Elizabeth Llera

We look at the radio as a dated form of broadcasting. Do Generation Zs even know how to tune a radio? When was the last time I got in my car and actually listened to the radio? I could not even tell you. These are questions I thought about when I decided to write about the impact the first radio had on American politics. The radio paved the way for communications and generated a platform for citizens to actually know what was going on in the world without waiting for the daily paper. The radio also created a way for ideologies to form and voices to be heard.  “ Radio is the theater of the mind” -Unknown Originally created in 1879 by Guglielmo Marconi as a bulky and poor reception tool that generated Morse code to ships, the radio became popular in the 1920s. The first operating station was formed in Pittsburg in 1922 and it was an instant success. The earliest broadcasts of radio were used to inform on foreign affairs. At the time, the world was dominated by telegraphs and teleph...

Often when Millenials and Gen Zs think of conservatives or “right-wing” politics, we often associate that word with high military budgets, loose gun laws, pro-life, tradition, and (of course) the Confederate flag. Conservative to us might make us think of older, southern roots that date back to Robert E. Lee. But in reality, the word “conservative” has been societally constructed and construed by modern media and the digital age.  Has there been a time you’ve associated, for example, George W. Bush or Donald Trump with being “pro-war” and Obama as being more of a voice for peace? These again, are societal constructions although their policies may lean the public in these directions.  Coming from a long line military family (my brother is a 4th generation Army Infantry Officer, following in the footsteps of my Dad who is retired, Grandpa, etc.) I often find the media we consume, shapes how we look of sides when it comes to war and foreign affairs. And this is important to ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vl4I0weXPU When I was questioning where to even start this blog, I thought a lot about it relates to me, and how the narrative around the First Amendment has drastically changed. We have these six freedoms under the First Amendment, but how is it different in how we use those freedoms.  I thought about it this way, has the presence of social media changed the way we exercise our rights? The answer is yes. Online petitions, passing information, and sharing our opinions is now at the click of a button. I believe the Black Lives Matter movement was able to gain so much traction due to social media bringing to light facts (and fiction) about police brutality cases.  Those are just my thoughts. Diving into the Encyclopedia article regarding San Bernardino, I found it interesting to decide if this curfew might be deemed unconstitutional.   “Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles contends that these curfew orders limit their ability to engage in pea...

This blog post, I really dug deeply into a “freedom of speech” concern that dates back decades to how the ideals of our freedoms have changed and how we use the First Amendment in different ways depending on our generation. I decided to take this post as a way to explain a story. Below is my story:  LINK: https://www.ted.com/talks/kavita_ramdas_radical_women_embracing_tradition?language=en   I took a small step down onto the patio where my white (I promise the fact that they’re white and old will add to this story later) grandparents were enjoying a southern cooked meal. My grandma made sure I knew that she cooked it all herself. I could not help but notice her fresh manicure and designer shoes she wore, even in her own home. Her hair is blonde and perfectly blown out and she smiled and looked me up and down when I walked in apparently underdressed. The TV was on and playing a little too loud about the most recent Trump debacle (it was FOX news if that tells you anything) with...

Established by the U.S. Constitution, the SCOTUS is the head of the judicial branch of the government. It has ultimate jurisdiction over all evaluation of laws with the United States. The SCOTUS can check the other two branches of the government, the executive and legislative.  Though the Supreme Court began under George Washington with only six justices, now nine serve. I did some research on some interesting cases of the Supreme Court. Although I have done a lot of research on the effects of Roe .vs. Wade, and the effects this ruling had on women’s reproductive health, I decided for this blog post to dig deeper into Loving v. Virginia.  Here is an excerpt from https://www.history.com/topics/us-government/supreme-court-facts on the case:  And chief justice Earl Warren , in the 1950s and 1960s, issued numerous landmark decisions, including ones that banned school segregation ( Brown v. Board of Education ), put in place Miranda rights or the “right to remain silent” warn...

The First Amendment may seem like a simple piece to the Constitution, but in reality, it is far from simple. Written in 1791 as one of nine amendments in the Bill of Rights, the First Amendment has taken an entirely new form due to the digital age.  For this blog post, I decided to date back to the 1970s and ’80s. Due to studying Women and Gender Studies, the First Amendment has posed problems in gender equality since its origin. Although this is not a “current event”- it still poses just as problematic today. The First Amendment in regards to all intersections of women (trans women, black women, Muslim women, etc.) generates interesting debate on if it is in fact, equal.  Feminist radicalism gained prominence in the 1970s as people began to realize how gender affects all areas of the human experience. Many scholars denoted the Constitution during this era, due to it being written much before women’s suffrage. The main point of women in regards to the First Amendment at the ti...

I am a dynamic woman with a strong passion for leadership and scholarship. My current capstone project is an advocacy campaign for a national amendment of the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act. The proposed bill will be a Paid Parental Leave Policy for all working Americans. Through this campaign, I will draft legislation and meet with members of Congress for my proposed bill. Also this semester, I was chosen as a Young Leader panelist for the Women’s Campaign Fund where I shared my position on 50/50 representation in government.  In the field of communications, I have learned how marketing and different communication mediums can contribute to the prosperity of a cause. Last semester, I spent six months as a Communications Intern for United Nations Women in New York City. Through this role, I ran communication channels that leverage wide and global audiences. Along with posting on social media, I have created campaign packages for the global Generation Equality events and planned a...