Blog Topic #3

What has changed since the last five plays were written? Do African-Americans still face racism in the military or on the job? Are African-American’s still treated with disdain when they speak Black English? What about the search for identity that Bibi faced in “Letters”? Are there persons of color who face similar challenges today? If so, who are they?

             Much has changed since the last five plays were written even though they were about 20 years ago.  Much advancement in equality has been happening as the idea of racism is slowly fading.  Now that people are judged more on their knowledge, beliefs, and social status, race has been on the back burner.  Although this is true, people of different ethnicities may still be struggling to find out where they fit in and how they should act.  Should they stick to the traditional ways of their ancestors or conform to the life they are living in America?  This conflict troubles many as the culture of their people is continually diminishing.  Acceptance of different language between separate races has also improved; however there is still the strong feeling by many European Americans today that if you are in America you should speak English otherwise you should return to where you came from.  Military wise, there is still discrimination because of race.  Some races are still oppressed by others that feel they are superior.

            In the military or on the job, there is still a negative view on the race of a person.  I recently read a story of a white male in the army who had shot a fellow black unit member paralyzing him from the chest down, because he was African American.  I feel that now a day there isn’t such a problem with race as there is with gender and sexuality.  Women are seen as unfit to complete certain tasks and there is a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy in many jobs and in the military.  Once again, even though there is still discrimination present, there is a huge improvement because members of different races are able to serve with each other instead of in separate units.

            The stereotypical language of different races has slowly transformed whereas before it was seen as atrocious, it is now almost the popular thing to do.  Proper English is becoming less common and slang terms are more prevalent.  Similarly as to the past, the use of slang and improper grammar is still seen as an uneducated person.  Even though this may be true, it is more acceptable to use such language.

            I think the search of identity has become more so for the whole population.  Those who are of a different race do have the issue still today of finding out who they really are and where they belong.  From my experience there are more than those who are of a different race having this problem.  Many people in America are having issues about which path they should be taking in life and having problems with deciding what ideals they need to follow.  The search for someone’s identity may have something to do with race, but I think that there is a larger picture that doesn’t have much to do with the struggles of a culture but the struggles one has about their purpose in life.  Race may be a small part of the larger picture in the hardships a person will experience.

Blog Topic #2

What does it mean to be a racist? If we laugh at a racist joke are we racists? What is the connection between racism and the act of discrimination?

To be racist means that a person has a hate toward someone of another race, or even ethnicity and culture.  These people feel that, in most cases, they are the superior race to the undesirable group or social category.  Human rights should be given to only those of the selected race.  In our history, there have been thousands of incidents of racism even though these ideas were held by the majority.  Slavery, the Holocaust, and harassment of Native Americans are some of the more significant events that were spurred by hatred of one race from another.  Through civil rights movements, there has been a huge improvement in the way that races treat each other.  Even though there were these great achievements such as the outcome of Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, Rosa Parks actions, and the great speeches of Martin Luther King Jr., racism is still present today in the minds of citizens all over the world.  There are many ways of expressing racism including violent crimes, ideas kept to one’s self, and jokes that discriminate against race.

If a person were to laugh at a racist joke, then are they racist?  I think that there are many reasons why people would laugh at such humor.  One may be that they are indeed racist and view the joke as a way to make themselves feel better and break down the undesirable group.  Laughter can be brought about in many forms.  Some laugh when they are nervous, sad, confused, or happy.  This can be the same idea.  Confusion can make some laugh when they really don’t know the true meaning of a joke or where it originated from.  When one does not know what the true meaning of a joke is or they just laugh because everyone else is, they may not be racist.  Another reason could be that they are nervous or uncomfortable and do not know how to react.  The exact opposite could be that one is laughing at the fact that the stereotype portrayed in the joke is extremely inaccurate and the person telling the joke has a poor sense of humor.  There is also the idea that someone will laugh because they want to please the person who is telling the joke or try to look cool around them no matter what the content is.

            Discrimination is telling the difference between things such as a person’s race or skin color.  In differentiating between those things, one may feel that there should be a difference in the rights or treatment that a person should get.  Different things, such as what was listed, can scare people and when you’re scared of a bug, you kill it or run screaming.  When there are too many spiders, you cannot live your life in fear so you have to suppress them.  This is where hatred is fueled when it come to things that are different or out of the ordinary.  Until people do not discriminate and accept the differences, racism will still be present.