While the race of the victim has no impact on the severity or relevance of the crime, it has been proven in numerous academic studies that race does impact the greatness of the punishment. For example, had OJ Simpson not killed a white woman, his case would have been in the media for about a week.

The NCAA has ruined the careers of numerous Black male athletes over even the tiniest of infractions: Getting free tattoos, taking a few hundred dollars from a booster, or asking to be compensated in a manner that is remotely consistent with their massive market value. You would expect that an institution (the NCAA) that has the ability to catch an athlete taking free lunch would also be able to identify a man who has been sexually abusing children in campus facilities for decades. The truth, however, is that we tend to only find the things that we’re actually looking for, and I suspect that the desire to protect young men and women hardly inspires as much passion as the NCAA’s desire to protect its money – for example, the NCAA has no problem seeing the star player’s mother being evicted rather than share its money with the players and their families.

I can’t help but wonder if the Penn State scandal would have been swept under the rug had a Black coach (or athlete) been found abusing a young white kid in the showers in the same manner as Jerry Sandusky. Would the free passes Jerry Sandusky has received from the judge , prosecutors, and the university have come to pass if the situation has been shaped differently? While we might presume that any Penn State coach would have been protected in the same way, it’s not difficult to speculate that race might be a factor in a case such as this.

Only time will tell how we overcome one of the most tragic scandals in the history of college sports. I can’t begin to name the number of reasons that this situation could have been easily avoided; if we were truly an amateur athletic organization, such a terrible cover-up would never have happened.

Based on what I said earlier, I believe that if Sandusky were black – the case would not be looked at with as much scrunity. Unfortunately, many people around the world hold the unsubstantiated premise that Blacks and Latinos are directly tied to negative deeds such as rape, robbery, and overall foul play. It would just be seen as “another college scandal” such as the Ohio State scandal which was brushed under the rug in under two months MAXMIUM. At the end of the day, many individuals hold misconceptions about people without meaning to do so, subconsciously.

People just don’t understand. That has been the theme of this week. Honestly I could go the typical way and speak about how I’ve felt embarrassed to be a PSU student, but that is not the case whatsoever. The events that unraveled this past week have definitely shed PSU in a negative light. This is not surprising to anyone. With a campus so large but a town so small, the scrutiny of the media has not only rocked this town as a whole, but it has rocked every individual that currently associates, or has associated themselves with Penn State at one point or another in their lives. What occurred was something that nobody would be proud of, no matter the venue, or circumstance that it occurred in.
Viewing this incident from the vantage point of outsiders (individuals who have no ties to PSU whatsoever / already had negative views about us), is very difficult. Although it does hurt me inside deeply, I am not surprised whatsoever by their views. It is so tough to explain myself to individuals who have no clue what is going on. I try stating the facts, I try linking them to the articles, but I always just end up losing out in the end to people who are not willing to negotiate whatsoever. “YOU DON’T GO HERE, SO YOU WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND.”
Emotions flow like no other, I love Penn State with all of my heart, and in a matter of only 2-3 days, my phone has been blown up like no other with text messages that state “Pedophile State,” and even going to far to ridicule the one thing that NOBODY can EVER TAKE AWAY FROM US, THON. “For the Kids, alright.” This boils my blood, but at the end of the day I REALIZED THAT I DO NOT CARE ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK. I know the values and morals that my beloved Penn State encapsulates, and nobody will ever be able to take that away from me no matter what happens. It has been tough to stay resilient and keep my head up through all of this adversity, but it has happened.
But what did happen on a glorious Saturday afternoon in State College, PA means way more than any score of any sporting event will ever mean. What happened Saturday was an entire population of north of 100,000, mixed with current students, alumni, community members, friends, family members, former players, future players, of all different ages and races, came together for one common tie. Penn State. We came together to support one common cause. Penn State. We came together to show the world how this awful, disgusting tragedy will make our institution even stronger, even greater, truly encapsulating what it means to be part of Penn State.

When thinking about this question, there are many vantage points that you can view it from. When it comes to hard labor, the majority of individuals usually state that only the minorities are willing to do the hard work. The manual work. This is untrue however, as there are multiple American citizens who are willing to fill the blue collar jobs that have some vacancies.
Mexicans are definitely the minority in the United States as of now, but I believe that their willingness to work on the manual labor is not something that is forced upon them. Unfortunately, the majority of Mexicans that are willing to provide these services do not have the required education to fill any professional white collar roles. This is just a case of individuals wanting to make some money in whatever way possible.
Why come to the United States to work when you can do the same work back home you ask? Well in this case, you have to take into account how much a similar position would pay in their home country. Is it worth it to make the move to the United States? What is the tradeoff cost. I just wonder why many people feel like the stereotype is Mexicans BEING FORCED to work on these jobs when really it is something that they kind of sign up for.
One other aspect that really makes me mad is the fact that a lot of people believe that all Mexicans are somewhat tied to illegal immigration. Why is this the case? I mean, the United States is a country full of immigrants. Even white Americans are technically immigrants. Everyone is an immigrant when it comes down to it. There are surely Mexican Americans who are definitely taking bigger roles in the working force. This is a fact.
So at the end of the day, I sincerely believe that Mexicans should be no different than any other nationality in the United States. Whether it being an Arab or not, honestly ANYONE can work whatever job they please if they put their mind to it.
If a Mexican did come In and get his mandatory education to get a higher level job (in this case, a university degree) they could hold a spot just as high as a white person. This is the agreement that the majority of companies have in place. Companies are not allowed to discriminate by color or race by any means, if this happens they could have a serious lawsuit coming towards them. This is why anyone can apply to any job they please, just a matter of if they have the prerequisites to fill that role at the end of the day.

Just as with all my previous blogs that I have written, the term minority is surely a vague term that a plethora of people use extremely loosely. This wholly depends on where you are, and from what perspective you’re looking from. Being a foreigner who has received citizen status, I can honestly tell you that at times, I feel as if non-whites are definitely outnumbered at times in certain situations. Without having to look at any concrete data to back-up my claim, the fact of the matter is that although immigration is deemed as somewhat of an issue by many individuals, people will continue to flood through the gates and want to close it behind them. Unfortunately, this is not the case and by following certain regulations, more or less and human being can receive resident alien status (through a green card or actual naturalization).
What really ticks me off is the fact that when some people are trying to protect the “issue” of immigration control being too lackluster, they always say “get out of my land” or “speak English.” Those are TERRIBLE things to say and frankly it boils my blood to think that some individuals think that they have a LAND of their own. The United States of America is a country fueled by immigrants. Yes, immigrants. With almost 95% of everyone I talk to claiming ancestry from multiple locations, I sometimes question their knowledge on the subject. If that is the case, then why are you not proud of it and flaunt it some more?
Another argument is that of the fact of the United States being the best country in the world. What makes this the case? With the majority of these claims coming from individuals who have never left the country whatsoever, these claims are definitely unsubstantiated. I am blessed to have been able to travel the world before my arrival in the United States and can safely say that the world is a magnificent place. I understand that some people do not have the means to travel on a consistent basis or AT ALL outside of the borders of the United States, but if they open up their minds and think about the world as a whole, they will be in awe of how wild the world actually is!
I understand that I definitely went off topic here, but these are issues that are supremely true to my heart and had to be written about. Regarding the whole minority/majority issue, I feel as if issues will definitely pan out over time. And as if whites become a minority, it should not make a difference whatsoever. AFTER ALL, ALL AMERICANS ARE MINORITIES OF THEIR HERITAGE.

The term “poser” is one shrouded by vagueness. What does this term even mean when used in certain contexts? Growing up, individuals are NOT usually taught to associate themselves with people of the same race. This happens naturally as time goes on, but why? Why do people seem to “automatically” be attracted to people with the same racial background? This is what has intrigued me over the course of my life and I am sure that there is no definite answer to the question.

Being an Arab and growing up around predominantly Arab individuals, I realized that I too fall into this unwanted category. It was not until I arrived in the United States to start my college journey that I realized I hung around mostly people with the same ethnic background as me, Arab. Slowly coming to terms with it, I started to make attempts to associate with a larger “pool” of people as time progressed. Today, Arabs are not even what I could call my core group of friends, with the majority of my acquaintances being White, Latino, and even Black.
At the end of the day however, I am sure that I am of a smaller group of individuals that make an attempt to branch out and break trends. The majority of Arabs that go to school here tend to hang around Arabs and ONLY Arabs. Relaxation is a huge facet of the Arab culture, and that is surely exhibited here. The majority live in close proximity at the Copper Beach townhouses, and rarely explore downtown unless needed to (for classes and such). Sitting around playing cards and Playstation while smoking Sheesha did not appeal to me anymore and I decided to go in my own direction. Why do they do this?

I totally understand the concept of being comfortable. Being able to trust an individual without having any second guesses about his/her intentions towards your friendship. But the majority of these people are not involved whatsoever in Penn State. Outside of class, you will rarely see an Arab in any organization other than the Arab Student Union / Khaleeji Student Association. It saddens me to know that my own people decided to come further their education here and still have the same boundaries that were present back home. Why would you come all the way here to study if your lifestyle is not going to change AT ALL? The four years that you spend here may never be able to be relived. Live it up and make new connections, make decisions that are outside of your comfort zone. I have and I have not been happier.
I know that once graduation creeps up on me, I will be happy with all the of the decisions I have made.

Race, Ethnicity, Color, Status. All four of these terms have so much commonality between them that on occasion, individuals forget the variances between them and use the terms interchangeably. What about stereotypes? We all buy into them at times, whether it being directly or totally unintentionally. Man races worldwide are associated with certain traits or commonalities that may or may not actually be factual.
I personally do not believe in stereotypes when attempting to describe one specific individual. Sure, the individual is part of the race associated with the stereotype, but it does not technically mean that they subordinate with it. One stereotype that I have personally experienced throughout my last 4 years in America was the fact that ALL ARABS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH ISLAM. Now, I am not the most pious person you’ll meet, but the fact that nobody has any knowledge about the region in general really gets at me. The Arab world is vast, and it encompasses not only the Arabian Peninsula, but also parts of North Africa.
Religion to me is personally a way for people to keep their lives on track. Some persons have trouble getting their lives together, and they must look for a “greater being” in order to finally find themselves. The fact of the matter is, Christianity and Islam are much more similar than people think. The only main difference between the two is that in Christianity, the belief is that Jesus is the son of God. In Islam, Allah has no mother, father, or offspring. Other than that, many of the 10 commandments go hand in hand with Islamic beliefs as well!
Getting away from the specifics of the situation, this revelation shows how close-minded many individuals are here in the United States. I don’t blame the majority for not being knowledgeable on the subject however, as the majority of information that they are given is spoon fed by the biased news networks that are aired. I believe that if people took more time to look into situations and issues after hearing about the generalities, more would be known and the word would definitely be spread around in a much quicker manner.
Unfortunately, the surroundings that people are subjected to are the biggest influences on their thought process. What are students taught in the classrooms? Even from a young age, children are not taught about the Middle East in depth at all. I attended an American educational system throughout both my primary and secondary education, and even attending this school in an ARAB country, we were not taught about recent events in the Mid-East in any of my history courses.
In conclusion, I believe that if individuals took more time to look further into issues, their mind would be opened up to the world!

Accents. Everyone has them. Whether it be an American who has lived the entirety of his life in the United States, or a British citizen who has never left his country, accents show so much more about a person than many individuals think.
Let’s look at one country in specific. The United States of America consists of various different cultures that span the entirety of the huge landmass. If you head to Georgia, you will hear a distinct accent that is easily distinguishable. From the accent alone, you can tell a plethora about a person’s lifestyle in general. Southern hospitality, comfort food, all of that can be deduced only from something as simple as an accent!
Head to New York City and you will hear another distinct aspect. This individual is probably extremely accustomed to the hustle and bustle of city life, and grew up not knowing much about suburban lifestyle.
So what makes accents so attractive? I guess it comes down to hearing something out of the norm. Something that you are not used to, and therefore are intrigued by. This applies to everything, and not only accents. If you see someone or something out of the ordinary, you are inclined to deduce certain things.
Foreign accents, those not stemming from the United States, are even more easily distinguishable. Being an Arab who has lived in Kuwait for the entirety of life, I can tell you that after a while, I can tell what region of the Middle East that person is from. Although the accents are so similar, certain words are skewed in a way to where you can pinpoint the person on the map given enough experience.
I spent 6 weeks in Paris this summer, and the French accent has definitely grown on me. What makes an accent an accent though? Why do certain people from certain regions speak a certain way? I had never stepped foot in the United States prior to arriving at Penn State, and I am commonly mistaken for an American. The fact that I do not have an accent honestly intrigues me just as much as it does to other people.
At the end of the day, people find accents more attractive due to their unusual nature. When we humans are approached with change, we are inclined to question that change. Wanting to break out of your shell and try new things is huge in learning about the world in general. I recommend that everyone try to study abroad if possible, because it will BLOW YOUR MIND.
At times, I myself put on a faux British accents just to see what reactions it will entail. Right away I can sense a heightened attention level.

Being an American citizen without ever having lived in the United States is a circumstance that not many people have gone through. Not being huge on politics throughout my upbringing, I never really knew the detailed differences between the various political parties (Republican, Democrat, Independent) and I honestly thought it would never affect me on a personal basis, therefore why care?

As a freshman coming into Penn State during the fall of ’08, George W. Bush was still in office at the time. His administration was under so much fire. Having been directly associated with the 9/11 Terror Attacks, the financial crisis of ’08, among other things, his departure was welcome to a certain extent. I personally believe that certain things could’ve been handled differently, and the United States definitely needed someone with a wholly different mindset to change how affairs were run throughout the country.

The time to vote slowly crept up on me, and I was totally unaware of the process needed to go through that. I personally thought that my vote would be one with no backing and therefore I decided to pass on the entire process. I attempted to research the pros and cons of each candidate, but the one thing that struck my eye was the fact that Obama was of African descent. Would this make a difference in the direction the country was going? Could this man bring such a prosperous country out a massive hole?

Extremely probable. What did his ethnicity or race have to do with anything? If the man had good ideas and wanted to further develop the country, why would it make a difference? Unfortunately, this is only a small portion of the populations thoughts on the issue. With the majority of voters being White, I can totally understand where the racism came into play. Sure it could’ve been unintentional, but where do you draw the line between personal preference and racial prejudice?

It is most probably true that the majority of voters solely voted for Obama because of his race, and not his views. The same goes for the opposite extreme of the spectrum, although fellow democrats may have agreed with some of his views, the fact that he was colored was the last straw for them. Voting against your own wing? That seems absurd, but this was probably the motive for majority of voters around the country. I can be sure that there are multiple people just like me who had no clue about what was going on, yet they had one thing to go by; Should we stick with the traditional and just stick with what has worked for years? Or should we but the country in the hands of a man who, although born in the U.S, may not be able to relate to the citizens of the United States?

When thinking about this question, I can't help but ask, what if people didn't have a "personal preference" when it came to picking another mate? Is it something that comes with your subconscious or is it something that you develop over time?

From my personal experiences, I can tell you that my surroundings played a huge role in my development to having a certain preferences towards the physical attributes of women. Growing up in the Kuwait and spending the majority of my life there, I have been constantly surrounded by Arab women who are predominantly black haired / brunette. As I matured and started to gain certain tendencies, I sort of adapted to my surroundings, taking in everything around me. Sure, I believe that nobody should be a conformist and that every person should have individualistic qualities, but sometimes you cannot help developing certain qualities and preferences.

Everyone has preferences when it comes to other people, whether it is denied or not. When I am looking at a person from purely a social standpoint, the preferences take a back seat and aren't relevant whatsoever. But when looking around to what is "attractive" to me, I can't help but to be more attentive to the brunette quality. This preference doesn't necessarily mean that I turn a blind eye to everything else, hence the word "preference" and not "requirement."

Now the question remains, what does separate an interracial prejudice from a personal preference? I personally believe that they are two totally different concepts that, unfortunately, get mixed up on a consistent basis. When I see an Asian/White couple for example, I don’t initially think “Oh that looks weird,” I open my eyes and say, “Wow, I can tell those people have an open mind and don’t have a care in the world to what other people think!” That’s just the thing; people of a certain race/culture tend to stay within their comfort zone. Many have similar tendencies and cultural qualities to where they don’t have to constantly explain certain aspects of their lifestyle to the other spouse. This barrier of interracial relationships is actually a healthy one, and it allows for more open-mindedness when it’s all said and done. Of course, this is all based on opinion, and everyone is dissimilar in a way, whether it being a big difference or a minute one.

In conclusion, I sincerely believe that personal preferences are partialities that are developed over time and are directly attributed to your surroundings. While interracial prejudice can be developed in the same way, they are more attributed to close mindedness and the inability to branch out of a comfort zone that one becomes comfortable with over the span of ther lives.