I couldn't agree with you more, I am a female and would probably not be at Penn State either if it wasn't for Affirmative action or have a good job that allows me to come back to in the summers when I am home from school. Also like you said if it is a way to help create opportunities for woman and people of color who are automatically going to have a harder time making it I'm all for it. Over the weekend at work we had a woman of color come in who actually has a business that works up at Penn State I had never heard of it but its at Innovation park she said. She is in politics and she said she should have represented PSU in DC when fighting for our budget, and its the "young girls" fault that we lost funding. Every comment she continued to make after that really got under my skin, she was clearly one of those manipulative politicians and all she did was praise all these older aged white men (she was showing pictures too) that would have done a better job. I just couldn't understand why one woman was holding another woman down when we all fight for the same thing, to be equal. I feel like people like her are the reason affirmative action still needs to be in use. She seemed brain washed, maybe she could take a day and sit in Sam's class people like her I feel like are the ones who really need to be in his class.

The Oprah video about the high schools really shocked me. First the school in the suburbs must have a lot of funding because I went to high school in the suburbs but my school did not have a pool or a nice gym like that. We also had AP courses offered I don’t think we had 9 though. I think we had about 5, so it actually made me realize maybe I missed out on some opportunities, I feel like I did receive a good education I didn’t struggle more than most college students would freshman year, but at the same time maybe I could have been more prepared and not struggled at all if I had the opportunities those kids had. We had a small weight room no treadmills except for the one in the trainer’s office with a few other exercise machines which were new. Our swim team used the Vocational schools pool but now that I think about it I think the other schools did have their own pools. As for the school in the city I can’t believe students are allowed to go to a building that’s supposed to be there school but it’s all falling apart. If someone took action and fixed these schools, I mean really look at all the money that suburban school has you can’t take some of the funding from them and give it to the city and increase their curriculum and create better work ethics. Then with that help in the schools it is a start to helping those children have a better chance at graduation and college.
As for nepotism Sam asked us if we ever got a job because you knew someone. I have been working at the same job for 5 years and my sister worked there in fact she was a big time manager. The girl who interviewed me didn’t know my last name so she didn’t realize who I was, so I was told. I really don’t know but it was actually annoying I felt like people always said I was hired because of her and I got whatever I wanted. When in all reality I always felt I had to do more and work harder to prove myself, it was my first job I was 16 and really just enjoyed working for my manager she was so helpful and without her I probably wouldn’t have learned what I learned. But it is true that the reason I even was given a chance was because who my sister was, but I learned to not let it bother me once I realized most of the people there knew someone and got hired that way.

I had the same feelings about history class, they really make it come off in a way that you don't even think about how wrong we were for what happened to the native americans. they teach you about the wars we had about them but they never explain how to this day they are still treated terribly. I actually had a discussion with my coworker recently and I tried to explain to her how wrong we were for taking over the country and she said well they choose to live on the reservations and be poor they could go get a job, and I just didn't even want to waste my breathe explaining you could already see she was completely close minded. I wasn't aware illegal immigrants paid taxes either, and my dad works for the IRS it really made me interested in asking him about it, which I plan to do and it made me wonder if he really knows how all that works. I completely agree anyone who thinks they really understand everything is not worth taking advice from I am not a fan of know it alls.

The first thing I always thought of when immigrants are brought up are illegal immigrants. I feel like illegal immigrants are portrayed so terribly in America. Everyone says how they are here to take all of our jobs, like Sam said we are scared of our resources being taken away from us. But that is exactly what we did to the Native Americans and we did everything in our power to make sure they didn’t get back what was rightfully theirs. I always wondered how did Christopher Columbus discover and explore America when there were already people living here claiming this land? I understand the rest of the world wasn’t aware of the land but that does not mean he should get credit for America, I just feel like the way history is taught in grade school makes you almost forget that Native Americans were not even here and this was not their land and that what we did was no big deal. The comics Sam showed in the beginning of lesson 1 were comical and completely true. Who are we to say no illegal immigrants when that is exactly what we were by definition? I also found the statistics of immigrants who have college degrees very eye opening. Everyone just assumes people come here (at least it’s what I believe from what I hear people say) for a better opportunity for jobs and a way out of their country that people in America make sound like those other countries are so terrible, again ethnocentrism at its finest. The comments made about Mexicans are ridiculous it again shows how Americans think we deserve everything and we should just shut the door to everyone else. Our nation seems to send a clear message that we do not like immigrants and we are the only ones who should be allowed to have the American dream. What is so wrong with someone wanting to get a better job, America has labor laws that are strictly enforced some other countries working is basically the same as being a slave the only difference is they are paid maybe 40 cents. An immigrant sees America as a way to better themselves and have a better life for their family; there is nothing wrong with that. The pictures of the men driving around on bikes with their speakers I could easily see people making rude comments about that. What people don’t understand is that is their culture like Sam said it is a popular innovation in their home countries. Just because they are in America does not mean they have to rid themselves of their culture and environment in which they were raised.

I think its really cool that your neighborhood openly has the cookouts and includes everyone. My street isn't really a neighborhood its on a main road so I never really got to run around with the neighborhood kids. I always had to be driven to my friends houses or what not and always wished we could have the cookouts. If you drive through the parts of my town that are developments you can see all the families together. And I agree the statistics about multiculturalism are really eye opening. It was really cool to see that they predict by 2050 we could lose the minority majority thing as well. I definitely agree with you that just because you choose to move else where you should not have to lose your culture but speaking the countries language is a must. Exactly what you said if I were to up and move to Spain, I would expect to learn Spanish, I mean how else would I get by on a day to day basis if I didn't have a clue how to communicate with the people who live there.

I live in a pretty diverse community, but there are towns right next to mine that are not so diverse they are still more diverse than many areas but to me they are not. I am used to 50/50 communities at least, by 50/50 I don’t mean just two races but I mean equal amounts of people from each culture or race. The comment about church being the most segregated hour of the week really bothers me. It made me think though, maybe that is why I never was really comfortable going there it was always a room full of white people it seemed so conformed and structured. I think I have a little bit of an issue with that. I would say I am even a little uncomfortable at Penn State, I am white but I would say it is too white at Penn State. I am used to more diversity all the time instead of just all one type of person, diversity makes me feel more comfortable. I think with more diversity people would possibly be less cliquey, I know they say people are more comfortable with being around people they relate to most, but I don’t always feel that is true.
What really catches my attention is how America is the most multicultural country in the world, yet we are the most ethnocentric. With so many cultures here how are there still people here who are so against other cultures. I hear people day in and day out talk about other countries and certain things they do that is “so weird” I always ask why is that weird? Is it weird because it’s different and you didn’t grow up doing it? Like the girl said about living in China, and how we basically live in a bubble and don’t embrace the culture. Why wouldn’t you embrace the culture while you’re living in that culture? It makes no sense to me; it doesn’t mean you have to like the culture but you could at least try it out give it a chance.
Sam talks about how parents would feel if you dated/fell in love with someone of a different race. This is something that was very common in my community, it was never really a big issue at least to all of the kids, everyone dated who they wanted there was lots of interracial relationships, myself included. There are some parents in town you know had an issue with it because you’d hear your friends talk about it, and other parents who just didn’t care at all. It seemed most of the younger parents didn’t care but older parents had more of an issue. Also single parents seemed to have less of an issue with it as well. The issues from the parents were not just from one race it was a mixture of all the races. In fact my one boyfriends mom said I don’t care if you date a white girl but don’t marry her they just use men for money. It just shows racism comes from all over.

White guilt is something I know I felt very strongly for a while and after this class I am starting to realize exactly what you said white youth shouldn't feel guilty seeing as we did not commit the crimes (unless like you said i was a clear act of racism and serious consequences to the victims occurred. I guess I always felt like I had to make up for the mistakes made and for some of the white people who still have misconstrued beliefs. I definitely agree with you at some point it is a decision someone makes to be racist, like the two twins - they are brainwashed by their parents to believe what they are doing is right, and I hope one day they can be shown that those beliefs are wrong. I grew up in a town that was extremely diverse and I guess I look past that there are people as extreme as those twins. I know there are people with some misguided beliefs but those girls are really extreme with their outrageous beliefs. I really enjoyed your idea on guilt is a path to tolerance, I never really looked at it but I definitely agree with you, its a great thought actually!

I first wanted to comment on Sam and how he said how he gets so angry when he is in conversation with white people who do not know things he knows. He asked the class how many people have gotten into arguments since starting this class. I definitely have and as soon as it starts I just start talking about everything I have learned in class. Sometimes it isn’t an argument but I hear someone make a comment and for some reason I feel obligated to now kind of correct everyone that has the wrong idea. I feel like since I have the knowledge from class I should be sharing it just to help people maybe understand, I’m sure not everyone really listens to what I say to them but for the ones who take what I say and actually think about it is enough for me. I figure if what Sam does and says to all of his classes and really leaves an impression on his students than maybe if his students continue to voice their opinions and the facts we have learned than maybe it will help the rest of the world.
I also would say I am guilty about being white. I always kind of felt some type of way about it because I can’t believe some of the things white people in the past did and I feel like when people look at me and see me as white they immediately think of the things we did in the past. Also even when I was a little girl and through high school and we would learn about the Holocaust and because I have blonde hair and blue eyes I even felt bad about all of that even though I obviously had no parts in it. I felt bad because there were always comments made by students even a teacher when I was in elementary school made a joke and said “well you would have survived you were the perfect example of the perfect German” that drove me insane. When I was little I didn’t understand the full extent to how bad it was, but when I got into high school and took a Holocaust class it all hit me and the guilt became so much stronger. I don’t even know if I am German but because we learned about the holocaust every year in social studies/history and it was blonde hair blue eyes I was automatically looked at and assumed to be German. When we saw the clip on the twin girls it reminded me of those comments. I honestly can’t believe they really said that they think all the Jews that were killed was exaggerated, I feel bad they are so ignorant to the truth honestly.

I completely agree with you that as a society it is never talked about what it means to be white. I would never say I fully understand what it means to be white either, but I do not ignore the fact that I am white. In my view nothing is right or wrong or better than the other it just is who you are. That does not mean I am ignorant to the fact that being another race is harder than being white because it is. Just another thing that just is. When people ask me my nationality I never even know what to say sometimes I just want to say white because I honestly have no idea, when I ask my family I have heard so many different things it is actually become comical to me now. I've heard so many different things that I have actually just said I'm a mutt, I'm also sarcastic lol. So how it is easier for you and many other people to identify with their background in my case it is not because I really have never gotten a straight answer. I am the type of person who white or American is not enough of an answer for me.
I actually played softball for 4 years with a girl who was 100% Egyptian and people never knew what she was she said on many occasions people had thought she was Indian which I thought was a little odd cause I didn't see that at all. I also am good friends with a girl who is 100% Colombian and everyone takes her to be just a white girl until she talks because she has a little accent to her voice and then they start questioning. So because of my relationships with my two friends I definitely can see what you mean that it all depends on who is defining race.

I really enjoyed Sam’s lecture this week. One of my personal favorite things is comedy stand up and when the comedians pick out the most obvious things and when they do and people really sit back and think about it how funny it really is. I think why it is so funny is because people are like wow as a whole I have seen so many white, black, Asian, Indians etc do those things. It isn’t meant to harm anyone like Sam said it just is what it is sometimes, it is the obvious being pointed out bluntly to us. I will be the first to admit at parties or bars I have said see look at that boy he’s frat boy wasted, it’s kind of this new term at least to me and most people I hear use it say it is basically like saying white boy wasted. I am a white girl but even I tend to group certain white people in groups because from what I have seen frat boys do tend to get pretty wild whether it is how they have been depicted in the media but anytime I was at a frat house the way media portrays them seemed pretty on point to me. There are certain things they do do or are known to do. I remember a Kat Williams stand up show I watched and he says when you party with white people they will drink anything to get drunk they mix all kinds of liquors and beer they don’t care they are drinking they are just trying to have a good time whether they get sick or not. And black people always have that one drink they stick to one type of liquor when partying. The way he goes about the skit is really funny but after he said that I really started to pay attention to the way different people drink and it was for the most part true. It was nothing I ever paid attention to because I never really cared what people drank.
The comment on political correctness and how white people just want to know how to act and what to say. I notice not just white people but people of all races act different towards people of different races, they try and act how they think that race acts. I think it has all just become so misunderstood. Everyone tries to act a certain way to fit in or so that person doesn’t say oh they are acting like a typical white black brown etc person. I think everyone should just be themselves don’t worry about what color you are or how you think people think you act, because maybe if everyone was themselves and felt okay to ask questions then we could really start to understand each other and even ourselves better.