One may think that we, as a nation, have gone beyond racial issues; race is no longer a factor, right? We're all equal... Not so much.
Thankfully, I haven't witnessed much explicit racism growing up in Buffalo Grove. This is a relatively civilized and diverse region. I have friends of all races and religions here in BG. My Jewish friend who went off to college in Carolina said that she was the first Jewish person that many of her classmates had met. Most were accepting of her, but she did get some ridiculous and unintentionally offensive questions.
Is it racism if the person who says something offensive about another's race does so with no bad intentions? For example, my friend was told, "Your nose is much smaller than I would have imagined." The speaker did not intend for this to be offensive, but it was.
Implicit racism, on the other hand, is still very common; it's more a product of the subconscious than outright, explicit racism. Implicit racism is more like looking through a racial lens, as opposed to outright disliking a certain race. It is important to be mindful and ask oneself why one acts the way that they do. There's a chance that one might be acting, or speaking, with implicit racism.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Social Classes Documentary
The documentary that we watched in class observed the differences between the lives of people from different social classes. One lady made it her career to teach people how to integrate into different social classes. That shows how intricate and difficult for an outsider to pick up on some of the details of social classes are.
Tammy worked hard to keep her family afloat, but they were still going nowhere. It made me wonder why her sons weren't doing anything. They could be working and helping their mom. How can you watch your mother work like that and just sit like a bum all day? I don't know how Tammy got to be so poor, but her children were obviously born into it; she probably was too, to a degree. The children's upbringing obviously doesn't help them, but their laziness doesn't either. Except for the one who got all of those awards. But he's very self-centered and is even openly ashamed of his family.
The very rich spectrum pointed out not only the differences between the social classes, but the differences between old and new money. Two people could have the same amount of wealth, but they would be in completely different social classes. The old money people were ridiculously pretentious, despite the fact that most of them had the money handed to them. New money people tend to flaunt more, but that's because they put in the work to get their own money and they know what it takes.
Tammy worked hard to keep her family afloat, but they were still going nowhere. It made me wonder why her sons weren't doing anything. They could be working and helping their mom. How can you watch your mother work like that and just sit like a bum all day? I don't know how Tammy got to be so poor, but her children were obviously born into it; she probably was too, to a degree. The children's upbringing obviously doesn't help them, but their laziness doesn't either. Except for the one who got all of those awards. But he's very self-centered and is even openly ashamed of his family.
The very rich spectrum pointed out not only the differences between the social classes, but the differences between old and new money. Two people could have the same amount of wealth, but they would be in completely different social classes. The old money people were ridiculously pretentious, despite the fact that most of them had the money handed to them. New money people tend to flaunt more, but that's because they put in the work to get their own money and they know what it takes.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Social Classes Documentary
We're watching a movie on the differences between people of different social classes and the differences between the lives that they lead. The gap between very rich and very poor is massive. While some people get by in shabby conditions paycheck to paycheck and without a dollar in the bank, others have anything that they want and will still leave millions to their children.
I feel that the old money rich people are very artificial and pretentious. If any one of them doesn't follow a certain norm that they're "supposed" to follow, they will be looked down upon and talked about behind their backs. Subtle details, such as shoulder level when speaking to someone, and what kind of fork you use, mean a lot to these people. They're really insignificant details. This just shows that they have so much time on their hands, all they can do is obsess over things like this. Had these people not been born into wealth, most of them would have been incapable of acquiring it on their own. I respect those who earn their money. It's unfair that some can do nothing and live lavishly while others work night and day and barely get by. But that's how life is and it's not changing soon. All that one can do is try their hardest to make it on their own.
I feel that the old money rich people are very artificial and pretentious. If any one of them doesn't follow a certain norm that they're "supposed" to follow, they will be looked down upon and talked about behind their backs. Subtle details, such as shoulder level when speaking to someone, and what kind of fork you use, mean a lot to these people. They're really insignificant details. This just shows that they have so much time on their hands, all they can do is obsess over things like this. Had these people not been born into wealth, most of them would have been incapable of acquiring it on their own. I respect those who earn their money. It's unfair that some can do nothing and live lavishly while others work night and day and barely get by. But that's how life is and it's not changing soon. All that one can do is try their hardest to make it on their own.
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