Week of April of th 18th and April 23rd
Last Two Week Blogs
Suicide
AnaMaria blog about her situation was so hard to read, my heart was so overwhelmed with hurt for her. This is so upfront, that I feel that it will change how I view people different from me and that we do not know how and what people have been through in their lives. We are not supposed to judge but as humans I feel it is in us to do it without even thinking about first. I will take the information AnaMaria gave us and use it to help others to seek help for the issues that have them thinking about taking their own lives. This is something serious and need to pay close attention to because we could be sitting right next to someone whom may not be alive the next day due to taking their own lives. I commend AnaMaria for being open with the class about her past and future, so thanks to her for opening up my eyes to the subject of suicide.
Service Learning Project
The Eastside Community project is one that needed to looked at and so we took it upon ourselves to find out peoples reaction to the new and coming changes of the central Austin formerly known as east Austin. Many do not refer to it by central east Austin, including me I still and will continue to refer to it as East Austin. Personally I wanted to get inside look at what people really thought especially the African American community, that were born and raised in East Austin. During the project it was a surprising outcome of what the few people I interviewed thought about the changes, it truly was a surprise to me. The results had a spin on what we thought these group of people would with what they actually felt and how they believe in those changes. We decided to pose questions on how they felt communication should be implemented with upcoming changes to the East Austin and how those plans of changes should involve the African American who feel they are being left out and or remove from an environment that they built together as a African American and their roots. As we read the article on Individual and Family Intervention skills, it talked about how in African culture is rooted in a spirituality relationships with human beings and how their was or is a need to live in harmony. African Americans deal with many things in life by gracing life with spirituality beliefs and praying about things instead of literally acting on things that may have a negative effect on their future, being okay with what is to come and accepting changes as good changes and that God has his hands on the situation. I do feel myself when things are too much for me to handle, or things just seems to high for me to reach and debate, I pray and allow some changes to take place. Basically leaving our lives and our future in the hands of someone, who has no idea what being African American is about and what we've been through and where we're going.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Week 12
Hip Hop Beyond Beats and Rhymes?
While watching the film in disbelief, I can not imagine why the women in the rap videos would belittle themselves while dancing half naked and also while attending the BET fest and being groped by the men. There has to be some level of very low self-esteem, to think that this is healthy attention from the men in the crowd. I also feel if the ones making the rap videos have no respect enough to know that they are exploiting the women in so many ways. I understand that it is a money making business like many other businesses who take advantage of many others but just in a different way. I also feel if more people are aware of the negative consequences then some of what happens can take a turn in a positive way. If we do not start educating our young women at home, in communities and in our schools, I feel it will just continue and poison our African American women who have so much more potential than to be a cloth less pawn for a rap video.
Watts Article
The idea from the article is a good start and to focus on the consciousnesses of the young African American males is a great beginning. To understand where their actions come from and what they lead to is an important part of oppression liberation. Once the focus is integrated into the communities, the homes and the school system, it may possibly change the way of thinking. We have to change the way we feel and see things to have a effect on the policies that effect our communities and its people.
Peterson Article
I feel the way African American women are portrayed in rap videos is a total disrespect to all mankind. As women we should teach our younger peers to have more respect for themselves, to have confidence and that self-esteem, that says I am worth more than just a piece of flesh. I also feel that this may be the reason for the rape in African American women, early teen pregnancies and the unhealthy relationships with many partners. Their has to be a way to get information out there about the negative portrayals of women in music videos and in some movies. We have to demand more positive portrayals in rap video and how those actions in some rap videos have an adverse effect on our society of African American women. I believe that the future of the African American people depends on the change in media, rap videos and how African American males treat women in their personal and public lives.
While watching the film in disbelief, I can not imagine why the women in the rap videos would belittle themselves while dancing half naked and also while attending the BET fest and being groped by the men. There has to be some level of very low self-esteem, to think that this is healthy attention from the men in the crowd. I also feel if the ones making the rap videos have no respect enough to know that they are exploiting the women in so many ways. I understand that it is a money making business like many other businesses who take advantage of many others but just in a different way. I also feel if more people are aware of the negative consequences then some of what happens can take a turn in a positive way. If we do not start educating our young women at home, in communities and in our schools, I feel it will just continue and poison our African American women who have so much more potential than to be a cloth less pawn for a rap video.
Watts Article
The idea from the article is a good start and to focus on the consciousnesses of the young African American males is a great beginning. To understand where their actions come from and what they lead to is an important part of oppression liberation. Once the focus is integrated into the communities, the homes and the school system, it may possibly change the way of thinking. We have to change the way we feel and see things to have a effect on the policies that effect our communities and its people.
Peterson Article
I feel the way African American women are portrayed in rap videos is a total disrespect to all mankind. As women we should teach our younger peers to have more respect for themselves, to have confidence and that self-esteem, that says I am worth more than just a piece of flesh. I also feel that this may be the reason for the rape in African American women, early teen pregnancies and the unhealthy relationships with many partners. Their has to be a way to get information out there about the negative portrayals of women in music videos and in some movies. We have to demand more positive portrayals in rap video and how those actions in some rap videos have an adverse effect on our society of African American women. I believe that the future of the African American people depends on the change in media, rap videos and how African American males treat women in their personal and public lives.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Week 11
Boys of Baraka
The film touch me so that when I left the class I continued to tear up and wonder what can I do and where do I start. I truly feel that the system affected the individuals which in turn caused a huge achievement gap. We are one of most powerful countries, the United States will rescue other countries, rebuild their communities, their schools and their people. But yet here we have people who suffer daily, who are homeless and children who go hungry everyday and night. We have billionaires who give money to many causes because somehow can not bring those children out of despair and give them the proper tools for an education. This system allows these children to live in dangerous area and watch them disappear behind prison walls and or watch them be buried six feet under. How can such a rich country not have the funds to give back to what society took so much from, hung, burned and mutilated their ancestors just because of the color of their skin. How can you not feel the need to give back to what you have taken, how can you sit back and watch people of color be treated like non-human and treat slime in the gutters with more compassion and respect. It truly makes me so sad that I know even at my age, I have to do something, I just do not know where to start. I know that this is why I have stayed in College at my age for so long and that is to reach back and give back to those who have been neglected and so misunderstood by this society and its people. And now I do have to wonder why so many of the wealthy have gone to other countries to adopt and to create an entire school system to help others when there is so many in need here. I am not saying neglect those children but why not start at home and give back. My outlook now on those wealthy people is a little different now and I will always question their mission. When the outcome of the Boys of Baraka ended the way it did, I knew at that moment we as a people still have a long way to go. I truly feel that some things will never change but that does not mean that we as individuals can not change. As parents, students, professors, teachers and so many others have to begin to question, challenge and seek the answers needed to make areas such as the projects in Balitmore Maryland extinct. One district at a time, one parent at a time and one child at a time and most importantly it begins in the home, to change the system that was built to make sure many fail in hope, education and life. Taking the time to educate our children in the homes and educate them on our history of where we been, where we are and where we need to be. All this can be done by supporting each other, praising each other, respecting each other and reaching back and pulling someone up with you on your journey. We say all the time we will but yet we pass each other on campus and not even acknowledge each other, we are doing exactly what that same system that has set people of color up to fail, not standing behind each other. As a parents we need to make education important in the household, find out what books are needed and find funds to buy the books, attend all parent/teacher meetings and stop accepting what is thrown at us as the last resort. And people make it a point to let all know that those prison complex's that are being built probably has many people of color names on the front door and we need to start early with our children, it is hard work but I am sure it will all pay off in the end. I respect and appreciate the opportunity to be apart of such classes and take what I have learned and continue to learn to people I come in contact with and uses your privilege to vote will help change who is in charge of your life.
Closing the Gap
I do feel there is a achievement gap and a structural oppression, the both work together to continue to cause oppression. If the system is not working to educate all children in society then it is set up so that many will fail and those who are privileged will continue to have those privileges of success and a bright future. I believe that the gap can be closed, it is just going to take an extreme amount of hard work from the parents and of the community of which we live.
Acting White
I had not observed this while in my particular High School because it was predominately white and foreign students, the African American students were pretty much trying to keep up and achieve because that was expected of us and something we wanted to do was to get good grades. I have noticed it while my son was growing up, I would do things I know needed to be done to make sure he had received a good education. So reading books, and trying to get him to speak with correct words, his friends who were not being taught the same thing would tell him to stop acting white. So it was a struggle trying to get him to see that education was very important and that it was okay to be smart and be apart of groups such as the book club, boy scouts etc. because some of his peers were not involved in the groups and some of their parents were not doing some of things I was trying to do with my son. The acting white to me is a form of internalized oppression because we have been taught to think we are not smart, not worthy and not capable of achieving great things.
The film touch me so that when I left the class I continued to tear up and wonder what can I do and where do I start. I truly feel that the system affected the individuals which in turn caused a huge achievement gap. We are one of most powerful countries, the United States will rescue other countries, rebuild their communities, their schools and their people. But yet here we have people who suffer daily, who are homeless and children who go hungry everyday and night. We have billionaires who give money to many causes because somehow can not bring those children out of despair and give them the proper tools for an education. This system allows these children to live in dangerous area and watch them disappear behind prison walls and or watch them be buried six feet under. How can such a rich country not have the funds to give back to what society took so much from, hung, burned and mutilated their ancestors just because of the color of their skin. How can you not feel the need to give back to what you have taken, how can you sit back and watch people of color be treated like non-human and treat slime in the gutters with more compassion and respect. It truly makes me so sad that I know even at my age, I have to do something, I just do not know where to start. I know that this is why I have stayed in College at my age for so long and that is to reach back and give back to those who have been neglected and so misunderstood by this society and its people. And now I do have to wonder why so many of the wealthy have gone to other countries to adopt and to create an entire school system to help others when there is so many in need here. I am not saying neglect those children but why not start at home and give back. My outlook now on those wealthy people is a little different now and I will always question their mission. When the outcome of the Boys of Baraka ended the way it did, I knew at that moment we as a people still have a long way to go. I truly feel that some things will never change but that does not mean that we as individuals can not change. As parents, students, professors, teachers and so many others have to begin to question, challenge and seek the answers needed to make areas such as the projects in Balitmore Maryland extinct. One district at a time, one parent at a time and one child at a time and most importantly it begins in the home, to change the system that was built to make sure many fail in hope, education and life. Taking the time to educate our children in the homes and educate them on our history of where we been, where we are and where we need to be. All this can be done by supporting each other, praising each other, respecting each other and reaching back and pulling someone up with you on your journey. We say all the time we will but yet we pass each other on campus and not even acknowledge each other, we are doing exactly what that same system that has set people of color up to fail, not standing behind each other. As a parents we need to make education important in the household, find out what books are needed and find funds to buy the books, attend all parent/teacher meetings and stop accepting what is thrown at us as the last resort. And people make it a point to let all know that those prison complex's that are being built probably has many people of color names on the front door and we need to start early with our children, it is hard work but I am sure it will all pay off in the end. I respect and appreciate the opportunity to be apart of such classes and take what I have learned and continue to learn to people I come in contact with and uses your privilege to vote will help change who is in charge of your life.
Closing the Gap
I do feel there is a achievement gap and a structural oppression, the both work together to continue to cause oppression. If the system is not working to educate all children in society then it is set up so that many will fail and those who are privileged will continue to have those privileges of success and a bright future. I believe that the gap can be closed, it is just going to take an extreme amount of hard work from the parents and of the community of which we live.
Acting White
I had not observed this while in my particular High School because it was predominately white and foreign students, the African American students were pretty much trying to keep up and achieve because that was expected of us and something we wanted to do was to get good grades. I have noticed it while my son was growing up, I would do things I know needed to be done to make sure he had received a good education. So reading books, and trying to get him to speak with correct words, his friends who were not being taught the same thing would tell him to stop acting white. So it was a struggle trying to get him to see that education was very important and that it was okay to be smart and be apart of groups such as the book club, boy scouts etc. because some of his peers were not involved in the groups and some of their parents were not doing some of things I was trying to do with my son. The acting white to me is a form of internalized oppression because we have been taught to think we are not smart, not worthy and not capable of achieving great things.
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