SPEAKERS Alumni in Conversation Screenwriter Adam Aresty ’03 and cultural curator Lamont Tory Stapleton ’06 came together virtually on Oct . 8, 2020, to discuss the short film Laws of the Universe, released on the YouTube sci-fi channel Dust . Written by Adam, the film tells the story of a prisoner trapped in his cell after an alien spacecraft appears in Los Angeles . “I believe science fiction allows you to explore messaging beneath the surface of what you see directly in front of you,” said
Adam Aresty
Adam, a Fordham University faculty member . “My goal for the project is to help humanize marginalized people .” Lamont, a Los Angeles-based community activist, is a member of GSB’s Athletic Hall of Fame and co-founder of Between the Lines, a prison basketball program aimed at rehabilitation . “My passion has always been celebrating individuality and accepting the differences that make us all unique,” he said . “It's important to me that when people think of those who are incarcerated, they look beyond the surface . No matter what circumstances a person may face, every life has purpose .”
Lamont Tory Stapleton
My passion has always been celebrating individuality and accepting the differences that make us all unique . Christina Hammonds Reed In October, the Upper School virtually welcomed Christina Hammonds Reed, author of the YA novel The Black Kids . Ms . Hammonds Reed and Upper School Librarian Kristen Armstrong talked about the novel’s many topics – mental health, friendship, racial inequality, college admissions, and American history . Members of the GSB Project LIT Community Book Club asked Ms . Hammonds Reed questions about her book and her writing process . After the large group presentation, Ms . Hammonds Reed virtually stopped into the elective The Politics of Identity: Race, Class, and Gender in the United States . 26
