Being from a large diverse city, I always thought that I really knew a lot about race and ethnicities, just because I have a very diverse group of friends and neighbors. I grew up going to school with people from all races, so for the most part I have always been open to people, no matter where they are from. Just because I would see different people from different places, and was not afraid to interact with them, I thought I was a pretty diverse person and there was not much that I needed to learn about it, because I already felt comfortable enough with different people.Being part of a minority group, I already assumed that it automatically placed me in the category of a "diverse" person. After taking Soc 119, the way in which I view race has definitely changed tremendously. I thought that because I was part of the minority group I knew about everyone else, failing to ever put my self in the shoes of people of other groups like the majority group. I have realized that a lot of my focus has always been on the diversity of the minority group, and everyone else but the white people. Until I took this class I never really thought about the "white" perspective on things. I always just thought about myself and the fact that I am a minority, but I never really thought about how white people feel towards certain things such as race. When Sam taught us about the six different stages, I really got insight into how other people think. Not all of us are on the same stage, so we all feel different about race, and in turn act different towards different racial groups. In a way knowing this now makes me more understanding of people and the way in which we view each other. There are so many things that go into the way we think about each other, that is so much more deeper than the way we look.

Being in this class has taught me that there are different things about my race that I should not ignore. Sometimes I used to feel that in order to get through certain things it would be better to just simply ignore the facts and go long with the flow. When it comes to me being a minority, I often tried to always tell myself that we are all equal in this county and maybe I did that just to make myself feel better. But as Sam pointed out we are truly not. Instead of ignoring the facts, I have learned that no matter what certain people are always going to be on top, whether it as a racial/ethnic group or an economic group. My race will not only shape the opportunities that are given to me, and the ways people see me, but also the way I view and decide to live my everyday life.

Reading this article made me really think about happiness and how it shapes our every day lives in ways that we are not aware of. In our society, happinness = success, but I think that it is very interesting to point out that happinness in a way is something made up. From the beginning of time, the definition of happinness has changed and I believe will continue to change. There is always pressure for us to seek happiness which is why, as the article points out, we get up in the morning and work towards our goals. In the American society, I think that "happiness" is very demanding and there are many things that you have to do in order to get this so called "happiness". For us success means to have a good career, to have material things, and to have a family. There is a huge focus though, on what or who we become in society. We put a lot of emphasis on status and who or what we become in life. To be happy, in a way you need to make moves and really work for it.The thing is though, that in our search for happiness we forget about the things that really matter, and like the article said, once we reach our goals, we are not satisfied and want more and more achievements. To me it seems like many of us, including myself, ARE going through life trying to reach that finish line of happiness, and forgetting about living now, and trying to be happy now, which is really sad.

What our society percieves as a happy ending, is totally different from what my faimly who lives in another country, thinks happiness is. To many people in my family, happiness entails a tight relationsip with god, and a strong relationship with famiy and friends. To them it is not so much about money or what they have or who you might become in society. I've realized that now living in America, my perception of happiness has changed from that of my family. To me happiness is working hard for everything you want, to be stable in the future, and the last thing I think about is having a great family. I think that if I were to be growing up in my family's country, the wanting of a good family would come first, growing up in such an independent society though, I want to be independent first before I have a family of my own. A lot of times, I find myself thinking that happinees is all about success and forget about relationships.After reading this article and thinking about what happiness really means to me, I've come to find out that success in really important to me but maybe I need to pay attention to the people around me more, because in the end it is not all about what I do in life, but who is there with me.

I think that the Haiti Project is going to serve as an eye opening experience to many of us who will be doing the project. Just the small facts that were discussed in class caused me to really think about the situation that the people of Haiti are facing today. Looking at the different videos is already changing my perspectives on the world around me, and the constant struggles that people go through everyday. I think that it is amazing how hard working these people can be, when you take into consideration their lack of resources. The entrepreneur that stands out to me is Suze Fleuriza with her production of candied peanuts. She is very smart in the way that she wants to target schools with her sales, because the schools are so poor that they do not have cafeterias. Not only will the sells benefit her but they will also provide students with a small snack that will help them get through the day. I found it to be really cool how she used the few materials that she had to make the container easier for people to eat from. Another great thing is he fact that she had so many women by her side while making her products. The fact that these women are so hard working because they want to feed their families, can be inspiring to other women as well.In the end you see that these people want to get ahead in life not for themselves but for their families as a whole. Another product that I found interesting were the hand bags that Anaes Blaise was making. Even though they were not perfect designs, I really like the fact that Sam was able to give her feedback about her work. Many times when we see people who are struggling or in a bad situation, we often don't want to make them more upset or we feel bad for them. I really appreciate the fact that even though these people are in bad situations, Sam did not mind giving them criticism. His honesty will definitely make a difference, and in a way I have learned why it is so important to be honest when you are working with other people. Her openness to criticism is also great because you can tell that she really cares about her business and is willing to to whatever it takes for her to be successful. I am really looking forward to this project and I know that by the end of it, I am going to be a different person because of the new awareness that I will gain.

For as long as I could remember, I always wanted to come to Penn State. It has always been my number one choice, and in fact it was the only school that I applied to.So far, I am very satisfied with my choice and I can not imagine going to another university. Looking back at why I chose Penn State, I have realized that I didn't choose to come here for any of the reasons that were mentioned. I did not have any connections and I never really took the time to think about the diversity here. For me, I have always been in the minority group so I guess it was just automatic for me to think that at Penn State, I was still going to be in the minority group so that has never bothered me. I am used to it so that was not going to really affect my choice of coming here. Surprisingly enough, it took for me to come here to actually get in touch with my culture. Coming here I have found people that are just like me, which is great because growing up all of my friends were all American, so I never had a connection with them when it came to my culture. Here, I have met people that I can speak my language with, and talk about things that I was not able to talk about with previous friends. After meeting so many people like me, I feel like this campus is not that big after all. It is as big or small as you make it.
Another issue that rises though is the fact that many people of the same race stick together, and I think that that's what makes the races here so separated. Some people are afraid to reach out and make different friends, which is why they stick together in the same groups. I have learned that the best way to go about it, is to reach out to different groups because once you make the effort to reach out, people will accept you. I have found that Penn State students are very friendly which always motivates me to go around with different people and not sticking specifically to one group. I feel like effort should be made on both sides and you shouldn't expect other people to do all of the work. I love everything about Penn State, and even though it is not the most diverse school, I will never think about going anywhere else.

Many people fear to date someone different because of the attention that you get when you are with someone who is not like you. Many people are still very ignorant towards that, but I don’t think I will ever let people’s opinions really get in the way of who I chose to be with. Even though I really care about my family’s respect, I am an individual and I know that my family will in fact accept my decisions. Most of the people who have fears about interracial dating, have never been in one, and my advice is to try it and see what you will learn. :)

When many people think about interracial dating, most people think about an African American person and a white person. For people like myself who are from a different country , it can sometimes be more difficult to date outside of your race because of the cultural differences. Along with culture also goes the religion, and the most popular one the language barrier. One of the worst things is when two people that you love, your partner and a family member, can’t get to know each other or talk to each other because they don’t speak the same language. I do think about the positives of dating someone like me. I love my culture and being able to share that sense of pride with someone who feels the same way would be great, but I prefer to teach someone about my culture and learn from theirs as well.

I personally think that interracial dating is great! Growing up, I always thought about who to like and what my family would think about them, but I then started to notice that the few guys that were like me were not my type at all. I never found them attractive, and I just didn't like them. It wasn't until I was seventeen that I actually introduced someone of a different race to my family. Since it was not a "serious" relationship my parents didn't really show any concern, but I know that when it comes down to who I chose to marry, things are going to be very different.

I come from a very traditional Latin family, and my personal preference in the people that I date can be confusing for most of them. Out of most of my friends I am the one who refuses to date Latin men. I personally find African American men, and men of different races more attractive. Some of the people in my family don't like the fact that I want to be with someone who is different from me. They are afraid of the unknown, and they will much rather keep things safe by being around people who are like them. Unlike most of my family, I've grown up with friends who are from all different backgrounds which is the biggest reason why I am so open minded when it comes to who I choose to date.