After taking Soc 119 I feel that my view of other races and ethnicities have changed in a positive way. Before taking this class, I was very narrow-minded on a few things. I would be quick to judge them on stereotypes that were associated with them. Often times, I wouldn’t even give them a chance. I assumed that I knew all that I needed to know about them and that nothing that was said would change my mind. Even though the town where I am from is diverse, I came here set in believing the faulty information that I had learned about other races and ethnicities. For example, before coming here, I believed that almost all white people in central Pennsylvania were racist even if they didn’t come out and admit it. I came here believing so, because it was what I had been told, they were fed to me as cold hard facts. Slowly, that was disproved. Many whites who I had met were some of the nicest most accepting people I had met. Others just weren’t used to so much diversity because it was not what they grew up knowing so I do not blame them for being so inherently rude to other races. Soc 119 is a class that I would definitely recommend to other students. It is a great eye opener that would be extremely beneficial to them. It definitely was to me. One example, is when Sam gave the lecture on muslims. Like many others, I was extremely skeptical about them given past events in history. I saw them as a threat and actively tried to avoid them. Stereotypes that surfaced about them became just as heavily ingrained in me as they did in society. These stereotypes were that they hated America, that they practiced a violent religion, and that they had bad intentions. Sam showed a video in class, where it showed quotes from Muslims holding signs saying that those opposed to their religion should be beheaded and that they should receive death. I watched that video and all I could think was that these people were seriously full of themselves. However, Sam’s lecture went on to show them as they live their daily lives. They are no different than us! They dress in nice clothes, they go out to nice malls, they hold festivals at their universities. Then a video was shown to us where U.S troops destroyed a man’s car just because he took a couple pieces of wood because they were cold and hungry. Another clip showed U.S troops running a car off a road in Iraq for fun. Whose the real culprit here? I’m thankful for having taken this class. I’m thankful for it erasing the way I thought of other races.

I think that if Sandusky was black or latino this would definitely be different. For starters it would get blown to a whole different level. I think that the investigation would be more highly detailed. After all they do represent a bigger percentage of prison inmates compared to their percentage in the population as a whole. The media would have a field day with this if he were to be black of latino. It definitely should not play a factor but the truth of the matter is that if he were to be black or latino, it would be the biggest factor of the case there is. It is wrong, because when there is a case like this, race should not be at the forefront. These cases are horrendous. The fact that an adult is engaging in such a behavior should be what is focused on, not the race of the offender. What these individuals do is disgusting. Black, white, latino, asian, or whatever the race of the offender is shouldn't determine how much attention the case gets or what the outcomes should be. It should be blind to race. The thing that should be focused on is the facts of the case. Molesting young children is WRONG no matter who you are! Why should you get treated any differently based on your race? I think that if race would play such a big factor in a case like this then the legal system will be just as corrupted and perverted as the offender. What if because race played such a huge role, people wouldn’t report that someone they knew who was of their same race, did what Sandusky is being accused of? This pattern is already evident with other crimes. It would be sad if that were to be the case but ultimately it can’t be ruled out. If he were to be black or latino, I think that less attention would be focused on the case and the victims. It should be more about the victims and what they are going through but that would get overshadowed by the race of the offender. One thing that I do wonder about is would it be different if not only Sandusky were black or latino, but if everyone else were too. What if this took place in a town and a school where the majority of the students were in fact black and latino? Would the media cover it as much? Would they cover it at all? It is definitely something that I am curious about now. To sum it up, race should not be factor in cases like these. The evidence, facts and what the victims are going through is what should be considered.

Do I think they would have happened without the social media and facebook? Yes, I do think that they would. Of course the social media definitely helped out but without it or not, it would have carried on. Students would have used their cell phones to get in contact with each other, they would have gone to each others dorms and apartments, posters and flyers would be spread around the campus. Word of mouth is a very powerful tool that is going underestimated. The media and facebook are just a nice bonus to have. But one big point does stick out from having the media around. These "riots" would not have been riots at all. They would have been what they were meant to be. Peaceful protests. The media served one purpose and one purpose only this past week. They angered the students and prompted students to become reckless and violent. Before the cameras showed up at the protest on wednesday, students were calm and peaceful in front of Old Main. Yet, you never know. It could have turned into what it ended up being a couple days ago without the media being there. Who knows. Also, let's be real. Students knew that Paterno being dismissed was a huge possibility because of rumors. Ever since the information on this disgusting scandal came out, everyone knew that it was going to be brought into question. All different mixes of emotions started brewing up since last weekend. Like it was said in class emotions ranged from feeling angry and frustrated to feeling numb. Students were going to need an outlet to vent. Maybe that outlet would have stayed constructive or maybe it would have turned violent. Either way these feelings were going to get expressed one way or the other. Now, addressing the extent to which students took their riot, it was absolutely ridiculous. What did tipping over a van prove? What purpose did it serve? The answer is nothing. Without the media would the riot have gained such nationwide attention? To a small degree yes it would have. Students and residents of the area would have phoned relatives and friends, letters would have been written. Slowly, it would have made its way around to different places in the country and maybe even the world. The person you tell would tell their family and friends and so on. However, maybe the power that the riots carried might not have been possible without the help of media outlets. Through television, facebook, and twitter, you can create an event and reach millions in seconds after you created it. The media definitely helped the protest grow to what it was. There is no doubt about it.

I think that the reason Mexicans and other Hispanic/Latino immigrants are more willing to do these hard labor jobs is because in their countries the job opportunities aren't as great. So as soon as they get here they will do everything and anything to get money to help their families advance as much as possible. Coming from a latino immigrant family who did a string of hard labor jobs, I understand why they do these jobs for such low wages. The jobs in our country were at many times hard to find and as soon as they got here, a handful of job opportunities were presented left and right and they took as many of them as possible. These job opportunities of course were hard labor jobs. And this is what most immigrants workers encounter. Hard labor jobs that Americans won't even consider doing. Why Americans can't bring themselves to do them can be because of multiple reasons, each being different for every individual. The most widely accepted of reasons, is that Americans are lazy and that they don't have a strong work ethic. This could be true. It could be false. Determining this for sure, is something that I don't think is possible. One thing that has been widely expressed by Americans is that these jobs that our Hispanic/Latino immigrants do are not desirable to them. They see themselves as being above doing these kinds of jobs. They find these jobs as being too hard to do. They prefer to do these nice jobs where they are inside, away from the heat, where they won't experience the sweat of hard work. A good example of this came up in class when we watched the Colbert Report video clip. Although, it was for comedic relief, it illustrated a good point. Americans haven't used agricultural work as a means to make a living in quite some time, and putting them back in that situation, they cave. They quit after just a few hours in the sun. When it comes to providing for their families, Americans have the idea of working in an air conditioned office, secured by the walls of their buildings. They see education as the way to making it and living a good life. To do anything else, would seem absurd. Why work in extreme conditions with little pay, when a much more cushiony job awaits elsewhere? Taking this into consideration, I don't think its correct to say that immigrants are taking jobs away from Americans. They are clearly being handed to them on a silver platter. So why support enforcing laws that force these hard working immigrants to flee the states where their jobs are located if no one else is willing to do them?