Annessa Babic is in a constant state of motion.
“I can’t sit in one spot,” Babic said. “When I was watching TV with my dad I actually sat there. We were watching The Madison and I actually didn’t knit for an hour and he was like ‘Huh? You never do that.’”
Babic is an adjunct professor of American Studies at SUNY Old Westbury, the Chapter President for United University Professions at SUNY Old Westbury and a writer. She is also an experienced traveler.
Both of Babic’s parents were part of the military, and like many other military dependent children, she moved states often.
Babic said that she has lived in over 10 different U.S. states, and has traveled to about as many countries. Greece, Turkey, France, Bulgaria, Ecuador and Romania are a part of a large and ongoing list of the many places Babic has traveled.
“I fell in love with the idea of France when I was little,” said Babic. “I had a friend in college, and we talked about Greece and all kinds of things. I developed a romance in my head about it. Which is good, because now I know how much I love Greece.”
Her interest in travel extends to her work. She is an avid writer, and especially focuses on travel literature.
“One of my favorite pieces was a few years ago,” said Babic. “I did one about these Cleopatra mud baths in Turkey. I was the American on a tour with a bunch of Russian women. Things I don’t recommend? You probably should not take the shot of vodka from a random woman in a communal shower, but I did that day.”
Babic said that that story was one of the “strangest” things she has ever experienced, but that those are the travel experiences she likes to write about.
Beyond her travel stories, Babic has been active in protests for years. Posters from various “No Kings” protests are scattered on tables and a couch in her office. UUP union-themed cups, signs, informative books and pins fill her office space.
“I’m not gonna protest just to protest,” said Babic. “But I have spent my entire adulthood and my entire career on these causes like labor and equal rights.”
As an adjunct professor, Babic said that a source of struggle for her is how she feels that adjunct professors are treated differently in academia.
“I’m the first adjunct UUP President in SUNY Old Westbury’s history,” said Babic. “I am the second one statewide.”
Babic said that she is a “humanist,” and that she is on the side of equality and care for all. She also said that it is why she advocates for labor rights.
“In college, I was a part of a group, and we used to send a notification up to the ACLU,” she said. “It was to the NAACP, we actually sent it to them about my college. They still called the Spring Formal the Old South Ball. And we thought ‘You owned people at one time, so please don’t tell me it’s tradition.’ That’s why they renamed it to Spring Formal.”
Babic said that she is currently putting together a first-of-its-kind event for April 21 where UUP will be having coffee with the Human Resources department at SUNY Old Westbury, where members of UUP can ask questions and address concerns with participating staff from human resources. She says that with UUP, she averages two events a month, and that many of them are over food.
“Food is so class based,” said Babic. “Food is a universal form to get people talking. This is why so many meetings happen during lunch, because if you get people eating they’ll talk more. Most relationships are developed over food. When you go on a date, you go to dinner.”
