By Rami Mansi
With a packed theatre and nine speakers waiting to present, TEDxCUNY presented its annual conference in the Gerard Lynch Theatre in John Jay College. The theme, “FastTrack”, was interpreted in various ways by the speakers and the official website. The theme was driven by the essential question that was repeated throughout the day: Will you be a driver of change?
With opening remarks from Denise B. Maybank, the Vice Chancellor of CUNY, the lectures started at a racing pace. The first speaker, Javier Arau, is a Grammy Semi-Finalist for his work as a music educator and a celebrated composer. As the founder of the New York Jazz Academy, Arau is skilled in the instrumental arts and spoke strongly of his admiration for his students of education. Speaking on his experience as an artist and a teacher, Arau chose to use his time to discuss and analyze his musical interpretation of life. Discussing the idea of how everyone goes through “syncopations”, or problems that get in the way of success. But to reach that success, you have to struggle, and to struggle is to love.
Following Arau came Hillery Ruth Stone, a published writer who taught at New York University and currently teaches at Baruch. Stone delivered a speech that answers the question, “How to Essay?” Stone touched upon the importance of learning how to pour out your emotions onto your essay, academic or personal, as well as stating the importance of being the “grand inquisitor” of the world and the “lucid observer” of your memories.
When asked how students can become bolder, grand inquisitors, Stone shared that literacy is the key to expanding their horizons.
“Reading experiences, reading texts, I think being more open-eyed as they navigate their lives is definitely one way of really taking notice of the things around them and finding new ideas.”
Throughout the presentations, many performances and demonstrations were given to audience members, the first of which was a spoken word performance from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Poet King Kamayera shared two original poems about social justice, his connection to the “Fast Track” theme, and racial issues he has experienced firsthand. His poems were met with a rave response from the audience, delivering a standing ovation from much of the crowd.
Going forward with the program, advertising businesswoman turns full-time lecturer at Baruch, Maria Della Thomas, discussed the new form of digital advertisement, how to be an educated consumer, and the dangers of over-consuming advertisements.
Journalist Heather Shultz Gittens would soon take on the TEDxCUNY stage, discussing her journey in stopping the generational cycle of grief. Through the loss of her adoptive mother as a child, Gittens would struggle to fully process the grief, and with the birth of her son, she became inspired to stop the cycle of grief that had affected her since childhood.
Following the lecture, a brief breathwork workshop with Tiffany Ng followed, and the next lecturer began. Joel Teron, assistant director of the Keith Haring Harlem Center at Alliance for Positive Change and student at the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), shared a lecture that discussed the importance of looking beyond your past and defining your own future. As someone who formerly struggled with addiction, Teron embraced his passions for marathons and currently works at the same center that helped him through recovery.
Teron stated that his identity as a queer person of color helps his perspective in the public health field.
“Having that perspective of being a gay person of color, I’m able to connect with other people that continue to help such largely marginalized communities.”
After the speech, magician, mentalist, and illusionist Joshy K. stepped out and delivered a performance filled with Rubik’s Cube magic, creating “bonds” between two strangers, and pulling alcoholic beverages from thin air to gift to an audience member.
After a two-hour halt in the program for workshops, the program was reenergized and refueled for the next speaker, Clifford Robin Temprosa. Temprosa is an avid advocate for the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) community and works as the leader of the non-profit group “Dare to Change Consulting, Inc. to Change Consulting, Inc.” After a hesitant start, Temprosa, after being met with some audience encouragement, spoke about image; The image you project but also the image you want to be perceived as. Tempora’s main goal was to deliver a statement on defying the projected future you’re given and to strike out on your own accord.
Temprosa’s speech was followed by a performance from “Free Focus Dance”. The performance, with an ensemble of six people, detailed a story of star-crossed lovers, fantastical war, and delivered over-the-top choreography with breakdancing and acrobatics alike.
The seventh speaker of the night was another student speaker from Baruch. Freshman finance major Allyson Poyker discussed the cost of assimilation, using her personal experience of her parents pushing their primary language, Russian, onto their primarily English-speaking daughter. Poyker discussed how, although globalization is on the rise, assimilation is still necessary for entering a new culture, community, or country. Parents will, at times, distance their children away from their ethnic culture in an attempt to separate them from a culture that is not the majority, as Poyker’s research shows.
Poyker shares that sharing this information with CUNY students is important due to their diverse backgrounds.
“I was really happy I got to share my speech with people who could resonate with the things I was saying […] I was glad that a lot of CUNY students that I have talked to and students in high school could relate to this.”
Feminist theorist Serene Khader shared her lecture following Poyker. She presented an essential question to the audience: “Is feminism about individual freedom?” The idea of “women as a whole being overworked equals feminism” is the exact idea that Khadar wants to put a stop to through her work as an author and the activism of women of color and women in the global south.
The second-to-last performance graced the stage, and Michiko Egger, a Broadway composer and singer-songwriter, performed her original song “Onion”.
The last speaker was civil rights lawyer and Brooklyn College (BC) graduate Norman Siegal, who presented on the importance of challenging the systems that oppress us and fighting for the three principles that push communities forward: freedom, justice, and equality. But to challenge these systems, Siegal explained how actions are first presented, and chance is truly first encountered, through personal actions.
“If you care about discrimination, you have to get involved […] use the court of law, write pieces, or send in a letter to the editors.”
With a final performance from OMNY Taiko, where an ensemble of five performed taiko drumming, a traditional form of Japanese percussion, closing remarks and thanks were given to the full TEDxCUNY team.
From enchanting performances to standing ovations to multiple speeches, one thing remained consistent: The message for a better future starts with the people with an idea of action.
“You’re not alone in your passions,” Siegal stated, “so seize the moment, and change the future.”