Tag: Cultural Considerations—The Other

You Shall Not Oppress a Resident Alien: The Conception of Immigrants in the Hebrew Bible

Presenter(s): Miriam Thielman—Spanish and Religious Studies

Faculty Mentor(s): Deborah Green

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

An increase in global immigration has resulted in humanitarian crises across the world as countries struggle to respond to the growing number of refugees and asylum seekers arriving at their borders . Religion often influences people’s beliefs, actions, and even the policy decisions for which they lobby, and the various forms of Christianity practiced in the United States frequently use the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures as their sacred instructive texts . Understanding the specific messages within the Hebrew Bible regarding immigrants is important for developing faith-informed responses to immigrants and refugees . A detailed study of relevant portions of the Hebrew Bible, coupled with analysis of biblical commentaries and scholarly criticism, suggests that the Bible underscores the imperative to care for the most vulnerable members of society, as well as to include immigrants in the community . People of faith should take this overarching message into account when considering how to respond to immigrants’ arrival in the United States .

Dimana? Disini: The effects of migration and political strife on the Chinese Indonesian family, name, and identity.

Presenter(s): Kezia Setyawan—Journalism

Faculty Mentor(s): Sung Park, Tuong Vu

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

Dimana? Disini . Translated, this means, where are you/us? I/We are here .
Over the span of many generations, Chinese Indonesians have migrated to all corners across the globe . I hope to reckon and reflect upon how my family has changed and how others in our community have . This professional project will explore how identity and values shift through the lens of migration and assimilation for Chinese Indonesians . I have conducted in-person interviews in English and Indonesian and taken portraits of each interviewee . Through the process, I have tried to parse together patterns that show similarities in perspectives and what are contradictions . The final work is split into different components, one aspect is the literature review, which provides context and background information that informs contemporary Chinese Indonesian existence, timelines that illustrate historical events and family migration illustrating the changes in familial names over generations, and a series of studio lit portraiture on location with captions from their interview on what informs who they are . The project matters because it is a multimedia journalistic package that has many different entry points for the audience to engage with cultural identities different than their own .

Meeting Needs and Reclaiming Communal Autonomy: Post-Conflict Community Organizing in Rural Colombia

Presenter(s): Sarah Pishioneri—Political Science

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

This presentation details community organizing practices that work to rebuild a social framework devastated by armed conflict in Caño Berruguita, a rural village in the Montes de Maria region of northwestern Colombia . Through an exploratory analysis of this particular community’s post- conflict experience and by looking more broadly at the rural reform efforts by governmental bodies and nongovernmental organizations, this presentation highlights local organizing efforts as the primary means of Colombian communities to reclaim their communal dignity and assert their territorial autonomy . The findings of this work are primarily sourced from a 10-day field study in Caño Berruguita, and secondarily from varying peace and conflict contexts provided in a 4-week intensive study program in Cartagena, Colombia . Results show that while structural organizations, projects, partnerships, and goals of informal and formal community groups not only rebuild, but embolden rural communities, community leaders themselves face significant risk by engaging in this work .

A Lost Whisper: Recovering Vanessa Howard

Presenter(s): Lorelei Kelsey—English, Creative Writing

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

During my Spring term in 2019 at the University of Oregon I was assigned an archival assignment, I was to uncover a little known author of color . I elected to find a copy of a collection of poetry edited by June Jordan and Terri Bush, The Voice of the Children (1972) . I had heard that the kids who were included in the collection were from the intercity in Brooklyn, and that they were a part of a poetry workshop led by Jordan and Bush . I wasn’t aware how moving the work would end up being . After receiving the book I decided to highlight one of the students, Vanessa Howard . In this presentation I will be highlighting my journey through researching this book and reading some poetry . In doing so I hope to highlight the importance of poetry and freedom of expression .

Silent Slaves: Reconstructing slave perspectives on the Grave Stele of Hegeso

Presenter(s): Alexis Garcia—Art History and Cultural Anthropology

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

The Grave Stele of Hegeso (400 BCE) depicts a ‘mistress and maid’ scene and preserves a valuable insight into elite iconography and exploring the experience of wealthy Athenian women in their social roles and domestic spaces . The slave attendant, if discussed at length, primarily functions for academia as a method of contrast and comparison to her elite master . While this is a valuable interpretation for studies of gender and class in fifth century Athens, more can be done in regard to examining the slave attendant on the stele, and as a byproduct, examining slave figures in all Greek art . Slaves made up a sizeable portion of fifth century Athenian society, and were present in both elite and poor households . However, due to a lack of material and literary evidence, the field of classics has not engaged with exploring the concept of Greek slavery to its full extent . In addition, what little does remain to modern scholars was commissioned or written by elite voices, who were biased against slaves . This paper explores potential reconstructions for slave perspectives and narratives on the Grave Stele of Hegeso by drawing upon the trope of the Good Slave and Bad Slave in Athenian theater and Homeric epic . This paper also discusses the relationships between masters and slaves, household slave dynamics, and what constitutes the idealized Athenian slave .

Overcoming The Crux: Adaptive Rock – Climbing Product Development

Presenter(s): Sawyer Alcazar-Hagen—Product Design

Faculty Mentor(s): Wilson Smith, James Tuttle

Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other

Developments in rock climbing equipment have made the sport accessible and safer for everyone . Increased climbing opportunity and safety standards have led more people to climb, including adaptive athletes . Research revealed that climbing belay and equipment has been designed for two- arm users . These designs pose challenges for safe belaying by one-armed users . Working with a male trans-humeral amputee, I developed devices making belaying easier and safer . Through observational climbing sessions, two problems were identified in belay style, managing dead rope (i .e ., slack rope from the belay device) and lowering his belay partner . These issues stemmed from devices designed for two-armed users . He adapted to product functionality to operate them, and this required unsafe actions (e .g ., stepping on rope). I explored design solutions through concept sketching, prototyping and user testing . I discovered two solutions: The Pull-Place-Repeat Climbing Cleat (PPR) and the Grigri Lowering Mod (GLM) . The PPR allows for single-handed belay with constant contact with the dead rope, while never having to step on the rope . The GLM allows the belayer to keep his hand below the device giving him better speed control while lowering his partner . Testing revealed the PPR rotated excessively with upward rope movement, a danger to the climber . The device should be stitched into the harness to prevent this rotation . The GLM functioned effectively, requiring a slight modification to the rotating lever arm . I discovered that climbing equipment design overlooks the needs of altered capabilities, but my design can facilitate a more inclusive climbing community .