The Bella Bulletin
JULY/AUGUST 2021
WE INTERVIEWED… Current BALI trainees, Brianna Taborda and Tonima Bhowmik to get to know them better and to talk about their experience as BALI trainees. Check out what they had to say! This month’s
Feminist Five Disability Pride Month Edition
FOLLOW @BELLAABZUGINSTITUTE
Table of Contents I.
We Interviewed……………………………………..……..3
II.
Highlights of the Month…………….…………….……..….5
III.
Feminist Five…….…………………………….......……....6
IV.
Happy Birthday To……………...……………..……....…....8
V.
This Month in Women’s History …..……….………………....9
VI.
Enrichment Opportunities……..………...............................…..10
VII. Bella
Bulletin Staff………….………………..……...….….12
VIII. BALI
Staff…………………………….…………..........…..13
W e
i n t e r v i e w e d :
WHAT’S YOUR ABSOLUTE FAVORITE BOOK/MOVIE/TV SHOW RIGHT NOW? WHAT IS YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT (ACADEMIC OR NONACADEMIC)?
WHAT DOES BEING A GOOD LEADER MEAN TO YOU?
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BALI MEMORY?
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT YOU HAVE LEARNED IN BALI THUS FAR THAT YOU BELIEVE YOU WILL USE IN FUTURE ENDEAVORS?
ANY ADVICE YOU WOULD GIVE TO YOUR FELLOW BALI YOUTH MEMBERS PAST OR PRESENT?
W e
i n t e r v i e w e d :
WHAT’S YOUR ABSOLUTE FAVORITE BOOK/MOVIE/TV SHOW RIGHT NOW?
WHAT IS YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT (ACADEMIC OR NONACADEMIC)?
WHAT DOES BEING A GOOD LEADER MEAN TO YOU?
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BALI MEMORY?
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT YOU HAVE LEARNED IN BALI THUS FAR THAT YOU BELIEVE YOU WILL USE IN FUTURE ENDEAVORS?
ANY ADVICE YOU WOULD GIVE TO YOUR FELLOW BALI YOUTH MEMBERS PAST OR PRESENT?
Highlights of the Month
The long-awaited “2020” Summer Olympics this year has put a spotlight on the racism, and more specifically, misogynoir that is entrenched in the sports industry. First, Sha’Carri Richardson was banned from the Olympics after a positive cannabis test, even though it is not a performance-enhancing drug (and let alone the fact that many white athletes have been excused of much worse accusations). This past week, Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka stepped down from their Olympic events to protect their physical and mental health. And as a result, these champion athletes have faced immense discrimination and judgment. These three instances (among many others at this year’s Olympics) begs the question of whether the Olympics and its fans care about their Black athletes beyond the entertainment and talent they provide.
Three months ago, the CDC announced that vaccinated people were free to enter public indoor places maskless without fear of contracting or spreading COVID-19. This month, however, due to several outbreaks of the Delta variant of the virus (the most revealing of which occurred in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where most of the population is vaccinated) the CDC announced that vaccinated individuals can, in fact, contract and spread the disease. As a result, it is now recommended that everyone, regardless of vaccination status use masks indoors. The Delta variant is near twice as transmissible as the first strains of COVID-19, yet less than half of the U.S. population is vaccinated.
This summer, indigenous water protectors and allies have been tirelessly protesting the construction of Line 3, a pipeline being built by the Canadian oil company Enbridge. The pipeline is being constructed in Northern Minnesota even though it violates several treaties made with the Ojibwe people of the area. Furthermore, the pipeline is set to cross 200 bodies of water and its carbon footprint would exceed that of all of Minnesota. The influx of Enbridge workers into Ojibwe territory has also heightened COVID-19 cases and led to the assault of some indigenous community members. For ways to help, please see stopline3.org.
In response to financial difficulties brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the CDC established a moratorium that protected Americans from evictions. This month, even though the pandemic and its subsequent financial obstacles are far from over, the moratorium was lifted, leaving many Americans in the lurch for affordable housing. With the moratorium lifted, many Americans across the country now owe months of past-due rent with little to no support. This already very present issue has been exacerbated by the pandemic and will not dissolve unless established, permanent change is made by the federal government.
Titled after her able-bodied, identical twin’s nickname The Pretty One: On Life, Pop Culture, Disability, and Other Reasons to Fall in Love with Me is an honest, challenging, and hilarious collection of essays that detail Keah Brown’s life, love, and pop-culture obsessions. As her quote below confirms, Keah Brown uses The Pretty One to push past the need for her cerebral-palsy to be a source of inspiration and instead encourages her readers to see her disability as just one of her many other interesting and powerful traits and accomplishments (including her love for cheesecake!) The Pretty One has received praise from well-known artists and writers like Roxane Gay, Lena Dunam, and Deepak Chopra.
The Pretty One also unpacks Keah Brown’s viral social media campaign #DisabledandCute. Initially a personal hashtag posted by Brown to celebrate her personal journey with self-love, #DisabledandCute has transformed into an online community of disabled people celebrating themselves and proving that “being disabled and being cute aren’t mutually exclusive.” Like most online content created by Black creators, however, #DisabledandCute is occasionally referenced without crediting Keah Brown. So to all of our lovely BALI readers that might want to contribute to the hashtag, make sure to tag her @Keah_Maria!
“I don’t mind being an inspiration if it is for a valid reason, such as admiring how many slices of pizza I ate, an essay or an article I wrote, my clothing choices, or how quickly I can learn the lyrics to songs. As long as the inspiration doesn’t come with pity or self-congratulatory pats on the back, I am all for it. Let my love for cheesecake inspire you the way it will one day inspire a nation. At least you can say you were there first. - Keah Brown In addition to being an author, Keah Brown is a notable journalist, actress, and screenwriter. Brown has written for and been featured in established publications including Essence, Cosmopolitan, and Teen Vogue. Keah Brown is also featured in Tarana Burke and Brené Brown’s transformative anthology You Are Your Best Thing.
This, however, is just the beginning for Keah Brown. In 2022, she will publish her first children’s book, titled Sam’s Super Seats. Illustrated by Sharee Miller, this upcoming book will follow a young girl with cerebral palsy as she goes back to school shopping with her best friends. Though more information has yet to be released, Keah Brown is also set to publish a book geared towards young adults in the next few years. Brown has big dreams when it comes to television, many of which have already been accomplished, but for now, we should all take the time to read her extensive works and wait to see what she does next!
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Women’s History of the Month: JULY
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Bella Bulletin Staff Wilma Abam-DePass Co-Editor-in-Chief School: Mount Holyoke College BALI Class of 2017 Contact Info: Wilma@depass.com
Zoe Donovan Co-Editor-in-Chief School: Brown University BALI Class of 2017 Contact Info: zoezoedonovan@gmail.com
