In this blog I would like to focus on religion and homosexuality. This has been what we have focused on in class lately, and we even watched a video on it. Homosexuality has always been a controversial topic and the sad truth is that it probably always will. I do not think it has to be. We as a country seem to be fueled by hate, and we are always looking for the next group to hate.
I grew up in a catholic home. We were never really the typical family of going to church every Sunday as a family. I went to a catholic school from Pre-K all the way to the 6th grade. The school was even ran by nuns at the time. As a kid I never really understood the views that the catholic church took on many issues. All I knew was that the church was supposed to be a place of acceptance. My earliest views on religion was that everyone could be accepted and the golden rule of treating others as you would want to be treated applied. Boy was I wrong.
As I got older I started to look at the church in a more analytical fashion. I started noticing that some things just did not seem right. I thought this was a place of acceptance and tolerance but there was a clear model that if you did not fit, you did not belong. One of these criteria for not belonging was being a homosexual. I see no reason why who a person loves has anything to do with how or who they worship. For the hardcore Christians, it was seen as a sin and they used the bible as justification.
The movie we watched in class looked at different scriptures pointing out that homosexuality is a sin. These few sayings are always being repeated over and over again by the same people who think it is wrong and all homosexuals will go to hell. What they fail to realize is the language of the bible is different than today. For example, the movie points out that abomination meant that something was "unnatural" or "not according to tradition." It did not mean evil or going to hell or any other negative connotation.
I just noticed that the church was full of hypocrisy. I have never had an experience myself with the issue but the young lady that spoke in class shared her experience. It just seems so wrong that a church can turn your back on you for one thing. She even said that alot of churches are now starting up "healing" centers to try to heal homosexuals. Multiple credible agencies and scientists have already proved that being a homosexual is not a choice and that you are born that way. I just dont want to be a part of an organization that disregards information and does whatever it wants to. One thing I do know is that this world is filled with hate. Everything we do will be analyzed and there is no possible way to please everyone. So in this hate filled world if you can find love with a special person, you should cherish it. I believe in love, regardless of color, religion, orientation, or any other word used to separate people.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Assignment 4
Lately in class we have been talking about the polarity between genders and the
dangers it can cause. In one exercise the class called out characteristics that
would be given to a man, and did the same for a woman. Most of theme
descriptions are what you would expect and cleary shows a separations between
the two. We have touched on the forces in the world that create these
distinctions whether it be through instances of "patriarchy" or just everything
we are subjected to. And now we introduce the variable of violence into the
mix. As stated in class, most rapes occur by men against women. We live in a
so called "rape culture" where nearly everything we see on a daily basis
suggests that women are merely objects.
On the topic of how what we see in life directly relates to how we treat others, I think it just depends on the person. We heard a statistic in class that said of all college males surveyed 56% said they would commit rape if they knew they could get away with it. I find that number hard to believe. I am not saying rape does not happen at the frequency stated in other facts, just that that particular statistic is hard to swallow. As a man I have grown up seeing what all these men have, and Im not out there just raping away. I watch plenty of movies where women are just in them to be pretty objects held by the male hero. I have listened to rap music with some pretty explicit lyrics towards women. Just because I see these things does not mean I am going to go out into the world and do these things. This reminds me of the debate of playing violent video games and if these kids will go out shooting people in the real world. Another argument deals with a kid who shot his school and blamed the shooting on the fact that he listened to Marilyn Manson's music.
I think it is time to change. First off we need to stop blaming other crap for our wrong doings. No movie, tv show, music video, or any other type of media action should ever be blamed for something a person does. Do we live in a rape culture? It is hard to say, maybe its more accurate to say we live in a more provocative culture, vastly different from the one our grandparents grew up in. I think it all comes back to how we are raised. The values instilled upon us at a young age by our family and friends will be with us much longer than some image we see in a music video.
As for the way I was raised, I think my parents did a pretty damn good job. I am the youngest in the family and did not really grow up around girls, except for the older women in my family. I was always taught to repsect the women in my life, rather that be friends or family or a partner. I could never imagine hurting my mother, and because of that I will never be able to harm another woman. I am strong and I hide my emotions like most men do, and as suggested in the description of men. This does not mean I dont have emotions. I have cried and without a doubt will again in the future. But I will not cry in front of others. It takes something very personal for me to cry be that the death of a loved one of the ending of a relationship. Because the nature of me doing that is so personal to me I like to deal with my emotions in the privacy of my own home. Just because I look fine on the outside does not mean I am not hurting on the inside. But I choose to deal with it in my own way, and that means not letting others see it. Not because I think it is a sign of weakness, just because I see it as a problem I have to deal with on my own. The notion that we are growing a crop of emotionless guys is ridiculous. All guys hurt. Thats a fact.
On the topic of how what we see in life directly relates to how we treat others, I think it just depends on the person. We heard a statistic in class that said of all college males surveyed 56% said they would commit rape if they knew they could get away with it. I find that number hard to believe. I am not saying rape does not happen at the frequency stated in other facts, just that that particular statistic is hard to swallow. As a man I have grown up seeing what all these men have, and Im not out there just raping away. I watch plenty of movies where women are just in them to be pretty objects held by the male hero. I have listened to rap music with some pretty explicit lyrics towards women. Just because I see these things does not mean I am going to go out into the world and do these things. This reminds me of the debate of playing violent video games and if these kids will go out shooting people in the real world. Another argument deals with a kid who shot his school and blamed the shooting on the fact that he listened to Marilyn Manson's music.
I think it is time to change. First off we need to stop blaming other crap for our wrong doings. No movie, tv show, music video, or any other type of media action should ever be blamed for something a person does. Do we live in a rape culture? It is hard to say, maybe its more accurate to say we live in a more provocative culture, vastly different from the one our grandparents grew up in. I think it all comes back to how we are raised. The values instilled upon us at a young age by our family and friends will be with us much longer than some image we see in a music video.
As for the way I was raised, I think my parents did a pretty damn good job. I am the youngest in the family and did not really grow up around girls, except for the older women in my family. I was always taught to repsect the women in my life, rather that be friends or family or a partner. I could never imagine hurting my mother, and because of that I will never be able to harm another woman. I am strong and I hide my emotions like most men do, and as suggested in the description of men. This does not mean I dont have emotions. I have cried and without a doubt will again in the future. But I will not cry in front of others. It takes something very personal for me to cry be that the death of a loved one of the ending of a relationship. Because the nature of me doing that is so personal to me I like to deal with my emotions in the privacy of my own home. Just because I look fine on the outside does not mean I am not hurting on the inside. But I choose to deal with it in my own way, and that means not letting others see it. Not because I think it is a sign of weakness, just because I see it as a problem I have to deal with on my own. The notion that we are growing a crop of emotionless guys is ridiculous. All guys hurt. Thats a fact.
Assignment 3
Our most recent discussions in class have been dealing with boys and how they
grow up. We have discussed the idea of "Patriarchy" which is the condition upon
which young boys are taught how to be men. We watched a video in class that
dealt with this. The video believed that young boys have been seeing imaged
their whole life that dictate how they should live and how they should view
women. Honestly, some of the points in the video seemed extreme and biased. I
am not making a defense for guys, since I am one, because it would be ridiculed
with bias. But I would like to say that not every guy turns out like that video
points out. Maybe I am just the exception.
Like most boys growing up I played sports. Looking back I played sports because it was what my older brother did and I wanted to be just like him. I also think it was easy for my parents if I played the same sports as my brother because we would always have practice at the same place. I dont think I was thrust into sports mainly because I am a boy, and thats what boys do. As it turned out I was pretty good and played all the way up to high school and even played soccer for a different university before transferring to USM.
Growing up in the sports world, I heard all kinds of insults. One of the sports I played was baseball and a common insult in baseball is that "you throw like a girl." I can say I have used it in a joking manner and have had it used on me. At the time I never thought about what I was actually saying. One speaker in a video talks about an athlete being called a girl and how the young athlete said it would destroy him. That is a major insult to any male athlete because they seek physical superiority. But why is this such an insult? Whats wrong with women that men dont want to be called one?
Now that I have grown up and started to look at the world in a different light, I understand things a little better. There has always been this fine line between things men do and things women do. As a man, you are not supposed to cross this line. Alot of people like to joke around that men cant cook or dont like to cook or arent supposed to. Why is that? I love to cook. I usually cook dinner once a week at my house for my grandmother and mother. I enjoy cooking. It takes my mind off the real world for a little whle and lets me put my focus on what I am doing. I also bake desserts everynight for the cafe my family owns. Alot of guys I know think that is funny and say that I would make a good housewife. Whats the big deal? Im just a man that knows his way around the kitchen, and to me that is nothing to be asahmed of.
In this country we fear what we dont understand. We view something different as wrong or unnatural. This is a terrible way to view things and hopefully one day that will change. But the only way it will change is for people to continually push at the boundaries that separate men and women.
Like most boys growing up I played sports. Looking back I played sports because it was what my older brother did and I wanted to be just like him. I also think it was easy for my parents if I played the same sports as my brother because we would always have practice at the same place. I dont think I was thrust into sports mainly because I am a boy, and thats what boys do. As it turned out I was pretty good and played all the way up to high school and even played soccer for a different university before transferring to USM.
Growing up in the sports world, I heard all kinds of insults. One of the sports I played was baseball and a common insult in baseball is that "you throw like a girl." I can say I have used it in a joking manner and have had it used on me. At the time I never thought about what I was actually saying. One speaker in a video talks about an athlete being called a girl and how the young athlete said it would destroy him. That is a major insult to any male athlete because they seek physical superiority. But why is this such an insult? Whats wrong with women that men dont want to be called one?
Now that I have grown up and started to look at the world in a different light, I understand things a little better. There has always been this fine line between things men do and things women do. As a man, you are not supposed to cross this line. Alot of people like to joke around that men cant cook or dont like to cook or arent supposed to. Why is that? I love to cook. I usually cook dinner once a week at my house for my grandmother and mother. I enjoy cooking. It takes my mind off the real world for a little whle and lets me put my focus on what I am doing. I also bake desserts everynight for the cafe my family owns. Alot of guys I know think that is funny and say that I would make a good housewife. Whats the big deal? Im just a man that knows his way around the kitchen, and to me that is nothing to be asahmed of.
In this country we fear what we dont understand. We view something different as wrong or unnatural. This is a terrible way to view things and hopefully one day that will change. But the only way it will change is for people to continually push at the boundaries that separate men and women.
Assignment 2
It was not that long ago that we watched a video in class where a camera crew
went around a college campus and asked student their thoughts on Feminism. They
asked college aged students
and even some people who seemed to be more into their adult years. Most of the
answers were the same and it seemed as though the people stumbled with their
answers because it is not a topic they think about on a normal basis. I know I
have never sat down and had a conversation with another person on just what
exactly feminism is.
I do not have a feminism story but I have something I think I can write about. Even though we have only met for 3 weeks in class my views on Feminism are starting to become more stronger. Before Fall classes started, I asked all my friends what they were taking and they asked me. The conversation would always take a turn when I mentioned I had Womens Studies. They would always ask what is that and then give their definititon of what they think a feminist is. Most of their answers sounded like the responses in the video.
The responses painted a picture of an angry woman. A manhater who is mad at the world and would not take it anymore. I ever heard lesbians mentioned. This portrayal could not be more wrong. Are feminists angry? Well yes I am sure they are of being treated unequal. Over the past few weeks I have learned that is basically what they stand for, equality. The sexuality of a feminist doesnt matter. Nor are these woman manhaters. Instead they are tired of being treated unequal. While they have many freedoms today not enjoyed by many women in the past decades, there is still work to be done.
In our last class we talked about significant women in the history of Women's Rights. The story of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns inspired women all across the country. They were essential in gaining women the right to vote. There are women today who are still hard at work in pursuing equality for women. I think it will be interesting to see in a few years who has stepped up to the fight. I think one of the reasons the first waves of feminism was so successful was becasuse they had a face that represented them. I am not saying that today feminism is not alive or not strong, there just isnt a centrailized figure to identify with the struggle. I think once a figure emerges into the spotlight that this third wave will start to make alot more noise in the race for equality.
I do not have a feminism story but I have something I think I can write about. Even though we have only met for 3 weeks in class my views on Feminism are starting to become more stronger. Before Fall classes started, I asked all my friends what they were taking and they asked me. The conversation would always take a turn when I mentioned I had Womens Studies. They would always ask what is that and then give their definititon of what they think a feminist is. Most of their answers sounded like the responses in the video.
The responses painted a picture of an angry woman. A manhater who is mad at the world and would not take it anymore. I ever heard lesbians mentioned. This portrayal could not be more wrong. Are feminists angry? Well yes I am sure they are of being treated unequal. Over the past few weeks I have learned that is basically what they stand for, equality. The sexuality of a feminist doesnt matter. Nor are these woman manhaters. Instead they are tired of being treated unequal. While they have many freedoms today not enjoyed by many women in the past decades, there is still work to be done.
In our last class we talked about significant women in the history of Women's Rights. The story of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns inspired women all across the country. They were essential in gaining women the right to vote. There are women today who are still hard at work in pursuing equality for women. I think it will be interesting to see in a few years who has stepped up to the fight. I think one of the reasons the first waves of feminism was so successful was becasuse they had a face that represented them. I am not saying that today feminism is not alive or not strong, there just isnt a centrailized figure to identify with the struggle. I think once a figure emerges into the spotlight that this third wave will start to make alot more noise in the race for equality.
Assignment 1
A few years ago a movie by the name of My Big Fat Greek Wedding came
out. I am sure most of my fellow students have seen this movie. In case you have not, it tells
the story of a Greek girl from a very Greek orthodox family. She finds the man
she wants to marry, but he is not Greek. In the the past that was just not
acceptable because Greeks had to marry Greeks.
I know this because I am Greek. I am the second generation Greek in my family. My grandfather was born there but came over at the young age of 9. He married my grandmother, who also was a Greek. So now you see the problem with the movie and the marrying of the non-Greek guy. At one point in the movie the Greek mother tells her daughter that the man may be the head of the household, but the woman is the neck. And the neck can make the head turn anyway she wants it.
Throughout the years this line has always stuck in my head. I think it reminds me of how strong the Greek women I knew were. This is especially true of my grandmother, Victoria. Everyone calls her "Yaya" though which is Greek for "grandmother." She has always been a driving force in my life and a very strong woman. She was born in 1929 and throughout her long life has lived through a depression, a world war, a cold war, quite a few different Presidential administrations, and many other events. She always worked and through her example I always took it upon myself to work and make no excuses to be lazy.
For the longest time she has been the strongest woman I know. Thats why it was hard to see her get sick. She worked at the cafe my family owns for a long time until she simply could not do it anymore. She lived alone in the house all of us grandchildren grew up in and we thought someone should be here with her. I moved in with her last August just so someone would be here incase she needed anything at night. In November she fell and broke her hip. I went with her to the hospital that night and slept in a chair in her room as they prepped her for surgery. She had her hip replaced and spent the next 31 days in the hospital.
I would like to say I was there everyday but I wasnt. With school and work everyday I got up there as much as I can because I was scared she might not ever come home. It felt empty living in this house without her. But what can I say, the woman is a fighter. She made it home. We now have to have someone here with her 24 hours a day everyday plus I am here too. She has her good days and her bad days but we make it. Most people would laugh at me for being a 23 year old male and living with my 83 year old grandmother. She is one of the strongest people I have ever met. Without a doubt she is one of my favorite people on this earth and she always will be.
Now one thing that I have learned about girls is that they always want the guy they are seeing to meet their mothers. There is nothing wrong with this and I have met many moms in my day. I would be lying if I said Im not nervous anymore when I meet a new one, but I just want to make sure they know I have their daughters best intentions at heart. You can leartn alot about a girl based on her mother and the relationship they share. However, I have always maintained that I would like for the girl I am seeing to meet my grandmother. She holds a special place in my heart and I hope to be as strong as she is. I just turned 23 and am single so I know that I will not be married for sometime. But I do hope my yaya stays alive long enough to meet my future wife. Just as girls want us guys to meet their mothers.
I know this because I am Greek. I am the second generation Greek in my family. My grandfather was born there but came over at the young age of 9. He married my grandmother, who also was a Greek. So now you see the problem with the movie and the marrying of the non-Greek guy. At one point in the movie the Greek mother tells her daughter that the man may be the head of the household, but the woman is the neck. And the neck can make the head turn anyway she wants it.
Throughout the years this line has always stuck in my head. I think it reminds me of how strong the Greek women I knew were. This is especially true of my grandmother, Victoria. Everyone calls her "Yaya" though which is Greek for "grandmother." She has always been a driving force in my life and a very strong woman. She was born in 1929 and throughout her long life has lived through a depression, a world war, a cold war, quite a few different Presidential administrations, and many other events. She always worked and through her example I always took it upon myself to work and make no excuses to be lazy.
For the longest time she has been the strongest woman I know. Thats why it was hard to see her get sick. She worked at the cafe my family owns for a long time until she simply could not do it anymore. She lived alone in the house all of us grandchildren grew up in and we thought someone should be here with her. I moved in with her last August just so someone would be here incase she needed anything at night. In November she fell and broke her hip. I went with her to the hospital that night and slept in a chair in her room as they prepped her for surgery. She had her hip replaced and spent the next 31 days in the hospital.
I would like to say I was there everyday but I wasnt. With school and work everyday I got up there as much as I can because I was scared she might not ever come home. It felt empty living in this house without her. But what can I say, the woman is a fighter. She made it home. We now have to have someone here with her 24 hours a day everyday plus I am here too. She has her good days and her bad days but we make it. Most people would laugh at me for being a 23 year old male and living with my 83 year old grandmother. She is one of the strongest people I have ever met. Without a doubt she is one of my favorite people on this earth and she always will be.
Now one thing that I have learned about girls is that they always want the guy they are seeing to meet their mothers. There is nothing wrong with this and I have met many moms in my day. I would be lying if I said Im not nervous anymore when I meet a new one, but I just want to make sure they know I have their daughters best intentions at heart. You can leartn alot about a girl based on her mother and the relationship they share. However, I have always maintained that I would like for the girl I am seeing to meet my grandmother. She holds a special place in my heart and I hope to be as strong as she is. I just turned 23 and am single so I know that I will not be married for sometime. But I do hope my yaya stays alive long enough to meet my future wife. Just as girls want us guys to meet their mothers.
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