End of the Semester Thoughts about Social Justice!

During this semester I have learned a lot about myself and a lot about certain subjects that I have been nervous to address in the past.  For instance the gay community; I have never really tried to address the fact that I have in the past said some things jokingly to my friends about the subject of homosexuality.  I never knew that saying these joking accusations could hurt someone’s feelings and the simple fact that it is just as wrong to say these vulgar remarks as using racial slurs for people with different skin colors.  After taking my social justice class I have become more aware of my actions and have become more understanding of all different group types.  I feel that through this course I have realized how immature I have been in the past, and how I have become a better man because of it.  I feel proud to say I can go out in the community with an open mind and treat everyone with the same, rather than being closed minded and rejecting people before even getting to know them. 

By realizing how much I really needed to mature to become a more socially competent human being, it makes me wonder how far other people need to mature to do the same as well.  What I need to realize it is not that simple for people just to come to grasp with some personal issues that they might have, but I believe that if I can help society by moving past my own issues, then there will be one less person that will commit social injustices in society.  So after this course I can say I have come a long way and I will do my part to help society become a better place and I hope that people can do the same.  If people can just accept people for who they are, rather than what social group they belong to, society could be a beautiful place to be a part of.  I hope that after reading this you can do your part as well and help the world become a place where everyone is created equal.  One by one we can make a difference in this world and maybe one day we can see a beneficial change.  Until we see this change we can treat everyone the way we would want to be treated, and perhaps one day the dream of an equal society can become a reality.

Mistreatment of Undocumneted Workers

Here is a question for you guys, do you believe that un-documented workers that are employed over here in the US, deserve to receive the wages and safe workzones they deserve.  These companies that hire undocumented workers know that these workers cannot find work elsewhere and are able to abuse this power.  They will hire workers for wages less than minimum wage in some cases and work them for long hours.  They also have unsafe work zones for some workers, such as construction workers.  The construction companies won’t hold safety classes before entering the job and allow these workers to work in unsafe zones with no training.  Doing this, a lot of undocumented workers have died and or have been seriously injured in these unsafe zones.  A large percentage of these un-documented workers don’t receive all the wages they are entitled to, because these companies know that the ndocumented workers can’t go to the authorities to report them.

                Even though these workers are here undocumented, they are still human beings.  They are doing the work, and they deserve to be paid.  They have families and homes just as everybody else and they need to survive off the wages they work for.  How would you feel if you worked a long week doing hard labor and you are out of money come payday, and when you go to get your paycheck the employer gives you one third of what you should have been paid?  This kind of mistreatment would not stand if it was an American Citizen, why should it be any different for an undocumented worker?

                People here undocumented is a totally separate issue; this is an issue of fairness and the defense for the common human being.  What needs to be done about this issue is that these companies that are willing to hire undocumented workers need to be held accountable for their actions.  First off the safety issue, undocumented or not, needs to be taken care of first.  An unsafe workplace should never be tolerated and these deaths or injuries should never have to take place before we do something about it.  Next thing that needs to be stopped is the unpaid wages for the work that has been done.  Regardless of if the worker is legal or not, if that person completes the work, that person deserves to be paid.  We as America are better than this and it really makes me sick that this type of mistreatment takes place.  We cannot keep turning our heads the other way and let these injustices take place, and we need to take these issues head on.  This issue needs to be stopped and stopped now!

Here is a video on for you to watch and maybe it will help you understand that this is actually taking place.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMbucj2n6Yw&feature=player_embedded

America the Beautiful!!

How much do Americans really take for granted?  In my class we watched a movie called “Wasteland”, which depicts an artist who goes to Brazil to film a documentary/art project to try to help the trash pickers.  These trash pickers are Brazil’s form of recycling because the country does not have recycling.  The dump trucks would come to this dump yard and dump the trash, and then hundreds to thousands of people would walk through picking out all the recyclable material.  These “pickers” are happy because they are not having to live a life of prostitution or drug dealing and can make a living in a respectable way.  The workers only make $25 a day and they are happy with that pay.

Again how much do Americans take for granted?  These people in Brazil are happy to dig through trash and filth for $25 dollars a day working god knows how many hours and Americans only have to work 8 hours a day making at the minimum $58.  I would love to see a business man, a doctor, even a garbage truck driver, to go over to Brazil and work just one week in these conditions.  What do you think would happen?  They would whine and complain about the work and when they got paid they would flip out on how much they got paid for it. 

Americans need to start to realize we have it good over here.  Even though our economy is in the dumps right now, we still have it a million times better than a lot of these other countries.  I believe that Americans have a much skewed sense of reality and are so spoiled we don’t even appreciate the good things in life.  To be able to have a minimum wage, to be able to not have to work more than 40 hours a week unless you want to, to have government assistance (such as food stamps and unemployment), and to have the freedom to go out and achieve anything we want.  Now granted it is much more difficult than some to get by in America, but even the poorest communities still have it better than third world countries.  Americans need to open their eyes and see what a beautiful and blessed country we have and to realize that even when times are hard you still have it better than most.  If we as a country could all think this way, a more peaceful happy society will emerge. 

Here is the trailer to the movie so you can get a better understanding

http://vimeo.com/16290358

Homosexuals are People too!!

My Social Justice class keeps coming at me like a whirl wind.  This week we were talking about homosexuality and the strife they have to endure.  Now that I am older I never really thought of any issues with homosexuality, other than societies laws against them (such as no gay marriage in certain states, and no rights to possessions for gay spouses), because I view them as normal people in society.  I have already forgotten what it was like in high school and even my own viewpoints towards the gay community.

            Growing up with my friends, we always made fun of each other if we showed any sign of femininity by calling each other “gay” or “fag”.  I never thought anything of this because it was just a norm in my high school.  Now looking back what if one of these young teenage boys that was having trouble dealing with what his sexual preference was or trying to figure out what was wrong with him, over heard me and my friends saying these kind of derogatory terms.  When I thought this, I immediately felt sick to my stomach.  No one from my high school killed themselves due to being harassed for being gay, but what if someone did?  What if that someone would have killed themselves because of what he overheard from my conversations with my friends?  To this day I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself and now after taking this class I am having a real hard time forgiving myself for my ignorant past.

            It is so easy to say things that can hurt someone else without even knowing it.  Using the term “gay” or “fag” as a joke is wrong in every way and as a society we must be conscious of what we say.  Homosexuals, Lesbians, Tran’s genders, and many others are all human beings.  No one today should be judged for the color of their skin, what sexual preference they are, what socio-economic status they belong to, or what culture they are from.  America promotes itself as a diverse society and that we are all created equal, than why are there still these prejudices’ that exist in our society.  I myself will start being more observant of these types of terms and start to fight against them when I hear them.  Being guilty of this I am disgusted with myself and I will devote myself to make a difference.  Through word of mouth, through being educated, through social interaction, we can make a difference.  I will fight for the equal rights for everyone till the day I die and I hope one day I can see an America united, rather than an America full of separation and hatred.  We as a society need change, until we make that change, America will never be the country I can be proud of.

Why Still Inequality for Women?

In our society today we have many issues that need serious attention to help find a solution for them.  One of these issues that I am having a hard time dealing with is the issue surrounding the inequalities between men and and women.  I honestly have felt that that issue was a thing of the past, but in my class this week I was sadly mistaken.  Women still make only 75 percent of what a male does, and still many men believe that women are incapable of being able to perform adequately in some so called “male jobs”. 

            I do not understand how this is still happening today, because I have never been able to witness it first-hand.  I have never researched any of these statistics, because I was naïve enough to believe that this was not an issue.  I thought that just by seeing women in the workforce, women in leadership roles, and women in the military, that this issue was a thing of the past.  How can an employer pay a man 25 percent more than a woman who has the same experience and educational background?  This just disgusts me, woman are fully capable to handle any job a man can, and we need to put an end to this immediately. 

            What is really holding this back is the fact of sexism?  If women show any cleavage in her business attire she is considered a whore and should not be taken seriously.  What it really is is the face men are weak and look at women in an unprofessional way.  I honestly believe that it is the simple fact of fear and jealousy.  I believe men are scared that women will take over and men will be left in the dust.  This is absurd; women just want the equality that they deserve.  They are not fighting to take over the world; they just want the same opportunity that every man has.  Men need to stop being so insecure and accept the fact that women are equal to us.  Men need to embrace a future established on equality and stop holding this country back from that.  We need to show the world that this country can lead by example, so women everywhere can finally be looked at as a person not a gender.  My vote is for equality, my vote is for a better America, and my vote is to make a step forward for this country rather than just prolonging the inevitable.

Here is a video on the price gap at UT.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwN6-Pe3o3w&feature=player_embedded

Curse of the "Standardized Tests"

This week in my Social Justice class we were discussing standardized testing in high schools. Government is constantly cutting funding for education, while expecting more from schools. If schools don’t meet certain criteria then their funding is cut off. I believe this is completely wrong and there are so many better options to fix these issues. Education is one of the most important parts in the success of this country and American citizens are allowing the government to ruin the educational system.

I believe the best way to go about achieving better graduation rates and improving grade point average of students is to stop the standardized testing. As crazy as that sounds just listen to what I have to say. I believe I am a rather intelligent person, but I have never been the best at test taking. Where I have excelled the most and had the most success is when tests weren’t the most crucial part of a class. I have taken a few courses in my educational career where the teacher doesn’t grade by testing, but by participation and through project based instruction. Not only have I received better grades, but I have retained the most knowledge after completing these courses.

My rationale behind this is that there can be a lot of anxiety when it comes to standardized testing. You have to be able to memorize terms and key terms, but you aren’t tested on the real meaning of the material. When I study for a multiple choice exam, for instance, I memorize what I have to and throw all other information that is not going to be on the test out. This is wrong, who is to say that that other material is not important? Also with all the stress and anxiety from the fear of failing the test, I feel that I hold the information for a matter of days after taking the test. With not being graded by testing but by participation I am able to engage the material from a different perspective. I enjoy learning the material and without the anxiety of test taking, I am able to retain the information longer. I am able to retain more information due to the fact that I am not focused on key terms, but rather the content and application of the information. Without having to memorize, I retain the meaning of the information and I am able to use the material well into the future.

We need to stop standardized testing as a solution to the education system. By making school relevant to the student I believe that the government would see vast improvements in the quality of learning in schools, lower dropout rates, and more benefits to students. Kids will start wanting to attend school and by God enjoy it. Learning is a beautiful aspect of life, why do we have to make it a scary burden? I believe that with this new method of teaching we will see a better graduation rate, more intelligent youth, better GPA’s, better job skills from students emerging into the workforce, and a stronger, better America.

                                                                                                                           

Wal-Mart, Societies Worst Bully!!

            Well yet again another surprise in my social justice class this week. My beloved Wal-Mart, the one stop shop, had some skeletons in its closet. After watching“Wal-Mart, the High Cost of Low Price”, I feel disgusted for even shopping there. When Wal-Mart came to my home town in Pinetop AZ, I was too young to realize what this store did to my town. I asked my parents recently what had happened when it came into town, and my fears were proven real. All the Mom and Pop shops went out of business and many families were left with no income. How can a corporation be ok with doing this to rural communities?

            A man from the movie was a manager trainer for Wal-Mart for many years, and he stated that they would go to these rural communities before a Wal-Mart was built. While in these communities they would drive by all the businesses estimating how long until they would go out of business. One of Wal-Mart’s main slogans is how much improvement their store will do for the community, when in all actuality it tears it apart. It shows that their main intention is to take over all the business in town, and they never had the intention to help the community in anyway. If an individual was hired by Wal-Mart they would receive unfair wages, and be offered way over priced health coverage. An employee has a choice; with the budget they receive, to decide whether to put food on the table or to have health coverage. They also would tell their employees to use welfare, food stamps, and many other city offered aids to survive, rather than offering their own coverage’s. How can a multi-billion dollar company not be able to afford to pay their employees a fair wage, and offer decent benefits for working there?

            Wal-Mart is a supreme example of a monopoly and they need to be reprimanded for the damage they have done to this country. If our country allows Wal-Mart to get away with these infractions, this country gives the green light for any other corporation to do the same. The brief issues that I listed in this blog are just a small fraction of all the horrible activities that Wal-Mart is involved in. Is America really this naive to just sit and not believe that this is really going on? These companies are getting away with murder, and America is just sitting back and allowing them to get away with it. We as a country need to take control back into our own hands, and stand up to these corporate giants. How many more rural communities are we going to allow to be subjected to this unfair business monopoly, how many more families are we going to watch lose their life work to a social bully, and how many lives have to be put into poverty before society finally says no more? How much more America, how much more?

Is Change Ever Coming?

            In society there are a lot of complaints and strife’s that you hear from day to day.  Why does racism still exist?  Why is there still a dominate class and a subordinate class?  Why are people so fixated on our differences rather than our equalities?  If these types of questions are floating around in our heads, why don’t people do anything about them?  These types of issues will always exist if society keeps allowing them to exist.  Without realizing these ongoing issues will not change without the action of every citizen, than the United States of Inequality will always remain.

 The reason I bring this issue to light, was because I witnessed a rather eye opening discussion in my social justice class.  We had a guess speaker who grew up in a real small town from Texas named Mart.  She told us stories of how interracial dating was forbidden, and that sons and daughters would be excommunicated by their families if they did so.  She explained how racism was the norm, and she felt that there could be no change in a town like Mart.  Just in the past couple years people have been trying to change the way people think around Mart by town projects (organized by individuals who are associated with the town, but never have lived there) and openly speaking about the issues surrounding the town.  I always knew there were towns all over America that were like this in the past and still exist today, but what really surprised me the most was what a fellow student said in class.  “Why does it take a white lady that never grew up there, to come and try to make a difference?”  “Why hasn’t anybody who has grown up there and seen the racism first hand try to make a difference?”  This blew me away, because I never thought of it like that.

            What she said is exactly true, why does it take outsiders to try to change ongoing issues?  When I say, “these types of issues will always exist if society keeps allowing them to exist”, I mean exactly that.  Citizens who grew up in Mart knew of these issues well before any of the outsiders did.  Who knows, if someone from Mart would have done something to try to change these racial issues, things might have been better for the town today.  We as a nation need to use our abilities to see the wrong in society, and stand up to the issues head on.  We need the passive voices to become aggressive, we need the insecure to become secure, and we need the unable to do everything they can to try to become able.    One voice might seem insignificant, but without one how will others follow?  An engine does not run without gas, a business doesn’t profit without customers, and a country doesn’t exist without a population.   It only takes one voice to implement change in an unequal environment; it only takes one voice to change today for a better tomorrow, and it only takes one voice to give sight to a society that has been blind and ignorant for way too long.  HERE’S TO AMERICA’S ONE UNIFIED VOICE AND THE CHANGE THAT NEEDS TO COME!!!

United States of Inequality! Racism is Still Alive!

During class this week my professor shared some history of New Orleans to me and the class that was extremely disturbing. One thing she said was, “before Katrina there was Katrina”. I didn’t fully comprehend what she meant till she showed us a timeline of the the big flood in 1927. After intense rain the Mississippi River found weaknesses in the levee system and broke through killing thousands of people and leaving many stranded. The flood itself is not what really disturbs me; it was the inhumane treatment of the African Americans during the rescue.

            The flood triggered the Great Migration, which was 6 million African Americans from the southern United States migrated up to the Northeast, Midwest, and West United States.  The state of New Orleans feared losing their work force, and trapped many African Americans from leaving the state.  Many Americans were stranded on the levees, and during rescue attempts only the whites were saved.  The government forced the African Americans at gun point to start rebuilding the levees rather than saving them.  Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover was in charge of the flood relief, and was going to be running for President in the next election.  Herbert Hoover made promises to the leader of the Colored Advisory Commission, Robert Russa Moton, stating that further reforms for the blacks will come when elected president if they kept quiet about the miss treatment of the black community.  Of course those promises weren’t kept, and Moton influenced his people to vote Democratic the next election after Hoover, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected.

            How are these inhumane treatments any different from what happened during Hurricane Katrina.  People were left stranded for weeks on their roof tops waiting for aid, and all they got in return was to be called looters when looking for food.  How can we say that racism is dead, if a huge black community in need of rescue was just left there to save themselves?  I guarantee if this was a rich white community, by God!! there would have been food and water immediately, and the rescue of these people would come first over any other issues in this country.  Racism will never stop if America just acts like these types of injustices never happen.  If we don’t make a stand now, then when will America ever take a stand?  We as a country need to hit racism and unfair treatment head on.  We need to unite as a country of equality for every man and woman, and if a person is in need we need to help them in whatever way we can no matter what color their skin is.  We also need to show the world that we are the strongest country out there not a divided one.  Now is the time to stand up and not take the back seat, now is the time for justice not injustice, and now is the time to become the United States of America not the United States of Inequality!!! 

Here is a little video of the flood in 1927 to give you a little insight of what occured during this tradegy.
http://youtu.be/MGs2iLoDUYE

The Right to Defend Yourself

My last social justice class we had a guess speaker come in and she shared a story with us about something that happened in her family. I believe it was her brother in law and his wife were at home in Washington DC, and someone broke in with a gun trying to rob their house with a gun in hand. To make a long story short, the brother in law felt that him and his wife’s lives were threatened, so he shot the man dead in their home. Her brother in law was prosecuted for murder, and was sent to jail.

            This is the problem I have with the judicial system today. I don’t like the fact that in different states self-defense is treated differently. This incident happened in Washington DC, when in the state of Texas you can shoot anyone who breaks into your home, regardless if they have a gun or not. The law in DC states that the person must shoot at you first to be able to defend yourself. This is ludicrous, so if a man comes into my home threatening to shoot me and my wife, I have to wait till he fires his weapon. It only takes one shot to kill me or my wife, and I don’t want to take that risk whatsoever. What’s the point of the second amendment if the only thing a person can do is use his weapon as a decoration, and not in defense?

            I believe in state law vs. national law 9 out of 10 times, but I believe that some issues must be equal throughout the nation. When a citizen goes to jail for defending his family from an armed intruder, than something is tremendously wrong. If an individual breaks into someone’s house with a gun, I believe the owner of the house has every right to shoot him on the spot. A citizen of this fine country shouldn’t have to wait to be shot at, because if the intruder is an excellent marksman, than the owner of the house will be dead before he or she was able to defend themselves. This is just a small problem on a larger scale, and there are many other issues this country has to face before becoming the nation that it needs to be. I do not want to be a part of a country that won’t allow me to defend myself against armed intruders intending to hurt me or my family. Without equality in the justice system, without safety in our homes, and without the right to defend you or your family, than this country will always remain a broken nation.

           

Evil Claiming to be Heroes

During my social justice class my eyes are being opened more and more every week. America teaches history as a time full of adventure and heroes, when that's not the truth at all. I will give two examples that prove this statement. After reading a few chapters from a book by Howard Zenn in my class, I was astonished and appalled to realize how our beloved Christopher Columbus was an imperialist in the most extreme way. He came to the America's, and forced his countries views down their throats with no regard for common decency or respect. He wasn't there to discover new land and cultures; he was there to claim the land for himself. If anything got in his way he would murder the natives, or do whatever was necessary to get what he desired.  After reading the true story, I am repulsed to say that I actually respected the man and celebrated his holiday.

Another example of this kind of tyranny was the story of the Texas Rangers, and the conflicts on the Mexican American borders.  While taking my Mexican American history class a few semesters ago, my eyes were opened once again.  We think of the Texas Rangers as protectors of America and the crusaders of the west, but in reality they were rapists, murderers, and racist cowards just as Columbus was.  They weren’t out looking for real problems on the border; they were out looking for their idea of fun.  During this time period, regardless if the Hispanic man or woman was American or not, would be in danger of being subjected to murder, wives or women being raped, their children kidnapped or killed, or being sent back to Mexico even if they were citizens of the United States.  I looked up to the Texas Rangers growing up.  I thought of them as the cowboy protectors of America, and it made me honored to be a citizen of a country that had heroes like this.  I mean for God sake we have a baseball team named after them, a holiday after Christopher Columbus, and my question is how society has been oblivious to all these horrifying evidences from the past. 

Has America really come a long way from these social injustices of the past or have we just sugar coated them?  Even though officers aren’t out raping, murdering, and enslaving the public (so we think), are societies social injustices any better today?  What exactly is the definition of social justice?  The dictionaries definition of social justice is, “Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating an egalitarian society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being.”  A guest speaker from my class named Dr. Agular asked us will each individual ever be fully equal to one another?   His answer was no, because biologically we can never be equal.  For example a man could never be equal to a woman, because the simple fact that man can’t give birth to a baby.  That is the most simplistic answer to the question, but I believe there will never be equality in America.  The United States is too worried about differences, and who are the dominates and who are the subordinates in society.  Yes I believe America has come a long way since the Columbus days or the Texas Rangers, but after watching the movie “Crash”, we still have a long way to go before I am content with society in America.  Until America can look past one another’s differences, until we can look past the color of our skin, until we can spread wealth equally throughout society, and until society can look at individuals as equal human beings and not dollar signs, we will never be a country of social justice and equality. 

Here is a scene from the movie “crash”, showing just how far we have come as a society of social justice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAmUPCbhkwo&feature=related

Dominates vs. Subordinates

There are many classes of human beings in this world.  They are all seperated by groups, and the two main groups are the Dominates and the Subordinates.  Even if society doesn't want to class people in these type of groups, statistically it shows that they are.  At the top of the list is the white heterosexual male, and I am apart of this group.  Before taking my Social Justice class at the University of Texas I was oblivious to this social group I belonged to.  In our class discussion a student brought up a good point that the dominant group isn't aware of these privelages they have, because they don't have to go through the social injustices that are bestowed upon the subordinates.  This "White Privelage" they call it, gets us out of traffic tickets, less time in jail, better jobs and salaries, and many other different benefits.  Before this class I thought society has come a long way, which it has, but I actually thought that these kind of segregations have dissapeared.  When that student said that people in this class don't realize that it is still going on, because we don't have to defend ourselves from them, my eyes were opened.  We went back and forth through discussion and people from all different races and social groups, all telling their stories.  I was just shocked that this type of privelages were still going on, and I wanted to just shrivel back in my guilt.  I have never felt more guilty in my life to be apart of something I had no control over.  All I want in this society is for everything to be equal, but we are far from it.  A question for society out there, are we ever going to be as individuals completely equal, or are we always going to have inequality in our society?  Well my vote is for equality, we have come to far in America to not treat everyone as human.  I believe the one solution to this problem is talk about it.  Talk about it with people who are different races, different genders, and really put yourself out there.  Use me as an example, I had no idea that these privelages still are a reality in our society until this class.  I believe that through discussion and public networking, eventually one day a world of equality will exist, a single group will emerge as one, and America will truly be the country that we set out to be.

Here is a video I think you should watch on "White Privilege"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Xe1kX7Wsc

One Nation Under God: A nation full of social injustices

After reading my first reading assignment in my new social work class called, "Foundations of Social Justice", a lot of things came to mind.  Even though this society has prided itself on creating all men equal, even women now, but still we find that their are social injustices.  For instance when an African American gets a job over a European American due to the fact the company has to meet it's diversity quota.  The readings also stated that a Social Worker needs to strive to make sure that every person is treated exactly the same so these problems don't continue.  Even in Social Work there are social injustices such as when someone gets turned down because they are not poor enough.  Even if they make a certain salary, that person might have kids, excessive bills, and many other expenses where that job won't cut it.  So how can a Social Worker say they aren't poor enough to receive benefits.  The first thing America as a society has to do to fix this issue is to look past race.  We have to look at everyone as an American.  No more of this African American, European American, Mexican American, just simply everybody is American.  This will allow companies to hire the most qualified and racial issue can finally be a thing of the past.  The second solution will everyone has an equal chance to receive a certain benefit regardless of income.  If that income doesn't cover the bills than they can be eligible to receive those benefits.  Once America can look past these ludicrous labels and guidelines, the closer America can become one as a nation.  Our four fathers said "One Nation Under God", why not start acting that way.