Tey’s piece, “Queer Children Are Dying… But Many More Are Living” calls attention both to the tragic one-dimensionality of the stories being told about LGBTQ youth in the media today, and to the scarcity of stories on the systematic discrimination of these young people. Tey cites the danger of painting a consistently dark LGBTQ reality, saying that such coverage “has begun to make it seem as if these deaths are unavoidable, even normative responses to homophobia in our culture.” She stresses how important messages of hope and solidarity are to youth who are struggling to assert their identities in a family, peer group, or culture that denigrates these assertions.

Tey’s piece demonstrates a nimble negotiation of fact and feeling. When trying to convince someone that we’re right, we’re often tempted to focus on the expert appeal of our opinions and forgo emotional engagement. But in some cases, being the most logical, credentialed, intellectually convincing voice on the page will only get you so far. Tey does a fantastic job of pairing statistics and expert opinions with poignant examples of real teenagers who are triumphing in their struggle to be stronger than the influences that seek to break them down. The result is an engaging, thoughtful, and moving piece that introduces much-needed complexity to a difficult conversation.

Congratulations Tey!

-Ravenna Koenig, Junior Fellow

Talk about results.  Qanta Ahmed has published nearly two dozen op-eds and columns since coming through The OpEd Project last March – in places like The Christian Science Monitor, The New York Daily News, The New York Post, The Huffington Post and USA Today. Subsequently she was cited in both The Washington Post and Forbes.com. Qanta (who will be our Alum Ambassador at our upcoming New York City seminar on February 11) recently wrote us about the power of words:

“Congressman(R) Peter King came to my hospital today to inaugurate our health program for World Trade Center first responders. I had written in support of his hearings on Radical Islam a year ago this month in the Wall Street Journal.

Today, hoping to meet him I printed out my op-ed,’ just in case.’ Putting it in the pocket of my doctor’s coat, I went to hear him and other leaders speak. When the press conference was over I went to introduce myself. I showed him the piece, which he in fact remembered without prompting – he had read it at the time. 

This led to an invitation for me to meet him in his office and discuss how I can serve his mission further.  We begin our dialogue later this month.

A single op-ed has therefore carried me to the Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee in under a year. My writing is carrying me to the epicenter of policy makers in the area in which I want to exert more influence. With [OpEd Project Mentor-Editor] Annie Murphy Paul’s mentorship that influence is just beginning to spread its wings. Just amazing.

That’s the power of the written word. Thank you for helping me amplify, refine and empower my voice. You do tremendous work, and in our short history of collaboration you have been pivotal to my development and my ability to realize my true mission.

–Qanta A. A. Ahmed MD, FACP, FCCP, FAASM

Note:  Come meet Qanta on February 11 – at our next open seminar followed by our New York City happy hour (which is open to everyone).

Like the last seminar in October, the Jan 15th. event was attended by a range of talented and successful women from a variety of sectors.  With 26 participants, including one man, the seminar was completely booked and the seats filled.  Michele Weldon and Deborah Siegel were the leaders, but they engaged with the participants like friends.

The day was stimulating in a variety of ways, not least of which was the dynamic variety of people in the room.  A documentarian who had traveled the world, a financial manager of multi-million dollar accounts, entrepreneurs – these people and more filled the room with great ideas and energy.  During a heated discussion that pushed others to think deeply, I believe there was even a joking middle finger directed at one of the leaders.  It was quite a rousing session, to say the least.

New themes that I personally picked up from this session were debates between personal and professional expertise – a point raised by several participants.  When is one’s personal experienced considered sufficient enough to qualify one as an expert?  Which is more important in offering a well-informed opinion?  We discussed this and more themes crucial to both op-ed publication and knowing one’s own strengths, two seemingly distinct topics that are actually closely linked.

Happy Hour at the Elephant and Castle afterward was a great moment for – of course – happy drinking, along with networking.  I am always struck by the accomplishments of the women in the OpEd Project, and what better way to really get to know others  than over a couple beers? After hearing about everyone’s experiences throughout the seminar, this was the perfect time to connect with those on the same paths as ourselves.  For instance, I heard two women make a connection over Afghanistan, as one of them was moving there for a job and the other had a friend who lived there who could offer her advice.  I heard a publisher enticing people in traditionally non-writing careers to write for her.  I myself met a wonderful person who offered me her knowledge and experience in starting a business.

Needles to say, I’m already looking forward to our next session on April 28th.  Cheers to that.

In December, Greg Acevedo of the Graduate School of Social Services at Fordham published a fantastic piece in the Huffington Post, “Somehow…Someday!…” , about Puerto Rico and how self determination on the island is still being hindered by the United States. After a century-long relationship in which the U.S. has verged on imperialist and Puerto Rico has become, in Acevedo’s words, a “colony lite,” many people still don’t understand how much of a role the U.S. plays in Puerto Rico’s “smoke-and-mirrors ‘democracy.’” Give it a read.

Also in December, Leslie Gerwin of Princeton University published her first op-ed of the program on CNN.Opinion. Her piece “Why we’re not prepared for a flu pandemic”  discusses the role that politics plays in vaccination. Her choice to focus on the convergence of politics and public health is essential to understanding the 2009-10 flu pandemic, as well as preparing for the crises yet to come.

On January 5th PBS Need to Know ran a great piece by Noliwe Rooks, also of the Princeton program, entitled “Reframing the debate over charter schools.”  In her op-ed she discusses the media and policy attention that was paid to charter schools in 2011, specifically how, in most of the coverage, the complexities behind the success and failure of the institutions weren’t portrayed. Her recommendation to focus on representing and replicating the education models that have been empirically successful is one that opens the conversation on education in 2012 with intelligence and wisdom. Congrats Noliwe!

To those scholars who published in 2011, we are grateful for your knowledge and commend you for your fearlessness in going on the record for the benefit of us all. To those who have various gems in the works: don’t let them idle on your laptop screens forever! The 2012 world needs your voices as much as ever. So, let’s all resolve to write, and let’s keep this resolution.

So when I sent in my piece on North Korea and family to The Chicago Tribune, I did not even think that it would run as one of the lead op-eds on Christmas.  The whole process proved to me that truly anyone can write an op-ed, because everyone has something to share with the world.

It began with the news of Kim Jong-Il’s death on Dec. 17th.  My interest was immediately peaked.  Everyone seems to know about North Korea’s violation of human rights and political pariah status.  But little know of the families who were torn apart when Korea was  permanently split into two, something that my own family was subjected to.  I knew that I had to write about it.  My family comes from South Korea, so the news of the dictator’s death naturally had more meaning for us than most Americans.

This proved to be the crucial news hook to my story.  When writing for a media outlet, even if it’s an opinion piece, it is ideal to relate to a current event, as the public’s interest in the topic and the story’s impact will be high.

My next step was to make sure that my story was, in fact, of interest to other people.  This was another way that the OpEd Project helped me out, since it was through the organization that I was introduced to her.  I looked her up on the Tribune’s contacts page (many editors at other outlets are easily reachable as well) and left a short pitch on her voicemail.  She called me back the next morning and said my story interesting, and that I should send her my draft as soon as possible.

I had to write 800-something words in that same day and send it to her the next.  Writing the op-ed, however, was easy.  Much easier than I thought it would be.  The wonderful thing about writing op-eds is that freedom of expression and voice are encouraged.  It is almost like writing a diary entry, except the facts much be perfectly straightforward and correct.

After I sent it in, Marcia called me the same day to tell me it would be running online and in print on Christmas.  I was elated.  Not only was my work worth publishing in the Tribune, but more importantly the story of the personal tragedies caused by North Korea would be shared with many.  People would know.  People would be aware.  People would, perhaps, begin to care about North Korea for more than political reasons.

We all have a part of ourselves, be it a career, relationship, or something else, that is worth sharing.  A well-rounded, healthy society is one in which a rich conversation is fueled by a range of voices.  As I outlined and as the OpEd Project teaches, the steps to getting our individual voice out there are fairly simple.  It just takes effort and some creative thinking.

Take it from me, a 21-year-old girl still struggling to get her homework done on time.  If I can do it, so can you.

————

Link to the article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/ct-perspec-1225-korea-20111225,0,6269574.story

Barbara Field, writer and mentor

Barbara Field’s stint as a volunteer mentor for the Afghan Women’s Writing Project ended after one month, but her passion for writing and her desire to help other women get their voices heard received the jump-start of a lifetime.

After working with women who risked so much to share their poems, stories and essays on the group’s website

(awwproject.org), Field rediscovered her own love of creative writing. She also became involved with the OpEd Project, a group dedicated to getting more female voices into the global media conversation.

“Honestly, it’s about the power of words,” said Field, who manages communication and metrics for UC San Diego’s department of business and financial services. “Words give you the power to change everything.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.

From left (seated): Shalena Broadnax, NYC Regional Manager; Ravenna Koenig, Junior Fellow; Alyssa Best, East Coast Regional Manager; Wendy Suzuki, NYC Alum; Taryn Yaeger, Junior Fellow; Moe Orenstein, Supporter and Katie's Father; Standing: Kim Taylor, NYC Alum

The Princeton Program is lead by two amazing women. Courtney Martin, is a blogger, cultural critic and author of five books including Do It Anyway: The New Generation of Activists and Click: When We Knew We Were Feminists. Her co-leader at Princeton is Janus Adams, an Emmy award-winning journalist, historian, founder of BackPax children’s media and author of nine books including the Glory Days trilogy of African American history and culture. We can’t wait to hear about the amazing successes that Courtney, Janus, and the brilliant scholars at Princeton are going to have in the coming weeks!

In other very exciting news our first op-ed from the Fordham Public Voices Fellowship Program was published on the 8th! Christiana Z. Peppard is Assistant Professor of Theology & Science in the Department of Theology at Fordham University. Her op-ed on fracking is an excellent example of using a particular expertise to write differently about a problem that a lot of people are writing about. She says, ”from my stance as a scholar of theology and science, environmental ethics, and CST, I can say that at least three steps are necessary before fracking can begin to be viewed as a desirable ‘bridge fuel.’” To find out what those are, check out the article here.