en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/4260547 Comments by ssb162 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/04/20/voices-from-the-classroom-156/#IDComment343820168 I think minorities especially focus on their own group because they have to worry about the obstacles that they face within that group because of their culture, race or religion. How can you focus on the group as a whole when the group is not united, and people within that group look at you like you are sub-human. For example if Black people were never slaves and was seen on the same level as Caucasians then there would be no problems we face today because of different races. And this applies to other races as well. It’s like focusing on yourself before focusing on being in any type of relationship. Ways in which I am thinking differently is that white people by asking questions about my race aren’t necessarily being racist or prejudice it’s just their way of trying to understand. But you have to always ask properly. Also when it came to different religions there are many different ways everyone looks at a situation it doesn’t mean that they are judging everyone else but that is their code of conduct and their belief. The one that really stuck with me is ecentrocism. I have caught myself before asking why someone might do something out of the norm but now I realize that could be me. I don’t think Black accept homosexuality as much. I won’t say as a whole group because of course there are homosexuals and their supporters in the black community. But I think because Black men especially are looked at as these strong masculine men, big and macho and as kings (yes Kings) a lot of African Americans look down upon homosexuals. It also may be the fact how society sees them as well as them being a product of their environment. Some black people still struggling with the hardships of just being black but let alone being a black gay man or female you have more of a struggle. I don’t know why society looks down more upon gay male than gay females. Also as far as George Zimmerman vs. Marissa Alexander. Think that just goes to show screwed up our justice system is. And this hits home because I am currently in a Domestic violence / sexual assault class and on eof the points that was made was that when females tend to use self defense the law doesn’t see as it as just. I think that is damning. Clearly in her situation she had all rights to use a weapon but she still didn’t and they still decided to charge her even with the offender having priors of harming her and assault with someone else. It’s like come on are you guys serious. Honestly I hate talking about it because it really upsets me . Sat, 21 Apr 2012 01:01:18 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/04/20/voices-from-the-classroom-156/#IDComment343820168 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/04/04/voices-from-the-classroom-142/#IDComment333503086 I myself do not have a religion I relate to. Though when I was a younger child I went to church every Sunday it was a Baptist Church I attended and when I was older I attended a Christian Church with a friend and the only difference was how they spoke the word of God. I think some people talk to a pastor or priest just as a translator for the bible. Some passages they read may not clarification and what the message is the passage is trying to convey, that’s one reason I think people talk to a priest/pastor. Another reason they may talk to a priest/pastor is because sometimes they are seen as a counselor to everyday life problems. I know they are even there for people who are married or in common relationships. I have faith in God and I like to think that I have my own relationship with God, I just never took a religion because I didn’t feel the need to as long as I have my own faith. I never returned to church because I didn’t have faith in the churches and the people who were in them. To me it’s just a lot of hypocritical people asking forgiveness but can’t give it. And again that was just in the church I attended as I was growing up, not to say all churches are like that. I was just discussing this with my discussion group; I wondered do Muslim women see me as being less modest. Someone helped me to understand that, that is their interpretation of modest in their religion. I think it would appear that we don’t respect ourselves by the revealing clothing we wear because we are calling for attention and sometimes that can be bad attention. I think it shows we do respect ourselves which our behavior and attitude would be a factor in respecting ourselves but while revealing clothing would just show that we are our own person and have the right to wear whatever we may please. Again I think while wearing revealing clothing a way to show that we do respect ourselves is all in the behavior and attitude, being more conservative. What we see as modest and Muslim women see as modest are two different things. Ethnocentrism. I really appreciate Sam teaching us and trying to help us understand ethnocentrism, I started to think about the many ways I may have compared someone else’s culture to my own and thought to myself “oh that’s a funny way of doing it”. I think today what helps me today in understanding other cultures is reading, and exploring. I will say I have a better understanding but more growing to do. Also on the National Geographical channel and Travel channel has helped. It might sound cliché but those to channels explores different part of the countries and watching my mind has expanded to see to some extinct the meaning of their ways. That is why I want to travel the world not to go site seeing but to meet many different people. I think what was sad to see was that even while people were nodding their head in class saying they understand there were a select few when Sam made the comment of how we drink milk out a carton and some cultures drink milk straight from the cow, all they could say is the difference is that we pasteurize our milk. I think they were not seeing the point Sam was trying to make and in doing so by giving pasteurization as a reasoning difference was on some level trying to hold our culture at a higher level. Just because we pasteurize our milk don’t make us better maybe to them drinking the milk straight from the cow is pure. But again that is Ethnocentrism. OF all classes I think I really like the class on Ethnocentrism. Sam was right it did sum up everything we learned from white supremacy and how white people view black people , maybe this should be thee factor in which we start to end racism is seeing differences in other people cultures. Sat, 7 Apr 2012 01:33:02 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/04/04/voices-from-the-classroom-142/#IDComment333503086 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/27/voices-from-the-classroom-134/#IDComment328214419 I personally feel like a lot of the African American students in this class are ignorant to the education of their own culture. And yes I probably said this in my blogs plenty of times. I just find it really sad. Not to say I know every single thing but I do educate myself on my history and current events and how my skin color is an obstacle when trying to accomplish things. So why get offended if it does not apply to you? Question to the young man who posed that question did these stereotypes ever say one black male/female name? NO it wasn’t ever directed at one black person, it is directed to every African American not just one individual. That’s why you feel offended when you hear stereotypes, because not every black person is like that. And if you feel like you can’t get mad because YOU LIKE WATERMELON and CHICKEN, ask Trayvon Martin how he feels about being stereotyped, yet he wasn’t suspicious. That’s right you can’t! Bad thing about stereotypes is that they sometimes turn into discrimination and that is why black people should feel SOME type of way if not all the ways sadden by this information. It is true we are all individuals and we should be treated on the basis of our actions alone and not someone who looks like me or talks like me. Reality is that, it just doesn’t happen like that in America. These stereotypes are often reasons why black males are sentenced with harsher punishment, more likely to go to jail, more likely to commit a murder, more likely to be a victim, more likely to do drugs. STEREOTYPES!!! I totally agree with Sam. When we were watching the videos of the white guy and black guy trying to steal the bike but yet the black guy was the one who the people questioned and called the cops wasn’t funny at all. And it pisses me off to see some black people laughing in the class at certain situations that need to be taken serious. That was not funny at all. It’s scary , sad, I get emotional, and yes I can say I get sensitive about the topic and that’s only because I don’t like to see anyone get mistreated hell I don’t care if you black white yellow purple rainbow or a green alien out of space. Especially when our so called country was founded on particular values that state all men are equal. Who the hell died and made anyone king of this Earth? So to the boy who posed this question maybe you need to study your history more, read up on what’s been going on-yeah you won’t see it in the media or newspaper, dig deep. African Americans need to start uniting and educating themselves. Sat, 31 Mar 2012 02:45:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/27/voices-from-the-classroom-134/#IDComment328214419 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/22/voices-from-the-classroom-131/#IDComment323110486 My dad has always been a protector of my sister and me, whenever we needed him to defend us we knew we could count on him. We walked through our neighborhoods like we couldn’t be touched because everyone knew my dad and everyone knew how much he loved his kids and what he would do to protect us. One day while me and my sister was walking down the street to go back home to my grandfathers a red pick-up truck with 3 Caucasian males drove by us slowly and they called us Niggers. Repeatedly. I knew at the time where the word came from but it wasn’t until later after knowing more about our ancestors and their history is when I was really hurt. I couldn’t believe that racism was still going on especially in a black neighborhood. I was naïve at the age of 11. My dad couldn’t save us from those harsh words even if he gave his life. The pros to learning about racial issues could be the beginning of learning apart of your history and knowing that the color of your skin will give you some type of disadvantage in life. But honestly that can’t possibly be what any child should bear on their shoulders. At early ages kids innocence should be preserved , watching cartoons and playing games laughing and eating candy not thinking about how when your older and you try to get a job you may not be able to get a successful job because of others problems. But the reality of it is, we are told at a certain age how race will affect you later on in your life and you will be presented with obstacles. I think most African American children who parents have struggled, had to put on a façade at work, work 10 times harder than the “white man” has heard the stories of how race has affected their parents and it was at an early age. I know I heard how my mother has to work extra hard every day and how she and my step father face discrimination in their work place but deal with it to keep a roof over their head. And those worries will be passed down to my niece. There is no pros or cons, it’s really something we are forced to deal with it is not a choice and to ignore the facts would be ignoring reality. Crazy because taking 3 classes that deal with race relations law and society it gets really stressful and it gives me headaches. Reading the books and hearing stories of racial issues in crime was something that happened when I paid no attention to the news. I first read about the Trayvon case on Yahoo. After I looked at multiple links and it baffled me as to why now we were hearing the story when it took place in late February, that’s one issue I have. After reading the story I immediately thought about my classes. And I told myself this smells funny. There is clearly some discrepancy in how the case is being handled and it truly saddens me. It makes my heart hurt, because I have brothers it could have been one of them. I honestly believe if the shooter was black and the victim was white we probably wouldn’t have heard the story because he would have been dead in the ditch somewhere. IF he would have made it to trial he would have gotten the death sentence which scares me. I was so moved by this story I went online to help petition for Trayvons murdered to be arrested. I’m angered by this story because the shooter didn’t even get arrested and the cops just decided they were a judge and determined Zimmerman’s self-defense story. That wasn’t their right. If the shooter was black there would have been a total different outcome. After hearing about the stages I think African Americans need to unite first before they can tell another race about how to treat them, though that does not give other races the right away to disrespect black people. I think both parties have to be understanding to an extinct. I think some black people are just so angry and hell they may be well within their rights, but that is no excuse either. Black people need to listen to the questions but white people have to be respectful of their questions as well. Yes I believe at first both parties will be sensitive and shy away from the topic, get angry all emotions will come out but when dealing with race it’s understood. Black people have to understand some white people are not racists and really just want to know and understand where black people are coming from. When this will happen who the hell knows. But I think it must FIRST START with uniting within races. Sat, 24 Mar 2012 03:12:15 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/22/voices-from-the-classroom-131/#IDComment323110486 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/15/voices-from-the-classroom-123/#IDComment318049628 Honestly before today I never REALLY sat down and thought about how I feel about war. Yes, I seen news reports on the war on the television and the newspaper but I never really thought about it. My brother is a Marine and he joined when I was young even then I didn’t understand why, all I knew was that he was going across seas and I prayed that he would come home safe. He sent me pictures and wrote me letters. He even bought my grandpa back a military souvenir. Knowing what I know now about war. I am thankful for one thing and that is that he made it home and in piece. I was a lucky family member. Every time I seen the TV screen flash how someone was killed in Iraq I always hoped it wasn’t him. So now when I think about the war and the things we talked about in class I think there are two sides to both stories. I think America feel as though they can tell other countries how to run their government, help them the way they see fit and take from these countries. When the countries don’t comply America takes away the help. On the other hand insurgents fight for their government and to end the corruption, poverty and religious inequality (not sure if this one is correct). I never tried to talk about the war because I never really had the facts I just know what I see in the media. In our discussion class one student was blatantly rude and honest about America saying that we need the resources and because America is powerful basically they can do whatever they want to get what they need. I honestly don’t know what to believe in the media that’s why I don’t really watch the news anymore. I think our government tells us what they want us to know and the media is silenced in some aspects. I think the presentation of the video was brilliant and it made me think. I think I understand where an Iraqi is coming from what I believe is that not all Americans do and they so stuck in the mindset that because America is so powerful they don’t need to see the other side because they are not the other side. Seeing the video of the Americans shoot up the cab and crush it was embarrassing and shameful. Going back to how an Iraqi feels – I think Americans would feel the same way if this country was invaded by another country and they were told how to run their people. I thinking watching that video most of us weren’t shocked but we thought it to be cruel. These people were stealing to provide for their poor family and the soldiers smashed the only means of transportation. No the stealing was wrong but that wasn’t for American soldiers to decide-I wouldn’t want anyone to from another country to punish me for something wrong that I did. To answer Eric’s question these people feel the need to defend because they are naïve. It’s hard for them to believe that America could do such evil acts. Once you open up that can of worms then they would be forced to open up their minds to the cruelty that happens on our own soil. My thoughts are not well put together but I don’t know the full facts but I can say I understand better now. Sat, 17 Mar 2012 03:48:59 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/03/15/voices-from-the-classroom-123/#IDComment318049628 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/29/what-more-do-you-want-to-think-about/#IDComment312583345 I thought about this plenty of times. But I don’t feel any way about it. State College is a predominantly white neighborhood so of course it would cater to the residents of the community. I think that since most of the minorities that live in State College go to Penn State maybe the student body should do something about a situation like that. I personally go back home to get my hair done or I just do it myself. But I would only feel comfortable with someone who knows how to do my hair and that goes for black, white or any other race. I am not white but I am still going to comment on the white people smelling like wet dog blog. I personally think the black student said that comment in response to a white student saying why black people smell different then white people. Because of that first comment I feel like the black student was throwing a jab back to the first response asking why do black people smell different then white people. I think that BOTH comments was inappropriate in were said to get laughs out of it. Comments like that get people a little upset. I don’t think that either race has a specific smell, it just be that one person body smell that another person is judging a whole race on. In response to the third blog there are a couple of things that I think about. The first would be that comment made from the student that said something like did you ever think that all white people were evil. When she made that comment I think both sides were totally angry. I understand where she was coming from I just think that if she would have said it a different way people wouldn’t be still to this day saying “oh there’s the girl”. What she said had a negative connotation. She was looking at the point of view that most of the atrocities brought on different races were from mostly European decent. That’s her opinion and one could see why she thought that. Second thing that happened in class and it tends to happen a lot is black people dividing amongst ourselves. I think we need to truly educate ourselves to know what a joke is and when it is not. Something’s is not a laughing matter and BEING IGNORANT TO YOUR OWN DAMN CULTURE IS NOT!!!!!!! Another thing it seems as though when race is being brought up and people of different races comment on slavery they always say “ oh slavery ended a long time ago” HELLO SLAVERY ENDED IN 1865 and even after that people of color suffered from injustice that was worse before slavery ended. Another thing I feel like Sam is a cool teacher and yeah he does get away with speaking about a lot of things but one thing is you don’t speak to the minorities who actually do discriminated against maybe you should teach the class with another professor that has a minority status. And Sam gets defensive A LOT when black people say something about white people then have to respond to counter that response that they made and then remind us how good it is to be WHITE , you don’t have to keep on telling most of us because some more than others get reminded every day. Other than that this class has been a huge learning experience. I talked about race throughout my life, but never have I got so emotionally involved. For all races be respectful! Sat, 10 Mar 2012 01:16:14 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/29/what-more-do-you-want-to-think-about/#IDComment312583345 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/23/voices-from-the-classroom-115/#IDComment300976544 Sadly I have to agree with Sam. Minorities are discriminated against when it comes to education, jobs, housing, in the criminal justice system etc. Not to say that the discrimination is systematic but it is definitely a live in all parts of our society especially parts that we don’t see. To think that if I applied for a job and someone that was white would get picked over me because of my name knowing that we both have the same qualifications is disturbing. It really does discourage me to have faith that I would get a good job no matter how hard I work. My mother talks about her job all the time and she is always telling me how people are prejudice against her because of the color of her skin and on top of that because she is a woman, so she has two things working against her. She always tells me how she has to work hard and not make a single mistake she has to take on more work load just to prove her. So yeah she might have gotten the job and not been discriminated against in the process of getting the job but she still has to deal with discrimination in the work place. And every day she tells me her story I praise her and I look up to her because she has so much strength and she is so strong. If I was given 5 extra points because I was Black I don’t think I would care in this backwards world. I wouldn’t care because in this society I need those 5 extra points just to be looked at let alone get the job. But in the world we are supposed to be in I wouldn’t want those 5 points because like Sam said I want to have a fair assessment on who I am and what I can do and not judged because of my name or my skin. The sad thing is what the African American student said about she just have to try harder. We shouldn’t have to try harder we should be looked at as equals. Earlier this week I attended a seminar and the guest speaker was Dr. Joy DeGruy and she talked about Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome and how to begin healing. She said we all are affected by it and as much as whites have been the starting reason blacks have played a part in the continuing problem of race. I think Dr. Joy DeGruy quote says it best “Healing must occur on multiple levels, because the injury occurred on multiple levels. We begin by simply telling the truth.” And the truth is that racist still exists, yes we came a long way but we still have a long way to go and slavery was not that long ago. And for black people we must tell the truth about ourselves and take responsibility in our actions. I think we have to work together. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:50:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/23/voices-from-the-classroom-115/#IDComment300976544 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/02/voices-from-the-classroom-98/#IDComment283337607 In response to Pilot 1 and Pilot 3: Pilot 1: I think that black women perm their hair because they feel like they don’t have “GOOD HAIR”. I remember watching the movie “GOOD HAIR” produced by Chris Rock he explained it perfectly. Gordon Allport expressed his idea that groups who are oppressed internalize the ideologies of their oppressors. When it comes to the concept of what is defined as good hair and bad hair, he believes this is a representation of African Americans internalizing the concept from their oppressors, the slave masters. President Thomas Jefferson proclaimed that there were two physical characteristics that separated whites and blacks; this was their skin tone and hair texture. By having the idea that the natural African American hair needs to be straightened in order to be considered beautiful, Allport believes this represents the African Americans expressing their internalized ideologies of their oppressors. (Wikipedia). Basically many years ago white people would tell black people that they were ugly and not human and tell the black person how much better they were than the black people. Black people then had it stained in their brain that the white person was beautiful and that is who they had to be like in order to be beautiful. I think this has been passed down to little black girls today. Mothers put perms in their children hair and when they become teenagers they get weaves. I think it has changed a little now a lot of black females want to get back to their natural hair. I myself had perms as a child but it was not by choice once I got to high school I saw the beauty of having my natural hair and stopped getting perms I am natural now. I have curled my hair and worn afro’s plenty of times and white people complemented me many times. I think that black females have been made to think that their hair is not good hair so that’s why they straighten their hair. And for the opposite race there are many women who want to have big butts and full lips like the black female. It may be a little of both trying to imitate the other race and not being satisfied. I think for black women we need to be more proud for our natural state because it is very beautiful. Pilot 3: The other day I was in my CRIM 467 class and it was a judge who made a comment on a case where 13 year white girls was having consensual sex with a 23 year black man and he was spreading HIV(more details to the story). In the class a lot of students were agreeing that the judge was being biased. When our professor was trying to get students to share their ideas a lot of them said no comment and even I was scared to share my comment. After the class we talked to the professor and we agreed that students were holding their opinions back. I agree that white people do hold their opinions back because they are afraid of what others may say but black people do the same and what they may have said wouldn’t have been okay with the audience. I think white people hold their opinions because they don’t want to seem racist and black people may hold their opinions because they don’t want to throw the “race card”. I think racism is so deeply rooted in this country that we can’t even see the difference between racism and a person’s preference. I do NOT think every white person is racist though it is definitely out there I have seen it with my own eyes sadly but there is a lot of ignorance. I think white people opinions have been molded by the media but that is what I think is ignorant and is not an excuse. You can NOT judge a race of people by what some people may do. The same goes for black people you can NOT judge all white people for what their ancestors did. Talking about race is a touchy subject and I think both sides do not want to offend but its ugly and it has to be unmasked. PERIOD! TO BE BLACK IS TO BE PROUD! I AM A PROUD BLACK WOMEN AND I LOVE MY NATURAL HAIR  Sat, 4 Feb 2012 03:16:28 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/02/02/voices-from-the-classroom-98/#IDComment283337607 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/01/20/questions-from-class/#IDComment276509145 The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, "life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement" regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.[1] The idea of the American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of Independence which proclaims that "all men are created equal" and that they are "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights" including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." (Wikipedia) I don’t think James Adam meant rich, like have a lot of money I think he meant valuable and I think sometimes we take that out of context thinking that money means happiness. To me the American dream is someone who struggles to gain an opportunity to have success in what it is they wish to accomplish. I believe the American dream is interpreted differently by each person. To me and where I am from it is most similar to the “rags to riches” story. I think that non U.S citizens may embrace the American dream more than Americans do because it may be that they have more of a struggle than Americans. And to the non U.S citizens a dream may mean more to them depending upon their circumstances. I think Americans poorest people are still not poor compared to poor people in other countries. My mom told me to be blessed no matter what you have and do not have because there is always someone out there in the world who has it worse than you. And I believe that people in some other countries may have it worse so the American dream to them may mean more. Sometimes I do think the American dream has lost its value because now in today’s society anyone can have the American dream by just having the internet. I also do think Americans take America for granted and that’s simply because some of us are ignorant and we don’t realize what’s going on in other countries starvation, genocide, mutilation, war in people back yards yet we think we have it so bad in America but everyday immigrants try to escape their hell to come in live in “land of the free”. I don’t think many people would want to switch places with someone coming from the countries where these atrocities are taking place. The American dream is for anyone who is trying to achieve success in their life and I don’t think you necessarily need to live in America to achieve it. The “American Dream” has transitioned to some places all over the world. How do we know we are living the American dream? Hmmmm, that’s a great question. Again I think it’s all about how you define it and who is defining it. I can say partly I am living an American Dream by being the first of my family to attend a university. Some would think making it out the ghetto to be rich and famous, or working for a lucrative investment firm. Whatever the American Dream may be to people you know you are living it when you are happy. I think anyone can live the AMERICAN DREAM, really they would have to do is strive to achieve their dreams. Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:58:04 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/01/20/questions-from-class/#IDComment276509145 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/01/17/voices-from-the-classroom-90/#IDComment270985183 Before the lecture on immigrants I had some knowledge on Native Americans and the history in this country. While my grandmother attended Temple University she educated herself on African American history and during the course of doing so she learned the true history of the Native Americans. I say true because as students we are expected to believe what we are taught in the classroom is true and not second guess it because we are the “students”. But my grandma told me just because it is written doesn’t mean it is the truth, think about who is telling the story. She told me that Native Americans were here in the U.S first and then the Europeans came and I told her yes grandma I know all about Christopher Columbus and the pilgrims and Thanksgiving. My grandma sat me down and told me about how the land of the free was conquered. The Native Americans were slaughtered and infected with disease, stripped from their homes, taken from their children, and forced to abandon everything they knew of themselves. I’m not surprised that many students in the class is not aware of at least a little of the Native American history, what is surprising to me is that there are people who know the history about the Natives and how everyone who came after them were immigrants that now when we as a country is forced to face the same problems as they did we don’t see how that is a bit of ironic and share no sympathy. I have listened to both sides of the situation 1: jobs will be taken away from citizens and 2: this country was built on immigrants I can’t honestly say that either one is entirely bad. But I wonder is there no solution where everyone can be satisfied. Are there no jobs that can be created, and if not why not that’s the real problem this country should be focusing on? All I know is that I can’t and won’t be against immigrants coming into this country and trying to better them self. I always try to put myself in other people’s shoes. Referring back to the Native Americans words can’t even describe what they been through. When Sam Richards said the most horrific genocide taken place on U.S soil (not exact words), that is something I didn’t know. I can’t stomach how America is thought to be this place where you are free, where dreams come true and the land of the brave yet it was stolen and killed the true people of this land. I wonder could Native Americans and Europeans coexist could there have been a better America. Attending this lecture makes me want to educate myself more on other cultures in the world and their hardship. Sun, 22 Jan 2012 04:37:33 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2012/01/17/voices-from-the-classroom-90/#IDComment270985183