I think this is a very interesting question. I feel like for most families, it is easier for close minded parents to accept when their child is dating a person of a different race than if their child comes out as being homosexual. I think that this is the case because there is always a chance that someone will change who he or she is dating but there is no chance of them changing the gender that they are naturally attracted to. If a white family is uncomfortable with their child dating a person of color, they can find comfort in the idea that their child may break up with that individual and then date another white person. There is no sense of going back once a child comes out of the closet. By the time most people come out to their parents, they have thought about it enough that they are sure that it is part of who they are and that it is not just a phase. By the time you come out to your parents, there is no “going back” to being straight in the way that you could “go back” to dating a person of the same race. Even in situations in which parents are not close minded towards other races and sexual orientations, I think that its easier to accept when their child dates someone from another race because most people have more interactions with people of other races than they do with people of different sexual orientations. The gay population makes up a very small percent of in comparison to the percentages of the different races. Many people are used to the idea of being mixed with other races while they might not have had the opportunity to mix with different sexual orientations.

I have been fortunate enough to grow up with very open-minded parents. They have never expressed any sort of dislike to people of different races or sexual orientations. I think that they would be slightly more comfortable with me dating someone of a different race than if I was gay though. I don’t think that they would think twice about me dating someone of a different race because that has been very common in our family. My dad is Latino and my mom is white, my uncle married a Middle Eastern woman, and my sister doesn’t look white at all. I have always had black friends so my parents have been used to me mixing with different races since I was very young. There however hasn’t been any homosexuality in my family. No one has ever come out as being gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc, so my parents wouldn’t be as familiar with it and therefore as comfortable as they would be with a different race. No one in my immediate family is that close with anyone that is openly gay. My mom has told me that she would be perfectly fine with me being gay and that she would still love me, but I don’t think that my parents would instantly know how to handle my being gay. I think that they would come to accept it, but it would not come as easy as accepting me dating someone from another race.

I definitely question information when I hear it. There have been many times where I hear a story about myself after it has been filtered through multiple people, and like in class, the final result is far from the truth. I find that I trust people the most when the story is coming directly from them – they are telling me what happened to them or they are reporting about something or someone that they truly care about. In class, none of the volunteers particularly cared about the story that they were retelling. This led them to not pay close attention to details and get things mixed up. If someone is passionate about the story being told, they will make sure that they get it right. I think that this is why we trust people that “experts.” We trust that experts will want to get the facts straight and get everything right because they are likely to be passionate about the field of their expertise. We are not likely to trust someone that is simply relaying information about a topic that doesn’t interest them because they are not likely to get it right. I think that it is important not to get your facts from social media sites or message boards because it is extremely rare that someone on there will be an expert in the subject being discussed. I don’t look for facts from people that are a lot like me because I never pay attention to the news or what is going on. If someone thinks like me and is trying to tell me about what’s going on in the world, they probably don’t know what they’re talking about. I trust people who I consider to be experts, whether they are like-minded or not.

People that are considered to be experts can only be trusted to a certain degree as well because the degree to which they are correct is determined by the information given to them in the first place. News reporters are often considered trustworthy sources; it’s their profession to give fairly accurate reports of things. Even though they can be great at not messing up a story once the story has been given to them, the original source of the information can still be questionable.
I find that it is easy to treat the first version of a story that you hear as if that is fact. The first time that I really heard about the Treyvon Martin case was in this class. I found myself basing everything that I knew about the case on what was said in this class. A professor in one of my other classes mentioned the case, but told the story slightly differently than the story that was told in this class. I found myself wanting to correct him, but I had no reason to do so. He was just as credible as everyone else that had talked about the case in this class, yet somehow I felt like the first version of the story that I heard was the “right” version.

I also found it very interesting when the white guy got called out for laughing at the video of Asians. I don’t think that it was necessarily because he was white, but more of because he was not Asian. It seems as if in our society, it is ok to make fun of yourself or a group that you belong to because it shows that you understand the group and are not just being ignorant. No one seemed to care when the Asian American student found the video to be funny and I think that is because we assume that because he is Asian, he has a better understanding of Asian culture and is not laughing out of ignorance. It seems as if it is ok to say potentially racist things as long as you can prove that you are actually more insightful than the comment. Ignorance can easily be mistaken for racism. The two often go hand in hand. Many people develop racist thoughts because they are ignorant and have not had proper exposure to other races. When someone can prove that they have a link to or an understanding of a culture, then it is considered “ok” to make comments. For example, (most) everyone in our class understands that Sam is not racist and is very enlightened when it comes to race. He is able to get away with making questionable comments (as jokes) because we all know that he really knows better and is saying those things to make a point. He has jokingly said, “Black people don’t know shit.” He then smiled, and class went on. We all know that he was not saying that out of ignorance so no one really held that against him. If an unknown white student said the same comment in the same way, there would have been a much different reaction. In class, no one knew who the white guy was so it was easy to take his comment as being ignorant. No one knew how many Asian friends he has or how deep of an understanding he has of Asian culture. It is easy to assume that the Asian American student that shared a similar view had a greater understanding of Asian culture and what it is like for Asian students. I have heard this everywhere. Someone makes a Jewish joke and then says: it’s ok, I’m Jewish. We are able to dismiss someone and let him or her get away with saying something offensive if they can prove that he or she is a member of the attacked group. I think that there would have been a similar reaction if a Black or Latino said that thought that it was funny when Asians struggle with language because they have no clear relation to Asians. In order to laugh at a group of people and get away with it in our society, you must be able to prove that you are part of that group.

I feel like there is no real advantage (positive) of dealing with racial issues at an earlier age. If you are a minority, and you learn that you are going to have a tougher time living in the world you live in, you will not be benefitted in any concrete way. I feel like when you are young, there is so much to learn and deal with in order to develop socially. If you have race in the back (or front) of your mind throughout your social development, it will serve as a barrier. I feel that white kids get a blissful ignorance. Many white kids are told that they can be whatever they want to be when they grow up and that they are limited only by their imagination. This gives kids a sense of invincibility that can lead to greater successes. If you are a minority child and you are told that you can be whatever you want to be but you’ll have to work twice as hard as the white kids, it can be discouraging. Being aware of racial inequalities at a young age can limit children as to what they feel capable of doing.

While I feel that losing your blissful ignorance at a younger age is a negative thing, the maturity that can be gained as a result can be a positive thing. An awareness of racial issues at a younger age leads to a higher understanding of society. Many blissfully ignorant white people can appear foolish or can limit themselves by not being aware of racial issues. White people are often looked down upon if they don’t understand different races and the struggles that they face. A white person’s racial ignorance is generally just a positive thing when they are dealing with other whie people. A white person is limited if they do not understand what minorities must go through. People of color seem to mature faster than white people in regards to racial understanding.

While people of color often mature faster, it is not always a positive thing. I remember when I was very young and just learning about racial issues, I lived next to a black family that had made their children so aware of racial issues that they would not interact with the white kids in the neighborhood. They were so aware of racial differences that they became closed off to all white people. This is similar to what Chenjerai said in class about being so immersed in African culture that he could not be seen with his white friends. The things that you learn at a young age can shape a lot of your views later in life. If you learn a lot about racial inequality at a young age, you may not feel comfortable with interacting with the opposing races as you grow up.

I never watch the news. I have never turned on the news and I only see it when someone else turns it on. In order to learn about what is going on in the Middle East and around the world, I talk to people and occasionally read about it. It seems as if the news on television is all about trying to find a story that will evoke an emotional response in its viewers. When I do happen to see the news, I always see broadcasters going into depth about one event. They go so into detail about this one even that it is easy to overlook the big picture and what is really going on. It is easy to get wrapped up in the news stories. They will talk about one group of people that did something horrible, rather than give facts about the whole situation.
In my discussion group this week, I found out that I was the only one in my group that doesn’t feel slightly (maybe even subconsciously) uneasy when they see a Muslim-looking person in an airport. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I don’t watch the news. I haven’t been conditioned like everyone else to associate that image with terrorism. I still know about the events from conversation and reading but I don’t seem to deal with many of the misconceptions that people get from repeatedly watching the news. I feel like the news makes things a lot worse because it creates additional problems – such as Americans stereotyping Middle Easterners.
I believe that newscasters are more concerned with making an entertaining story, so they will leave out a lot of information in their reports. I don’t go to the news when I want the truth. I don’t believe that we should trust the news because there is so much that goes into making the stories. There is a lot of money from multiple parties that goes into a news network, which will serve as a great influence to the stories.
I feel like although it may not be the easiest and most convenient way of learning, personal contact (like we did through Skype in class) is the best way to get information. Through personal contact, you are able to find out what it is like to be in the middle of an event without the motive of trying to make it into a story. The best way for us to gain more information about the Middle East would be to reach out and contact people from the Middle East. When that is not possible, I think that reading news articles is better than watching television because you can get more facts and less bias from reading. The best way to learn is to have conversations with level minded people about what is going on.

While I have always been conscious of racial issues and have been interacting with other races my whole life, this class has made me think about a lot of new issues and made me think about some things in a new way.

Something that really stood out to me was during the white supremacy lecture when we were talking about the biological reasons for African traits. When we were talking about kinked hair and really dark skin, it seemed as if a lot was said, but none of which had to do with the sociology of today. Having inherently African traits will put many people at a disadvantage in our society. It is clear that many people receive discrimination for traits that they were born with. In class, when we went into depth about these traits, and it seemed that the only positive thing that was said was the fact that they are superior in certain climates and allowed people to live long enough to reproduce. Since that lecture, I have been wondering about the sociology behind these traits. While they are genetically superior, our society still looks down on them. It seems as if we avoided talking about any positive sociological factors that come with such traits. It has left me wondering what they are and what we can do so that people do not get judged for these traits. I feel like the explanation for why those traits are beneficial in nature isn’t going to help those with those traits in our current society.
Before this class, I had never really thought about Asian discrimination. The lecture definitely made me think about it more. I have never been one to discriminate against anyone, but now I am more aware of some of the negative things that Asians must go through. Our discussion of Asian discrimination made me realize just how little I know about the culture of the foreign exchange students on campus. I have very little interaction with them – aside from in my classes. I would really like to learn more about what they go through at a very traditionally American university such as Penn State. I would like to learn more about the discrimination that they receive in this environment. There is clearly a lot of discrimination at Penn State, but no one seems to focus on Asian discrimination.
Something that always stands out to me is the blatant ignorance that goes on the Twitter feeds and on the projector at the beginning of class. I would like to know more about the reasoning behind many of the statements that seem to come up in class anonymously. We are all so well behaved when we know we are being watched and judged, but then when we feel that there is no judgment, many people will go out of their way to say something extremely racist and offensive. I would like to know more about the thought processes that go in to these comments. It seems as if some people get pleasure from being deviant and racist.

Assuming that all Asians are smart and will excel at math and science can have a negative impact on the lives of Asians because it creates an unrealistic expectation. Although being academically intelligent is viewed as being a positive thing, by assuming that all Asians will fit a description takes away from their individuality. It is very similar to the assumption that all blacks are good at basketball. While excelling at a sport is something that our culture appreciates, the assumption that all blacks will fall into that category discounts what each individual is actually good at and interested in. By assuming that all Asians are interested in school and are smarter than everyone else, you are further distancing yourself from an entire group of people. Any stereotype, positive or negative, makes it more difficult to learn about who someone actually is. The assumption that being Asian makes you smarter can create unrealistic expectations for Asian students. Some Asian students are not academically gifted but then they must deal with the pressure of living up to the expectation that they will be. Often times, people will work together when they are struggling with a subject. If everyone assumes that you are much smarter than them, they will be less inclined to offer to help you learn something. This also distances the Asian students from everyone else. It is harder for an Asian to be recognized as being good at something outside of academics (in American culture.) Going back to the example of Jeremy Linn; it is really hard for our culture to just say that he is a great basketball player and leave it at that. People have made comments about how he uses his Harvard knowledge on the basketball court. This is discrimination in that many people cannot recognize him for his athletic ability alone. They have to bring in other stereotypical Asian factors to account for his success. I am sure that he would rather be recognized as a basketball player than as someone who is very smart, and I’m sure there are many other Asians that are going through the same thing. The expectation that Asians will be really smart hurts their ability to be recognized for doing something outside of math, science, etc. It doesn’t only hurt their ability to be recognized for an achievement, but it also hurts their ability to get involved in other things. If someone expects that you will excel in academics and nothing else, they will not help you when you want to get involved in something different. I’d imagine that a large part of why there are very few professional Asian athletes is because their interests in sports are not facilitated in the same ways that blacks and whites are at an early age. Our society believes that blacks have the potential to be really athletic, so some coaches will treat them in ways that help them excel. I don’t think that Asians get the same type of treatment and facilitation because our society doesn’t believe in their athletic abilities.

Genetics definitely plays a role in sports. Blacks dominate many traditional sports. While my knowledge of mainstream sports is limited, my general understanding is football, basketball, track, etc. are dominated by people of African decent. In order to be really good at basketball you have to be able to tolerate a lot of heat as well as be tall and fast. People of African decent can generally perform better in warm environments and are also taller and faster than many of the other races.
While blacks dominate most mainstream sports, it doesn’t mean that they are always better athletes. Some sports require someone with a lower center of gravity and someone that can enjoy colder weather. An example of would be snowboarding.

While genetics plays a large role in athletic ability, it seems that people’s expectations also play a large part in racial athleticism. It seems as if society expects different races to be good at and enjoy certain sports. When I was growing up, many of my close friends were black. We would always go play basketball when we hung out. They thought that playing basketball was what we were supposed to do. No one thought twice about a bunch of young black kids playing basketball. At the same time, I was also interested in extreme sports. I would skate and ride BMX. At the time, there wasn’t a strong presence of blacks in extreme sports. I remember most of my black friends never really got that into extreme sports. One of them did but it didn’t last because he was the only black kid at the skate parks. Some of my other friends didn’t want anything to do with it and told me that it was “white boy stuff.” I don’t think genetics and natural athletic ability had anything to do with their decision to not get involved. There are many black professional skateboarders and BMX riders now. I think that certain sports will be dominated by one race if the other races don’t feel comfortable participating. In the case of my childhood, I think my black friends felt much more comfortable playing basketball than trying out skateboarding because they felt a stronger connection to it. Any time they would watch basketball; they would see mostly blacks dominating the sport. If they were to watch a skate contest on TV, they would see almost all white people.
I think that a small part of a player’s success can be attributed to expectations. Our society expects blacks to be better at basketball, so many of the black players will have this in the back of their mind while they practice and live up to the expectation. At the same time, I think that it is harder for a black kid to be very successful at a sport like hockey because our society doesn’t expect them to be involved and be as good.

I was also selected to stand at the front of the room during that in class activity. I was really surprised when I got was selected because although I am aware of my mixed ethnicity, it is something that is rarely pointed out. Throughout my life I have chosen not to define myself as being one ethnicity. I was raised with the idea that I was white, yet I have had many experiences where people notice me as being Latino. I feel as if the way that people define themselves is often a result of their upbringing. My biological grandfather is from Puerto Rico. I didn’t find out about this until I was close to being a teenager. My last name would have been Montalvo, (very Puerto Rican sounding), but because of a re-marriage in my family, I was raised with the last name Silver (white/Jewish sounding). Because of this, I grew up thinking that I was similar to all of the white kids around me. My mom looks white and many of the kids that I went to school with were white, so I had the general assumption that I was white. I feel like if my Puerto Rican family was present throughout my life, I would identify as being Puerto Rican much more than I do. I am also Italian. I was raised by an Italian mother so I generally identify with that part of my biological makeup. Although I generally feel white, it is something that I don’t comfortable identifying with. It’s not because of white guilt, but rather that when I was younger all of my friends were black and at a young age I tried to fit in and identify with them. While I was growing up, my parents never really told me what I was. I just assumed that I was white because I didn’t know much about Latinos. I didn’t really question my ethnicity until I was in middle school and a few people referred to me as being Mexican.
I feel that people will sometimes identify with a certain ethnicity to either make themselves fit in or stand out. Depending on the situation and who I around, I may identify with the Latino part of me or the white part. I feel like this is true for many other people too. When you are a mix like me, you will often claim whichever ethnicity you can get the most out of. If I am around close-minded white people, I will deny being Latino to avoid any awkward feelings, but if I am around a group of minorities and they ask me why I don’t look entirely white, I will point to my Puerto Rican heritage. I am probably not the typical case, but I will identify my ethnicity based on the situation.

Yes I remember you, kinky girl. ;)

I feel like this is a representation of how everyone in our society wants to appear to be in the middle. White girls get fake tans and curl their hair, making them appear more black, while black girls straighten their hair and whiten their skin, making them appear more white. I don’t think that it is because black women want to be white and white women want to be black. I think that both groups don’t want to appear as white/black as they truly are. It seems that with regards to race, everyone is striving to look as if they are in the middle. Our society encourages minorities to be proud of who they are; meanwhile our society never encourages white people to be proud to be white. White people are supposed to be ashamed of being white and in a sense are brought down while minorities are brought up, bringing both groups closer to a medium. In regards to hair, I do believe that black girls are trying to appear to be whiter (when they straighten their hair, dye it blonde, etc.) because our society expects people to be white. The whiter a minority looks, the easier it is for them to integrate themselves into white society. In the professional world, there is a very distinct image that you are expected to follow. When you look around at a career fair, everyone looks the same. That image is an essentially a rich white person, and if you don’t fit that image than you will be at a disadvantage. When minorities try to make themselves look whiter, I don’t think that it is at all because they are not proud of their culture or who they are. I feel that it is a somewhat calculated move to minimize the extent of which they are judged for their race. The “blacker” someone looks, the harder it is for many white people to look past that when they first meet them. In order to advance in a professional environment, it is beneficial for minorities to whiten themselves. I think that it is awful that this is the case – I am not for team white taking over the world, but it is still the reality.
I feel like many people change their hair because they are not satisfied with what they have, but that’s not the reason for white women trying to look darker and black women trying to look whiter. It would be too big of a coincidence for all of these women to be changing their hair to look like that of a different race if it was just because they were unhappy with their current hairstyle. I do feel that the underlying reason for these changes in hair is a desire to be racially ambiguous and not stand out too much as being white or black.
Girls in general are never satisfied with what they have – but that’s a separate issue from race. Learn to love yourselves girls. ☺