Hear one student's account of self-discovery through the mural project.
As a member of the mural team, I learned how invaluable it is to transcend the restrictive bounds of stereotyping. I imagined Holcomb students to be limited in their perspective on the world and bored with the rural life. I learned that they imagined us to be snobby and materialistic. We challenged these stereotypes by examining their origins and concluded that most of them came from the media. It was important for us to open our minds to people's complexity, instead of just relying on superficial representations to form our ideas.
Confronting stereotypes also allowed me to examine myself and how my environment shapes me. For my self-portrait, I had to search deep within to ask "Who am I? What is important to me? And what is important for others to know about me?" I used images to represent my family, friends, Puerto Rican heritage and love for the Beatles.
For example, I drew a picture of myself wearing a Beatles scarf of my own design and looking at an abstract, circular object. The object is mostly red, representing my Latin heritage, but it also includes other colors to portray the backgrounds of my diverse group of friends. I included a book to show my studious side and my belief that all my hard work in school will pay off.
The experience of discovering and representing myself and my new friends gave me a fresh lens for viewing new people I met and helped me overcome reliance on physical appearance and limited information. The process we went through is now part of me, helping me more fairly evaluate all people I encounter.
When we finally met face-to-face, I felt as though our groups had met a million times before. All of our shared passion and commitment connected us with people whom we may never have had the opportunity to know. Together we have formed a new kind of community, one that overcomes distance and welcomes difference.
Stephanie Mendez is a senior at Baruch College Campus High School.