I started a blog!

Hello people of the world and beyond! My name is Amy Cruz, new Gender+Women’s Studies Major! I want to tell you about my Activist project for the wonderful class, Feminist Activism. Here’s some background: I have anxiety and depression. It is hard to me to speak out or speak up, let alone get out of bed sometimes. Taking part in Activism is hard for me.

Writing to Prisoners!

For my activism project, I decided to compile some resources about how to write to prison inmates. My background in restorative justice and my prison abolitionist leanings caused me to become interested in the topic of maintaining the humanity of people on the inside. Additionally, my husband has written to prisoners and I was always intrigued by that. I wanted to try it for myself, but had a lot of anxiety and apprehension about it. I thought that if I found out more information about it, and could write about it, it would help me and others become more comfortable with the idea and the process.

“Writing Doesn’t Have to be Lonely:” Workshops & Activism in UMBC’s Writing Center

I declared my major in literature and creative writing the summer before beginning my freshman year. I was driven to pursue the passion I felt for creative expression through language, and now, after four years of this study, my preferred mode of expression has changed; yet, I have found meaningful ways to utilize the unique set of skills my education has equipped me with in order to help others learn and create. Most importantly, I found a way to develop a project that used these skills and enabled me to have a positive impact on a local community of writers. By hosting a series of creative writing workshops in UMBC’s writing center, I explored the relationship between creative writing, peer writing and activism, and considered the role of creative writing communities in the lives of writers in a higher learning setting.