gdp's Comments

Race Relations Project : South Park...off the hook?

Sat, 24 Apr 2010 03:26:06 +0000

As I am sure we all know, South Park is an extremely controversial show and has been that way for quite some time. In my opinion, and from what I know about the show (since I have never watched it super religiously), South Park is that type of show that is out to parody or comment on what is currently going on the world. Whether it is a topic of religion, politics, celebrities, or whatever, South Park seems to have a commentary on it. They are known for pushing the envelope and for pushing people’s buttons, but that’s what they’re good at. Even though I do not follow the series myself, one thing I have noticed over the years is that everyone and everything is a topic for parody on the show. That is something I have always admired the show for; everyone is on the same playing field and that one particular group never seems to be a heavy target. The controversy with the Muhammad episode and South Park parodying the Muslim religion annoys me slightly. It annoys me even more because of the other event recently in the news about that kid who named his teddy bear Muhammad and his teacher lost her job over it. To me, that is freaking ridiculous. Come on now, really? Muhammad is not that uncommon of a name, so I am not entirely sure how these people really thought that a little kid would defame the Muslim religion. Anyway, back to the South Park thing – this bothers me because South Park was only doing what it does best: parodying and commenting on what is going on around us. It was not like the writers of the show were specifically going after that one group of people; they just happened to be the next “victims,” so to speak. However, why this controversy annoyed me got me thinking about something really interesting, so I am going to shift gears here for a second. It seems like we cannot fathom why Muslims would get so offended by this. I wonder if this is one big ethnocentrism issue, from both perspectives. If you really think about it, I do not see how both sides can view this situation from the other person’s side. As for us, since we know that South Park is not completely serious on all they comment on, and they produce stuff for the purpose of commentating and parodying, we find what is on the air quite amusing and funny most of the time. However, people in the Muslim culture do not realize that South Park is a satire, so they believe that what we are saying is serious, so they get offended. On the other side of that now, Muslims are very serious about their religion. Islam is not just a religion for these people; it is also their lifestyle, so in turn, religion plays a more serious role in their lives. In the US, Christianity is not a lifestyle in general, so there is a separation of lifestyle and religion. Because of this, I do not think we can completely understand why a show like South Park would be offensive to the Muslim community, so we get annoyed when they do get offended. I do not know if there is a correct or incorrect way to look at this issue, and I do not know if one side is more “right” or “wrong” than the other. But what I do know is that while this may annoy most, in the end, I think it boils down to one big ethnocentrism issue.

Race Relations Project : Christian Invaders - the turnaround

Sat, 17 Apr 2010 07:14:03 +0000

Laurie definitely gave me fair warning on Tuesday – yesterday’s class was one of the best I have ever sat through in my entire college career. Considering I’m graduating in one month, that says a lot, not just about this lecture but also about the professor. Sam does an incredible job with getting me to think about the other side, and put me in shoes I never imagined stepping into. Honestly, before this class started, I turned to the friend I was sitting next to and expressed some skepticism about the class; Sam’s infamous for saying how particular lectures are “the most important of the whole semester” or “the best class ever,” and while they are usually good, I start to wonder how many of those lectures can truly exist. But man, I have to say, the “Christian Invaders” lecture really got me thinking some way. Right off the bat, when Sam played that video, I was shaking, and was completely terrified. I did not think something would ever invoke as much fear in me as that video did. Also, when Sam told us to, I allowed myself to think as the Arab Muslim, and when I was finding out all of this information, I was getting anxious and nervous and angry. At the end of class, I had one of those breaking moments that Laurie was talking about on Tuesday. I was truly able to see things from the other perspective. I must say; that was pretty damn cool! To LyndsieS and others who may have thought like her, you completely missed the point of the lecture. Sam was not telling us that Christians want to take over the world, or that they like this war, or that they are heavily pushing their views on everyone else (well, some do, but I will not get into that discussion – too much personal belief and completely irrelevant to this blog post), or anything really negative about Christians (or even Americans) in general. As Sam said himself in the trailer for Thursday’s class: “What I am saying, as a sociologist, is the following: I UNDERSTAND.” While he knows that what the Arab Muslims are getting is out of context and they do not know the full story, given what limited information the Arab Muslims know and have been fed, he can understand why the other side feels the way they do. Sam’s job is to get us to THINK, and not just think, but to think for OURSELVES. I believe it is Sam’s job as a sociologist to push the envelope and say thought-provoking statements and to get us to think about the other side. I know that what he saying is not absolute truth, and that it may or may not be what he believes (in fact, I think some of it is just to play devil’s advocate with all 700 of us students). The point is just to get us to think, and to feel some way about an issue. The choice is then up to us as to what we decide to believe and feel. Also, he was trying to show true ethnocentrism here because as Americans, we are not often able to see things through the other side’s lens because we are so focused on our own culture and core beliefs. For the most part, we cannot understand for fully grasp how the other side must feel or see. I have to say that Sam did a very good job at trying to break that ethnocentrism, and he prepared the material in his lecture in such a way that it would definitely cause us to feel something. If we felt some sort of way after that lecture (anger, fear, etc.), I believe Sam did his job.

Race Relations Project : Christian Invaders - the turnaround

Sat, 17 Apr 2010 03:14:03 +0000

Race Relations Project : Those Dolls Say Alot About Who We Are

Thu, 1 Apr 2010 03:31:06 +0000

When Sam told us that this video would be the “most shocking and disturbing” thing we would ever see in class, at first, I did not expect much, since he says that about a lot of things he shows. However, this video truly struck me as highly disturbing, and it is the most shocking thing I have seen to date in this class. As most shocking things do, it got me thinking – thinking about why these girls still preferred the white doll over the black doll, how they came up with their justifications, and where these girls are getting their ideas and standards about beauty and “niceness”. I do not think I can express how sad it makes me to hear these little innocent and naïve girls say they like the white doll better because she looks “nicer” and that the black doll represents someone who is “bad.” You can only wonder how these girls can say such a thing at a really young age, especially with how far we have come regarding race relations and racial acceptance (well, we still have some ways to go I guess, but compared to the 1950s, we have made significant progress). In my opinion, I truly believe the media and society’s view on what beauty should be affects the psyche of these young girls. If you take a look at a lot of the billboards and magazines out there, as well as what is portrayed on television and in movies, it definitely looks like society is promoting that being white is beautiful, and that “you’re beautiful if you’re white”, and “whiteness” is a sign of true beauty. Most advertisements show the faces and bodies of attractive white women. Also, for the longest time, the Disney Princesses were all white – Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Belle, Cinderella, Ariel. At some point in every young girl’s life, she will have dreamed of being a princess. Also, Disney is huge with younger kids, so when I watched these princess movies, since the princesses were all nice, and “white”, I wanted to be like them. If it had that much of an effect on me, and I am a white girl, I can only imagine how a girl of color would see that. It has not been until more recent years where princesses of color have popped up – Pocahontas, Jasmine, Mulan. And even still I notice something interesting; the princesses of color are Native American, Arabic, and Chinese. Still, there was never a black Disney Princess. When “The Princess and the Frog” was released earlier last year, to my knowledge, Princess Tiana is the first Disney Princess figure to be black. Despite how far we have come with racial acceptance and all that, why has it taken us until the year 2009 to have a Disney Princess be black? In addition, playing with dolls is huge for little girls. Barbie and friends are traditionally white, and even if there was a black Barbie, she was never as pretty as Barbie and all her friends, who happen to be white. With all this in mind, it is no wonder why these little black girls see being white as a form of beauty and would rather play with a white doll. Honestly, I am not sure how to rectify this situation. All I know is that I am not happy this segregation and stereotype of what beauty should be is still present in our society, and all I can hope for is that one day this problem will be minimized, if not totally eliminated.

Race Relations Project : What's the big deal with periods?

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 01:18:24 +0000

That is the exact conclusion I ended up drawing from this discussion. I understand where Sam was going with the “bleeding” comment that somehow sparked a huge debate. We will never know what it is like to be someone different from us, because we are not that person. For example, I will never know what it is like to be Black, Asian, Indian, etc. because I am not any of those things. And people who are not white will never fully understand what it means to be white. I was talking to a friend about this today, and he came back with an interesting point. He said something along the lines of, “I do not think any of us fully understand everyone else because we may not fully understand ourselves. Really now, I am White and I do not always know what it means to be white.” I think that is an interesting thing to think about, but it makes me wonder what racial identity stage my friend would fit in. And since I am still unsure about all of that, I will not delve into that idea. Maybe that is a subject for another blog post. Anyway, going back to the “bleeding” debacle. I was talking with a few friends after class about that, and we kind of had the same conclusion immediately following class: It was an awkward situation to be sitting through for a few reasons. First off, it further shows that Sam does not know what it is like to be a woman. Yes, he is around Laurie a lot and can pick up things from her, but no man knows what it is like to have a period. Secondly, it was awkward to sit through because I do not even talk about having my period that way. That was also the conclusion my friends came to. Honestly, it is not like we all go up to our girlfriends and go, “Hey girl! How are you? So, I am on my period this week. And I am really bleeding. Yeah girl, REALLY bleeding. Like, all heavy and red and stuff. MAN it is f**king great!” Now that is a tad bit of an exaggeration, but you get my point. Having periods and going through menstrual cycles is not something my friends and I talk about with each other, unless if there was some huge health concern or we made a side comment about being a b**ch because of “that time of the month.” However, I started thinking earlier today about why my reaction to Sam’s “bleeding” talk was the way it was. Despite having a period once a month is a completely natural process for a woman, I really have started to wonder why this is not discussed often. Maybe it is an issue of embarrassment? Maybe it is because people do not enjoy talking about blood coming out of women’s vaginas and all that comes with it? Maybe it is because the Bible says that a woman on her period is disgusting and unclean? Aside from those issues, while looking to how the media portrays this natural process, I also noticed the goods of this process are not advertised. As dancinqueen has said, commercials for Midol or Pamprin emphasize the fact women ache and pain during their period, birth control is no issue, and even pregnancy test commercials highlight women being nervous or anxious about being pregnant (despite the fact that the ability to bear a child one day is a beautiful part of having a period). Also, if everyone (or just men) went through a menstrual cycle instead of women, would this still be a taboo topic? I honestly do not know how to rectify this situation or figure out how to make this a topic we can talk about comfortably, but one thing I do know now is that it is interesting to think about why we do not talk about it. Maybe bringing some of those reasons to light will help in taking this topic off the taboo list one day.

Race Relations Project : What happens to multiracial people?

Sat, 20 Mar 2010 02:27:20 +0000

Before this question was asked, I honestly never thought about the point that was made. Now that it has, and after reading the blog post I’m responding to, it’s really got me thinking. As jerzzeygurl said, I find it interesting that Sam splits up the class into two teams: the white team and the black team. I guess I had always taken that to mean “white” and “people of color”, but not every person of color is the same. Also, in a way, it gives the impression of promoting competition, even if it is not intended, amongst the races. If we are supposed to be in a class about race relations and work towards eliminating the issue, why would we use terminology that gives off the idea of pinning the groups together? I guess since I am a “white person”, it is not hard for me to fall under the two teams, but I cannot imagine what it must be like for those who are multi-racial and have not figured out where they place themselves. I can definitely see that being tough. However, for simplicity’s sake, I do understand why Sam splits this up the way he does. I am just not a total fan of the word “team” to distinguish the groups. I also do not see this changing because of habit; Sam has been teaching this class for so many years, so I can see it being slightly difficult to adjust the terminology you have been using for ages. The other point made in this blog entry really hit home was that since this class started, I have been thinking more and more about race as each day passes. I know for a fact in the past, I never used it. I grew up colorblind in regards to race, and it taught me to accept people for who they are on the inside and to treat others the way I want to be treated. Growing up, that is something other people would tell my parents – my colorblindness and how accepting and understanding I was of everyone around me. But as this class progressed and different topics are being introduced, I am noticing I am paying more attention to race and the issues surrounding it. Well, it is not like I was not aware before, but I was not overly critical about it. However, now, I am noticing that I second-guess myself more and I am even more afraid of offending somebody. I first noticed this when Sam started talking about the different stages of racial identity, and now I am confused about where I stand. I thought I was more accepting, but I guess according to these stages, I’m not. All I know is that I am not the biggest fan of being more critical and such about race and interactions. I do not want to look at someone who is different than me, and start thinking about that fact, and heavily notice it.

Race Relations Project : What's With the Theme Parties?

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 03:11:35 +0000

Like many other people have said, I honestly do not believe that many people here at Penn State throw themed parties for the sole purpose of making fun of or attacking someone’s race. Seeing that Penn State is the #1 party school in the nation, it has seen its fair share of themed parties. In my mind, what I think of when I hear the words “theme parties” have nothing to do with race. I think of holiday parties, time period parties (ex. an '80s themed party), “anything but clothes” parties, beach parties, toga parties, etc. Also, we all know that there are theme parties relating to different stereotypes. Some of these include high school related stereotypes, Jersey Shores parties, ghetto parties, etc. It is fun sometimes to laugh at the stereotypes around us, and since most people are able to put together a wardrobe related to a particular stereotype using the clothes they have in their closets and drawers, these parties arise. I honestly do believe most of these are done without a malice intention. However, the only thing that really annoys me about themed parties is when things are taken too far, and the lighthearted fun meant with these parties turn into total mockery. Such example was the “Compton Cookout” party that was to take place at UC San Diego. For those who haven’t heard, the “Compton Cookout” was a party that was planned by some of the UC San Diego fraternities that completely mocked the small percentage of blacks who attended the university. The facebook invitation stated that the event was “in honor of” Black History Month and then gave a detailed description of what attendees should wear, where it went ahead and attacked every little stereotypes about black people from the way they dress, to their intelligence. As stated from the facebook invitation, they expected the guys to be “rockin Jersey's, stuntin' up in ya White T (XXXL smallest size acceptable), anything FUBU, Ecko, Rockawear, High/low top Jordans or Dunks, Chains, Jorts, stunner shades, 59 50 hats, Tats, etc.” In respect to the girls, this is where they went ahead and mocked everything saying things like “[g]hetto chicks usually have gold teeth, start fights and drama, and wear cheap clothes - they consider Baby Phat to be high class and expensive couture” and that black girls have a “very limited vocabulary” and due to that, they make up words new words, “such as ‘constipulated’, or simply cursing persistently, or using other types of vulgarities, and making noises, such as ‘hmmg!’, or smacking their lips, and making other angry noises, grunts, and faces.” The article I found this information from is here: http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-compton-coo... Unfortunately, this example of a themed party is one that does take stabs at a particular racial or culture group in an obnoxiously harsh way, and it’s completely ridiculous. The students at this particular school were being thoughtless and had no care for the fact they were being racist in they way they were describing how people at this party should be, and the fact they said it was to “honor” Black History Month is appalling and takes the level of mockery to a whole new level. While this party happened and this is a terrible thing, not many themed parties are like this, or at least described so horrifically or offensively. I believe that people here at Penn State, since we are a more diverse university than UC San Diego, do not throw themed parties to purposely attack or hurt anyone, but instead, it’s in good spirits and is meant to be a fun time.

Race Relations Project : LGBT Class - Question Five

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 03:49:21 +0000

Thank you. In my honest opinion, people fear what they do not know, and what they do not understand. If I am not mistaken, it was said in class too that a lot of hatred stems from fear, so when most people hate something, deep down, they are actually scared. Homosexuality is an issue that has only become big in recent history, and since people feel this is still a new issue and that people may not know about it, they fear the idea of two people of the same sex being attracted to one another, and wanting to spend their lives together. From a religious perspective, love and marriage can only be between a man and a woman, and homosexuality is deemed as a sin in the Bible. For Christians growing up, since this is what they are taught, heterosexuality is all they know. So, when they encounter something that is radically different from that view, it is frightening and naturally, the defensive reaction is to have a negative view and hate the idea. Also, some of these people fear that if gay marriage is legalized, it downplays the meaning of marriage through their eyes. In turn, they feel threatened by the idea of gay marriage. However, I do feel that in the coming years, the presence of this opinion will lessen. You can never completely negate this opinion entirely, since religion is not going anywhere anytime soon and Christians/Catholics will still believe this idea, but I am finding that a lot of the negative stigma towards gay marriage is from the older generation of these people. The idea of LGBT back in my parents’ time and older barely existed. Nowadays, it is common to come across people who are gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, trans, etc. And honestly, in my opinion, this is not a huge issue to me anymore. In my eyes, this has become so prevalent in our society, and since my generation is becoming more accepting of this issue, that trend is just going to continue in years, which will help decrease the negative feeling towards LGBT issues. Lastly, I believe that once you have had some encounter with the LGBT community, over time, it becomes harder to not be understanding and open to their beliefs. Growing up, I lived in an upper-middle class town that was predominately white Christian/Catholic. I had no idea what LGBT was until high school, when I transferred school districts. When I was a freshman, I met a bi-sexual girl who ended up in my circle of friends. At first, the idea of homosexuality did intimidate me because I had no clue what that meant and I could not conceptualize it. However, after I learned more about it and seeing that she was no different than myself, it did not faze me as much and I realize I had become accepting of the LGBT community. I think that once people get over their fear of LGBT issues, the issues surrounding this particular community will decrease, understanding and acceptance will rise, and steps towards equality for people of all sexual orientations will be made.

Race Relations Project : Swinging Past the Other End of the Ideological Spectrum on the Way to the Intellectual Gray

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:49:21 +0000

I agree with the few posts above me on this subject. Tuesday’s class was definitely one of the best classes I had in my four years here at Penn State. Sam was really in the zone, and the material he was talking about put things into perspective, in a way. Being in the middle is the best place to stay, and I know I do what I can to stay there. I realize by being in the middle and having an objective view on things, I can form a better opinion on everything going on. The one thing that really stuck out from Sam’s lecture is when he started talking about the obstacles in life that people face, and how we handle them, and also about how some people skate through life. This stuck out so much that this was the main focus of our discussion group yesterday. We were talking about how to overcome those barriers and obstacles placed in front of us, and we determined that it was a combination of hard work, self-motivation, and how you view your predicament at hand. If you believe you’re never going to get out of the rut you’re in, then yeah, you’re not going anywhere. But if you’re willing to push yourself to break the mold and make a name for yourself, then you probably will succeed. My parents really did fight to be where they are now and to be successful. If my parents were to have simply followed the path their parents went on, they wouldn’t even be close to being as successful as they are today. My parents didn’t go to college or to grad schools or into a Ph.D program to get to where they are; that was never in the cards for them. My dad graduated high school and went right to work because his parents told him flat out he’d never be able to go to college, and my mom dropped out of high school (and eventually got her GED). My dad grew up in a semi-normal home; my mom lived in a broken home. My parents worked at Xerox and had their share of low pay 9am-5pm jobs that would have kept them in an endless cycle. But, my parents both decided they wanted better for themselves. They went out, worked their butts off, and ultimately ended in the Broadway industry and are now successful box office employees. They learned to save their money, plan for their futures (something both of my grandparents didn’t do too well), and realized they needed to be the best role models they could be. Because of that, they were able to provide for both my sister and I and push us so we could ultimately live a better life than they ever had. In Sam’s terms, I guess he would describe me as one of those people who have skated through life with no real big obstacles. I was lucky enough to grow up in an upper-middle class home in an upper-middle class community and live life comfortably. I graduated from one of the top high schools in the country, and I’m at Penn State on my parents’ dollar. They’ve covered just about every expense - tuition, books, food, housing, miscellaneous spending, etc. And not just that, I did get a car for my birthday last year, and they paid for my housing in Fairfax County this past summer, and they are willing to drop what they are doing at the drop of a hat to help me. So yes, I’m incredibly blessed to have all that, and while I may seem spoiled, it doesn’t mean I haven’t faced my own share of issues (mine have been more personal based rather than financial). Because of this class, I’ve further learned that I should not take what’s in front of me for granted, for I am lucky to be where I am. If it wasn’t for my parents pushing through their own obstacles and instilling the belief system in me to fight for what I want, self-motivation, and to work as hard (and smart) as possible to get there, I know I wouldn’t be where I am today: I’m about to be the first college graduate in my entire family with an amazing job with a pay that will probably grow in the next few years to be larger than what my parents make. My parents are such an inspiration to me and as cliche as it sounds, I truly believe they are the best set of parents any kid can ask for. In my eyes, they are a great example of breaking the mold and truly making a name for themselves when it wasn’t in the cards for them laid out by ancestral history. Like paulh1124 said (they said it so perfectly that I’m putting it in quotes), “It's that saying we always hear since like 1st grade. Everyone can be the best, you just have to try!”

Race Relations Project : The Enlightened "West" Knows Best

Fri, 5 Feb 2010 20:29:39 +0000

Thank you. I could not agree with you more. In all honesty, I don’t see how France could get away with successfully banning Islamic women from wearing the burqa. Being that the Islam religion in France is prevalent, if this were to get passed, I could foresee the Islam community going up in arms about it, which would lead to far worse problems in France. It was interesting to learn that women do wear the burqa by choice. It’s not like I never fully knew that, but the stigma that comes from wearing a burqa is one of where “the men of the household force their women to cover themselves and to not be modest” rather than the fact this is truly a personal choice and one’s way of being pious. France banning the burqa would be equivalent to the United States banning people from wearing a cross, or another country banning the Star of David. Just because it is not explicitly stated in the Qur'an or the Bible that people can wear burqas and crosses doesn’t mean that the majority of people won’t choose to do so to show respect to their God of choice. There are many customs nowadays across all religions that people use to show their respects and to outwardly show what religious affiliation they are a part of. Knowing how much of an uproar it would be for any other government to ban any religious item or piece of clothing, I can’t see how France would actually go along with this. One point in this article that really stuck out for me was Sam’s point about how women over here dress and how they are considered “enlightened”. Women in the US have absolutely no problem wearing tight jeans, revealing shirts, lots of makeup, high heel shoes, and thongs. I agree with krockstein’s commentary on this issue- this is more of a symbol of sexuality and simply using looks to impress others. Is this truly “enlightening”? Basically, I truly feel that clothes and how people dress are forms of self-expression and as long as nothing is too heavily offensive, people should be able to wear what they want. Just because the burqa isn’t totally “compatible” with the French government doesn’t mean they should take away these women’s rights, especially if it is for religious reasons. In this United States, in my opinion, this would be a scenario where the separation between church and state is violated, since the government is trying to place bans or control aspects of people’s personal religions. Aside from this issue, I truly believe that there are way more important issues that France could be dealing with. In the grand scheme of things, is deciding whether or not to place a ban on the burqa truly an important issue that is critical of the nation’s attention? I think not.

Race Relations Project : I Guess It Pays to Learn a Bit About Other People

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 23:03:46 +0000

My family and I lived in a small upper middle class town in what felt like true suburbia. I went to a tiny pre-school, a small grade school, and a small middle school until I transferred to a larger high school starting freshmen year. Our “downtown” was one street. The majority of the population was white Christians. Basically, I saw the same kind of people my entire life. However, although we live in white Christian suburbia, my mom tried to emphasize to my sister and I how important it was to be accepting of people different than ourselves and to treat others the way we want to be treated. In my grade school, there were maybe two black students at most and one Hindu girl. The Hindu girl, Krishna, and I were in class together when we were five. I took the time out to get to know her, her family, and culture. When we were both 11, her family took me to Gurba, which was one of the greatest experiences ever. To this day, 15 and a half years later, we are still best friends. And because of the fact we were good friends in grade school, we were disliked by everyone - Krishna because she was Hindu, and I because I was actually friends with her. It’s a shame looking back to see how closed minded the people I grew up with were. But, even with this experience, I didn’t learn how sheltered I really was until I transferred schools for high school. I transferred to a public magnet high school for gifted and smart students for the county I live in. I remember walking into my first day of orientation having no clue what I was getting into. I knew I was going to be meeting people from all over the county, but what kinds and types of people, I was unsure about. This is going to sound so wrong, but I had never seen so many Asians or people of other ethnicities in my entire life. For once, I felt like the minority being white. Other than seeing people who looked differently than I did, I had my first exposure to a LGBTA community, people with religions other than Christianity (minus Krishna, who I already knew was Hindu), and people who had different households. I was used to living with what others described as “the perfect family household” - my parents were still married, food was always on the table, at least one parent was always around, and we lived comfortably. Since our school was really diverse, we had an assembly every January called “International Day of Tolerance” where people of different cultures and groups would get up and display their heritage and traditions. It was amazing for me to really see what was out there and how much I didn’t know about other cultures, religions, sexualities, people, etc. I truly believed that transferring schools for high school really prepared me for what Penn State would be like. If I stayed in my white suburbia for high school surrounded by close minded white people, I feel that Penn State would be a huge culture shock. Penn State has such a diverse population that I wouldn’t know how to handle it if I didn’t have some exposure before coming here. However, despite the exposure I was given in high school, my eyes were further opened coming here, since I have gotten to meet and interact with people from different social classes, lifestyles, states, countries, etc. It’s amazing what I’ve been able to learn about other people just by opening my eyes and putting myself in situations where I have the opportunity to see another perspective. It’s really sad to hear about what happened with that Jewish family on the plane, but due to their reactions, it seems like this has happened to them many times before. It’s upsetting to see how close-minded people can still be nowadays. I believe if everyone took the time to open their eyes and not be so scared of learning about things outside of what they are used to, then we can minimize a lot of the problems that happen in today’s society.

Race Relations Project : Last Name Begins with "N" or "O"

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:42:18 +0000

This is a comment by Danielle Nitopi. :)

Race Relations Project : Haiti's Calamity

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:45:18 +0000

I can relate to these posts so well. Things could always be worse. 2009 was a trying year for me; probably my roughest year to date. I’ve suffered through heartbreak, betrayal, and really crappy moments. Things at home were tough. Due to the economy, our money was low, and we were trying to make ends meet. Then, my dad had to take two months off of work to go under the knife (again) for hip surgery on the same hip that was operated on 10 years earlier because the first surgery didn’t correct the problem. With him out of work, we were only living off one income. About three weeks before my dad went back to work, we found out my mother was getting laid off from her job. In my mind, having this happen was one of the worst things that could happen. On top of that, we were still dealing with other family issues, my parents were figuring out how they can afford to send both my sister & I to Penn State this year, and my mom was trying to find work. Fights broke out, and I was getting annoyed at the fact that things weren’t as good at home. Then, something happens in your life where you realize that none of this matters. That, our “big issues” here in the US are not even close to some of the monumental issues that people in other parts of the world face. Being away from my family last semester made things hard, but once I got home, I truly started to realize that while our finances aren’t in the most optimal place, we still have a roof over our heads, and food on the table, and I have people who always have my back. I came to the revelation that while things may not be perfect, we could never let those imperfections tear our family and household apart. For all we have is each other, and with that support, we can get through anything. People nowadays get so caught up in the details to the point where they forget to see the bigger picture. I’m guilty of this, as well. We live a life where we expect things to be handed to us, and to have everything go our way; so when that doesn’t happen, we stress, have hissy fits, and bitch and complain about how “hard” we have it. But, you know, each and every one of us is so lucky to have with what we are given. The tragedy in Haiti has only made me more aware of how blessed we are. I know I can never imagine a life without a house, or without food or clean water, with not knowing where my family is. I can’t imagine life without technology, clean clothes, having money to spend, and living comfortably. Thinking about what the people in Haiti are going through makes me think how silly it is to complain about finances not being in the optimal spot, and to worry about trivial things. Learning about what’s going on has been an eye opening experience - quite the reality check. I shouldn’t be taking the life I have for granted, for I am very lucky. And, I will always remember that through every bad experience comes something new, and something good will follow. I will continually pray that things in Haiti will get better, and I have faith in the fact that good is on its way for Haiti.