Whenever someone generally thinks about prison they always think of rape, violence, and cell yard brawl. People are raised and socialized to believe that convicted criminals are horrible people that should be ostracized from any and all communities. Everything from television to magazines and newspapers depict “lifers” in a totally negative light. I used to never give sympathy to a convicted felon. I was always thinking, “Hey, they deserved what’s coming to them.” I definitely do not believe that after reading what he wrote. This letter written by the “lifer” totally changed my perception of prisoners and the way they treat each other. I had always imagined it took a real cold human being to kill another, other than an instance of self-defense obviously. After reading this letter, I realized that time spent in prison does work, and people might leave a totally different person. It was great to see that such violent people could share compassion like that. This is strong evidence that people are not innately evil but rather kind hearted. People are simply scared of one another nowadays. If someone that looks “suspicious” walks into a coffee shop, half of the paying customers might leave because they feel uncomfortable. I think this is basically what’s wrong with the world today. Society makes too many judgmental decisions on who is good and who is bad. We all need to develop relationships before making a call. The man who wrote this letter has definitely altered my outlook on life. I now can see that most of the population actually cares about their neighbors and might actually assist them if they need help. If a hardened criminal who has been put away for life can help his sworn enemy get through a tough time, I think we all can make the conscious effort to do the same. This letter also proves that our prison system is generally working. This man admits his sentence has changed him and even though he is stuck there for the rest of his life, he makes concerted efforts to give back to a community he has obviously done great harm to. Though this letter may seem depressing and dark to some, it has actually brightened my day. It awakened me to the realization that there are times that we all can just get along. Overall, I think that this is the most useful piece of information I gained from this class. All of those “mind-blowing” facts and lectures that Sam said he would give do not even compare to the strength of this letter. I thank Sam and Laurie for sharing this great piece of writing with us because I think it will evolve the way we understand the world.

Learning Mandarin Chinese seems to be an important skill that high schools across the country are trying to teach, but it doesn’t seem that many people are catching on. Ironically, when I was in elementary school (which at the time was kindergarten through fourth grade) they began teaching Mandarin Chinese to students in third grade, starting with my year. For the next two years at the school a special teacher would come into the class three times per week and instruct us on the very basics of the language. For us as young students, this language was very exotic and obviously foreign and its use of characters seemed to create quite an interest. The class combined learning the language with learning about Chinese culture and customs. Personally I enjoyed it and I took a special interest because at the time my cousin had recently been adopted from Hong Kong. After gaining a basic understanding of the language and graduating from elementary school, the school district decided to cut the program. In middle school, you are required to take language classes that continue through graduation of high school and I, for one, know that I would have continued with mandarin. Looking back on it, I feel a bit slighted that my school district would cut what would know be a very instrumental program. Whether we as a culture understand it or not, Chinese culture and language are becoming an integral part of the global economy. With few Americans developing this skill, it would be a distinct advantage to be fluent. To this day I remember bits and pieces from class. Though I cannot form a basic sentence, I can remember numbers and greetings. With my own personal evidence, I feel as though if I were to have continued the education I would be more proficient in mandarin than I am in Spanish. I have taken about eight years worth of Spanish class, maintaining around an A- average from middle school to college, and I am not confident in my application of the language. The most basic things I have retained are related to the culture, not the language. This leads me to believe that applying mandarin, or even Cantonese, is easier. With its growing importance in today’s society, I think schools should being to implement a more rigorous mandarin or Cantonese program for their students. With a growing national Hispanic population, it does not surprise me that Spanish education remains constant. Overall, I think learning mandarin is becoming a growing trend and this is related to its importance within the global economy. The United States tends to adapt to global changes such as this, and whether or not we like it, adaptation is a necessity.

Before I scheduled this class I have had many friends tell me it was amazing. They said that the class was entertaining and the professor changed their minds on so many topics. I wouldn’t say that Sam doesn’t shape my opinions and beliefs. But I also wouldn’t say that he has changed them in any way. Nothing he has said has rocked my world and totally reformed my perspective on the way the world works and operates. At the beginning of the semester Sam portrays the class to have that ‘groundbreaking’ effect on everyone. He made it seem like he would show me the light on how the world works and I would leave school at the end of the semester looking at the world in a totally different manner. I do not think that is the case. Many of the things he says he tends to repeat and usually they are obvious. The only situation through the semester thus far that he has showed something I hadn’t seen or heard before was related to Native Americans. This might be a relative situation for most people because since there is such a small population of Native Americans, most people do not interact with them at all, ever. Sam should be given a ton of credit for what he does, though. Many professors would never say any of the things he says, or even risk teaching a class on such a taboo topic. I don’t think Sam’s objective is to totally change our minds on these matters, as much as he says he’s trying. Whenever he shows a statistic or a video it makes me think. It makes me think about my life and how I relate to what he’s showing, it makes me think about how I have lived the first nineteen years of my life, and how my family has lived. This is the greater goal of the class and I would have to say that Sam achieves it. I enjoy reflecting on the lectures in the discussion groups and I relish the opportunity to listen to what my classmates have to say because their experiences throughout their lives are drastically different from mine. Overall, I would say that the class makes me think deeply about how I’ve operated through my life and how I plan to act in the future. The class can get a little redundant and I think the entirety of the lecture hall voices their opinion when Sam repeats himself. In the end I would recommend the class for anyone to take. It is generally entertaining and it makes you think deeply about a variety of topics. Combining these factors leads to a very enjoyable class and I think Sam does a good job of stimulating your mind.

After seeing this video clip many times, I am still swallowed up by the same reaction. It is disturbing and quite depressing. It is saddening to here that a girls own mother called her ugly because of how dark her skin is. Why should that matter? The main question that runs through my mind each time I watch is what have these young children seen during their short life that makes them thing dark skin is bad? The video is very bare and truthful. The children are so innocent that their simple emotions and reactions are impossible to mask. For this reason, it makes what they say and the dolls that they choose even more shocking. Many of the children react immediately or with little hesitation to the questions asked of them. This evidence just keeps adding to how disturbing the clip and the experiment actually is. The only reasonable explanation for this, in my mind, seems to be the medias outright overuse of white beauty. If you flip on the television most commercials for beauty products are using white models. The same goes for many clothing outfitters. It seems to be that the media is imprinting these views into a childs mind. Whether this is intentional or unintentional it needs to change. Another statement that Sam made that disturbed me quite a bit was the fact that skin lightening cream is the greatest selling product in the world. It is very depressing to realize that our global culture is socializing people to believe that just because they have darker skin they are ugly. Im going to assume that even lighter skinned races such as Asians are using this cream. Not only is the use of these creams unnecessary, but they are also very dangerous. They can damage skin to the point where it cannot be repaired and the creams can create scarring that will never go away. It is also mind boggling to think that even though all indications point to the majority of our culture believing whiter is better, many people go to tanning salons to look darker at the peak of winter or lie out on the beach for hours on end trying to get a tan. The combination of these two simple realities is what puts me off the most. How is it possible that some people want to get lighter and some want to get darker? Also, if everyone believes lighter is better, why to white people want to get darker? It is a very confusing and highly delicate situation but it is very important at the same time. Overall, I believe that as a global society we need to make a bigger push to demonstrate to children that beauty does not solely rest on skin color, but rather on combination of traits.

I think the essence of Sam’s example was correct but I also think he took it too far. He illustrated that we need to talk about issues and bring them to light, even if it makes us uncomfortable. Without doing so, our society will go nowhere in regards to race relations. Personally, I think what Sam tried to do worked, but his example could have been a little stronger. I don’t think that people refuse to talk about menstruation because it’s a “man’s world” and women are forced to conform to it. Sam compared menstruation to hair growing, people sweating, and toe nails getting longer. One thing that stood out to me was that he left off other bodily functions and not to gross anyone out, but he didn’t mention urination or defecation. I think this is what distinguishes menstruation from his other examples. It’s not that men or even women don’t want to talk about menstruation. Women, or at least the ones that I know, do not seem shy to verbalize how uncomfortable their cramps are or how bloated they feel. I also think that men do not have a problem or sympathizing with these symptoms. But where many people draw the line in discussion would be the physical menstruation. I’ll give an example to illustrate my point simply: You’re at dinner with your girlfriend and she is menstruating. She’s taking about the severity of her cramps and how uncomfortable it is for her to sit there. Surely anyone can discuss that, there’s nothing wrong with that. But if she elaborates on how heavy she is bleeding and the “art” she left in the toilet you might ask her to stop. Now, let’s say you have defecate but you’re severely constipated. Do you think she’ll have a problem discussing how uncomfortable you feel? What would cross the line would eventually be you telling her what your poop looked like, its size, shape, and contents. It’s safe to assume that she would tell you to stop because she is grossed out. Men don’t seem to have a problem discussing these functions with each other though. Overall, my general point is that people are not afraid to discuss outlying natural processes and symptoms. But the taboo issue in our society deals with any type of excrement. I don’t think discussing menstruation is avoided because it only occurs in women. I think that simply distinguishes it from other bodily functions. Relating this to race, I cannot understand what it feels like to menstruate because I am male, just like I cannot what it feels like to belong to a minority race. But even though I cannot relate to the problems they face and discussing them might make me feel uncomfortable, doing so is necessary to make any progress.

It’s funny that she brings up the textbook scenario. A couple of nights ago I had The Daily Show on and was sort of half watching. One of the topics Jon Stewart was talking about was a Texas State School Board Meeting. I may not be getting all of the details correct but to my knowledge the debate brought to the board was whether or not to add Latino role models into textbooks. A large amount of valid evidence was brought before the board. Many experts portrayed their opinion that it would be a good fit to add these men to the textbooks. To go more specifically, the newscast, if we can call it that, made it seem like there was no reason not to add these parts to the textbook. Especially in a state like Texas, where the histories of the Mexican people are so intertwined with theirs. To be brief, the school board shot it down. These actions just further the beliefs and actions to prove that the people in power, who are mostly white, write the history books. The issue of white guilt is not often discussed and many people just laugh it off whenever it is brought up. Our country is often called a “melting pot” and this attests to the diverse make-up of the population. It seems obvious that the people who write textbooks push certain events harder than others. Upon reflection, I personally feel and I don’t think most people will disagree, that the treatment of Native Americans and the Civil Rights Movement are covered deeply in the books because of the guilt that the authors feel. Now, this is not to say that these aren’t monumental occurrences, of course they were, but they are written in such detail that it looks like the authors were attempting to make up for something. This is a good thing but at the same time it can have a negative affect on the way our future plays out. I was always taught growing up that history is important to study because in order to grow and learn we need to recognize the mistakes our ancestors made and make an effort to not repeat them. Going along these lines I think our society can grow by taking a deep looking into issues portrayed in our textbooks but at the same time we begin to overlook smaller things and neglect other issues that our nation has faced. Feeling guilty for the actions of our ancestors, or in some cases the actions of others’, forces people to take a deeper look history. Should our generation feel guilty? Probably not. But the fact that many do speaks to the way our generation was educated about the past and shows how we intend to build on it.

It's actually funny that you asked that question. I've never watched the show whatsoever but while with my aunt and cousins, who were watching the show, I actually asked that question. Before writing this post I asked one of my friends who watches the show the same question. I was told that the guy screens the girls and narrows down his choices to the ones we see on the show. In that case, this has nothing to do with station but has to do more the the contestants preferences. But I can't be positive that she was right. While watching the episode with my family there were twenty or so contestants left and I'm pretty sure all of them were white, maybe one was black I'm not sure. It was The Bachlorette, but still the same characteristics transfer. Sometimes these shows seem to have a few minority contestants featured, but they usually never make it passed the first round or so. Are they there to fill a quota? Probably not, but we probably will never actually know. I feel like ABC is not a very racially diverse station. Just thinking about it, most of their shows feature mostly, if not all white casts, all of their "contest" shows feature white judges, and that carries through to the contestants. Compared to other stations and shows this is vastly different. Fox for instance, broadcasts shows based around black families and their most popular show, American Idol, features a black judge. I think this says something about the station more than our culture. ABC was one of the first stations on the air and it seems to me that they are what some might say "old fashioned." Someone else had commented that they think the station is also playing into demographics. I also think that is true. If I had to guess I would estimate that 75% of the show's viewers are middle to upper class white females, possibly even a higher percentage. In that case, casting an all white contestant group and judge panel would probably be the most effective strategy for them, no matter how it is portrayed. This isn't an excuse for the show's and the stations lack of diversity but it also certainly does not mean that ABC is staffed with racists who refuse to place minorities in their shows. I think it's mostly the demographics for the viewership of the shows they produce and air. There obviously are other shows on television similar to The Bachelor or The Bachelorette that feature black contestants and main characters. Overall, I do not think that ABC is a fundamentally racist station but they probably have some work to with their viewers. Otherwise, we would not be discussing these scenarios.

The story of Yvrose Jean Babtiste is moving yet inspiring. People are going to assume that if she had been born in the United States, she would be making millions of dollars working on Wall Street. Personally, I don’t believe this is true. Even though Yvrose is a gifted entrepreneur and manages her business at a level that is not imaginative, I tend to believe that it is a mixture of both freedom and determinism that end up combining to help shape a person’s life. Where you come from, how you were raised, how your parents grow up and how they act are all factors in a person’s life decisions. I come from an area that would be considered upper middle class but there are people who live there that would be considered very well of, and those that are not. I have friends who work for everything they buy, every opportunity they are given is because they worked for it, not because their parents did it for them. Some of these friends are the ones whose parents are financially successful. I also have friends who come from families that do not have money and are given opportunities because of people they know. This leads me to believe that if a person works hard, they will be given an opportunity and it then rests on their shoulders whether or not they decided to take it and maximize its potential, though it may not be the exact opportunity they were hoping for. We cannot automatically assume that if Yvrose was born in the United States she would be afforded the opportunity to succeed and receive a well paying job. There are many people just like Yvrose in the United States today but they go unnoticed. If Yvrose was born into an affluent family who reside in a wealth area, it is very easy to believe that she could get a job of that magnitude. But what if she hadn’t, what if she was born into an area where drugs and crime were an easy way to make money? What if she grew up in an area that did not value education and school work? She could have easily used her unique skill set to make excellent money selling drugs on the streets of her neighborhood or doing anything else illegal. Now this isn’t to say that everyone who grows up in an area like this will end up selling drugs, I am just saying it is possible. On the other hand, she could work hard coming from a poorer area to succeed. All of these situations are plausible and I think that is what makes this topic so controversial. Could Yvrose have succeeded if she was born in the United States? Yes. Is it guaranteed? No.

Society is basically ruled by men, it has been that way throughout most of history. Whatever men want, they usually get. The male gender is very sexually charged, simply put. If one turns on the television almost every other advertisement is selling sex to men. Men commonly and openly express their heterosexual fantasies and conquests. Combine this fact with the fact that women are generally more affectionate and tender towards each other and everyone around them; it helps explain why lesbian women are more accepted then gay men. Straight women constantly kiss each other hello and goodbye, go to the bathroom together, and change clothes in front of each other. If heterosexual men were to do these things they would be looked at as gay because it is out of our socialized characteristics while women receive no stigma for these actions. An example in the gay world can be shown by the fact that if two women are seen kissing on the street, the men walking passed will oh and ah. On the other hand, if two men were seen kissing they would be shunned. Boys are usually ridiculed for being weak and effeminate and girls are made fun of for being too masculine. Many times it’s hard to tell if a woman is a lesbian but it seems to be slightly easier to pick out the gay men. Children are socialized to believe that boys should grow up to football stars and “manly men” while girls are expected to play the role of cheerleader and housewife. When something deviates from our expectations, it is usually shoved aside. Lesbian women can still be sexy cheerleaders and housewives while it is more difficult for men to be seen as manly and strong when they are considered more effeminate, even if in reality they may not be. Typically, “butch” women are mocked and tormented by men, obvious evidence that they are not accepted. Our culture is dominated by male ideologies, preferences, and fantasies. A common and ultimate fantasy of many men is to have a sexual encounter with multiple women while women usually do not fantasize about multiple partners. Men do not seem to realize that every lesbian isn’t a smoking hot blonde with a huge rack. With all of this being said, I don’t think everyone accepts lesbians more than gay men, I just think men do. I feel most men do so because they would love to witness two girls make out and that’s about it. If two “butch” women were seen kissing many men would have the same reaction they would if it were two men. They’re opinions dominate society and it is usually passed off as everyone else’s.

I think David Brooks is looking a little too far into things and forcing his critique to fit. There may be films out there which “The White Messiah” fable applies, but I do not think one of those is Avatar. When I first saw previews for the film, I was intrigued by the special effects, not its plot. After hearing rave reviews I went to see it. Not until reading Brooks’ critique did the possibility of “The White Messiah” fable jump into my head. Though this might be true in some other films, I don’t believe it fits into Avatar. One glaring hole in his theory is that white civilization is attempting to save the natives of Pandora. The exact opposite is actually true. The main antagonists of the film are the military forces that are attempting to destroy the planets natural inhabitants. Yes, the main protagonist is a white male attempting to save what some might consider an “uncivilized” group of people but Brooks neglects the mention that one of the people who help the natives is not white but Hispanic. Another hole in Brooks’ criticism is that the white male protagonist willingly goes to live with the natives. He does chooses to live with them but does so on an assignment and reports back to the eventual antagonists of the film, which leads to a periodic expulsion from the native civilization. For Brooks to say that the white male is leading the natives on a crusade against his own civilization is just incorrect. If the entire cast was white his theory might stand up, but if there are different cultures and races on both sides of this “crusade” I have to say it has no ground to stand on. Though many movies have the “White Messiah” theme running through, it is possible to stretch racial undertones into any film. Personally, I don’t believe James Cameron intended to create a racial undertone in his film. I just think it is a coincidence that the main protagonist is white. For all we know, there could have been a black finalist for the role. He could have even been offered the role and turned it down, nobody knows for sure. Films are meant to be an escape from reality. In Avatar’s case, the film was meant to be a three hour long special effects extravaganza, not a psychological thriller. Seeing the movie in I-Max 3-D captivates the audience and is the major reason for the success of the film. If it weren’t for the technology used for the film it would not be as highly regarded. Therefore, even though David Brooks poses a very intelligent and creative critique of the film, he is wrong.