Blog #5 - Race & Violence for Feminists

Chapter 10


Question #1
- I think that the first clip, for Iron Jawed Angels, is representing issues of the Woman's Suffragist movement; and the second clip, for The Help, is representing struggles of the Civil Rights movement. I think the first one has a severe racial bias. It follows along perfectly with what bell hooks said about white women presuming that they were more able to lead the feminist movement. Not only that, though, but that trailer for the movie also lacked any mention (visual or verbal) of including women of color. Granted, that lack of mention may be because the women's movement was just starting, and word had yet to get around to others, but you would think that there would at least be some women of color from the area in which the first happenings of the suffragist movement was occurring?
- White women practicing racial discretion during the Civil Rights movement, I don't see as being as visible in comparison with the Woman's Suffragist movement. For the suffragist movement, aside from what bell hooks said, I can see a motive being the lack of control after everyone was given the right to vote. Although I'm not sure about past goings on, I wonder if there was a larger population of color than Whites, and if that would have an effect of swaying the vote? If most women who were out trying to get the right to vote were in anyway still under the influence of their husbands/fathers, then they may have been fearing the day when all people of color were given the right to vote - moreso than trying to gain the right to vote for themselves, "women".
- The below clip pretty much shows how a White woman from The Help feel towards her African American maid and her reasonings for why she wants things to stay unchanging. (Even though I'm thinking this movie is posited right before the Civil Rights movement, the woman in the clip would be someone who would be for women's right to vote, but not for all women's right to vote)

Question #2 
- I think that we, as a society, are becoming more aware of how others are being judged based on different parts of their identity. However, something like agism is a topic that is prevalent but that we do not notice as something that's being discriminated against. In terms of something like agism, then, no, I don't think that we are evolving in terms of how we are seeing judgments as being right vs. wrong. 
- This super short clip just shows how an issue like agism is not even prevalent in our society to be known as a discrimination, but it is a real thing...and, yes, Michael Scott is an expert in all things ethical...

- I think bringing about and recognizing wrongs that are being done against a group is what we all need because at one time or another, we are either going to be judged based on an aspect of our identity or judge someone else. Being aware of how that is a wrong, we can better communicate with others, and with ourselves, to become better people.


Chapter 11


Question #1
- Some underlying causes of patriarichal violence, from a mother's point of view, could be for reasons that are similar to why it is thought that men are violent in the home - because they have no power outside of the home. Although a mother may work at a job (and not be constrained to stay solely in a home), she may not have the position that she wants, and with someone working over her, she feels powerless. Hence, when she comes home and it's in shambles because of the kids horsing around, she could feel empowered over someone and participate in patriarichal violence.
- This example, mixing a time before (presumably) the suffragist movement, shows how a mother participates in patriarichal violence by showing high contempt for her daughter - and we find out later in the clip that it's because the mother, herself, is having violence being done unto her by the father, someone who is of a higher status.

- I think the public chooses to ignore violence because it is an issue makes us all uncomfortable, and could possbily put ourselves in harm's way. Also, I think the biggest reason why we don't try to resolve violence is because, as an autonomous country, we are looking out "for number 1". We think of violence as not our problem unless it is actively happening within our relationships.


Question #2
- I think that violence, regardless of who it is happening to, affects the whole family. With taking this stance, I think that violence between spouses and children can be related. As shown in the clip, if someone gets in the way of the perpetrator of violence taking out their angers on whoever their victim is, they will get hurt too. I think that domestic violence is something that can be "extended" anyone and everyone in the family - regardless of whether or not the violence towards you is warranted, it will still occur.
- Personally, I really have no idea how to solve domestic violence because it comes from multiple avenues. It can come from what bell hooks talked about and how men don't feel masculine in the workplace so they make their masculinity known at home, it can come from alcohol or drug use/abuse, it can come just a generally bad day and someone is the straw that breaks the camel's back. Unfortunately, this is an issue that is only resolved after it occurs because (possibly) then we know what caused it. However, I don't know of any way to prevent it beforehand.




...wow, ended on a sad note... :(