My Class is AMAZING!

Today was absolutely amazing. I was looking forward to the first day of classes since we left from the UChicago tour. In case you didn’t know I am taking International Human Rights in Theory and Practice and it is everything I hoped for (I’ll get more into that later.) The class was interesting, the instructor is amazing, sharp and intelligent, what I am learning in class will help me greatly and is very applicable to my life back home all the way in California and if the class is anything like the syllabus, it will be very hands on and practical. Besides the amazing class I had a pretty good lunch with friends and walked around the campus a little bit more. Overall today was great on every level I am jumping up and down at the thought of tomorrow’s class.

Today, I got up at 6:00 AM in the morning because there was no way I was going to be late, and I was nervous because I had no clue where the building was so I was planning on getting really lost. I threw on clothes, packed my backpack and waited for 7:00 so I could have breakfast. I basically ate and then dashed. I decided to eat less because when I’m full I get tired and slow, which are two things that I didn’t want to be today. My meal was just eggs, a little piece of French toast and one thin slice of ham. I ate and left to my class.  

I located my class on my map and walked in the general direction where I thought it was. On my walk I admired the pretty buildings and trees. I passed the Uris Hall and came to a T intersection and turned right then made the next left and before I knew it, there was Cornell Law School and the Myron Taylor Hall. I was shocked, the whole reason I got up and left early was because I was planning on getting very lost, but I was there in a couple of minutes. I stood looking at the building and thought “Now what?” I had nothing to do and I wasn’t walking back to my dorm then walking back to the hall. So I walked in and sat on a couch that was just outside the door and reread the class materials. I looked at my phone for the time and it was 8:00, I was an hour and a half early.

I was reading then I heard my phone ringing, it was Javaria. She asked if I wanted to walk with her to class. When she asked me where I was I told I was already at the hall. “What!?” She said in disbelief thinking (rightfully so) that I was a little crazy for being that early, but in my defense my plan worked, I was far from late. We decided to meet at Uris Hall, which was great because it wasn’t a long walk from where I was and it gave me something to do.

When we walked to Myron Taylor Hall and when we did the room was open. When we did we made a B line to the front row, I did this because there was no way I was going to be tucked in the back, and it also makes it easier to hear the teacher and contribute to the class when you are in the front. When we sat in front we sat next to Stephanie. She has short and pinkish hair and had on a really nice black top. Stephanie was really nice I thought she was a great person. She was super down to earth and I liked talking to her. Like us she was on a scholarship to be here. And also like us she came from a public school that sounded like schools in our district. We talked about our schools and that turned into a conversation on how the students on our campus of different ethnicities argue over funny things like which culture has the best rice or hot sauce. It was fun talking to Stephanie as students filed into the class. About twenty minutes before class started our instructor came into the class all the talking stopped and everyone faced her. She had to remind us class hasn’t started and we could talk. That happened everything she’d do something like roll down the projector or just shifted slightly. 

When class finally started I resisted the urge to jump up and down. The instructor was Elisabeth Brundbige, She started the class by going over what we should expect to learn. In short we are going to learn amazing and awesome things. In more academic English, we were going to study the theory and logic behind international law, how international law is created and how international law is enforced in many different ways. We were also not only going to look at law and law enforcement on a global scale, but on a national, and local level. I almost squealed, this was exactly what I wanted to learn in the course.

  

She went over the syllabus as well. There are a lot of workshops and discussions on certain human rights atrocities and violations and in these workshops and discussions we will fill in the role as an international human rights lawyer or a worker for an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization).  It sounds amazing that we are not only learning about law, but in a way practicing it. We will also have many brilliant guest speakers that are a part of the law school or they are actually active lawyers that are currently fighting for people’s rights all over the world speaking to us on certain subjects regarding human rights. I feel so lucky to be able to hear from people who are making a difference, I feel lucky that I’ll be able to ask them questions about how I can help enforce human rights and hold power accountable in my community. 

Then she went over her office hours and I wrote them planned to see every day she has office hours and I planned to make as many appointments as possible. She is such a valuable resource of knowledge who has firsthand experience in expanding human rights through law which is exactly what I want to do with my life. And I am sure she can give valuable information and guidance on how I can expand rights in my community with my clubs or even by myself. She also went to many universities I want to apply to that I will most likely never visit so I want to ask questions regarding Yale and Oxford. Even if I don’t have questions I’ll still make excuses to talk to her because I only have three weeks and she is sharp and intelligent and it is privilege that I get to speak to her.

Then the class introduced themselves and this was very eye opening because I don't think of my high school as under performing, I think it has many resources, but it has nothing compared to the massive resources many of these people have. We had to say our names, why we were interested in the class and any experience with human rights. I said something longer, but I said that my name is Robson and I said I am interested in my class because I want to fight for people’s rights because I want to improve the lives of as many people as I can and I feel I can do that best through law. 

I have human rights experience in my clubs in high school. Clubs like GSA and BSU where we spread acceptance of different sexualities, gender orientations, cultures and races, we also helped change school policies to crack down on bullying and to help spread tolerance. I also said those clubs were a large part of why I joined this course because what I learn here I can apply to my clubs and community so I can improve them for people now and in the future. My answer wasn’t really unique because there were a good number of people who joined because of their model UN (which made me SO jealous because I really want one at my high school!). There were some extremely smart, intelligent and talented people, one girl acted on a TV show and another launched an investigation of sexism in India. I not going to lie, I tried my best not to be intimidated by them and their vast knowledge on this subject because I do feel a little behind, but I guess I’ll just study harder and work harder in class, who knows maybe I could surpass their knowledge on this subject.

The class that followed was very interesting; we went over the foundations and history of international human rights. We studied charters and customary international law. The recurring theme I saw was that the treaties and customary international law (especially when it came to objections and reservations) balanced a state’s sovereignty and the ability to enforce the agreements made in the treaty. I was so glad I had a law class in high school because it made understanding treaties easier because it is sort of similar to contract law. Also it made understanding a lot of the language easier. I loved it because the instructor would show us a treaty or an article of a convention and ask us questions like “What is your understanding of this article?” “What are the implications of this law?” then she would get more into detail asking more focused questions. Every time she asked a question my head would be buzzing full of ideas and comments that sometimes it would be difficult. I loved this open discussion; I loved hearing people’s ideas and different interpretations and perspectives. There wasn’t any discourse or major disagreements we just shared our ideas and discussed the major principles of international law and human rights.

After class we had lunch at a completely different place than where I normally get food. I get food at the community center, but the hall (I don’t exactly remember its name, but begins with T) was WAY better. It has ramen, wraps, Chinese food and a better grill. This hall was better because the food tasted better and a little fresher, but I did not like the long lines. I had no clue I could get food anywhere beside the Community Center.   

After that I went to the dorm to finish homework and blog. I did that basically until dinner where I had to meet Javaria, Noor and Deven before I ate. We just went over the basics, we made a list of things we need from to get that we didn’t pack or things we lost while traveling, Deven also said that we can have fun, but our focus has to be on blogs and homework first. I understood this and had no problems. 

I met a new friend, her name is Tracy she is from the Bronx, she is also on a scholarship and she is hilarious. 

After dinner Javaria and I decided to go to the Cornell store, but alas it was closed yet again. So far today has been my favorite day at Cornell; I absolutely love my course so much that I am already sad that it ends in only three weeks. I am just having so much fun here in Cornell.