Hello! My name is Lucinda Posner, and I am a rising third year student studying political science, Spanish, and human rights and social justice in the Dietrich School. This summer, I will be in Romania for five weeks studying identity politics and political processes in Eastern Europe, heavily observing the effect of the Romanian Communist regime. I chose this experience because Romania is not a country I have considered to be a significant actor in world affairs, but after learning some of the background of the country and its political and societal issues during the application process, I knew Romania would be the perfect case study for identity politics. I am also excited to explore Romania’s natural beauty in the mountains as we travel into Transylvania, as I have always loved being in nature.
Going into the program, I was very excited but also nervous. I was expecting to feel homesick, as I have never traveled on my own before, but I have found many people I have interacted with in Bucharest so far to be absolutely lovely. I didn’t really know what to expect with the people I would meet in Romania, as I have never been to an Eastern European country before. One of the first nights of our trip, we had the opportunity to meet with some students from the University of Bucharest, and it was so intriguing to discuss the similarities and differences between our two cultures. For example, they gave us recommendations for traditional Romanian restaurants to try in Bucharest, we told them all about Target, and we discovered that we are all united by the same Internet memes. All the students could not have been more welcoming, which really cemented my belief that I made the right decision in choosing this study abroad program.
Our main activities on this trip consist of meeting with different public officials, NGO leaders, and activists to get a well-rounded perspective on issues affecting Romania today, from church control, peripheralization of certain minority groups, and economic crisis. I have found all the meetings so far to be simply fascinating, especially our meeting with the editorial team of prominent newspaper Recorder in Romania. Freedom of speech is a topic I am very interested in, so I loved the chance to hear the team’s perspective on the importance of investigative journalism and asking tough questions. Overall, I hope to gain knowledge and connections on this trip that I can bring back with me to Pittsburgh to give me tangible examples for the topics I am learning about in the classroom.
