Lego Grad Student

Today is going down in the history books. Please vote if you have not already.

(Election day.)

[LGS stands at a voting booth. An enormous American flag covers the entire background.]

(Late into election night.)

[The American flag, which was the backdrop of the first image, has collapsed into pieces. The voting booth and LGS are buried under the wreckage.]

We are all still processing things in our own ways, on our own timelines. Each person has that right.

But eventually, we will have to start getting to some serious work.

[A large American flag has collapsed into pieces. LGS places a small brick back on to it.]

Many of us still need time to ourselves.

But ultimately, this will only get better when we try to genuinely understand and work with others.

[A large American flag is partially broken on top. In front, an unknown individual hands a small blue broken piece of the flag to LGS.]

It takes lots of people to actively rebuild.

But as we do, we must cooperate to denounce, yet not define each other by, our worst examples.

[LGS stands on top of a pyramid of five other individuals to place a replace a brick on the near the top of a partially broken American flag.]

Some things have broken and cannot be fixed anytime soon.

But no matter what, we have to move forward, stay focused, and keep trying.

[A large American flag is largely intact, except for a small triangular chunk that is chipped off the top right corner. That chunk lies on the floor beside a voting booth. LGS is seen walking out of the frame.]

We will gradually go back to living our lives.

But we cannot forget that something is fundamentally wrong.

[A large American flag is largely intact, except for a small chunk that is chipped off the top right corner of the flag. That chunk lies on the ground beside a voting booth.]

So we need to carry it with us until we can fix it.

[A large American flag is largely intact, except for a small chunk that is chipped off the top right corner of the flag. LGS picks up this chunk from the floor.]

Because we have to fix it.

[A large American flag is largely intact, except for a small chunk that is chipped off the top right corner of the flag. This chunk is no longer visible because LGS has walked away with it.]

[LGS looks behind a large American flag and finds a much smaller Russian flag.]

(Inauguration.)

[LGS stands in front of a large American flag. He looks down at the bottom right corner of the flag, which has turned orange.]

(Muslim travel ban.)

[LGS stands in front of a large American flag that has turned orange on the bottom right. He peers up at the top left corner, which has turned into brown bricks.]

Now is not the time to use incognito windows to read more articles. Stay informed and support a free press by subscribing to a newspaper.

[A large American flag is in the backdrop. The bottom right corner is orange, and the top left corner is made of brown bricks. LGS stands in front of this flag with a newspaper held up in the air.]

Today's Washington Post and New York Times articles on Russia are powerful evidence of why journalism is crucial to democracy. Read and support.

(Washington Post: "Sessions met with Russian envoy twice last year, encounters he later did not disclose" and New York Times: "Obama Administration Rushed to Preserve Intelligence of Russian Election Hacking")

[A large American flag is in the backdrop. The bottom right corner is orange, and the top left corner is made of brown bricks. It has opened up in the center to reveal a Russian flag. LGS peers into this hole with a newspaper in his hand.]

A foreign adversary may have undermined our country, and many prefer to look the other way.

We need answers. Do not stop demanding them.

[A large American flag is in the backdrop. The bottom right corner is orange, and the top left corner is made of brown bricks. LGS looks down at the bottom left corner, which has a small Russian flag lodged in it.]

We must demand our leaders and fellow citizens to stand up and call for an independent investigation before erosion slips into collapse.

(Firing of James Comey.)

[A large American flag is in the backdrop. The bottom right corner is orange, and the top left corner is made of brown bricks. Part of the orange corner has eroded, and the flag has tilted over to the right. LGS stares at this erosion.]

We broke through. 

Have hope. 

Keep fighting.

(Senate fails to pass BCRA)

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, the bottom left corner is green. A fence in the foreground is broken, and LGS tends to the green corner.]

The future health of millions is being decided by group of disgraceful politicians who seek to shut us out of our own government.

(Senate vote on ACA repeal)

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, the bottom left corner is green. LGS stands behind a fence in the foreground and is unable to get near the flag.]

A hammer is about to fall. We will soon witness how much is fixed or broken.

(The night before Mueller's first indictment.)

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, and the bottom left is gray. An enormous silhouette of a hammer is cast over the entire flag.]

(Charlottesville and Heather Heyer.)

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, and the top left corner is made of brown bricks. The bottom left corner has now turned gray. LGS sits and stares at this new change.]

Dismantle hate together.

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, and the bottom left corner is gray. LGS and several other individuals use a LEGO piece separator to partially fix the gray corner.]

Tonight, 51 senators subverted the legislative process to please their mega-rich donors by blindly robbing from millions of current and future Americans.

Don't stop fighting it now. And never forget it later.

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, the bottom left corner is gray. A green dollar sign now appears near the center of the flag.]

It has been a rough year. But this Election Day, we are showing that we are fighting back for our values, rights, and institutions. And we are showing that this is just the start.

(Election Day 2017; Democratic victories in Virginia, New Jersey, and many other offices across the US.)

[A large American flag is tilted to the right. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, the bottom left corner is gray. LGS stands in front of a voting booth in front of the flag.]

Numerous problems lie ahead. But through lots of little actions by many people, we took an incredible--and enormous--step toward slowly making things right.

(Doug Jones's Senate victory over Roy Moore in Alabama.)

[A large American flag stands in the backdrop. The bottom right corner is orange, the top left corner is made of brown bricks, the bottom left corner is gray, and a green dollar sign is planted in the flag. Two small pieces support the bottom right corner of the flag and remove the flag's tilt.]

(Washington Post: "Trump derides protections for immigrants from ‘shithole’ countries"]

[A large American flag sinks into a brown sinkhole--or more specifically, a shithole. LGS looks at the sight.]

(Deputy FBI Director Andrew Cabe steps down; House Intelligence Committee votes to release classified memo. Also, State Department opts not to enforce sanctions against Russia.)

[LGS stands in front of a large American flag. Its bottom right corner is severely eroded, causing the flag to tilt dramatically to the right.]

(New York Times: “Trump, at Putin’s Side, Questions U.S. Intelligence on 2016 Election” (at Helsinki summit).”

[LGS stands in front of an American flag in tatters, which is leaning backward and rests upon an even larger Russian flag.]