Alivia Allers

 The first meme that came to mind is one that was circulating on Twitter a few months ago, around the time when people were receiving their stimulus checks. The format was such:  I thought this meme was really interesting because yes it's silly humor, but it's also an expression of how many Americans feel that the government has been unable to help its citizens during the pandemic in an efficient and sound way. I think political memes are an especially interesting phenomenon because of the way people use light-hearted humor to showcase their critiques of real and pressing issues.  This meme in particular, I think is a reflection of how many people have lost a lot of respect and trust for the government over the past couple of years, that was only exacerbated by the way the American government has handled the pandemic. This meme tackles the reactions people had when congress was arguing over whether or not to give qualifying Americans a one-time payment of $1400- A payment...

Performing fear brainstorm:  - wearing a mask (everyday) - getting tested (every week)  - giving people a ton of space, like walking on the grass instead of the sidewalk when you pass someone, or asking for permission before sitting on a friend's furniture, etc (out of fear of my own health and/or fear of others assuming I am not being careful enough, fear of social pressure)  - pretending or actually talking on the phone if I'm walking alone at night  - talking in my 'customer service' voice at work  - dressing 'appropriately'/upholding dress code at work  I jotted down a few different ideas of how I perform different kinds of fear, but Covid related fears are by far the most prevalent in my day to day life. Covid has issued in an entirely unprecedented level of fear that has seeped into almost all aspects of one's life- our health, our professional lives, social lives, familial relationships, our digital personas, etc, have all been altered from primarily...

What my partner was able to gather about me were all true events and accurate information about me! It was such a bizarre experience to hear someone describe you out loud without having ever met you in person or talk to you before, even though I am aware that people can make assumptions about my online persona and gather information about me, it was so weird to watch and listen to a presentation about it. It was eye opening to be shown how much information there is about me that is open to the public, because I've thought that my online persona is mostly private. I didn't change any privacy settings on my social medias because most of the sources that gave my partner information about me wasn't from my personal social media, but from other sources like online journals I've been featured in and things that I'm affiliated with that show up on Google as a result of searching my name. 

     I think the Patti Pace festival was a really incredible way to showcase the use of performance as a way to protest and push for social justice. Upon centering around topics of racial discrimination, white supremacy, identity politics, and the historical social events that have gained immense traction since the summer of 2020, it was great that the festival showcased the perspectives and artistry of people who have true lived experience with the topics discussed.  I especially liked Javan Johnson's poetry from his publication 'Ain't Never Not Been Black,' and I actually went on to purchase this book because I wanted to read more from him. I was really moved by his poem called 'America,' in which Johnson writes about the history of Black people, but powerfully replaces the words 'Black people' with the word 'America' throughout the entire poem. He points out the destruction America has caused Black people, and how that destruction became and c...