It's a wrap

This class had definitely brought to my attention many things going on around me that I had no clue about. Several things have sparked my interest and I want to have a serious role in making a difference. The birth control issue is probably first on my list, and I did do my power point project about it so I know different ways to get involved. Some of the other issues that we've covered have been eye opening for me, but the issue seems so complex and big that I don't even know where to begin! At this time in my life I am really focused on my marriage, school, and job, and I don't have much room or money to spare in light of what is going on in the world around me. I'd like to find a way to get involved, and I think that the internet is the best way to go about supporting a cause and not having to spend a great deal of time of money. It is pretty awesome that we have access to so many great causes at the tip of our fingers; all it takes it typing something in. I'm glad I've had the opportunity to enhance my role of womanhood and sense of self during this class. It was also a great experience to learn what our peers and other class mates had to say about these topics. It's been a wild ride and I don't regret the time, thought, or effort that has allowed me to see life in someone else's shoes.

it is a necessity in this day and age!

Reproductive rights is a big deal! The culture that is going on around us shows sex almost everywhere, and I feel like I have been grown up in a sex driven world. This is something that seriously concerns me when I have children, I certainly want to protect them from the obscenity that seems to have become a norm. The worst part of it all is that the government will not step in and say things have been taken too far, and yet they insist that abstinence is the key for these younger generations. Abstinence may have been the way to go in the 1950's, but if they hadn't noticed the world around them is encouraging sex to anyone of any age, and abstinence is like a long lost thought. Birth control and condoms should practically be thrown out on the streets the way teenagers have become so accustomed to sex. You cannot turn back what this society has become, instead you have to keep moving and do what is realistic. Sure, it would be nice if these generations were just so excited about abstinence and said no to sex, but that is certainly not the case, and statistics can prove that. The government needs to take a stand and stop worrying about promoting sex. I mean geeze, we've already had a president publicly have an affair, you can't get much worse than that. What is the harm in protecting these young generations that have grown up in a society that was produced by people such as the president Clinton and many others; and has tainted them with this sex crave anyhow? It is their duty to me to stand up and make the best of the situation and stop turning their backs to it.

not cool

Gendered violence is a scary situation. Considering the cultural ideals set in place by men that men are in control does not put any woman at ease. I am always on guard when out at night walking to my car or on campus by myself. It is sad that we have to live in fear for our lives. Men do not go through the kind of paranoia that most women have when it comes to simply trying to live out our lives in peace. You never know what power driven man is hiding in the bushes ready to pounce. It seriously creeps me out to even go running outside during the day by myself! Also the control within other cultures that is taken to serious degrees of control because of men. Watching the video our classmate posted online about the ten year old child married off was insane to think of! The parents insisted that they were doing what was best and that the husband promised not to touch her until she was twenty?! Do they really think that this forty year old man wants their ten year old child to raise as his own child, that is what it would honestly be if he wasn't having sex with her. Absolutely ridiculous! I blame the parents just as much as the husband. And then to find out that the husband got paid for it, wow, then you know it's a patriarchal society. It seems the women are just used and that is the extent of their lives. How do we stop this obscene abuse that occurs in every culture in some shape or form?

Not so sure

Welfare is an undecided issue for me. My thought is that it is a good idea that has greatly been taken advantage of, which really bothers me to think of some of the things my tax dollars are being wasted on. If it could be more closely monitored I think it would make me feel better about the program. Possibly the families, mothers, whomever could make a list of their monthly needs and someone could be sent out with them to buy the stuff, or the person could buy it and then bring it to their house; and when it comes to bills the checks should be written out monthly to cover the specific amount needed. Basically, I feel that a good deal of the people on welfare see it as free money and that doesn't motivate them to get out and look for a job when they know a check is coming their way. Also, people in poverty look for outlets to get away or numb themselves from life and end up turning to drugs, using the welfare money for it, instead of spending it on their children. I think that welfare should have some dramatic changes or a new program altogether should be created. Instead of sending out free money serious intervention needs to take place in many of these people's lives before you can trust them to spend money wisely. I feel that someone should be assigned to the people that are on welfare to talk with them, get to know their family and what aspects of intervention could motivate the mothers and open new doors of opportunities to move them forward and get them off of welfare as soon as possible, should be the ultimate goal. So many become content with living off of welfare and that is simply not acceptable. It should be there to lift you up, get you on your feet, and to make sure the kids are getting what is necessary for them to have what they need, and "needs" should be known and prioritized and not just assumed by those sending out the checks. These are my views anyway, any other outlooks on welfare?

whistle while you work

My background and life style has always had a pretty fair approach to housework. Since both of my parents worked neither one was at home all day with time to take care of the house. In fact, we all had different chores and responsibilities to take care. Both parents were always willing to use Saturday as time to set aside and get the house together and the children were expected to help out. Now days, since I am married I actually prefer to do most of the house work because he never seems get everything just how I want it, ha, but he is the cook of the house hold so it pretty much evens out. I can't see how house work should be considered paid labor. If you decided to get married and have a house hold it should simply be the responsibility of everyone living in that home to give their best efforts to keep it together. I can see how it must be frustrating for some women to be in a situation where they feel like the work they do is unappreciated and redundant, but that is more of a problem of the marriage relationship because the husband is not being supportive and thankful. It tends to happen in a lot of marriages, and that is why it is being categorized into an issue of unpaid
labor, where it doesn't necessarily belong, because the payment shouldn't be money, but love, respect, and gratitude from from the husband and children. I feel that some issues that are genderized are formed from a deeper level than gender alone, more so different life philosophies that haven't been discussed before marriage and the human nature of selfishness that tend to clash.

This goes out to women everywhere!

Nationality no doubt can define a woman's life based around the culture around her. Feminism has taken on a universal role of releasing women from oppression. It is obviously a necessary action when you can see that all over the world women seem to take a back seat. I would say that this all was initiated from men being the first to create governments during times when civilizations grew to be more complex. The women tended to always be occupied with continuing the human race and this left men with plenty of time to construct systems and laws that placed them as the number one priority which has continued for hundreds of thousands of year. Pretty scary from a woman's perspective to literally be born into a man constructed world of laws that will predetermine how she can live her life. I see this as extremely unfair, and it's not about changes only in my nation, but it needs to be addressed everywhere, so women can have their lives back! Once I get a job and can get settled into my own life I want to travel the world and do what I can to better the quality of life of women in particularly. Who knows how I will go about this, but I feel like so many women of the world that don't have technology in their homes can't see the changes happening else where around the world and therefore miss out on the motivation of helping your self out and getting out of bad situations. Women do not realize how strong and important they are, a little confidence and motivation can go a long way in revolutionizing this man driven existence. I hope I can be an asset to a new way of thinking for the lost souls of women around the world!

Touchy Subject

First off, I would like to state that homosexuality does not personally offend me, if that is what someone wants for their life and it does not affect me then I do not have anything against that person and their lifestyle. On the other hand, my religious beliefs do not condone it, so although I am not going to start a riot or anything against a lesbian or gay person I am agreeing to disagree.I see heterosexuality as what nature intended, man and woman equals the continuation of humanity, that is what God intended and that is why marriage was created. Being that marriage is a Godly creation and God specifically states that it is for man and woman in essence to represent God himself I do not see it appropriate for people of the same sex to be married. Now, in here lies the problem, because God was not the one to make up the laws that gives married couple all the special benefits in today's society, and that it is our government that indeed enforced those laws, that it should be the laws that are amended and added to cater to the homosexual population and that if they want to be a couple with these man given benefits that a new term should be coined and new procedures altogether for this style of partnership. America is the land of the free, where all religions are accepted, but that doesn't change that America was first created through Christianity that enabled this viewpoint of acceptance in the first place, and I think that it is disrespectful to try to change a huge part of Christianity that is honored by so many and considered bestowed on us by God because some people that may or may not be Christians do not follow the guidelines given. America does not try to change aspects of other religions so I do not see it necessary to change marriage, when the real change should be within the laws of the government. Yes, I think in all fairness homosexuals should have the same benefits that heterosexual married couples have, but in order for that to occur I think a new ceremony of partnership should be considered that does not interfere with Christianity.

This past year has been an eye opening experience for me when it comes to people with disabilities. Within the year I chose the major communication sciences and disorders because it is a job that works with people that have speech impairments for the most part, but also you come across a broad spectrum of many other disabilities that can can cause the speech impairments, and I felt that it would be a compassionate job that would benefit the quality of life of others. Choosing this major has placed me in several classes that have been specifically about disabilities, how to diagnose them, how to treat them, how to create opportunities to broaden their horizons, and how to not treat them as though having a disability makes them any less of a person. One of my classes was a special education class and it required volunteer hours, I chose to work my hours at the Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center in Stanton, VA. It worked out rather perfectly because my roommate had just won the Miss. Greater Franklin County Pageant and her platform for Miss. Virginia was working with people with disabilities and she was also doing volunteer hours at Woodrow Wilson. It was a really special experience for both of us; because they had classes during the day to attend, we were asked to come in the late afternoon and to simply interact with the patients, that were mostly around are age. We had the chance to sit down and play board games, pool, watch movies, do arts and crafts, and go bowling. I had never interacted with people with disabilities on such a personal level, because in my field it is all about educating them and there are goals trying to be attained, so it was refreshing to become friends with so many of them and just to be in a laid back setting where they were all being themselves, not worried about the outside pressures of the world around them. I'll never forget the time I spent there and the impact they made on my outlook on life... enjoy what you have been given because you never know what someone else is going through, and try to be a friend to everyone.

It doesn't matter if you're black or white...or does it?

I think that white privilege definitely exists, and that it's pretty evident. Considering that the white man came over from Europe, claimed his land, fought numerous groups of people over it, and then made some laws to make sure it stayed that way, you'd better believe those laws were biased to whites specifically, and of course, as we've stated, to men in particular. The same laws that have given privilege to men also exist to make sure that it was the white man receiving those privileges, which is the very same reason that pretty much anyone that isn't a white man in America has had a heck of a time trying to be seen as an equal human being. Luckily the white men that wrote the laws left some loop holes that have allowed others to step back and reconsider what "All men are created equal" is supposed to mean and therefore question the American ideal freedom for all. Even though America has come such a long way there is still the underlying greed that has grown from having those privileges that some white men and even women now, do not want to give up, even if it is the fair thing to do. There have been so many lives that have been tormented from racism that time cannot take their pain away, and then it is passed down from generation to generation. It seems that their is so much hatred built up in people that they look only at color and forget that each person is totally different and has feelings that don't deserve to be hurt over something that happened in the past. I think that the younger generations are becoming better at looking past color and I can only hope that it will continue. For the mean time I agree that we should call out those that don't want change only for their own sake, never thinking of others. Always questioning society and aiming for the greater good of human kind, which I believe will lead to the greater good of America is a goal worth fighting for!

a society based on privilege

America prides itself on being the land of the free, yet in the midst of the freedom there lies those who can't break free from the inner workings of privilege and judgment that society has conjured and imprisoned these victims to. Our fast paced money oriented nation is so caught up on spending the money they have and then making sure they stay in power to keep making more money has created a vicious cycle. It is unfathomable for me to think about how much money is handed to actors/actresses, sports stars, Nascar drivers, models, and all the other ridiculously over paid jobs. The entertainment industry is rolling in money and hardly give back for the greater good of America. Not to mention the American companies that move to China or Mexico to so they can rob jobs from their fellow Americans and make more billions for themselves. It just doesn't make sense how so many Americans have taken for granted their freedoms to use people and make more money while others all around are unemployed, homeless, and starving. The essence of the American dream has been somewhat destroyed, and those that are left behind are the underprivileged, uneducated, and poor. Those that initially achieved the American dream were the majority, white men, setting standards that have made it much harder for anyone that is not a white male to do the same. This is where women have come to the frustrations of being stuck in the past and having to live up to expectations that were created by the white man whom want to keep his place of power, and is likely to not want to share this power. Considering the circumstances now days of how privilege plays a major role in our society , I say we as feminists keep on raising awareness of this and promoting solutions and working hard to see people as who they are inside and not based on gender, race, or class. Hopefully others will learn to follow in our footsteps.

ooo-la-la

I was excited for this module and to see what feminist views are out their related to family and marriage. Growing up in my family closely matched the Equal Partners Model. Both of my parents are teachers so their work outside the home was pretty much even. Inside the home both of my parents took turns taking us to school, or practices and picking us up, or making dinner and what not. They both took on roles with the house keeping as well; my mother usually vacuumed, dusted, laundry, etc., while my dad kept up with the outside work of mowing our enormous lawn, getting up leaves, taking out the trash and what not. I think that they did a fair job of splitting the chores, and of course we always had our chores that took a lot of the work load off them. They also took turns staying home with us when we were sick and going on field trips. I would consider them to be great representatives of the Equal Partners Role.

In my own marriage thus far we have also striven for the Equal Partner Model. He currently is working full time, which he decided to do especially so we could get married, goes to school part time, and does the cooking; while I go to school full time, have a part time job, and do most of the other house work. So far it has worked out rather well. I think that I would like to keep with in the same model when I do have children someday. When it comes to power we both have an equal say and like to talk about life decisions and all the many other things that can arise in a marriage. I think that a marriage should work around each others strengths and weaknesses when determining roles and a little give and take here and there when things can't work exactly as planned. For me, I have been motivated to help people and work with children since I was younger, so I am ecstatic about pursuing my career, yet I also want children of my own, finding a balance between the two will certainly be a challenge when the time comes. I think for American women that has been such a major struggle, society moving forward faster than family life has put mothers in a predicament having to keep up with both!

Don't hate, appreciate!

American culture has gotten everyone obsessed with having the perfect body, when the reality is that their is no perfect body, we're all made differently and accepting and enjoying the body you have should be the main goal. It makes me sick that everything can be air brushed and made to look like a barbie doll and then flashed in our faces every way you turn. It is unfair that children grow up now seeing digitalized "perfect" bodies coming from every angle and that is what they assume they should look like also, and when they grow up and don't look like a super model they feel terrible about themselves and end up hating their bodies and taking them for granted. I find myself getting down about my body and thinking of things I would like to change, but then I think how can I be so ungrateful when some people don't have legs to walk with and run and swim with, and some people don't have arms, and of course the list goes on. I don't want to take my body for granted because who knows what could happen to me some day and I want to appreciate and love my body for all it does for me. Physical fitness is definitely important and in our fast paced lives it's hard to find the time, which is something I tend to struggle with and hope to improve on.

Like the lecture implied, it seems that women are mostly the ones unsatisfied with their bodies, and I definitely think that is because in general there is more pressure from the media and from men to look a certain way. I know that for me it is uncomfortable to be sitting down casually watching television with some guys friends or family when a victoria secret commercial or something of the sort comes on and their are all these super models half naked running around in your face or someone talking about your period. There is a time and a place for everything and it seems that the media has ignored that and I as a woman see it as an insult. Where do we as feminists go from here when it seems so impossible to make a change unless your in the media/Hollywood business?

I am woman, hear me roar!

The second feminist wave was so powerful and really is perfectly summed up in " the personal is political " theory. I, the liberal feminist that I consider myself, can definitely see the relation of how political our society is, and this society that we all live in must pretty much follow all the laws of that society, and when those laws are not respected it makes it very personal on those getting the back lash of it all, in our case women. That is why it was so extremely necessary to take these injustices and put them in the light of all that our laws stand for and ask why is it an occurrence that when it comes to women's rights people do not take it seriously? The second feminist wave was totally in the face of the government demanding equality or be made a mockery of. Using the baby steps and respect of the first wave and the roles that women took on after the first world war positioned them to be taken more seriously, that we were worth more than people gave us credit for. I also loved how during the second wave period the "new image" woman arrived and surprised women and men all around, causing the new age woman to be noticed for brilliance. boldness in style, charm, and education. The struggles thus far had proved to be moving women forward so why stop now when the future is what we make of it, seemed to be the inspiring ideal. Taking a stand for rights is something that only men had been known for and which is a big reason why some feminists are looked at as butch or power obsessed, which is ridiculous when you think of all the other minorities that use men over women to campaign. I think the second wave was totally refreshing and used the man created law to check itself and standards, simply a new form of checks and balances.

such a dilemna!

Wow. The Minneapolis pornography case was certainly a struggle for me to choose sides with. I think I came to the conclusion that I would have to be against it, even if I'm for some of the ideas behind it. If we are going by the laws for everything else it seems that we also should in this case, especially since we went through the big deal of making the first amendment equal no matter what the race or gender, same for all. It is such a terrible thing to hear of people sold into prostitution and pornography as kids, but so many people choose to put themselves in those situations so how can you control what is considered a freedom of rights? I totally feel that pornography is derogatory towards women and counter acts what feminism has worked so hard for in the first place, respect! But, I also feel that having the right to do what we want with our own body is a freedom that cannot be challenged. Feminism's best shot at helping those people that get sucked into that particular circumstance is to create reach out programs where they can have an easy and open hearted way out where people can counsel them and not judge them. So many of the pornographers of the world are probably lost souls that don't have much to live for, and showing them hope and all there is in life, love especially, would probably catch their attention more than protesting and trying to get through an impossible battle with government. That is my thoughts at least, some things can be solved through compassion alone.

Sooo many choices?!

Wow, I was definitely surprised that there were so many different stand points to choose how to view your own feminist vision. Thinking about it I decided that the liberal feminist would be the one for me. Why is this? I feel that way back when the world was a much simpler place and the women had the babies and chose to take care of them while the men were obviously more fit for the go find the food and provide a shelter deal there probably wasn't too much of a ruckus over it because people were content with just that and there wasn't a whole lot more to life than providing for yourself and family. And, then one day that peaceful life style was threatened and along came war, which also was very logical to send the men to fight and the women to stay home with the children. When the war was over the men were so proud of themselves that they just went ahead and established the country and all the laws not even thinking that one day life would be different and women would even want to be part of being so actively involved with society, because to them society was very much different than today's, and at that point and time the women probably didn't think much about it because like I said they were just relieved that they could go back to their peaceful lives and not worry about losing their family. Before you know it the country had grown tremendously and prospered making taking care of the family much much easier with all the technology arriving and now women had spare time on their hands that they didn't know what to do with. In this spare time they realized that this great nation was totally being run by men who now did not want to share any of the power; and all of these laws that our forefathers had created in the past and whom had probably not put much thought into women wanting or even having the time to play a major role in society. These laws were now a major set back for women to overcome and that is when the women's rights movement began. Of course this theory is only for America, but it seems to make sense that at the time the laws were created it was a distant thought that women would even have the time or want to play a major role in politics and that doomed us in future. Also, the fact that while women were busy taking care of the family, which they probably wanted to do, there were men getting education that positioned them to make educated political decisions. So, there you have it...this is why I believe that for American women at least liberal feminism seems to make sense to me. Anyone have thoughts?

Something to Ponder...

Gender roles is certainly not something that I myself have ever had to be concerned about because, personally I love being a girl and all the "girlie" aspects that come along with it, well except for that one that is totally a pain, haha. Growing up I had two older sisters, a mother, two grandmothers, nine aunts, fifteen girl cousins, and the small minority of men that include my dad, uncles, and five boy cousins! I of course was Miss. Priss and dressed up all the time just for the fun of it, painted my nails at five and while my sisters played sports I starred in awe at the cheerleaders not waiting until I could be one...and in middle school through high school I cheered so I spent a lot of my time outside of class with a bunch of girls, and now of course I find myself at JMU which is 60% girls, in the CSD major which is about 99% girls, and have a waitressing job which is also usually occupied by girls. Wow, I just now realized all that and looking back I'm amazed that in the midst of my girl world I found a wonderful man at the age of 18 dated for three years and got married at the age of 21 on our three year anniversary. I have no complaints of where my woman hood has taken me and who it has made me into today and honestly I would be perfectly fine going either way, being the stay at home mom or the modern day working woman...but since I've already put plenty of money into my education I'm going to go ahead with the career my plan for now! I am a Christian so I feel that God has distinctly created men and women to be better at different things and we should cherish each other even more because of it. The chance to have equal opportunities at the roles are key in this day in age because of our busy lives. No matter what path one should choose to take the key is to not judge one another and to not make assumptions about who can do what better and why, because really who is to say when over and over people are breaking the mold.

To be or Not to be?...that tis the Question

In the society we live in today it is no surprise to go almost anywhere and see signs of inequality. It truly is not fair how life's cards are dealt, but it is what we make of our own hand of circumstances that can make a positive difference and to me that seems to be what feminism strives for. To simply be ourselves without anyone else causing implications in our lives and to see how far you can go. I can appreciate the struggle and fight that so many people have devoted their lives to so women can be seen as people and not baby machines that can clean, ha. So with that thought and gratitude in mind I can now say that yes, I am a feminist. It is strange that the word feminism has so many negative connotations when it has done so much good for our country and the world! It is mind boggling to me to think of a world where women weren't allowed to go to school, vote, work, etc. . In our time and age I feel privileged to be a woman so to try and imagine first not being allowed to work, and then being under paid, and then openly being insulted and criticized seems like an endless cycle of doom, but if we have come this far I believe anything can be accomplished when you put your mind to it.

It certainly is inspiring to be a woman in this day and age and I feel we can only move up from here! Our role models in the field have given women a reputation of strength, excellence and a force to be reckoned with. My goal for this class is to figure out how I can make a positive impact in a caring way. Our society can be brutal and it is difficult not to get sucked into the fast paced, money oriented, judgmental world; but we must learn to step back and remember everyone is a person with feelings and being considerate of others is the only way to find peace in the madness, because hopefully others will give that respect back... indeed the purpose of feminism.

I can blog!

yay!