I am really glad that Sam decided to post this letter. Though we never had a complete lecture on inmates, or “lifers,” I was always intrigued when Sam and Laurie would talk about their experiences visiting the jail. At first I thought it was weird that they called these murderers their friends, but reading the letter made everything clear to me. I noticed that people really could change, and it made me re-think a lot of things. For instance, I thought I was a supporter of the death penalty. I never really considered it, but this post got me thinking. Now, I’m not so sure. I believe that people are able to change, and learn from their mistakes. Of course, it’s hard to tell who would be able to change and who would stay the same. In extreme cases, like Timothy McVeigh, I believe he had no remorse and by serving life in prison, he would never have changed. Yet, I would never know that. That way, the death penalty would have to be all or nothing. There would either have to be a death penalty law, like there is now, or they’d have to eliminate it all together. Otherwise, we wouldn’t know who would or wouldn’t be remorseful. Now, I think the death penalty should be extremely debated before decided on anybody. I think that life and death is an act of G-d, and I don’t believe any person should take another person’s life. Plus, it doesn’t make sense to kill somebody for killing somebody else. Didn’t we learn when we were little that two wrongs don’t make a right?
I also thought his story was important. He was right; I had no idea the opening scene was set in jail. I thought maybe he was telling the story from before the crime occurred. I was also shocked that he wrote so eloquently. This really proves the point that anything can happen while someone is serving in time, especially as a lifer, and that people have the ability to change at any time. Just because someone commits a terrible crime, doesn’t mean that they’re going to be that terrible person forever. In fact, I believe that sometimes it’s the worst things in the world that make us stronger and look at the world in a different way. I think that this lifer has the right idea, and it makes me sad that he might never have a chance to experience life outside of prison when his ideas might be much better and clearer than they were before. Thank you Sam for sharing this letter and allowing my opinions to change. Maybe you could dedicated more time in class to talk about lifers, because it has really changed my opinion on the death penalty.

The only thing I found intense about this class was how Sam acts as though so many of us are ignorant to what is going on today in the world. I came into the class pretty oblivious to what his “big lecture” was going to cover. I had other people telling me that Sam calls it his most important lecture, and my roommate’s class was invited to sit in on our section to hear the “intense lecture.” I sat in my seat and was ready to immerse the knowledge that Sam was supposed to deliver, but immediately became shocked when I found out what the lecture was going to cover.
I’ll admit I know more than many in the class about the Middle East. I am a Middle Eastern Studies minor and have taken many classes on politics, culture, and religion. Therefore, I thought it was important for Sam to enlighten the rest of the class about what the truth is about the lifestyle in Middle Eastern countries. Instead, he filled the class with assumptions about people in the Middle East but failed to successfully clear people’s heads. Even my own friends in the class were confused by the end of the lecture. They said that he filled a majority of the lecture with assumptions but didn’t give concrete facts that helped my friends understand what life was really like over there. They were confused by his story about the former student who had the picture of the family. I feel as though Sam showed way too much of the negative aspects and not enough of the positive, real facts of what it’s really like over there. I agree with Sam when he says that people have the wrong impression. But, the only way to fix that is to show real videos instead of the ‘jihad’ video that Sam showed in class yesterday.
As for the Christian invaders part, I see where he’s coming from. Yet, I wonder what goes through his head thinking that we have to image ourselves as Arabs to really “understand” what they’re going through. Last time I checked, we were in college, and we were able to formulate ideas on our own without having to be put in a position like that. It really didn’t do much for me. After reading some of the comments, I felt as though some people got something out of the lecture, which is good. As long as people got something out of the lecture, that’s what is important. As long as the majority of people got something out of it, that's what matters. Unfortunately, for the lecture yesterday, I couldn’t say the same for myself.

First of all, I would like to give credit to the original poster. It took a lot for him to come forward and make this sort of post, and I think it is an important question to ask. First of all, I had some doubts about Sam’s class from the beginning. I grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where racism is still rampant. I feel as though I experienced all sorts of racism, and a lot of what he had to say, I already experienced. In a place like State College, a lot of people are seemingly sheltered to living among minorities. Though I live in the suburbs of Philadelphia now, I don’t feel as though I fit into that oblivious filter. Instead, I think it is important for the other people in the class to pay attention. There is a lot that Sam says that is very important. Sam discusses the lifestyles of a lot of people in this world, and many people in the class will probably never live in an area where they have to see any of it. Sometimes people act as though if they don’t see the problem, it doesn’t exist. Sam brings their unfortunate struggles to the table, and makes people listen.

When people don’t listen, though, is when Sam goes off on one of his tangents. For example, I thought his fair trade rant went above and beyond. I tried to raise my hand to ask a question and was completely ignored. I totally agree with fair trade practices and think that it is important for people to support fair trade, but did not agree when Sam began his “Wal Mart” rant. He started talking about how cheap the clothes were and why the clothes were that cheap. Ok, I get it… But what I DIDN’T understand is why Sam’s lectures seem to contradict themselves. Wasn’t it just a few classes ago where we watched that heart wrenching video of the woman who had to walk fifteen miles to work at Burger King every day? What if that is all someone can afford? What about all of the lower echelon of people who can’t spend more than 10 dollars on a t-shirt? What if they can’t afford fair trade? It seems really ridiculous that Sam talks about these people who can’t afford anything, but literally swears when he talks about the “cheap shit” at Wal Mart.

I did learn a lot of things in Sam’s class. I think it depends on the day and the topic. We all come from different places, and we all see different things. I think Sam’s lectures open our eyes to how other people are living around the world, and leave it up to us to discuss it with our friends on our own time. I think it just depends on the subject and the person as to what they get out of Sam’s lectures.

I am so glad you brought up this question. I think this is another discrepancy in the Race Relations class. Sam always talks about someone being on the black team, someone being on the brown team, or something being on the white team. I never considered myself part of any team before I joined this class. I guess I consider myself “white,” but thinking into more depth I’d say I’m more half Middle Eastern, half European… but 100% American. Sam told us to think about what we were and break down the boundaries of what people say is “politically correct.” Yet, Sam tends to draw the borders in class when he talks about all of the different teams.

I can understand why you would be confused. I am confused too. This also reminds me of Barack Obama being called our country’s first “African American” president. Really? Because the last time I checked, Barack Obama was half white, and half black. So, in technical terms, he is just as much white as he is black. And, like the original poster said, he was raised by the white side of his family. So, Barack Obama is half black, half white, raised by white people, but still this country’s first “African American” president? It really does not make any sense to me. If we were to call someone “white” it wouldn’t be as impressive. And, if Barack Obama’s fantastic marketing team didn’t use his race at all in the entire election process, would he really be where he is today? I can’t say yes or no, but I can say that his race most definitely played a large role in his election – through the media and the voters especially – and yet his race wasn’t even properly defined. Because, let’s be honest, do you really believe that if Barack Obama’s marketing team used the “America’s first Half-White, Half-Black President” approach, would he be the president now? That I also cant answer, but can’t imagine it being the case.

I believe in the end, it is up to you what team you decide to be a part of. After all, no one can tell you who to be. In the end, if you want to give yourself a title, you should. But, if you decide you would rather not be a part of any team, that’s okay too. You shouldn’t feel the need to fall into one of Sam’s categories because he is the one that told us to break those categories down. Embrace who you are inside, and embrace the fact that you are multi-cultural. That means more about your character than simply picking one and sticking to it because someone told you to. Next time Sam asks you a question about the “white team,” tell him what you really are. Just because he wants to fit you into a stereotypical mold doesn’t mean you have to comply.

I give Laurie a lot of credit for talking about this so freely. I understand it is difficult for many women, including women in our class, to freely talk about their periods. She seems very comfortable with the subject, just as Sam was while he talked about it in class. A lot of previous comments were complaints that women weren’t comfortable enough with the topic and that men didn’t know enough about it. I don’t think it’s fair to make that judgment at all. It honestly does not bother me either way. I don’t mind that women don’t want to talk about it, and I also don’t mind that men don’t know much about it. Sure, the basics are important to know, but how much do women expect men to know? I don’t think they are as ignorant as some of the comments in this post, and other posts, say. I think they simply know what they are taught, and aren’t interested in inquiring more about it. Honestly, if I weren’t a woman, I wouldn’t either. It simply is not something that I would feel comfortable asking.

I don’t think my opinion has changed after listening to Sam’s menstruation lecture the past two weeks. I’ll probably stay the exact same way and carry myself the same way as I did before the class. Like I said before, I think that some things are meant to be personal and I don’t think everything in the world needs to know everything about what goes on in someone’s bathroom. I think we should keep these matters to ourselves and share it with who we feel comfortable. Sam can teach us how to be tolerant to other races, but he can’t teach us how and when to feel comfortable with something as personal as one’s period.

I know Sam’s point is trying to make it fair for women to talk about their periods in a more free manner, but I don’t feel as if it is necessary and I don’t agree with him in this case. I also want to know why this is relevant to what we are going over in class. It is somewhat understandable when he is relating it to other things, but when he randomly brings it up, I feel as though he forgets that he is teaching a race relations class, not a women’s studies class. I guess I just missed the point, big time, or maybe it really doesn’t have much of a place in our class. One class was enough. Two classes seems to be pushing it. I really hope that next week we can return to our discussions about race. I think many people in our class, considering the things they’ve said on the live poll, have much more to learn in the last 6 weeks of class about acceptance and tolerance.

I believe the rudeness thing does not go both ways. Though it should, many times white people are more likely to be called racist than black people, even if both parties say offensive things about each other. For example, I used to live in Louisiana and went to school with a lot of Black and Hispanic children. My parents used to tell me to be careful with the things that I said, and told me to be appropriate and understanding of their race, even though it was different than my own. Yet, on many occasions, they would not treat me with the same respect. The other children would call me names, “Yo, White Girl” being my favorite. I used to go home and cry because I didn’t understand why their parents never told them to be nice to me, but my parents told me to be nice to everyone. They particularly called me out because of my race. Though it was middle school, I felt as if the parents should have said something to their children about tolerance. The age doesn’t matter, because this happens today too. Our class is a perfect example.

With Sam’s new application of the live feed via texting, we see what the black people and white people in our class are thinking about certain subjects. I was amazed to see that so many people said such outlandish things about race, this far into the semester. Did they not learn anything? Were they not paying attention? I don’t know how accurate it is, though. I mean, technically someone who is white could send something when the question asks black people what they’re thinking, and no one would know. Yet, the overall majority says that white and black people both said some offensive things on the live feed – but when they white people said the things about the black people, there were gasps and when they black people said things about the white people, there seemed to be only laughs.

I don’t know what this says about the class as a whole. I think personally I have learned a lot about race relationships that I will and have encountered, yet it seems like some people haven’t even gotten the clue. I don’t like the double standard that it is okay to say something offensive about white people but not okay to say something offensive about black people. It should go both ways. Either they shouldn’t say it at all, or they shouldn’t get offended if one person says one thing about them. Overall, I do not think a lot of people have been getting the big ideas of the class and think that everyone still has a lot to learn about tolerance and treating people with the same respect that you expect for yourself.

Honestly, this disgusts me. I feel no compassion at all. Instead of trying to relate, I simply am more angry that the subject was even brought up. I wonder how much farther people can go to say things are racist. I feel like the more people try to be politically correct, the more people are offended by certain things. I can't believe that theme parties, of anything, are being discussed as "racist" happenings. People don't have these parties on purpose to offend people, and they certainly don't have them to make other people feel left out or segregated from the rest. I think that if anything, it's comments like these that draw people to be racist, not parties themselves.

In this instance, I wonder if certain black people will ever give white people a chance. Or, will they just continue to pick on every single thing they do in order to make them feel a sense of guilt? I'll admit that I've been to many theme parties, and I've even hosted theme parties. It never even crossed my mind that I was offending anyone. In fact, I was looking forward to bringing people together. When we all dress up as a certain thing, we are all being the same. We aren't segregating anyone or looking at differences in skin tone. We are simply uniting to "honor" whatever the theme it. It could be an occupation, a sporting event, a holiday, or anything... it doesn't even have to be about a certain race.

My question back to the original post is: do Irish people really get offended by the ever-so-popular “State Patty’s Day?” To my knowledge, it seems like they embrace it. Do they get offended that other people are celebrating their holiday? Wearing green? No. But according to the original person who asked the question, it could be possible. Anything could be possible. When can we stop being offended about the smallest things? We are developing more hate the more we draw these lines and distinctions between right and wrong. Instead of being offended, I think it would make “race relations” a lot easier if we all just loosened up a bit and were not so harsh and judgmental of every single thing.

I think that instead of criticizing people on the parties they choose to have, they should look at people's intentions and people's values. I don't think I should be judged on my social choices, rather the way I interact with other people in every day life. Yet, instances like these make me wonder if the "offensive" behavior will ever end, or if people willl find any instance they can to say that someone is acting in a "racist" manner.

I do not believe there is any difference between women (lesbians) or men (gays) adopting children. In fact, I agree whole-heartedly with Sam when he said that having children for gays might even be better than for straight couples because when gay people adopt, it's never an "oops" or an accident. It is very well planned, and though lesbian or gay couples can still break up like straight couples do, adoption is a good way to help out children living without any parents at all.

I may be biased, though. I have a friend, a man, who is adopted by two lesbian women. He never actually told me, though, and I wish I knew why. I think he's embarrassed, or afraid to tell anyone, for fear of how they might react. TO be honest, I think I'd be the same way, but it upsets me that our world is even like that at all. I know a lot of other welcoming people, besides myself, and i think that it shouldn't be weird for people to come out and say they have lesbian parents. Of course, it might seem "random" or "awkward" to just come out and say "My parents are gay," but so is telling people that my dad died. Sometimes I just let people talk about my dad paying for things, or my dad helping me with science projects - I don't even bother saying that he died. Yet, sometimes it is appropriate to say something, and I wish that he felt comfortable telling me instead of hinting around. I ended up running into them at the mall last Spring, and all of my previous assumptions were true. Though I had to put the pieces together, instead of him telling me, it seemed like they were all in a full, healthy relationship. He's over 21 now, and his moms are still together. He is completely stable, smart, funny, and adjusted. I don't think he would turn out any different if he had a "male" figure in his life, but that is only a guess.

Even today’s television is addressing the issue of gay adoption. Most recently, the TV show Modern Family, revolving around somewhat dysfunctional but loving family relationships, showed two gay men adopting a baby girl from China. I believe that this is breaking the mold and should show people who are against gay adoption that it is OK. In my opinion, it is better for the children to have ANY loving parent, rather than none. They shouldn’t have to wait for a straight couple to adopt them, and they will have a better life with two loving parents, no matter the sexuality, rather than none at all.

I would like to take the time to thank Laurie for bringing this subject to the Race Relations Project blog. I think she has a great point, and it is one that I have yet to think about when comparing race relations. It is true, the media was at the center of the Civil Rights movement, presenting the issues for the whole world to see. It can even be said that because of the wide broadcasts, the civil rights movement spread much farther than Montgomery, Alabama and other key southern cities. The contrary should also be mentioned. Because of the lack of broadcast on the plight of Native Americans in this country, as well as Arab Americans, their struggles are hidden for the world not to see.

I feel as though the media has a lot to be responsible for in this day and age. A perfect example of this could be the election of our current president, Barack Obama. On Election Day, as well as Inauguration Day, the media had constant coverage of the election of America’s “First African American President.” I wonder what it would have been like if Obama ran and called himself a white man, since he is just as much “white” as he is “black.” Yet, because he was marketed and the media fed into the “First African American President,” he gained much more popularity. Because, let’s face it, as much as people say they elected him for his morals, his “new” ideas, or anything else he claimed h would fight for, a lot of people simply went to the polls and voted because Barack Obama is black. This is a perfect example as to how the media is a large factor in social growth. Yet, even mentioning Barack Obama brings back the issue of “white” vs. “black,” because if Obama was half-white, half-native American, would the media market him as “The First Native American” president? Probably not. And while I have always wondered why it was really such a big deal that Obama was “half” anything, what Laurie has to say made complete sense. The media has turned our society into what it believes to be true. It is rare these days that people follow their own gut instincts, or maybe they are just being brainwashed by what current media has to offer.

I think that in order to “fix” this “problem,” we must all be informed on the plights of every minority, instead of just focusing on what we are used to seeing. It sure isn’t pretty, but it’s someone’s history, and instead of forgetting about it because we don’t care, we should enlighten ourselves so we learn and teach further generations to be more tolerant of people, even if they’re not the same as us.

I’m glad the United States is succeeding in taking measures to improve the 2010 Census. I believe that in the past, certain ethnicities have not been counted properly. I am especially glad that citizens of the United States have the option to choose multiple ethnicities, instead of just one. If someone was half-white, half-black, they were forced to choose between one or the other, but now they can select both. I also felt personally connected to this article. Though I remember the Census of 2000, I did not fill it out. Instead, my mother filled it out for our household. What I do remember is filling out college applications. I am half Syrian, marking me somewhat “Arab.” Yet, I did not have any way to mark that on my applications. In that case, I ended up just calling myself Caucasian. This prevented me from receiving any financial aid because of my background. If someone marked down that they were a minority, they also had a better chance of getting into a certain university looking to diversify their student body. Do I think that is fair? Absolutely not. Do I believe that some people got into certain universities simply because of their ethnicity? Yes. In fact, I even know someone who was not qualified to get into Yale, but got in because of his South American heritage. I do not think the Census is easily comparable to college applications, but I do think it is important to make sure that everyone gets counted and no one gets left out.

I also found it surprising that many people still use the term “Negro” to describe themselves. I grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and attended public school for most of my time there. If I were to ever refer to any African-American/Black students in my class as “Negro,” I would certainly not be here to speak today. Though the issue of civil rights is still rampant in the south, and not as much in the north, I can’t believe people still choose to be called this. I don’t even think I could round up 5 white people who would feel comfortable and casual with calling a black friend a “Negro” to their face. Just like the TIMES article wrote, the use of the word has fallen out of polite conversation. With the Census taking so many strides towards other races, I feel as though it is staying somewhat the same. It’s true, the new modifications do help Americans focus and think about race differently. Yet, I don’t understand why “Negro” would be proper terminology for a government document in the year 2010. Overall, I think the United States government is taking strides that will lead the country to become more accepting and tolerant of variations of ethnicities, but I think they still have a long way to go.