by Aaron
One of the things we’ve been learning about in the past week is the difference between individualism and collectivism. Dominant western culture can be categorized as individualistic, “meaning that the most common psychosocial unit of operation is the individual, not the group. Individualistic societies believe that the needs of the group are satisfied when the needs of the individual are satisfied” (Marsiglia & Kulis, 2009, p. 178-179). I do not believe that when the needs of an individual are met the needs of society are met. This is evidenced in the lack of basic healthcare, access to equal education, and affordable housing in the United States, to name a few. I think that we can learn from collectivist societies, which “believe that the individual needs are met when the group’s needs are met” (Marsiglia & Kulis, 2009, p. 178-179). I think that this individualistic culture in which we live has led us to being greedy, selfish and caring more about having things than loving people.
Now, I’m not proposing that individuals should not have the freedom to choose who they are, how they want to be in the world, or what they believe or think; I’m proposing that perhaps there is a middle ground where we think less about how something is going to affect “me”, and more about how is something going to affect all of “us” as a country, state, city and community.
Our individualistic culture in America has led to an uneven distribution of wealth. One of the news items I submitted for this class was an article written by Michael Moore about how “400 obscenely rich people, most of whom benefited in some way from the multi-trillion dollar taxpayer ‘bailout’ of 2008, now have as much loot, stock and property as the assets of 155 million Americans combined” (Moore, 2011). Our society of individualism is costing us our collective wellbeing.
What do you think?
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. (2009). Diversity, oppression and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago, IL Lyceum Books, Inc.
Moore, M. (2011, April 27). America is not broke. Retrieved from http://www.truth-out.org/michael-moore-america-is-not-broke68265
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Concepts of Time
By Natalie SWK 280One of the culturally grounded concepts that the Social Work 280 class has discussed is time. The concept of time is something to which I hadn’t given much thought. I have always just assumed that time was continuous like a cycle. For me, time just seemed to be going around and around. As I got older, I started to dislike how America works around the clock. As they say, “Time is money!” When I began working at Caribou Coffee, I was always frazzled that time literally scheduled my day and I felt like an animal in a cage. As I began to mature, I realized that time is really just a form of organization to keep order. I also self-reflected and decided that time literally is. No one can place a label on it because it just is. Even if the sun sets and rises, the sun is still always shinning somewhere else in the world.
Furthermore, in relation to class, we discussed a culture in South America (Aymara) that actually places time on opposites. By opposites I mean that the past is actually the future, and the future is the past in contrary to popular western thought that time moves forward, and the past is in the back. The article, Backs to the Future by Inga Kiderra, shows that this culture shows the future as the past, and the past as the future. The future goes back as something one goes back into. This is really hard for my mind to wrap around. I can’t for the life of me try and figure out how the past is forward. I just think it’s really interesting that they perceive time primarily based on conditioning of the culture in which they were raised. Below, I have included a short poem I wrote in 2007 over frustration dealing with time. It was a period in my life where I was trying to move on past some old friends who were trying to hold me back. This poem just really shows my firm belief that time is never-ending and never stops, just because it is.
Ticking Clocks
Time; far off in the distance,
Old memories fade into nonexistence,
People, Places, Friends constantly change.
One never ending cycle,
Never stopping,
So why should I?
Kiderra, Inga. “Backs to the Future: Aymara Language and Gesture Point to Mirror-Image View of Time.” June 12, 2006.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Micro-aggressions and Aversive Racism in Minneapolis
By: Natalie SWK 280
Since learning about the prevalence of aversive racism and micro-aggressions, I have been paying extra close attention to the interactions of people I observe on a day to day basis. I take into account race, gender, class, sexual orientation, and status; anything that is observable to the naked eye. In the article Color Blind or Just Plain Blind (2002), Dovidio and Gaertner define aversive racism as “the inherent contradiction that exists when the denial of personal prejudice co-exists with underlying unconscious negative feelings and beliefs [towards a particular group of people](p.2).” “Racial micro-aggressions are brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color (p.1),” says Sue, Capodilupo, Torino, Bucceri, Holder, Nadal, and Esquilin in Microaggressions in Everyday Life (2007). Are these small negative acts and attitudes due to prejudicial beliefs, or are we being overly sensitive, while they truly have nothing to do with discrimination? Many believe the latter of the two, but my research suggesting differently.
With all this fuss over the existence of aversive racism, I decided to test different locations, sit in the backgrounds, and look for signs of micro-aggressions. I chose two different coffee shops to visit and observe, each with differing demographics. I decided to specifically look at costumer-employee interactions. I would pay close attention to eye contact, touch, facial expressions, courtesy/politeness (asking the customer if they would like anything else), and tone.
My first site was the Cooper Café in the Christiansen Center on Augsburg College Campus. I arrived just after class was dismissed and 2:20 when flocks of people file in for their latte’s and smoothies. I sat at a table with a clear view of the cashier, the only problem with Cooper’s is that all the tables are too far away to be able to hear any vocal exchanges between employees and the customers. I had no choice but to do my research based on body language.
A line began to form and because of Augsburg great diversity I had a wide variety of ethnicities, sexual orientations, and age, ect... What I was lacking in this environment was an assortment of individuals from different economic classes. Everyone I observed was either a college student or a member of Augsburg staff, both identities that, for the most part, mean you’re not in the lower or working class. The cashier was a white male and in his early thirties. He seemed peeved and treated a majority of the customers like they were annoying him. I take note of minimal eye contact, zero small talk (strictly business), and a very straight face. There may be an alternative explanation of these mannerisms, such as the busy rush and the line he was working to get through, but this theory appears faulty when I notice a pattern. A professor orders a drink and the cashier’s attitude completely changes. He is smiling, makes eye contact, and spends practically twice as much time with this customer. It’s as though he’s using impression management to maintain an image and make the professor view him in a favorable way. For a moment I thought they knew each other, but again my idea was proven faulty when the proceeding professor approached and similar behavior was displayed. The cashier made a perfect example of micro-aggression in terms of age-discrimination and/or prejudice concerning social status.
My next stop was at Starbucks located on Riverside and S 25th Ave, not far from Augsburg College campus. When I walked in the front door I immediately noticed I was the only female and, besides the employees, the only white person. Everyone seated in the coffee shop was African and male. Rarely do I experience what it feels like being the minority, and in a way, I found it to be fun. I felt all eyes turn to me as I walked toward the register and I was immediately greeted by the barista. The man ordering in front of me was older, African, and speaking in broken English that was hard for the cashier to understand. The cashier began to speak louder and slower to help ease the language barrier. I perceived this behavior as offensive and rude. The man didn’t speak English as a first language- he wasn’t deaf. When it was my turn to order it seemed as if a look of relief swept across the cashiers have. His eyes widened, his smile enlarged, and he asked me “how’s your day going” as if he truly cared. I waited for my drink to be ready while standing next to my fellow consumer, and sure enough, the barista looked at me, not my companion, and asked “have any fun plans for the weekend?” He may have been flirting with me, but little did he know, in my eyes, his actions were making him the poster child for aversive racism- a HUGE turn off.
After grabbing my Chai tea latte with Soy, I turned and looked for a place to sit. My only option was a chair that was already taken by a man’s arm hanging over it. The man looked at me and saw I started walking towards the chair. All eyes were once again on me as I asked, “Is this seat taken?” He glared, said nothing, and moved his arm. I felt awkward and unwelcome. After an hour of observation I notice I was the only white person that didn’t order my coffee and immediately leave. Only African men stayed to drink their coffee and converse with their friends. About twenty customers placed orders during that hour, and only five were white, two of them female. My seat was out of view from the register but directly next to the drink pick-up window. The barista initiated friendly small talk with all five of the white customers and with only three of the African males (who appeared to be acquaintances, or perhaps store regulars).
Micro-aggressions are right in our neighborhood. Many believe racism is dead after the civil rights act and the US is home of the free where everyone is treated equal. By visiting just two coffee shops I found those statements to be untrue. Every day I hear proclamations like “racism is wrong. I hate racist people,” or “I don’t discriminate.” A few friends of mine were discussing racism and one of them said “I don’t see in color.” Another friend responded with “why not? Color is wonderful. I love seeing in color. When a room fills with different colors I think it’s beautiful.” – This is the type of approach more people need to have while confronting racism, prejudice, and discrimination.
Dovidio, J. F., & Gaertner, S. L. (2002). Color blind or just plain blind. The Nonprofit Quarterly, 9(2)
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., Torino, G. C., Bucceri, J. M., Holder, A. M. B., Nadal, K. L., Esquilin, M. (2007). Microaggressions in everyday life: Implications for clinical practice. American Psychologist. Columbia University
Since learning about the prevalence of aversive racism and micro-aggressions, I have been paying extra close attention to the interactions of people I observe on a day to day basis. I take into account race, gender, class, sexual orientation, and status; anything that is observable to the naked eye. In the article Color Blind or Just Plain Blind (2002), Dovidio and Gaertner define aversive racism as “the inherent contradiction that exists when the denial of personal prejudice co-exists with underlying unconscious negative feelings and beliefs [towards a particular group of people](p.2).” “Racial micro-aggressions are brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color (p.1),” says Sue, Capodilupo, Torino, Bucceri, Holder, Nadal, and Esquilin in Microaggressions in Everyday Life (2007). Are these small negative acts and attitudes due to prejudicial beliefs, or are we being overly sensitive, while they truly have nothing to do with discrimination? Many believe the latter of the two, but my research suggesting differently.
With all this fuss over the existence of aversive racism, I decided to test different locations, sit in the backgrounds, and look for signs of micro-aggressions. I chose two different coffee shops to visit and observe, each with differing demographics. I decided to specifically look at costumer-employee interactions. I would pay close attention to eye contact, touch, facial expressions, courtesy/politeness (asking the customer if they would like anything else), and tone.
My first site was the Cooper Café in the Christiansen Center on Augsburg College Campus. I arrived just after class was dismissed and 2:20 when flocks of people file in for their latte’s and smoothies. I sat at a table with a clear view of the cashier, the only problem with Cooper’s is that all the tables are too far away to be able to hear any vocal exchanges between employees and the customers. I had no choice but to do my research based on body language.
A line began to form and because of Augsburg great diversity I had a wide variety of ethnicities, sexual orientations, and age, ect... What I was lacking in this environment was an assortment of individuals from different economic classes. Everyone I observed was either a college student or a member of Augsburg staff, both identities that, for the most part, mean you’re not in the lower or working class. The cashier was a white male and in his early thirties. He seemed peeved and treated a majority of the customers like they were annoying him. I take note of minimal eye contact, zero small talk (strictly business), and a very straight face. There may be an alternative explanation of these mannerisms, such as the busy rush and the line he was working to get through, but this theory appears faulty when I notice a pattern. A professor orders a drink and the cashier’s attitude completely changes. He is smiling, makes eye contact, and spends practically twice as much time with this customer. It’s as though he’s using impression management to maintain an image and make the professor view him in a favorable way. For a moment I thought they knew each other, but again my idea was proven faulty when the proceeding professor approached and similar behavior was displayed. The cashier made a perfect example of micro-aggression in terms of age-discrimination and/or prejudice concerning social status.
My next stop was at Starbucks located on Riverside and S 25th Ave, not far from Augsburg College campus. When I walked in the front door I immediately noticed I was the only female and, besides the employees, the only white person. Everyone seated in the coffee shop was African and male. Rarely do I experience what it feels like being the minority, and in a way, I found it to be fun. I felt all eyes turn to me as I walked toward the register and I was immediately greeted by the barista. The man ordering in front of me was older, African, and speaking in broken English that was hard for the cashier to understand. The cashier began to speak louder and slower to help ease the language barrier. I perceived this behavior as offensive and rude. The man didn’t speak English as a first language- he wasn’t deaf. When it was my turn to order it seemed as if a look of relief swept across the cashiers have. His eyes widened, his smile enlarged, and he asked me “how’s your day going” as if he truly cared. I waited for my drink to be ready while standing next to my fellow consumer, and sure enough, the barista looked at me, not my companion, and asked “have any fun plans for the weekend?” He may have been flirting with me, but little did he know, in my eyes, his actions were making him the poster child for aversive racism- a HUGE turn off.
After grabbing my Chai tea latte with Soy, I turned and looked for a place to sit. My only option was a chair that was already taken by a man’s arm hanging over it. The man looked at me and saw I started walking towards the chair. All eyes were once again on me as I asked, “Is this seat taken?” He glared, said nothing, and moved his arm. I felt awkward and unwelcome. After an hour of observation I notice I was the only white person that didn’t order my coffee and immediately leave. Only African men stayed to drink their coffee and converse with their friends. About twenty customers placed orders during that hour, and only five were white, two of them female. My seat was out of view from the register but directly next to the drink pick-up window. The barista initiated friendly small talk with all five of the white customers and with only three of the African males (who appeared to be acquaintances, or perhaps store regulars).
Micro-aggressions are right in our neighborhood. Many believe racism is dead after the civil rights act and the US is home of the free where everyone is treated equal. By visiting just two coffee shops I found those statements to be untrue. Every day I hear proclamations like “racism is wrong. I hate racist people,” or “I don’t discriminate.” A few friends of mine were discussing racism and one of them said “I don’t see in color.” Another friend responded with “why not? Color is wonderful. I love seeing in color. When a room fills with different colors I think it’s beautiful.” – This is the type of approach more people need to have while confronting racism, prejudice, and discrimination.
Dovidio, J. F., & Gaertner, S. L. (2002). Color blind or just plain blind. The Nonprofit Quarterly, 9(2)
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., Torino, G. C., Bucceri, J. M., Holder, A. M. B., Nadal, K. L., Esquilin, M. (2007). Microaggressions in everyday life: Implications for clinical practice. American Psychologist. Columbia University
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Few Disparities
Few Disparities
By Amber
In class on Tuesday we talked about Minnesota statistics regarding disparities. The class touched on statistics in Criminal Justice: “Minnesota has by far the highest disparity; blacks in the that state are incarcerated at 23 times the rate of whites.”, Health: “Breast cancer mortality rate for black women is 50% higher that white women.”, Education Quality: children of color and poor children are attending less successful school, while Caucasian children are attending more successful schools. Which leads into the high school graduation rates: 90% for White students, while only 64% for African American students. I found all of these to be horrible disparities.
I found an article from The Minnesota Compass that fits right along with what we were discussing in class. The article talks about how Minnesota takes pride in the belief that every person has the opportunities to be successful, but the article questions if that is really the case. Is every Minnesotan given the opportunity and tools to succeed?
“People of Color make up the fasted growing members of our (Minnesota) population. These individuals will continue to make up an increasing large part of our (Minnesota) workforce” (Minnesota Compass, 2009). People of Color are also the ones who are more likely to live in poverty, less likely to graduate from high school, suffer more from chronic illness, and less likely to own their own home. After reading that article it made it seem that some children are not given the tools and are not being taught the skills to succeed in the economy. So how is change supposed to occur?
Minnesota Compass www.mncompass.org. 2009 Wilder Research
By Amber
In class on Tuesday we talked about Minnesota statistics regarding disparities. The class touched on statistics in Criminal Justice: “Minnesota has by far the highest disparity; blacks in the that state are incarcerated at 23 times the rate of whites.”, Health: “Breast cancer mortality rate for black women is 50% higher that white women.”, Education Quality: children of color and poor children are attending less successful school, while Caucasian children are attending more successful schools. Which leads into the high school graduation rates: 90% for White students, while only 64% for African American students. I found all of these to be horrible disparities.
I found an article from The Minnesota Compass that fits right along with what we were discussing in class. The article talks about how Minnesota takes pride in the belief that every person has the opportunities to be successful, but the article questions if that is really the case. Is every Minnesotan given the opportunity and tools to succeed?
“People of Color make up the fasted growing members of our (Minnesota) population. These individuals will continue to make up an increasing large part of our (Minnesota) workforce” (Minnesota Compass, 2009). People of Color are also the ones who are more likely to live in poverty, less likely to graduate from high school, suffer more from chronic illness, and less likely to own their own home. After reading that article it made it seem that some children are not given the tools and are not being taught the skills to succeed in the economy. So how is change supposed to occur?
Minnesota Compass www.mncompass.org. 2009 Wilder Research
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
The Melting Pot
By: Jaia
The Hmong culture had changed continuously in so many ways overtime. Throughout the years that Hmong families and community have been in the United States, there have been so many changes within our culture and the Hmong people. I feel as if the Hmong community has changed the meaning of what a true Hmong culture really is, and who Hmong people really are, since their arrival in the United States. In our Social Work 280 class we have talked about theories. I really believe that the melting pot theory fits with the Hmong community and culture because many of us had come and take on or adapted ourselves to the American culture. I also think that not just the Hmong culture has had to adapt. The larger American society has had to adapt also due to the many different cultures in the USA today. America has changed the Hmong community in a good way because we have adapted many things. For example the Hmong communities started to adapt by letting their daughters go to college and let their children live on campus. This is unlike in the past when the Hmong first migrated here, and the parents didn’t let the girls do anything educational, or let their children join clubs and activities. I can tell that the Hmong culture has adapted and changed a lot of who they used to be to make them who they are today as Hmong American. I was born here and I’ve learned how to adapt to my environments by learning from the people around me. And as I learned to adapt to it, I have also witness those after me that have done the same things I did right away, adapting with the help of those who were here before them.
“Past generations of immigrants in America, it is argued, became successful by shedding their historical identities and adopting the way of their new country, which allowed them to achieve social mobility” (Marsiglia & Kulis, 2009, p. 65). I picked this statement because I believed that the meaning behind it is true. Being a Hmong person myself, I can see my culture changing rapidly from generation to generation. In order for us to feel comfortable and fit into the American life and dream, we have reshaped and shaped our culture so many times as the years goes by. The biggest change that we have made is the clothes we wear. We have put away our traditional apparels and accessories in suit cases and boxes, and store them deep in the attic, basement, or the closet. And we have learned to put on the American clothing of jeans and t-shirts; not only here in America, but also in Thailand and Laos, where we mainly used to wear our traditional clothing. During special events we will take them out and put them on, and during the early evening, put them away until another event comes around.
With adaptation and changing come sacrifices. Sacrifices such as the language of the Hmong people. As the generations continue, each generation speaks less and less of our Hmong language. And this had created an invisible barrier between the older generation and the newer generation. My three year old niece, for example, can hardly speak or understand the Hmong language. Every word she says and understands is just English. When my parents talked to her, the invisible barrier would appear; they can neither understand her or her them. And almost like my niece, I find myself constantly talking in English and understanding it more than my origin. I find it very hard to stop all the time and try to speak Hmong to people who don’t understand English. And just like my niece and me, many of the Hmong nowadays speak more English than Hmong, and this is making our language disappear little by little.
I can go on for days and days pointing out many of the changes in the Hmong culture and how we have adapted to the American culture and way of living. We don’t think about these changes on a daily basis, but they are making a big impact on how we live today. By adapting so many things into our culture, we are more successful and we have accomplished many things that we weren’t able to do in the past. More Hmong people own their own businesses and more young women are getting a chance to get a degree if they choose to. Now more Hmong people are pursuing a higher education after high school than ever before. By adapting many of the American ways into our cultures, we have learned to take opportunities that are open to us now that was never offer in the past. But as we try to take these opportunities and become successful people, we are losing the most important thing to us, our traditions, our cultures, our language, and our ancestors.
Reference
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. (2009). Diversity, oppression and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago, IL Lyceum Books, Inc.
The Hmong culture had changed continuously in so many ways overtime. Throughout the years that Hmong families and community have been in the United States, there have been so many changes within our culture and the Hmong people. I feel as if the Hmong community has changed the meaning of what a true Hmong culture really is, and who Hmong people really are, since their arrival in the United States. In our Social Work 280 class we have talked about theories. I really believe that the melting pot theory fits with the Hmong community and culture because many of us had come and take on or adapted ourselves to the American culture. I also think that not just the Hmong culture has had to adapt. The larger American society has had to adapt also due to the many different cultures in the USA today. America has changed the Hmong community in a good way because we have adapted many things. For example the Hmong communities started to adapt by letting their daughters go to college and let their children live on campus. This is unlike in the past when the Hmong first migrated here, and the parents didn’t let the girls do anything educational, or let their children join clubs and activities. I can tell that the Hmong culture has adapted and changed a lot of who they used to be to make them who they are today as Hmong American. I was born here and I’ve learned how to adapt to my environments by learning from the people around me. And as I learned to adapt to it, I have also witness those after me that have done the same things I did right away, adapting with the help of those who were here before them.
“Past generations of immigrants in America, it is argued, became successful by shedding their historical identities and adopting the way of their new country, which allowed them to achieve social mobility” (Marsiglia & Kulis, 2009, p. 65). I picked this statement because I believed that the meaning behind it is true. Being a Hmong person myself, I can see my culture changing rapidly from generation to generation. In order for us to feel comfortable and fit into the American life and dream, we have reshaped and shaped our culture so many times as the years goes by. The biggest change that we have made is the clothes we wear. We have put away our traditional apparels and accessories in suit cases and boxes, and store them deep in the attic, basement, or the closet. And we have learned to put on the American clothing of jeans and t-shirts; not only here in America, but also in Thailand and Laos, where we mainly used to wear our traditional clothing. During special events we will take them out and put them on, and during the early evening, put them away until another event comes around.
With adaptation and changing come sacrifices. Sacrifices such as the language of the Hmong people. As the generations continue, each generation speaks less and less of our Hmong language. And this had created an invisible barrier between the older generation and the newer generation. My three year old niece, for example, can hardly speak or understand the Hmong language. Every word she says and understands is just English. When my parents talked to her, the invisible barrier would appear; they can neither understand her or her them. And almost like my niece, I find myself constantly talking in English and understanding it more than my origin. I find it very hard to stop all the time and try to speak Hmong to people who don’t understand English. And just like my niece and me, many of the Hmong nowadays speak more English than Hmong, and this is making our language disappear little by little.
I can go on for days and days pointing out many of the changes in the Hmong culture and how we have adapted to the American culture and way of living. We don’t think about these changes on a daily basis, but they are making a big impact on how we live today. By adapting so many things into our culture, we are more successful and we have accomplished many things that we weren’t able to do in the past. More Hmong people own their own businesses and more young women are getting a chance to get a degree if they choose to. Now more Hmong people are pursuing a higher education after high school than ever before. By adapting many of the American ways into our cultures, we have learned to take opportunities that are open to us now that was never offer in the past. But as we try to take these opportunities and become successful people, we are losing the most important thing to us, our traditions, our cultures, our language, and our ancestors.
Reference
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. (2009). Diversity, oppression and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago, IL Lyceum Books, Inc.
Out of Time
By Melanie
In class on Thursday we covered the concept of “time”, how it affects us day to day and how it is different between cultures. I think we could have spent 3 weeks talking about all the things we covered in two classes (unfortunately we don’t have enough time). People in class had a lot of great insight and ideas that they were willing to share with the class. I have been extremely ignorant in thinking that every person and culture looks at time in somewhat the same way. This is not the case at all; I knew that in the “American” culture everything is controlled by time. Humans are on a constant schedule and whether it works for them or not they have to conform to succeed in American culture. I was looking into my own life and became aware of how much I dislike being on a schedule and that in my personal life my time looks very different from my professional life. When it comes to work, school, any type of appointment I am always on time because it’s the professional thing to do, and being late in American culture has bad connotations. If you want to keep your job, or get a job, if you don’t want to miss your appointment it’s important to be on time. When I made the statement in class that professionally time is important but personally it’s not to me; someone else made the comment that being on time isn’t important in a professional setting in other cultures. This was the basis of our entire class and it really stuck out to me. I have to remember that being “on time” may mean something different depending on one’s cultural context.
I have never realized how negative this idea of time can really be; it causes stress on one’s health and family. Many of us become so rushed and focused on just getting through the day that we lose touch on reality and our relationships. Dominant American culture is considered individualistic, in the power point from Thursday it stated; “Individualistic cultures tend to favor monochronic time” and that “monochronic time is focused more on a schedule than people.” In the dominant American culture many of us are raised to be like this so we never even think twice about it. Ideally I would love to live in a culture that is polychronic because then my personal and professional life would align; unfortunately in the American culture it tends to be very monochonic.
When we were talking about pace and whether our pace is enjoyable, it really started to bother me because my pace from day to day isn’t enjoyable and I always feel rushed. From setting my alarm in the morning until I go to bed at night I am forced to be on a schedule. This isn’t because I want to be but it’s the only way I will succeed. I think many people struggle with the “American” idea of time; we are a society of action and if you don’t get things done you are considered lazy or unmotivated.
So now I know there is nothing wrong with me, that I’m not lazy or unmotivated. I just have a different idea of how I would like to spend MY time. My question is how can I enjoy life at my own pace and find my passion on my own time and still be successful in the “American” culture?
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. S. (2009). Diversity, oppression, and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago
Rodenborg, 2011. A Question of Time, SWK 280 Course Handout.
In class on Thursday we covered the concept of “time”, how it affects us day to day and how it is different between cultures. I think we could have spent 3 weeks talking about all the things we covered in two classes (unfortunately we don’t have enough time). People in class had a lot of great insight and ideas that they were willing to share with the class. I have been extremely ignorant in thinking that every person and culture looks at time in somewhat the same way. This is not the case at all; I knew that in the “American” culture everything is controlled by time. Humans are on a constant schedule and whether it works for them or not they have to conform to succeed in American culture. I was looking into my own life and became aware of how much I dislike being on a schedule and that in my personal life my time looks very different from my professional life. When it comes to work, school, any type of appointment I am always on time because it’s the professional thing to do, and being late in American culture has bad connotations. If you want to keep your job, or get a job, if you don’t want to miss your appointment it’s important to be on time. When I made the statement in class that professionally time is important but personally it’s not to me; someone else made the comment that being on time isn’t important in a professional setting in other cultures. This was the basis of our entire class and it really stuck out to me. I have to remember that being “on time” may mean something different depending on one’s cultural context.
I have never realized how negative this idea of time can really be; it causes stress on one’s health and family. Many of us become so rushed and focused on just getting through the day that we lose touch on reality and our relationships. Dominant American culture is considered individualistic, in the power point from Thursday it stated; “Individualistic cultures tend to favor monochronic time” and that “monochronic time is focused more on a schedule than people.” In the dominant American culture many of us are raised to be like this so we never even think twice about it. Ideally I would love to live in a culture that is polychronic because then my personal and professional life would align; unfortunately in the American culture it tends to be very monochonic.
When we were talking about pace and whether our pace is enjoyable, it really started to bother me because my pace from day to day isn’t enjoyable and I always feel rushed. From setting my alarm in the morning until I go to bed at night I am forced to be on a schedule. This isn’t because I want to be but it’s the only way I will succeed. I think many people struggle with the “American” idea of time; we are a society of action and if you don’t get things done you are considered lazy or unmotivated.
So now I know there is nothing wrong with me, that I’m not lazy or unmotivated. I just have a different idea of how I would like to spend MY time. My question is how can I enjoy life at my own pace and find my passion on my own time and still be successful in the “American” culture?
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. S. (2009). Diversity, oppression, and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago
Rodenborg, 2011. A Question of Time, SWK 280 Course Handout.
What it Takes to Belong
Brittney SWK280 Blog Entry
Born a white American, I spent nineteen years without ever truly realizing the privileges that were given to me at birth. Reality truly hit when I converted to Islam. Once I proclaimed to be a Muslim, I felt as if I was being kicked out of the culture in which I had grown up. Breaking cultural norms that are so embedded into the society, such as religion, can lead to being ostracized by one’s culture group. For me, this occurred. I feel I have been ostracized by the only culture I know and the culture to which I still believe I belong.
From this personal experience I have realized that religion is one of the strongest parts of a cultural group. A religion brings so much more to the table then just a set of beliefs, but instead religion can define so many things, such as habits, attire, diet, morals, values, beliefs, holidays, income/money usage and even language in some cases (Marsiglia&Kulis,2009).
I think one of the reasons why I have been kicked out of my cultural group is that Muslims tend to be stereotyped by the image that is portrayed by the media and placed under an incorrect label. I also see that all Muslim’s have become a scapegoat even though many problems are being caused by a minuscule percentage of the Muslim community. If people were to take the time to actually learn the religion and make contact with people of other religions, eventually I believe these stereotypes would disappear. The contact theory points to one of the best ways in my opinion for stereotypes to be broken (Marsiglia&Kulis,2009).
I ask you to take the time and watch this video and witness the many prejudices and stereotypes that are being forced on Muslims in this Fox News video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT54PpHdT0E&feature=player_detailpage In this video at least the Muslim community has someone trying to defend it, but typically in many Fox news reports there is no defender to be found. The stereotypes are not just being made up in the minds of everyday people. They are instead being falsely created and reinforced by people so many Americans trust such as our media employees and news anchors. These false beliefs about the Muslim people create a barrier and irrational fear between people. This article (http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/01/21/study-americans-prejudiced-muslims/ ) gives the statistics of prejudice acts towards Muslim, and shows how these prejudices are growing at phenomenal rates.
As it is said in our text book, Diversity, Oppression and Change by Marsiglia and Kulis (2009), religion can either unite the people or can cause social conflict. It boils done to a simple thing called respect. We need to respect each other no matter our differences, whether race, religion, sex, education, age or social class. We are all humans and if we truly try to understand each other with an open mind, respect and appreciation for each other will soon grow.
Bibliography
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. S. (2009). Diversity, oppression, and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago: Lyceum Books.
Born a white American, I spent nineteen years without ever truly realizing the privileges that were given to me at birth. Reality truly hit when I converted to Islam. Once I proclaimed to be a Muslim, I felt as if I was being kicked out of the culture in which I had grown up. Breaking cultural norms that are so embedded into the society, such as religion, can lead to being ostracized by one’s culture group. For me, this occurred. I feel I have been ostracized by the only culture I know and the culture to which I still believe I belong.
From this personal experience I have realized that religion is one of the strongest parts of a cultural group. A religion brings so much more to the table then just a set of beliefs, but instead religion can define so many things, such as habits, attire, diet, morals, values, beliefs, holidays, income/money usage and even language in some cases (Marsiglia&Kulis,2009).
I think one of the reasons why I have been kicked out of my cultural group is that Muslims tend to be stereotyped by the image that is portrayed by the media and placed under an incorrect label. I also see that all Muslim’s have become a scapegoat even though many problems are being caused by a minuscule percentage of the Muslim community. If people were to take the time to actually learn the religion and make contact with people of other religions, eventually I believe these stereotypes would disappear. The contact theory points to one of the best ways in my opinion for stereotypes to be broken (Marsiglia&Kulis,2009).
I ask you to take the time and watch this video and witness the many prejudices and stereotypes that are being forced on Muslims in this Fox News video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT54PpHdT0E&feature=player_detailpage In this video at least the Muslim community has someone trying to defend it, but typically in many Fox news reports there is no defender to be found. The stereotypes are not just being made up in the minds of everyday people. They are instead being falsely created and reinforced by people so many Americans trust such as our media employees and news anchors. These false beliefs about the Muslim people create a barrier and irrational fear between people. This article (http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/01/21/study-americans-prejudiced-muslims/ ) gives the statistics of prejudice acts towards Muslim, and shows how these prejudices are growing at phenomenal rates.
As it is said in our text book, Diversity, Oppression and Change by Marsiglia and Kulis (2009), religion can either unite the people or can cause social conflict. It boils done to a simple thing called respect. We need to respect each other no matter our differences, whether race, religion, sex, education, age or social class. We are all humans and if we truly try to understand each other with an open mind, respect and appreciation for each other will soon grow.
Bibliography
Marsiglia, F. F., & Kulis, S. S. (2009). Diversity, oppression, and change: culturally grounded social work. Chicago: Lyceum Books.
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