Who Am I? Final Post

For our last blog we are asked to re-evaluate ourselves by looking at our very first blog. My first blog reflected who I was on the surface mostly, for example my hobbies, my influences and my job. I wrote my greatest influence was my older brother. Looking back this is true however, there are many many more greater societal influences I had no idea about. The media and my gender influence me to think a certain way about my body or about how much money I need to be making in order to make me "happy." I learned that my social class influences almost everything about me even what tastes good to me! I discovered race is different in all countries and is not biological at all. Basically, everything I originally thought about myself, I now have to step back and wonder..."Am I really thinking this or is my community shaping me to think this way?" I have found myself thinking this multiple times throughout my semester in Sociology and I have opened my eyes to a new way of thinking. I no longer think that one person or even one group of people can influence the human you become and I think people are so narrow minded that they fixated on this one idea. Your culture, gender, class, race and so many other things are just pieces of the puzzle that make up the person you will become.

Race part II (Crash)

This week in Sociology we are watching a movie called Crash. This movie follows the lives of many people that connect over some period of time. These people have many different backgrounds as well as ethnicities. We see many issues in our society on the way we view other people. We stereotype them without getting to know them. For example, the white rich couple was getting their locks changed after a car theft, and the locksmith looked to be Latino. The woman got nervous and thought he would sell the other keys to his "homies". However, we see how the locksmith comes home to his 5 year old daughter to comfort her after she was scared. For me, this scene stood out to me because I have stereotyped workers at my house before and never thought to realize they could have a family and be wonderful parents. This experience has taught me to be more mindful about generalizations and not to make quick judgments of people I do not know.

Race

This week in Sociology, we are learning about race. Along with social class, this can also be an uncomfortable topic to talk about. We started our lesson with a spectrum of sports balls. Without talking we were supposed to sort them into categories. Our language has constructed our mind to put the sports balls into different sports rather than size, shape or color. The reason we did this was to realize that we have been socially constructed to think a certain way: in categories. So when dealing with race we do the same thing. We sort people into categories like white, black, asian, hispanic etc when in reality race doesn't exist. Race is not depended upon your genes and it is not biologically defined. Also, if we reflect on history we find that minorities in America have changed. For a while, the Irish were disliked because they were non-white, then the Italians and so fourth. I guess we group people by how they appear. For instance if you see someone with darker skin you would categorize them as black but they could be Jamaican mixed with Cuban. Just like I categorize myself as white but I am a mix of English, Irish, French Canadian, Bohemian and so much more.

Community Service (part II)

Over the past week I have completed 6 hours of community service. First I went to Bernie's Book Bank  on Thursday. When I walked in, I was hesitant because I didn't know exactly what this would entail. However, the woman working there explained the basics of how Bernie's Book Bank works. They receive donated books from all over and basically distribute them by grade and reading level. After you organize them, stickers are put on and any less fortunate school can call them and Bernie's Bank will send them. It was only me and another girl about my age. We were given a huge bin that we had to separate into reading levels. In the beginning, it was difficult but once you got into a rhythm, it was easy. Seeing all these books brought back so many memories of learning to read. My favorites were the Junie B. Jones books and to this day, I still have all those books. This community service made me feel really grateful for what I have because I was fortunate enough to have supplies of books while some kids are behind on reading. I was really glad to be able to help less fortunate kids receive the help they need to strive in school.
I also went to Feed My Starving Children, which sends hand-packed meals to malnourished kids. They make 3 different kinds of meals: MannaPack Rice, MannaPack Potato-D and MannaPack Potato-W. The day I went we were packing Potato- D, which is the world's only food to manage diarrhea, a killer worldwide. I was shocked at how many groups were there. There was church groups, girl scouts, university clubs and also just people who wanted to help like me. A person in charge explained how the assembly lines worked and put us to work. I asked if I could join a group because I came alone. My job was to scoop the Sweet Potato sweetener and the soy ingredient while another girl scooped the Potato-D ingredient. All the ingredients were combined in a bag and weighed. After they were weighed they were sealed and put in a box. Each box contained 50 bags of MannaPack Potato- D. They cranked up the radio and everyone is singing. We all had a lot of fun and when you filled a box, your team had to do a cheer so that they could bring you a new one. This experience brought me closer with complete strangers and it made me feel a sense of belonging even when I didn't know anyone there. When we were all finished all the volunteers packed a total of 62 boxes which is 37,000 servings! Just that one night helped so many starving children out there and I am so happy I went. I plan to bring my gymnastics team there over the summer so we can all do it together. It was a great opportunity and I'm glad I got to help out any way I could. This is at FMSC. There are the 3 ingredients that was put in the funnel and in a bag to be weighed.

Social Class part II

Today in sociology we further explored the idea of social classes. We did this by splitting off into groups and playing a game of monopoly. However, each player was supposed to represent a social class i.e. working poor, upper class etc. Each of us had a set income and wealth. I represented upper class (old money). I had the highest income and amount of wealth compared to each player which put me at an advantage. As the game went on and other players would stop on my property, they would have to pay me rent and I would buy any available spots simply because I had the money to do so. The lower- middle class and working class players ended up with less money then they started with while the upper- middle, lower-upper (new money) and me, upper class, made more money than we had started with! I had increased over $3,000. This simulation symbolizes how old money, people who inherit the family money and new money, people who make the money on their own really only get richer. In this game, it was almost impossible to move up in class just like in America it is difficult to move up in social class as well. I guess it is true what they say: The rich only get richer.

Social Class

This week we are learning about social classes in Sociology. In America, this is touchy subject that most people would agree is uncomfortable to talk about. Here in America, we believe everyone is created equal and while sometimes this is true in other ways it is not. Certain factors make up a person's social class: income, wealth, education, location and prestige. Obviously, more income means a higher social class but does education and location play a big role in social class? Surprisingly more than you would think! On average, if you graduated from a college you are in the 40th percentile and if you graduated with a masters degree 8.05 percentile. Location wise, where you go to school depends on where you live. So, if you live in a more successful district then you pay higher taxes to fund that school in order to get the best teachers. All these factors connect and are intertwined with each other. My family lives where the average price home is $765,000 while the average home in America was $175,000. Because I live in an upper middle class neighborhood, I go to a high school with an overall better education than other districts. All in all, this is an uncomfortable topic to write about, but I feel that it shouldn't be taken so offensively or expressed so that you feel bad for who ever is "under" you on the social class ladder.

Gender Panel

Today in Sociology, we had a some students come into our class and talk openly to us about being gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual...etc. Each of the students told their story on their journey how they discovered it and how they have been treated. With each and every story, I got more and more interested. I learned that not every person fits into a category like I thought they did. There were also gender queers who haven't quite found that lightbulb that they needed to understand themselves. I thought it was interesting that transgenders actually do have science to back up their claims but the tests are done post mortem which wouldn't help. I feel like my eyes were opened to a world that I never really paid much attention to. In the hallways, I would see them and think, "yea, they're gay" but it really didn't phase me much. It didn't matter to me their sexual preferences and I never bothered to ask to hear their story. Now that they have opened up, I am more mindful of my everyday experiences and encounters. They were very comfortable talking about their story and I thought it was really brave and mature of them to teach us so much. I learned a lot from them and I am glad they came into to talk to us today.

Community Service

I participated in our school's fundraiser called Project Dance. Our main goal is to raise funds as well as awareness of The Riverside Foundation. This is a facility that helps adults who are developmentally disabled so they are able to live more independently. What the participates do is put a team together and raise money. As a team, we hand in the money we raised and we all receive T-shirts. We wear them on the night of Project dance. This year Project Dance was April 13th held in the Sports Center of our school. We dance for five hours and also are given food and entertainment. Usually the Riverside Foundation sends us a video just to say thanks and it really does put a big smile on your face. You feel great because you are giving back to your community for all that your community has done for you. This year we raised over $60,000 and it was the most we have ever raised!

Boys vs. Girls

This week in Sociology we are learning how our culture defines how girls and boys should act in relation to others as well as their personality. In media, woman are portrayed as dainty, sweet, emotional and vulnerable. However, if a woman is in a heroine position, she is usually wearing provocative clothing to create sex appeal. The media suggests that boys are always tough, rigid, unemotional and dominant. In movies,any boy or man who is a more "feminine"role frowned upon and looked at as a sidekick rather than a leader. We may not think that the media has such a strong influence  on us, but it seeps through into our heads whether we like it or not. As I was walking in the lobby of my workplace, I overheard a mother talking to her 4 year old girl just as she walked out. "Hi doll. Did you have fun sweetie?" Calling her doll and sweetie promote this idea that girls are fragile. The mother may not have thought this, but it has become such a social norm that we overlook the meaning behind what we say.

Agents Of Socialization

This week in Sociology, we are learning about agents of socialization. Our agents of socialization are our family, peer groups, workplace, school...pretty much every group you come in contact with that shape how we view ourselves and people around us. I was reading my teacher's blog and stumbled upon an article of what parents do to screw up their kids. At first you think, 'What? This doesn't make sense! This is pretty much how everyone is raised!' But when you read why it is wrong you understand how it can be harmful to a child. For example, the article talks about how parents warn their kids about stranger danger. I know what your thinking, how could this be a bad thing? In reality, kidnappings usually happen from someone the family knows and creates a fear of people different from them and the entire outside world. This was just one example to see the entire list of what parents do to screw up their kids click here. I was really interested in this article because I teach little kids gymnastics as a job. In the lobby, I see these parents do things quite similar to this article and never thought anything of it until now.

Nature vs. Nuture

Our new unit in Sociology is Socialization. Our teacher started with the "growing man" metaphor. When you are a baby you are entirely controlled by nature. Nature consists of your emotions, instincts, biology and genes. As you grow into a full grown adult you are influenced by so many other outside forces; this is known as nurture. The nurture is our language, and social interactions with others. Today, we watched an episode of Oprah about Isolated Children. These children were isolated from all human contact pretty much since birth. When they are rescued, the children cannot speak, walk, or eat solid food. These are all learned actions that need human interactions for. When they finally are adopted (the family of the adopted child was interviewed on the show) they long to be held. The adoptive mother said Danielle always wanted to be help and comforted because she never got that as a young child and she didn't care if she looked weird holding a nine year old girl, she was going to do it anyway. My mother told me when I was young that after a certain point, I didn't like to be held. I wanted to run around and be independent. What I wonder is at what point do most children feel like they want to be independent from their parents? This obviously depends on how much attention they got when they were younger.

Tuesdays With Morrie

      This week in Sociology we watched Tuesdays With Morrie. Based on a book about a man named Mitch who is too caught up in his job to realize the love of his life is slipping through his fingers. As he is watching TV, he sees a story on his old Sociology professor, Morrie, who is suffering from ALS. Mitch promised to keep in touch, but never came through. What he thinks is just a visit with Morrie turns into every Tuesday and lessons from Morrie about living.
     A popular theme Mitch learns about in his meetings with Morrie is dependency. Americans are afraid to be dependent on others. In our society being dependent shows weakness and no one wants to be considered weak. Growing up we depend on our parents to take care of us until we go to college, which then we are still being financially supported by them. After college, it is expected that we get a job, our own house and a family sometime later. In our society it is frowned upon to be still living with your parents a couple years our of college. If your parents are supporting you then your are "weak" and cannot support yourself. This fear of dependency stems from the American value of independence and freedom. Americans so badly want to be considered successful and "self-made" that we are willing to push people away that could help us. I also think we want to be independent because if you are dependent then what happens when they die? You don't have a way to support yourself. But if you push them away now, then you could lose a close relationship. I guess it's kinda a "choose your poison" situation. Right now I depend on my parents the most. They support me and I still live with them. My brother just moved to Florida in January so they no longer support him. He still keeps close ties with us but as time goes on you never know how much people can drift and how busy they get. It doesn't bother me that I am dependent on them because I am not ready to support myself; however I don't want them to support me my whole life. I have accepted this social norm of independence and want to pursue my own way of life.

American Values

This week we are studying culture and what a society as a whole values. We were asked to read an article which stated the 13 main values Americans live by. As I read this, I was shocked at how accurate the portrayal of Americans were. After you have lived in this culture for your whole life you find yourself ethnocentric and think, "Wait, everyone doesn't do it like that?" A few values really stuck out and I could relate to though. One was the value of time and its control. I see myself always busy! If I'm not at school, crunching homework in so I don't have to do it later, I am at the gym practicing gymnastics for an average of 4 hours per day. I have a strict schedule I follow throughout my day, then I wake up and do it all over again. Another value I relate to is Individualism and independence. As a teenager, we are starting to become more independent because we are going to college soon. We are always told we won't get as much help in academics and we will have to budget our money...etc. Also, it talks about privacy, which I believe I am very big on. I need time for myself to be alone per week because my schedule is so busy and I am always with other people that being by myself is a good time to relax. My busy schedule also pertains to the action/ work orientation value. As Americans we believe in being proficient and if your not moving forward your either standing still or going backwards. Even Walt Disney believed in this when he said "Keep Moving Forward."Although, some values we may not particularly like, they are apart of our culture and we have to accept it.

God Grew Tired of Us

This week in Sociology we are watching God Grew Tired of Us, a documentary about the Sudan civil war. Young men were forced to walk over 1000 miles to Kenya to avoid being murdered. As they made their life in a new country they always dreamed of going back to their motherland. Some were lucky enough to go to America to start a new life. Before leaving to go to the U.S. they had many questions about our way of life. For example, "Do you have to go down to the river to get water every morning? What's a shower? Is electricity hard to use?" As they get to America through an interesting plan ride, they are escorted to their apartments. They were taught how use electricity, refrigerators, and even toilets. They asked if all of them slept in one room (meaning two people per bed) and were surprised when they were getting their own bed. These simple questions and reactions made our class laugh, but when you think about it we take so many things for granted. We are so much better off than we say we are. Going through my daily life, I could list many things that others would have no idea how to use or what they are i.e. a phone, computer, washer, dryer, shower, a clock, microwave, t.v., hamburgers, chips, processed foods in general...the list goes on and on. This documentary has opened my eyes to how well off Americans are and I am thankful for all I have. I'm excited to see the ending of the documentary and if they Sudanese will adapt to our culture or if they will want to move back home.

Cultures

This week in Sociology, we started our second unit which was Culture. We discussed how other countries compare to the U.S. in numerous categories. Our teacher put 3 words up on the board and told us to find which word didn't fit in with the others. The words were laundry, beer and clothing. Every student agreed that the word beer didn't fit. We all based our thinking on the fact that laundry and clothing serve a similar purpose. However, in other countries they would agree that clothing didn't fit in. Their reasoning was laundry and beer were both foamy while clothing was not. This proves that our language influences the way we think and the way we group certain things.

When I was in China, I felt as if I was so out of place. I experienced complete culture shock in watching how life was in this country. I remember walking down the street in Shanghi with my teammates and family. We looked off to the side and saw a mother with her baby. The baby was wearing what looked like a onesie with a buttoned flap in the back. The mother opened the flap and bent down with the baby who was about to go to the bathroom on the grass. We all looked at each other baffled by what was happening. We couldn't believe it. This sight would have been unheard of in America, but in China it didn't seem like such a big deal. I remember this now years later and understand why things were so different.

A Bronx Tale

As we come to a close of Unit 1, this week in sociology we watched A Bronx Tale. Even though I missed a day in the middle, I still sensed the overall theme the movie was trying to portray. This movie also covered all of our Unit 1 topics. If discussing Micro-Macro Dynamics, the fuel that causes racism is society as a whole as well as our parents. We cannot help that whether we like it or not we grow up just like our parents. This may not be true in all cases but we learn what they believe at a young age which is why "C" feels he isn't racist, but that one slip of the tongue was because of his parents and friends. Also, in the movie neighborhoods were separated and we got a sense of that when the music changes. The neighborhoods are segregated because that is how their parents grew up and theirs before that. It was a never ending cycle of racism and segregation. In my life, I see my mother getting more and more like my grandmother. She does little habits and sayings that I know my grandmother does. I feel as I get older, I might start to do that too.


Calogero belongs to many groups throughout different times in the movie. He belongs to his family, his school, his friends, with Sonny and with Jane. I would put C in his own group with Sonny because I feel they had a more special bond than C did with anyone else in Sonny's crew. I think Calogero's master status in the beginning was a son. His father and him were really close and their bond was evident. As the movie progressed and C grew closer with Sonny, his master status, I feel, changed to a friend. Calogero was a friend to many people and he never hated anyone. C cared about a lot of people; even Sonny when no one else seemed to care at his funeral. My own master status has changed from daughter to gymnast. I feel as you grow up your master status with almost always change. When I was young people always knew me from my parents. Even though that still happens, I am more of an independent.

Compared to everyone else in the movie, Calogero is the most mindful. While everyone else in the neighborhood is racist towards black people, C keeps an open mind and never judges anyone by the color of their skin. He begins to understand that he is more mindful than his friends are when his friends see black people riding their bikes in the Italian's neighborhood. They all fight them and Calogero helps someone because he believes what they are doing is wrong. The person he helps turns out to be the girl he wants to date's brother. His mindfulness made a huge impact with Jane and her brother. Being mindful in my life would help me see that everyone is different, but we can't judge people on those difference. To live a life of hatred is terrible. Like when C asks Sonny if he trusts anyone Sonny replies' "No."
"Thats a horrible way to live."
"For me, its the only way."
"Not for me, not for me."
When C says he won't live a life where he doesn't trust anyone, it was a powerful realization that he is the most mindful character.

This week we did a Group Identity Molecule. Our teacher had us write our name in the middle of the page and create a web of all the different groups we are apart of. As we shared with the class of our groups, I realized that the students in our class are similar in some ways, yet different in others. We all attend our school and have friend groups here, but there is also sports, clubs, music, religious groups and so much more that other people identified with. We had to pick our master status, which is how or what other people view you as. I chose my master status as my sport because growing up everyone knows me as a gymnast and it has stuck. Doing this exercise made me realize that society today judges other groups by either stereotypes or by other means that are unfair. More of the common stereotypes are that Americans are obese, lazy and dim-witted, Italian or French people are the best lovers, all Jews are greedy, all asians are good at math and so on. Even if the stereotype is true on some cases, constantly putting people down because of a preconceived idea is wrong. Last week, I was at the airport and I overheard two men in their 20's I would say talking about the drive to the airport. One man said he was driving behind a slow car and was upset, because he was late. When he finally passes the car he explains that the driver was an asian woman on her phone. The other responds, "That's possibly the worst combination." After hearing this, I realize how much our society stereotypes on perceptions of others. This week was interesting and now I am ready to be sociologically mindful of other groups.

This week in sociology we watched the first episode of Freaks and Geeks. This episode was supposed to explain how Durkheim, Marx and Weber contributed to new ideas about sociology. Durkheim thought of the functional theory where people are affected by where they live and which groups they belong to. In Freaks and Geeks, both the main characters are involved with social groups, like the "burn outs" and geeks, but they also were apart of a school and a family. Marx founded the conflict theory, which explains how different classes control others. In the episode, Sam, who is considered a geek, has a bully. The bully has power over Sam. Also, parents and teachers have power over the students. This power shapes who we are and who has power over others. Weber's perspective was the symbolic interaction theory where people interact based on symbols. One of the many symbols was Lindsay's army jacket. The jacket represented her tomboy and rebellious attitude in the beginning. However, at the Homecoming dance she takes off the jacket to symbolize that she is "good" again. These theories not only relate to just one episode of Freaks and Geeks, but they also relate to our everyday life. My life consists of my family, my school friends, and my team. The power aspect comes from teachers, parents and my coach (who is also my mom). When you sit and think about it finding symbols in your own life can be difficult. The symbols in my life I would say are my grips or a leotard to represent the gymnastics part of my life. Being a gymnast is such a huge part of me that any other symbol wouldn't be as strong. Anyway, I liked the first episode so much that I am watching the entire season now. Hopefully we can watch another episode in class though.

Being in our first official week of sociology, we mainly talked about sociological mindfulness and sociological imagination. Sociological mindfulness is looking at an individual itself with an open mind, and being free from stereotypes or judgmental views. Sociological imagination is looking at what many things influence that person and shapes them to be the person they are today. The two main influences that shape us are the time and place of when we live. Besides looking at both of these terms, we talked about our community service hours we have to complete by the end of the semester. We watched some clips of possible places to earn them and the one clip that really stuck with me was the clip of Marshall Davis Jones. We could volunteer at the Louder than a Bomb poetry festival. He was acting out a poem that made me become more aware of our societies use of technology. So as my day went on, I went to practice. I walk in to see three girls who are about 12 years, sitting on the floor on their iPhones. One girl is texting, a different girl on Facebook and the other on Instagram. Then the girl on Facebook says the others, "Oh my god! Did you see what ____ put as her status?" And as this was all happening, I couldn't help but think about Marshall Jones and how he was right about how people today, even in the same room, do not have personal conversations anymore. The conversations are either about what someone said or did, which made me also think that they do not know what influences that person; therefore, they can't judge what they do or don't do. I am beginning to become more aware of my surroundings and being mindful that everyone has a past, but you can influence their future.


"A judgmental heart keeps listening to the things that annoy."
~ Toba Beta

Who Am I?

For our first post we are supposed to describe who we are. My name is Taylor. I go to a Suburban High  School in the Chicagoland area. I am a gymnast and I compete all over the country. I have been in this sport my whole life pretty much because my family owns the business. I have stuck with it and now I intend to go to college to continue my gymnastics career. I also teach preschool gymnastics one day a week. I love my job and look forward to their bright faces after they finally complete what they have been working towards. I have a brother who just graduated from college and moved down to Florida. He auditioned for The Lion King show in Disney World and got the part. So he plans to live there for a couple years. He is one of my biggest influences because I know I can talk to him about anything, and he will always be there. He is one of my biggest support systems and I am grateful to have him in my life. My goal is to go to college and major in criminal psychology. I am really interested in the subject because I have been watching crime shows ever since I was little. I hope to one day work for the FBI or in a hospital for criminals. Anyway that's me! Bye!