TBI or die!

Since my internship has come to an end, I thought that it would only be appropriate for me to tell you about what i’ve been doing all summer!

I’ve been interning at a nonprofit organization called The Black Institute. The Black Institute is an organization that helps shape intellectual dialogue and impact public policy through a Black perspective. They are a “think-tank” organization that translates the “think” into “action”. The Black Institute works on issues related to education, environmental justice, immigration reform and economic fairness that affect the black and brown communities in New York City. They change the discourse of public debate, train and educate new leadership and develop initiatives to build wealth, build power and deliver justice to Black people.

(Berthe Lewis, Founder of The Black Institute – Linda Sarsour, Exec. Director of Arab American Association of New York)

My responsibilities as an intern varied from working with the Development Director in the fundraising department and taking over the immigration project during my second half of the internship. It was such an experience working on fundraising because you really get to see how a nonprofit works and what type of money runs a nonprofit. My day-to-day task consisted of researching foundations and corporations that gave to nonprofit organizations with a mission they supported. After I researched these foundations and corporations, I would start applying for them by drafting an LOI (letter of intent) or filling out an application and then we would submit it but you usually do not hear back for a month or so. Getting money into a nonprofit organization is crucial because money is the key to keeping a nonprofit running, so i’m grateful to have experienced working with the Development Director.

The other project I worked on while interning with The Black Institute was the Immigrant Referral Program under our immigration issue. Basically what the Immigrant Referral Program stands for is helping undocumented immigrants get answers to their questions about their immigration status, DAPA/DACA, and citizenship process. The Black Institute under the NYIC (New York Immigration Coalition) is partnered with CAMBA which provides free legal services for these undocumented immigrant so that they won’t have to pay for legal services just to be left with no answers to their questions. My task was to get into contact with the community leaders and community, explain the program to them, and establish a trust-based relationship so that they would be able to provide referrals. Our goal as an organization is to help the black and brown people living in NYC get the equity and equality they deserve as residents of the city.

(At a Dump Trump Rally in front of the Trump Towers)

During my time at The Black Institute, I, along with other interns, were able to attend rallies and events that we were either a part of or asked to come to. Our organization was given the opportunity to give their thoughts on Trump, the RNC and how Wal-Mart is in support of the RNC. We, myself and a couple of other interns, were able to attend the Afro-Latino Fest that is held annually and it was beautiful to see that this celebration existed. I say this people of Latinx descent who also happen to be of afro descent are starting to embrace their afro side more and it just brings this wave of happiness/warmth to see this happen. It truly is a beautiful thing, especially seeing how diverse the black race is and seeing the embracement of the race. Not only were we able to attend these two events but we also attended a few others, it was such a blessing and a great opportunity to intern with The Black Institute because it opened up so many other doors for my future. I was able to meet some great people in the organization and outside of the organization. The Black Institute, as well as my institution, have taught me how important networking is and how useful it will be in the future because the people you meet will impact your life whether it is what they can help you with or who they can connect you to. Overall, I am so grateful to have experienced what is known as The Black Institute, gain knowledge and skills that will be put to use in the future, and meet new, wise people.

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So y’all that’s basically what my internship was about…if you guys want to know more about The Black Institute, go check out their website: theblackinstitute.org!

(please enjoy this awkward photo of the interns (we didn’t really know each other at the time…); left to right: Ashley, Sophie, Eric, Samantha, Me (Maymuna), Fuchsia, and Ken)

#BlackLivesMatter

Hey y’all, it’s been a minute since i’ve blogged but here I am!!

This post is a personal one in light of the recent tragedies we have faced…three black men were taken away from us this week, so this post is dedicated to them and all of my black brothers & sisters out here surviving.

(taken at a #blacklivesmatter protest in new york city – 07/07/2016 – maymuna abdi) 

These past couple of days have been so hard! It has been so hard for not only myself but for the black communities across the nation. We were hit with the murders of three black men by those who are supposed to be protecting us, those who are trained to make sure we are safe but that is not how it works. Let me tell y’all why that isn’t how it works, those who are trained to “protect” us, are actually afraid of us, therefore they believe it is necessary and okay to use force against us. I will NOT stand for this any longer. I will NOT allow my brothers and sisters to get executed by these PIGS! I will NOT allow this corrupt system make my race go EXTINCT! This land was built on the backs of slaves, this land is our land, and we are here to stay!

Delrawn Small – Brooklyn, NY.

Alton Sterling – Baton Rouge, LA.

Philando Castile – Falcon Heights, MN. 

#SayTheirName #RememberTheirName #BlackLivesMatter

 

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For my black brothers and sisters:

You are beautiful.

You are magical.

You are resilient.

You are the future.

We need you to stay strong. We need you to fight. We need you to raise your voice.

This is not your fight, this is OUR fight.

UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL.

New York taught me…

Being in New York City for the past two weeks taught me a lot…what I mean by a lot is a lot of weird but interesting information, here are a few of my discoveries:

1. Always have headphones on the subway especially if you have a long commute. Headphones become a lifesaver because time will pass by with some music playing or listening to ‘Another Round with Heben & Tracy’.
2. Everyone in NYC is always on the move, so you basically have to always be on the move as well! If you walk slow, you’ll get cut off! If you stop walking, you’ll get trampled! Moral of the story → YOU BETTER GET TO STEPPIN’!
3. When you’re on the subway, it can get real awkward because you don’t know where to look, especially when it gets crowded. I always find myself accidentally starring at someone and then having to fake smile…or I find myself starring to hard at one spot and my eyes feel strained! I honestly don’t think you can win in this situation unless you close them but you don’t want to miss your stop either…
4. People in the City are mean but they are also charming and respectful. I don’t know if this combination actually exists but it does here in New York City!
5. This city is filled with talent and talented people! I’ve seen three different subway performances and they were entertaining! I’ve heard people play instruments on the streets and boy can they play!! I also got the chance to see the Brooklyn-native duo called CharGaux and they were AMAZING!!!!

 

Thank you for reading! Peace & Love.

What a time…

THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2016. I said goodbye to my mom for the next two months, hopped on a flight to Philly then to NYC, and now I’m here in the BIG CITY and I am definitely enjoying myself so far!!

I don’t start my internship until Monday, so I’ve had the last few days to settle in, get to know my neighborhood, and a little bit of the city. I’m living on the tip of Manhattan right next to the Bronx in this neighborhood called Inwood. Inwood is heavily influenced by people of Dominican descent but the neighborhood also includes people identifying with other ethnicities. It is a breath of fresh air to walk the streets because you hear the neighborhood people speaking Spanish and the music that fills the streets. It is a very intimate setting which is comforting because there is this community feel. This neighborhood is starting to grow on me more and more everyday, and by the end of my two months, I think I will love it and never want to leave!

For the past couple of days, My sister and I have been exploring the city but mostly eating food…this is what happens when your sister is a huge foodie!! We have this cute organic restaurant around the corner from my apartment and let me tell y’all, they have some bomb fruit juice! LIKE FRESH FRUIT JUICE!! We both had the passion fruit juice and it was so good! For dinner, we were feeling Somali food, so we went to this little joint called Safari in Harlem…y’all they got some finger-licking good sambuus! If you ever find yourself in Harlem, you guys should definitely stop by and try it!

FRIDAY, JUNE 3, 2016. Jummah at NYU. Clinton St. Baking Company. The Met. Chocolat.

My sister and I went to Jummah (Friday prayer) at NYU’s Islamic Center. We found ourselves on the 10th floor of the building which was the top floor and it overlooked the city. It was so beautiful!! The feeling of being on top of the world felt so real at that moment! Alhamdulilah! It was crazy because the speaker was talking about how 5 years ago, they were praying Jummah in the basement of a church on NYU’s campus and now, they were on the top floor of the cultural center! It was truly a blessing!

After Jummah, we went to our favorite brunch place from last summer! It is called Clinton St. Baking Company! This place is literally the best brunch i’ve had! They have sweet and savory items on their menu that will satisfy you to the max. As we were eating, we were trying to figure out what to do for the rest of the day and we love museums, so we decided to check out The Met! To get into The Met, you had to pay a suggested donation of at least a penny and I had a dime on me, so I basically paid 10 cents to get into The Met! How dope is that???? The Met is absolutely beautiful and it is HUGE! We got through the first floor and we were exhausted! I definitely need to make a trip back to finish looking at the rest of the Museum.

The Met was so exhausting that we decided to go back home and take a nap…it’s weird because I don’t even do naps but y’all this city is exhausting! We walk everywhere and of course take the subway but I’m not used to walking this much in Columbus!! We drive everywhere! Literally everywhere!! On our way back home, we had to walk like 30 minutes to the subway station and by end of that walk, my feet were done for! I was wearing a pair of forever 21 sandals which are not great for walking!! I learned my lesson of not wearing sandals if you’re planning on walking a lot! Post naptime, we decided to grab some dinner because we still didn’t have groceries in the apartment (don’t worry y’all, we were planning on going grocery shopping tomorrow). We went to Chocolat Restaurant Lounge for dinner and it was black-owned restaurant in Harlem! It was so nice! And the melanin in the restaurant was popping!!

SATURDAY, JUNE 4, 2016. Indian Road Cafe. Grocery Shopping.

There is this restaurant 13 minutes walking distance from our apartment and it was delicious!!! The food hit every taste bud right and it was cheap for how good and filling it was! It was also right by the Hudson river and next to a couple of parks, so we were able to explore another side of the neighborhood. As we were walking to the restaurant and walking past the parks, there were kids playing, baseball games going on, and people just having a casual picnic. It was such a beautiful environment!

Since I’m here for the summer and Ramadan is coming up as well, we had to go grocery shopping (adult activities, whaaaat!!). I’ve always gone to the grocery store to get little things for my mom when I was in Columbus but I’ve never actually gonna grocery shopping. This was definitely a first! I made a list and everything, and let me tell y’all I really felt like an adult!

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I honestly do not know how to describe this city! I don’t think that there is one word this city could be described in so i’mma give y’all a couple of words on how I would describe it…lively, welcoming, complicated, massive, smelly, carefree, unbothered, etc. New York City is a place for everyone and a place for people to find themselves. I believe that this city is able to teach people about who they are, what they want to be, what they want to do, and so on. This city is a city of lessons. You learn so much by just stepping your foot into the city! I’m falling in love with it more and more everyday!

I haven’t decided how i’m gonna be formatting my blog, so you guys might see something different for each blog post! This time around I just wanted to share what we’ve been doing in the city thus far! As I mentioned in my last post, bear with me because blogging is new to me!

This is the end of this post and I hope you enjoyed reading it! Peace, love and happiness, and Ramadan Kareem!!

NYC, whaaaat?!

The beautiful, vibrant streets and a variety of kind faces welcomed me to the concrete jungle. And let me tell you, after the first night out, I FELL IN LOVE! I knew right away that I would love every second, every minute, every hour, and every day of my stay in Brooklyn. This was my first time ever in New York City and on my way there, I didn’t know how I was going to feel about the city because I’m just a midwestern girl from the suburbs with a surface level city experience. I’ve always lived near a city but Columbus ain’t nothing compared to New York City!!

After my week in Brooklyn and exploring some of the incredible scenes this city had to offer, I knew that I had to come back and spend more time getting to know New York City! By the winter, I was looking for summer internships in NYC and I came across a wonderful opportunity that was down my alley of interests, so I decided to apply!!

I will be interning at a non-profit organization called The Black Institute, where I will be working with shaping public policy from a black perspective and I plan on working on the immigration reform project. I’m so so so excited to begin this journey/adventure and experience a whole new environment!!

Anyway, thanks for reading my first blog post and you should definitely stay tuned to read my future posts. I’m new at this whole blogging thing, so i’mma need y’all to bear with me!