Gender Role

The man in the mirror

Biologically race does not exist. Race is a socially constructed system that has been created by societies to classify people into different categories based on physical traits; especially skin color. A Different Mirror by Ronald T. Takaki and the first episode of Race: The power of Illusion show examples of how race has been created throughout the years of our existence and how this shapes our views in society. Our society makes us believe that race exists and that this is the way people should be separated into groups to simply justify inequality among us. Historically, I feel that race was created to just keep the white population in power. The white European and later on white American colonized places in the world where indigenoius people lived. In the case of the Native Americans who once were the ligitimate habitants of this country; their land and rights were stripped away from them with the justification of the Manifest Destiny. The new settlers had no mercy and did not respect the natives' way of living. They came to this land claiming new territory as theirs by the most atrocious means, yet the settlers had the audacity to call the natives "savages".This idea of racism has been going on for hundreds of years and it is sad that racism it is still induced in us today. I remember one I read something about Morgan Freeman and something that he said still intreagues me today. He said something like:" racism still exists today because we believe it exists". I also think of this term "race" as an actual race between people of different backgrounds and status in society based on skin color. We are constantly competing to be the best and in reality no "race" is better than any other. If our DNAs are so similar to that of a person in Africa it means something. This means that scientifically we all come from the same background and for people to want to discard this fact it is just absurd. Black people in most parts of the world are seen as "bad" and I never really understood why. Why is society always trying to put down one group that we all have ancestry to? African slaves were brought to different regions of the world unwillingly in the worst conditions for white European supremacy to make a profit and expand globaly. Like it was mentioned in the reading, they were brought to other places as indenture servants, but we don't exactly know when the employers decided to make them slaves. Either way, blacks were never in best conditions. Refering back to the video, I believe that it is true that scientists are influenced by the time and place they live in. For example the naturalist Carolus Linnaeus laid the foundation to categorize four different types of homo sepiens (Eurpeanus, Americanus, Asiaticus and Africanus). This idea was constructed in the seventeen hundreds which served as a model for the classification of races during the ages of emperialism and colonialism always placing the African people as a minority.I sometimes feel like people from different backgrounds are labeled as something that they are not, therefor stereotypes and prejudice develops against a certain group, which leads to second deviance. I believe that most people are capable of doing what they envision for themselves, but because of the way that society is constructed, it prevents people from doing so. Like I mentioned before, there are obstacles that the race in power creates so that they can keep their power and others never climb the ladder to be in their level. 

House of Lies

Media Magic : Making Class Invisible

   One thing that truly saddens me is how truthful the reading Media Magic: Making Class Invisible is. This reading by Gregory Mantsios talks about how the media influences the way in which we view the poor. The media is a fixed agent of society owned by only a couple of corporations, therefor the information we get is managed by them. I can agree with Mantsios on the statement that (us) minorities are portrayed to others as a danger to society, especially the poor. The news only show the negative aspects instead of positive qualities a minority may posses. One thing that this reading made me think of is the fact that organizations advertise "save a child from starvation in Africa", meanwhile there are kids in our country starving as well. I think that in the case of Africa, people would argue that people have no choice there, but what about the kids here in the U.S. who have no choice either? That is not their fault. I took a road trip down to Florida for the first time in the summer and although I was only going to Florida, I was able to see that in some areas close enough to home, people are less fortunate.  The poor are invisible to us in many instances, but when they are noticeable is only for the worst. they are only visible to the naked eye when they commit a crime or when the media tries to show how much the starving population is weighing the whole country down. All this brings me back to Weber's life chances, which is s person's likelihood to be able to obtain valued economic and cultural resources. A poor person is basically powerless in many situations because they do not have enough resources to influence their social status and move up the social ladder. Poor people are often exposed to suffer classism as we can see from the reading. They are seen as bacteria that other social classes cannot prevent, meanwhile poor people are the victims of rich corporations in many cases due to social inequality. Another thing that happens to people living in poor areas of the country is that distribution of resources is unequally giving to them. For instance, I have experienced the difference between observing kids from extremely wealthy suburbs and the ones from just more average income. I live in Port Washington which is located on the North Shore area of Long Island. Most of the towns on the North Shore area are pretty wealthy, but you can still find the difference of unequal distribution within many school districts. When I started school at BMCC I could not comprehend why some of the students were even sitting in a college classroom; not because they did not deserve an education, but because it seemed to me that they did not have the level of education to be in college yet.

Deviance

  Deviance is defined as behavior that defies basic cultural norms and expectations. In our daily lives we encounter deviant acts constantly without even realizing it. To some of us this non-conforming behavior  may be part of who we are and in today's world certain behavior is more acceptable, but who has the power to say what is acceptable and what is not? Over the weekend, I tried to pay attention to things that people would describe as deviant and thought of why they are unacceptable. I observed a whole lot, but I'll just give you six.
1. Tomboys: My friend has a "boy" haircut and is in the coast guard. To me she is just a girl who likes to  wear jeans and hoodies a lot, to my parents and other members of my family she is a dyke. There is actually not an inch of lesbian about my friend, because she LOVES guys a lot and she even has a fiance. It is just sad and irritating how my parents (especially my dad) assume that my friend is a lesbian and so they don't even want her to come over basically. She's also Colombian, so my aunt even assumed that she does drugs- How pathetic of her. Then again she thinks everyone does drugs. In this case, the agent of social control is my family. For many generations they have been influenced by the culture where women are supposed to be feminine and play the role of a woman. I think that in the hispanic culture a lot of people if not most (especially in Latin American countries) are homophobic, so when they see women like my friend, they are quick to judge her as lesbian. I also believe that is also easy for my parents and others to label people as gay or lesbian, because of what they see going on today.
2. Teen Sex: This is seen as a problem for many parents and in different cultures. Parents, schools, culture and other other institutions want to prevent it, but reality is that sex is everywhere today. It is hard to keep children away from it because it is advertised even in the ways you wouldn't expect. When young girls(especially) are known to be sexually active, they are seen as whores and all the bad names that someone can be called. I don't think it is their fault when they are that young, because they have been influenced by the behavior of others too often.

3. In today's American society I would say thaty obesity seen as deviant. I think that this image that we have what is beautiful and what is not can stigmatize a person. Stigma is the shame connected to a behavior or status that is regarded as unacceptable or discrediting. Usually people who are stigmatized suffer inequalities which lead to isolation or discrimination in a society. If a person suffers from obesity they can be excluded from many things that can affect their social and economic position. A person's weight can prevent them from getting certain jobs even though the person may actually highly capable of performing the requisites of a job. I think that most people would discriminate obese or even a person who is just over-weight, especially in a place where "beauty" is required.
4. Tattoos: Although tattoos are popular and have been a trend for plenty years, they are still seen as deviant for many people. In my family, tattoos are seen as shameful and usually connected to gangs. I think that for many hispanics and other cultures, tattoos go against religious morals. El Salvador has a history of gangs and one of the features that gang members show is that they are covered in tattoos, which leads to the labeling of others as gang members. When I first got my tattoos I had to hide them from my parents, because I know that they would say:"only gang members have tattoos". Obviously I am not a gang member, but my parents are always so worried about what other people are going to think and say. This is not only my parents, I know other people who would look at people differently because of their tattoos even if their tattoos have absolutely nothing to do with gangs.
5. Smoking: Is another behavior that is seen as deviant although a good percentage of the nation and the world smokes. Once again, I will put my family as an example. For my family (as I am sure for others), once a kid smokes cigarettes, they are "doing drugs". Nicotine is a drug, but most people don't want to see it that way. For some parents if their kid is hanging out with someone who smokes, then that kid is bad and they think that this person is doing other drugs or smoking pot and they are also afraid that their child will do the same. cigarette becomes a joint. Edwin Sutherland would call this Differential association theory, which explains deviance as a learned behavior. I had this problem, because some of my friends started smoking and so my parents didn't want me hanging out with them, even though I didn't smoke cigarettes. My aunt rapidly assumed that my friend is a druggie because she smokes cigarettes. She started calling her a pot-head and a bad kid, meanwhile she never took the time to get to know the girl. I think that many parents do this. I understand why parents become alarmed, but it also isn't fair that some spread rumors about other people. This leads to the problem of the labeling theory. This theory describes deviance as being the result of the interpretation of a certain behavior by a group of people (usually a majority) and how the individuals who are labeled as deviant usually incorporate this judgment as part of their identity (Experience Sociology, p. 192). Although smoking is nothing to be proud of and it may lead to other drugs, I do not think people have the right to just falsely accuse others of being drug addicts because they smoke cigarettes. My grandmother has smoked cigarettes for most of her life and she was never an illicit drug user.
6. Gangs: This is an example of deviant subculture, because to be part of a gang each person has to become a member through a series of non-conformist acts which are deviant to society. In order for them to keep their membership (to not be killed because once you are in, YOU ARE IN), they must be committed to the gang and their norms.

The Secret Box

The Look

  Killing us softly 4: advertising's image of women by Jean Killbourne, shows us how women are viewed and objectified in our society. The media plays an important role, because it is the source from where all the information is transmitted to people. Both men and women are subject to advertisement and media, which is constantly implanted in our brains. From a young age, women are taught that impeccable presence it is always a priority. Women have always been this object to serve men's amusement, which dehumanizes women. She describes this obsession of looking like celebrities and anyone that we see on T.V. as a public health problem that is destroying one's own beauty. 

  Kilbourne, explains that through the influence of the media, women are exposed to justified violence. Women's bodies are incorporated in objects such as this beer bottle, which tears apart this woman. This leads to men using women and comparing them to non-existent women on a billboard as they watch a football game. In order to be "loved," women are willing to modify their bodies just to fit this deceiving norm that the media has created. Jean Kilbourne points out the fact that most women in these commercials are just a photoshopped image and it is devastating how a woman would go so far to dying from an eating disorder just to look like a woman on a magazine. 

  

 

"Boys Don't Cry"

                                                                                 Tony Porter talks about his experience as a male and a father during his presentation "A call to men". In the video he explains the collective socialization of men, which he describes as the famous "man box". The man box, as he describes, it is the set of norms by which every man is supposed to live by. They are the guidelines that men are taught from a young age and are expected to follow into manhood. 

  

  Porter uses himself as an example of how he had been raised to fit those male expectations that he was now expecting from his son. He realized that such guidelines to manhood are nothing but the fear of being exposed. As men, they are expected to be brave and dominant, women are objects for  men to "own". The collective socialization of men tells us that, even men are suppressed by the norms of how a man should behave in society. Due to this expected behavior, men are also chained and although they are the oppressors of women (majority of time), as Tony Porter said it :"my liberation as a man is tied to your liberation as a woman".

If you want better functions, buy the boy laptop. 

  The two videos are an example of how the media and society shapes our view of ourselves as well as the view of others. We often behave according to the expectations of these norms that the agents of socialization expose us to. In chapter six on socialization we learn that the agents of socialization shape our daily lives, therefore we are constantly trying to adjust such expectations. On page 139, the book states that children between the ages of 8 and 18 spend about seven and a half hours influenced by the media outside of the classroom. In the video by Jean Killbourne, she explains how most of our day we are influenced by the media. We see it from T.V commercials to even ads on buses and trains. It is terrifying how we do not even realize how much the media has influenced us. Kids and parents don't spend quality time as often and in some cases they just watch television shows for about three hours, thinking that this amount that they spend on the couch is "quality time".

  I can easily apply this to my own life experience because coming from a hispanic working-class family, my parents did not spend as much time with me. I always remember spending long days with my grandmother either watching cartoons or playing with Barbie. Luckily, I had my boy cousin there to  keep me company. Because we were only children, we didn't care what we played with, but referring back to Tony Porter's video, my grandmother was always telling my cousin that boys are not supposed to play with Barbies. We continued to play tea party with Barbie and GI Joe, but my grandma did not see that was correct. I think that as little kids we were seen as "weird" by the other kids on the block, because we were not allowed to play outside with others. My grandma believed that those kids were "callejeros," meaning street-rat or something like that. She always told me that girls were not supposed to be on the street, because people don't respect girls like that. This is how family influences our views and how we integrate ourselves in society.
 

Childrearing Methods

  Two other examples tied to chapter six are the readings: The Retro Wife and the Parent's  Socialization of Children. Both readings focus on how children are brought up in different households, but there are some differences. The Retro Wife by Lisa Miller talks about women who leave their careers to stay at home with their children because they believe that no one else is going to raise them better. She gives the story of Kelly Makino as an example that shows the benefits of how a mother (who can afford it) can raise her children better because all her time is devoted to them in comparison to mothers who have to work. The Parents' Socialization of Children by D. Terri Heath, talks about different parenting styles in our society. He talks about authoritative, permissive and authoritarian parents and the outcome of their children. In the reading, Heath also talks about what kinds of jobs these parents might have as well as the differences in other cultures. Out of the three kinds of parenting styles, the worst kind is the permissive parent. This kind of parent allows the child to do as they please and there is no order, therefore these kids lack self control, are aimless, aggressive and are non-compliant with adults. They may also do poorly in school due to low standards set by their parents. The best kind would be the authoritative parent because they set high standards for their kids and set rules for them to follow. They are strict, but reasonable and spend quality time with their children. These kids are often successful and happy in life.

  In both readings, one can make the connection that parents who spend quality time with their children are the authoritative type and most likely to be a middle class parent. I think that this is accurate in many cases, because middle class parents usually have creative jobs and more time to spend with their children in comparison to the working class or the poor. The working class parent would usually have a job where they have to follow orders from a person above them of higher power, therefore they teach their kids how to behave in the same way that they would in the work place. If most people could afford to be home with their kids to give them a better future not only by just providing material needs, but as well the way they are brought up, then they would grow up to be better and successful. 

                                                         

What is power?

    

The Reason why I find this quote so powerful, is because in many instances, many people live in this state of powerlessness and silence. I find Harriet Tubman's words so truthful,because I think that individuals that are born and raised in a situation where their way of thinking and living is controlled by other individuals of higher status; may not even know or even put themselves in this oppressed way of living. Because a status or certain role is assigned to an individual, he or she may oppress themselves ("Five Faces of Oppression"). 
  
 Chapter 5 of Experience Sociology, Describes different types of power in our society, as well as power tactics and everyday use. The reading Five Faces of Oppression, talks about oppression as a form of stripping someone of their powers and rights. The article explains Five kinds of oppression: exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism and violence. What I liked about this article, is that as I was reading it, I was able to make my own examples from historical knowledge. In chapter five, sociologist Patricia Hill Collins highlights the use of power to stand against oppression(p.111).The article also made me understand the video, in terms of how people have "power over" others as mentioned in chapter five. 

 The Milgram Experiment video, is an example where oppression is used through a means of violence and domination. In the experiment, the doctors gather people to conduct a series of shock therapy sessions on another person. This was a process in which the participants were given different roles of being "teachers" o "students". The people who were assigned as teachers were purposely given this role even though they were told that roles were given through a lottery. The student was always the same person, but the "teachers" were not aware of that. In the study, the "teachers" were to ask questions in a separate room where they were not able to see the student who was asked the questions. When a question was answered wrong, the patient would receive a shock. As the experiment progressed, the volts increased according to the number of wrong answers. The true story behind this experiment was to see how oppressive human beings are. Most people carried through the entire session, knowing that on the other side of the wall there was a person receiving electric shocks, which continued to escalate until it reached a max. Some people questioned the doctors who had the power over the participants. This was a test of whether individuals would obey the authorities even though the test went against their morals all in the name of science. Throughout the study, some questions began to raise an eyebrow, but what made these people continue and even participate in the first place? My observations were that: a)trusted authorities(scientists), b) the experiment was believed to be for a "good cause", c) increased obedience due to the constant presence of an authority figure, d)the participants believed their roles were randomly selected by playing a lottery, e) it made it okay, because the learner had signed a consent form. 

 I can also relate this experiment to what John French and Bertram Raven called expert power. expert power is one of the six bases of power described in chapter five(p.115), as the perception that an individual has superior knowledge in a particular area therefore, they have more power because of their trust worthiness. The fact that a person has a title for example a doctor or a teacher, does not mean that this person is an expert. In many cases people seem to have power of authority and knowledge when in reality they might be as ignorant as one that does not have the knowledge. This is one of the reasons why the participants in the experiment blindly obeyed the expected knowledgeable authority. They followed because the doctors know what they are doing.  

 The book also talks about domination, which is the ability that one(or several) individuals have over others. This approach can be seen from two different perspectives in my opinion. One that focuses on the dominance to accomplish a negative result against a certain group, or the power that a particular group forms through a means of domination to resist oppression and accomplish a positive result for the collective good of a group. Usually this approach involves the idea of conflict. on page 113, it is mentioned that Robert Dahl describes that power is exclusively seen in means of domination. He gives that example that "A has power over B to the extent that he can get B to do something that B would not do otherwise". This brings me back to the Milgram Experiment, because the doctors had the dominant authority over the participants,which triggered them to do something that these people would not do on a regular basis. They just did as they were told without questions. In a sense, I believe that the experiment made me realize that oppression happened to not only the learners, but as well as the teachers. As soon as they felt that the experiment was getting a little too extreme, they were told to continue even if they felt that this went against their morals. The authority figure had the power to push them as far as they desired and they were successful, because out of all the people they gathered as teachers only one stood up against the experiment. i recall that one guy saying that the test reminded him of the Nazi tortures during the Holocaust. That is the same way I felt as I was watching it.  

Elements of Culture

This is where I went to school before I moved to the U.S. 

In El Salvador, it is required that every school assigns a uniform for students. The norms of proper school attire must always be followed by students and if they were broken, there were consequences. The school norms were strictly enforced by the school staff and basically every student followed the rules. Uniforms had to be clean and well pressed, polished shoes and everyone had to look presentable. This is how students from different schools can be identified around the city that they live in. 

Ladies in traditional garments

These ladies are wearing traditional dresses from El Salvador. They usually wear this for El Salvador's Independence Day, which is celebrated on September 15 or for El Día de la Raza (Day of Race, which in the U.S. would be like Columbus Day) on October 12. This is an example of symbolic culture, because the traditional vestments are worn to celebrate the independence from the Spaniards. It represents freedom for the people in El Salvador as well as other Spanish-speaking nations in Latin America.