1) Which clip do you think portrays each respective time? Do you think there is a racial bias in either of these representations and why? What motives do you feel white women would have in practicing discretion with respect to race during these liberating times?
In my opinion, the first clip represents the early stages of women's suffrage, and that the second clip focuses on the civil rights movement. Although the clips are primarily about two different movements, fighting for women's rights is seen in both. Although subtle, I definitely think the first clip does have a racial bias. The focus on women's suffrage was about white, upper class, educated women. Nothing is mentioned about African American's in this clip. Personally, I think the biggest motive in white women practicing discretion with respect to race was simply because they didn't want to ask too much in such a short time. Society doesn't take well to change. Because of this, every change made has to take baby steps. A baby step would be for women to vote. Too far and too fast for society would be rights for women, both white and African American women.
2) Do you feel this "evolution of perspective" is paralleled in our generation today with respect to the many issues of humanism such as sexism, racism, agism, violence etc? What external factors perpetuate this change? Do you believe this to be positive or negative?
I apologize if I sound unintelligent, but I'm not sure what this question is asking, but I will answer it with an answer about what I think it is asking. I do think perspective has changed four our generation in regards to issues of humanism. In the last 50 years women's roles and expectations in society have changed immensely. Although we still have an agist society, recent research is showing that being elderly does not make you a lesser person. Past scholarly understanding was very different.
Ch11 1) What do you think could be some of the underlying causes of this violence? Hooks also notes that much of the public refuses to link the violence to patriarchal thinking or male domination, why do you think this is?
I think one of the biggest underlying causes of domestic violence is how men are portrayed in the media. Men in the media are violent and controlling. This violence and control is absolutely linked to male domination. These ideals are taught starting in childhood, as seen in Disney films. This concept is explained in the following clip:
Although this doesn't show domestic violence in particular, it is still putting the idea of violence and dominance being expected from men. Because these ideas are taught from such an early age, they are seen as normal. Because they are seen as normal, the public refuses to link violence to male domination.
The following clip shows more male violence portrayed in the media, and especially focuses on normalizing male violence against women (My apologies for only posting the link. I couldn't find the video when I tried to insert it into the blog.):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elbWcsM7eoA
After watching this video and thinking of some responses on your own, how do you think domestic violence between spouses and children can be related? Also, after the video, how do you think this issue of the two forms of violence being closely related each other can be brought more to light so that the issue can be more of a topic to be worked on being resolved? What steps do you think need to be taken to resolve this form of violence?
After watching that intense video and from my personal opinion, I absolutely think that spouse violence and violence towards children are absolutely related. From a psychological standpoint (not that I'm qualified), the offender is violent towards the spouse and children in order to have a sense of control. The idea that there is relation between these forms of violence needs to be heard, whether it through the news, through movies, or music, simply getting the ideas heard is the best way to start to find a resolution for this. More resources for safety for the victims needs to be available because partners often stay with the abuser because they are frightened for their life. Abusers that attempt to leave are often murdered or hurt worse by the abuser, so many feel that it is better to not risk their life.
I have watched the movie Iron Jawed Angels in another course in college and it is a depiction of the women’s suffragist movement as done by white women. The focus on white women was noted by viewers as seen in a comment on the clip stating “women of color were actively excluded in first wave feminism, and the story of black suffragists is all but absent from this film”. The Help clip is centered more on early struggles of the civil rights movement when black women were still not viewed as equals. One can argue that even today black women are not portrayed as equals. The media has helped create a culture in which members of our society believe black women act more like the characters in the first clip I have included rather than the second. Evolution of perspective can be seen in our generation today in focusing on current social issues. Each generation hears what previous ones have said and done and then alters these messages. Currently, our generation is challenging many of these long-lived perspective issues, allowing people to speak more freely on their stances. This can be openly seen through generation changes in voting trends. Younger generations have become increasingly more democratic, showing a larger interest in promoting for all individuals no matter what race, ethnicity, sex, gender, or sexual orientation. I think this is a positive change for it is important for individuals to recognize not everyone is the same but that does not mean they deserve differential treatment. Male aggression is something that is brushed off far too frequently in our society. Domestic violence has many triggers but the aim to maintain a patriarchical household is often the primary motivator. Today, men are often responsible for items which at one time were considered strictly feminine tasks. These tasks include washing dishes, doing laundry, and caring for children. Although in some households the stereotypical gender roles hold true, more often than not there is some type of fusion within a household. Pent up frustration with their actual life versus the one society envisions them to have can be a motivator for this male domination. I think this is often overlooked in society because of the negative connotations that come along with being labeled a feminine male.
Ch 10 Question 1) I watched this film in one of my classes years ago and it is absolutely chilling what some of these women went through to fight for a right that I take for granted and only exercise every four years. I especially remember the part when they decide to protest in front of the White House and people say that they can't "picket a wartime president". This is such an interesting statement to me because I think this sentiment remains in a variety of settings. Like don't criticize a system that is working for you in so many ways just because it is not working in one way. Criticism and feedback should always be allowed in order for voices to be heard and needs met.
The second clip definitely refers to the beginning of the civil rights movement, which also began which voices being heard. This movie was interesting because it showed the wide range of attitudes of both white and black women during that time period. There were some women who strictly abided by the rules between white women and their black help and other women who did not care for the rules, such as eating separately and no hugging. And then there were the younger women, such as the main character, who regarded the help as family because they had raised them from the time they were babies and played a motherly role in their lives. To me this reflects the same thing today that there is a wide variety of opinions about the race issue and women's rights, but in inverse proportions.
This made me think of a clip in the movie A League of Their Own. This has been one of my favorite movies since I was quite young, probably 9 years old. My parents strictly censored what I was allowed to watch, so it was exciting to be able to see a movie with famous actresses. And it is such an empowering movie for women in so many ways. One of my favorite aspects is that the movie did not put in any unnecessary romance or affairs between the characters and coach or other males. I think that today, unfortunately, this would have been "Hollywoodized" in this way and totally ruined. Anyway, the clip I am looking for is impossible to find anywhere so I will describe it. Near the end of the film in a brief moment there is a nod to the fact that yes this is a film about a time that was empowering to women but that it was for white women. In the scene the women are practicing and the baseball goes out of field. A black woman picks it up and instead of throwing it to one of the women closer to her throws it farther to another woman. She throws it so far and hard that the woman who catches it takes off her glove and shakes her hand. I remember the very first time I saw this scene and my dad explaining the significance of it. It is a powerful moment.
The Real World 1992
Ch 10 Question 2) Evolution of perspective is definitely in our generation in many ways and levels. For example, in one of my classes last semester we talked about reality shows like Real World and Road Rules that purposely mixed up people from differently backgrounds and watched them live and grow together. Our discussion was about how it seemed that the early seasons of this show focused on picking people of different races and geographical backgrounds and later seasons tend to mix up the group based on different sexual orientations. I think this is because for a large part (not all) of our generation, race is a non-issue. Now we can tackle prejudice against sexual orientation in the same manner and hopefully for the next generation (or sooner) that will become a non-issue and will move on to something else. To me this generational change is one of the major factors that comes into play in social movements like these, although there are always exceptions in both the older and younger generations.
Ch 11 Question 1) This chapter riled me up a bit because it deviated so much from the initial messages about feminism being about women AND men. There was no mention of domestic violence against men in both heterosexual and homosexual relationships. This is such an overlooked area because violence is something people do not want to talk about, let alone the victimization of men. Even in our media illustration today (no offense to the presenter, she did a great job) there was no mention of men being victims of sexual violence! And furthermore I did not like the wording in the bell hooks book about linking domestic violence to patriarchal thinking or male domination. Does "male domination" explain the same sex violence between two women that bell hooks mentions? This just makes me mad even writing this.
The following is a clip from the show What Would You Do? that has actors in real life situations to gauge what the public's reaction is. I actually do not like this show because I believe that people have intuition about when to intervene/call the police and that having actors affects people's intuition. BUT, with that said, this clip makes some very good points and made me think.
Some of the underlying causes I can see are a variety of things. I know some men who absolutely hate the legal system because they feel it favors women: she'll get the children, she'll get awarded child support, the state can garnish wages for child support, etc. I know men who hate women, think they are all cheaters and will just live off of child support while he works himself to the bone the rest of his life, lives in poverty and occasionally sees his children. Yes, this happens in some cases. But I think it is a minority of cases.
Another underlying cause I could see is what men experience on the job. I can only speak from my experience, which was full-time work in a factory. I saw the amount of crap that the technicians and mechanics (which were 99% male) had to put up with on a daily basis. It is hard to define this "crap" because it occurred all the time and in so many ways. When I think about it, it boiled down to 1) having very little decision-making power in the workplace 2) being highly underappreciated 3) being treated like one of many and not necessarily a unique individual with unique contributions. We were all treated like this, but I think for the men in the technical positions it was an emasculating experience. I can see how someone in this day in and day out for their 20, 30, 40 years of work could take out their frustration at home on their partner, although I am of course not excusing that. Of course there are productive ways to act out frustration like going to the gym and punching a punching bag, not a person, joining a men's group with a strong foundation like in a church or AA. There need to be more resources like this where men can mentor each other and have a conversational outlet. Of course, I am saying this as a woman and this is what I see as a solution, however, it may be different from a man's perspective. And I just realized that I am talking about men as the abusers, the very thing that made me so mad in my previous paragraph. Accidental hypocrisy induced by a lifetime of patriarchal societal thinking.
Ch 11 Question 2) I think domestic violence between spouses definitely affects the children in many ways. I had a previous boyfriend who told me horrifying stories of the domestic abuse between his mom and her succession of boyfriends throughout his entire childhood. It was sick how much it affected his life. He said he and his sister would get very little sleep because his mom and current boyfriend would scream and yell at each other all night, with violence toward his mom. Then he would be tired all day at school and not do well academically at all. He ended up dropping out of high school. I know that there are other factors that contribute to this, but it sickens me to think that this person's entire life was affected by this in this way. He had a right to an education and it was taken away by mostly listening to abuse in the home. He witnessed it and was involved on some occasions, but the worst of the effect simply came from hearing it while trying to sleep. This just boggles my mind that people can do this! And furthermore, his sister has only been in relationships with men who beat the crap out of her. The person that she considers "the one" for her beats her up regularly, has a baby with her, is in prison for three years, and she still visits him and wants him in her life! The whole family was scared of him and when he would get out of prison. It is just so messed up that entire families are affected by domestic violence for generations. I am just so outraged even writing this!
At a very young age from the time I was born until I was about 3 years old, my mom had boyfriends/husband who were abusers (none were my father). This is really hard for me to talk/write about because it stopped after that and I don't want to put my mom in a negative light. I was so young that I, of course, don't have many memories of that time. The hard part is that the memories I do have are painful, bring tears to my eyes, a knot in my throat and a pit in my stomach. It is true that the younger the child, the more of an effect this has on shaping who they are. I did not learn any of the "lessons" in the above video clip, which I have also heard in other classes. The lessons are that children will learn abuse is normal and learn to be aggressive. But there is something else that children can learn: fear. Specifically fear of victimization. I definitely learned fear and have had a very fear-based mentality that I have struggled with for my entire life. It has only been recently that I have overcome a lot of this and that was only through years and years of intrapersonal work, counseling and especially spiritual work.
So what steps do we take to stop these effects of domestic violence on children? I don't know where this starts. We can make it part of the legal system with consequences to engage in domestic violence in front of children. I just learned in my Human Sexuality class that this can legally be reported as child abuse in the state of NE and some other states. This is a start. I think another major factor is people speaking out about their experiences as children. We hear so much about children who grow up in abusive households who become abusers. But there are NUMEROUS individuals who grew up in households with domestic abuse who have NEVER been abusers. Many have never spoken about their experiences, wishing to bury the pain. But if people who have gone through these experiences can speak out about their pain, it can help children who are in these situations.
When watching the first clip it seems like they are portray
the women’s suffragist movement, and it is also specifically women’s rights to
vote and have somewhat of power. In the second clip that I saw it showed women
and blacks women facing to help rich and wealth people to clean there housed
but couldn’t use the same bath rooms as they did. So this would be related to
the civil rights movement “Wrongly they saw us as deflecting focus away from gender. In reality, we
were demanding that we look at the status of females realistically..."
(hooks, 2007, p. 57).
I think
that are generation has a different theory than our parents and grandparents.
I think
it is a great thing because the older the generation just doesn’t trust or
accepting people that aren’t like them or that look like them at all. Today
generation is more open to the different and unfamiliar areas. But don’t get me
wrong we still have trouble accepting other people in are lives. But I really
think that there is going to be violence and racism and sexism etc.. the world
will never be perfect. It is just how we were created and how people are born.
I really think there can be many underlying causes for male
violence towards women. There could be anger to the male towards the female,
examples could be the male had a bad day at the office or got yelled out or
played bad in golf or something else so they have no one to take it out except
the wife or girlfriend. There could be more why the male is always anger but I
don’t think they should hurt the women by beating them or verbal abuse. I
really think the public doesn’t want to admit that there is violence towards
the women and when the women may get beat. She doesn’t want to tell on them
because maybe they love them so much and if they did tell they might be hurt
even worse.
When watching this clip. Domestic violence between spouse
and children can be related. When the two spouse are fighting and the child is
right there learning and taking it in In class we learned about the social
learning theory. So when watching the spouse fight and the child is there
watching it could bring them to cause a fight in school.
I really
think that both violence’s canbe
brought more to the light, by maybe going to a class that what not to bring in
a house hold when a child is around. And also what I said above that people are
scared to tell people about what is going on in there family or just to come
out. People are scared because they don’thttp
Chapter 10 1.) I believe that the clip for Iron Jawed Angel is hard to nail down to the two prescribed time periods you speak about. But, if I had to choose one, I would choose the time period when where women are concerned with total women's liberation. It seems that Hilary Swank's character does not even recognize the fact of racial differences and mentions nothing about civil rights struggles. Instead, I feel that her character has taken it upon herself to be the voice that has to be heard because she is a white, upper class woman. She may not outright say it, but I feel that she has the notion that she is more informed and better educated than others, which may cause her to have a feeling of superiority over black women and more concerned woman's liberation as a whole. But, she does not take a "white power" stance described by hooks; " just like abolitionist ancestors who had demanded that everyone be given the right to vote, but when faced with the possibility that black males might gain the right to vote while they were denied it on the basis of gender, they chose to ally themselves with men, uniting under the rubric of white supremacy" (pg. 56). So, even though they do not align solely with white men against all blacks, it still feels like they are taking the side for white women's rights after they were heard as having absolute whites for all women of color. I think the clip about The Help definitely is from the time when the civil rights movement was in full swing. It recognizes the fact that women already have certain rights awarded to them, but they seem to be available to only upper class white women and unavailable to the black women who work for them. White women seemed to have joined with the white men to suppress any rights for black people, and so to be heard, the white girl must write what is happening and how unfair the scales are.
As I said, I do think there is a racial bias in the clips. In Jawed Angel, race isn't even discussed. It focuses purely on white women's rights. But for The Help I think that there is equal representation of both whites and blacks, but still a bias against other minority groups. Latino and Asian women are not even mentioned, and the last time I checked Civil Rights encompasses all minority groups, not just blacks.
I think that women may have had strong motives to practicing discretion with respect to race during the early times seen in Jawed Angel. This is a time where blacks are still viewed as lower rung and long enough beofre the Civil Rights Movement to where the public has little concern with other minorities. So, the women were simply being politically smart and picking their battles one at a time, meaning that they understood that they could not secure all women's rights at once, but that they would have to be slowly secured and chipped away at as the public began to embrace civil rights more and more.
2.)Yes, I do feel that this evolution of perspective parallels to our generation with respect to many issues. In example, I think our generation is much more tolerant to sex then it was in the generation before us. With much more women in the work force, leaving the home, and comprising society, the women of today did not have to experience the professional difficulties that women had to face during our parents' and grandparents' time. I think this video shows how contemporary women didn't have to deal with these issues
I also think that other minorities today have had a younger generation develop that have challenged cultural racist ideas towards them. I feel that minorities like Latinos and Asians today are redefining their public perceptions by becoming a larger part of the population and dominating demographics, whereas to a generation ago they were the people coming into our country yet not entering our societal system. Instead they seemed to hold menial positions where now there are Latino supreme court justices and Asian business leaders.
I think that the external factors that perpetuate this change is solely the composition of the subordinated group in the demographics. If they are the larger part of the group, they have a larger say, and have a larger voice. It seems to me that smaller groups get easily perpetrated against due to their lack of voice. So, having strong group leaders and numbers is a very key thing.
Chapter 11 1.) I think many of the underlying causes of violence has to do very much with the male's upbringing by his parents. If he witnessed his mother being abused he may think that it is acceptable, or if he didn't he may not perpetrate this violence. Another factor may have to do with work environment. A stressful environment can be brought home from the office very easily, and a male could look for a place to emotionally dump this stress (in this case being a woman). Another underlying cause could be media's portrayal of violence in general. We are so numbed to the thought of human beings be violated (be int MMA, video games, or viral videos) that the violence becomes part of everyday life and something we are accustomed to.
I think the public may refuse to link violence to patriarchal thinking because there are so many other facets that could be making this violence happen besides just male domination. Instead of focusing on how our society works and is dominated, people want to find easier and more poignant examples of what is causing violence, and not point the finger at the system itself. I think this may be a stage of denial due to the fact that we don't want to recognize that our culture is one of sever inequality.
2.) After watching the video, I think domestic violence between spouses and children can be very related. First, like I discussed, children many times learn from watching like the Social Learning Theory we discussed in class. Children learn from watching their parents, so when they see domestic violence they may become accustomed to it and may perform it themselves, continuing a circle. Or, if they see this violence against someone they love, they may make a point to never incorporate it to their lives.
I think the issue can be brought more to light so it can be more of a discussed topic is by incorporating it into the media more. I know we all see movies and shows with domestic violence in it, but we hardly see any media addressing it or its underlying causes. We need to stop being enamored with the violence itself and instead dig deeper into the roots of things. Support groups need to be made more prevalent, as does education on the subject so that children can learn from a young age that what they are witnessing is wrong and should never occur.
Resources:
bell hooks. (2000).Feminism is for everyone. Cambridge, MA: South End Press.
Ch 10.
1. I believe the clip "Iron Jawed Angels", mostly represents the early stages of women's suffrage and feminist movements, and maybe a little bit of the early civil rights movement. One part of the clip that really stood out to me was a small part in which a member of the government was chastising his wife (I am assuming she was apart of or supporting the protesting). This stood out to me because not only was she standing up against the government, but her husband as well, who happens to be apart of the government that she is fighting.
The preview from the movie "The Help" represents more of the early civil rights movement to me. This movie focuses on the hardships of African American females, it does touch on gender but mainly race, in my eyes at least. The main character obviously has some feminist qualities but instead of protesting inequality of gender, she focuses on the inequality of the African American women who are working for rich white families.
I think that "The Help" demonstrates racial biases more than "Iron Jawed Angels". In the clip for "Iron Jawed Angels", we don't see much emphasis on race, it is mostly geared towards the women's suffrage movement and feminist movement. "The Help", is mainly about race and gender and is full of racial biases.
2. I am honestly not sure how to answer this question. Sorry
Ch11
1. To me, underlying causes of domestic violence is simply the inability to control your anger. This is a skill that we are supposed to learn starting in early childhood. I personally don't think that violence is always bad, the motive behind the violence is what we should be looking at.
I think the public tries to separate domestic violence from male domination and patriarchal thinking because we don't want to admit that this way of thinking is still prevalent. I personally think that when a man beats his wife, it is probably because he is angry, cannot control his temper, AND feels the need to express his dominance over her. Besides self defense, there aren't many other reasons to hit a person besides attempting to show dominance.
2. I think there is a huge relation between child and spouse abuse, like I mentioned above these people are not in full control of their anger/tempers, and they use violence to show their dominance, whether it be a child or a spouse, to teach a lesson or prove that they are the top dog and not to be questioned. I really like this movie as an example because it shows just how far some people will go to show that they are dominant. This woman is tired of getting beat so she learns self defense and runs away. The man is so angry, and probably humiliated by this that he actually tracks her down to continue his assaults.
I think that these issues are already in the light, we just need to put more emphasis on prevention. I think that all parents should have to take a course on parenting and what to expect when dealing with children, especially when they push your buttons. I would even say that a psychological exam is necessary in many cases before people should be allowed to be parents, to show that they can handle the stress without going of the deep end.
1) Which clip do you think portrays each respective time? Do you think there is a racial bias in either of these representations and why? What motives do you feel white women would have in practicing discretion with respect to race during these liberating times?
The first is for the women’s suffrage movement, the second is more for the civil rights movement. However in both clips we can see the fight for the rights of women. I think there is a little racial bias in the first one, only because I have never heard anything about African American women in the women’s suffrage movement. Motives I feel white women have in practicing discretion with respect to race during both of these times were probably fear. They were probably a little nervous to go against the grain, I am sure Rosa Parks was scared to death not to leave her seat. It was a bold move I am sure many African American women had thought of but where to scared of the consequences to try it. With the women’s suffrage movement I think that the women used the fact they were white to have just a little more leverage, I think punishment for African American women would have been far worse then that of white women.
With the women’ suffrage movement (and I know I am not that educated on it so this is kind of just my opinion) I think of these women are being classy and powerful. And my first time learning about this movement was when I got my first American Girl Doll Samantha. In Samantha’s story her Aunt is apart of the movement, but her grandmother (who Samantha lives with) does not approve of the situation. Kind of random but everything I think of women’s suffrage movement I think of my American Girl Doll :)
2) Do you feel this "evolution of perspective" is paralleled in our generation today with respect to the many issues of humanism such as sexism, racism, agism, violence etc? What external factors perpetuate this change? Do you believe this to be positive or negative?
Yes I feel that the “evolution perspective” is still around today. I think just our generation does not feel the oppression that our ancestors did. I can vote, I can own land, I can buy my own house, I can get a good high paying job. I just do not think our generation has ever felt the oppression that the women’s suffrage did. Some external factors I think that really push this change is pop culture and the media. There are successful and powerful women all over the US. I say the US because I think this question needs to be United States based, because there sadly are many countries that still do no consider women to be anything but a tool to make more men. I think it is positive that we are not still stomping around Washington asking for equality. I doubt it would go anywhere, I think we need to sit back and look where we have came. Like I said I can vote, that is more then some women around the world. I think it is also positive because with media we can see that there is a long ways to go in the feminist movement and I think it keeps us grounded.
Ch11 1) What do you think could be some of the underlying causes of this violence? Hooks also notes that much of the public refuses to link the violence to patriarchal thinking or male domination, why do you think this is?
I think a lot of male violence comes from these men seeing there own fathers acting like this towards women. I completely believe it has to do with how a man in brought up, and the values that were instilled on him as a child. A popular media star that we see this in is Eminem. He talks about hitting/killing Kim (his daughters mother) in many of his songs. But he also talks about the abuse he had as a child with his own mother. I can not help but wonder if they are connected, him being abused as a child to him abusing Kim? I would post a video but they are kind of graphic…
I think that the public has a hard time connecting patriarchal and male domination because the patriarchal thinking is so common, and so natural in almost all families. It is hard to say “oh okay you have a patriarchal thinking therefore you are abusive”.
After watching this video and thinking of some responses on your own, how do you think domestic violence between spouses and children can be related? Also, after the video, how do you think this issue of the two forms of violence being closely related each other can be brought more to light so that the issue can be more of a topic to be worked on being resolved? What steps do you think need to be taken to resolve this form of violence?
I think that if someone is abusing there spouse, what is going to keep them from abusing their child (or vise versa). I do not think we see a lot of news on violence on both the spouse and the child; it is usually just one or the other. I think it is hard to people to wrap their minds around such horrible acts to begin with. I think it could be brought more publicly if we talked about it more. People do not like talking about abuse of any kind for a lot of reasons and we need to put those issues aside and talk. I think steps that need to be taken are making sure spouses and children know they can talk to people. I think that a lot of people are scared to tell people about what is going on. People who have been abused are so emotionally distract they do not think they should tell anyone.
Ch. 10:
1. Which clip do you think portrays each respective time? Do you think
there is a racial bias in either of these representations and why? What
motives do you feel white women would have in practicing discretion with
respect to race during these liberating times? I definitely think Iron Jawed Angels portrays the woman's suffragist movement, and The Help depicts the civil rights movement. The Iron Jawed Angels didn't seem to show much racial tension, but I think The Help incorporated a bit of women's rights as well as racial segregation. With that being said, there was a lot of racial bias in The Help-that was the whole reason for the movie! I really thought it was particularly interesting in the clip when the woman writing the book mentioned the fact that the white women were more than fine having the black women take care of the children, but they wouldn't allow them to use the same bathroom as the white women. This idea definitely brings to light the racial segregation still occurring during this time. In response to the final question, I agree with bell hooks' idea on the subject when she says, ""Wrongly they
saw us as deflecting focus away from gender. In reality, we were
demanding that we look at the status of females realistically..."
(hooks, 2007, p. 57). 2. Do you feel this "evolution of perspective" is paralleled in our
generation today with respect to the many issues of humanism such as
sexism, racism, agism, violence etc? What external factors perpetuate
this change? Do you believe this to be positive or negative? I'd like to think these issues have improved with time, and each generation brings with it a more accepting and understanding nature; however, it it is clear in our everyday society that this is not always the case. Though not as extreme, there are still issues with sexism, racism, agism, and violence in today's society. Looking at the big picture, I think generations have become more accepting of differences. I think this is especially true for the younger generations. I know from experience that overall people in their 20's seem to be more accepting of a range of individuals verses men and women in their 50's and 60's. This just seems to come with time and growth. I remember talking about social equality in elementary school and really haven't stopped learning about it. This idea just didn't seem to be the case years ago. I think this change is a great thing, but there will always be room for further improvement. I have the Today show on as I write this blog, and I think a pretty relevant news segment came on that correlates to this idea. Although he experienced severe racial segregation as a child, he has overcome his hurt and focuses on spreading kindness and positivity. http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/46571114#46571114
Ch. 11: 1. What do you think could be some of the underlying
causes of this violence? Hooks also notes that much of the public refuses to
link the violence to patriarchal thinking or male domination, why do you think
this is? I don't know if it's possible to pin point why violence occurs in patriarchal relationships. If everyone knew why they occurred, I'm sure we there would be a lot more done to prevent them. After going through extensive training for a domestic violence and sexual abuse crisis center in Lincoln, I will say it seems to have a lot to do with power and control. I know bell hooks doesn't like this idea because it focuses on sexism, but a lot of cases of DV seem to come down to this underlying idea. In response to the second question, no one wants to generalize all men as being the "bad guys". It is easy to agree that men often have a dominant role in a relationship, but when it comes to attributing it to violence, it's easier for people to blame the situation on other factors that don't paint such a negative picture of the male figure. This video below incorporates children as victims of domestic violence as well. Even if the child isn't being physically hurt by the abuser, the emotional violence that stems from these relationships are overwhelmingly hurtful.
2. After watching this video and thinking of
some responses on your own, how do you think domestic violence between spouses
and children can be related? Also, after the video, how do you think this issue
of the two forms of violence being closely related each other can be brought
more to light so that the issue can be more of a topic to be worked on being
resolved? What steps do you think need to be taken to resolve this form of
violence? Well, I guess I kind of addressed this idea already in the above question, but domestic violence between spouses definitely has an effect on the children as well. The video I posted above gives some mind-blowing statistics that really bring to light just how much a child is impacted by such violence. I think people just need to be more educated on the topic. Domestic violence is such an ugly thing, so people try to push it aside and not think about it. By raising awareness of the severity of the situation as well as the long lasting effects it has on both the spouses and the children, I would hope more people would be willing to help the cause. Also, I know victims of DV often don't tell anyone because they feel ashamed or are fearful it will make the situation worse. Victims need to be empowered and respected so they feel more comfortable telling their story and seeking help. Overall, there needs to be more awareness made, and safe environments need to be created to allow these victims to speak up.
1.) The first clip displays the period of time in the shift to the women's liberation movement. At 0:16 the woman says, "Wanna be two girls on a corner soapbox, or do you wanna go to Washington and play with the big lads?" Another woman then says, "... She thinks Congress is gonna suddenly roll over and give women the vote?" These quotes both suggest that these women are fighting for women's rights. Additionally, they mention Woodrow Wilson, who was president from 1913-1921, and in 1920 the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. I think there was a racial bias in this video clip, because African American women were working for women's suffrage as well, such as members of Delta Sigma Theta at Howard University in 1913.
Black Sorority Project: www.blacksororityproject.com
(jwhite1906, 2006)
The second clip is focused on the civil rights movement. I think it is less biased than the first clip, however, I still don't think we can say for certain because most of us see this situation from being part of the privileged group. I think women in these times would have been motivated to practice discretion in respect to race to maintain their elite social status. It is necessary to get the subordinate group to agree with you enough that they do not harm your cause; however, they still saw themselves as superior. As stated by bell hooks (2000), "Yet many of these individuals moved from civil rights into women's liberation and spearheaded a feminist movement where they suppressed and denied the awareness of difference they had seen and heard articulated firsthand in civil rights struggle. Just because they participated in anti-racist struggle did not mean that they had divested of white supremacy, of notions that they were superior to black females, more informed, better educated, more suited to "lead" a movement" (p. 55-56).
2.) Yes, I do think this "evolution of perspective" is paralleled in our generation. One is example we've already talked about is with sexual orientation and the repeal of "Don't Ask Don't Tell." With fear of being discharged from the military, gay service members would not introduce their sexual orientation. However, with society becoming more open, Don't Ask Don't Tell has been repealed, allowing service members to be open about their sexuality. While gay service members were still subordinated through Don't Ask, Don't tell, society's greater freedom to discuss these issues gave these members more support. I believe this idea of "evolution of perspective" is positive, because it leads to a more unified human race and allows injustices to be called out. This video shows two different perspectives on Don't Ask, Don't Tell, both from military veterans.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell's potential repeal gets reaction in Tucson
(KOLDNEWS13, 2010)
Chapter 11
First, let me start off by saying that it bothers me that it seems like the violence of women against men is minimized, as well as that there is no mention of the violence of men against men in same-sex relationships. As stated by bell hooks (2000), "Initially feminist focus on domestic violence highlighted male violence against women, but as the movement progressed evidence showed that there was also domestic violence present in same-sex relations, that women in relationships with women were and are oftentimes the victims of abuse, that children were also victims of adult patriarchal violence enacted by women and men. . . Clearly most women do not use violence to dominate men (even though small numbers of women batter the men in their lives) . . . " (p. 61, 64). According to the Domestic Violence Resource Center (2012), between 100,000 and 6 million men are the victims of domestic violence every year, depending on the type of survey used. Even if it was only one male experiencing domestic violence, doesn't he also deserve the right to help and resources?
1.) I think the underlying causes of this violence are the culture of male domination, and also from seeing what your parents did growing up. Those who lived in a household of or were abused are more likely to abuse themselves. I think people refuse to link the violence to patriarchal thinking or male domination because males are the dominant group, who therefore shape this history. The victims of this violence also sometimes blame themselves out of shame for their situation, and think that it is their fault. People who this violence happens to are also sometimes seen as having brought it upon themselves by society. This picture from one of my friend's Facebook walls, I think illustrates this point well:
2.) Domestic violence between spouses and children are definitely related. First, children can become directly involved in the violence by trying to "save" one of the parents, or by the parents taking their outburst of anger on a child who just happens to be in the way. Additionally, children can become involved emotionally/psychologically by seeing the violence. It can impact their sense of stability, safety, and idea of a healthy relationship as well as set a path to possibly enact this behavior in their future relationships. Most parents would do anything for their kids, but might not always think about how their actions impact their children in the heat of the moment. I think this issue can be brought into a greater light by educating parents on how this violence is impacting their children and the lasting consequences it can have. We can begin to resolve spousal violence by educating current and future generations on healthier ways to resolve relationship problems, so that hopefully these new ideals will become embedded in our society.
