Exercise: What is the State to us and how has it affected us?
Everyone wrote what the state is to them and we placed it on the Board. We then categorized what we had. This is what we came up with.

Environment
Working for the EPA
Psychology
Regretfully America
Lied to about the nation of “embracing diversity”
State influences consumerisms
Media
War
War
Military Presence
Criminal (in)justice
Pulled over had to take a driving test, passed
Surveillance
Every time I see a cop car, particularly when it is behind me
Be arrested, pulled over, having my name taken by a cop
Incarceration of Youth
Police brutality
Criminalization of undocumented students
Arrested for disrupting a speech
Jail
Police
Friends in “law enforcement”
Interrogation, disrespected
Infrastructures
No safe transportation
Roads
Akaka Bill
Highway Construction
Don’t want to participate
Economics
Fed Govt. paid my paycheck for the last three years
No secure safe exchange
Working and never having enough money
No time for community
Planning
Participation in the work study program
Borders
The borders (Mexico& US)
Enforcing Borders- never seeing family
Airport security
Massive media cover-up of government lies
Imperialism
Oppressive/repressive registration
Prevent me From being with the one I love
Immigration Legislation
Immigration, Borders Separate family
Denied my people citizenship, but gave my people the right to naturalize
Laws/Courts
Family Law – restraining orders, gender, class and race oppression. Linguistic barriers
Civil marriage and divorce
External rules governing what I can and cannot do (e.g. vote as a woman, go to school)
Participating in jury duty
County Jail visitation
Prison industrial complex
Denies and protects my civil rights
Courts
Gives me freedom, but not enough
Sense of protection
Lack of social movement
Jury duty
Access to nation territories
Fear to speak against the state whether at rallies or in presentations
Education
Money, grants, finds and resources
Education
Federal loans/grants for college
Child support
Shitty education
Education system & socialization
Funding my education system – financial aid and loans
Free education
Higher education
My education has been through the public school system
Poor quality education within the educational system
Financial Aid
Oppressed- felt like I had more because I was granted access to higher education
When good teachers who stand for and truly teach and educate are fired and moved to another school
Social Service
Work City Hall jobs – precinct walking
Going to the DMV
Applying for free lunch in elementary school
Pentagon March
Utilities (i.e. electricity, water, gas, phones)
Summer youth employment (Job training partnership act)
Civil unrest in Newark, NJ
Social Service aka Food stamps
Advocating subsidized healthcare
Taxes
Taxes
Having to pay taxes that support a war that I do not support
Rich get richer
Paying taxes
Giving money to the state
Parking tickets & traffic accident
Waiting for my tax refund
Health
Lack of medical insurance
Having to go to TJ for dental work- No health insurance access that was affordable
Not having access to healthcare
Hospital
Being dependent on my job for insurance and medical care
Voting
Civic participation
Voting
Voting for president or presidential candidate
Allowing me as well as suppressing
Election 2000/2004
Voting feels so disoriented and unsatisfying
Religion
Protects & suppressed my freedom of religion