Quick Blog #6

My social sphere is very diverse in ages. My friends at school range from 18 to 24 years old, while my close friends at work range all the way into their forties. I don't encounter elders very much, but I teach young kids and still consider my college friends young. I'm content with my interactions with people this age. Not that I wouldn't want to interact with elderly people, I'm just not really ever put in that position. I think our society is segregated by age because the young get mad at the old and swear and yell, then the older citizens make rules and laws to take away the youth's freedoms. It's a never ending game of cat and mouse and we're just poking each other to make each other angry. Young people are marginalized by their school status, what grade they're in, and whether they work. Adults are marginalized by jobs and schooling and even social activities. Young adults and middle-aged adults are privileged because it's the "prime of their lives". They are seen as fresh, young, and new while elders are too old and children are too young. Instead of enjoying your youth as a child, you want to be older so you can be like the adults and that's a big part of why childhood has changed so much.

Society can promote equality through age by not doing the "poking" I was talking about. If we stop attacking one another, we'll be able to communicate more. Stop taking things away from one another and we'll hear each other. I think the youth needs to respect adults more, but likewise adults towards the youth. If we work together I think ageism could be put to an end.

Quick Post #5

I read "Pornography as a cause of Rape" and I do agree with this article. While I have never thought of porn as a cause of rape I can see from the article how much it effects women and their views on pornography. Diana Russel defined pornography as material created for heterosexual males that combines sex and/or the exposure of genitals with the abuse or degradation of females in a manner that appears to endorse, condone, or encourage such behavior and I thought this was very rough. But viewing it from another perspective makes me realize how she is looking at it. I do think pornography condones how men view and treat women because they want to have these "fantasies" that the men in the videos get when in reality they are abusive and gross. Men are always depicted as dominant in videos and this does cause more sexism because the men then assume they are the powerful ones during intercourse. I think these pornography videos depict women as a minority because that's the mindset men want. They want to be strong and dominant and they are the ones producing most of these videos. I agree with the feminist view on pornography but I did think it's very harsh. I don't know much about the subject and the debate on pornography so this would have to be something I would look more into.

What can we do?

For our society to change, we all need to become one group of people. We need to stop seeing racial differences and know that we are all equal people. Like Johnson said, the best thing we can do is all take the blame for what our society has become and not just blame one person. I agree with this and I personally take blame for not putting in the effort to change things. Living with 3 Women's Studies majors has helped me see that we need change, but this class is going to help me actually put that change into effect.
 I think I personally could stop saying slurs/words that are offensive even if I don't mean them. I don't say gay or queer because that's not what the words mean. But words like retarded slip sometimes and I really want to stop saying things like that. I plan on being a teacher and I really hope I can teach students the right way to act/speak towards other people. Even though I'll teach music, I can still effect the mindset of my students. We all really need to work together to make a change in our communities and our lifestyles.

What have you done today?

   A good activist is someone who genuinely cares and wants change. They are willing to fight to see a change in the world and act out against people who oppress others. An effective activist needs to be strong, loud, and courageous. Every person can help, but I believe the people that make the most change in this world aren’t afraid to be heard. Nothing will change if you’re hiding away. Another attribute I think a good activist needs is to be able to work WITH people. Meaning, I think it’s really important that the activist has their opinion, but uses their strengths and the strengths of other to fight. I’ve met many activists who only see things one way, and if you don’t agree with them then you can’t be part of their efforts.

   One of the signs in the video “Activism is more than a word” that I really liked was “Not just a community, a just community”. I really think that is a good way to sum up a lot of things. It shows, first off, that we need to be a community. We are all of the same community and humanity is just one large community. We are all here to help each other along, not push someone back and oppress them. I think that’s where the “just” comes in. We need to help each other and give everyone equal rights.

   As for my most admired activist, I had trouble thinking of someone really good. I really like Bell Hooks and I really enjoyed learning about her views in this class, but after reading another person’s blog I think I agree with them. I think John F. Kennedy was a great activist (props to Kelly O’Connell!). He worked so hard in the 60’s to fight for freedom and equality for all. He was one with our community and that’s why so much of what he did helped society. I did an essay on him in middle school, and it said that the day they died, they wanted to put a bullet proof shield over the car but he refused because he said he wasn’t going to hide himself away from the people of his country that he loved so much. I think this shows how close he was and how much he actually cared and wanted that change. Another reason why I picked him, was because he was a white male. Not to say that I’d only pick a male (let alone white) person for my most admired activist (like I said before, I really like Bell Hooks), but rather I think we NEED more white male activists. It’s important for everyone to get together and being part of the dominant race/gender, I can say from experience it’s hard. One of the biggest things that needs to happen in order to have change and equality is that white males need to help start the change. We need to be more than just a community, but a just community.

You're too old

   In my estimation, ageism is caused from the mentality of society today. Young people are much more “mature” today and they assume anyone over 45 is losing their mind. I definitely am NOT ageist. I know this because I’ve lived through many types of ageism. Like in the video “Too old to work”, my father has gone through everything they talked about. My father, who’s 56, has been ridiculed and told he was “too experienced and would be bored” many, many times. He’s had loads and loads and loads of experience but because he isn’t fresh out of his bachelor’s degree (even though he has two masters), he’s not good enough or how they put it “too good”.

   
   This ‘-ism’ is talked about so much because we as a society think people who are older can’t do anything. In Japan, people who are older are respected as elders and are much wiser. In America, we just assume they lost their mind and are useless which isn’t true. My father is one of the brightest people I know, and he’s an excellent worker. He’s patented many of his inventions and has been awarded by the country, yet because of this he’s too good for the job? It just doesn’t make sense to me sometimes. 

Gimp

   “Gimp” was very interesting to me. I have a background in dance (over 12 years) so I found a lot of the movements they did really interesting. They way they overcome their disability is so empowering to people with disables and just people in general! People look at someone who has a disability and assumes that they can’t do anything. They assume that they aren’t a normal person just because they do things in a different way or manor. The way these dancers portrayed movement and their emotions was frankly, amazing. They had so much passion behind every movement, whether it was a leap across the floor, or just a gesture of the hand. Each move had a meaning behind it and a message to portray.

   The dancer who didn’t have any legs, in my opinion, helped get the point across the strongest. When you hear dance, you automatically think “leg movement”… or at least that’s what pops in my head. When I did dance we learned the ‘steps’ first and the ‘arm positions’ after. The legs were the most important, but in this case, she proved everyone wrong. The amount of upper body strength needed to do that in the first place blows my mind! I can’t imagine dancing with my arms like that. Another dancer who I found very interesting was the dancer who only had one arm. She showed so much movement with that one arm you didn’t need a second one! That sounds a little weird, but that’s the best way I can get it across. She put so much passion behind her movements that it was more than just dancing, it was a story.

   Dances like this can address disabilities because it shows that people with disabilities can do just as much stuff as people who don’t have disabilities can do, just in a different way.

Process Piece

  Overall, I thought my movie was pretty good. I wish I had been able to find more useful facts in the context that my movie was in. It was difficult to get facts in my movie without just sounding like I was preaching. However, I think sometimes that's what gets the point across!

   Right away I knew I wanted to do sexism because I live with three Women's Studies majors so it affects my life greatly. I'm really interested in this topic and I thought it would be interesting to get some workplace facts and that's why I set my movie up in the office. As for xtranormal, it didn't allow me to make the movie exactly like I wanted. I had to pick only one setting so I couldn't move it like I wanted so it made it a little difficult and I got behind on the overall process of making the movie. Also, it was difficult to make the animations the way I wanted them to look, so overall I think my worst aspect of the movie was the technological side.

  I guess to conclude I'd say I was content with my movie. Had I not hit that technological barrier, I think I could have portrayed what I was trying to in a much better way. But at least I know for future video projects what to expect!

Works Cited:
Ryan, Joelle R. "The Top 10 Reasons Fore the Wage Gap Between Women and Men."Gender, Power and Privilege Blog. 13 Jan. 2011. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. <http://ws405.blogspot.com/2011/01/top-10-reasons-fore-wage-gap-between.html>.


Women, Audience. "WB - Statistics & Data." The U.S. Department of Labor Home Page. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. <http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm>.


Women, Audience. "WB - Statistics & Data." The U.S. Department of Labor Home Page. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. <http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm>.

I'll show up for you, and you show up for me.

   I really enjoyed watching the video "Beautiful Daughters" and reading the article "Trans Women Manifesto". They were very opening, especially the video in my opinion. I've have the privilege of seeing the Vagina Monologues and it really is a great, empowering show. My best friend is running it this year at UNH and I can't wait to be in the front row for a second time to see it. It shows the strength of women and all they go through to gather that strength and stability. The fact that the production of "The Vagina Monologues" was a complete transgender cast helped to empower this group of women and the entire transgender society.
   Honestly, I've always been very iffy on the subject of transgender. Not because I thought it was wrong or anything, but because I've never been fully taught about it, or fully into becoming knowledgeable on the subject. This past semester, I've had the opportunity to talk to my roommate who was an intern with Transgender New Hampshire. Through talking to my roommate, my eyes have been opened to the situations and complications that someone who is transgender has to face. When Eve was talking to the women about "you were men, didn't you know all men wanted was sex?" and she said "I finally got it, you weren't men, you were always women. I finally got it" I could really relate. I had that moment this past semester and it's that moment, that 'Aha!', that everyone needs to witness and experience. Once I experienced that moment of realization, everything made sense to me. Learning about transgender people is a very difficult and sometimes overwhelming thing. At first I was very confused and didn't want to learn more but through Transgender New Hampshire, my roommate and I discussing it, and this assignment it's much clearer to me now.
   This movie and the article challenges the preconceived notions that transgender people just decide one day "I'm tired of being this gender, time for a change". That's not how it works. These women were born women. They unfortunately were born in the wrong body. They have had the chance to change that and that's what makes them so empowering.
   The main thing cisgender people can do to help transgender people, is to stop being afraid! Why are you afraid of someone who is transgender? Cisgender people categorize trans people as untouchable almost and it's the complete opposite of what actually needs to be done. It's up to cisgender people to get out there and act like there is no difference! Half the women in the video said they weren't out to their coworkers. Just imagine how many people you have talked to that you had no idea were trans. These men and women are no different than us, we were lucky to be born in the body that our soul identifies with. The only difference is that they had to change a little. That doesn't mean they're damaged goods, it just means they are better now because they are who they want to be, and who they always were in their minds and their hearts.

I am an ally... or at least want to be?

     I'm going to review the article "Becoming an Ally" by Nancy J. Evans and Jamie Washington. I've always considered myself and 'ally' to the LGBT community. But after reading this article I question some my decisions I suppose. I’m not afraid of what will come from being an ally. People can say anything they want about me, whether heterosexual or someone of the LGBT community. In the article it listed the things to become an ally like awareness, knowledge, skills, and action. I am aware of the issues in the LGBT community and I’ve begun to acquire more knowledge just by taking a class like this and women’s studies/queer studies courses. I need to work on my skills however because like it said “some fall short because of fear, or lack or resources or supports”. I honestly am afraid sometimes because while I say I don’t care, everyone has some sort of resentment when people attack him or her for something. As of the action step, I have helped friends in these situations many times; I listen and try my hardest to give a helpful input.
     It’s important to me to be an ally because I have many friends in the LGBT community and I care a lot about them, their rights, and equality for men, women, lesbians, gay men, transgender people, and all the subcategories of the LGBT community. This is something I really want to work towards and this article was very helpful to lay out the steps and process of becoming a true and helpful ally.

Quick Blog #4

   "I whip my hair back and forth"... why? I don't understand this song. I really dislike it, I change the channel if it comes on the radio and now that I've seen the video I'm even more confused. Is it just a dance move? I don't really understand what the point of whipping your hair is. I don't think this provides any kind of role model for girls. I don't think it's necessarily bad because I don't see how anyone could actually take anything out of it. Do I think it's inappropriate? Somewhat yes, somewhat no. She's way to young to be singing a song like this and dancing like that. Some of the moves (mostly done by the older dancers) were really inappropriate and I don't think she should have been associated with them.
   Race intersects with this video because, frankly, there just aren't any white people. All the dancers are black or latino/a and the only white person I saw (I'm sure I missed some) was a girl sitting in a desk bopping up and down.
  I have mixed feelings about this video because I don't think anything really BAD happened in it, yes there were slight sexual remarks but nothing to out of control. I just don't understand the song really.

Quick Blog #3

1. I'm privileged because I am a white, middle class male. I don't get discriminated against, whether for my race or my economic standing. I'm envied because I don't get the discriminations some might get about the color of their skin or how much money their parents make. Unfortunately there are many times when I've been privileged because of this. But one thing I can remember really well is when I got a new cell phone. Normally this isn't such a big thing, but I got a new cell phone from a new provider while I still had a year left on my other one and instead of my parents canceling it (they didn't want to get hit with the fee) they just kept paying for it until the year ran out. I'm privileged for so many things but I'm grateful. But really? That's pretty ridiculous!

2. I can't really say I've been oppressed. The closest I could come up to it the feeling of being a bad person any time someone says something about race or economic standing. Fingers point at me a lot because I'm so lucky and fortunate to be in the economic standing I'm in. It's sad that I have to be "fortunate" though to be white. I didn't choose to be white and I didn't choose for someone else to be of a different race. I'm oppressed in the sense that I'm put into this category of bad people without others even trying to meet or talk to me.

3. In my school, class was pretty mixed. However, if someone was of an 'upper' class, they would definitely remark on the 'lower' class people. I've witnessed a lot of kids put others down because of the items they own or more importantly DON'T own. I've had a lot of people talk about people behind their backs and unfortunately I can't say I did much to stop it. I refused to talk about someone's social standing when it comes to class but I can't say I'm a fighter against it. That's something I'd like to change.

I'm a real man.

I am a man. I’m supposed to be a ‘real man’ and take on the ‘tough guise’ as said in the movie. A real man is physical; they play sports, and are tough. I could defend myself if need be, but I wouldn’t say I’m physical. I’ve heard it before, “bitch”, “wimp”, “queer”. Why do we put these terms to put down men? Why does the human race define what a man has to be, and if he ISN’T these lists of things, he isn’t a man. In the media, a white male has to be tough, badass, important, and successful. A black male has to be ghetto, gangster, and badass. Latinos are criminals. Asians are ninjas and martial artists. Why does society perpetuate these classifications that limit men to certain choices in life. Growing up with the current media, you only see men one way. The only other way a man can be is “sensitive” which quite obviously makes him a homosexual. Because of the medial trauma that is created today, people are harassed and oppressed. While I don’t think men are oppressed the same way as women, I think there is a different type of fight men have to face. The ‘tough guise’ as the movie called it is a safety feature that I even feel I have to put on sometimes just to be accepted by people.

Recent movies like James Bond, The Fighter (any boxing/fighting movies), and Batman/Spiderman movies all represent what the real man should be. They all represent a real man, strong and important, saving the damsel in distress. I think this is an issue we need to face and stop antagonizing men for not being what society wants them to be. This is our right to equality and just because I’m not as strong or fast or athletic as you, doesn’t mean I’m not a real man. I appreciate the movies in modern day society that show the female as the strong fighter. Movies like Resident Evil have the female character being the stronger of the main characters. This helps with the gender equality but I’m not sure if I’ve seen any recent movies that have helped with the male gender issues themselves. Movies like “Blades of Glory” show that ice-skating is gay but it’s not a prerequisite to be gay to ice skate. It’s movies like this that put thoughts into the youth’s heads and this is how harassment and oppression is formed. 

White Christian Male

I identify as a Protestant Christian. However, I don’t always practice my faith to the strongest level. Is in other words, I’m almost accepted into both categories of the dominant faith and the oppressed group. I’m part of dominant faith so I receive all of the extra treatment that someone who’s Christian, let alone a white, male, Christian gets. I’m lucky I’m part of a dominant faith, but I shouldn’t have to be lucky. People should accept other people’s faiths and not classify them as a bad person just because they don’t have the same faith as you do.

            One issue I think goes on when we talk about religion is that no one wants to answer. Like Schlosser said in his article, people always say, “no preference” or “I prefer not to answer”. If people can’t talk about it, we can’t fix it and grow.

            I experience privilege because I’m that white male, protestant Christian, middle class person so I get all the privilege from all of those classifications. Like in the article, I have the opportunity to flaunt my religion for the whole world to see without having to worry whether or not I’m going to be patronized for it. If I was of the Islam religion, I’d be worried because people don’t understand their religion an attack them for their beliefs. One of the things that Schlosser’s article really stuck out to me was the “I can put “Jesus is Lord” bumper sticker on my car and not have to worry about someone vandalizing my car”. This struck me because it’s unfortunately completely true in our society. If someone of a different faith put anything on their car, there’s a big chance someone would vandalize their car because they aren’t “normal” or “of the right religion”. Religion is a big issue in our society and it’s something that really needs to be addressed. 

Video Treatment

The "-ism"
For my video project, my -ism is going to be sexism. I want my video to help get out the issues we have with modern day sexism and the fight for gender equality. 


The Story
My story is going to begin with a lady and a man sitting in an office waiting room both waiting for an interview. They will converse some and the male character will in some form say something sexist/oppressive to the female character. They will then discuss the issue that results from this oppressive dialect. Then, they will each go into the interview, but you will only see the female's interview (this might change to both, I haven't completely decided yet). Within this movie, I hope to get in fact about the rising job rates for women, the opportunities that are changing for women, and the goal set out for society and the path they must endeavor. 


The Software
For my project, I plan to use xtranormal. I've used this software only once for fun and haven't used any of the others so I'd feel most comfortable with this. I think it'll get my point across while also not being uncomfortable for anyone to watch. Also, I will feel more comfortable since I know I can use it!


Research
I will use the textbooks from class, posts by Prof. Ryan, and the videos we have watched. I'd really like to use the video by Bell Hooks because I really enjoyed that one. I will make it educational by showing a real life situation and adding substantial facts to back up the situation. The female character will be very knowledgeable on the situation and be able to give supportive facts, not just fluff. 


Timeline
Jan 11th - Summary, Video Treatment, Brainstorm, Begin Research
Jan 12th - Start assembling the dialogue for the video
Jan 13th - Finish Dialogue and edit as needed 
Jan 14th - Begin to add dialogue into xtranormal.com and start movements
Jan 15th/16th - Finish movie and post to Youtube.com
Jan 17th - Post Process Piece


Take Away Message
I want people to take away the importance of sexism. That everyone deserves the same opportunities and rights, whether it's a job interview (like in this case) or buying something or anything! We are all people and we all deserve equal opportunities in life. I really hope my project can help people see that there IS an issue and WE ALL need to help put an end to the oppression and the pain.

I Wouldn't Be Caught Dead In a Volvo

I first became aware of class when I was in elementary school honestly. I’ve always been lucky enough to be part of the upper middle class for most of my life. I had opportunities, I had expensive clothes, I was very fortunate. I could see kids around me in school who didn’t have as much as I had. Some of my friends I hung out with didn’t have as much as I did. I can honestly say though, I was never someone who was classist. I never judged anyone by what they had and I’m proud of that. I was brought up to appreciate the things I had and to know I was lucky and that it could be taken away in a second. My best friend was part of the “blue collared” class. His father was an electrician unlike my father who was one of the head honchos of a large fiber company. Class has affected my life by opening my eyes to the things I’ve been fortunate enough to have. A couple years ago my parents moved and they got lower paying jobs and we became part of the ‘middle class’. I’m still fortunate but I don’t have the same opportunities necessarily that I had when I was in elementary school. We don’t’ go to fancy restaurants anymore, which is fine with me. Class is so invisible in the culture because no one wants to admit that they are forcing people into categories and assuming something about someone. When the teen girl in the intro to the movie was saying “he’s grumpy…. He’s a dork….” It interested me because I didn’t understand how she could just categorize someone into these ‘classes’ that exist in high school. There are so many different forms of classes. Rich, middle class, poor. Cool, dork, loser, goth. There are so many categories that people just label in our society and when you challenge them about it, they get defensive and deny it. In everyday life, they don’t pay attention and the class system seems invisible to them. I was talking to my brother today actually, about what language they speak in Afghanistan (he’s in the army and just finished serving his second term over seas), and he said “it depends. It depends where you are and it depends on your class. Higher class people, political people, and dignitaries speak Dari. The lower class system speaks Pashto.” American’s deny that we have a class system, but we can look at it the same way as Afghanistan. Southerners have a different dialect than Northerners and we classify them as “hicks” where Northerners are snobby, rich, jerks. We need to encourage the discussion about class by challenging the norms. We need to fight to not be part of the norms and to extend our “class” until we eliminate it.

Quickblog #2

The article I picked has to do with the oppression against teens and kids who are bullied because they are gay. I think this is one of the biggest issues we're facing in America right now because kids feel it's bad enough to take their own lives. It's horrible to hear stories of teens killing themselves because they were bullied by classmates and their peers. It's extremely important to stop this bullying and to expand the mindset of the youth in America today. Over 7,500 schools participate in the day of silence, including my high school, which shows that the word is getting around and people are starting to realize how much of an issue this is today. However, that's only 7,500 hundred schools out of hundred of thousands that should be part of this awareness.

When Words Can Kill

Blue eyed/Brown eyed

     I think the experiment done by Elliot was a great idea. I agree with everything she believed in and I think it was an experiment that needed to be done. I don’t think what she did was cruelty in any way, she didn’t hurt any of the kids and it was all just temporary. It’s amazing to me to see how quickly the kids took to the experiment and their views started to change. The fact that they can so easily switch their views and just oppress their fellow students and friends blows my mind. I would have loved to be part of this experiment to truly live through the situation. I mean, we are truly living through racial oppression every day, but I think it would have been a great chance to see the outcome and to be part of this certain experiment as a child. One of the articles I really enjoyed was “Waking Up White” and the woman, Jan Arminio, spoke about how her kids knew so much. I don’t think I really, honestly, knew that much about different races when I was a kid. I grew up in a higher middle class town in a large house on a street that was completely white. The first time I truly interacted with someone who looked different than me was in middle school. This would have been an eye opening change in my life had I been part of an experiment like this. I think it was an ethical experiment that made people angry because they didn’t want to admit their children were racist (and the fact that they knew it was because of them) and I honor any teacher who challenges her students in this manor. 

A break in the chain

Sorry it's a little long!

In the U.S. we minimize, deny, and erase oppression towards a certain group of people. When we minimize something, we are brushing the situation off of our shoulders. If a woman was talking to a man, and he said a rude remark, something like “Women belong in the kitchen”, she would hopefully stand up for herself and explain to the man what he did wrong. He would then minimize the woman by telling her “you’re over reacting” or something of that taste. Like Johnson said, minimizing something is like denial. It used the example that men are more in trouble now than women and I find this interesting. When a white man gets angry and says something like this, he’s just trying to minimize the true situation and is trying to turn the tables. My example of the conversation before also is an example of blame. The man blamed the woman for being irrational, which is another way people can get away with oppression. When someone does this, something you could do would be to try to explain to them how they oppressed you and how they offended who you are. We all need to stop blaming someone else for what has happened in the past, and most importantly what is going on in the present. It’s all our fault for the way society is now, and we need to work harder to stop minimizing the situation.

            I found the section about “being with your own kind” interesting. Living in a state that is mostly white, it’s hard to picture a more diverse neighborhood. But thinking about how the US is, it’s not surprising. “In fact, however, research shows clearly that most blacks would prefer to live in integrated neighborhoods. If anyone wants to live “with their own kind,” it’s whites”. This line really struck me because it’s so completely true! Whites deny everything that goes on when it comes to race. The reason we can’t fix anything and haven’t yet, is because we just travel in a circle. We oppress someone, categorizing them by their gender, their race, or sexual orientation, then we go and put them down. When they finally gain the strength to fight back, we deny them that strength, tell them they’re overreacting and push them back down. We then make everything better by saying that’s how THEY want it and we’re just respecting their wishes, which in turn leads to more oppression. This never ending cycle truly needs a break in the chain.

No Justice, No Peace

I was blown away by this experiment. I sat through the video wondering how anyone could treat another human this way all for research and then someone finally stepped in and put everyone’s perspective back in place.

To me the guards represented the privileged, majority power, while the prisoners were the underprivileged minority. Whether it’s race, sex, or social status I think they would still represent the same thing, but for the sense of today’s topic, I’ll keep it to topic of race. The guards obviously represented the dominant race, overpowering and using their privilege against the minority. This relates to the True Colors story when Prime Time Live followed the cops and compared the incidents with the black man or the white man. It disgusts me to see this story and I was watching the video with my friend, Brittany, who’s a Women’s Studies major and a Africana studies minor. We were discussing how offensive it is (keeping in mind that we’re the privileged middle class white people) to see our law enforcement so corrupt. What REALLY kicked me over the edge was when the cops pulled over the cameramen and was so rude to them and wrote them the citation even though they had the correct documentation.
This experiment made it really easy for me to see the issues that privilege, power, and oppression causes in our society. It’s a real issue that needs to be stopped and unfortunately it’s going to be a long and tough journey. However, I keep my hopes up that it’s something we can all work for together and reach this path of equality and righteousness. 

Lady Gaga

When we were asked to blog about Lady Gaga, I wasn't quite sure what to write. I honestly enjoy the outgoing, oddball designs Lady Gaga wears and whatnot but I'm not quite sure if I know what she truly stands for. I guess from just viewing and hearing things about her, I would think she IS a feminist. She's very empowering to her individuality and for women. She's straight out the most individual star in Hollywood right now so she wins my vote for that. But only hearing through second hand stories, I'm not sure if my judgement is true. Her videos are very sexual so I'm not so sure how great they are for young women AND men. They're slightly inappropriate for younger aged kids, but much of music in this generation is. To me personally, Lady Gaga is just a singer. But I do hope to some people, they can be the role model they need.

"Feminism will make it possible, for the first time, for Men to be free"

Kimmel’s discussion on gender differences intrigued me. Much of what he said I had to agree with, if not almost all of it. I’ve heard a lot about the “Mars and Venus” take on gender difference and equality, but I’ve never really paid much attention to it. In some senses of the word, I agree that there are ‘differences’ between men and women. There are physical differences, however I don’t think the differences diminish the importance of the other sex. Together, men and women make new life and without the other, all life would cease to exist. Each sex is equally as important and we need to treat each other likewise. Unfortunately, because of history and the way life is now, women are depicted as “less” or “inferior” to men, which isn’t true at all. I found it very interesting when Kimmel gave the statistics about how men feel better, are healthier, and happier when they help take the load of housework off their counterpart’s shoulders. This just proves that we were made to be equal and take equal responsibility for everything in our lives.

            I agree with Kimmel’s point of view that men and women are created equally. I think he supports his point of view extremely well and had a lot of statistical material to back it all up. Personally I’ve always felt men and women were equal in all ways, but after listening to Kimmel’s lecture, I feel even more comfortable with my believes on the subject.

Feminazis and the Ugly, Bra-burning, Man-haters

I apologize, it's a little longer than it's supposed to be, but I felt like it was important for all my explanations to keep it this length.

          My definition of feminism is the belief that women and men should be treated equally. In all aspects of life, women can do just as much as men. I would like to define myself as a feminist. Living with three women studies majors and four women in general has opened up my eyes to the stereotyping indecencies that they have to go through. I try my hardest to treat all my fellow peers, men or women, equally and to counteract offensive acts against women. I believe feminism has greatly suffered bad stereotypes in the past and even now, but I do believe feminism is a growing part of life in many ways. I see what my roommates and the UNH Women’s Studies office do for our campus and community and it’s inspiring to see that even with the bad publicity towards feminism, they fight on and push through to change the world and the lives of women AND men.

            Many people when they hear the word “feminist” they assume the feminist is an angry, man-hating woman who believes all men are dirt and should go strand themselves on an island. However, when I tell my friends I try to consider myself a feminist and when I tell them I’m a Women’s Studies minor, they look at me and assume “I’m doing it to meet chicks”. It’s truly unfortunate the stereotypes women receive for being a feminist and when the stereotypes even flow over and people can’t believe a man can be Women’s Studies major for the good of society and women’s rights, it’s sad and enraging.

            People resist the “male hating feminazis” (The F Word) because that’s the way the media and television created the image. Had they not created the bra burning, man-hating stereotype it would be much easier for people to grasp the future of equality. Women deserve the right to a job where they are paid the same as their male counterpart. They deserve to lead a company. They deserve the right to reproduce when and with whomever they please. The bad publicity, in my opinion, is the biggest set back for feminists and the feminist movement. Because of this bad publicity, people, men AND women, are afraid.

All about the Benjamins

     Bell Hooks’ Cultural Criticism Series was very interesting to me. It opened my eyes to so many different point of views that I had never witnessed before or at least put the effort in to trying to witness it. Looking back at all the media reference Hooks made, it amazes me how easily the American and even world population undervalue the severity of sexism, racism, and oppression in general. When Hooks was talking about teaching in Harlem, it really hit home to me the ignorance of mankind and the media trash. Hooks spoke of how brilliant her students in Harlem were and how they compared if not surpassed her students at Yale. Just because someone is privileged enough to attend Yale doesn’t mean they are going to get anything more out of it. Something I strongly believe in is that what you get out of your education is dependent on what you put in.

     When Hooks talked about Madonna it really opened up a different view of her to me. I’ve never been a fan of Madonna and I don’t know much about her but all my life I’ve heard that Madonna is a “feministic role model”. But after seeing clips from her music videos and photos from previous magazine photo shoots, it boggles my mind to even attempt to put her in the category of a true feminist. The fact that a woman as powerful as Madonna would degrade herself in a photo shoot like that saddens me. Because of her lust for more money and the vice grip fame has on her, she puts her true power and femininity aside to please the patriarchal social desire for sex and money.

     After watching the Bell Hooks Series, I see that oppression is everywhere and people just ignore it (unfortunately, including myself). I agree with Hooks’ assertions about oppression in the media and I think it’s important to work towards an end. Making the thief an African American male or put the woman “back into the kitchen” isn’t where our society should be heading. It’s the oppressive behavior in the media that is shaping much of the modern day youth and it’s vital to make a change or the oppression will just expand.