Mt. Lebanon resident featured in ’11/8/16′ documentary

A hundred years ago, Hana Barkowitz would not have been able to vote for president of the United States.
Prior to the passage of the Constitution’s 26th Amendment, she wouldn’t have been eligible, either.
But with her rights secured as a 20-year-old, 21st-century woman, the then-president of the Kent State College Democrats confidently cast her ballot on Nov. 8, 2016, for Hillary Clinton, then looked forward to celebrating what she thought would be the election of the nation’s first female president.

Hana Barkowitz had the opportunity meet Hillary Clinton during a pre-election visit to Kent State University.
The reactions of Barkowitz and 15 others across the political spectrum to the actual result is captured in “11/8/16,” a documentary released nationally on Nov. 3. Among a diverse group of Americans appearing in the 104-minute movie, she is the sole college student.
“Most of that day was actually a blur for me, going back and thinking about it,” the 2014 Mt. Lebanon High School graduate reflected. “I remember where I was and what I did, but I don’t remember all the details, whom I talked to or what I said.
“And I repressed a lot of those feelings from that day. So when I saw the trailer, it sort of brought up bad memories, and I was not really interested in seeing the actual film.”
But an invitation to the premiere in Los Angeles, which she hadn’t visited before, prompted her to sit through it.
“I thought the film was gorgeous, beautifully made, beautifully edited,” Barkowitz said. “I was really focusing on that. I loved seeing other people’s story lines, and I loved seeing how either they differed or were similar to me. It was interesting to see how they reacted that day and why they reacted that way.”
As for her appearance on the big screen?
“I saw myself come up on the screen and, like, covered my head. It was weird. It was just weird seeing myself on the big screen.”
During an election watch party she hosted, the camera caught her bursting into tears as state after state, including Pennsylvania and her collegiate home of Ohio, went red on the electoral-vote map.
“That was the beginning of it, and so it got a lot worse,” she recalled. “They actually had a lot worse footage that they didn’t use. I’m really happy that they didn’t.”
Barkowitz became involved with the documentary after being contacted by Austin Francalancia, one of the many producers working on the project, who was interested in Kent State University because of its location in a battleground state and history of political activism.
“There was one guy who was following me around campus, but I didn’t really think anything of it because they were filming other people, too,” she said, including the presidents of Kent State College Republicans and Undergraduate Student Government. “I didn’t know that I was going to be the focus of that segment until very shortly before the trailer was released.”
Throughout the nation, 50 subjects were the focus of the original project, and she was among the 16 who made the final cut.

Hana Barkowitz
In the year since the events chronicled in “11/8/16,” the daughter of Paul and Doreen Barkowitz has undergone the type of transformation that may be common for idealistic students who shift gears as they approach graduation. But the fallout from that day sped up the process.
At the time, the public relations major was looking forward to spending the next semester working for a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.
“I wondered after the election, do I want to go?” she recalled. “And I decided, OK, if there’s ever a time to go to D.C., now is the time.”
Barkowitz enjoyed her experience there, while it lasted.
“It was tough coming back to small-town Ohio to finish my degree,” she admitted. “That’s when things really started getting bad for me. I had no interest working on a small scale. I’m not in a student organization anymore. For one, I don’t have time for them. I’m taking 18 credits right now, and I’m taking 18 credits next semester. But even if I did have time for it, I would not be interested.
She still is a Democrat.
“But I’ve had trouble being an extension of the party, and so I’m happy to take a break away from that and be an advocate for other things,” she said. “Next semester, I’m taking an opioid epidemic class where I’m actually going to be doing PR work for a client. I’m excited for that, and I’m excited to be doing these things that are meaningful.”
Still, her broader outlook is not so rosy. News of mass shootings, such as the recent tragedies in Las Vegas and Texas, give her nightmares about being a victim, herself.
“This is something that’s never going to change, the way things are going,” she said. “It really brings me down and affects my mood, and I hate being pessimistic.
“My solution to that is I move abroad. I get my graduate degree in public administration, if I can. And then come back and be stronger than ever.”
For more information about the documentary, visit www.11-8-16.film.
Excerpts from the followup to “11/8/16”
A video accompanying the release of “11/8/16” follows up with some of the documentary’s subjects, including Hana Barkowitz:
“I’m generally feeling uninspired and sad. I feel like I used to be so sure about what I wanted to do in my career, and now I’m not so sure.
“I’m having an identity crisis, not only because I’m a senior in college, but because I also don’t know what the heck I’m going to do with my life. I don’t know if I want to stay and fight, and get my rights taken away from me as a Jewish woman, or if I want to go somewhere that has a more progressive ideal base, like mine.
“I feel like I’m always pessimistic now, like I’m not the person I really wanted to be. I want to be an optimistic person, but I find myself having trouble doing that.
She said she believes it’s time for high-profile Democrats Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer – yes, even Hillary Clinton – to exit the political scene:
“I still love her. But yeah, I definitely do.”