THE PHANTOM OF THE RACE: THE MYTH OF RACE AND THE REALITY OF RACISM

THE PHANTOM OF THE RACE:

THE MYTH OF RACE AND THE REALITY OF RACISM

Charles Quist-Adade

 Affective Reading

 

• What is the reading about?

 This reading is about race and racism and how they are completely different things. It addresses that race does not exist; it is a “phantom,” but racism on the other hand is the truth of all societies. However, these two are connected, and they depend on each other. Both combined destroy people’s lives everywhere around the world, both in direct and indirect ways. Social scientists have stated that “race is a human invented concept” (p4). This basically means that it’s a social construct, and it is not based on genetics. There are only physical differences due to geographic and climate conditions. These geographic and climate conditions for example can make an Ibo man darker than an English man, just  because he is closer to the equator. The only reason these two people become part of either the “Black” or “White” race is due to somebody defining them as that (this is how racism came about).

•  How do I FEEL about the reading I just finished?

 I feel the reading was very intriguing, and I completely agree that race does not actually exist; it is a human invention.

•  What do I THINK about the reading I just finished?

I think people should actually live by the quotes “our differences are only skin deep” and “we all belong to the human race” because as the article has unfolded it is very true.

•  What do I BELIEVE about the reading I just finished?

I believe if people would actually consider the quotes above, the world would be a better place, however, as we know people seem to ignore these phrases and continue to be racist.

•  What do I KNOW about the reading I just finished?

I know what the article discusses is utterly right, and people who have a racist view on things should consider anti-racist education

WHO WILL LIBERATE LIBERIA?

WHO WILL LIBERATE LIBERIA?

Charles Quist-Adade

 Affective Reading

•  What is the reading about?

The reading is about how the Bush government will spend billions of dollars on war, when they can use this money to feed the starving children in the world. They are willing to spend four billion a month to overthrow terrorism. However, as the reading states that this amount would be enough to supply health and nutrition for half the world. Furthermore, the reading addresses that the Bush government believesLiberiacan liberate themselves, whereas Iraqis cannot. The reason being; thatLiberiadoes not have oil, andIraqdoes. Clearly, for the Bush Administration Christian morality can wait.

•  How do I FEEL about the reading I just finished?

I feel it’s shameful that such a large amount of money is going towards the death of someone. When there are more vital needs that could be met with this money.

•  What do I THINK about the reading I just finished?

I think this article addressed some very important points. The main being; that the Bush government is throwing their Christian morals away by going for war and ignoring all the perished innocents.

•  What do I BELIEVE about the reading I just finished?

I believe the Bush government does not have their priorities in the right place. Instead of going for war and causing more deaths they should help make the world a better place.

•  What do I KNOW about the reading I just finished?

I know what the Americans are doing is wrong, and they should focus on helping people of this world, rather than making things even more corrupt.

SEPTEMBER 11: FORGIVINESS IS NOT PART OF THE LESSONS LEARNED

SEPTEMBER 11: FORGIVINESS

IS NOT PART OF THE LESSONS LEARNED

Charles Quist-Adade

Affective Reading

• What is the reading about?

This reading discusses the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and how forgiveness was not one of the lessons learned in the “Bush country.” Rather, they approached this situation with intentions of retaliation. For a country that is said to be a “God’s own country,” it sure has not taken up the beliefs of Christianity; which is forgiveness. If Bush had learned the lesson of forgiveness, he would have not taken his soldiers to Iraq to seek revenge for the Septemeber 11^th attack. Furthermore, the reading indicates how Americans are rather deceiting, as they preach to non-Westerners to forgive and forget, but mostly forget. They expect “Africans to forget the African holocaust, the European slave trade, the colonization, the balkanization, and the pillage of the continents human and natural resources.” They expect others to forget the past and move on with their lives, however they don’t practice their own beliefs. They seem to think their lives are more precious than those of non-Westners. They build memorials for their people, but banter a slavery memorial. Bush claims that he is seeking justice, but in reality it is revenge he wants- not justice. He is only finishing off the task his father left uncompleted.

• How do I FEEL about the reading I just finished?

I feel shocked after reading this article. It addresses some thought-provoking remarks about Americans.

• What do I THINK about the reading I just finished?

I think what the americans are doing is extremely wrong. Rather then just preaching: forgive and forget, they too should practice this belief.

• What do I BELIEVE about the reading I just finished?

I believe the Americans should find a middle ground with the coutnries they have issues with, instead of seeking revenge. This we decrease the death rate of the mant innocents.

• What do I KNOW about the reading I just finished?

I know what happened on September 11 was an utterly tragic event. It must have caused Americans emotionally and physically. However, the way the Americans are reacting to it is not right. It is not making things better, rather just causing more heartache in the world.

NEGOTIATION, NOT RETRIBUTION

NEGOTIATION, NOT RETRIBUTION

Charles Quist-Adade

Affective Reading

•  What is the reading about?

 The reading is essentially about how events like the September 11 attacks affect us the industrialized countries so immensely. Whereas, we are numb to the fact that “thousands of innocent children, women, and peasants in the developing world” (p2) being killed by the US-led West. It indicates that history has continued to show that retaliation and retribution are not effective ways of dealing with terrorism, but negotiation is.This article depicts how developed countries shed “inordinate” (p1) tears when such attacks take place in their countries; however, we overlook the attacks that are constantly taking place in developing countries. We humans are strange people with “short memories” and “fickle perceptions” (p4) who “do not learn from history” (p5) as Georg Hegel said. For example, Osama bin Laden was trained by theUSto kill Russian soldiers and Afghans, and later was known as a terrorist. Another example, Nelson Mandela was labeled a terrorist, and now he’s seen as an “international icon” (p5).

• How do I FEEL about the reading I just finished?

I feel negotiations are better when it comes to solving problems. It makes it possible to compromise even when people don’t completely get their way.

• What do I THINK about the reading I just finished?

I think the world needs to fix their way of thinking. Its very strange how they can change their mind from one way to another, for example labeling Nelson Mandela as a terrorist, and now he’s seen as a international icon.

• What I BELIEVE about the reading I just finished?

I believe if the world just takes on things by negotiating instead of retribution the world would be a better and peaceful place.

• What I KNOW about the reading I just finished?

I know us people tend to be very strange when it comes to changing our perspectives on things. The reason might be due to media, since media has the power to change people’s identity, as it did Nelson Mandela’s.

SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES IN LOCAL AND GLOBAL CONTEXTS (CHAPTER SEVEN)

Chapter 7

ECONOMIC THEORIES OF

SOCIAL JUSTICE

 

(ParaphrasticReading)

 

This chapter as the title states is about economic justice. Economic justice is an element of social justice, it “focuses on individual and groups, as well as the social order, the moral principles which guide people in a given society in designing their economic institutions” (p131). Economic justice is composed of three principles, these include: The Principle of Participation, The Principle of Distribution, and The Principle of Harmony. Next the chapter discusses capitalism, which “is an economic system characterized by the private ownership of the means of production, from which personal profits can be derived through market competition and without government intervention” (p132). There are various principles of capitalism enumerated, these include: Laissez-faire principle, Individual Rights principle, Limited Government principle, Private Property principle, Competition principle, Voluntary Exchange principle, Consumer Sovereignty principle, Consumer Sovereignty, and last but not least Profit Motive principle. Capitalism also has it flaws, it fails to reward desert, and it promotes inequality. Reactions to capitalism lead to socialism, which “is defined as an economic system characterized by public ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of collective goals, and centralized decision making. The government is ascribed to many roles, some of which include: distributing of shared goods and health services among society, and to prevent any revolt within the country. The key goal of socialism is to remove economic inequality and injustice completely. However, socialism also has its flaws, it “limits the prosperity of its citizens” and it’s “faulted for shifting to extreme government control and dictatorship” (p138). Finally, the chapter wraps it up with the discussion of welfare state. “The welfare state aims to ensure a minimal state of well-being for citizens by placing some limits on rewards through taxation” (p138).  

 

Segment to Paraphrase:

 The goal for the welfare state is to guarantee the health and security of their citizens by having restraints on profits through taxes. These taxes raise money provide social services for the poor to reduce economic inequality. The welfare state is also known as Welfare Capitalism. Welfare state is only used for facade. However, welfare state bends toward the capitalist side, which supports unemployment, and inequality.

 The segment that I have chosen above is vital to this chapter. It demonstrates that our very own government (which is also capitalist) promotes inequalities. This view point enlightening, a country that I have always believed to serve justice contains such perspectives.

SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES IN LOCAL AND GLOBAL CONTEXTS (CHAPTER 3)

 

Chapter 3

SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION

OF INEQUALITY AND DIFFERENCE

(Paraphrastic)

 

This chapter is about social construction of inequality and difference. It basically discusses the different types of inequalities, and how these inequalities are sustained and strengthened in society, and how they are constructed (p31). The chapter begins with the discussion of social construction of race. An example of this includes: the concept of hypo-descent, or also known as the one drop rule, which is a “rule that automatically assigns the children of mixed union or mating between members of different socioeconomic groups in the less privileged group” (p31). “Privilege is defined as an interlocking system of advantage often outside of consciousness” (p32). There are two types of privileges: unearned advantage, and conferred dominance. Then the chapter goes into talking about a term created by Johan Galtung known as structural violence, which “[means] the systematic ways in which a regime prevents individuals from achieving their full potential. It occurs whenever people are disadvantaged by political, legal, economic, or cultural traditions” (p34).  Next the text discusses the social construction of difference also described as otherizing, which “is the process of promoting inequalities or unequal access to resources and opportunities” (p35).  Example of this is: how minority women and men are described as people who are undeserving of equal treatment because of their claimed inferiority (p35).  The construction of difference leads to oppression, which is contrary to privilege. There are 3 forms of oppression: institutionalized oppression, interpersonal oppression, and internalized oppression. Furthermore, according to Kallen (2008) the method of invalidation accomplishes social construction of difference. Invalidation is the key to inequality and social injustice (p37). It has three vital steps, first being the labeling of particular populations as invalid, second categorical discrimination against the invalidated, and the last being the process of self-fulfilling prophecy of invalidation, in which the disadvantaged populations start to believe in their claimed inferiority (p40). Finally, the chapter delves into exploring the difference and the connection between the concepts of stereotyping and prejudice. Prejudice and stereotypes are negative universal schemes, giving us a better understanding of erratic reality.

Segment to Paraphrase:

Mixed marriages have always been a part of the United States. Though, ‘multiracial’ identity was not existent to the government of theUnited Statesuntil 2000.  Rather, hypo-descent was applied to assign children of a blended union to the less privileged category. This was also referred to as the one drop rule; this concept proposes the idea that the smallest amount of black blood automatically refers you as a black person. For example, if your great, great grandparent was not white or black but your entire ancestry was white, this person would still be seen as black.

The segment that I have chosen above virtually sums up the entire theme of this chapter, which is about how minority groups face inequality and social injustice for no rational reason.

 

 

SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES IN LOCAL AND GLOBAL CONTEXTS (CHAPTER TWO)

Chapter 2

SOCIAL REALITY CONSTRUCTION

AND GLOBAL SOCIAL JUSTICE

Charles Quist-Adade

 

(Paraphrastic Reading)

This chapter is about the social construction of reality, referred to as social constructionism, which is based on the belief “that there is nothing natural or normal about the world we inhabit” (p19). Instead, we ourselves build meaning of our everyday experiences in the social world. Due to the differences of “time” and geographical locations we tend to look at things in different perspectives. Another aspect of the social construction of reality is that there is no right or wrong way of interpreting social phenomena; people simply have different view points on the social occurrences. For example, when the death of Osama bin Laden was announced people carried different outlooks on the action. Some viewed it as murder, or assassination, and others such as the Americans viewed it as a celebration. This chapter then goes on talking about critical constructivist perspective, which is based on the assumption “that while human reality is collectively constructed by all members of collectives, what becomes acceptable reality must first be sanctioned, sanctified, and legitimized by the power or ruling elite” (p23). Critical constructivists concentrate on the power elite who believe street crimes are very dangerous, while they ignore corporate crimes. The power elite redirect the attention of the public from corporate crime to street crime. They do this through Antonio Gramsci’s concept, referred to as hegemony. Hegemony allows the power elite to “win consent [which is done without force] so that the power of the dominant classes appears both legitimate and natural” (p25). This is not to say that the oppressed don’t combat, because they do through the process of counter-hegemony. Later, this chapter goes into talking about Social Justice, which promotes “ideas, norms, and practices designed to create an egalitarian society” (p26). Then, social justice is expanded into the international realm, known as Global Social Justice. Whether it is justice in a local context or a global they both are inseparably connected.  The next concept this chapter discusses is sociological imagination perspective, which depicts that the forces of history and biography have plotted to rule the lives of all the people of “our global village” (p27).  This concept aspires us to believe that all “nations of the world need one another” (p28) in order to fulfill the needs of their nation to function. 

 

Segment to Paraphrase:

People from different places in the world take on different meanings of the same message, due to the difference of religion, gender, class and backgrounds.  A specific example would be: the concept of time, which in thevillageofTeawiah(Eastern Ghana) read differently than we do.  They “either look at the sky or think about the crowning of the rooster” (2012, p19) in order to tell time.  Whereas, people here would either look at their wrist watches, or at the clock on the wall.

 This five-sentence segment that I have paraphrased above basically sums up the entire chapter, hence the reason I chose it. It depicts the different yet thought-provoking perspectives of all the inhabitants of our global village. I believe it’s the most vital segment in the chapter, because it allows us to recognize the different realities and meanings for different nations.