UB Discusion I wish I had know about

Michael Rembis talk: “Athlete First”: A Note on Passing, Disability and Sport

Friday December 3, 2010; 4:00 – 6:00 Park Hall 280

We all pass. Some people have been engaging in various forms of passing for centuries: Jew as gentile, Black as white, gay as straight, woman as man, man as woman, disabled as nondisabled. In this paper, Professor Rembis will use modern sport to take a fresh look at the ways in which disabled people have learned to pass in the nondisabled world. He argues that passing need not always involve the act of physically concealing one’s impairment, but rather depends upon how well one can approximate the gendered, white, heterosexual, nondisabled norm and meet societal expectations for conduct, competition, appearance, and performance. Exploring the experiences of elite disabled athletes and the history of the rise of modern disabled sport offers an opportunity to further enrich our understanding of passing, because it forces us to think about blurring the lines between disabled and nondisabled, and think critically about the fluidity and contingency of social constructions of normality. Original website: http://www.history.buffalo.edu/index.shtml

Biracial families

I do not know what to say about biracial couples and kids. I think that if you love a person it does not matter what they look like. I think there are still stigmas against them. I think interracial couples may run into more difficulties with their children. I do not think that they would be less of parents just that sometimes they may not be able to relate as well to their child if they cannot truly understand what they are going through. If a person is white and has all the privileges that go with it, they may not understand what a child who looks black and is treated different goes through. It reminds me of the book we read, both parents I thought loved their kids, but I felt that neither knew how to relate to the child that did not look like them.

#22

actors/actresses in movies

Different posts have discussed Disney movies. Which these made me think about movies and actors/actresses in general. When looking at the top actors/actresses I found that they are mainly white. I started looking up the top actors and I found a website that listed top fifty actors, and only around five were non whites. The same site gave the top fifty actresses, and once again only around five were not white. This website may not be completely accurate but my guess it is pretty close. It just makes me think about how disproportionate that is. Most movies that I can remember are mainly with white main actors (I have seen a lot that aren’t, just they are mainly white). I have never thought of this, but it just seems so weird to me. I guess you think you would find a pretty much even number, but it’s about for every 9 top actors/actresses that are white, there is only 1 that is nonwhite. Also it made me think and I cannot think of more than a few movies that I have seen with interracial couples. It just struck me as weird that with interracial marriages on the rise, they would begin to be more represented in movies.

#21

Bechdel test

In a 1985 comic strip of Dykes To Watch Out For the creator, Alison Bechdel came up with the idea for the "Bechdel test". The test was to be applied to movies and only had 3 rules. The first rule was that the movie had to have at least 2 female charecters. The second rule was that they had to talk to each other in at least one scene. The third rule was that when they spoke to each other they could not be talking about a man. On the surface this test is simple and in theory shouldn't be too hard for any movie to forfill. Yet it is shocking how very few movies aren't able to forfill at least one of two of the points on the test. While sure some movies especaily in the action genra like The Expendables wouldn't be expected to have many female charecters it is shocking how many fimls in all genras are unable to forfill this simple test. Even movies such as Beastly and Dear John who's target audience seemed to be teenage girls are unable to pass more than 1/3rd of the test. It should be incredibly simple for a movie who's main character is a woman to have just one conversation with another woman yet apparently in Hollywood seems to think that female characters should not speak to each other or that the only thing that women are interested in talking to each other about is love, sex, men and babies.

Huckleberry Finn

A few weeks ago in class, we briefly discussed how there is talk of trying to remove racist terms from Huckleberry Finn. In my opinion, this is a huge disregard to history. While the terms in the book may be highly offensive and hard to deal with in schools, it is still an accurate portrayal of the time period. The novel was written as a depiction of what was going on in this pre civil war era. To eliminate the racist terms of the novel would be like pretending they never happened and erasing the memory of the hardships of African Americans and racist actions made by whites. The racist themes and concepts teach students about the time period and the wrong doings of the past. I feel removing them from the book would just be a way of masking what truly happened in the past.
-Ryan Fleming blog post #22

Little Birdie

In Caucasia, the author does a great job in portraying difficulties of a biracial family. Dealing with personal issues of identifying with ones self and understanding the family members as well as issues that are outside of the home and family. As well as the family issues that Birdie's family was dealing with the book also tied in the problems that came from society and the different viewpoints effecting them. The book itself did a great job of being able to bring me as the reader in and feeling as if I were Birdie going through all of these dilemmas. I tend to put myself in her shoes and as she goes through her problems. Going through the process of finding out who you are as well as dealing with parental issues, on top of their issues with society, can only be stressful and unpleasant. With the time period that this book was set in, just added to the issues that Birdie and her family went through. Thankfully over the years things have changed and improved when refering to race. While there have been improvements, it is obvious that there is still a long way to go. Therefore I feel a child like Birdie in today's society would have an easier time due to the fact that some of the issues she dealt with are not as prevalent in the present time.

-Mary

Women in Movies

On entertainment tonight last night they were talking about women and men in movies, and it reminded me of the discussion we had about certain privileges that men and women have. In this case, its the men that have the privilege, because the statistic they gave said that on average men in movies have 2/3 of the speaking roles. They went on to say that in movies 30% of women are shown partly naked, as opposed to 10% of men. Also that 40% of women are made to wear sexy clothing, as opposed to 7% of men. These statistics shows how the media tends to portray women, and it's not necessarily in the most positive light. I guess its just interesting to me to see concrete statistics as to how unbalanced the roles of men and women are in the media. This could apply to anything else we've discussed in class as well, like how the media portrays certain minorities. In the media is often where these stereotypes are formed, circulated, and amplified. It makes you wonder what kind of message kids get out of watching TV or movies or any other form of media. You never really think about this stuff because its not super obvious all the time, but more than likely it is always there.

Brigit, post 22

Noticed this in the Princess and the Frog

When you see a typical Disney movie with a Princess you see castles and old european style families. Now why is it that in the Princess and the Frog thats not seen. Why is it that she is African American and in a Southern Bayou? Is that not a little racist or at least very strange. Why did they put all the other princesses in an old english setting but put the African American one in a Southern Bayou? The movie was depicting what many people have a stereotype of the South as related to them living near the swamps and things of that nature. Is that what Disney thinks of where an African American princess would come from or what? Any thoughts on this old english setting for the white princesses and a Southern Bayou for the African American one.

Parents of Biracial Kids Response

I 100% agree with this post because it has to be so hard to identify with their kids. Biracial parents have it as hard as the biracial child because they have to try to identify with them. Biracial children have to learn how to identify with their parents being different as well because they can't identify themselves with either race. So growing up with this identity problem can cause troubles for the adults and children, and it must be much harder for them growing up as a family than a family of one race.

Racist e-mail

A few days ago a member of the Flordia state government began to get some harsh criticisim due to an e-mail she had forwarded to some of her consituants. The e-mail included a picture of President Obama with ape ears and in front of two apes who were dressed in human clothing. Underneath the picture was the caption "Now you know why no birth certificate". Since the e-mail was leaked and made public there has been a loud outcry both from the people and members of her own party to ask her to step down from her post. Yet she refuses to and does not see exactly what she has done wrong. She claims that the e-mail was just sent out as a joke and that there should not be this much controversy about it. She then goes on to defend her posistion by pointing out that when you google President Bush, monkey you get thousands of results of cartoons of him depicted with large ears. She seems to have missed the historical context of her image though. While depicting a white man with large ears and some what ape like is making fun of his charecter or physical charecteristics doing the same to a man of African American decent causes many new problems. First off the image is not just him having monkey ears, it is set up as if it is a family portraite, implying that President Obama is directly descendant from Apes. For hundreds of years people in America and other countries have used the idea that African people are directly descendant from apes as a racist reason to justify both slavery and foreign domination of the country.

Prussian Blue

I just read an article on two young girls that formed their own band named "Prussian Blue".  All their lyrics are based on white supremacist ideals and hate against other races.  They have  one album out, another on the way, a music video and tons of fans. The girls have been preforming in front of all white crowds since they were nine, spreading their message of extreme racism. "We want to stay white...we don't just want to be, you know, a big muddle.  We just want to preserve our race."  This coming from a young girl completely surprised me.  There is no way that these ideals stemmed from the girls themselves.  Their parents, who are both white supremacists, must have impressed their thoughts on the girls from a very young age.  Even furthering their isolation from the reality of the world where not every is white is the fact that they are home-schooled by their mother who gives her own perspectives on everything, including historical events.  By not sending the girls to a public school, their parents aren't even allowing the girls to have a chance at beginning to formulate their own ideas of race. Erich Gielbe, founder of one of the nations most notorious hate music labels said, ""Eleven and 12 years old, I think that's the perfect age to start grooming kids and instill in them a strong racial identity." I find this completely insane! How can people think this way, imposing their own beliefs on young people instead of allowing them the chance to come up with what they feel and think on their own!

Re: Parents of Biracial kids

I have seen this happen first hand in my family and it was done the wrong way. Unfortunately I was young while most of it was going on and I don't really know the entire situation. My nephew is half black. We never treated him any differently growing up. He was just Noah. People would look at family pictures and say "Who is that?" My reply would always be the same, that's my nephew Noah. I didn't feel that any further explanation was needed on the situation.

What I just recently found out was that my sister never told my nephew the whole story about his real father and how he came to be. This is something that my nephew has struggled with his entire life and has battled with some strong demons. To make a long story short, I wouldn't say there is a happy ending but things have come out in the open and issues are being worked on.

I guess i'm rambling on again but at least Birdie knew where she came from and knew how to identify with who she was instead of always wondering. I still don't like the labels as being "white privileged" or anything like that and I haven't figured out why.

Jennifer Graham

Might be a bit off topic

For my final paper i've been doing some research on Gender roles and how it affects children as they grow and what not. I was watching the Daily Show the other night and had to come and post what Jon Steward summed up pretty well! There is a huge controversy going on about a J. Crew picture from their most recent email catalog flyer where the president of the company painted her son's toes pink.

Toemageddon

Jennifer Graham

Parents of biracial kids

While reading the novel i have noticed the struggles of both parents regarding how they identify with their kids because of their mixed ethnicity. it is most obviously very difficult for Deck, he claims to not see Birdie as lighter skin but then treats her like she is not truly her daughter. I feel that it would be very difficult for parents of biracial kids. They cannot identify racially with their children and that must be hard. The kids may receive some form of white privilege that they may never have experienced. The parents could also be approached like Deck is at the park and questioned about his children. I think that it would be very difficult to deal with these and other issues. Also, parents of biracial children would not have gone through the same struggles that their children will as far as racial identification and a feeling of not belonging. That must be difficult for them

The Princess and the Frog

There has been a lot of talk of The Princess and the Frog on the blog.  I feel that Disney's intentions were in the right seeing that there isn't an African American princess until Tiana, but they could have been much more mindful when thinking about how the portrayals of African Americans are viewed in today's society. First off, Tiana's hair is not even the natural texture of what an African American woman's hair is, rather it is permed.  As one woman said, "Having her wear a perm is like telling us our natural hair isn't beautiful." There has also been quite a bit of uproar over the firefly.  Some say the way he talks is like Uncle Remus.  People are upset because it makes him sound unintelligent, and people don't talk like how he does anymore.  Not only does he speak like an uneducated person, but he is also lazy.  African Americans speak out to this stereotypical ideal that Disney is sending out to kids of all races. It was time for a black princess, but does this put all the other stereotyped movies aside that Disney put out like Jungle Book? Another thought that has run through the minds of many is the fact that Disney consulted Oprah for her input to make sure that the movie wasn't racist. I find this completely bogus.  Not every African American person in the United States is a billionaire with their own t.v. show. If Disney really wanted to ask what people thought, they should have gone to the people that matter. People that live the everyday life of an American, not a glamorized one.

On Race Experiments

In response to what Frank said about the 'What Would You Do' experiment, I would have to agree. I wanted to expand on the point that he made that it would be hard to address racism if you have never been exposed to it. I know that at least in my experience, race has never played too much of a role. For most of my childhood 'racism' was a term that I learned from my history textbook, but not real life. It has remained something that I know has always been present in society (and still is today), but was never something to be majorly concerned with. As I am learning more, I am realizing how there are so many examples of racism in recent history, as well as present day life. I do believe, that even though I have never been exposed to real racism, I would still do the honorable thing and try to stop the racist action. However, I certainly think that, who have only learned about racism as a thing of the past, would not know how to react if in a bad situation. It is kind of the blind belief that that kind of stuff does not happen anymore that would make people apprehensive to react. I think that are just not prepared to admit that society is capable of such hatefulness. I do not think that those people who don't react are necessarily bad people always -- rather they are good people living in a false reality and unprepared to act.. Denial.

Meredith Cotter #22

Islam Misconceptions

For another class, I am working on a project which addresses media-supported stereotypes of Arab Americans and Muslims, and the resulting xenophobic fear of 'otherness' as a result. Through my research on this project, my group and I have discovered some very interesting facts. One which really surprised me was the meaning of the word 'Jihad.' Through history classes that I have taken that have addressed the Islamic Faith, I have learned that the word 'Jihad' meant war or holy war. In reality, it means, struggle. And the Koran reflects that usage. I have grown up thinking that Jihad was a word that could be substituted with terrorism, but it is not to a huge majority of non - extremist Muslims. It was also interesting to find how 'Allah' is used is offensive to most Muslims. They way 'Allah' is used in the media, gives off the feeling that it is THEIR god. Actually, is a general term for God. The way the term 'Allah' is used makes it seem as though it separate from everything, and the god of only Muslims. They do not believe that. It makes it seem foreign and distant. Think of how it is common to say 'Oh my God!' when we are surprised.

I found these misconceptions to be very interesting, because they are so normal in our everyday life. They are even taught in classrooms! This project has been teaching me more and more how ill-informed we, as Americans, are and how that is facilitated through the media.

Meredith Cotter, Post #21

Artificial Lines

I just read an article that talked about interracial marriages, and how the number has risen dramatically in the past 40 years. It shocked me how much things have changed in this short amount of time. It said that in 1967 the supreme court "knocked down a Virginia statute barring whites from marrying nonwhites" which resulted in similar bans being knocked down in 15 other states. I was a little surprised because I didn't even know that there was a bill that ban interracial marriages at that time.
The article went on to say that African American-White marriages have increased from 65,000 in 1970 to 422,000 in 2005. Further more, if you factor in all racial combinations, more than 7% of married couples in the U.S. are interracial (as of 2005) which compares to less than 2% in 1970. These numbers surprised me, and I think it's a positive thing that the numbers have risen so much in just 40 years. One person in the article said, "The racial divide in the U.S. is a fundamental divided...but when you have the 'other' in your own family, it's hard to think of them as 'other' anymore. We see a blurring of the old lines, and that has to be a good thing, because the lines were artificial in the first place." I think this goes to show that the racial lines in the United States are not as rigid as they once were. These numbers show that people are becoming more and more accepting, which is a positive thing, however I do also realize that we have a long way to go in the United States.

Brigit May, Post 21

Disney Princesses

As I was thinking about this discussion regarding Disney and racism, I was trying to recall all of the Disney princesses. They recently came out with the new movie "Princess and the Frog" where the main character was a black princess named Tiana. I remember thinking when this movie came out that there were no other princesses who weren't white (except maybe Jasmine or Pocahontas) and I couldn't believe that it had taken Disney this long to come out with a movie featuring an African American princess. It seems that Disney has gone from these stereotypical movies (Peter Pan, Song of the South etc.) to showing racially diverse main characters. I would love to see Disney make more culturally diverse movies because I think just one movie with an African American main character is not enough. I know many kids that loved Princess and the Frog even though they were white, and I think more movies with diversity would benefit Disney in the future.

Laura Kalinowski Post #23

Light at the end of the tunnel?

While reading the New York Times article on interracial marriages, I was pleasantly surprised at the census data presented. It showed an increase in interracial marriages and children living in Mississippi, which isn't something you normally think about in the South. It's good to see growth with this kind of group in the population. As we discussed in class, there are many people who are mixed races, but are forced to fit themselves to one specific group. I thought that the article Staci shared was very interesting because it also showed an increase in the recognition of people with more than one race. It said that there are still race problems in the south regarding mixed couples, but this article really showed an improvement of race relations based on the increase of people designating themselves as a mixed race.

Laura Kalinowski Post #22

Race and Interace

When people say that they are accepting of other races it does not necessarily mean that they are ok with interracial relationships or children. There is still a big stigma about dating some one from a different race. My grandfather for instance= he has some friends and people he goes to church with that are black and yet he was very uncomfortable with my mom being with a black man. Never has he talked about my race or how i am different than him racially. When Obama ran for President he talked about how he was "black" i corrected him and said "actually he is biracial...kinda like me." He just starred at me for a minute and talked about another topic. I think that acceptance of other races is one level of anti racism while the next level would be accepting interracial relationships and children. i dont feel like the nation will be there for some time.

Interracial

The issues of interracial marriages have always been a problem in our culture and still to this day many people still are as judge-mental as the man on the air plane with Birdie. Even in other countries its frowned upon to marry a person of an opposite race. It is something that has come a long way but still far from everybody being okay with it. It is sad that people view this through color because the ones that are together, married or dating inter-racially are stronger people for seeing past the color barrier and loving a person for who they are not what they look like.

Ferguson

Passing

While reading Caucasia, I remembered a novel I read a few semesters ago, Passing by Nella Larson. The novel was based in the 1920s and explained, amongst many other things, the search for identity for biracial people. In Larson's book, those who "passed" and identified themselves as white were often looked down upon by their African American friends. But, those who didn't pass, were often discriminated by whites. It was a lose-lose situation. Moreover, the females in the book had trouble idenitfying where they fit in socially. The main charatcer reunited with a friend who "passed". While she was with this friend she felt obligated to "pass" as well. While the main character was with her African American friends, she was proudly black. I thought it was very interesting that the woman who did "pass" was a bit shameful of this at times. I know times have changed entirely from the 1920s but we can see traces of this today where society pressures individuals to identify as white or black.

Interracial Marriage response

I really enjoyed the NY Times article on interracial marriage. It is hopeful to see that it is becoming more widely accepted. It does, however, baffle me how some are so opposed to the idea. I came across this article: http://www.aolnews.com/2011/04/08/46-percent-of-mississippi-republicans-want-interracial-marriage/
This article states that a poll conducted recently unveils a shocking statistic: 46% of Mississppi Republican voters want interracial marriage banned. This is just completely unreal. I do not understand why anyone thinks they have a say in who can marry whom. We have a biracial president, and the census shows that interracial marriage is increasing; therefore, I assumed our nation was headed in the right direction...I guess I was wrong..

“The Disappointed Pakistani Man”

In Chapter 18 of the Caucasia novel “Wonders of the Invisible World,” Birdie is on a plane, and a Pakistani man keeps staring at her. He tries to speak to her in his language, and she has to tell him she does not comprehend him. When she admits her mom is white and her dad is black, he is disappointed. Why do you guys think the man reacted this way?

- Josh Steffen

"Brown and Pink"

In the Caucasia novel, Chapter 14 is titled “The Brown and Pink.” It is interesting to think about this reference to skin color, since it shies away from the usual black and white. There is also foreshadowing in the colors of brown and pink in the chapter’s title which is Birdie heading for Boston, where she goes into a Dunkin' Donuts that has these colors in their logo once she arrives.

- Josh Steffen

Disney Racism

Throughout my childhood, like most everyone, Disney was a familiar treat. It is amazing to me at how much those filmmakers were able to put in those movies. I was watching Peter Pan not too long ago and was appalled at how the Native American tribe was portrayed. They showed the peace pipe, stereotypical clothing and even a stereotypical greeting of "How". Kids are so susceptible to these images and its shocking at how subtle these issues were portrayed. I would hope that movies and television would stop these stereotypes, but it seems to be the same as it was years ago.

Staci Becker Post #23

Misconceptions about Interracial Marriage

When thinking about Interracial Marriage, it is easy to say that it is still not accepted, and that may be true. While it is not completely accepted, it is getting better. When looking up articles on this issue, I came across a New York Times piece in which the growing amount of mixed-race children in the deep South were examined. The article found that in the South, the number of interracial marriages, and their resultant children were steadily increasing, and that racial attitudes were changing as well. Many in the article commented that there was not as much hostility these days, and that people no longer had to hide relationships. While reading this article, I felt happy that attitudes were becoming more positive and less hostile, but at the same time, I was quite sad that these attitudes were there in the first place. The link to the article is below, and I hope that you read it because it is very interesting to read.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/us/20race.html?_r=1&ref=raceremixed

Staci Becker Post #22

What's it like?

With this topic of being biracial, and the book we are reading that deals with a biracial family I decided to look at videos of people that dealt with this subject. I tried finding the episode of MTV's true life that had couples who were biracial and it showed the difficulties of being an interracial couple but it was not on youtube. I then found this video that talks about two families that have parents from two different races. They each talk about certain difficulties or hopes and ideas they have for their family in the future. It was something interesting to watch and get a personal opinion from. Being a white female I experience certain things that others do not, while at the same time they experience things that I don't. That's why it is important for people to speak up and share their feelings and experiences so that others can get a perspective or for others to know they aren't alone. Here's the link to the video...

http://http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa3Ospkeyng&playnext=1&list=PLEBC8CBC05059B2DD

-Mary

Caucasia Discussion Questions

Please answer a minimum of SIX of the following questions on Danzy Senna's novel Caucasia. Use specific examples from the novel to support your answers. For the sake of clarity please post your responses as a comment to this post. Your responses will be due by this Sunday (April 24th) at midnight. Please let me know if you have any questions.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Caucasia begins with Birdie's recollection: "A long time ago I disappeared. One day I was here, the next I was gone." Why does Birdie come to think of herself as having "disappeared" when living as Jesse Goldman? Is her ability to disappear a blessing or a curse? Is Birdie "passing" when she calls herself black, or when she calls herself white? When is she not passing?

2. Cole and Birdie speak Elemeno, a language named after their favorite letters in the alphabet, "with no verb tenses, no pronouns, just words floating outside time and space, without owner or direction" (p. 6). How does Elemeno reflect the sisters' positions in their family and in the world? Why does Elemeno continue to be so important to Birdie throughout the novel?

3. In what ways is the tension between Sandy and Cole typical of that between any mother and daughter, and in what ways is it specific to an interracial family? Do you agree with Cole's statement: "Mum doesn't know anything about raising a black child" (p. 44)? Does Sandy treat her two daughters differently based on their appearances?

4. Why do you think Deck treats Birdie with a "cheerful disinterest-never hostility or ill will, but with a kind of impatient amusement" (p. 47)? Do you think he loves Birdie? How do Birdie and Cole respond differently to Deck's teachings on race? Who internalizes his vision of America more? By the end of the novel, have Cole and Birdie embraced or rejected their parents' philosophies about the world? Which sister seems to have become more like Deck, and which more like Sandy?

5. Officially, Birdie has no name. Her birth certificate "still reads 'Baby Lee,' like the gravestone of some stillborn child" (p. 17). Her sister's name, meanwhile, was originally Colette after the French novelist, but was later shortened to Cole. Discuss the significance of the sisters' names.

6. Sandy and Deck are initially drawn together by a quote by the French existentialist writer, Camus, who wrote: "Do you drink coffee at night?" What does this initial encounter tell you about their compatibility, or incompatibility? Why does their relationship eventually sour? Do you believe they were torn apart because of external pressures, or internal ones? Do you think they would have stayed together had they lived in a less racially divided city or in another country altogether? By the end of the novel, does Birdie believe that her parents really loved each other? Do you believe that they did?

7. Birdie refers to the time she spends on the run with Sandy, while "the lie of our false identities seemed irrelevant" (p. 116), as "dreamlike." Despite a sense of loneliness, Birdie says she felt "comfort in that state of incompletion" (p. 116). Do you feel that this experience weighed more positively or negatively in Birdie's development? By the end of the novel, has she found "completion"-or will she continue to live in this state of incompletion?

8. How did Sandy and Birdie's stay at Aurora affect Birdie's emerging sexual identity? How do her sexual experiences with Alexis compare to her later sexual experiences with Nicholas in New Hampshire? Does Birdie's emerging sexuality in any way parallel her search for racial identity?

9. Redbone lurks in the background of the novel as a sinister figure. Why does he initially take such an interest in Birdie? Why does he take her photograph in the playground? Do you believe he is in part responsible for the troubles that befall the family? Ultimately, who or what do you feel is to blame for Cole and Birdie's separation?

10. Birdie often seeks her reflection in other women's faces. What parts of herself does she see mirrored in Cole? Sandy? Maria? Samantha? Dot? Penelope? Mona? Others? What are the potential advantages and disadvantages to being a chameleon?

11. Birdie holds on to a fantasy of helping Deck's research by spying on white people while "passing." How does she fail or succeed in her study? What does she find out? Does she become Jesse Goldman, or is she able to remain Birdie in disguise? Are her fantasies about Deck shattered or fulfilled when she encounters him at the novel's conclusion?

12. At some point in New Hampshire, Birdie starts to add items to her box of "negrobilia." Discuss the significance of the various "artifacts" Birdie keeps in her box. Do they succeed in helping her remember Cole and Deck?

13. In the woods one night in New Hampshire, Samantha says to Birdie: " 'I'm black. Like you' " (p. 242). Do you think Samantha has been aware of Birdie's racial heritage all along, or is Birdie mishearing her? What or who gives Birdie the courage to finally leave New Hampshire?

14. Birdie sees her mother as "a long-lost daughter of Mayflower histories, forever in motion, running from or toward an utterable hideaway" (p. 286). In your opinion, is Sandy more "a hero, a madwoman, or a fool" (p. 332)? What motivated her to take up a life of political activism? What has she sacrificed in the process?

15. Do you agree with Deck that race is "a complete illusion... a costume" (p. 334)? Does Birdie and Cole's experience prove that racial identity is simply a costume, or something deeper?

16. In the novel's conclusion, Birdie says to her sister: " 'They say you don't have to choose. But... there are consequences if you don't.'" Cole replies: " 'Yeah, and there are consequences if you do.'" What are the consequences of choosing and not choosing? Have Birdie and Cole chosen one part of their racial heritage over the other by the novel's conclusion?

17. Birdie writes, "While there seemed to be remnants of my mother's family everywhere-history books, PBS specials, plaques in Harvard Square-my father's family was a mystery. It was as if my father and Dot had arisen out of thin air." Does her mother's white family's written history shape her identity more than her black imagined one? How does knowing or not knowing one's history contribute to one's sense of identity? Does what we learn about ourselves through oral or written histories give us a different understanding of ourselves?

18. Do you agree with Deck's theory about mulattos in America functioning as canaries in the coal mine? Is Birdie a canary in the coal mine? What do you imagine her fate will be?

Disney Response Frank DiMaria Post #23

In response to Sam’s post, yeah I agree there really is some subtle racism engrained within Disney. I actually can’t stand to think about Disney as a corporation. Past racism, economically and politically, Disney, the happiest place on earth is quite corrupt But, let us consider how much different the times were when a lot of this stuff was coming out, and though not justified, people really didn’t consider the racial application Disney implied. It seems this racism is engrained in pretty much everything within the American society and not just Disney, but its interesting to see a cultural icon broken down and exposed.

Race Experiments Frank DiMaria Post #22

The post on the What Would You do experiments was very hard to get through. I was so saddened, even though it was an experiment, to see the people go through being subjected to such racism and not be helped. It was very interesting though that the majority of people who helped were of color. I wonder if there is a correlation from past experiences to how people react. I don’t blame most people for not helping, as many people have never been so closely exposed to racism. If someone never saw racism that explicitly close up it would be a hard thing to address. What’s even sadder to me though is that this really does happen. I am glad that I watched the video though. It really did make me think about how real this problem is and what I can do if I am ever in the situation to help someone.

Walt Racist

http://www.cracked.com/article_15677_the-9-most-racist-disney-characters.html

The above link gives a look into the underlying racism present in Disney productions. Sadly, most of the videos have been removed but they can probably be found on YouTube. It's pretty wild how blatant some of them are. While I obviously had no idea of this racism when I was a child, I think it probably does give kids the impression that white was the "normal" race, as the characters who were portraying other races acted so differently and distinctly. The last one was just appaling. How people possibly thought it would be okay to publish something like that is beyond me.

"Poor little guy! He just makes mistakes. He doesn't know any better. I'll just have to be patient and teach him the right way to do things," said Mickey.

Oh, Africans know nothing right? We must teach them our enlightened ways!

Two-way Immersion

Recently in my multi-cultural education class, we watched a movie about two-way immersion schools. I was completely unaware of these bilingual programs until seeing the video. Two-way immersion schools are a form of education where students are taught literacy and content in two languages. The school is made up of both students that speak English as a first language and those who do not. The program starts the children out at a young age being fully immersed in two different languages. The most common two-way immersion programs in the United States are English and Spanish schools, but there are a variety of others as well. It was amazing to watch how well the young students spoke two languages. The program seemed to prove itself very successful. The schools are public schools that students can attend depending on a lottery based system. I believe there are two schools in Buffalo and one in Rochester. With these schools being so close I am surprised that there is not more recognition of them locally. These programs seemed to be fool proof in creating bilingualism in students, but then again the video I saw was promoting them so I doubt they would include much negativity. Regardless of it being promotional, the programs seemed to be excellent. I don't understand why we are not making more of an effort to create more of these two way immersion schools to provide a larger amount of students with the opportunity to be bilingual. I know that if I were a parent I would do everything I can to get my children into one of these schools. I think these schools are an amazing advance towards bilingualism in the United States, but there still needs to be a lot more done.
-Ryan Fleming blog post#21

Too extreme for the Klan...

Last week, The KKK made a stance against the Westboro Baptist Church. Unbelievable if you ask me. Does America not see an inherant problems in this? If the Ku Klux Klan is abhorring your activity, I think you're doing something wrong. For those who don't know, the Westboro Baptist Church and its advocates have been picketing outside military funerals, weilding signs like "Fags Doom Nations", "Thank God for 9/11" and "Thank God for Dead Soldiers". There was recently a Supreme Court decision that ruled 8-1 in favor of the Church, based on Freedom of Speech. Where is the line?! It's a very peculiar subject. I'd like to praise America for upholding this amendment, as it's one of the tenants that make our nation great, but man is it hard to be okay with these people continuing this henius activity.

Samuel Roux (Post 1 for last week, was tech-free)

Raising a Bi Racial child, Sara Ceraso

I was reading in an article somewhere that a Caucasian parent of a biracial child can't relate to their child due to the fact that they are white and the "white privilege" that goes along with it. I thought it was interesting to think about. Parent and child in this instance are separated by white privilege. Then the argument was brought up that whites were discriminated against too by people of other groups. It was an interesting topic and I was wondering how everyone else felt about it.

Interesting Link, Sara Ceraso

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/affirmativetimeline1.html

Environmental Racism Group

As I was working on my final project, I came across this site: http://www.ehumanrights.org/index.html. The site was created by a group of advocates who fight for environmental justice. If anyone is looking for some interesting articles on current issues of institutional racism, check this site out. It has a ton of articles. The first linked article is about the U.N. stepping in to check out the United State's condition of good drinking water and sanitation for all citizens. During the UN's visit it is said they were going to focus on the conditions for peoples of low income and minorities. The following is the UN representative's findings: From my observations, the U.S. has achieved significant gains in eliminating formal or direct discrimination in law. Nevertheless, I am concerned that several laws, policies and practices, while appearing neutral at face value, have a disproportionate impact on the enjoyment of human rights by certain groups. For example, a study by Massachusetts Global Action examined the racial impact of water pricing and shut-off policies of the Boston Water and Sewer Commission and found that for every 1 per cent increase in the city ward’s percentage of people of colour, the number of threatened cut offs increases by 4 per cent. I was happy to learn that the Boston Water and Sewer Commission has a “right of service” policy, aimed to assist low-income households to maintain water and sanitation services even during financial difficulties. Moreover, Massachusetts has enacted a law that prohibits water shut-offs during the winter and in certain circumstances, such as a household with an infant under 12 months.

I met Catherine from Alabama, who described a situation of an African-American woman, with a disabled child, who was threatened with arrest for not maintaining her septic systems according to relevant standards. The cost to replace the septic system was higher than her annual income of $12,000, and she did not have any possibilities to access funding. Furthermore, poor, disadvantaged, minority and indigenous communities are often unable to access federal, state and local funding sources due to technical, managerial and financial capacity requirements, among others. This is the case for communities from the rural South to the San Joaquin Valley to the Appalachian region.

The U.S. has made important strides in eliminating many forms of discrimination. It must, however, do more to ensure that not only de jure but also de facto discrimination is eliminated regarding access to water and sanitation.

To sum it up, the United States has come a long way. But de facto discrimination like institutional discrimination remains. I am really excited to look into this more for my final project.