Being able to make a decision about what to watch, what to eat, where to go today and then have the same access rights to the same shops and transport systems to get there. We need to celebrate the fact that we are all different. To include and accept all people into our society in the same way we expect people to accept our own culture into theirs. If we don’t treat everyone the same regardless of their age, religion, culture or gender then we are discriminating against them. Some people may need help or changes need to be made to enable them to have the same access to society in general.
An understanding of both the visible and the hidden dimensions of diversity increases tolerance and understanding of the differences in each of us. Diversity brings distinctiveness to individuals and makes us interesting, but if we base our opinion on the visual and not the hidden also, then we are being judgmental of others. The visual characteristics only encompasses part of our who we are, which unfortunately forms the basis of many of our values. Understanding the hidden dimensions of diversity with the visual dimensions allows us to enrich ourselves by eliminating ignorance and gaining different perspectives on others diversity. By seeing many sides of other cultures, we are well informed, and can make rational assessments regarding others.
Almost every character met throughout the movie uses racial stereotypes whether it is Walt Kowalski, Clint Eastwood, or the African American gangsters met for a short period. Once serving in the Vietnam War, Walt sees his next door neighbor as the same type of people he once fought against. Leading him to thinking this was true, young Tao was caught attempting to steal his ’72 Gran Torino. Contrary to his outlook and previous perception on Tao and his family they form a close mutual friendship after experiencing the Mong cultural customs their family shows him. Walt and his buddies share racial stereotypes in their everyday vocabulary which are all older white men.
His theory could help portray not only the separation of whites and blacks, but also the separation of whites and other races. There are also other theories, such as conflict theory, standpoint theory, and labeling theory, that provide reasoning to the segregation at the slaughter house. The workers in the slaughterhouse are African American, Native American, Hispanic and Caucasian. LeDuff talks to three main people to get their views on the slaughterhouse. The first is Billy Harwood, a white inmate who takes a job at Smithfield to save money for when he gets out of jail.
Black History is a reminder of the work that still needs to be done here in America between all races. Instead of erasing Black History month, it should used to focus on other issues for the rest of the 337 days. Kelley states in her article, “Black history is American history, no doubt. But Black History Month is a measure of how fully or accurately our story is being told and a reminder of the work yet to be done.” I agree with the author. I understand where Freeman is coming from, but he doesn’t seem to fully grasp or understand the meaning of Black History Month.
ESSAY Every human being belongs or strives to belong to exclusive groups as it is a part of our human nature. Belonging to certain groups comes with benefits but also inevitable costs. An individual’s identity can be compromised, but, as well can be shaped by the influence of belonging. We are constantly changing and growing from the different groups that we become a part of until we move on to another, from which we gain an understanding about our own identities. Belonging to certain groups has its benefits, by which we gain a sense of security, confidence and the feeling of having a place in this world.
Race and Three Movies This essay will examine racial presentations in movies, informed by considerations of race and movies as explained by Vera and Gordon in their article, “Learning to be White through the Movies.” I feel that movies create a positive feedback loop that mutually reflects and affirms audience’s (and in fact our culture’s) understanding of self and group identities in relation to others. I would say that visual and auditory media that is available to the masses is the most powerful contributor to the “celebration of white privilege” that Vera and Gordon discuss. However, there are multitudes of other more covert influences that are imbedded in the culture at large. Building architecture, the way books are classified in libraries, presiding language rules, landmarks, furniture, and many other things that are presumed to be devoid of ethnic influences are actually largely the products of the dominant culture. In the movies I watched for this assignment, whites were seen as the dominant group, however this was presented with varying degrees of intention and purpose.
In the movie “Honey,” selling drugs or stealing is described as if they are what black people do. The best example is BB, the boss of black men’s crew. He tells Honey’s boyfriend “Check this out. When you’re tired of nickel-and-diming, just give me a holler. I’m gonna hook you up” (Honey).
The American worker, his coworkers and his bosses are implicated in the movie Office Space. The movie was directed and written by Mike Judge who wanted to give a humorous look into the cubicle life of the average American. This movie gives you the idea of a typical workweek, and not so typical workweek, for your everyday white-collar worker. Office Space deals with the life of working in cubicle and how a lot of people dislike their job, which effects their lives even outside of the workplace. Mike Judge wanted to make the characters in this movie relatable to the audience.
It is important to understand how Americans perceive Latinos since studies reveal that part of their opinions are influenced by the media and not by having interpersonal contact with Latino/as. For example, The George Lopez Show was one of the first shows to have a predominantly Latino cast. The show displayed the real-life of a comedian challenging the Latino stereotypes in humorous ways. In one particular episode of the show, Lopez played the role of a manager of an aviation factory. In this specific scene he was not wearing his usual work attire and when a new co-manager arrived at the factory that day, she mistook him for an inferior worker and began to talk him down.