Choice Blog #7As much as people deny that it still exists, sexism and racism are still very much alive. The fact that women still get paid less than men stands to reason that sexism is still thriving in the current society in which we live in. Many will say that this is in fact not true and that it is "made up" by feminist radicals. They are wrong. There have been studies by creditable sources that have proven the accuracy of the statement that there is in fact sexism in the way in which we pay the workers.
In fact, my mom has worked at the same place for twenty five years, and a male worker that has worked with her for much less than twenty five years makes more money than she does. Another example is an older man at a driving range I was at had felt the need to extensively explain the risk of having an accident while driving just after he realized that only girls were present. So he was hinting at the stereotype of girls being terrible drivers. There are even people in the world who think that women are superior to men or vice versa. A friend of mine had told me about an incident at lunch in which there was a person who was openly expressing their views about multiple topics. The topics included that "men superior to women", "the wage gap between men and women does not exist", and that "feminism is not important". The person that was saying all these things was in fact a female. My guess is that this girl does not know was feminism really is. Rape culture is also in a way connected to sexism. This is because men and women both treat each other like sexual objects. I read an article in one of my other classes that claimed only men treated women like sexual objects, but in today's society is that really the case? The fact that racism still exists as well shocks me. We are in the year 2015 people, actually it is almost 2016 and you still have not realized that races are equal to each other? That's sad. I observed some racism on my bus just the other day. There was a person who had refused to listen to a song that their friend was trying to get them to listen to, just because "the singer is black." I do not necessarily agree with this topic that cops are racist, but some cops clearly are. There have been several hate crimes involved with a law enforcement officer of another race such as blacks to whites or whites to blacks. I hate thinking about how the people who are meant to keep us safe, are attacking us out of cold blood due to being a different color than you are. That is all we are, a different color. Are you going to hate a pencil that you have just because it is a different color other than the color that is your favorite? Will you refuse to use it because of its color? Will you break the pencil in half and throw it across the room just because it is red or green instead of blue or purple? You sound crazy if you answered yes. This topic is not technically connected to racism, but I feel that it needs to be said. People call black people African-American quite often out of "respect". I do not consider this phrase respectful at all. A lot of blacks are not directly from Africa. They grew up here in america, along with their parents, their grandparents, and maybe even great grandparents. So calling blacks African-American is basically like calling ourselves European-American. Sounds ridiculous does it not? Choice Blog Week #6In the song Centuries by Fall Out boy the lyrics are:
We've been here forever And here's the frozen proof I could scream forever We are the poisoned youth. These lyrics mean to me that the adults of today think that we are messed up kids. They think that our generation will not make it far in life because we are not mature. In the song Runaways by All Time Low the lyrics are: Only a quitter, Would let it go, I'm your fool in a one-man show, I was so bitter, 'Til you came along, You set my sails when the tide was low. These lyrics to me mean that there is always something to bring your spirits up. It also me to never give up on anything. In Roger Rabbit by Sleeping with Sirens the lyrics are: Nobody's gonna hold your hand And guide you through No it's up for you to understand These lyrics kind of remind me of growing up. It tells me that it's a part of growing up to have to do things on your own. Choice Blog Week #6Before we wrote our expository essays I was thinking about writing mine essay about education. However, I am glad that I didn't. I now have some resources from class to show some different viewpoints. I am choosing to respond to the text First Period by Kevin M. Derrig. This text is an accurate description of how some teachers act toward their students. Teachers act like we waste our time by asking questions, or they think that we have dumb comments. I have even heard a teacher say to another student that they will most likely end up dropping out by the time they are in high school.
Another point I want to make is that high school students are expected to act like adults, but they are treated like they are children. The students, their minds racing, aren't allowed to leave the classroom except for one at a time, and we are expected to sit in silence unless we are asked a question. I'm not saying all teachers are bad at all. Some teachers are amazing role models, and they care about their students and always want them to do their best. However, the problems with education cannot be fully blamed on the teachers. The government is the one who makes the laws for schools. Book Blog Week #6In the chapters that I am currently reading, the story is told in the point of view of a mermaid who Kendra has turned into a human. This mermaid had saved the life of a 19 year old boy who had almost frozen and died after the Titanic had sunk. The boy had not had a life boat, so he was floating freely in the water. He asked the mermaid, Doria if she could help him, she agreed and rushed him to a safety boat. He had not known she was a mermaid.
Now that the mermaid has been turned human to find the boy, Brewster, she and him are in New York City. She cannot talk, for the consequence to becoming a human was to lose her voice. Two paragraphs in the book really stood out to me because they showed the personality of this character and also imagery. "I walked toward the glass that showed the outside world. Funny that. I had heard that sometimes humans caught fish and placed them in glass bowls in their homes. It had seemed cruel to me, but now I realized that the humans were in glass bowls themselves. I pulled aside the thing called a curtain and looked out. It was wonderous! In my world of the sea, the light was the same from day to night. The human world was gray and blue and white by day, but at night, it was inked by octopi. I was used to seeing the inky background broken by hundreds, thousands of tiny stars. But here in New York City, the lights were increased a thousandfold, and they were brighter, many-colored, dancing before us." I commented on Alex E, Autumn and Arika's blogs.
Choice Blog #5Homecoming is a tradition in which we celebrate our football team, crown a queen, plan a dance, have a parade and do so much more.
The game always seems to be the biggest part for everyone. We cannot wait to watch our classmates play and win against another school. Winning the Homecoming game is so important to the players and all the supporters of the team. Winning is not everything of course, but it just makes Homecoming that much more fun. Crowing a queen is another fun part of Homecoming. All the students are allowed to vote and cast their ballot for which queen they think deserves the crown this year. As a senior, this is the last chance the queens have at winning. They pick their escorts or their "kings" and during the game the queen is announced. After the game there is a Homecoming dance. Everyone is always excited to celebrate and show the spirit they have for their school by having fun and dancing. Before all of this happens, there is a Homecoming parade. Everyone knows when the parade is happening because traffic will be backed up for miles to watch student made floats drive around the route. Choice Blog #5On my bus that I have to ride to school everyday, we are separated into sections. The little kids are not allowed passed seat 13, and the high school students get to sit in the back of the bus. Sitting in the back is supposed to be a privilege for being older and more responsible. Even though this is the case, we are treated like Elementary School kids.
Last week on the bus our bus driver informed us that some kids were participating in something called "bean dip" on the bus. I have never heard of that before, but basically it is something where the guy gropes a girl's boob. A few days before that happened, two high school students (boyfriend and girlfriend) were told that they won't be allowed to sit together if they are going to hold hands. The two agreed that they wouldn't hold hands so they could still sit next to each other. The student caught "bean dipping" is still allowed to ride the bus even though what he did was technically sexual assault. The high school students have to have the lights on in the back when it is dark. What is that teaching the younger kid? It's teaching him that it is okay to sexually assault someone because there will be no punishments. Book Blog #5In the book Bewitching by Alex Flinn, the story is told in many different perspectives. In Kendra's (the witch), Emma, and a Prince's perspective. Kendra only narrates in the beginning and for a page every so often in the middle on the book. Emma and the Prince get a chance to tell their stories. Both of them know Kendra, but only the Prince is aware that she is a witch. Kendra was able to assist the Prince with an issue he was having with his mother giving approval to the princess he wanted to marry.
Emma has befriended Kendra, and confused about why strange things happen while she is around, but she has never suspected witchery. Although the author switches character perspectives between chapters, she does so in a way that makes sense. Usually when I read books that change character perspectives I get confused and I forget what was happening when I last left off. This book is one of my favorites of the year so far. |
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