Unity

I typically don't keep up with politics unless it's in a comedic form. This is one of those videos that actually caught my attention and made me realize that there are voters in this country that have no idea what is going on.

A voter is a voter, but let's face it. When it comes down to actually making a decision to better your country, in which ways should this be approached? Which target population is the most desirable? I bring this up because lately the news has been saying Obama is requesting young adults speak in favor for Obama care.

Now for Obamacare, the younger generation is being strongly encouraged to support, mostly because our money will help contribute to it. I question what efforts have been made in order for us young adults to contribute to the risk pool they speak of and I also question how these politicians can bring together young adults, if they can barely bring together different ethnicities. 

I question why unity in diversity isn't endorsed as much as it should be. Things like income and education are contributing factors to politics and reasons why certain ethnic groups don't vote. I am doubtful that many people truly understand the power of unity.

How much more powerful would it be if we instead started focusing on ethnic groups, instead of age groups? It seems like an impossible task to do so especially since not all ethnicities are united. They fail to come together and speak up for the betterment of their nation. In Michael C. Dawson's article, The Future of Black Politics, he states that Black-Latino alliances are essential for the future of their politics. Approximately 80 percent of people questioned were in agreement with that statement. Dawson has a statistic, and now I question why it is not enforced.

In order for change to occur for people of color, unity is a necessity. Asians and Hispanic people are less likely to be a registered voter. According to Jeffry M. Jones of Gallup Politics, only half of the Hispanics that are eligible to vote actually register themselves, and only 60% of Asians do the same. Combined, approximately 55% of Hispanics and asians are left unheard, underrepresented, and overlooked. This leaves a lot of room for improvement. 

This issue can be addressed in various different ways. The first I will mention is education. It is not often that a high school student learns about how the Mexicans were forced out of their own country. Rarely does an American student hear the real story, or fully understand the the brutality of their own nation's attempt at ethnic cleansing. It also is not often you hear about Asians falling victim to hate crimes. In history books, this nation is glorified and the primary focus is on the "good". If education were different, there is a large possibility that this would not occur. For the sake of social justice and for the sake of getting students to realize the problems there are in this country, simple subjects like that should be reviewed. Starting from the very beginning will only help students be more educated, and fully understand the power they have as a person of color.

In addition, people of color could be a bit more unified. If the country has one common goal, it is unideal for different groups to be approaching it different ways. 

Now before politicians start taking sides on Obamacare vs. the Affordable Care act, or anything like that, it is important to remember the most powerful voice is one that is unified. 

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-obama-young-invincibles-20131203,0,6213148.story#axzz2mqlH0Gfq

http://www.gallup.com/poll/165752/voter-registration-lags-among-hispanics-asians.aspx

http://www.bostonreview.net/forum/future-black-politics-dawson

Distorting Reality or Portraying Reality: The Media

Distorting Reality or Portraying Reality: The Media

The media is powerful outlets were people get their information. They can access the news, health trends, visit other countries, watch sitcoms, movies ect. More and more children and parents are spending time being glued in front of the television. In a report from the American Time Use Survey for 2012, the results showed that Watching TV was the leisure activity that occupied the most time (2.8 hours per day), accounting for about half of leisure time, on average, for those age 15 and over. It may not seem like a lot but if you consider that watching television takes up about three hours of your leisure time that is a lot of time spent watching television.

            Unfortunately the programs that are ran through the television networks are not the most educational or the most culturally relevant. Most of the programs on television often portray stereotypical views of minorities and poke fun at those stereotypes lightening their crude meaning behind them. On the other hand, are the programs and shows that are on television just a distortion of reality made to humor the public?

            I believe that the way minorities are portrayed in the media is very close to reality. Unfortunately, they feed and play into racist and stereotypical views that “Americans” have on minorities. Therefore I do not believe that the media distorts reality of American life, it is actually a mirror image of the racism and stereotypes that are deeply embedded in our culture.

            America is a huge melting pot that is rich in diversity. Unfortunately the media does not adequately represent all these groups of minorities. In examining the current shows on television that have leading characters which are minorities the selection was very limited. For example, when looking for Latino leading characters on current television shows there are limited options, which include: Modern Family, Castle, Chicago Fire, Law & Order SVU ect. It seems like Latinos have come a long way in the media world but how exactly are they being portrayed in these television shows? In Modern Family for example, the lead character Sofia Vergara is portrayed as a loud, outspoken character, which has an attitude, and speaks English with a heavy accent.

            Not only are Latinos portrayed through stereotypes in television series but also African Americans. African American actors that have leading character roles on current television shows are very limited as well. There are a few networks, outside of BET, were you see African American protagonist, these shows include: Scandal, House, Walking Dead, Greys Anatomy. According to Rhonesha Byngm, Scandal is the first television show were an African American female actually has a starting role.  The way the African American family is portrayed in the media is very stereotypical as well. Most black family shows are comedy sitcoms that are shown on BET. These shows do not often make it into mainstream networks. Other than the Coby’s, Bernie Mack Show, and Martin, there have not been current shows that are supposed to represent the black family in the mainstream media. As I mentioned before, all these shows are comedy shows.

           How can one get an accurate depiction or see themselves on television when there is a lack of representation of minorities on television. All you see are the negative and silly images which represent minorities. It skews your rational in regards to how those minorities are supposed to act. Therefore the media helps reinforce stereotypes. If someone has never encountered or had an interaction with someone from another race and all they do is watch television they automatically think they have an idea/insight of how people from different races act and behave. They form these ideas about them before they meet someone of that race. 

Recently, there has been an influx and wave of reality shows that are supposed to depict these real life situations/scenarios which in the end are all scripted. They are not really reality shows because they have some sense of manipulation and have situations that are created by the director themselves. Unfortunately, children and naive people think that they represent actual reality. The way the world really works and the way people act. Shows like Mob Wives, Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, the Real House Wives all claim they portray reality and how things actually occur. In reality, the creators of these shows take little dramatic scenes are often over-dramatized and blow them up because people are entertain by watching others make fools of themselves. In Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta the main protagonists are rappers: who are black, smoke weed, the males are players, they have drama with the mother of their children. There is always fights and drama constantly on that show. I do not think that people live their life everyday fighting and getting into these altercations. But little problems and issues are made larger than life on those kinds of shows. 

      I just worry about the messages this is sending the children and younger generation about how people behave and act in society. Also, how the media is feeding into the negative stereotypes and racism that is embedded in American culture. There need to be a change in regards to what is shown in the media, some kind of filtering. I think most of these reality shows are trashy.

  

Links to external sources:

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/atus.nr0.htm

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/entertainment/2013/09/09/this-fall-tv-season-has-greatest-representation-latino-actors-characters/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/02/scandal-black-actresses-small-screen-video_n_4032727.html

http://opportunityagenda.org/negative_influence_reality_tv_teenage_girls

Sports Talk: Racist Remark

Sports Talk: Racist Remarks

           Sports are America’s biggest pastime. There are various sports to watch and participate in. There are a diverse number of athletes that play on these sports. Although sports may seem inclusive of all races there is still a lot of discrimination and racism in the sports industry. football and basketball for example are dominated by African American athletes one would think that there would be no discrimination against these athletes based on their race. Unfortunately in a recent incident that sparked great media attention opens our eyes to these forms of racism that go on in the sports world today.

           

The incident I am refereeing is the one about the Miami Dolphin player, Jonathan Martin, a biracial player, who is black and white, who filed a harassment incident against his teammate Richie Incognito. Richie left him voicemails that said racist remarks such as:

"Hey, wassup, you half (expletive) piece of (expletive). "I saw you on Twitter, you been training 10 weeks. I'll (expletive) in your (expletive) mouth. I'm gonna slap your (expletive) mouth, I'm gonna slap your real mother across the face (laughter). (Expletive) you, you're still a rookie. I'll kill you."

            Although the Dolphin’s coach said they took immediate action and suspended Incognito, I still believe that there are many more incidents of racism that occur in the sports world that goes untold. Especially because there seems to be normalization that athletes’ make jokes and fun of each other which is just part of the nature and culture of their interaction with one another. That it should not be taken seriously. That could be my own stereotype of the athletic world because I am not well versed in it. I personally do not watch a lot of sports, with the exception of soccer and basketball, and do not keep up with the trends.

           

The most obvious form of racist incidents that comes from sports, which has recently gotten a lot of attention, is the discrimination against Native Americans. There are many team names and mascots that depict and reinforce negative stereotypes of Native Americans. They range from team names across all sports like the Blackhawks, Redskins, Kansas Chiefs ect. There are also mascots that portray caricature images of indigenous people. How can someone make another human a mascot? As if Native Americans are not people and can be used as these sorts of “puppets” to entertain people. That is so degrading to Native American people. Team mascots like the “chief” from the University of Illinois, which has now been removed, according to my understanding. These mascots also show images of Indigenous people having red skin, big eyes, and big noses; often feeding into stereotypes that already exist about Native Americans giving people a false notion and sense of their culture.

            As much as I’d like to think we have come a long way and far from racism, it is very prevalent in our society still, especially in the sports industry. A place where there is a diverse group of people represented, all from various races, yet it is far from being inclusive and accepting to all. That just demonstrates what a long way we have to go to change the way we treat each other because there still exist this great divide among people of different races. I believe the change needs to come from society as whole yet it needs to come from within each individual.

          I also think that the whole sports culture needs to be redefined. I am not sure how it can be refined but I recently read of an incident that involved the 16 year old, African American Olympic winner, Simone Biles, and an athlete from Italy, who commented in an interview:  

"I told (teammate Vanessa Ferrari) that next time we should also paint our skin black so then we can win, too."

          This is a scary and alarming comment, especially because these children are making racist remarks against one another. The girl who made the racial comment was not American which demonstrates what a crisis and issue racism is in the sports world all-around not just in America. I think the girl made the comment because she lost. We need to teach professional athletes who are children how to be good sportsman and to not be so competitive which, I know makes no sense since competition is part of the playing a sport but perhaps there is a different approach. I long for the day when we can be accepting of people's differences, but I am a hopeful optimist that this goal can be achieved. 

Links to external sources:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/04/us/nfl-dolphins-richie-incognito-suspended/

http://cleveland.cbslocal.com/2013/10/08/racism-of-sports-logos-put-into-context-by-american-indian-group/

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-10-23/news/chi-u-of-i-works-out-deal-on-use-of-chief-illiniwek-20131023_1_chief-society-roger-huddleston-the-news-gazette

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2013/10/09/gymnast-apologizes-racist-comment-world-champion/2952905/

By the People, For the Powerful

By the People, For the Powerful

Jason Thomas

‘A government by the people; rule of the majority’. This is not a famous quote or a passage from a famous document; it is the dictionary definition of democracy. Presently there are many diverse notions of what a true democracy should look like.  Those in power believe the majority do not have the capacity to govern themselves and therefore see democracy as a vessel for their agenda organized by the want and need to keep their power at any cost. Those without power have to believe a democratic system in which they have a limited voice and struggle to provide for themselves and their family is not a true democracy.  How can it be if a majority of minorities are living near or below the poverty line? If they truly lived in a democracy, would that majority not be able to change the government for the betterment of that majority?  A bourgeois democracy is at the core of this disparity in our country; however our social values have also skewed our moralities to the point that materials and the state economy are of greater value than citizens.  It seems that the interests of property are being placed above human rights.

            This corruption begins with our education system where the government uses education as a way to deposit racial stereotypes.  Instead of teaching children how to think for themselves and analyze the world around them, the current system treats students as a sponge.  What are minority students soaking up?  They are inferior to whites.  According to a recent poll, minority and low-income schools (who receive much less funding) not only have greater academic deficiencies.  “Parents from wealthier families were less likely than those from less affluent ones to see bullying, low parental involvement, low test scores, low expectations and out-of-date textbooks as serious problems.” (Huff Post, Elliot and Agiesta)  The current system of funding creates these problems.  We can ill afford to maintain the current system if minorities are to have an equal opportunity to become socially engaged.   

            Being socially unaware is dangerous to the ideal of a true democracy.  If certain groups of the population are being trained to be unaware, then we are enabling those in control to enjoy their unchecked power over the lower classes and minorities.  Looking back on the history of our country, where has the most change originated?  Not from within the political system but external to it.  The civil rights movement and women’s suffrage were both initiated outside the walls of The Capital and The White House.  Self-aware citizens actively began to open the mind and hearts of those around them in order to make them see the injustices taking place around them.  Once they engaged those around them they forced those in power to change the law as necessary to enact change needed to advance humanity and the ideal that everyone is equal.

            It is so important to have each person engaged in their community and to voice their opinion on the happenings of the nation and the world.  For example, I was not aware of the struggles of school children in Arizona who were fighting to keep a program in place which gave them a much better chance of succeeding in school and ultimately in life.  Now that I am aware of their struggles I can research ways in which I can help them and others like them in order to better their chance of having the same opportunities I have.  If citizens were to stop engaging each other within the community the communication lines of alteration will effectively shut down the system of change outside the political sphere.  Since most change come to fruition by those outside the government as stated before, this would be a disastrous omen for the progressive acts in creating equality. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/19/demographics-divide-schools_n_3779523.html

http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2008/06/30/understanding-diversity-and-engaging-ethnic-minority-communities/#.UqNJfdJDvK0

Phony 2012

PHONY 2012

Jason Thomas

                The Kony 2012 campaign promoted by Invisible Children gained infamy after releasing a promotional video on YouTube in March 2012.  The thirty minute video features the story of Jason Russell, his five year old son, oh yeah, and children suffering in Uganda under a military regime.  The first five to ten minutes of the video seem to focus more on Russell’s story rather than calling out his humanitarian goals; if you can call them that.  Russell’s story goes on, telling of his trip to Uganda and a boy named Jacob, a former child soldier captured by Joseph Kony.  Kony, a militant tyrant, was capturing children and forcing them to be in his army; forcing them to kill.  After telling the story of Jacob and Kony, Russell calls the viewer to act by “making Kony famous” and by making donations to the Invisible Children Organization.

While this video seems to have good intentions, there are underlying messages and information gaps peppered throughout.  Overall, the video seems to be more about a white family (Russell and his five year old son) feeling obligated to help poor defenseless black Ugandans, rather than focusing on the situation in Uganda.  It seems as if Russell wants us to know he and other white people are acting as a voice for a disadvantaged people more than the real situation.  This has been a problem since the beginning of humanitarian efforts in Africa.  Instead of working with the local government, we feel we know what “they” need because we feel we are superior.  Some of the outrage from the film came from the “make Kony famous” ploy which was intended to eventually lead the U.S. government to find and eliminate him as a threat.  Many Ugandans argued that this would solve nothing except to put more fuel on the fire. After watching this video, Ugandans were outraged by its content and how they were portrayed.  Several response videos were posted by Ugandans declaring they do have a voice and they are not helpless just because they are black or because they are African.

                           

Like other humanitarian media coming out of Africa, this video creates a racial stereotype of Africans, specifically black Africans, as weak, inferior, and desperately in need of help. This creates racial stereotypes just as easily by showing another race as inferior and unable to self-govern.  This has been the case with images coming out of Africa since the early twentieth century.  We have been using negative images to label an entire continent of black humans as inferior beings.  All while making ourselves feel good because we feel we are saving them from themselves.  White Americans have been programmed by videos like Kony 2012 to believe that whites are superior  because of the simple fact that we are white. 

In the Justin Bieber era of YouTube and self-regulated social media, it is easy to become misinformed simply by clicking play.  Anyone from anywhere can post anything on the internet.  If it gets enough traction and “shared” enough times, it somehow gains credibility.  While this video does misinform it does create a call to action.  It is our responsibility as viewers to do additional research to get the full story.  Videos like Kony 2012 should only be used as a catalyst for increasing ones knowledge on a subject otherwise unknown to them.  After having a full understanding of the cause and the context of the situation, only then can one truly make an educated decision.  Without contextual knowledge the viewer of videos like this will only become more partial to their own superiority.  This video is just one example of the social media’s role in forming our perception of others.

 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/14/kony-2012-screening-anger-northern-uganda

http://keepittrill.com/online/2012/03/kony-2012-scam-stop-supporting-invisible-children/

Did you see that one vine...

To kill time I enjoy spending time on my Vine app. Vine is an app that has little video clips that are on repeat. Some are interesting, but for the most part they are hilarious.

The funniest vines that I always come across, are vines that involve playing off racial stereotypes. For example, the first time I saw a compilation of Eric Dunn, a famous person on Vine and Youtube, I thought it was absolutely hilarious. All of his "Gangster from the suburbs" videos cracked me up. Why were they hilarious? He played off of his skin color.

As I continued to watch videos from Vine, I really couldn't help but notice the ones that always got reposted, or the videos with the most likes, were the ones that had people playing off race. I would be a liar if I said that that I didn't think they were funny. One that I thought was absolutely hilarious was one that once again played off of skin color.

Now there's always that saying, "It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt." Of course this applies to everyone, including myself. Me being the only Asian in this course, I feel morally obligated to touch on that fact every time I blog. The second this Asian guy decided to play off of his race, I immediately felt uncomfortable and a little annoyed. Since then I've even started to question whether or not these videos are actually "okay" even though, people of that color are over exaggerating their own stereotypes.

Is that what it takes to be noticed in today's media? Acting in the given roles and expectations of your skin color? I of course fell victim to this type of comedy, and according to Julie Kayzerman of the Metro News, "it is still racist and promoting racist views," and I do have to admit, she has a point.

With 40 million viewers and over 15 brands successfully advertising themselves on this app, Vine isn't going anywhere. What started off as a fun and innocent app, now technically promotes racism. The point that this is considered "modern media" can be seen as regressive, and overall offensive.

What still gets me is the fact that I thought these "racist" vines were to somewhat hilarious. How do people move on to a progressive state, when something harmful can be seen as a harmless joke? We have censors on TV, and very rarely do you see anything remotely like these videos on a major television network. With that being said, 40 million viewers is pretty much equivalent to its own Network, free from the rules of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Let's say Vine starts to get censored because of too much racism. In my opinion, at this rate, there will be something else out there that will allow things like this, and it would get just as big.

We as consumerists fall victim to the entertainment racism offers whether we know it or not. It's hard for me to understand how to move forward from racism, when even I am reminded that I fall victim to that.

http://www.metro.us/newyork/entertainment/2013/08/21/vine-the-newest-form-of-minstrel-shows/