Thursday January 26, 2012

I must say the reading in the Adams book really caught my attention, and was actually pretty interesting to read. I have to admit that when I started reading I kept thinking, "Ok, it's so annoying how they frame Whites as being the bad guys. I'm not even like that." As I continued to read I had to realize and remind myself that it's not myself being personally targeted because i'm white. I had to understand that it's talking about whites as a whole, not individuals. Honestly, it's really irritating to me when I think that people are "accusing" or assuming that I am certain ways. I don't always stop and think that it's not personal. I realize that it's just something that is hard to take in when you grew up for so long not having to think about things like that. Like the book says, we don't always recognize our "priviledge" of being in the dominant group. However, i'm not totally priviledged either because I am a woman. While I was reading, the first thing that really stuck out to me was the example the book gave about white men being the ones that are tested on for new medical drugs. It was a little scary when it mentioned that they use the results equally on men and women and give us the same dosage as men (who are usually larger and stronger). It made me think about how people just assume that whatever they are taking is safe and approved. I know I don't ever give much thought to a medication once it's prescribed to me.
Another thing that caught  my attention was when the book said that African American novelist, James Baldwin, stated "It took generations and a vast amount of coercion, before this became a white country." He then noted that although it is a fact that skin pigmentations vary, unless you are in a culture that recognizes these differences as significant, they virtually do not exist. For example, people in Africa don't see each other as "black". They see each other as Africans and men and women, not the color of their skin because they don't live in a place that is dominated by white priviledge. I'm not sure why this stuck out to me so much. I guess it's because even though it seems like something so obvious, it's just not something we think about often.

Today I had a job interview at a western wear store and noticed some of the issues brought up in the book about women being part of an oppressed group. While I was in the interview, the man interviewing me (the manager) asked me if I was married. I told him not yet and then he told me that all I have to do is flirt with the men that come in and they'll buy the boots from me. He said I should just "bat my eyelashes" and i'll make alot on commission. He also mentioned that most of the time he'll have me working in the MEN'S boot section and also in the hat section because women can get good tips there. This was the first time that i've had a boss actually say out loud that i'll be using my looks at work. It was really weird...



^^^So I saw this posted on facebook today. The comments on it were all saying stuff like "This is so true!!" What does the fact that he is "african" or black have to do with his political decisions? This just shows how people are just being racist and hate the fact that he's the first black president. Since the presidential elections are being held this year, I've heard and seen so many comments saying he shouldn't be re-elected based on the fact that he is black.
Just thought i'd share this...

First Blog Assignment

Well, this is a new thing for me to be writing in a blog for an assignment. Actually, it's just a new thing to be writing in a blog period. So far it seems exciting and will be a cool learning experience. Anyways, on to the subject of social injustice...

Ya know, i've never actually thought about social injustice in this way until I read these articles. I must say I agree that Pelton is right in saying that social injustice should be fought on an individual level. He makes a good point in saying that focusing on fighting group social injustice can ironically lead to creating more. It's a weird concept that i've never really thought about. As future social workers I think this a important to think about and to really explore.

I also feel that the disagreements Longres and Scanlon have with Pelton show how social workers are all real human beings like anyone else. By this I mean we all have our own thoughts and opinions as social workers. Obviously since we chose this field as a profession we all have society's best interest in mind, but I think we are all different in the ways we choose to advocate for it.

In Pelton's article he says, "Sentiment and feelings of collective guilt are poor bases for policy making." This is so true. I agree that people shouldn't form decisions out of guilt. This reminded me of last semester when I took an Asian American Studies class where I was one of three white kids in the class, while the rest were Asian American. Every class I felt so uncomfortable because all the class discussions led to how "white people are all priviledged and they're all racist and discriminate against Asians and other minorities." While this may be true for SOME whites, it's certainly not true for all, including myself. It was as if the class tried to make us whites in the class feel guilty for others' mistakes. I believe that collective guilt is brought on by stereotypes.

So basically I think that Pelton is right. We should work on bringing social justice to the individual level, not groups.

First Blog

Well I finally figured out how to get this thing made. So far it looks as if I've done everything right..I guess we'll find out soon enough. Here's to the start of a new semester!