Even though commencement is virtual this spring, we hope you all feel the same joy in your accomplishment as the 2011 UWM graduates in these photographs!
Here at the UWM Archives, we are also celebrating the graduation of our two interns; Samantha with an MA in History and an MLIS, and Lizzie with an MA in Women’s & Gender Studies and an MLIS. We wish them both the best for the future!
These photographs from UWM’s 2011 Spring Commencement Ceremony can be found in the UW-Milwaukee University Communications & Media Relations Photographs digital files here at the UWM Archives.
The suffocating weight of just how much I don't want to do what I've been doing for the past several years.
This month has been
Frustrating
because...
Like everyone else, I'm navigating a lot of very heavy, very negative emotions. The world is falling apart, the bad guys are winning, and I feel deep, creeping existential despair. It's been the final straw in my constant waffling about what I want "to do with my life." I hate what I'm doing, it's just so boring and such drudgery even though arguably it's "important" work.
I wish people knew that
...it's bullshit to expect people to lock themselves into their life path at 18-22 years old.
After graduating from Wellesley, I thought I would be
...on a really clear, relatively direct trajectory toward tenured professorship, with just a minor detour into a master's degree before my doctorate because my undergraduate grades just were not very good.
but instead I am
...coming to terms with how much time I've wasted pursuing a career that I only half-heartedly desired in the first place. Academia is a crumbling industry, but even if it were doing great it's not what I've always wanted to do. I've always wanted to do something creative but I've been denying that part of myself since high school. I applied to liberal arts institutions instead of art schools. I let myself drift into grad school related to my undergrad studies instead of aggressively pursuing a creative path despite rejection.
At this point I'm still set on finishing my PhD, but after that I'm resolved to let myself off the hook about finding a career in "my field." I'll always have my education. It's pointless to dwell on whether or not it's been "a waste." I'm going to pursue work that actually interests me and makes me feel good. I've started to get back into visual art, and I've been writing fiction despite a lot of doubt about my talent or potential.
I've also been proactive about spending more time with friends. I met someone new who told me that I'm "really easy to talk to," which was a fabulous compliment. People who only know me from Community might roll their eyes at that and it kind of made me laugh, but it is something I've been working on and the work has started to pay off.
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Still With Her by Kathy Zhang ‘11 (@kathyvsinternet)
A few days ago one of my best friends asked if I have moments where I get unbearably sad about Hillary Clinton.
Yes. Of course I do.
Sometimes it's a clip I see on Twitter. Sometimes it's a song that plays in a grocery store. Sometimes it's at home or at work after reading a particularly depressing piece of news. Sometimes it's listening to a podcast on the subway. The circumstances change but the feelings are always the same. I feel a deep sadness, a mourning of what could have been. It feels like there's a chunk of me that's been missing since election night that often expands into a pervasive sense of loss. I'm heartbroken by the ways that we failed her and in turn, failed ourselves.
I'm upset at myself for not doing more—for not phonebanking enough, for not taking enough trips home to canvas, for not leaving my job for a role in the field. I'm upset at others for not doing anything at all and assuming either everything would work out or that the alternative wouldn't be as bad. I'm upset that I didn't prepare myself for this outcome. I'm upset that I was forced 8 years too early to let her go.
I never prepared for how much I would miss Hillary Clinton. She was 2016 for me. While everyone was collectively upset about all of the awful events that unfolded last year, I was comforted because I had convinced myself that we she would absolutely be President-Elect by year's end. I was so sure that we'd end 2016 on a high note that I couldn't even envision the alternative. I was so ready to see her in the White House and on the news every day that I didn't even think to make myself ready for how painful it would be not to see her. She's such an inspiring person who has been an incredible influence in so many aspects of my life that her missing presence feels like a looming ghost. There's not a day that I've woken up since election night where I haven't mourned the future we threw away. There's not a day that I haven't asked myself whether we're actually where we're supposed to be or if we're all stuck in a nightmare or the darkest timeline. There's not a day that I haven't wanted to turn back the clock to when I remembered what it was like to feel hopeful and optimistic about what's next.
I'll never forget what it felt like to cheer for her. I'll never forget what it felt like to campaign for her. I'll never forget what it feels like to cry for her.
I'll never forget that she had to be perfect while her opponent could just be alive. I'll never forget how the right and the left vilified her beyond reasonable criticism to the point where they still bounce around the same talking points today. I'll never forget how for some people her advocacy for women and marginalized people was not enough while for others it was always too much. I'll never forget how her thoughtful consideration and evolution of her beliefs and politics over several decades became an indictment on her character when in other politicians it showed growth and potential. I'll never forget how despite years of attacks and disrespect she still fought to give us a better future. I'll never forget how she saved up 8 years of leadership and compassion we'll never get to see. I'll never forget how this country continues to dump our mistakes and anxieties on her when it's no longer her responsibility to lead this charge. I'll never forget how we didn't deserve her.
Tomorrow should have been her day.
Tomorrow should have been our day. Tomorrow should have been evidence that hard work, perseverance, and dedication to serving people *matter* in the world we live in. Instead, the day will simply confirm what a lot of us have known for some time: that experience and ideas and commitment and potential are not particularly important. None of these qualities compete with being a rich, white man who has had everything handed to him in his life. You can be one of the most accomplished women in history. You can be brilliant. You can be experienced. You can be privileged. You can be white. And still it's not enough.
I don't know that I'll ever stop being sad about Hillary Clinton. The heartbreak will subside, of course. The tears will become less frequent. The frustration will dissipate. But I don't think I'll ever repair the hole left from election night. I don't think I'll ever let go of the pain from witnessing such an outrageous rejection of the values we're supposed to hold dear.
BJU Class of 2011 Adam Morgan, President of Majesty Music, is running for the US House of Representatives against incumbent William Timmons.
February 24, 2024 -- 02/24/2024 -- is the date of the primary, and I'm already seeing signage around town.
He learned his political lessons well at BJU, it seems:
South Carolina state representative Adam Morgan — chairman of the ultra-conservative S.C. Freedom Caucus (SCFC) — has officially announced his bid for the U.S. congress against embattled third-term incumbent William Timmons.
The proverbial Seven Trumpets of Revelation were sounded upon Morgan’s campaign announcement at the Historic Greer Depot on Thursday (November 16, 2023) – signaling a potentially Biblical beatdown in one of the most conservative congressional districts within the state.
But who is the staunch social conservative whose candidacy could rain down “hail and fire mixed with blood” (Revelations 8:7) on the head an incumbent already steeped in scandal and waning popularity?
