While I would say that I was surprised to hear that business has such a huge impact on the shaping of immigration policies, I can hardly say that it does not make sense. Many of the businesses that use immigrant labor (legal or illegal) are businesses that are so necessary for our way of life to remain as is. For example, Sam explained how we are able to buy produce so cheap. Of course, if we were factoring in wages for people that were in a union or demanding more than minimum wage, it would be utterly impossible to get the same bag of apples for $2. Immigration is really just economic factors at work. People come because they are unsafe, unhappy, or can see better for themselves. If we can provide that by giving them jobs (necessary jobs, at that), how can we say that having them here is bad?
Whether or not people agree with immigration, there is an important fact of the matter no matter how you look at it. The economy of our nation thrives the way it does because of the ways in which business is created, developed, and expanded. Without the ability to employ millions of hard workers at a lower salary, everything would be more expensive and difficult. The fact of the matter is that Americans, rich or poor, are far less willing to do the work of immigrants. Moreover, when they do the work, it is often not of the same quality as the work done by the Americans. If we, as a nation, are unwilling to do the work ourselves, how is it possible that we can denounce immigration policies completely?
Overall, I was somewhat surprised to hear that businesses have the greatest impact on the immigration policies that we currently have because so much of immigration is connected with proposals of different political policies in the nation’s capitol. Upon first hearing the question, I instantly assumed that it was the federal government that was connected to immigration policies. However, by seeing that it is first and foremost the business leaders of the nation’s largest businesses that shape the beliefs of politicians in the country, I was instantly awakened to the reality of immigration.
Regardless of your view on illegal immigrants, I think that today’s class really just showed us how important it is to realize and accept that America will always have and need immigrants. In a land essentially built up around immigrants, there is no way that we can completely stop people from coming into our nation. Rather than fighting border crossing, by promoting things like immigration crack-downs and stricter border policies, I believe that we should look at how we can simply control the numbers so that the immigrants can continue to benefit our nation and our economy.

I think that today’s class on Native Americans struck the class differently than any lectures before. I would even venture to say that the facts, song, and videos that were in class today were scary for the class as a whole to face. Of course, if we live our lives thinking that Native Americans live their own lives on a far away reservation, maybe it’s ok if we don’t worry about why they’re there or what their lives are like? Out of sight, out of mind, you know? Well, this was all certainly easier to do before being slapped in the face with reality today in class. Although not proud to hear it, I was glad that Sam touched on the topic.
As I study education and prepare to be an elementary school teacher, I particularly took this lecture to heart. The first thing that I thought about was the way the whole idea of Americans and Indians was portrayed. Europeans came over, becoming “Americans”. After a few fights with the Natives, they all held hands and prayed together on Thanksgiving, as one big happy family. And so, pilgrims and Indians become a staple of elementary school holiday festivities. Which is all fine and dandy until, that is, we realize what really went on. Upon learning the truth and seeing it in statistics, pictures, and videos, I was quick to be disappointed in the way I learned the story.
To an extent, there are always things that are better left unsaid to children. However, to teach them about “their country” with a great heart and soul story behind its birth is really an exciting and fascinating topic. But where do we draw the line? How many more reservations have to disappear, how many more suicides have to be committed, and how many more people have to lose their lives in a state of total poverty before we realize that America was not built on courage, happiness, and brotherhood?
For me, it was somewhat emotional to learn about the way that people on the reservations live, as our ancestor’s took all of their land from them and left them with designated areas to live out their lives. Why is it that of all people, the natives of our country are left to fend for themselves and subjected to immense amounts of violence and poverty? More than anything, I wondered, how do we stop this? I consciously made a decision in class today to make sure that students I teach will know whose land they live on. I’m not sure that it’s something that we should feel guilty about every day, but I think there is a fine line between respect and guilt. How can we fully respect our country and everything it “stands for” if we don’t even respect the people who first inhabited the “land of opportunity”?

Upon reading Sam’s email telling us that this will, in fact, be his greatest class of the semester… yet again, a few thoughts ran through my mind. I was not doubtful, but more so intrigued. I was looking forward to class a great deal, but the title was not something that screamed at people like “the needy penis” did. However, I also thought about how anything that involves religion is often a touchy subject, as there are people of many different religions in the Penn State community. Being a Christian myself, I personally was very drawn in to the lecture just by its title. And by no means do I think that Sam overhyped today at all. I believed that today’s class lived up to and beyond my expectations.
There are few classes in college that even get mention outside of the classroom, let alone the promotion that students give Soc 119. After class today, I literally left wanting to tell everyone about the experience I just had. Sam’s lecture today was not only thought-provoking, but it was inspiring about humanity as a whole. There have been many instances which I have left class thinking about my own beliefs and morals, but none as incredible as today. One of the most powerful parts of the class was the great use of visuals, through pictures, videos, and words. To be more specific, the quote first shown in class was one of the parts of today that made me think and that I believe I will carry with me throughout my life.
“While nothing is easier than to denounce the evil doers, nothing is more difficult than to understand them.”
Hearing this quote, really taking it in, was quite an experience for me today. I can now see that this carries over to all aspects of life, all religions, all peoples, and all cultures. Nothing in life is harder than trying to understand a person, which goes back to the whole point of Soc 119. One of my biggest new goals in life since Soc started this semester has been to develop a sense of empathy for people throughout my life. By developing empathy, I am trying to know and really understand a person. For me, I have found that this proves to be an amazing and rewarding task. In almost every instance in which I reached out to understand where a person was coming from, I was opened to accepting and respecting them in a whole new way. I am now a firm believer in the fact that ignorance breeds racism, as the people that do not understand or accept people of different cultures are simply uneducated as to what makes those people who they are.
Today’s class has not made me question my religion nor my morals, but it has made me incredibly aware. I have developed a new sense of empathy for Arab Muslims living the reality that we pretended to live today. And not to say that I would be quick to go to war, but there is a powerful feeling that came with recognizing the fact that I accept why they may feel like they need to fight back.

To say that Sam and Laurie’s class today was powerful would be a huge understatement. Of course there have been days throughout the semester that I left class questioning the beliefs that I have held, because of the way that Sam presented the other side of the story. However, in class today I found myself really reconsidering the many ways in which I have been socially conditioned to do things.
When the example of clothing was brought up today in class, I automatically realized the effects of being conditioned. Of course it’s cold in State College. It’s actually cold about 70% of the time that we’re in class here. And yet, never does Sam’s example seem to fail. Regardless of the sub-zero temperatures, girls are out in their hooker heels and mini-skirts, but without alcohol. When I first came to school, I quickly realized that no one questions it; it’s just the way things work around this place. Thankfully, a beer jacket is rarely out of reach. And yet, as the girl stumbles on the ice and snow with her heels on, the boy next to her is probably in a hoodie or button-up long sleeved shirt. Makes you wonder? Yeah, me too.
Hearing about the subconscious brainwashing that has occurred here, I instantly think about myself. Although I would not say that I fit the mold of the dumb drunk college girl wandering around the world in her insanely tall heels, I have gone out more than once without a jacket. For me, I could argue to myself “oh, I don’t want to lose it”, or “it’ll be hot at the party”. However, now I can look at it differently and see how stupid it really is. Why, to fit into the norm, would I freeze my entire body? Why is that the norm?
I have also noticed lately, just how conditioned the world is. For example, if I go out in jeans and my jacket, I can have a quiet walk to wherever I’m going. But, if the girls I’m with are in short skirts and heels, they instantly get cat calls and guys yelling at them. This combined with today’s class now has me wondering why girl’s look for that attention? What do we get out of it? And who wants to be objectified like that? More importantly, once we become aware of the “sexification” (for lack of a better word), how do we even start to stop it? I think I will certainly reconsider a lot of things after class today. And I definitely no longer think that mom’s “you are going to catch pneumonia!!!” is just stupid mom talk. No more cat calls and whistling? Who’s to say that it would be a bad thing?

Interracial couples and marriages were always something pretty foreign to me growing up, mostly because the area in which I grew up was not diverse at all. However, I have never felt any sort of racism against people of color. Coming to Penn State, I quickly met what I considered to be a large number of people of color. Some of whom, I would now consider, my very good friends from school. I have also seen a lot of interracial couples around campus and within my groups of friends. Although I see no differences, I see that these people have a lot more trials and tribulations in their path to happiness that a couple of the same race. And even though I can see this and say that it is wrong, there are too many people that have not changed their beliefs on the matter.
Not that they should be given a “free pass”, but I believe that older generations feel more uncomfortable about interracial couples because they were simply non-existent in their times. In our society today, Sam mentioned that people of mixed races are the fastest growing group in the American population. More often than not, racism seems to come from pure ignorance. I believe that if people actually knew interracial couples or were around more minorities in their life, that interracial couples would not be nearly as big of a deal as it is to those that feel uncomfortable around people of color or vice versa.
For me personally, there is nothing that would ever stop me from being in a relationship with a black man. The only burden I feel as though I bear is the disappointment that the guy would feel upon meeting my family and vice versa. Although my parents would understand in large part, my grandparents would be a different story. On the other hand, this would also make me feel guilt for the boy that I brought home. I think that a lot of white girls would date black men in a heartbeat, but it is more of the deeply-rooted ignorance within members of their family that stops them from bringing the boy home. It is not to say that this is right or ok, but I can see where a lot of people are coming from in that they would date someone here but be less quick to marry.
Mixed children born into interracial couples are often forced to undergo a lot more identity confusion than others; another factor that I think largely contributes to the pressure of interracial relationships. In my eyes, mixed babies are some of the most beautiful children in the world. If everyone could get past the .01% of difference that lies between us, who you love and the color of their skin would never matter.

Until today in class, I had never really thought about feeling guilty because of the color of my skin. Being that I am white, and grew up in a mostly white area in a largely white state, there were a lot of times that white was really all I knew. My whiteness, for example, was not any sort of privilege over anyone else in the area. Coming to school, I have met many more people of different races and ethnicities. For one of my classes last semester, I had to interview someone of a different race than myself. I interviewed one of my friends who is mixed, and from inner-city Pittsburgh. He told me that on a pretty regular basis he encounters issues with his race, even today and even in State College. For example, when he walks into a store or a party he has been accused of stealing or trying to steal.
After doing this interview with him, I realized that my white skin has clearly made a difference. Never in my life have I been watched or accused by a stranger. But should I see that as an advantage? Not quite sure what to classify my emotions after hearing this, I would say that I felt sympathy for my friend. However, after today’s class, I would not say that I felt guilt.
It’s a difficult line to flirt with when it comes to feeling guilty, because often times people are afraid not to feel it because they fear people thinking that they are racist. For example, if someone says “don’t play the black card” it could sound like they don’t really care. But after learning about stages of racial acceptance, I now see this as a different stage. I see color, most people do of course. I think that the guilt, however, comes from not knowing. Sure, people of color have a history full of trial and tribulations. And no, not everything is as equal today as it should be. However, if I decided to feel guilty for every time a white man took power over a person of color, I would simply weigh myself down with guilt. Rather than spending my time being guilty and feeling “bad” for being white, why not move forward? We have spent time in school learning about slavery, wars, and the stealing of land. Rather than feeling bad for the way I was brought into the world and found my place in it, I think that being able to understand and accept the privileges I have is more important. By being able to say that my whiteness has helped should not bring about guilt. Instead, it should make me more likely to move forward in my acceptance of racial differences.

When considering a white advantage, or some advantage that I have in life compared to millions of people all over the world, I never realized how much it has done for me. This was specifically brought to my attention when we learned about the numbers of slaves and people living below the poverty line in all areas of the nation. Never before had I considered my family’s financial situation any sorts of rich. However, seeing that I’m actually probably better off that millions of people made me think. At first, it was easy to consider this a sort of guilt that I have and others do not. But then, Sam made the statement that he never feels guilt, as that is a harsh burden to bear and will kill you in itself.
The conclusion that I have come to is that, it is not my fault that I am in the situation I am in. However, if I were to not take full advantage of it, then and only then should I feel guilt for people like freed slaves or even slaves that have not yet been freed. I have advantages that those slaves would only dream of. Things I do every day, like use my cell phone, eat the food I want to eat, go to bed when I want to go to bed, buy things when I can afford them, are unimanginable to so many people living in the same world that I am. So no, I do not believe that I should have to feel guilty for being able to do these things, as it is determinism that has largely allowed me to have these advantages. However, being aware of these sorts of things will help me to understand how I can help others.
The slavery lecture in class a few weeks ago is what made all of this so real for me. By seeing boys the same age as me living in horrid conditions and harvesting cocoa for no money made me take a step back. Where the biggest dilemma here could be “what am I going to wear out tonight”, they could work incredibly long days for years and never see a dime for their hard work. This lecture made me the most aware to how lucky I am and how easy it is to take advantage of my situation and not appreciate it. But, if I can be aware and help other people in some way to be better off, why not take advantage of that? I have learned through Sam’s lectures that it is not changing the world all at once that we are trying to do (not that that’s even feasible), but rather one person at a time. I have decided to start with myself and help others.

I believe that when it comes to racism and discrimination and judgment, it all too often comes from people who are simply uneducated about other groups and parts of the world. How many times in class has Sam said something that made you take a step back and look at yourself in the mirror? I know there has been more than one time for me that I realized that I don’t even really know why it is that I think the way I do. In fact, there have been multiple occasions in which I was proven wrong in my thinking or judgments of others.
None of this was as clear to me as it was when the Muslim students spoke in lecture on Tuesday. For all that the class knew, the girl named Sally was probably an exchange student from the Middle East, as she donned a hijab. However, when given a chance to speak, Sally told a stunned class of 750 that she was born and raised in Pittsburgh. From this moment on, I am now able to realize that religion is not race. I think that the main reason as to why I assumed Sally was from the Middle East is because I am, admittedly, extremely ill-informed in ways of other cultures and religions. For me, it has always been easier to assume that it has been to attempt to open a conversation with people different than myself.
I also believe that the environment I grew up in did not quite allow for the understanding of people too much unlike me. In a town where most are Christian, there was very little racial or cultural diversity. Because of this, I was never really taught nor did I see people interacting with Jewish people, Muslim people, etc. Ashamed to admit it, I just always assumed that since they did not live near me, and I never saw the ways in which they worship, that they must be vastly different from me or my family. Coming to Penn State, I met more Jewish people within the first week here than I knew in my entire life back home. I also quickly learned that they were really no different than me. Was I expecting them to preach about their beliefs and their Kosher food? I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I soon realized that upon meeting someone new, the first thing out of my mouth is never “I was baptized Catholic”. So why should I accept anything like that from someone else?
I believe that people are subconsciously afraid and uncomfortable with what they do not know. Therefore, it is easy to assume that the unknown must be so much different that our known, because why else don’t we know about it? The arguments are not strong, but it is easy to fall into a norm and difficult to venture out of your comfort zone or latent beliefs and reach out to someone, maybe unlike yourself, though probably vastly similar.

Looking at the police arrests and prisoners in different racial groups across the board, I was intrigued as to how misrepresented different races are. In the beginning of Tuesday’s class, I was quick to assume that the justice system was racist in some way. However, Sam’s early statistics proved that perhaps this wasn’t true, as whites are most of the population committing crimes and most of the population in the country. But, when you look at the statistics in terms of how many people are committing crimes and how many are actually being arrested for those crimes, the numbers do not match up in the least.
I do believe that because cities in general have greater police forces, that people are more likely to be caught. However, I think that there is something to be said for the fact that more black people are arrested than whites for the same crimes, in general. Of course, urban areas are often more heavily populated with people of color, but why do the police forces in those urban areas not see what is happening? As sad as it is, it is undeniable that racism still exists in our world today. I believe that this is made so much clearer by the numbers that same presented us with in class. To some degree, it is possible that all of the people of color being arrested are breaking laws. However, there are certainly more white people breaking those same laws.
I believe that this is not only where white privilege comes in, but also white supremacy among the “higher ups” in our country today. The justice system is almost fixed, set in a norm and difficult to change. However, if police forces in rural areas were made even nearly as powerful as those in the cities, those police forces would certainly find white people breaking laws. However, changing the system is complex and dynamic. Because of the principals that our country was founded on, many people are stuck to believe what they believe. For example, the cities of America are unsafe. Sure, more danger may exist in the city. However, to believe that is (to a certain extent) stereotype people and where they come from.
For me personally, I have friends that go to school in the most urban parts of Philadelphia. Sure, they have more visible violence than a town like State College. In contrast, though, their numbers for underage drinking or drug usage is probably no higher than here at Penn State. For some reason, there is just a mindset of “oh it’s not the city, so it’s probably safe”, which is not the case in the least. Crime exists everywhere, and once the justice system can come to fully recognize and accept that, people will be able to see a more fair and equal system.

Making choice and being dealt the right cards could have the potentially to impact your life so much. I have learned, through yesterday’s lecture, that there is always some mix of both influencing who you are and how you got there. For me personally, getting to Penn State was certainly a combination. However, I believe that it weighs more heavily on determinism for me in terms of getting where I am today.
To begin, both of my parents had to put themselves through college 100%. Since my mom knows what stress she went through, she made a decision to do all she could to help me however she could. My dad also continues to help out when he can as well. I believe that because my parents wanted different for me, it was a good situation to be in in terms of getting help through college. My family does not come from excessive amounts of money by any means, so when I applied for FASFA I got almost all of my tuition paid for based on my mom’s salary, based solely on her because my parents are divorced and I live with my mom. Because of the “single-mom” card I was dealt, I was able to come to Happy Valley. Without the help of the government, I would have not been able to even consider Penn State as the college for me.
Of course, I could say that I had a very high GPA and worked to get into Penn State. However, I believe that this is only the case because of how I grew up. My high school, located in a small-town suburb of Philadelphia, is overwhelmingly white upper middle-class. The graduation rate at my high school is 95%. Because of this, it is just the norm to graduate high school and go on to college, as about 87% of my peers do. If I lived in a poorer, inner-city high school, the same would certainly not be true. The only choice that I believe that I freely made was to be a “nerd” and excel in high school, and find myself a second home in Penn State. I did not have to study all the time, and I could have chosen other schools.
I believe that who you are born to be does not set in stone who you will be, because I could have ended up pregnant at 15 or kicked out of my school due to drugs. However, given that I make the “average” decisions for my culture and the people around me, there is a certain degree of stability when it comes to success. It is also important to believe in determinism because I think that who you are or who your parents are can either hurt or help you getting where you want to go. For example, it is much easier for me to come to a state school like Penn State than it would be for a Mexican student that is neither an immigrant nor an English-language speaker. Therefore, I think that these advantages should be recognized and appreciated, because determinism has really helped me get to where I am today.