Convocation 2017: MA Candidate’s Remarks by Ediz Ozelkan

Thank you, Dean Alonso, Provost Coatsworth, Executive Vice President Madigan, members of the faculty, administration, and staff, family, friends, and my fellow graduates, for coming to celebrate the master’s graduating Class of 2017.

In a tumultuous world, we should cherish moments like these that serve as harbingers for the realization of the varied aspirations cloaked under this sea of blue. As I look around this amalgamation of stone and ambition, a curious feeling of bittersweet contention fills my eyes with pride and disillusionment, my lungs with the disconcerting scent of a relinquished friendship. My stint at Columbia has reached its final moments.

My time here has been a transformative experience, to say the least. I learned a lot about myself and the world. Amidst the precarious uncertainty of the social, political, and economic moment we call the present, this campus and the friends I have made here have remained a beacon of hope and a bastion of creativity. While I did not spend my free time in clubs on campus, the American Studies program became my home. Dr. Sandler, the director of my program, was my professor, advisor, and confidant. While my frequent visits were not always announced beforehand, Dr. Sandler listened to my rants and provided me with a much-needed outside perspective on the trials and tribulations of graduate studies. The Music Department was also receptive to my intrusions as a foreigner to their discipline. I took an ethnographic methods class my first semester with Dr. Fox, who would subsequently become my thesis advisor. I went on to take more music courses and found myself in Dodge Hall often.

My cohort is scattered among the many buildings on campus, so finding another departmental home was essential for us, due to our interdisciplinary program. However, the freedom of this program is what drew me to Columbia. I truly enjoyed every class that I took because it was crafted by my eclectic theoretical foundations, culminating in my interdisciplinary research on the hip-hop cypher.

This mixture of disciplines provides us with a more comprehensive analysis of the world around us. Our political battles are based on sociological, economic, and psychological perspectives, so academics should strive to reciprocate in turn. Everyone is an ethnographer of his or her own experience. Reflexivity should be a focal point in every student’s education because it helps one grow as a researcher and as a human being.

I expected a dearth of humanity on this campus. Inside the hallowed halls of the Ivy League, I imagined a realm of legacies: elitist snobs who knew nothing about the plight of those not born into wealth. I was certainly privileged, but still felt distant from this insulated prestige. I graduated from SUNY College at Old Westbury in 2015 with the first graduating class of over 1,000 students. I went to school with working parents, kids who worked full time to afford an education, and students struggling with student loans. I myself worked four jobs during my undergraduate years to keep up with the financial demands. Through it all, I saw the beautiful, painful struggle of human existence. I thought that Columbia would never reveal that side of the human condition. To this day, the students and faculty are a testament to the true diversity of experience that I hoped to encounter.

Moreover, moving to Manhattan catalyzed a profound metamorphosis of my worldview. The most significant of these changes was my immersion in hip-hop culture. Navigating the New York underground fulfilled my research goals and allowed me to hone my craft as an MC. While I am still learning, I would not have fully realized this transformation in my native Long Island. A large part of my research is the impact that hip-hop has had on my life over the last two years. It provided a creative outlet, a chance to meet people outside of school, and most importantly, a humanistic philosophy that is unique to hip-hop culture. The community that my rap group creates and maintains is an intimate collective that sincerely speaks to the potential of human nature. I have brought this humanism into my research, my music, my relationships, and my life. I hope that all of you who are graduating today have had similar experiences during your time here.

It is with this belief in humanity and the hope I have for this country that I wish the graduating class all the best in their future endeavors. We do not need luck with hard work, persistence, and an open mind. These are the cornerstones of Columbia’s spirit and pedagogy. I know that you all have great aspirations for the future, and I have no doubt in my mind that you will all become great leaders and role models in whatever field you choose to inhabit. As for me, I hope to inspire change. Although the path will be filled with success and failures, I am determined to become president someday.

I believe that life experience is much more than the notes you take. I believe that the “real world” outside of college is not as daunting as people make it out to be. I believe in me, and I believe in you. I believe that anything is possible with the right tools and the knowledge of our ignorance. Be humble in the face of success, proud in the face of adversity, and steadfast to your convictions. Most importantly, be you.

Thank you and congratulations, Class of 2017!