Personal Narrative: Michelle Carter

When most people hear my full name , “Joann Botani," they automatically assume I'm Italian, but truth is I am actually Middle Eastern. From what I know my dad does have a little Italian in his blood but the name “Botani” actually comes from a city in Turkey. I come from an upper-middle class house hold and I have two younger siblings, a brother and a sister. Being the oldest has its challenges because there is so much expected from me whether it is school, work or social life. I tend to think my younger siblings have it easier because I am the one who pushes the boundaries with my parents and because of that my siblings usually get to do what ever the want because it is not as extreme as what I do. It has always been easy for my younger sister because she is the “princess” of the house but I am my dad’s favorite while my brother is a momma’s boy. My family is very competitive when it comes to school and grades, my little brother and I were always duking it out

On 05/07/2018 at about 2255 hours, I was dispatched to 113 Frad Ave in reference to a battery that had occurred.

The purpose of the event was to speak on truth and reconciliation, race, and the justice system within today’s culture. The conference began with a discussion centered on the #BlackLivesMatter movement, the Charleston shooting and Ferguson. The panelists shared their thoughts on these issues while the audience concentrated. The Charleston shooting hit close to home for Representative Sellers; he knew someone who was shot and killed in the shooting. “He was the only one to make it to the hospital alive before he died”, Sellers reflected. Dr. Ray brought an unfortunate element to my attention: “People talk about the tragedies for a few weeks and then it’s like nothing ever happened”.

I woke up at my home where my wife was folding our laundry. She told me the neighbors brought me home along with one white man. I looked at her in shock as she told me. His name was Larry Evans; after all this has happened he would have been the last person I could trust. My feeling towards this man were not about hatred but fear. As I sat in my home I could finally see why my community wouldn't turn around. This wasn't the first time that this had happened, this was the only time no one was killed. They were responding to the attack of protesters in Marion. When Jimmie Lee Jackson was killed in cold blood saving his mother from a beating. My community was doing more than

Leslie McFadden is the mother of the eighteen-year-old boy, Michael Brown who was killed by a police officer back in 2014. After her son’s death, Mrs. McFadden has traveled nationally to speak on behalf of her son and seek justice. This past October, Mrs. McFadden shared her testimony at the black studies conference in UT Austin, where she was described as a “wife, fighter, and believer in hope.” At the conference Mrs. McFadden discussed different themes such as the institutionalized racial segregation and violence she and many face in Ferguson. The nightmare of racial hatred is not a thing of the past but a present reality. Her strong will to move forward and to speak the truth makes Mrs. McFadden this generations Mamie Till. Through her personal experience Mrs. McFadden connect with the audience at a level a textbook can’t and encourages them to be vocal against injustice.

I was fourteen when I first became aware of black struggles, particularly in the United States. An innocent, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was fatally shot by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman. Martin was shot plainly because he was Black and yet, Zimmerman walked away a free man on the grounds of self-defense. His death had ignited something in me. A teenage boy was murdered because an ignorant, racist and self-glorified man had garnered the sympathy of the justice system. Truthfully, this was only a nudge to the direction. As sad it is, I was still naïve. However, with every bullet that pierced through each innocent black body, the systemic racism that had targeted the Black community for centuries had made itself known to me. More

It wasn’t like any other swim practice, no, not like any other I’d ever gone to. No one usually moved to Minot, North Dakota that was also in swimming, so when Emily Pitcher and her family moved to town and came to practice, it was quite a shock for everyone on the team. She moved from Colorado and she had 2 younger brothers and a younger sister as well. They seemed nice enough but there was something about Emily, who was my age, which seemed a bit off.

Police brutality is a major issue in today’s society. Many African Americans tend to avoid the police for that very reason. A campaign was started in 2012 against police brutality and the unfair treating of African Americans entitled, Black Lives Matter. This movement was met with controversy as well as support from the American people. This movement has followed several controversial police brutality cases in the United States including, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and Sandra Bland. All African American and all killed in the presence of a police officer, with no convictions. These three cases have been some of the biggest cases in the Black Lives Matter campaign. This campaign is determined to make sure that Black lives are treated just as equally as white live and Hispanic lives, because black lives matter

In the context of the many worries that Black American mothers must relentlessly carry for their daughters’ safety, you [Emily Bernard] claim that “hope” is what drives you to release your daughters into the world and cease the rage you experience each time you hear about a young African-American being murdered. However, in response to your article “Between the World and Me: Black American Motherhood”, I would say that not only should you continue to carry “hope”, but it is also crucial that you have a desire to incite change. Given that you are a professor of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of Vermont, you could also initiate serious discussion about race among your students that could then hopefully carry over to the rest

Violence is inevitable; it is everywhere. From wars, terrorist acts, mass genocides to your local killings and robberies. The topic lately has been crimes against blacks; the most popular cases today seem to be Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin. We, the black community, start movements to notify the public about the issue of police officers and others committing these crimes against us, but most of the crimes committed against us are done by us, so we need to notify ourselves first. Instead of starting these movements to make a change, let us try gaining respect for our race, let us try coming together as one, and let us try taking responsibility for our actions. The change does not start with starting movements; it starts with us. These are not the police’s children, nor the white people’s children, these are our children. We have to make a change for them because if we don’t then no one else will.

She a black American Locked up like a bird with now wings Her freedom was lost Her rights fell in a hole of neglect. She waited all night and all day trying not to forget hope.

A few months ago I found out about Oskar’s plan. I first received a call from a woman named Abby Black who wanted to talk to him. He wasn’t home at that time, so she explained to me what had happened. Apparently, he visited her not so long ago looking for answers for a key he found inside a vase in his father’s closet. I didn’t know what to believe, so I went to his room looking for evidence. He’s a smart kid and hiding secrets has always been one of his specialties. I looked everywhere, but couldn’t find anything until I opened one of his top closet doors. I was surprised with what I discovered. Everything was there, the 472 “Black” names listed in chronological order starting from Aaron Black; a map with their location and a notebook with the time and years it would take him to meet them all.

Hi I’m former president Carter. My birthday is October 1st 1924. I was born in the beautiful plains of Georgia. As of Today I’m 92 years old. I have 2 sisters and 1 brother. There names are Gloria, Ruth, and Billy Carter. Let me start with my childhood, as a kid I sold peanuts. As I sold them I made friends. Not all of them were kids some were adults but I was ok with that.

I would rather lose my tv than my cell phone. I could download netflix on my phone. I wouldn’t have to watch all the commercials. I could watch it at any time when if I wanted to. My dad would have to pay and not me.

Amanda Stanton shared that she is not going to blame editing, but she does say that some stuff was left out. Of course, the fans don't know the entire Amanda and Nick story, but now she is sharing it. Before going on the show, Amanda and Nick did meet a few times and even talked about going on the show. Amanda also shared that she had a bit of a crush on him. When Amanda and Nick talked before the show, he did tell her he was thinking about going, but he wanted to meet Jen Saviano.