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Together Apart: Freshman Colloquium

Paturi_Abhijay

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Aren't We All Witnesses? By Abhijay Raj Paturi

My piece is titled “Aren’t we all witnesses?” The hope is for readers, like yourselves, to better understand how to respond to this question in the title. The inspiration for this piece was Professor Mullins and her TA Anna, who teach the GSEM 110 class, Poem, Plays, and Politics. In this class, we have focused our discussions on defining who a witness is through the works of James Baldwin. In doing so, I was able to further reflect upon my choice to act when I learned of my friend’s suicide. The piece begins and ends with my inner thoughts, some of which that pertain to our current lockdown experience, specifically the repetitive nature of each day. I’ve also lost friends and family to COVID-19 like millions of others. We are all currently witnesses to preventable death, especially those due to racial injustice. My goal with this piece is to inspire even one reader to wholeheartedly fulfill their role as a witness.
Abhijay Raj Paturi
Abstract
My piece is titled “Aren’t we all witnesses?” The hope is for readers, like yourselves, to better understand how to respond to this question in the title. The inspiration for this piece was Professor Mullins and her TA Anna, who teach the GSEM 110 class, Poem, Plays, and Politics. In this class, we have focused our discussions on defining who a witness is through the works of James Baldwin. In doing so, I was able to further reflect upon my choice to act when I learned of my friend’s suicide. The piece begins and ends with my inner thoughts, some of which that pertain to our current lockdown experience, specifically the repetitive nature of each day. I’ve also lost friends and family to COVID-19 like millions of others. We are all currently witnesses to preventable death, especially those due to racial injustice. My goal with this piece is to inspire even one reader to wholeheartedly fulfill their role as a witness.

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