First off I believe that I should state what affirmative action is defined as. Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination. So, simply affirmative action was put into place to give those who did not have opportunities in the past, to have opportunities in the future and in the present. In my opinion I believe that white people are against affirmative action because a lot of the time it does not help them. Also, I believe that they feel like they should not have to pay the things that happen in the past and in my opinion I feel like affirmative action came from way back. By way back, I believe it was implemented initially to give black people a chance at a lot of opportunities that most white people had. And going off that opinion of why I believe affirmative action was first established I feel that so many white people are against it because they feel that they are not going against any black person getting opportunities so why should they not be giving jobs or certain opportunities just because black people need them. I also feel that so many white people are against affirmative action because they assume that a lot of people in the world gain from it and not them. I believe this because rather its true or not, most people think that affirmative action is always and only for African Americans because that is the race that seem to have the least opportunities in the past. I feel that white people tend to forget about the other minorities that suffer from the past disadvantages and not having opportunities. However I feel that when it is all said and done white and black people have the same feelings about affirmative actins but just toward the opposite race and by that I mean black people think that mostly white people benefit from affirmative action and white people think that most black people benefit from it so in the end nothing is really gained or lost. In conclusion, I feel that white people are so against affirmative action because in all honestly I don’t believe anyone really know why it was implemented or who it really helps so they just tend to go on their own beliefs instead of trying to learn what is really going on so they based their opinions and feelings off of what they think they know instead of what is really going on with the whole idea of affirmative action.

(3/3) I believe this because at the time when all opinions and judgments were made there was no hard evidence to prove anything so people passed judgment based on prior thought s of that person, stereotypes, and situational things. I also feel like people passed judgment about the case because for anything really hit the media lot of people had already made up their mind of how they would feel towards Sandusky because there was children involved and they immediately felt bad for them. Overall, I feel like everyone passes judgment depending on how they feel about a person or situation at the time and sometimes it’s for good and sometimes it’s for bad.

(2/3) For example, if there is a group of people and they are all thinking one thing about a person or a situation and there is one person who believes things could have been different, sometime they will pass judgment because they are outnumbered and do not want to be the one that stands out. However, sometimes passing judgment can be used in a positive way. For instance, if there is a big sale at a store, instead of you trying to figure out if people really shop there or if it is going to be packed the day of the sale you can pass judgment and assume it is going to be packed and that a lot of people shop there and you either go early or go somewhere else. Also, with this case about Sandusky and the rape victims, I believe that lot of people passed judgment without really knowing what was going on because it seem like the easy thing to do and a lot of people were following in behind one another.

(1/3) When the question is asked why people pass judgment so quickly, a lot of things came to mind because everyone has their own reasons. I believe that some people pass judgment so quickly because it is easier than trying to figure out the truth. Also, it is easier to categorize people or habits for what we know or think they should be rather than going out to learn what they should be. For example, when it comes to race we are quick to pass judgment because it is easy to go off a stereotype then trying to get to know a person and see what they are really about. Just like with crimes, it is easier to accuse the person that seem like they could have committed the crime, has a bad record, or are at the scene then to actually investigate, ask questions, and find out who really committed the crime. Also, people pass judgment because they follow others.

(2/2) I also felt that by people from around the world seeing videos like this and knowing about how some people are mistreated because of the greediness and power of the privilege that we should do something to help minimize situations from happening like this. I believe that as much money and time that we are putting into how we handle immigrations and their jobs and etc., we should be putting the same amount of power, energy, and money towards situations like this to save lives. After I consumed the piece of chocolate, I begin to look at the larger picture about the situation, and then I begin to ask myself was I wrong for eating the second piece of chocolate? I then begin to think about how many people in the class choose not to eat the chocolate? Are there going to be any people after this class that never eats chocolate again? Then I thought I t was so hilarious how one small piece of candy and one YouTube video could raise so many questions and awareness to so many people. With that being said, I am not going to stop eating chocolate, but I am not going to eat as much and when I do I will forever think of that video and the fear and sadness that was on their faces after such a horrendous experience.

(1/2) In class after watching the videos I did consume the second piece of chocolate after I sat there and thought for a minute. I ate the second piece of chocolate because a lot of things that we eat and use daily come from people who are in some of the same situation, sometimes worse and sometimes not as worse. However, if I would not have ate the second piece of chocolate I do not believe that it would have changed much. And even so, not eating the second piece of chocolate does not mean I was never going to eat another piece of chocolate for the rest of my life because I love Twix and almond joys! And for the simple fact that so many things that we use each and every day are made from situations like this, we cannot change our whole entire life to make sure we don’t use these things. For instance, I cannot stop wearing cotton and things of that nature because I feel bad for the people that make it because clothes are an essential part of my life and survival. However, after I ate the chocolate I did feel a little bad after I ate the chocolate because those kids suffered some horrific experiences to make this chocolate and now I am sitting her enjoying it with no worry in the world.

I believe Americans don’t want to do the jobs that the Mexicans come here to do, simply because they don’t have to. A generalized answer is as Americans we are privileged are accustomed to having certain privileges and things given to us, as for Mexicans, they do not have a lot of privileges or a lot of things given to them so they are more likely to take the jobs that Americans do not want because they do not really have a lot of other options if any. Another reason is that a lot of Mexicans come to America illegally so do not have a lot of options of where they can work, so this sometimes leaves them with no choice but to work the jobs that Americans don’t because they are getting paid under the table. However, there are some Americans who don’t have jobs and are still not working the jobs that the Mexicans work and the only answer I can give for the poor Americans as a whole is that they are prideful. Americans are prideful and most of the jobs that Mexicans work are not jobs that Americans feel comfortable telling people that they work there, and it sucks because when we have situations with the harsh immigration laws, certain jobs like crop picking does not get done because the Americans do not want to do it and the illegal immigrants are on the verge of being shipped home. Another reason I believe that Americans do not work the jobs that the Mexicans work is because the jobs are mostly hard labor and a lot of Americans are lazy and are not willing to put in that much work to get money or simply the jobs tend to take a toile on a persons body because it causes a lot of strain, lifting, and repetitive movement. Also on another note of why Americans do not want to work the jobs Mexicans work is because a lot of them do pay good money and if they do, the labor is so physically intensive that we as privileged Americans do not believe its worth the hassle. Americans do not work the jobs that Mexicans are willing to work simply because we don’t have to, by this I mean sometimes if immigrants do not have jobs they are at risk of being shipped back to were they came from, so a lot of times they do not even want to work the specific job that they are working but they have no choice, and a lot of times Mexicans come here for money to send to their families so they have no choice but to work the first job they can get and a lot of times it’s the job that the Americans do not want.

Racism in my opinion is a sticky topic and depending on your character and views there are a lot of different descriptions. I define racism as a feeling that you feel when other races are superior to yours. Racism is when someone deliberately downs your race with no remorse and some people are racism by accident. By that I mean some people are racist because some people tell racist jokes and they might think it is hilarious while others think there jokes are hurtful. I have been racist conversations before, and it is hard to get mad because some people just do not know what they are saying or what to say in certain situations. For example, a couple weeks ago I was in a conversations with a couple of my friends and we were talking about stereotypes of different racist and stuff and they asked me why are all black people ghetto and loud and I feel like they should have reworded the question and asked me why do people stereotype some black people to be loud and ghetto or something along those lines. I thought this was a little racist because they automatically assumed that all black people were loud a ghetto and I took offense because I live in the suburbs and my parents have excellent jobs and I am not loud nor ghetto. However, I feel that if they were talking to an African American that was loud and ghetto they would not have thought so much about the comments. Also another good example would be when my friend went to a predominant white high school and it was around the time Barack Obama was running for president and her white friend was going to vote for Clinton and was making all these rude remarks about how black people should not be able to make such large decision for such large groups of people as if as a race as an whole African Americans are incompetent to make decisions that are fit for the human population. I thought this was racist because everything he said point back to the fact that Barack Obama was black, not about his speech or anything else that he had said while on the platform. To me racism means something different to everyone and depending on you as an individual depends on how you will react if ever faced with a racist situation. Me personally, I am not around that many racist people or situations and depending if I am having a good or bad day will affect how I will go about the situation. Also, I believe depending on what race the person is that is being racist towards me will affect the situation also.

Just because people hang out with a large group of friends that are not there race that does not make them a poser. In my opinion that is just there preference and a lot of times it has nothing to do with race, just personality and characteristics in general. I also know a lot of people that just want to be around there race that give in to certain characteristics. For example, they say that a lot of black people are loud, uneducated, ghetto, and don’t really have a lot of money. So when other black people do not hang around black people that tend to display them traits, its not because they think they are better than them or are posing. A lot of times its because they were not bought up around that environment and simply there personality tends to match the more to other racist because that’s all that seem to see of that race. Another reason could be for networking. In certain environments some racist might have a better chance of knowing someone than you, and its not that you are posing because you tend to hang around more of that race, its simply that you know what it takes to get were you want and you willing to do whatever to succeed. Personally, I believe so many people are trying to look at a lot choices and decisions from the point of race that they seem to image that everything a person does is racial base instead of social base. Although, I do believe there are a lot of people that pose because they do not know themselves enough to make there own decisions and to migrate with there own race and the reason is because a lot of people tend to give in to stereotypes that they believe that fit on or do not truly understand why they are there or being characterized in that situation. So my overall opinion toward the situation is that no just because people hang with a different race more than there own that does not make the m an poser because a lot of people just have a lot in common with other people that are not of there race. And when people see this, a lot of times it seems un-normal because others are so comfortable of being around another race as if it was there own and a lot of people just can not seem to understand this and since they can not understand this they tend to look at race and try to answers themselves with what they tend to know more about.

Personally in my opinion people use racial labels when unnecessary because it seems societally correct and acceptable. By this I mean, if most people were not in a class like this, they would not even think about the way they use race labels without not always needing to. I use race labels sometimes, but not as much as I use to. However, I do have friends who use them all the time for no reason. Then there are those times when they should be used and people have used them so much that they don’t feel comfortable using them and it makes the situation harder to illustrate and for others to understand. For example, one day I was at the mall with some of my home girls and I was walking out of Victoria Secret and I almost fell and this lady picked my lip-gloss up and handed it to me. Now, the whole moral of the story was I almost fell in public and it was really embarrassing and my friends thought it was the most hilarious thing in the world. So later that day we are leaving the mall and we meet up with some of our other friends and the friends I was with started to tell them the story and instead of basically saying I fell and someone picked my lip-gloss up and it was embarrassing and etc. they decided to say the Chinese girl picked it up. Now with this example, it was unnecessary to use a racial label because the race of the lady was insignificant to the moral of the story. People do not realize how they abuse things when they are constantly participating in the usage of such labels. However, there are times when they are needed and that’s when people least use them, for instance when you are trying to describe someone to somebody else and everyone in the group resembles so much that there is no way to verbally tell them apart besides race, and instead of people saying the white girl because they all have on red shirts, people try to keep saying everything but which prolongs the intended story and whatever the person was trying to express about the situation. I believe that racial labels are necessary but I believe that people do overuse them and when we notice that people are over using them when she stand up and say something to at least attempt to try and stop the cycle because if no one says anything then it will be a never ending cycle of over usage of racial labels.