Who Am I? - Attempt 2

"My name is Kassie. I'm a senior this year and looking forward to college next year, where I plan to double major in psychology and Spanish. I have two siblings: an older sister and a younger brother. During high school, I have participated in both cross country and track as well as FMP. One of my vices is music; I am constantly listening to some music, no matter what I'm doing. I am a huge White Sox fan and watch every game. The biggest influences in my life are the music I listen to and my older sister. My sister is my best friend and we talk about everything together; her responsibility and kindness are very admirable. The silence activity from the first day proved that, to most, silence is awkward. I think this is because of our society today - we always have background noise or distractions or entertainment. Most people cannot stand any silence and talk just to make noise and are not the best of listeners because of it. Silence does not bother me, in fact, I actually enjoy it. However, in a classroom with a bunch of silence-haters, it does make it more awkward. "
After reading this, I realized that this blog does not describe who I am, it describes what I do and what I like. I should have written about my favorite topics to discuss and my opinions of them. I should have written about who I am to others (a sister, a daughter, etc.). Writing about music was good because it gives a little insight into who I am. I listen to music constantly. I could talk about how I treat others and whether I am a good person or not. Who I am is much more how I act and how others view me. It's not what I do or what I will do in my future. It is much more personal and what makes me an individual.

Crash.

The movie Crash is really great because it is really realistic in the way that it portrays racism. Of course, as Sal said, you can't watch the movie literally. When you watch it non-literally, it is really effective. The ways that it shows racism is so relatable. Such as when Sandra Bullock's character is walking with Brendon Fraiser's character. She sees two African-American men and walks closer to him and tightens her grip on his arm. The two men are discussing how racist she is by doing that but then they proceed to car-jack her and her husband! This scene seemed the most realistic to me. Many women feel uncomfortable when there are African-Americans walking toward or near them on a street and the reason they're afraid is because they may do something like car-jacking. Is this racism? I'm not so sure and I think that's the brilliance of this scene. Sandra's character seems racist and the two men feel she's being racist, yet they proceed to steal her car - is this justifying her previous actions? It's so difficult to say because I automatically want to think that she's not racist, but would they have stolen their car if she hadn't reacted to their presence? There have probably been many incidents such as this in the past and I think many people use it to justify their racism because they take their situation and apply it to an entire race, which I do believe is wrong.
Another scene that really affected me was the one with Matt Dillon's character trying to save the woman from the car. She is absolutely terrified by him because he molested her previously. The look on the officer's face shows that he feels terrible for his actions. The woman doesn't even want him to help her save her life - that is how badly the molesting and racism affected her. It seems that the officer didn't realize how badly she'd be impacted by what he did. I loved this scene because it is so relatable! Most people who do or say racist things don't think they're making any difference in anyone's life. However, they are making a HUGE difference. Racism is not to be taken lightly, no matter if someone is molesting someone or telling a joke. It will affect them! It is clear, after this scene, that the officer will never treat another persont he way he treated that woman when he pulled her and her husband over.

Racism is far from gone.

There is so much more implicit racism than we realize. It's everywhere; everytime someone makes a joke, or even simply references to someone by their "race", it's racism. There really is no such thing as "race". It's made up in our heads to categorize people. Many people think we've come so long and that racism as decreased a lot. I'm not so sure about this - I think it has just changed. Instead of being violent, it is now jokes and humor. But it is still hurtful because it is still categorizing people. I think that because we see people of certain "races" making the jokes (like the Chapelle show we watched) we accept it as okay. But the truth is, it is not okay. It is the same as segregation because the psychological effect is the same. Just like the study we watched with the six year olds and their dolls. They still feel that there are certain "races" that are better than others and that are preferable. This more than anything shows the effects of the implicit racism. Children of such a young age feeling this way is so indicative of how this is affecting them and why it needs to stop. I hope some day that everyone will be viewed as exactly the same as one another, no matter what their skin color is.

Class.

I really hadn't though of how people tend to stay in the same class as their parents until we discussed it in class. It's so true! Also the monopoly game really shows how difficult it is to move out of the class you grew up in. Right now, I'm in the same class that my parents grew up in. However, my grandparents all grew up in very poor conditions. The grandparents that grew up in America would probably have fallen in the lower class. My grandmother who grew up in Europe grew up in poverty because of World War II. My grandfather from Europe was probably lower class as well. To think of what they came from and what they all made with themselves in their adult lives is unbelievable. They all went from bad conditions to living in the middle-class. Now, because of their hard work, I live in a upper middle-class home. But my parents have told me how hard their parents worked. It is also visable in their actions. They are much more appreciative of what they have and much less wasteful. My grandparents do not take too much food and then not finish it. They do not over-indulge. They do not splurge just because they want to. They are so grateful for what they have because they know what it is like to be without so much. I think part of the reason it's so difficult to change class is because people from different classes have different ideals and values. I feel grateful to have been taught to be thankful for everything I have because it could all disappear one day. If I'm very lucky, I will move into the upper-class. However, most likely, I will remain in the middle-class.

What American Dream?

There were many stories in the film we've been watching in class, but the one that affected me most was definitely Tammy's story. It was devastating! She'd grown up in a completely different world than the one we (those of us in the Stevenson bubble) are used to. She had twenty-one siblings! And now she lives in a trailer with her children in the middle of nowhere. Her life has not changed since she was a child - it's a cycle and it seems that she'll never be able to get out. Like Sal said, most of us would love to get the chance to talk to her and "fix" her, but where would we start? I thought about this quite a lot and couldn't come up with an answer. Tammy is willing to work: she walks ten miles to her job everyday! So she has the will. She has no car or means of transportation. She literally lives in the middle of a field. That way of living will be ingrained into her children as well. One of her sons wants to go to college and move up in society, but even then she was calling him "preppy" and saying that "he thinks he's better than [them]". All that does is make her son feel bad about wanting to improve his lifestyle. Her other son seemed more than happy to sit in front of the television all day and do nothing. So there's really nowhere to start with improvements. She literally can't get a job to raise her above poverty level. She has no opportunities. She is trying her very best and is barely keeping her head above water. What does this say about America? A parent can't provide for their family and is forced to live in the conditions Tammy and her family live in - it's sickening! People in the suburbs (like Stevenson) are worried about getting the latest gadgets and Tammy's worried about what she can afford for the next meal. The extremities in America really make it a two-class system! The rich are getting richer and the poor and getting poorer and the middle-class is virtually non-existent. But as much as this bothers people, if you honestly stop to think about it, what can we do?

America the not-so-helpful

Before reading those articles about jails and watching that "30 Days" episode, I had no idea how little jail really does. In fact, I really think it really is a waste of time because most of the inmates will be back multiple times in their life. Doesn't this send a message? Doesn't this tell us that we're doing something wrong? We lock people up for years, treating them almost like animals, and let them go, expecting them to be able to adapt to a completely different world and without any help. Since around half of the inmates in federal prisons are in for drug-related issues, jails need to be more than just a place they stay and eat and sleep. Drug addiction is a serious problem - people cannot help themselves and shouldn't be expected to! Locking them up does absolutely nothing. Even for those prisoners who are in for violent crimes should be helped. There should be some way to help them learn about what they did wrong, why it was wrong, what they can do to improve their lives and what's going on in the world when they get out. Being released from jail after thirty years cannot be easy - it's a completely different world! And with no help, the convicts will just fall right back into their old habits. It's such a corrupt system and it is so sad that the United States is doing nothing to help the people who need it most.

"The Saints and the Roughnecks"

The article we read for class, "The Saints and the Roughnecks" was a really good read because it is so very true. The kids that everyone views as good students that come from good families are almost always forgiven their crimes. However, those teens that come from poverty are seen as delinquents from the start and if they are accused of something, they're immediately thought of as guilty. This is so very true and it's prevalent at Stevenson. Many students at Stevenson are involved in breaking the laws almost every weekend. On the rare occasion a student is caught, the most common story is that they get off with almost no punishment. I've heard of students being in several DUI's and having no consequences, because "they have a really good lawyer". I cannot believe this happens. My cousin attended a much poorer high school around here where crime was also common. However, she told me that they were always being arrested and expelled from school. How is it that the kids from the upper middle class get away with the same crimes committed by those from low-income families? It truly is society's view of them because all I hear is how lucky I am to attend such a great high school and how everyone will grow up to be successful and lead such wonderful lives. But the truth is, when students get away with everything at such a young age, all it teaches them is that no matter what they do, there will never be any punishments or repercussions for those actions. They will expect the same bailing out in their adult lives which is just unrealistic. As for the "roughnecks", all they will hear their entire lives is how they are delinquents and untrustworthy and expected to be failures. Therefore, most of them grow up fulfilling these predictions. It is an ongoing circle for the two classes and succeeds in separating them further and further and giving America much more of a two class society.