2/26/09
I work in the Emergency Department at BroMenn. I'm a nursing tech, and one of our duties is to take Electrocardiograms (EKG's). The EKG asks you to fill out patient information, including race before you can begin the analysis. Anyway. The options include: Caucasian, Black, Latino, Asian, Pacific, Native American, Oriental, and a few others (which I cannot remember off the top of my head).
You have to enter in a specific age and name for the patient, but just by hitting "enter" through the fields "gender" and "race," surprisingly (not really) you get Male and Caucasian. Again, another example of how the norm is White Male, anything else needs to be clarified.
When I first started operating the EKG machine, when I saw "Oriental," it really made me mad. Oriental is a term reserved for OBJECTS. An Oriental rug, for example. A PERSON is Asian or a Pacific Islander. I'm not sure if these things would have upset me as much as if I had not been enrolled in this course when I started working at the hospital.
Another thing we talked about in class this week that kind of made me curious as to the racial faculty make up at Wesleyan. Here's what I found (faculty - staff photo gallery):
252 White
5 Latino
9 Black
1 Pacific Islander
1 Spanish
8 Asian
5 Middle Eastern
281 total
89.7% white
Anyway, upon my calculations of this, I realized that there are probably some faculty members who define themselves according to a different race, and I was unsure of how to classify these people. Race is really difficult to define. I had a lot of difficulty defining people as Middle Eastern or Latino, or Pacific Islanders. It would be interesting to send out a survey and ask the faculty how they define themselves and find out the actual percentage of the IWU faculty.
I asked three of my suitemates what they thought the percentages were, and the responses I got were 70%, 80% and 90%. The two who said 70% and 80% were very surprised.
I did this same exercise with magazines for the media project, but I will wait to disclose my results until after my presentation.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Dick Gregory
2/15/2009
Tonight I went to see the Dick Gregory talk at the Hansen Student Center. I had never heard of him before seeing posters and hearing my classmates talk about the upcoming talk. He is an African American comedian and civil rights activist. In the past, he worked with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference for the civil rights movement and with civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King, Jr. He talked a lot about some serious issues, but always put a sense of humor about each topic. For example, he said that if he were president, he would dig up the rose garden and plant a watermelon patch – poking fun at the historic Black stereotype that black people enjoy watermelon. This reminded me of the movie "Ethnic Notions" that we viewed in class. I always think it's clever the way people can use historical references to create jokes. He also described how far Black society has come in that “Black History Month” used to be “Black History Week,” but the month that was chosen was February – conveniently the shortest month of the year. Everyone in the audience laughed. It was really interesting the way that he could create something funny out of a very serious topic.
I noticed a lot of difference between Gregory’s style of comedy and the mainstream White American comedy. There were times when the Black people in the audience would laugh at a joke Dick made, but not the White people. A lot of his jokes were aimed at the Black community, so the White people didn’t seem to understand the joke as the Black people did. This reminded me of the list of "Things Black People Like" versus the list of "Things White People Like." There are some things that are just cultural differences and neither group has enough exposure to the "other side" to really get the jokes.
Some touchy topics he was able to joke about included the Kobe Bryant rape scandal as well as teachers having sex with their high school students. However, there were instances that he talked about important topics but didn’t joke about them. For example, Black men make up 4% of the United States population, but account for 82% of the American deaths due to prostate cancer; and Black women account for 6% of the United States population, but account for 98% of the instances of thyroid tumors in America. The reasoning for these thyroid tumors, he explained, was because of all the hair straightening products and procedures Black women perform on their hair to get it to look less "nappy" and more like a White person's hair. This is like something that we discussed in class. Standards of beauty seem to glorify the White, blonde, thin woman. Years and years of using hair products and bleaching creams (as in China and Jamaica, he explained) in an attempt to become more "White" / beautiful, according to society's standards has actually taken a negative toll on health.
Another thing that was interesting to me was that he talked about the civil rights movement in a way that I had never thought of it before. Black men were given the right to vote before White women were. White women didn’t get their rights until the civil rights movement. The civil rights movement wasn’t just for the advancement of people of color – it helped out women’s rights, too.
Dick’s talk was an interesting experience. It was kind of interesting to be in the minority at the event (most of the audience was African American). Overall, it was a funny and also enlightening experience.
Tonight I went to see the Dick Gregory talk at the Hansen Student Center. I had never heard of him before seeing posters and hearing my classmates talk about the upcoming talk. He is an African American comedian and civil rights activist. In the past, he worked with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference for the civil rights movement and with civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King, Jr. He talked a lot about some serious issues, but always put a sense of humor about each topic. For example, he said that if he were president, he would dig up the rose garden and plant a watermelon patch – poking fun at the historic Black stereotype that black people enjoy watermelon. This reminded me of the movie "Ethnic Notions" that we viewed in class. I always think it's clever the way people can use historical references to create jokes. He also described how far Black society has come in that “Black History Month” used to be “Black History Week,” but the month that was chosen was February – conveniently the shortest month of the year. Everyone in the audience laughed. It was really interesting the way that he could create something funny out of a very serious topic.
I noticed a lot of difference between Gregory’s style of comedy and the mainstream White American comedy. There were times when the Black people in the audience would laugh at a joke Dick made, but not the White people. A lot of his jokes were aimed at the Black community, so the White people didn’t seem to understand the joke as the Black people did. This reminded me of the list of "Things Black People Like" versus the list of "Things White People Like." There are some things that are just cultural differences and neither group has enough exposure to the "other side" to really get the jokes.
Some touchy topics he was able to joke about included the Kobe Bryant rape scandal as well as teachers having sex with their high school students. However, there were instances that he talked about important topics but didn’t joke about them. For example, Black men make up 4% of the United States population, but account for 82% of the American deaths due to prostate cancer; and Black women account for 6% of the United States population, but account for 98% of the instances of thyroid tumors in America. The reasoning for these thyroid tumors, he explained, was because of all the hair straightening products and procedures Black women perform on their hair to get it to look less "nappy" and more like a White person's hair. This is like something that we discussed in class. Standards of beauty seem to glorify the White, blonde, thin woman. Years and years of using hair products and bleaching creams (as in China and Jamaica, he explained) in an attempt to become more "White" / beautiful, according to society's standards has actually taken a negative toll on health.
Another thing that was interesting to me was that he talked about the civil rights movement in a way that I had never thought of it before. Black men were given the right to vote before White women were. White women didn’t get their rights until the civil rights movement. The civil rights movement wasn’t just for the advancement of people of color – it helped out women’s rights, too.
Dick’s talk was an interesting experience. It was kind of interesting to be in the minority at the event (most of the audience was African American). Overall, it was a funny and also enlightening experience.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
On Being White... or Asian...
I looked at the blogs http://blog.stuffblackpeoplelove.com/ and http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/ since we talked about them in class briefly. Interestingly enough, blogs such as http://www.asian-central.com/stuffasianpeoplelike/ and http://stufflatinpeoplelike.com/. I bet there are more out there, but I just skimmed for a little bit.
It was interesting, per our class discussion, that if you like something on one list, that would make you more "black" or "white" (or Asian, or Latino, etc.), depending on which list.
What one of my classmates brought up, was that her roommate said that although she wasn't White, it was like she was, since she seemed like she was more "White" than "Asian." I had a similar encounter a couple of years ago. I met the girl who would become one of my best friends from freshman year of college on facebook the summer before we started school. We were living on the same floor and had the same major. Upon talking to one another we realized we not only had the same taste in music, but we both played the piano, were cubs fans, loved sushi and boba tea, and ran cross country in high school. I was convinced we were practically twins. I didn't really look a whole lot at her facebook pictures, since I didn't really know her. But I was really surprised to find out that she was Asian rather than White. It was like in the first reading we had of this semester - everything is assumed to be White unless otherwise specified. I didn't really think much about it after the first time we met. She acted "White," whatever that is, rather than Asian. Except for the fact that she was pre-med. Anyway, I had my first serious discussion about race with her. Well, not really a serious discussion, but I guess it was just my first actual discussion about race. She told me that she never really felt "Asian" despite the fact that her parents were immigrants from the Philippines. In high school she did "White" things like run cross country, listen to indie music, and go to concerts. She was smart and took school seriously, but wasn't notorious for studying all the time like the typical Asian stereotype.
And if I remember correctly, this conversation continued with my response, "Yeah, you don't really seem Asian, it's more like you're White." It's really interesting for me to pick apart my past experiences and think about them in a new light.
What is being "White" anyway?
According to The Full List of Stuff White People Like (http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/full-list-of-stuff-white-people-like/):
* #121 Funny or Ironic Tattoos
* #120 Taking a Year Off
* #119 Sea Salt
* #118 Ugly Sweater Parties
* #117 Political Prisoners
* #116 Black Music that Black People Don’t Listen to Anymore
* #115 Promising to Learn a New Language
* #114 America
* #113 Halloween
* #112 Hummus
* #111 Pea Coats
* #110 Frisbee Sports
* #109 The Onion
* #108 Appearing to Enjoy Classical Music
* #107 Self Aware Hip Hop References
* #106 Facebook
* #105 Unpaid Internships
* #104 Girls with Bangs
* #103 Sweaters
* #102 Children’s Games as Adults
* #101 Being Offended
* #100 Bumper Stickers
* #99 Grammar
* #98 The Ivy League
* #97 Scarves
* #96 New Balance Shoes
* #95 Rugby
* #94 Free Healthcare
* #93 Music Piracy
* #92 Book Deals
* #91 San Francisco
* #90 Dinner Parties
* #89 St. Patrick’s Day
* #88 Having Gay Friends
* #87 Outdoor Performance Clothes
* #86 Shorts
* #85 The Wire
* #84 T-Shirts
* #83 Bad Memories of High School
* #82 Hating Corporations
* #81 Graduate School
* #80 The Idea of Soccer
* #79 Modern Furniture
* #78 Multilingual Children
* #77 Musical Comedy
* #76 Bottles of Water
* #75 Threatening to Move to Canada
* #74 Oscar Parties
* #73 Gentrification
* #72 Study Abroad
* #71 Being the only white person around
* #70 Difficult Breakups
* #69 Mos Def
* #68 Michel Gondry
* #67 Standing Still at Concerts
* #66 Divorce
* #65 Co-Ed Sports
* #64 Recycling
* #63 Expensive Sandwiches
* #62 Knowing What’s Best for Poor People
* #61 Bicycles
* #60 Toyota Prius
* #59 Natural Medicine
* #58 Japan
* #57 Juno
* #56 Lawyers
* #55 Apologies
* #54 Kitchen Gadgets
* #53 Dogs
* #52 Sarah Silverman
* #51 Living by the Water
* #50 Irony
* #49 Vintage
* #48 Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops
* #47 Arts Degrees
* #46 The Sunday New York Times
* #45 Asian Fusion Food
* #44 Public Radio
* #43 Plays
* #42 Sushi
* #41 Indie Music
* #40 Apple Products
* #39 Netflix
* #38 Arrested Development
* #37 Renovations
* #36 Breakfast Places
* #35 The Daily Show/Colbert Report
* #34 Architecture
* #33 Marijuana
* #32 Vegan/Vegetarianism
* #31 Snowboarding
* #30 Wrigley Field
* #29 80s Night
* #28 Not having a TV
* #27 Marathons
* #26 Manhattan (now Brooklyn too!)
* #25 David Sedaris
* #24 Wine
* #23 Microbreweries
* #22 Having Two Last Names
* #21 Writers Workshops
* #20 Being an expert on YOUR culture
* #19 Traveling
* #18 Awareness
* #17 Hating their Parents
* #16 Gifted Children
* #15 Yoga
* #14 Having Black Friends
* #13 Tea
* #12 Non-Profit Organizations
* #11 Asian Girls
* #10 Wes Anderson Movies
* #9 Making you feel bad about not going outside
* #8 Barack Obama
* #7 Diversity
* #6 Organic Food
* #5 Farmer’s Markets
* #4 Assists
* #3 Film Festivals
* #2 Religions their parents don’t belong to
* #1 Coffee
Now, the Full List of Stuff Asian People Like (http://www.asian-central.com/stuffasianpeoplelike/stuff-asian-people-like-full-list/):
· #106 Talking at the Worst Times
· #105 Internet Stardom
· #104 Staying Open on Christmas Day
· #103 Naming Daughters After Jewelry
· #102 Being Modest about ***
· #101 Being or Not Being Asian
· #100 Reserved
· #99 MSG
· #98 Studying Overseas
· #97 Model Poses
· #96 Kirkland Bottled Water & Brita Water Filters
· #95 Resenting Asian Women for Dating Caucasian Males
· #94 Jay Chou
· #93 Choreographed Dancing
· #92 University of California
· #91 Multilingualism
· #90 The Number 9
· #89 Abercrombie, Hollister, American Eagle
· #88 Numbers (8-8-08)
· #87 ‘Lah”
· #86 Not Having Pets
· #85 Arranged Marriages
· #84 Child Labor
· #83 Not Moving Out
· #82 Mangosteen
· #81 National Scatology
· #80 Aiya!
· #79 Plastic Furniture Covers
· #78 Sriracha Sauce
· #77 Techno
· #76 Fresh Food
· #75 Dumplings
· #74 Middle Finger Pointing
· #73 Bleached Hair
· #72 Disneyland
· #71 Tennis
· #70 Nice Guys
· #69 Badminton
· #68 Chili
· #67 Goldfish
· #66 Taking Pictures
· #65 Being Blunt
· #64 Not Taking the Last Piece of Food
· #63 Squatting
· #62 Moth Balls
· #61 Variety Shows
· #60 Wontons
· #59 Pale Skin
· #58 Golden Poop Charms
· #57 Gambling
· #56 Procrastination
· #55 Sappy Music Videos
· #54 False Humility
· #53 The Wok
· #52 Dance Dance Revolution
· #51 Higher Education
· #50 Western Culture
· #49 Language Proficiency
· #48 House Hunting
· #47 The Child
· #46 Cutting In Line
· #45 Nagging
· #44 Fortune Cookies
· #43 Spring & Egg Rolls
· #42 Final Fantasy
· #41 Eye Enlargement
· #40 White Girls
· #39 Glasses
· #38 White Guys
· #37 Piano & Violin
· #36 Aging Cookware
· #35 Peace Sign
· #34 Fish Sauce
· #33 Jet Li & Bruce Lee
· #32 Speaking Loudly
· #31 Rice
· #30 Cash
· #29 Slurping
· #28 Hoarding
· #27 Jackie Chan
· #26 Comparing People
· #25 Staring at People
· #24 Chopsticks
· #23 Durian
· #22 Asian Buffets
· #21 Growing Stuff In Own Yard
· #20 Bad Pronunciation
· #19 Arriving Late
· #18 Handwashing the Dishes
· #17 Asian Supermarkets
· #16 Not Wearing Shoes Indoors
· #15 Nintendo Wii
· #14 Honda Civic
· #13 Pimped Out Cars
· #12 Basketball
· #11 Eagle & Tiger Balm
· #10 Boba
· #9 Asian Comedians
· #8 Karaoke
· #7 Anime
· #6 Korean Soap Operas
· #5 Bargains
· #4 Bowl Haircuts
· #3 Academics
· #2 Purikura Photos
· #1 Cute Plush Toys
I think it's interesting to look at these lists and compare them to the things my friend and I had in common. Most of the stuff I mentioned previously is on the White list (indie music, Wrigley Field, Sushi, coffee) with the exception of Boba tea, which is on the Asian list.
Now, I kind of feel uncomfortable trying to analyze where my friend was in her racial development at the time of this conversation, but here goes. At this time, her father wanted her to be a doctor, but she actually wanted to be a music major. She was taking the typical pre-med classes until her sophomore year when she decided to go into nursing, instead.
On page 53 of Tatum's book, she describes the four identity statuses in the identity search process:
1. Diffuse: little exploration
2. Foreclosed: parents select your roles
3. Moratorium: an active exploration of roles
4. Achieved: a state of strong personal commitment to identity after an active exploration
I think my friend was in the Foreclosed state when I met her first semester freshman year. Second semester when she was actively exploring different majors, she was in the Moratorium state. Now, that she has finally decided on nursing and is actively pursuing that path, she is now in the Achieved state.
However, this is just in relation to her identity as a college student. She may very well be in different states when it comes to other aspects of her life such as dating or socially.
It was interesting, per our class discussion, that if you like something on one list, that would make you more "black" or "white" (or Asian, or Latino, etc.), depending on which list.
What one of my classmates brought up, was that her roommate said that although she wasn't White, it was like she was, since she seemed like she was more "White" than "Asian." I had a similar encounter a couple of years ago. I met the girl who would become one of my best friends from freshman year of college on facebook the summer before we started school. We were living on the same floor and had the same major. Upon talking to one another we realized we not only had the same taste in music, but we both played the piano, were cubs fans, loved sushi and boba tea, and ran cross country in high school. I was convinced we were practically twins. I didn't really look a whole lot at her facebook pictures, since I didn't really know her. But I was really surprised to find out that she was Asian rather than White. It was like in the first reading we had of this semester - everything is assumed to be White unless otherwise specified. I didn't really think much about it after the first time we met. She acted "White," whatever that is, rather than Asian. Except for the fact that she was pre-med. Anyway, I had my first serious discussion about race with her. Well, not really a serious discussion, but I guess it was just my first actual discussion about race. She told me that she never really felt "Asian" despite the fact that her parents were immigrants from the Philippines. In high school she did "White" things like run cross country, listen to indie music, and go to concerts. She was smart and took school seriously, but wasn't notorious for studying all the time like the typical Asian stereotype.
And if I remember correctly, this conversation continued with my response, "Yeah, you don't really seem Asian, it's more like you're White." It's really interesting for me to pick apart my past experiences and think about them in a new light.
What is being "White" anyway?
According to The Full List of Stuff White People Like (http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/full-list-of-stuff-white-people-like/):
* #121 Funny or Ironic Tattoos
* #120 Taking a Year Off
* #119 Sea Salt
* #118 Ugly Sweater Parties
* #117 Political Prisoners
* #116 Black Music that Black People Don’t Listen to Anymore
* #115 Promising to Learn a New Language
* #114 America
* #113 Halloween
* #112 Hummus
* #111 Pea Coats
* #110 Frisbee Sports
* #109 The Onion
* #108 Appearing to Enjoy Classical Music
* #107 Self Aware Hip Hop References
* #106 Facebook
* #105 Unpaid Internships
* #104 Girls with Bangs
* #103 Sweaters
* #102 Children’s Games as Adults
* #101 Being Offended
* #100 Bumper Stickers
* #99 Grammar
* #98 The Ivy League
* #97 Scarves
* #96 New Balance Shoes
* #95 Rugby
* #94 Free Healthcare
* #93 Music Piracy
* #92 Book Deals
* #91 San Francisco
* #90 Dinner Parties
* #89 St. Patrick’s Day
* #88 Having Gay Friends
* #87 Outdoor Performance Clothes
* #86 Shorts
* #85 The Wire
* #84 T-Shirts
* #83 Bad Memories of High School
* #82 Hating Corporations
* #81 Graduate School
* #80 The Idea of Soccer
* #79 Modern Furniture
* #78 Multilingual Children
* #77 Musical Comedy
* #76 Bottles of Water
* #75 Threatening to Move to Canada
* #74 Oscar Parties
* #73 Gentrification
* #72 Study Abroad
* #71 Being the only white person around
* #70 Difficult Breakups
* #69 Mos Def
* #68 Michel Gondry
* #67 Standing Still at Concerts
* #66 Divorce
* #65 Co-Ed Sports
* #64 Recycling
* #63 Expensive Sandwiches
* #62 Knowing What’s Best for Poor People
* #61 Bicycles
* #60 Toyota Prius
* #59 Natural Medicine
* #58 Japan
* #57 Juno
* #56 Lawyers
* #55 Apologies
* #54 Kitchen Gadgets
* #53 Dogs
* #52 Sarah Silverman
* #51 Living by the Water
* #50 Irony
* #49 Vintage
* #48 Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops
* #47 Arts Degrees
* #46 The Sunday New York Times
* #45 Asian Fusion Food
* #44 Public Radio
* #43 Plays
* #42 Sushi
* #41 Indie Music
* #40 Apple Products
* #39 Netflix
* #38 Arrested Development
* #37 Renovations
* #36 Breakfast Places
* #35 The Daily Show/Colbert Report
* #34 Architecture
* #33 Marijuana
* #32 Vegan/Vegetarianism
* #31 Snowboarding
* #30 Wrigley Field
* #29 80s Night
* #28 Not having a TV
* #27 Marathons
* #26 Manhattan (now Brooklyn too!)
* #25 David Sedaris
* #24 Wine
* #23 Microbreweries
* #22 Having Two Last Names
* #21 Writers Workshops
* #20 Being an expert on YOUR culture
* #19 Traveling
* #18 Awareness
* #17 Hating their Parents
* #16 Gifted Children
* #15 Yoga
* #14 Having Black Friends
* #13 Tea
* #12 Non-Profit Organizations
* #11 Asian Girls
* #10 Wes Anderson Movies
* #9 Making you feel bad about not going outside
* #8 Barack Obama
* #7 Diversity
* #6 Organic Food
* #5 Farmer’s Markets
* #4 Assists
* #3 Film Festivals
* #2 Religions their parents don’t belong to
* #1 Coffee
Now, the Full List of Stuff Asian People Like (http://www.asian-central.com/stuffasianpeoplelike/stuff-asian-people-like-full-list/):
· #106 Talking at the Worst Times
· #105 Internet Stardom
· #104 Staying Open on Christmas Day
· #103 Naming Daughters After Jewelry
· #102 Being Modest about ***
· #101 Being or Not Being Asian
· #100 Reserved
· #99 MSG
· #98 Studying Overseas
· #97 Model Poses
· #96 Kirkland Bottled Water & Brita Water Filters
· #95 Resenting Asian Women for Dating Caucasian Males
· #94 Jay Chou
· #93 Choreographed Dancing
· #92 University of California
· #91 Multilingualism
· #90 The Number 9
· #89 Abercrombie, Hollister, American Eagle
· #88 Numbers (8-8-08)
· #87 ‘Lah”
· #86 Not Having Pets
· #85 Arranged Marriages
· #84 Child Labor
· #83 Not Moving Out
· #82 Mangosteen
· #81 National Scatology
· #80 Aiya!
· #79 Plastic Furniture Covers
· #78 Sriracha Sauce
· #77 Techno
· #76 Fresh Food
· #75 Dumplings
· #74 Middle Finger Pointing
· #73 Bleached Hair
· #72 Disneyland
· #71 Tennis
· #70 Nice Guys
· #69 Badminton
· #68 Chili
· #67 Goldfish
· #66 Taking Pictures
· #65 Being Blunt
· #64 Not Taking the Last Piece of Food
· #63 Squatting
· #62 Moth Balls
· #61 Variety Shows
· #60 Wontons
· #59 Pale Skin
· #58 Golden Poop Charms
· #57 Gambling
· #56 Procrastination
· #55 Sappy Music Videos
· #54 False Humility
· #53 The Wok
· #52 Dance Dance Revolution
· #51 Higher Education
· #50 Western Culture
· #49 Language Proficiency
· #48 House Hunting
· #47 The Child
· #46 Cutting In Line
· #45 Nagging
· #44 Fortune Cookies
· #43 Spring & Egg Rolls
· #42 Final Fantasy
· #41 Eye Enlargement
· #40 White Girls
· #39 Glasses
· #38 White Guys
· #37 Piano & Violin
· #36 Aging Cookware
· #35 Peace Sign
· #34 Fish Sauce
· #33 Jet Li & Bruce Lee
· #32 Speaking Loudly
· #31 Rice
· #30 Cash
· #29 Slurping
· #28 Hoarding
· #27 Jackie Chan
· #26 Comparing People
· #25 Staring at People
· #24 Chopsticks
· #23 Durian
· #22 Asian Buffets
· #21 Growing Stuff In Own Yard
· #20 Bad Pronunciation
· #19 Arriving Late
· #18 Handwashing the Dishes
· #17 Asian Supermarkets
· #16 Not Wearing Shoes Indoors
· #15 Nintendo Wii
· #14 Honda Civic
· #13 Pimped Out Cars
· #12 Basketball
· #11 Eagle & Tiger Balm
· #10 Boba
· #9 Asian Comedians
· #8 Karaoke
· #7 Anime
· #6 Korean Soap Operas
· #5 Bargains
· #4 Bowl Haircuts
· #3 Academics
· #2 Purikura Photos
· #1 Cute Plush Toys
I think it's interesting to look at these lists and compare them to the things my friend and I had in common. Most of the stuff I mentioned previously is on the White list (indie music, Wrigley Field, Sushi, coffee) with the exception of Boba tea, which is on the Asian list.
Now, I kind of feel uncomfortable trying to analyze where my friend was in her racial development at the time of this conversation, but here goes. At this time, her father wanted her to be a doctor, but she actually wanted to be a music major. She was taking the typical pre-med classes until her sophomore year when she decided to go into nursing, instead.
On page 53 of Tatum's book, she describes the four identity statuses in the identity search process:
1. Diffuse: little exploration
2. Foreclosed: parents select your roles
3. Moratorium: an active exploration of roles
4. Achieved: a state of strong personal commitment to identity after an active exploration
I think my friend was in the Foreclosed state when I met her first semester freshman year. Second semester when she was actively exploring different majors, she was in the Moratorium state. Now, that she has finally decided on nursing and is actively pursuing that path, she is now in the Achieved state.
However, this is just in relation to her identity as a college student. She may very well be in different states when it comes to other aspects of her life such as dating or socially.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Interracial Dating & Track
2/3/2009
This weekend, I was reading Beverly Tatum's book "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the cafeteria?" I was at a track meet, and a topic that she touched on was interracial dating. She gives an example of a Black girl who lived in a predominantly White neighborhood who complained about not being able to date (and also never had dates to any dances) because there were no other Black boys available to date. This got me thinking about interracial dating and how "taboo" it seems to be in our society. I asked a couple of my teammates if they had ever dated (or hooked up with) someone who wasn't in their racial group. Everyone I talked to said, "no, I haven't." One of the girls even told me a story about a different (White) girl who dated a (Black) guy on the track team last year. This relationship wasn't something that was publicized, but the people that she knew were very skeptical about the situation, telling her that she could do better, or just wondering why she would even consider dating a Black guy.
This was interesting to me, because out of everyone I had talked to I was the only one who had dated or "hooked up with" someone outside of my race. But, then as I was disclosing this information, I said, "Well one guy is half-Asian, and the other guy is Middle Eastern, but he acts like he's White." I stopped, and realized what I had just done. I had just justified these two guys by explaining that they were more "White" than someone else in their racial category.
I wanted to create a survey to give out - to find out what the percentage of my peers have dated someone outside of their race. I also wanted to find out how they were treated, or even how their friends / family / peers reacted to that situation. I don't know if this is valid or not, but just an idea.
Which reminded me. I have a friend at home who was "kind of seeing" this guy at school who was half-Asian. But, her friends at school and at home "jokingly" harassed her about it, and so now this relationship has completely fallen apart. I'm not sure if it was due to the reactions she was getting from this, or if it just wasn't meant to be. But I'm sure how her peers and friends reacted to the relationship had some effect on how it turned out. She actually told me not to date someone who wasn't White because I would probably regret it, like she did. Interesting, because I don't regret dating anyone who I have ever dated.
Anyway. I was also thinking about what we talked about at the end of class today. The Eberhardt & Fiske book talked about Aversive Racism and how to strike back against it. A solution that was offered was to increase a common ingroup affiliation that unites people of different colors. A common cause of Aversive Racism is an in-group bias, where people think that their group is better than the other group, not that the other group is worse. I think that this could actually work. The difficulty in this would be actually creating the group that is appealing to both students of color and White students. So many organizations that are aimed at integrating people of all cultures fail miserably because often White students don't feel that they belong, or have no desire to belong due to their already privileged position in society. I have found this to be true in my own personal experiences. It wasn't until college that I became friends with people outside of my race, and I think it was because we were part of a common in-group. For example, Freshman year, I had friends of different races that were people on my dorm floor. When I came to Wesleyan, I became friends with people outside of my race because they were on my cross country or track team.
A side note about track:
Although the track team is one big, giant team, it's really segregated between events. There's the distance people (those that do cross country in the fall), the sprinters (separated between short sprinters and the long sprinters), the jumpers, the pole-vaulters, and the throwers.
Of course, these team divisions don't go without racial divisions. It's hard to find a Black person on the distance squad (although, we have one, which I'll talk about shortly), and we joke around that Black people supposedly have the "X Factor": they're fast sprinters.
Now, this Black guy on the distance squad is a Freshman. Last spring, and this summer, before school started, people were contemplating whether he would be friends with "us" or the "Black track kids." It was a legitimate question. It was something we all wondered. There were only two people of color (both of Middle Eastern descent) on the distance squad, and this new Freshmen class would "greatly increase our racial diversity" (there were two other Freshmen people of color - both of Asian descent).
Anyway, what ended up happening, is he IS in fact friends with "us," and he's one of the most popular kids on the team. I remember one of the readings from last week talking about how Black kids in predominantly White schools can either be rejected or very popular due to the "Athlete Factor." (This actually happened in my high school - there was a new Black student our Junior year and he was REALLY good at football, and he immediately rose in popularity because of the "Athlete Factor.") Anyway, I don't think the "Athlete Factor" is really what's going on in this situation because we're all athletes. I think part of it is that he's a really funny guy, and the other part: it's not all that common to see a Black guy running distance.
Back to what I was saying... Anyway, I think my involvement with IWU track has changed the way that I perceive people of other races. Despite team segregation, I see my sprinter, jumper, and thrower teammates as just that - my teammates. I think my coach does a very good job of trying to keep everyone connected and feeling like a team despite our different events. This includes people of other races. When I participated in track and field in high school, the team was VERY, VERY segregated and I hardly saw anyone who wasn't "distance" as a teammate. I can now honestly say that I believe I have more of a "track in-group bias" (which includes people of color as well as White people) than a "white in-group bias." So, I guess what I'm saying is this particular experience is what makes me believe that if a multiracial group is developed that all people will consider the "in-group," then we will have a means to stop racism and social segregation.
Very long post. Thanks for bearing with me.
This weekend, I was reading Beverly Tatum's book "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the cafeteria?" I was at a track meet, and a topic that she touched on was interracial dating. She gives an example of a Black girl who lived in a predominantly White neighborhood who complained about not being able to date (and also never had dates to any dances) because there were no other Black boys available to date. This got me thinking about interracial dating and how "taboo" it seems to be in our society. I asked a couple of my teammates if they had ever dated (or hooked up with) someone who wasn't in their racial group. Everyone I talked to said, "no, I haven't." One of the girls even told me a story about a different (White) girl who dated a (Black) guy on the track team last year. This relationship wasn't something that was publicized, but the people that she knew were very skeptical about the situation, telling her that she could do better, or just wondering why she would even consider dating a Black guy.
This was interesting to me, because out of everyone I had talked to I was the only one who had dated or "hooked up with" someone outside of my race. But, then as I was disclosing this information, I said, "Well one guy is half-Asian, and the other guy is Middle Eastern, but he acts like he's White." I stopped, and realized what I had just done. I had just justified these two guys by explaining that they were more "White" than someone else in their racial category.
I wanted to create a survey to give out - to find out what the percentage of my peers have dated someone outside of their race. I also wanted to find out how they were treated, or even how their friends / family / peers reacted to that situation. I don't know if this is valid or not, but just an idea.
Which reminded me. I have a friend at home who was "kind of seeing" this guy at school who was half-Asian. But, her friends at school and at home "jokingly" harassed her about it, and so now this relationship has completely fallen apart. I'm not sure if it was due to the reactions she was getting from this, or if it just wasn't meant to be. But I'm sure how her peers and friends reacted to the relationship had some effect on how it turned out. She actually told me not to date someone who wasn't White because I would probably regret it, like she did. Interesting, because I don't regret dating anyone who I have ever dated.
Anyway. I was also thinking about what we talked about at the end of class today. The Eberhardt & Fiske book talked about Aversive Racism and how to strike back against it. A solution that was offered was to increase a common ingroup affiliation that unites people of different colors. A common cause of Aversive Racism is an in-group bias, where people think that their group is better than the other group, not that the other group is worse. I think that this could actually work. The difficulty in this would be actually creating the group that is appealing to both students of color and White students. So many organizations that are aimed at integrating people of all cultures fail miserably because often White students don't feel that they belong, or have no desire to belong due to their already privileged position in society. I have found this to be true in my own personal experiences. It wasn't until college that I became friends with people outside of my race, and I think it was because we were part of a common in-group. For example, Freshman year, I had friends of different races that were people on my dorm floor. When I came to Wesleyan, I became friends with people outside of my race because they were on my cross country or track team.
A side note about track:
Although the track team is one big, giant team, it's really segregated between events. There's the distance people (those that do cross country in the fall), the sprinters (separated between short sprinters and the long sprinters), the jumpers, the pole-vaulters, and the throwers.
Of course, these team divisions don't go without racial divisions. It's hard to find a Black person on the distance squad (although, we have one, which I'll talk about shortly), and we joke around that Black people supposedly have the "X Factor": they're fast sprinters.
Now, this Black guy on the distance squad is a Freshman. Last spring, and this summer, before school started, people were contemplating whether he would be friends with "us" or the "Black track kids." It was a legitimate question. It was something we all wondered. There were only two people of color (both of Middle Eastern descent) on the distance squad, and this new Freshmen class would "greatly increase our racial diversity" (there were two other Freshmen people of color - both of Asian descent).
Anyway, what ended up happening, is he IS in fact friends with "us," and he's one of the most popular kids on the team. I remember one of the readings from last week talking about how Black kids in predominantly White schools can either be rejected or very popular due to the "Athlete Factor." (This actually happened in my high school - there was a new Black student our Junior year and he was REALLY good at football, and he immediately rose in popularity because of the "Athlete Factor.") Anyway, I don't think the "Athlete Factor" is really what's going on in this situation because we're all athletes. I think part of it is that he's a really funny guy, and the other part: it's not all that common to see a Black guy running distance.
Back to what I was saying... Anyway, I think my involvement with IWU track has changed the way that I perceive people of other races. Despite team segregation, I see my sprinter, jumper, and thrower teammates as just that - my teammates. I think my coach does a very good job of trying to keep everyone connected and feeling like a team despite our different events. This includes people of other races. When I participated in track and field in high school, the team was VERY, VERY segregated and I hardly saw anyone who wasn't "distance" as a teammate. I can now honestly say that I believe I have more of a "track in-group bias" (which includes people of color as well as White people) than a "white in-group bias." So, I guess what I'm saying is this particular experience is what makes me believe that if a multiracial group is developed that all people will consider the "in-group," then we will have a means to stop racism and social segregation.
Very long post. Thanks for bearing with me.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Stereotypes
1/27/2009
The images portrayed by the media are dynamic. They change with the times. We watched a part of the film "Ethnic Notions." This film described and depicted the images of Black Americans before, during, and after slavery in America. Some of the common images were:
-The Black Mammie: an overweight, asexual, strong woman, who is very loyal to her white family.
-The Sambo: the laughing, carefree, lazy man.
-Jim Crow: a dancing man with tattered clothing.
-Zip Coon: a buffoon, who tries to dress well and is trying to fight slavery.
-Pickaninny: an animalistic child who is often depicted in trees or by a river.
-The Brute: a violent, and animalistic person who is out of control due to the lack of enslavement.
The intentions of these depictions were to justify slavery as well as entertain people. I thought these depictions were sickening. But, following the film, we discussed how these images have either lingered or changed over time. The modern stereotypical images are often brought about by the Hip Hop or Rap culture. We see Black women depicted as very sexy and beautiful, as demonstrated in music videos. The stereotypical black man is either seen as a rapper (again, along with the Hip Hop culture) or as a criminal (as discussed in the reading).
The Kivel reading discusses how Blacks are generally feared. An example given in the reading was, when a Black man walks near you, do you clutch your purse / wallet, or if you're in the car, do you lock your doors. This behavior, for many, is a natural "instinct" that has been ingrained into our culture from the images portrayed in the media. Black men are seen as dangerous in our culture. This stereotype aids in racial profiling. Why else would we have such a higher of percentage of Black men imprisoned than the ratio actually is in the free society?
This same stereotype is left-over from the "Brute" image seen during the reconstruction period after the Civil War / Slavery. Blacks were seen as violent, dangerous individuals. Some films even depicted Black men chasing after White virgin women.
What's interesting is that, as Kivel says, most (80%) assaults / batteries / rapes are committed by people that the victim knows. And it's usually someone of the same race (often its a significant other, or other family member).
Often we justify our fears of other races by the usage of stories. You hear people say, "It's unfortunate, but my one negative experience (with a particular race) was..."
Well, I was thinking about that. And realized, I don't have any outstanding negative experiences with people of a different race than me. And it's because, the most negative experiences (not that there are really all that many) I've had with people are with people who are White, like myself. Then I started to wonder why that was. And I realized, it's because for the majority of my life, I've been surrounded by people just. like. me. Despite not having any negative experiences with people outside my race, I found myself answering "yes" to some of Kivel's questions: "Have you ever been in your car when a person of color drove past? Did you reach over to lock your car door?" Kivel explained that these reactions were woven into our cultural fabric. But, I think that the education (social education, outside of the school setting) I received about different races was very biased. I now understand much more than I did when I was in third grade and am able to make decisions for myself instead of just thinking that the "right" viewpoint was what my father would say about the O. J. Simpson case, for example.
As uncomfortable as the movie "Ethnic Notions" made me feel, I'm really glad it got me thinking about stereotypes in a new way. I don't usually think about the ways that people outside of my own group are depicted in the media. But, it's good to be aware.
The images portrayed by the media are dynamic. They change with the times. We watched a part of the film "Ethnic Notions." This film described and depicted the images of Black Americans before, during, and after slavery in America. Some of the common images were:
-The Black Mammie: an overweight, asexual, strong woman, who is very loyal to her white family.
-The Sambo: the laughing, carefree, lazy man.
-Jim Crow: a dancing man with tattered clothing.
-Zip Coon: a buffoon, who tries to dress well and is trying to fight slavery.
-Pickaninny: an animalistic child who is often depicted in trees or by a river.
-The Brute: a violent, and animalistic person who is out of control due to the lack of enslavement.
The intentions of these depictions were to justify slavery as well as entertain people. I thought these depictions were sickening. But, following the film, we discussed how these images have either lingered or changed over time. The modern stereotypical images are often brought about by the Hip Hop or Rap culture. We see Black women depicted as very sexy and beautiful, as demonstrated in music videos. The stereotypical black man is either seen as a rapper (again, along with the Hip Hop culture) or as a criminal (as discussed in the reading).
The Kivel reading discusses how Blacks are generally feared. An example given in the reading was, when a Black man walks near you, do you clutch your purse / wallet, or if you're in the car, do you lock your doors. This behavior, for many, is a natural "instinct" that has been ingrained into our culture from the images portrayed in the media. Black men are seen as dangerous in our culture. This stereotype aids in racial profiling. Why else would we have such a higher of percentage of Black men imprisoned than the ratio actually is in the free society?
This same stereotype is left-over from the "Brute" image seen during the reconstruction period after the Civil War / Slavery. Blacks were seen as violent, dangerous individuals. Some films even depicted Black men chasing after White virgin women.
What's interesting is that, as Kivel says, most (80%) assaults / batteries / rapes are committed by people that the victim knows. And it's usually someone of the same race (often its a significant other, or other family member).
Often we justify our fears of other races by the usage of stories. You hear people say, "It's unfortunate, but my one negative experience (with a particular race) was..."
Well, I was thinking about that. And realized, I don't have any outstanding negative experiences with people of a different race than me. And it's because, the most negative experiences (not that there are really all that many) I've had with people are with people who are White, like myself. Then I started to wonder why that was. And I realized, it's because for the majority of my life, I've been surrounded by people just. like. me. Despite not having any negative experiences with people outside my race, I found myself answering "yes" to some of Kivel's questions: "Have you ever been in your car when a person of color drove past? Did you reach over to lock your car door?" Kivel explained that these reactions were woven into our cultural fabric. But, I think that the education (social education, outside of the school setting) I received about different races was very biased. I now understand much more than I did when I was in third grade and am able to make decisions for myself instead of just thinking that the "right" viewpoint was what my father would say about the O. J. Simpson case, for example.
As uncomfortable as the movie "Ethnic Notions" made me feel, I'm really glad it got me thinking about stereotypes in a new way. I don't usually think about the ways that people outside of my own group are depicted in the media. But, it's good to be aware.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Colorblindness & Children
After reading the literature for class and attending class today, there were two concepts that left quite an impression on me.
1. The topic of "colorblindness." The movie that we viewed in class today at the end of it was advocating this topic. And media reports say that my generation is the most "colorblind" of any previous generation. But after completing the readings, these statements were troubling to me. There is no such thing as colorblindness. Social Psychology says that stereotypes and prejudices are not only natural, but beneficial (Confronting Racism text). They help to understand the environment quickly. It's actually an evolutionary survival tactic. Everyone notices race. I know I notice race all the time - especially if I am the minority... or if the majority of people in a situation are white and there is only one, or very few people of color. The problem with stereotypes is that they are often inaccurate.
But, the text offers a solution to change stereotypes and prejudices. It is a more effortful solution, but it seems like it would work. Every time you meet someone, you form a stereotype. But you should try to get to know that individual, ask him or her questions, to get the "real" person, not just what your split-second perception is of that person.
Personally, I would love to do this. And I'm an outgoing person, so I think this is feasible for me. But, like everyone else (at least I assume), I get scared. I stutter my words and get nervous about what to say (this usually isn't a problem for me). I think it can be fair to say that sometimes when I'm exposed to someone new who is different than me, I get shy. I'm not really sure what this means. But, that's where my thoughts are going now.
2. The early recognition of race in children. There were two examples in the reading that really stuck out to me. The first was a class of kindergartners were asked to draw a picture of a Native American / Indian. All of their pictures included feathers and often times, weapons.
This interested me because in my elementary school experience, we studied Native Americans in third grade. We were taught to use the term "Native Americans" rather than "Indians" because it was the "right thing to say" or that "they liked that term better." This was in third grade. Now, flash forward about five years. I was babysitting and one of the kids was in third grade at the same elementary school I attended. I'm not sure how we got on the topic, but I said something about the "Indians" (I usually use the term "Native American," but I wasn't sure that the children I was babysitting for would be familiar with that term). The third grader corrected me and told me that we should call them "Native Americans." I think it's refreshing to know that schools now-a-days are teaching more racial history as well as proper terminology.
Another example in the text that had to do with children and race was in the Kivel text. The story about the little girl who brought in a black barbie doll for show and tell. Her classmates responded with comments describing how ugly the doll was and how it was "not Barbie." This reminded me of a different time when I was babysitting. I was playing Barbie Dolls with the children, and I often chose the Barbie Doll with dark brown hair and tan skin because I thought that she was pretty (and not like all the other Barbies with the yellow hair that all looked the same to me). One time, the little girl asked me, "Why do you always choose the ugly Barbie?" I was really taken aback by this question, because this girl thought that only the light-skinned, blonde barbies were the pretty ones. It's interesting that even slight differences in skin tone and hair color can make all the difference in childrens' eyes.
1. The topic of "colorblindness." The movie that we viewed in class today at the end of it was advocating this topic. And media reports say that my generation is the most "colorblind" of any previous generation. But after completing the readings, these statements were troubling to me. There is no such thing as colorblindness. Social Psychology says that stereotypes and prejudices are not only natural, but beneficial (Confronting Racism text). They help to understand the environment quickly. It's actually an evolutionary survival tactic. Everyone notices race. I know I notice race all the time - especially if I am the minority... or if the majority of people in a situation are white and there is only one, or very few people of color. The problem with stereotypes is that they are often inaccurate.
But, the text offers a solution to change stereotypes and prejudices. It is a more effortful solution, but it seems like it would work. Every time you meet someone, you form a stereotype. But you should try to get to know that individual, ask him or her questions, to get the "real" person, not just what your split-second perception is of that person.
Personally, I would love to do this. And I'm an outgoing person, so I think this is feasible for me. But, like everyone else (at least I assume), I get scared. I stutter my words and get nervous about what to say (this usually isn't a problem for me). I think it can be fair to say that sometimes when I'm exposed to someone new who is different than me, I get shy. I'm not really sure what this means. But, that's where my thoughts are going now.
2. The early recognition of race in children. There were two examples in the reading that really stuck out to me. The first was a class of kindergartners were asked to draw a picture of a Native American / Indian. All of their pictures included feathers and often times, weapons.
This interested me because in my elementary school experience, we studied Native Americans in third grade. We were taught to use the term "Native Americans" rather than "Indians" because it was the "right thing to say" or that "they liked that term better." This was in third grade. Now, flash forward about five years. I was babysitting and one of the kids was in third grade at the same elementary school I attended. I'm not sure how we got on the topic, but I said something about the "Indians" (I usually use the term "Native American," but I wasn't sure that the children I was babysitting for would be familiar with that term). The third grader corrected me and told me that we should call them "Native Americans." I think it's refreshing to know that schools now-a-days are teaching more racial history as well as proper terminology.
Another example in the text that had to do with children and race was in the Kivel text. The story about the little girl who brought in a black barbie doll for show and tell. Her classmates responded with comments describing how ugly the doll was and how it was "not Barbie." This reminded me of a different time when I was babysitting. I was playing Barbie Dolls with the children, and I often chose the Barbie Doll with dark brown hair and tan skin because I thought that she was pretty (and not like all the other Barbies with the yellow hair that all looked the same to me). One time, the little girl asked me, "Why do you always choose the ugly Barbie?" I was really taken aback by this question, because this girl thought that only the light-skinned, blonde barbies were the pretty ones. It's interesting that even slight differences in skin tone and hair color can make all the difference in childrens' eyes.
Politics & Race - The Inauguration
1/20/2009
So today was Inauguration Day. Inauguration of our first president who is a person of color. So far one out of forty four US presidents has not been white. We briefly discussed the minority make up of the senators throughout the years in class this evening, so I decided to do a little research:
http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/minority_senators.htm
There have been six African American senators, five Asian American senators (all from Hawaii except one), six Hispanic senators, and three Native American senators. This is such a sad number considering there have been about, what 2000 senators in US history?
Anyway, I watched the Inauguration speech today, and I thought it was just so moving. The camera panned the crowd and the crowd was so emotional - the mixture between the emotions running through the crowd and the words President Obama was saying were so moving that I actually started to tear up. Maybe it was just since I'm more aware of race now than I ever have been before, but I noticed many people of color in the crowd. Not just Blacks, but all races - Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern, White... Obama really spoke a lot about inclusion and "bringing everyone to the table." It really seems like he has a very diverse group of supporters, and I think this is the first step toward something great in our country. I think America has made a huge step against racism in electing a man of color to be the leader of our country.
So today was Inauguration Day. Inauguration of our first president who is a person of color. So far one out of forty four US presidents has not been white. We briefly discussed the minority make up of the senators throughout the years in class this evening, so I decided to do a little research:
http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/minority_senators.htm
There have been six African American senators, five Asian American senators (all from Hawaii except one), six Hispanic senators, and three Native American senators. This is such a sad number considering there have been about, what 2000 senators in US history?
Anyway, I watched the Inauguration speech today, and I thought it was just so moving. The camera panned the crowd and the crowd was so emotional - the mixture between the emotions running through the crowd and the words President Obama was saying were so moving that I actually started to tear up. Maybe it was just since I'm more aware of race now than I ever have been before, but I noticed many people of color in the crowd. Not just Blacks, but all races - Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern, White... Obama really spoke a lot about inclusion and "bringing everyone to the table." It really seems like he has a very diverse group of supporters, and I think this is the first step toward something great in our country. I think America has made a huge step against racism in electing a man of color to be the leader of our country.
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