STILL not Flunk Day
Apr. 29th, 2003 01:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morrigirlIt has come to my attention that if Flunk Day is not tomorrow or Thursday I stand a very good chance of flunking my Stereotypes and Prejudice midterm. How's that for irony? The readings are just so damn dense that I've been skimming them instead of reading them. We never talk about them in class anyway so I figured I'd be fine if I just got the general gist of things. Wrong. Kelly wants us to know certain definitions and be able to explain particular studies. Now I COULD do all of that if I spent the next 48 hours re-reading my text book. But unfortunately I have a life that includes, work, rehearsal and other class not to mention other midterms this week so that just ain't gonna happen. If Flunk Day falls tomorrow or Thursday the midterm is postponed until Tuesday. Here's to hoping eh?
Today in class Kelly also handed out a run down of the movie analysis and the interview project. Just from reading the break down it doesn't look like I'll be able to analyze the Matrix, just not enough overt racial stereotyping. Damn. But on the bright side, just about any Spike Lee movie in creation will work just fine :D
As for the interview...well I have issues with the interview. We're supposed to interview someone from our "outgroup" who is part of a minority population and get a sense of what it's like for them to live in the minority. Find out what kind of difficulties they face and all that jazz. Well as bisexual white woman I can't examine sexism or homophobia since I'm already a part of the groups that face oppression in those areas. So that leaves racism. Fine. It's not like I'm at any loss for potential interviewees; I could talk to Deepa, Elisabeth, Karisha, Gemma, Norman, Kurt, Melizza, Yaritza, or Angie, to name a few.
What I don't like is the idea of treating my friends like guinea pigs. It seems to me like the very interview process sets up the dichotomy of dominent group interviewer trying to define minority group interviewee and thats just not cool! The very assignment sets the two participents up to be uber aware of their race within the context not just within the content of the interview.
And why does this disturb me? I dunno. I guess I like to think of myself as "like" my friends. I think of us as having been through similar things, I don't think of us as being different. Doing the interview will highlight some major differences in experience, making me all the more aware of the privilege I hold as a white woman. It'll point out that we AREN'T as similar as I'm confortable with thinking we are. I'm not one of those people whot hinks that race is no longer a problem in America, but I guess I like to tell myself that it's no longer a problem in my little world, that I am in no way a part of it.
Something tells me I'm about to have my mind blown yet again.
Today in class Kelly also handed out a run down of the movie analysis and the interview project. Just from reading the break down it doesn't look like I'll be able to analyze the Matrix, just not enough overt racial stereotyping. Damn. But on the bright side, just about any Spike Lee movie in creation will work just fine :D
As for the interview...well I have issues with the interview. We're supposed to interview someone from our "outgroup" who is part of a minority population and get a sense of what it's like for them to live in the minority. Find out what kind of difficulties they face and all that jazz. Well as bisexual white woman I can't examine sexism or homophobia since I'm already a part of the groups that face oppression in those areas. So that leaves racism. Fine. It's not like I'm at any loss for potential interviewees; I could talk to Deepa, Elisabeth, Karisha, Gemma, Norman, Kurt, Melizza, Yaritza, or Angie, to name a few.
What I don't like is the idea of treating my friends like guinea pigs. It seems to me like the very interview process sets up the dichotomy of dominent group interviewer trying to define minority group interviewee and thats just not cool! The very assignment sets the two participents up to be uber aware of their race within the context not just within the content of the interview.
And why does this disturb me? I dunno. I guess I like to think of myself as "like" my friends. I think of us as having been through similar things, I don't think of us as being different. Doing the interview will highlight some major differences in experience, making me all the more aware of the privilege I hold as a white woman. It'll point out that we AREN'T as similar as I'm confortable with thinking we are. I'm not one of those people whot hinks that race is no longer a problem in America, but I guess I like to tell myself that it's no longer a problem in my little world, that I am in no way a part of it.
Something tells me I'm about to have my mind blown yet again.
