The first few sentences caught my attention immediately. I have felt this man’s pain before and I have never even stepped inside a prison before. The darkness, the pain, the regret, I have felt it all before and after reading this I now feel that feeling this way is nothing to be ashamed of. After all that this man has been through all he truly wants is to be loved. At the end of the day that is all everyone wants, to just be loved. Maybe this man wouldn’t have committed his crime if had someone to love. Perhaps a majority of the things that go on in today’s world would cease to exist if there was more true love for one another. To have the realization that you will never be loved or love for someone has to be something unbearable.
In most jails you spend a majority of your time alone or at least in your cell, which gives you an ample amount of time to think. Imagine having everything taken away from you including love, what else would there be to live for. Thoughts constantly running through your head about things you wish you could change and the things that you feel you have failed at and will never get a second at doing. For this man it isn’t like he’s getting out in a few years, he will be there for the rest of his life. He has to live with the decisions he made before being in jail. His created his own life story and unfortunately this is where the story ends for him. He still continues to live his life however which is commendable seeing how he can honestly end it at any moment if he chose to.
In my opinion society doesn’t understand the individual aspect, the feeling that everyone is different and that everyones circumstances will not always be the same. Who knows what led this man to having a life sentence, maybe it was because he killed someone. But no one ever looks back to see what may have made him do this, maybe it was the lack of support he had as a child or the search for love that was never completed. As Humans we are always judged for our actions but the way the world has acted upon us, making some people wish they would have never been born is never analyzed. Being a man, I know, we never reveal our emotions. So for a prison inmate to reveal his emotions shows that love is something that should be cherished. The saying goes that you never know what you have until its gone and this man is experiencing this not with freedom or the small things, but love. I never looked at love in the way that he does, but maybe I should before everything is taken away from me and all I wish for is that feeling of love and being loved.

The saying "It is not always about what you know, it is about who you know" instantly pops in my head when I think about this question and my response to it. In a lot of cases this saying holds legitimate truth. I have heard a plenty of stories about people who are where they are now simply because of whom they know and their relationship to that person.
How can “nepotism” even be considered a bad thing? Therefore, my question is, why would I ever try to avoid benefitting from nepotism if the opportunity presented itself? Nepotism is responsible for so many positive things that can occur in someone’s life. When applying for certain colleges and universities, ever wonder why they ask you if you have a relative who is an alumni of that school? They ask this because they would like to know who you know and essentially how you knowing that specific person can be beneficial for you at their school.
Nepotism may have been that little push into getting someone a full ride scholarship to a top university or that extra boost needed to get someone a promotion at well respected business. Nepotism is even responsible for helping develop relationships between those with a lot of money, honored reputations, and are at a higher class social rank, with those completely opposite of them, who lack loads of money, are not that well known, and are of a lower class social ranking.
I am pretty sure nepotism has even gotten some people out of a whole lot of trouble. For example, say you got in a fight at school or got caught cheating on a test; and your family member was the principal at your school. Do you honestly believe you would get in as much trouble as a kid who had no type of family relation to the principal at your school? No, more than likely you would not. Your family member would do what is called “look out” for you, and make sure you are not in any major trouble.
Honestly I do not know who does not love when they have “connections”. When someone says they have “connections”, that means they have the “hook up”, which is always a good thing when you think about it. While nepotism can be a very positive thing on a rather professional level when it comes to jobs and schools and such, it can also be a great thing on a rather personal level as well. Nepotism is probably the reason some of us get into some parties for free, or get discounts on our favorite material things. So no, I do not believe I can honestly say I would ever avoid benefitting from nepotism if the opportunity presented itself.

The pictures of the impoverished children are like taking a chance, it can be full of good intentions but in the end it is just a bad decision. The pictures of the kids show people how things are in Haiti right now and although that might be the situation for those kids not all the people in Haiti live in that predicament. To me these pictures are in a way indirect stereotypes of the people in the country. These pictures are at times so extreme that it automatically makes you wonder if this is how life really is over there in a land that at times feels so far away. This extremity makes you want to give however, the sympathetic part of your body comes alive for that moment. You start to think about your own life and how to compare it to those who are in those sad commercials. The commercials at times makes you think about all the things you take for granted.
However, the only problem that I have with this money issue is that when people give money their isn’t always the guarantee that their money will end up in the right place. These type of commercials have made people reluctant to show their nice side, because of the people who take advantage of it.
Another reason why I don’t like the pictures is because the pictures are taken by people who are trying to make a career for themselves. Those pictures show how selfish people are in todays world. What other reason is their for people going all the way over to Haiti to take pictures? Those people don’t go there and come back and give their material away for free, they (the photographers) look to make a profit. In the end this whole picture scandal is about selfishness and people thinking they know what’s going on and what people need.You cannot speak for people in today’s world, you have to let people have their own voice. And these pictures are a way of people be spoken for. I know for a fact that the haitian people who are in these photo’s have any choice in what pictures get’s chosen for the media to see. The are extorted for their situation and made into profit and stereotypes.

If white people were to become the minority, I would hope that my black people become the majority. I hope for this because I believe that if we are the majority a lot of things can change in the world. From my perspective it would be as if the people of the world got a fresh start and time to see what people of other races do when they have the power. If blacks were the majority I could see us fighting for the equality of all people in all aspects of life. Some people may have read this question posted and immediately thought that if black people became the majority we would find some way to make white people our slaves and recreate the slavery period all over. I highly doubt that would happen. Although as a people we have been discriminated against for centuries, we know how painful it was to experience that and would never wish it on no one else.
If white people were the minority I think that they would treat everyone else nicer. By them no longer being the majority they don’t have as much say so in the political debates, they aren’t the majority in crowds and they have basically been put in the back seat. As a black male I get things said to me by white people that I truly don’t deserve. White people knowing that they are the majority and the people above their status are also white play to that advantage. If you know that the people above you are just like you their is less fear in the consequences of your actions. Police officers for example take advantage of their roles, treating the inner city people with as much disrespect as they can at times. And by the majority of people in the U.S. being white, police officers are white so their is a correlation between the two if you will. The brutality and unfairness in the law goes unnoticed because the judges are white and the attorneys are white as well. When a majority of the police officers become black as a result of the majority of people in the U.S. being black then the brutality and disrespect will cease because the people who were once abused by the cops are now “the cops”.
So if anything, the tables will turn but not for the worst. A change will come and in some instances whites may get to see how blacks and other people of color have been living for centuries. Whites will become nicer just out of the respect for others who have lived in the positions that they now hold. Sometimes walking in someone else shoes is all a person needs for change. When you can see the other side of the spectrum you now know what you are doing to effect that and if its positive or not.
A question that would be interesting to add to this is if the population percentage changed, for example if blacks became the majority would there be such a thing as black guilt?

I absolutely would “call-out” people of my own race who make inappropriate comments or slurs towards people of other races. In fact, I have done so on various occasions and in some situations have taken the side of the people on the other side. It’s just not cool for anyone to make racial slurs, no matter what the situation or environment might be. Although somethings may be funny, or have some humor to them if it is disrespectful, then its just disrespectful. Honestly, black people tend to play the race card a bit too much when surrounded by white people. They say things that they wouldn’t normally say, and certainly do things that they would never do as a reaction to feeling outnumbered. I don’t like the feeling of being called a “nigger”, or black dude so I know for a fact that white people don’t like having racial slurs thrown at them. I was always taught that you should treat someone the way you would like to be treated, and no one wants to be discriminated against. By standing up for people of other races you not only teach your friends what is appropriate to say about others, but you also show people of other races that not all people of your race are alike. I have never been in a situation where a white person has stood up for me, but if an event does happen I hope that I can say someone did. At times I feel like my efforts are useless because everyone is their own person and makes their own choices, but you never know what effect you can have on someone. You might make them stop and think before they open their mouths next time, which is something a majority of the world seems to have a problem with. If I can make a difference even for just one person, then that is fine with me. I feel like a lot of people are afraid of making the first step, or being judged by their friends. I mean, its easy to join in with the slurs and disrespect, but it’s a lot harder to step away from that and be different. Difference and the bravery to be different is what I believe can change the ways of the world, but it starts with the people who aren’t afraid to stand up for people who are nothing like them.

I think guilt or at least the thought of guilt for your race comes with the privilege of being alive. For someone to have never felt guilt from being of a certain race means that they have no empathy for others or just others of another race. I have personally felt guilt for or in some cases taken the blame for my African-American counterparts. However, I think thats just me being aware of how others feel and how people should be treated. From my own personal experiences I have seen African American’s take advantage of being just that. I have seen (as we discussed in class) people of my race jump in front of the line, or group up in a line while there are people of another race in line waiting patiently. The thing is, this action isn’t as common in the inner city where everyone is a minority. I have also seen blacks start fights with whites for no reason other than they were white and seen as targets because whites don’t usually fight back they just try to get away. Last summer in Philadelphia, a new “trend” if you will was started by teenagers known as flash mobbing. This is when groups of kids roam around the downtown area of Philadelphia and prey on people, usually white people and beat them to sometimes almost an inch of their lives. In once instance I found myself holding a older white male on the hood of a car waiting for an ambulance to arrive because the man had been beaten so badly that I seriously thought he was dead. Lastly, I have also witnessed blacks take advantage of whites because they know that they are afraid of them. It seems that when their are many black people in one area, whites tend to get nervous and get away from that area as quick as possible. In this scenario, I have seen large groups of blacks run in stores and take everything they can get their hands on, and sometimes it’s just blacks knowing the power they have to frighten whites and taking advantage of their fear. Out of all these things that I have just described the one that effects me the most is the guilt of my peers physically attacking people of other races simply because they are of another race. It honestly makes me sick to my stomach when I see it, and that night when I held that man in my arms I never felt so ashamed to be what others see as “young and black”. I also feel guilt when I look at the things I am doing with my life and I feel like I’m filling out the standards of a young black male.

Historically speaking, White people have been the oppressors of other races for a long period of time. Not all whites are racist or pursue discriminatory actions against others, but history makes us believe that. The problem with society is that because of the past we have created stereotypes for all races, whites being the racist and supremacist group. This of course was true for a long time with the events of slavery, the Jim Crow laws, the Segregation Act and many more. Seriously, the list can go on and on. However, as times have seemed to change, Blacks and Whites as well as other races have become equal in terms of rights and opportunities to succeed. Along with this change in racial equality has the term politically correct surfaced. I don’t think that its just the basis of whites being reluctant, I believe that its more-so them wanting to be politically correct. The way white people may talk about black people among themselves is completely different from the way they talk about blacks when blacks are present. That goes for any race though, you don’t want to hurt others feelings and also the things that you may speak upon maybe a sensitive topic. Personally I would rather whites and all other races admit their prejudice instead of hiding it and only exposing it under intoxication or among friends.
Another reason why I think white people hide their prejudice is because they don’t want to look bad amongst other whites. We live in a society where we think everyone should be fighting for equality and you never know who is not for that cause. It would be ridiculous to think that there are no racist’s in America, but it seems like that because they are all hiding. When you hear someone make a derogatory statement towards someone of another race all heads turn that way and the looks sometimes can burn a whole through the person who uttered the remarks. No one wants to feel like that, so they hide their true feelings. They could lose friends, respect from other people and in some cases become the outcast of the community they were once a part of. Again, everyone wants to be politically correct and to be respected amongst your peers in any situation, even when you truly feel opposite it is what you must do.
Another thing to mention is that somethings are better left unsaid. Just because you feel that way doesn’t mean that you have to let everyone around you know it. I have noticed from the clicker responses that there are some people in our class who have “racist qualities”, but if the clicker responses had names attached to them on the screen I believe they would respond differently. Another way of looking at it is that somethings are better left unsaid because others actions speak louder than their words. You don’t have to tell me your racist or feel a certain way against another race, I can tell from your mannerisms and body language when that race is around. Sometimes the worst racism is the type that hidden, because you smile in my face but talk about me as soon as turn around.

Coming from Philadelphia, the mecca of urban areas I have first hand experience in saying that the outrageous amount of blacks being arrested and incarcerated is a result of a racist police force. From the data that Sam presented to us in class it is obvious that there is something going wrong with the conceptions of drugs and who uses them. The majority of drug users are White people, which according to Sam’s formula would mean that White people are also the majority sellers. Which then raises the question, “If white’s statistically are the majority users and sellers of the United States then why aren’t the cops constantly patrolling the “White” neighborhoods?”.I have the answer, Institutionalized Racism. We have been forced by our government to believe that Blacks are the Majority drug users and sellers using the media, which then gives the Government the justification to have increased numbers of Police officers and undercover detectives in the Urban areas. To me, its all about keeping that slave state of mind where Blacks are less than Whites and at any moment they can prove it to us through the police force.
I have been in situations myself where I was walking late at night in a notoriously dangerous neighborhood and stopped and checked for drugs and weapons. I have seen cops pull up on teenagers on the corner, put them against the wall and search them without a warrant or any other probable cause other than they were black. I have seen cops profile blacks while whites have been in the same area intoxicated and belligerent. I have been pulled over by the cops and checked for everything without doing anything wrong, several times. I have talked to people of all other races and never have they told me stories like the ones I have to share. It’s a completely different world when your black, not to say that everyone is against us but at times it feels like the law is never on our side.
Why is it that blacks get more time in jail for the same crimes than whites do? Why is that black adolescents will spend more time in a juvenile detention than white adolescents will? Why is there a stop and frisk policy in Philadelphia to essentially get more blacks off the streets and into the jails? Why are there more cops in urban areas looking for petty drugs such as marijuana when there are murderers who are still on the loose as you read this. What is the biggest problem we face today, is it rape, murder and terrorism or is it the crimes that black people commit?
However, then and again it seems like it’s our fault that we get caught and sent to jail. When it comes to the “white” people I know and drugs they are very secretive about when they do drugs, how they do drugs and if they do sell drugs, who they sell them to. Blacks on the other hand are careless in a way, doing whatever possible to sell drugs and make money, even if that means standing on a corner. Violence in a black community could start at any moment, and most of the time that violence is over drugs.
In conclusion, I think that the judicial and criminal system in racist in its entirety. The answer to why there are more cops in the area can be traced back to racism and institutionalized racism. There is no logical reason for why if the statistics show who is really using the drugs and selling them, why the cops would be in a completely different area.

If in an interview someone was to ask me why do I think Racism continues to be a problem to this day, I would then ask them: “Why do people in today’s society tend to act as if Racism doesn’t exist.” Everyone knows racism exists and that there are prejudices against people of all races but still people attempt to hide it or put the issue to the side to be discussed later. There will always be racism or some form of discrimination that puts one group of people below another.

To say that racism is a problem, I would have to disagree. Racism is not just a problem, but a disease. The minute someone is discriminated against brings racism back to life and it can be spread just as easily. If someones first reaction is to use a derogatory name (race wise) to hurt someones feelings then racism is still a problem. On weekend nights downtown sometimes all you hear are racist remarks towards the minority groups, but these insults are just ignored due to the intoxication of the crowd. However, if you have thoughts to say these words when your intoxicated, whats to say that these thoughts haven’t always been on your mind. Racism I believe is a disease of the mind that effects your thoughts and behaviors just as any of mental disorder does.

Racism is not only using your words or actions to hurt people, however. Racism can sometimes be a mental state, when somethings such as welfare come to mind and you only think of African Americans, that racist. However, racism or at least having a racist thought process isn’t always the fault of the person in question. Your outlook on life as well as your perception of others comes from where you grow up at and what your parents and those around have instilled in you. Growing up in a predominantly African American neighborhood and having both a Black mother and father I was always taught to treat others as I would like to be treated and others will do the same for you. However, when your the majority and you have privileges given to you that others would die for, you technically don’t have to bend over backward for anyone. I have met some people from different race groups who don’t know what to say to others not because they are racist but because they haven’t been exposed to things outside of their comfort zone before. So in a way the unconsciousness of being racist can be passed down from generation to generation just as genes are. Racism will only cease when people can look at themselves in the mirror, see what they are doing wrong to others even in the most minute way and attempt to change it. Not for a better appeal to others, like saying you have “a Black friend", but to genuinely want to see things change.

Racism still exists because people still act as if it doesn’t, racism still exists because if it isn’t the color of skin there where always be ways to discriminate people, racism still exists because it lives in the inner minds of people, racism still exists because it is bred. Lastly, racism still exists because it will only cease to exist when the people in power want it to. African Americans and people of color primarily are the ones who are affected by racism so they can’t wait for racism to cease to exist. When the majority wants everything to be equal, then racism will cease to exist. Until then the only thing to do is sit back and wait, well at least that is what I will be doing.