Built Environment Description 3: Liberty Plaza

What used to be a simple parking lot across from the Georgia State capitol building is now a site dedicated to the ideal of freedom that the Founders based our nation on. Liberty Plaza is a space dedicated to the people and their right to speak out against what they see as unjust. The central lawn, a vast green space from which the rest of the plaza seems to radiate, is supposed to be the major focal point for large groups that hold public rallies and assemblies both during and between legislative sessions. Concrete sidewalks and platforms surround the lawn and provide a stage for individuals to speak or listen to what’s happening. The public plaza is large enough to accommodate over 3,000 visitors. This is the perfect location for people to gather and feel as though their voices are being heard. The most visually captivating feature of the area, in my opinion, was the backdrop of the capitol building. I felt that if I were protesting there, I was speaking directly to the people who I was hoping to influence. Towards the west side of the plaza, the state flags of the original 13 colonies circle a replica of the Liberty Bell. The plaza is very open; there aren’t any trees or walls surrounding the plaza, aside from a gate at the entrance that was wide open when I went. This was probably intentional, as it conveyed even more of a sense of freedom.

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This comparison shows how new the park is. It was finished in January 2015, and Google Maps hasn’t even caught up yet.

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Political Ads: Motherhood

This ad is clearly targeted towards women, a group that Trump has been having trouble identifying with throughout the election. It focuses on women and their roles in 21st century America. In some ways, this can be taken negatively. For example, the title of the ad is literally “Motherhood” which may turn off some women by suggesting that their only legitimate purpose is to be a loving mother. But in the ad itself, the advertisers use Ivanka Trump the self-proclaimed “mother, wife, and entrepreneur” to represent that women can and should be more than that. Throughout the ad there is a focus on Trump’s reforms that support women in the workforce and in the family.

This is also one of the few Trump ads that isn’t directly attacking Hilary Clinton. In those that do, ominous music, dim lighting, and horror film-esque effects are used to portray her as a terrible person whose sole purpose is to run the country into the ground. In “Motherhood” however, the advertisers employ bright lighting, beaming faces of women and children, and uplifting music to convey a happy and bright new world for women under Trump’s leadership.

Election 2016

Using ballotpedia.com, I found out what elections I can participate in in the upcoming election. First I will obviously be voting in the general presidential election between Trump and Clinton. Gary Johnson’s also on there but ehhhhhh no. I can vote for the Georiga representatives in the Senate this year between Jim Barksdale, Jonny Isakson, and Allen Buckley. For the House of Representatives, I can vote for the candidates from District 6 of the 14 Georgia districts. At the state level, I can vote for the Georgia Senate District 48 (even though there is only one candidate), and Georgia House of Representatives District 50 (also with a candidate running unopposed).

 

Centennial Olympic Park: Path Engravings (BED2)

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Many of these images of athletes are engraved into the intersections of the paths. They emphasize the culture of sportsmanship and achievement in the park. They are gender and race neutral, showing how anyone can be whatever they choose to. Some other examples of engravings were swimmers, basketball players, and runners.

Centennial Olympic Park: Olympic Statue (BED2)

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This statue features Pierre de Coubertin walking up towards the Olympic rings. Pierre de Coubertin is the founder of the Olympic committee and is considered to be the founder of the Olympic Games. On the bronze patch between the center columns, a placard commemorates the “Freinds Who Believe In Atlanta’s Olympic Dream”.

Centennial Olympic Park: Music (BED2)

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One example of the various tunes I heard at the park, this reggae song was playing at a hotdog stand near the playground. You can also hear the children playing in the playground in the northeast corner of the park. When I was there the playground was packed, with dozens of families taking advantage of the beautiful Saturday evening.

Gender Roles and Advertising: The Gender Advertising Remixer

The Gender Advertising Remixer made me realize how staunchly different ads directed to boys and girls are. They are both at completely opposite ends of the gender stereotype spectrum. Either the advertisers went all in making the toys directed at boys feel more violent and action oriented, or they made the toys directed at girls feel hyper-cheerful and fun. The ads targeting boys used more dark colors and intense music. The ads targeting girls featured more bright pinks and happy music and singing. Merging two of these ads together made for a pretty weird advertisement that just felt wrong. This is probably a lingering effect of the gender roles ingrained in me from such a young age where boys were supposed to play with “action figures” and girls were supposed to play with “dolls”.  Looking at these ads now it’s easy to see how gender is so easily seen in black and white. From youth, we are bombarded with media and advertisements basically telling us that we have to be one or the other. And as we talked about in Dr. Fernandez’s class today, that simply isn’t the case.