I’ve never really thought about this question but I think my parents would be accepting and understanding whether if I was heterosexual. I come from a very high-class non-diverse community where you don’t see much interracial relationships. Different minority groups tend to stick together and don’t socialize with other racial groups, as bad as that sounds. I actually dated a half-black kid for over a year and my parents never said anything about it, they have always supported all of my decisions. I am very fortunate for this especially considering how my community is. When it comes to dating, I’ve never really used race as a determinant or anything. I didn’t even realize it was a big deal when I dated my first boyfriend until I came to college. All my boyfriends since him have all been white for some reason. I’ve never thought about what my parents would say if I told them I was gay but I think they would be supportive as long as I was happy. My parents are very open and diverse people and except everyone for who they are and I am so grateful for that. I can’t imagine being scared to tell my parents the truth about who I am and feeling that telling them would risk my relationship with them. I feel that if I had to choose between telling them about my interracial relationship or telling them I was gay, I would rather tell them about the interracial relationship because I have already gone through it and know how they are going to react. My parents have always taught me from a young age to accept people for who they are and be friends with everyone. I remember as a little girl, many of my friends were Asian and African American and I never thought anything of it. I didn’t even consider there was a difference until I came to high school and noticed such a separation between all the racial groups. I think that as we get older, our society is going to become more accepting of interracial relationships and gay people. This issue has come a long way over the decades and is improving every day I believe and there is more unity than ever before. I feel terrible for the people who are too afraid to expose who they are and hope that one day we will all become more accepting of each other. I believe that everyone should be able to live his or her life and be happy and no one should have the power to take away that happiness. I know that I will accept my child no matter what and I honestly lose respect for anyone that doesn’t do the same.

This scenario seems very unrealistic to me because what are the odds that all three of the closest people to you will be in a situation where they are all drowning. Regardless, when this question was first proposed, the first thoughts going through my head were that I would save my child without a doubt because that was the most obvious answer. The more and more I thought about it, I thought to myself why would I choose my child over my mother or significant other. I feel that in a way I would be punished or feel guilty if I chose any answer but my child because when you are a parent, your child should be your number one priority. I bet that most people had similar thoughts going through their heads as well, that they would feel “guilty” choosing their significant other over their child for example. Everyone obviously has different relationships and feelings about this question so it is really hard to just choose which is the most important. Although I cannot imagine my life without my mom right now, I know that eventually one day that time will come, much sooner than it would for my child who would still have many years ahead of them to come. I also know that my mother can swim, so I don’t think she would be the first person I go to because I know she is strong and would be unselfish in this situation. I know that my child would also be able to swim but I would feel the need to make sure he or she is ok before anyone else because they are not as skilled and knowledgeable as the elders. Regardless of whom you choose to save, a big part of you will be missing. If you choose to save your child, you will always have thoughts about your significant other in them because they are a part of them. I feel that we go through stages in life where the people closest to us change in respect to priorities. When you are younger, obviously your mother would be the most important because. When you get older and marry, your significant other is the most important. And when you have a child that becomes your number one priority. It does not mean that the other people are not important, but I really think that our decisions are based on our stages of life. What our priorities and duties as an individual are and what really is most important at that moment. All circumstances depend on the situation. No matter what decision I make, I would lose someone close to me and have to struggle. There is also the argument about what is “right”. Do we save a certain individual close to us because it’s the “right” thing to do, or because that is what we want to do? If I was asked this situation and I was a mother, wife, and daughter, I would definitely have chosen to save my child because that would be my priority at the time and they still have so much life ahead of them. I would want them to live life to the fullest for as long as they can. I think that stealing a child’s life at such a young age is selfish and I could never live with myself knowing that they had so much ahead. Obviously I would be devastated losing my significant other and my mother but I at least would know that they had chances and opportunities and lived a happy life.

I thought this topic was very interesting, probably one of the most interesting topics discussed all semester in this class. I never really thought about it… the idea that western women do not respect themselves because they show too much skin and dress in scandalous clothing. I find it very interesting that different cultures have different fashions and how they all expose different amounts of skin in public. For example, many Muslim women wear garbs and don’t show their skin, only their eyes are visible. In other cultures, women wear bikinis and skimpy clothing and it is acceptable to society. But if Muslim women were to do that, I am sure that her peers would judge them. I think it’s interesting how different women have different standards of what is “acceptable” and what is considered respectful to them. That makes me wonder who is to say that one way of fashion is the “right” way, or “disrespectful”. Or maybe the answer to this question is that there is no “right” way to dress. Sure there are standards we “should” follow in certain situations, but of course no one can force us to dress a certain way. I do wonder why people dress the way they do. For example why a western women shows more skin, is it because she is trying to impress someone, or maybe herself? Or maybe she’s trying to prove a point that no one can tell her what’s right and what’s wrong. In my opinion, if I saw a woman walking down the street in a bikini in a bathing suit, I would think that she is trying to draw attention and make people think. We have so many standards in our society, what we should wear, whom we should look like, etc., especially for people our age that it is hard to look at the big picture. We are constantly reinforced with these images and ideals through television, the internet, magazines, etc and since many woman look at these pictures, they are more prone to believe that this is what every woman should look like. Some may think that looking a certain way is the only way to have a “perfect” life, although that is ultimately impossible but media tries so hard to make it seem that way. I think one of the main points about this topic is that woman ideally are trying so hard to fit in with society’s standards and by doing so, they don’t have respect for themselves. I think it’s our natural instinct to try to impress those we are attracted to, but when other factors are involved, we are more influenced to take this “respect” topic to a whole new level.

Growing up, my elementary school, middle school, and high school were all predominately white. My area in general had a stereotype of being “white and rich snobby kids”. However, if you were to drive a few miles down the road, there is much more diversity. And if you drive a few miles more, you can end up in an almost all black community. It amazes me how much diversity changes within a few miles of a community. My response to this video kind of goes against what was said because although my area is mostly white, we do get tested a good amount and have a lot of security. I can remember a several times when people would get called out of class and get tested or questioned for drugs. I also remember several occasions where police would bring dogs and have them sniff around our parking lot and check for drugs and almost every time they found something. I think that it is so ironic because I can count the number of black and Hispanic that went to my school on both of my hands. I feel like there was actually more security in my area than the more diversified area a few miles down the road from me. Drugs were always found in cars at my school, most of the time in a BMW or Mercedes. I think the fact that since my area is considered pretty wealthy and parents just give their kids whatever they want allows us to pay for most security. Although inevitably it’s just hurting them in the end. The consequences for finding the drugs would usually result in expulsion from the school or to be transferred to a boarding school nearby. This happened to a good amount of students but not as much as should have been caught as there was a lot of behind the scenes drugs going on. I find it interesting that my school was known for drugs, however the more diversified school a few miles down was known for violence and people getting in fights. I think that is partly because the school did not have enough money to pay for that as intense security as we had. Also, if kids were kicked out of that school not all would be able to afford the other private schools around the area. I was never afraid or felt threatened living in my area because I always feel that if you want something, such as drugs, it’s much easier to get it if you go out of your way. But it’s also really easy to avoid it if it’s not your scene. There’s crime to some extent everywhere you go. It just shocks me how security can change so drastically, so quickly.

As a young Hispanic female, I have always considered myself a minority but I have never actually felt minority growing up. All throughout elementary school, middle school and high school, I noticed that most of the students around me were white, minus a few exceptions. All of my friends have always said I never looked Hispanic because I am only half and do have a lot of white features so I guess in a way it was hard for me to isolate myself with the most Hispanic looking people when I was younger cause I didn't feel as strong of a connection. My mom's side is from Ecuador and we used to go there all the time when I was younger and that is really when I more comfortably associated myself as a Hispanic because everyone was seemed similar to me. Spanish also used to be more comfortable for me to speak than English, but as I started going to Ecuador less and less as I got older, I almost felt like I was becoming "less" Hispanic because I couldn't speak as well and I wasn't around Hispanics as much at home. So I guess I have experienced being a minority and the majority. I think sometimes people think of the word minority as almost isolation or different in a way. While I definitely considered myself a minority throughout my high school career, I never felt "isolated" or "different". I think the minorities make themselves minorities and isolate themselves. For example, my high school had quite a number of Asians and they all hung out and stuck together. I personally would feel intimidated and minority if I was put with them so I know how they feel. Just like some minority groups feel intimidated by whites, I think whites can feel intimidated by minorities. It's all about the numbers in my opinion. I know that whites can be the minority in a lot of places around the world. And I also know that blacks and Hispanics can be the majority in several places over the world. I never really considered my home area and high school diverse but I definitely noticed that the diverse minority groups tended to stick with each other and if I were in their friend group, I would feel minority. Coming to Penn State I notice some of the same things. For example last year my dorm floor was mostly Asians and I definitely felt minority in that situation because they only talked to each other. Even though we have a lot of diversity in the terms that we have several people from different minority groups studying here, our society will only truly be "diverse" if those groups integrate and come together and stop isolating themselves.

I was so appalled when I heard about this story today. I heard a little bit about it in the news but after hearing the full details I was shocked to hear that our society still has some forms of racism. I think there is something seriously wrong with our society and I would only expect something like this happening when there was still slavery going on many many decades ago. It really bothers me that people just assume that someone is considered "threatening" just by their appearance or what they're wearing. I feel terrible for the innocent victim and his family because he was just minding his own business and doing his own thing, no where near "threatening" at all. I hate to say this but I definitely think that if the roles were reversed and it was a black guy who shot in "defense", he would be put in jail. I cannot believe that the man who shot the innocent victim still hasn't been arrested and still has his gun. It really makes me question who we are putting our trust in, in terms of safety and security. I don't know how someone would have the nerve to lie about something like this and actually shooting a young man when they did absolutely nothing to harm them. I don't know if the rules and regulations for gun control and crimes are more relaxed in Florida because I definitely don't think something like this would happen where I am from. But then again who knows these days, our security systems cannot be trusted these days. I believe that in order for changes to happen, gun laws need to be more strict. I think that a person should only be aloud to own a gun if they actually have a legitimate reason to. I also think that these laws should be the same everywhere in the country. If less people owned guns, less people would be shot because there wouldn't be as many opportunities. If this man felt threatened by the victim he could have easily called the police or gone to the station and had him checked out but yet he made an irrational decision that ended in tragedy. Something seriously needs to change. The only way things are going to change is if we make drastic decisions. In order for that to happen we need stricter enforcements on gun ownership and we cannot discriminate and assume people look dangerous by how they look or dress. Obviously it's impossible for these changes to happen immediately, but I really hope some changes are made after this horrible tragedy. I hope that in the future, eventually all discrimination will be eliminated but for now, we need to reevaluate who we are putting our trust into.

This whole class in general is kind of a shock to me. Sam has such a relaxed attitude about race and I feel like he doesn’t take anything seriously. He says whatever is on his mind and it makes me think that racism is more accepted in a way. The first time I was really shocked was when he asked someone to pick out the “blackest” person in the room. I guess Sam is just a very comfortable person, but I could never see another professor asking that and having it be accepted. I know that a lot of people get offended in this class and I think that they should stand up to Sam because I think that some of his comments can be very inappropriate. He hasn’t personally offended me, but for those he has, I strongly encourage them to challenge him. Some of the comments people say really shock me. It strikes me that some people are so openly comfortable with their own race that they can say comments such as “there are no ice rinks in the hood”. While that comment may or may not be true, the context that the student said it in was inappropriate to other people not of that race. I think we all need to be more accepting of other races and cultures and stop acting a certain way around people unlike ourselves. For example, black people act a certain way and say certain things around other black people, but a white person would never say some of those things around them because it’s considered “racist”. I truly believe everyone takes the word “racist” out of context and doesn’t know the true meaning behind it. I’m guilty of it myself… We tend to overuse the word even though it might not have anything to do with what were talking about. I think people need to take the time to learn about other cultures and stop judging. I really enjoyed the class about how different races excel at different sports and are considered to have an “advantage” over other races and I would like to learn more about that. I used to think that black people had a genetic advantage for running over other people and I thought it was so interesting to learn that it’s all about geographic location and how our bodies are built (torsos and legs). I would also like to learn more about minority statistics in regards to college applications. I think it’s interesting how minorities have an “advantage” over whites and I would like to know really how much of a difference it makes. I’m curious to see what our class discussions will be like for the rest of the semester.

I completely agree with Sam about this issue. I never really thought about it until he brought it up in class. I definitely agree that if two people were to send in the same application and had different names, the one with the “whiter” sounding name would get chosen over a unique name. I think that this form of racism is very unfair because both candidates worked just as hard and are equally qualified and one should not be punished because of their name. I never really thought having a unique name would hurt me in the long run when applying for jobs, I actually thought the opposite. In my opinion, I would think that the people hiring would want more diversity and would want to steer away from tradition. Unfortunately, this is not the case in today’s society. I think it’s really unfair that minorities, or in this case people with “unique-sounding names”, have to “work harder” to get to the top when they should be given the same opportunity as someone of equal qualities. I have never been put in a situation like this and now I am actually quite scared for future jobs. I personally have a very unique name and I’ve always thought it stands out and makes me different. It’s a great conversation starter and it’s a shame for me to think that I could have less of a chance getting a job because of my name. Racism has definitely improved in certain aspects over the past decades, but I feel that it’s getting worse in other aspects such as the work force. I don’t think that discriminating and racism will ever go away to be honest. As Sam said in the textbook, we need to accept the fact that racism is going to be with us for a very long time. We come up with new ways to discriminate every day, even though they might not be as cruel and intense as the past. To be honest I cannot even think about a solution for this issue because our society is becoming more and more diverse every day it makes it so much harder. The economy is going to be rough in the future anyways, adding discrimination in the work force makes it even worse. This is really a huge problem in the United States and we need to be more active in trying to at least improve it. In a perfect world, the most qualified candidate would receive the job. We would not judge someone instantly the first time we see him or her from their appearance. We would have a fair process in the work force in a perfect world but as we all know, there is no such thing as perfection.

I think it is great that Jeremy Lin is becoming so successful in the NBA right now. I think it really shocks people as bad as that sounds, that an Asian can be successful in certain sports such as basketball. I am guilty of it too, only because I have never heard of or seen a successful Asian in basketball or football. I’m not saying that they couldn’t be successful; statistics just show that it is not quit common. I think we tend to have a stereotype of Asians in thinking that they are all good at math and really smart. Or that they are only good at sports that don’t require a lot of height and strength. Jeremy Lin is proving this stereotype wrong and I think that it’s going to change our views in the future. Lin’s incredible skills and diversity definitely brings more excitement to this game and their team of course. He is obviously going to get attention and I believe he should, not because he is of Asian decent, but because he makes a great story and worked so hard to get where he is today. He really deserves it. I think that there is a lot of racism in sports these days. Most people think that “only black people can be fast runners” or “good football players”. From statistics, I believed it at one point myself. I think we need to stop assuming that only one race will always be the best at a sport. Our culture changes everyday, anything can happen. Jeremy Lin is a great role model and his humbleness is proving all of the critics wrong. I think it’s time that Asians have the spotlight in sports. As I said, our culture changes everyday, who knows who is going to be the next best basketball player. Lin is giving Asian athletes confidence and hope. Media I believe is also playing a huge role in this. I bet that if we had no media, there wouldn’t even be emphasis that Lin is Asian, just that he is a great basketball player. Media stirs up stories and causes so much unnecessary drama. However, media makes up the excitement, and of course brings in a lot of money. Even if we eliminated the media, I don’t think the stereotype would go away because people always have something to say. I do think though, that the media should tone down their involvement. Lin is a great player and we should not be criticizing him because of his race. He went through so much to get to the top just like any amazing athlete does. Race has nothing to do with one’s physical abilities.

I was really intrigued by the story that Sam shared with us about the shaman. First of all, I have been to the jungle that he is talking about in Ecuador so I feel like I am more inclined to believe his story. Not that that personally happened to me but I did experience a lot of culture exposure that I have never seen before. I felt that the people living there were very religious and believe in what I like to think of "spells" for things such as healing, etc. I don't not believe Sam's story because I got to see some of it first hand, but I think in this situation I would actually have to experience what he was talking about to fully believe it. The natives in Ecuador live very differently than we live here and there's nothing wrong with that. It makes me wonder what people relied on back in the day when we didn't have advanced practices and medicines. They probably used similar practices to what Sam was talking about, and I believe it worked to a certain point. Of course now that we are more technologically advanced, we are able to deal and experience things that are much more serious and live much much longer. I think that everyone has a different way of dealing with their bodies and that's perfectly normal. I don't believe that there is one "right" way to do things. Some things work for people that may not work for others. I think it would be really interesting to go to other countries and see how other people practice medicine and work with their bodies. I also think it would be interesting to go back in time and see how much improvement we have made in terms of modern medicine and practices and how we are much more technologically advanced. However, it is clear from statistics that we now have the most effective treatments, but does that make it the best? Or the right thing to follow? Absolutely not. I believe that in order to truly find out what the best way is, is to diversify ourselves and broaden our knowledge by traveling to other places. Who knows, maybe someone in a tiny country could have a secret spell or medicine to cure cancer. That might be a little extreme, but it is possible... The bottom line is that everyone lives differently, and there isn't one right way to do so. We all come from different backgrounds and experiences that define who we are. I would like to become more aware of different practices and give it a chance. If they work for some people, they could work for us, or maybe not. The only way to really find out is to experience new things and broaden our horizons.