When we understand what brought us to where we are today, we can decide where to go from here. In this episode, co-hosts Tania Roa + Adriana Maria Medina discuss social justice events in 2023 that led to collective action. As we reflect, we can learn from them and determine our priorities for 2024. It’s a new year, but our struggles are the same.

*Please note: some of the events we discuss include violence, police brutality, and Palestine.

Resources for events mentioned in this episode, and organizations supporting the causes mentioned, are below. Also, as always, scroll to find definitions.

U.S. News

• Former Officers Charged in Tyre Nichols' Death

• East Palestine, Ohio Train Derailment

• Tortuguita Shot Protecting Atlanta Forest

• Willow Project for Alaska Campaign

U.S. Organizations to Support

Color of Change

Stop Cop City

Alaska Conservation Foundation

International News

• Plastic Crisis and Great Pacific Garbage Patch

• Panama's High Court Stops Canadian Mining Attempt

• Ecuador Stops Oil Drilling in Amazon

• Latest on Palestine and South Africa Sues Israel

• Crisis in Sudan

• Democratic Republic of Congo Calls for Peace

International Organizations to Support

4Ocean

Amazon Watch

Palestine Children’s Relief Fund

International Rescue Committee

Definitions

Biodiversity: short for biological diversity; it is the variety of life on Earth and includes the variety of genetic, species, and ecosystem levels

Occupation: when one group or country takes control over another territory through force, and the invading group establishes its own law in the now occupied region

Zionism: a nationalist movement that emerged in the 19th century with a goal of establishing a homeland, protected by law, for Jewish people in Palestine - a region roughly corresponding to the Land of Israel in Jewish tradition

Anti Semitism: hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews

Genocide: the intentional destruction of a national, ethnic, or racial group in whole or in part

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We want to hear from you! Email us at closingthegappod@gmail.com

Cover art by Vivian Garcia (@viv_doodles)

Intro and Outro music: Clocks by Smith the Mister (All rights and credit go to Smith the Mister. No copyright infringements intended)

Chi Bailey, lover of God and high quality clothing, expresses his spirituality and fashion taste through his brand Chi qc™. All pieces are upcycled, hand crafted, and sweatshop free, speaking out against the harmful impacts of fast fashion on people and the planet. Low quality clothes produced in mass volumes degrade the environment, mistreat garment workers, and encourage consumers to buy more clothes than they need. Chi shows us another way of living that respects God’s creation.

Chi is of African and Korean descent, and his cultural upbringing also plays a role in his creativity. Chi qc™ inspires us to be more childlike through its Born Again Garments that incorporates colorful, playful designs with deep storytelling.

Closing the Gap recognizes that Charlotte, North Carolina is unceded land of the Cheraw Indigenous people.

Support Chi qc™

Website

Instagram

YouTube

Definitions

Fast fashion - mass-producing trending clothes at a low cost to incentivize consumers to buy quickly, often characterized with cheap quality, environmental pollution, and severely low wages

Upcycling- the process of transforming unwanted or used materials into new products

Slow fashion - an aspect of sustainable fashion and a concept describing the opposite to fast fashion, advocating for clothing manufacturing and consumption that respects people, environment and animals

Fast Fashion Articles

Slow Fashion: For Your Wallet and the Planet (page 4)

Fast Fashion and Its Environmental Impact

The Best Small Businesses in Los Angeles

Work Labor Conditions and Rights Articles

Garment Industry

Coal Mining

Chocolate Industry

Slow fashion brands mentioned

Reformation

Industry of All Nations

Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @closingthegappod ✨

We want to hear from you! Email us at closingthegappod@gmail.com

Cover art by Vivian Garcia (@viv_doodles)

Intro and Outro music: Clocks by Smith the Mister (All rights and credit go to Smith the Mister. No copyright infringements intended)

Closing the Gap co-hosts Tania Roa and Adriana Medina welcome you back to the podcast with a new season: Season 2. To start off the season, Tania discusses her summer living in Colombia and Adriana shares her first impressions of her new home in New York City, unceded land of the Lenape or Lenapehoking people.

Some themes arose from these major moves including authenticity, leaning into change, and being an active participant in one's community.

Resources

Palenque's Famous Band: ⁠Kombilesa Mí⁠

⁠Dr. Shamell Bell of Black Lives Matter⁠

New York City Events

Rest in Power O'Shae Sibley

Eric Adams on NYC Migrants

Eric Adams Investment on NYPD Robot Dogs

NYC Flooding Shutting Down Subways

Definitions

Generational trauma - psychological and emotional wounds that have accumulated over time and transferred to future generations

Gentrification - the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses

Voguing - a type of dance that imitates the characteristic poses struck by a model on a runway (history of voguing)

Liberation - freedom from oppression, or freedom from limits on thought or behavior

Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @closingthegappod ✨

We want to hear from you! Email us at closingthegappod@gmail.com.

Cover art by Vivian Garcia (@viv_doodles)

Intro and Outro music: Clocks by Smith the Mister (All rights and credit go to Smith the Mister. No copyright infringements intended)