was. There were people who I saw everyday dying from the, “package.” I really didn’t know what that was until I talked to an older female who did the same as I. I was at a hotel where I was to meet a man. While there, I saw a frail young lady. She same up to me and told me to watch and keep myself safe. I thought to myself, “ As if I could.” When I asked her what she meant, she told me about the fatal package. When I later left, I asked Ishmael about it ad he told me not to listen to the words of a foolish whore. When he said those words, I thought nothing else about it. After that trip, we began to make plenty more back to the country. Ishmael started to grow more clients. I began to think of other ways to get out of this business and away from him.

One day I was sitting there and was thinking, “Why me? What did I ever do?” I could not come up with an answer. I also began to think of the money that I was promised for my work. I asked Ishmael and I was answered with a hand to my face. After that day, I never asked him another question. Instead, I began plotting ways to get away from him. I did not understand why I waited so long to do that, but I was glad I did. On our last trip back to America, I ran into the lady that had told me about the package. Ishmael had planned to stay there for an entire week. I had worked the entire week and this was the last day. During the week, I had told the lady about what I had wanted to do. But, I did not know at that time that she had prepared a place for me. I told her that I wanted to get away from him. When it was time for me to go to my last, “John,” for the night, the entire hotel was raided. 

Since that day, I have been living in America with a new family. I have not told them much about my experience, but I want to when the time is right. Every night, I think about my real family. When I get to thinking, I think about how much I was put through just to satisfy them. I used to want to see them and just hug them, but now I just want to ask, “Why me? Your only daughter. The one you are supposed to love. Why me?” I have not gotten around to doing that yet. In fact, I do not even want to go back that way. Instead, I am looking forward and trying to help others who went through the samething I did.