formal paper 2 draft 1

            When was the last time you ever walked into a place were you felt like you didn’t belong or you were a total outsider?  Or a time where you felt like your presence around a certain group of people didn’t feel right? Unfortunately for some of my teammates and I go through this more often than some since we live in a more caucasian dominant area. There’re times were we go into stores and resturants in the community and people instantly stop and look at us like they never seen African Americans before. We sometimes guess to see if they instantly began to judge us base off our looks and appearance, which brings me to my topic about judgment and stereotypes.  In my paper I will attempt to persuade Caucasian American people in my community not to judge other races base off their appearance & stereotypical beliefs.

            Judging someone by their appearance can lowers there self-esteem according to Melanie J.V. Fennell “low self-esteem is a core beliefs, anxious predictions and self criticism that appears to be an reflection of central negative beliefs.”  Being judge in  a negative way can result into lowering ones self-esteem. For example possibly saying or giving the vibe that they doesn’t belong can make them feel unwanted or less important. When doing so they start to feel lesser of themselves and cause their behavior to change negatively in way that they will go out and do things out of character. I know for me when I feel that I’m not welcome or don’t belong in a certain place I tend to leave and be alone. When I was younger I was the type to walk around my household with an attitude towards my siblings or starts fights with them when I felt down about myself. It was an unusual emotion and behavior for me because I was always a happy & full of enjoyment kid, so when I would act this way my parents always know something was wrong.

            In Santa Cruz County population is estimated at 266,776 people in 2012. The percentage of African American is 1.4 percent. The Caucasian American percentage in Santa Cruz is 88.0. This is shown by chart of the US Census Bureau. Based off these statistics shows that theirs rarely any African American people who lives in Santa Cruz, therefore people who live here all year long aren’t used to African Americans. When Caucasians see African Americans they tend to judge base off what they see or hear on television. Television tends to show that some African Americans are Thugs, Rappers, and criminals. For example in the show “Love & HipHop” shows that African American rappers have a thug/Gangster image whose tend to commit crimes behind the scenes. But some truth to it is that theirs some who does but not all. Cast start Rapper Joe Budden whose very intelligent and have a very broad vocabulary isn’t a criminal. He raps about truelife situations that he learned from early on in his life and shares it with his fans so that they wont make the mistakes he did. As for another co-star who is a writer/producer by the name Consquence who is also very smart and family oriented man. He put his wife and son first before his career. His wife of 3 years happens to be a Caucasian female in Queens, NY. This is an example of two people from different race who don’t discriminate based of color or race and are still able to find love for each other to have a kid and be married.

annnotated bibliographgy

                The article “My Heart Is As black as yours” is about a phrase that was not taking in a good way by the African American crowd in Harlem by Mario Procaccino . The African American crowd took it as them being insulted. Procaccino intention was not to insult the African American community but to help them in a better proper place. Procaccino was running as a third party candidate as senate. Procaccino actions consequesntly hurt him with the media. Reporters called his campaign supporters and him the “anti-blacks and racist” group. This caused white ethnic groups to be directed more in a hostile way in urban America. This article gain a lot of attention due to the race being a key factor in a lot of segregation and discrimination that were going on in 1969.

Lizzi, Maria C. "My Heart Is a S Black as Yours"" Web.ebscohost.com. Journal of American

Ethnic History, Spring 2008. Web. May 11

            The article “White Mutants of Straight Edge” talks about nonviolent and anti-racist Straight Edge youth movement. In which supports abstinence from recreational drug use and sex, into a number of sections promoting racist violence and homophobia. The author Gabriel Smith puts in his documents the historical relationship between the movement and the hardcore music scenes. He believes that sex, drugs. And alcohol triggers the youth movement under “clean living”.  He is very interested in the similarities and differences between Straight Edge and other avant-garde social and political movements. The incorporation of veganism into the movement's ideology is explained, as is the general trend towards a militant enforcement. The punk subculture resulted into students to be more of the post-war-working-class as the youth culture. I found this article to relate to Gitlen and Kupliean articles we discussed in class all three articles ties into the subculture of kids getting into drugs, sec, alcohol, music etc.

            Smith, Gabriel. "White Mutants of Straight Edge." Web.ebscohst.com. Journal of Popular

Culture, 1 June 2011. Web. 12 May 11.

annotated bibliography

RR killer culture

    The article "Killer Culture" by David Kupelian is about a father who believes that modern society and the way it influence kids is killing our culture. He thinks the way MTV, commercial advertisements, and sexual advertisements is corrupting the children in today's generation. Kupelian thinks the best way to keep children safe is to home school them until the parents feel that they're ready to go out in the world.

        I personally believe that if every parents were to home school their children for majority of their life that the kids wouldn't have the experience of seeing how the real world actually is. For example children that's goes through home schooling at the high school stage wouldn't see the bad of what drugs can do to someone. Therefore once when they are out In the real world and get their first view or insight on it they won't have any answers for as far as what to do or how to stay away from it. Most importantly they wouldn't know what drugs to do or not do and the side effects of each one. Home school is a good idea to a certain extent but for it to be suggested as to home school until the children is of age eighteen is a little bit over the top. Also every parents aren't  authorized to home school or can afford it for multiple children in their household. 

  

     An possible solution to try to keep today's culture from killing the society and youth other than home schooling is to focus more on the way parents raise their kids. Instead of locking them up and being over protective about the things they watch, music the listen too, and amount of explicit video/advertisements they see, be more willing to teach and let them understand the rights and wrong of each popular society interest. Theirs good and bad in the world no matter where too see it or hear it. It's always gonna be their and as parents they just have to be good teachers to their children so they know when to turn away form the bad. 

killer culture RA

RA

This article “Killer Culture” was written by David Kupelian. Who also wrote “How Evil works” and “The Marketing of Evil.” In his articles he intend to persuade the audience to believe that the modern culture is being ruined by MTV, drugs, sex and music. He also trying to get parents to home schools their children to save the culture and protect the children of this generation.

In this article Kupelian states that “hip-hop has an in your face attitude looks strong and free to kids who feel constrained by expectations of the mundane middle-class world they have grown up in.” (Pg. 649) This statement is supported with a quote from rapper Ice-T album “Home Invasion”. That refers to “cultural invasion.” This occurs when adults sit around with their racist attitude and their kids sits down listening to Ice-T music through their earphones. The author is trying to get parents to be more observant of their children and the music they listen too. Kupelian hope that he accomplished getting his word out to other parents about being more protective and observant of what their kid is doing.

 Kupelian point of view is supported with the negative lyrics the rapper Ice-T says in his song. For example Ice-T says, “Once I get ‘em under my f---kin spell/ they may start giving you f---kin hell.” (Pg 649) He blamed the rap world for the diversion the ordinary world of college boards and dating. I recognize that Kupelian culture is different than today modern when it comes to parents. He’s really strict on how kids should be raise rather than other parents who don’t really control or say much to what music their children listen too.

In this article there were a few remarkable features for example the connection to his religion. He connects his Christian beliefs to support his reasoning of trying to save kids from this “Killer Culture”. He put this information towards the middle/end after he put his views on music, commercials, and MTV.  He emphasizes on the behavior would change if the kids continue to be influenced by this.

I would characterize this article as informal. Its informal because it gives a parent point of view like Kupelian to inform other parents about the negativity that music, drugs, some advertisements and MTV has on the modern culture. His message he sends out other parents and readers are very informational but his suggestions to help fix is the culture is unrealistic.

Kupelian tone in this text is serious. He is trying to get his point across as much as he can so that others will agree and go with the idea of home schooling. He references a lot of sources of negativity for example MTV videos, Commercial, and rappers. 

todd gitlin question #2

  American global media has been infiltrating nations and homogenizing local cultures and countries identities. Television, movies. Computer software and music began to change the images of what things perceived to be and what others advertised. I estimated that knowledge and the broad of American’s mind were expanded through this transition in a good positive way. People began to see things in different views and also made people of America be more aware of the American culture change.

if i could change one thing in the society/community...

If I could change one thing in society/community I would change the way people judge others based off their appearance. People can look a certain way that others would be quick to judge or question what kind of person they come off to be. I feel like it’s not fair to judge someone because they don’t look the part of someone else another person might be used too.

Being around judgmental people can lower your self-esteem and how you see yourself in the community. Judgmental people can make you feel so low for no reason. Just because you dress with your hat to the side, baggy pants, and oversized shirts doesn’t make them a bad person. Some people might dress that way because they cannot afford clothes to fit them perfectly so they have to settle for hand me downs and hand me ups. Before people get to judge others they should get to know them before categorizing them as a bad person. Judging someone can also make him or her act out of characters in a way they might feel disrespected or hurt by the people to judge them. This can cause the person to give those who judge a reason to think that they’re the type of person that they might assume them to be.

Changing the judgment by people in the community/society would make things better in my eyes because it would give other people in the society more confidence about themselves when they go out in public to be apart of the community and not feel like they’re getting judge by others. If people were to not judge others wouldn’t get the feel that they are not welcome in some places in the community.  When people gang more confidence in them it helps them in a lot of other different areas in their life. For example people who has more confidence in themselves and not worry about being judge by society usually are more open minded and outgoing to meet new people and become successful with their jobs.

I feel judging is wrong for our society because people come from different backgrounds and different lifestyle an people shouldn’t have the right to down talk to or think of them differently because of it. For example some people might come from what others says is the “ghetto” doesn’t mean that they have to be ghetto. They can live in that area and be well educated but by judging a person wouldn’t know that.

Judging others would be the first thing ill try to change in the community/society because I know how it can influence others negatively in society and impact others behaviors in a way they wouldn’t normal act. Don’t judge based off someone appearance get to know them it would make the community a much better place.