White? Black? Christian? Jewish? Muslim? Female? Male? What's your label?

In English class, we are continuing to read Reading Lolita in Tehran, a story about Azar Nafisi (also the author) and other Muslim women living in Tehran during and post the Iranian revolution. The book explores many different themes including women's rights, women's roles in society, education, intellect, writing and literature, all from the views of native Iranians. The book is not only an excellent piece of literature, but also an insight into the true lives of Iranian women and works to defy stereotypes.


However, one other issue that has arisen during our class discussions is how one labels themself. Identity is an issue that all of these women grapple with as rights are being stripped from them everyday and they are working to retain who they really are. Labels, and the language used with them, are major factors in who we are and how we claim our identity. Below is a video from the recent 2010 census regarding ethnic labels and how one identifies themself on the census:





These women in Reading Lolita in Tehran have a multitude of different ways in which they can label and identify themselves. "Female" is an obvious, first label, but where do they go from there? Are they Persian? Are they Muslim? Are they Arabic? Are they Iranian? You get the point. Any way you look at it, any of us could fall under multiple labels or identities. Is their nationality their most important label? If your nationality is your most important label, does that mean you don't qualify under the other identities as well? I think not. I think it is possible for all of your labels to be equally important. However, I think society and the world makes it hard for you to not be casted into an "other" category if you don't fit some of society's most defined labels. Below is a video from a very old song that talks about the special significance of the label of nationality for someone:



What happens if you don't fit the "normal" labels? In class today, we brainstormed a list of "normal" American labels and came up with:

• middle class
• ambitious
• white
• Christian, protestant
• heterosexual
• English-speaking
• male
• businessman

We discussed what happens if you don't fit those labels and talked about the idea of the "other" group, the group of people who might be immigrants or poets or gay. Labels, and the idea of labeling oneself based on who they are, may be beneficial in some cases such as censuses, but can be detrimental to people if these "other" labels affect their identity and how they see themselves as people.

Muslims in America

Currently in my English class, we are reading Reading Lolita in Tehran (RLiT) by Azar Nafisi. RLiT is about a group of Muslim women in Tehran who meet at their female professor's house every Thursday morning to discuss different works of literature and their lives as women living under the Ayatollah. Besides being a spectacular work of literature, RLiT has proven to be a book that challenges stereotypes of Muslim women and forces readers to dive deeper into knowledge of Muslims and the Muslim community. RLiT provides readers with the opportunity to learn about Muslim culture and Muslim women while within a fictional context.


It should be obvious by now, but America has a large Muslim class which is continuing to grow. However, after September 11, 2001, American-Muslim discrimination also started to increase. Although Muslims represent only a small part of Americans (between 6 and 8 million according to The Washington Report), they are a class of people that deserved to be respected just like all other classes, such as Christians and Jews. Hostilities are growing, leading to tensions between the different cultural classes in America. Below are some examples of Muslim discrimination that have been demonstrated in the United States since September 11, 2001:




These photos show much recent anger and hostility towards Islam and Muslims because of the proposed Ground Zero mosque. Whether or not people believe the location of the mosque was acceptable or not, the above photos show ignorance and a lack of compassion and understanding towards Muslims and Islam. Muslims are becoming an increasingly prominent class in our society and this hostility and discrimination could have devastating effects on the class of people as well as our society as a whole. There are Muslims who are more dedicated to America and American pride than some white, stereotypical Americans, yet some of these Muslims face extreme discrimination despite their dedication and service to the country. What are these Muslim-Americans supposed to do? They live in America yet they have different beliefs than mainstream America. How is the class of people supposed to thrive when they face discrimination every day? Below is a picture I believe represents the cross of cultures Muslim-Americans face everyday:
Muslims represent an influential class in America just like other classes such as African Americans, Christians and Jews. However, it seems currently that this class is enduring the most conflict regarding their culture and lifestyle, especially after September 11, 2001 and the possibility of the mosque at Ground Zero. However, this discrimination against Muslims is not only occuring in America. Recently, in France, the burqa was banned due to claims that the burqa "contradicted the laws of the nation" (you can read about the conflict at this very well written CNN article). Class conflict does not need to only occur between economic classes, but racial classes as well. After reading RLiT, I have learned that class conflict can cross racial and ethnic boundaries to create a more complicated, intertwined class conflict than ever before.

Class in the Media

The Upper East Side. 90210, Beverly Hills. The Northshore. All these locations have connotations that accompany them, mostly some of affluence. Another similarity? Each of these places has been spotlighted through the media due to their wealth. The Upper East Side is currently being featured through Gossip Girl. The zip code 90210 actually has its own show, "90210." And the Northshore of Chicago? The Northshore and all its money was featured through the hit movie, Mean Girls. All three of these places have been famed due to their money, society and culture. With these types of shows and movies, is it all too easy to believe that these societies are the norm? I believe these shows and movies promote even stronger class divisions because they highlight the differences between the rich and the "poor" in very publicized ways.

Gossip Girl is a television show on the CW channel every Monday night from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. based on the Upper East Side of New York City and the lives of young adults there. This show is by no means a "reality" TV show, but the ways in which it portrays the Upper East Side certainly convinces viewers that this is truly the life of Upper East Siders, as they call themselves. Below is a video clip of one of Gossip Girl's most featured, annual parties, the Masquerade Ball, to illustrate the type of culture Gossip Girl features.



It is an interesting time to watch Gossip Girl, a show centered around lavish parties and designer clothing, with the current unemployment rate around 9.6% according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics and the United States bouncing back after the recession. Gossip Girl first aired on September 19, 2007, just three months before the recession in the United States officially began. While Gossip Girl showed eighteen year old teenagers paying thousands of dollars for a gown to wear to the upcoming ball, the news channels showed rapidly growing lines of people outside homeless shelters and houses being taken over by the banks.

With shows such as these, class divisions are clearly evident and supported. The general public is watching these shows from their homes which they are struggling to pay the mortgage every month, and the CW is telling them that if only they were luckier, they could live the life of an upper east-sider. The rich are strapping on their dancing shoes, the middle-class are trying to pull themselves up by their boot straps. In a country in which the government is attempting to bail anyone and everyone out and encouraging people to ban together to raise people back to pre-recession status, shows such as Gossip Girl can only foster increased tensions between the rich and the poor. An example I believe that really illustrates the tensions between the wealthy and the poor is portrayed well through the movie, Marie Antoinette. In this movie about the French government during the French Revolution, it discusses much about Marie's ignorance to the incredibly large divisions between the rich and the poor and her inability to see how the luxuries she possessed and utilized were increasing tensions. Below is a clip about the movie that summarizes the issues.





As you can see through the clip, the wealthy were feasting while the poor were starving. This is a concept illustrated very similarily through Gossip Girl and 90210. Class conflicts and divisions are evident in our society, but do we see the ways in which they are encouraged? Media, such as movies and TV shows, often does a better job of portraying these issues better than we give them credit for, if we were only to take the time to analyze the show rather than just use it as an hour of relaxation. Readers: what other examples exist like these in the movie and television industries?

That's So "Gay"

Lately, throughout our school, media and community, it seems as though the word "gay" has been a frequent topic of discussion. The term "gay" is popping up everywhere, from the news with the recent teen suicides due to teen anti-gay bullying (learn about Tyler Clementi's tragic suicide here) to the popular TV show Glee. No matter what your views are on gay rights or gay marriage, it is important to recognize the increasing importance of the term and the implications of labeling.

In basic and well know terms, the term "gay" is used to describe people who are homosexual. However, the term has taken on some negative meanings in our culture today, creating some deep societal divisions. It is not uncommon to hear students say to one another in the hallways, "That's so gay" in regards to the fact that a teacher gave a pop quiz, or perhaps too much homework. "Gay" has now taken on negative meanings such as dumb or stupid. By giving this word new, negative connotations, we are hurting an entire class of people within our society. I don't think society is trying to call those people dumb or stupid, but by using this word so casually and in wrong, negative terms, we are, in the end, just drawing deeper divisions between the gay and straight classes of people in our society and country.

Labels such as gay or straight are effective in classifying one's sexual orientation, that is true. However, why else must they be prominent in our society? Society seems to be obsessed with whether someone is gay or straight, and which class (gay or straight) that one guy in your psychology class falls under. "Gay" doesn't need to be a term that draws deep divisions in society or create tense class separations.

The term "gay" can most definitely be used appropriately and respectfully to classify someone. (Read more about terminology like the word "gay" and its usages at Kyle's Blog )However, it is when the word "gay" creates class divisions and conflict that the word becomes problematic. Gay or straight, all people deserve the same respect and someone's class should not change that. There are already enough social divisions as it is, with conflict between rich vs. poor, black vs. white, male vs. female, that our society does not need gay vs. straight to draw even deeper lines within classes in society.

Below is a clip from the popular TV show "Glee" which I believe is a step in the right direction for gay acceptance in society. In this clip, Kurt confronts a fellow classmate about his ignorance and fear of homosexuality. Kurt is taking a step towards eliminating fear and the conflict that the classmate creates when he participates in anti-gay bullying. Next time you're about to say "gay" when talking about something other than sexual orientation or about to mutter "That's so gay!" under your breath when a teacher announces fifty pages of reading for homework, stop and think about what you really mean, and what the implications of your words mean on specific people and our culture.

-Emily

Carl Wilkens: A True Humanitarian

A week ago, the Academy had a presentation by Carl Wilkens, the only American to remain in Rwanda during the 1994-1995 genocide between the Hutus and the Tutsis. Wilkens is a humanitarian and worked throughout the genocide to provide aid to people all over Rwanda during this crisis. This day, the day that I heard Carl Wilkens speak for two and a half hours about his role as a humanitarian during the Rwandan genocide, was the most inspiring day in my academic career, as I saw that one person can truly make a difference and help people in an uncountable number of ways.

Wilkens began just as a missionary in Rwanda, working to build schools and help all Rwandans. When the genocide broke out, Wilkens didn't fit in either of the two classes that were fighting, the Hutus and the Tutsis. Wilkens decided that instead of fleeing the country like all other Americans, he would use his resources and connections to attempt to bring some peace and stability to some Rwandans. Wilkens saw this class conflict and decided he needed to help, he needed to do something and not just stand by.

The genocide that took place in Rwanda is obviously a class conflict that occured very far from home for readers in the United States and western hemisphere. However, it shows that class conflicts don't necessarily need to be a matter of rich vs. poor in the United States. As I mentioned in my previous blog, All Around the World, class conflicts are prevalent in every country and culture, and come in all shapes and sizes. Although this class conflict was far away, Americans could still make a difference, just as Wilkens did. See Wilkens' video below to learn more about his time in Rwanda.




I blogged about the class conflict, Hutus vs. Tutsis, because of the recent presentation in Academy. However, there are many more class conflicts occuring not only domestically as I have blogged about, but also abroad. One major one is the Darfur conflict in Sudan (learn about it here!) This class conflict is also killing many people, with over 5,000 people murdered a month. Although the Rwandan conflict is over, class conflict certainly is not. Americans must work to stop these conflicts from killing thousands, if not millions. As Wilkens suggested, Americans should write to their senators, asking them to move the Darfur genocide up on the agenda. Call the White House. Seriously, how cool is that? You get to call the White House and voice your request for the Darfur genocide to receive more attention. Call 202-456-1111 (the White House comment line!) to make a comment about Obama's agenda and mention the Darfur conflict. This is just one way for Americans to help. We can stop class conflict and the violence that accompanies it. The United States did not pay enough attention to the Rwandan genocide, so the world and Rwandans payed the price. We can change our ways and policies for the conflict in Darfur. I encourage all readers to expand their views and begin to consider class conflict on a larger scale than what is just happening in your city. Sometimes the conflicts abroad can be even more detrimental to our world as a whole. Let's all try to do our part to help solve conflict around the globe and save lives.

If you're interested in learning more about Carl Wilkens, his experiences and his foundation, please see http://worldoutsidemyshoes.org/

All Around the World

In English class, we are rapidly finishing up the novel The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (if you haven't read it, catch a summary here). The Poisonwood Bible begins in 1959, a year that may seem way different to readers today in 2010. Since I was only born in 1993, 1959, a year without computers or cell phones, is almost unimaginable for me. (Catch a flashback to 1959 here) The Price family, the main characters in the novel, are even harder for modern day readers to relate to because they are spending a year in the Congo, a country with cultural and political systems that Americans can barely fathom (get the lowdown on the Congo). However, one thing that does seem relatable between 1959 Congolese and 2010 Americans is the issue of societal division.

As I've discussed in previous blogs, societal divisions are extremely prevalent in American society today (read You Could Be Next In Line at the Soup Kitchen). However, it didn't really stike me that societal divisions are also just as prevalent on a global scale until reading The Poisonwood Bible. A major passage that I thought really illustrated this was towards the end of the novel when Adah, one of the daughters who is now grown up, responds to her nephew's question, "But, Aunt Adah, how can there be so many kinds of things a person doesn't really need?" Adah's response (below) is what really hit home for me the idea that class divisions occur everywhere.

"I can think of no honorable answer. Why must some of us deliberate between brands of toothpaste, while others deliberate between damp dirt and bone dust to quite the fire of an empty stomach linging? There is nothing about the United States I can really explain to this child of another world."

Her nephew, Pascal, has lived in Congo all his little life and has never seen the luxuries of the United States. Now, he is roaming the aisles of large stores, debating between Crest and Colgate toothpaste. Sure, we are told all our lives that we are blessed to live in America. My question is how can we ever fully appreciate that luck until we see the other side? Pascal probably never imagined that while he was struggling to fall asleep with an empty stomach, somebody in America was debating about whether they wanted to serve processed or organic corn.

In the end, what I've realized is class divisions occur not only on a local and national level, but also on an international level. We need to reach out and help not only our local neighbors, but also our neighbors starving overseas or our neighbors who are being evacuated from their homes because of a civil war in their country. The Poisonwood Bible has shown the shock that Americans can feel if exposed to a different culture for a substantial period of time and this puts everything, even drug stores and toothpaste choices, in perspective. As readers may remember, a main aspect of my blog is "so what now?" What can we do now to help create international justice in basic human rights and access to resources? One attempt at international justice that I very much admire is the United Nations Millennium Goals. Although often criticized for not being efficient enough, I believe these goals are a good first stab at decreasing the large gap between our worlds' richest and poorest people and countries. If you have any other organizations or causes that are attempting to level international access to resources, comment and let me know!

-Emily

You Could Be Next In Line at the Soup Kitchen

Opportunities to help people are abundant. If you've got a passion for something, there is an organization you can give to to support your cause. Or, if an organization to support your cause really doesn't exist, you can start your own foundation! Worried about hunger? Donate to the Chicago Food Depository, which can feed millions in the Chicagoland area for cheap. Passionate about cancer? Walk in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer and help raise millions of dollars. My point is, people get involved and contribute to their community in a thousand different ways. However, is this really all out of good will? Do we give freely without wanting anything in return? Whether it be a tax deductible donation or to simply feeling good about ourselves, doing a service project isn't always just about helping people.



In The Poisonwood Bible (read a summary here), the Price family is on a one year mission to the Congo in effort to spread Christianity. However, the help and assistance isn't well received by the Congolese people who do not wish to convert or adopt western ways. Nathan Price, the father and minister, however, insists that the family stays, despite being isolated and rejected from society. Why is it that Nathan wanted to stay? In my opinion, I think that Nathan cares more about not looking like a failure and being able to claim personal success (such as baptizing many Congolese people) than actually changing and helping the lives of the Congolese. Nathan's pride gets in the way of actually accomplishing a worthwhile mission. He believes he is superior to the Congolese due to his skin color and wealth, and hence he and his mission are valuable to the Congolese, even if they don't realize it.



Pride is a major issue not only in The Poisonwood Bible with Nathan and some of the other characters, but often in society and community service as well. My question is, can service further solidify class and class stereotypes? Does a person feel they are superior because they can help others and don't need the help themselves? Often when people do a community service project they say "I got so much out of it." Why is this? Because you feel like you are helping people? When people give to Amvets Clothing do you secretly think to yourself that you are happy to be on the giving side, not on the receiving side? This week, my mom had eye surgery. Ever since, we have been having meals delivered right to our door at 6 p.m. every night. Normally, we are on the side of always cooking meals for those in need. To be honest, it's quite weird receiving all this help with meals and people driving us around because my mom can't drive. This is no way shifts our place in society, such as we don't go down in class because we are receiving help, but I can see that if this continued for an extended period of time, a family might feel they are inferior because they are always receiving help, always the "charity" of another family. The truth is, that could be anyone's family. No one is better just because they are serving the food, not waiting in line for it.



Community service, when done right, can obviously be very beneficial to a society and help improve the general social welfare. However, I believe it is important to be sensitive to the different societal attitudes that service, such as mission trips or feeding the hungary, can promote. Just because you are on the receiving end of aid doesn't make you inferior, just like the Congolese weren't inferior to Nathan just because they were poorer or weren't Baptist, and just because your situation, financial or non-financial, allows you to give instead of receive this year, doesn't make you better. It just makes you human, and often just plain lucky. You could be next. Next year, it could be you on the receiving line of the soup kitchen. Giving and taking is all part of the cycle. Let's just not let it define us and our place in society.

-Emily

Who Are You?

Lately in English class, we've been talking a lot about identity and what helps us create our identity in society. Isn't it amazing that there are billions of people in the world and everyone is different? Everyone has their own personality and viewpoints and out of billions of people, no one is exactly the same as you.

Last night, I had a family dinner, including all my aunts, uncles and cousins. All together, we are pretty large. There are 22 of us in total and everyone has a pretty big mouth. At the end of dinner, the topic of politics came up. Within a minute, an argument had already started. Here we are, 5 of us who are all genetically related (1 grandfather, 3 uncles, and 1 niece), and we have an extreme liberal, 2 liberals, a moderate, and a conservative.

How is this possible? We all have similar genetic codes and have been raised in similar environments! How did we get to have such political views? More importantly, how did we get to have such radically different identities? Part of it is genetics, I'm sure. But what are the other things? Lately, I've been wondering if we create our own identities by placing everything into a story format. This is an idea we have also talked a lot about in class. In our lives, we place someone as the protagonist and the antagonist. We identify something as the conflict and something as the resolution. Are we assigning roles and creating our identities too quickly, without giving other people or circumstances a chance?

I believe some things that create your identity are outside of your control. One of these factors would be class, the main focus of my blog. If all your life you have been labeled as "poor" or "in poverty" that might affect the way you see yourself and your life. You might believe you are at a disadvantage or have access to fewer resources. In the end, this could hurt you because you could deprive yourself of resources just because of the way society has labeled you. Or, the other side of the spectrum, are the people who have always been labeled as "upper class", as therefore believe they have the "right" to certain things. The way you are labeled by society, whether it is "in poverty, middle class, or upper class" affects how you see yourself and your identity. Be wary of the social and class labels society puts on you, they can affect you for the better, or for the worse.

Hello to the Blogging World!

Hey there, Blogging World!

I'm Emily and this is my first entrance on the blogging stage. I don't have all the blogging lingo or terms down yet, but I'm pretty excited to start my own blog. In this tech savy year of 2010, it seems like everyone is blogging about something, so it's time I joined in on the action.

All my life, I've lived in an upper class neighborhood on the north shore of Chicago. Opporutnities are abundant, the education is phenomenal and no one could ask for anything more. But I know life isn't like this all around the world. Heck, I know life isn't like this all around my city! I've done an urban mission trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where I worked in the inner city at a center where kids could hang out during the day during the summer so they wouldn't stay on the streets. I've done another one to Grand Rapids, Michigan where I worked at an overnight camp for low-income kids/families. Finally, this past summer, I studied in Spain for a month, where I was exposed to class levels on the the global scale. Poverty and class aren't just prevalent in the United States. There are people living on the streets in Granada, Spain too. The point is, I've been exposed to a multitude of socieities and class levels.

I'm hoping my range of experiences with class nationally and internationally will help me dive deeper into the subject of class on the national as well as international scale.Through my blogging, I'll be exploring class divisions in our country and world, and how it affects us and our society. There is a multitiude of different ways to take this topic, such as wealth and power or wealth and education. I also have a passion for serving others, so I hope to explore some organizations that are helping to take a stand against injustices due to class levels. Stay tuned!


Class is all around you. The question is, do you notice? Are you even aware? Or are you living in what we call "the bubble", where everything seems great? The goal with my blog is to get outside my bubble and notice the class differences all around me, and the effects. Let's see if I live up to my expectations!

Emily