Cate's+Reflection

Reflection Throughout the semester, I have constantly been asking myself the same question: what is democracy? And what does it mean to live in one? Upon beginning the Senior Seminar course I was not at all sure what democracy was. Although I do not a have a full understanding of the definition today, I have a better grasp. I have learned, through various projects, films, and discussions, that although by definition, democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system, that’s not all it means. Often times democracy is based on social class and power, and the people must act if they want to make a difference. Everyone can change the state of our country, but many have to work much harder to complete the task at hand. The discussions in class especially shed light on what democracy really meant, as there were people from many different social backgrounds, and some brought up points that I had never considered. Working on the project I realized that by working hard and diligently, we can change the Party Patrol policy. My hopes are that when the semester ends and the new senior seminar class picks up our unfinished project that they will ultimately put it into action and get party patrol eliminated. I got much more involved with the project then I thought I would and even researched it on my own time. I’m sure that after the semester ends, I will continue to be involved on the subject and will continue learning and researching it. I never thought I could change something that the police and a task force were involved in, but now I realize I have more power than I ever thought possible, which is what democracy is all about. Working in a group was at times difficult, but my group is passionate about the subject because it involves us all directly. We all have our strengths and we can bounce ideas off each other. I would have never been able to complete this project on my own, but my group of concerned students really came together to make this project worth while. I think that when the students in the next class pick up our project next semester they will appreciate our hard work and will have the initiative to take the project to the next level, and attempt to eliminate party patrol once and for all.