I’ve sat through plenty of English classes at Hunter and I can’t begin to tell you the number of professors that have impacted my life in some manner, for the better, through their teaching. With the rise of racial tensions, political outrage, mentions of war, the fight for equality, natural disasters, being an English major has never felt so liberating. I can remember several times where professors would take the time to discuss recent events and allow the class to reflect on the events. They would create an open space for all voices to be heard. Unfortunately, it seems every semester something new happens that requires our attention and it’s usually on a bad note.

I always find myself needing to step back for a moment because of the way that the media has now evolved and how leading stories in the news can change so quickly. One week it’s Texas, the next week it’s Florida, the next it’s Puerto Rico; it’s so easy to get left behind with how quickly we switch onto the next topic. Our sense of time has changed and how we receive our recent news through one-liner updates on our phones is something I personally find very difficult to process.

I’m thankful, however, that I can always rely on at least one professor every semester that won’t just start teaching off the bat the day after a big event. The professor that allows some discussion on what has happened and has acknowledged how quickly “old news” gets thrown into the shadows. For one, it’s made me more aware of how we can’t forget what happened just last week, or what someone mentioned in brief passing in an interview. We need to stay on top of things when major media outlets and even our friends have let themselves be wrapped into the new headline of the day. Don’t let that happen to you though, don’t let your news become "old news" when it's still very relevant.

There is so much that we are easily distracted by from the rise of news updates the next morning. We can lose the news of the wall being built at the border of Mexico and the USA, the deadline that quickly approaches DACA recipients, the unknown future of the Affordable Care Act, the islands completely devastated by the recent hurricanes, Trump’s lack of response to Mexico and Puerto Rico in times of need, victims from everywhere in light of recent natural disasters, the efforts of BLM, the events of Charlottesville, Trumps United Nations response, Kim Jong-un’s response to Trump, and most recently the events of Las Vegas- there is so much!

Even as I write this, the media may have already moved onto its next story. It’s very easy to get trapped in the next catastrophe, and it is because of this that we need to remain on top of these stories and not let them slip through the cracks because these stories affect us all. Yes, the next story will also require our attention, but don’t let that sidetrack you from getting the word out about relief efforts, about families that need help, about the rise of racism, about the lack of response on several fronts from Trump, and most importantly the millions of people that all of these things are affecting.

I’m very grateful to have professors who bring these issues to light and won’t teach as though nothing happened the day before but I’m also aware that this may not be the case for everyone. It is our job to stay well-informed about what is going on all around us- stay woke.