After completing the test, the results indicated that I preferred African Americans to European Americans. This test made very little sense to me and seemed to be more of a matching game than anything else. I think that everyone has hidden bias due to what they have learned, heard, or experienced with people. I do not think that a test like this can determine any conclusive data about your own opinions about people. A true person knows what they believe and how they feel about other races and ethnicities. It is something that an individual should decide for themselves and not something that should be told to you through a confusing test. Everybody has their own beliefs in their own mind when they see a person of a different race or ethnicity and this is when your hidden bias is no longer hiding. These results did not provide me with any new knowledge about my opinions about race. This test made me more confused which I made sure they knew in the reflection part of the survey. Overall, I believe that everyone has hidden biases about people that they hide from others, but each individual knows what their bias is.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Race In America
Previous to studying this unit and learning about race in class, I had the opportunity to watch a film about being black in America. I thought that this film was very informative and truly gave me a perspective about being black in America. Since I come from a suburban neighborhood without diversity, I could not relate to what it is like to grow up and live in America being a black person. There are many unfair things that black people have to deal with on a regular basis such as stereotypes. I believe that the view and opinion of black people was purposely created so that they would be inferior to white people. Since the country is somewhat set up so that this is the case, black people in America have much more obstacles to overcome. One segment that I remember from the film was the story about Michael Eric Dyson and his brother. I thought this was very interesting because it showed how two similar people could go in two completely opposite directions. Dyson’s brother allowed stereotypes and other obstacles to take the best of him. Dyson’s brother exemplifies the stereotypical black man in America and what the system creates for them. Michael Eric Dyson represents perseverance and hard work because he overcame numerous obstacles that stood in his way due to his race. Overall, I think that this website and film series is eye opening and very interesting.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Mock Trial Recap and Response
The first trial that we did as a class involved a young girl who accused her boyfriend of raping her. I think that the result of this trial was very accurate and it was the correct outcome. Even though I argued that he did not rape her, I do not think that the opposing side could have possibly believed that she was actually raped. Since our argument was much stronger we ultimately won the case. I think that the most important fact to consider in this case was the fact that there was no definite sign of a struggle. The fact that her shirt ripped was not conclusive enough to show that there was in fact a struggle. There were no bruises on the victim. I think that this was the most important fact because without a struggle there is no proof that he did any harm to her. It made it seem like she was falsely accusing him of something when she knew he did not do it. In order for the jury to reach an opposite outcome, the opposing side would have had to present stronger arguments that proved he actually raped her and caused her harm.
The second trial involved a young woman who accused her employee of sexually harassing her. I think that the result of this trial was correct even though there were clear examples of sexual harassment. The most compelling facts in this case were the examples of when he sexually harassed her and the jokes that he made. I personally believe that the jokes were not meant to harm her and were simply said to provoke laughter. The jokes were in poor taste but Murphy was a comedian and an established lawyer. I did not think that his actions were bad enough to cause him to be found guilty of sexual harassment and ruin his reputation as a lawyer. I think that this woman was very sensitive and overreacted to his attempts to be friendly. I think that in order to reach an opposite outcome the opposing side should have provided stronger arguments to show how Murphy’s comments directly affected her work performance.
What’s Going on in the World?
After browsing through many stories on the New York Times, I noticed that it was very informative and it had a lot of interesting topics. I liked that at the top of the website there were many different subjects to chose from such as Business, Technology, and Sports. These were the main subjects that I chose to look through and I read some interesting articles. Under the business category I read an article that discussed how YouTube wanted to buy Next New networks. The purchase of Next New Networks, which produces original programming and helps video creators distribute their films and make money, would be YouTube’s biggest attempt into creating its own programming. By doing this they will only have professionally created videos and will make money off of them. There will be more advertising and revenue generated by this purchase. Under the Technology Section, I read an article about how people who have iPhone’s spend more time using apps than talking to people or browsing the Internet. This means that people are spending more time on their phones playing games and using applications than using a phone for a phone. Phones are becoming new sources of entertainment and a new way to play games. I thought that this was interesting because this article made me realize how much time people spend on their phones. Under sports I read an article about the Miami Heat. This article discussed the trio of Lebron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne wade and whether or not it was a good idea. The author states “Is there something in James’s makeup — or more likely, his skill set — that in end-game situations reduces him to less than the sum of his wondrously athletic parts”? I thought this author was very interesting and I read more articles that he wrote. Overall I think that the New York Times is a great website and source of information.
State of the Union
After watching the State of the Union speech made by President Obama, I thought it was very interesting how the two parties were not separated. I think that this made the speech and the overall presentation much better because it allowed the focus to be more on the issues rather than what the party believed. It caused people to be individuals rather than following a group. I liked how President Obama urged Congress members, no matter their party, to seek a common ground so they could meet challenges facing the United States. President Obama argued that by supporting innovation, the government would actually help create jobs, and would help to decrease the American unemployment rate by nearly ten percent. With new technology, it allows for new industries to develop and for new jobs to be created. I also found it very interesting how President Obama stressed the importance of parenting. His main focus was the future, and the kids are the future of the country. The president pointed out, though, that Congress can only do so much about the kids, and he urged parents to continue stressing the importance of education. "That responsibility begins not in our classrooms, but in our homes and communities. It’s family that first instills the love of learning in a child," he said. "Only parents can make sure the TV is turned off and homework gets done”. Overall, I think that the President made a good speech and it did not need to be critiqued.
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