Every fall and spring semester, the Library Showcase highlights a variety of works created by members of the Georgetown Community using Library resources. The Spring 2020 Showcase features 12 projects, including documentaries made using Gelardin New Media Center software, a research report created with the aid of Library staff and materials, and unique objects made in the Maker Hub. Two projects were named as the winners of three awards in the Spring 2020 Showcase.
The Beeck Center Award for Social Impact and the Viewer's Choice Awards go to Walk Tall by Cecily Burge, Johnsenia Fe Brooks, and Austin Riddick. This short documentary was created as part of the GOVX 2020: Making An Exoneree course taught by Professors Marc Howard and Marty Tankleff, and the students received video production and editing training from the Gelardin New Media Center’s Barrinton Baynes. Walk Tall exposes the layers of injustice culminating in the wrongful conviction of Edward Martinez, who was sentenced to 55 years for a first degree murder he did not commit, and who continues to fight for justice and for his life. Edward is currently 42 years old and is incarcerated in the United States Penitentiary Beaumont in Texas. His expected release is in 2052, when he will be 73 years old. Johnsenia Fe Brooks stated in the entry for submission to the Showcase that, “Getting to know him has been the honor of our lifetimes. We will not stop fighting for him until he comes home.”
Several videos from the GOVX 2020 course are part of the showcase. Ori Hoffer, the Beeck Center’s Director of Influence and Communications, said “It was very tough to choose between all the exoneration videos, as they each told extremely powerful stories of injustice, but the Center felt that Walk Tall was just a bit stronger on the technical side, and so it edged out the others.” The Beeck Center recently launched a new project on Data + Justice, where Hoffer explains that the center is “teaming with a local prosecutor to collect data on her decision-making process, to provide deeper insights into any unconscious biases she may be making, which also makes this align very well with our mission.”
The Staff Pick Award, and an honorable mention from the Beeck Center, goes to Maker Hub: 3D Printing PPE for Local Healthcare Workers. Lauinger Library Maker Hub staffers and volunteers have been using the 3D printers to help provide essential personal protective equipment (PPE) to healthcare workers in the area. Using seven of the 3D printers from the Maker Hub, Pascal Girard, Luce Zhu, Willem Miller, and Cameron McKay helped print, pack and ship face shield frames from their homes. Face shields serve as an important safeguard for essential workers and are relatively simple to create. The Maker Hub partnered with We The Builders, a group that is organizing the assembly and delivery of face shields to hospitals in Baltimore. The organization provides clear instructions on how to print face shields, assemble the package in a sterile way, and then send PPE to Open Works, a Makerspace in Baltimore, for assembly and delivery to local healthcare workers. The Maker Hub later transitioned to working with Print to Protect, a Washington, D.C.-based organization, to serve healthcare workers closer to home.
Maker Hub Manager Don Undeen explained, “Our community members have frequently worked with the machines in the Maker Hub, and were eager to make use of their skills during lockdown.” The team has conducted weekly meetings to troubleshoot issues and discuss other projects. Makers have been using both Ultimakers and Maker Bots to produce the prints, and are utilizing the Maker Hub’s supply of PLA filament as well as generous donations from Ultimaker. Each face shield requires two prints, and each print takes about two hours. Once makers seal the gear in a ziplock bag for transportation, the PPE is picked up and sent to Open Works via FedEx.
Congratulations to the winners! View all of the accepted projects or fill out this form to submit a project of your own for the Fall 2020 Showcase.