When I walked into the room on Tuesday to hear our guest speaker, I was initially shocked at how young he looked. My friend and I began to discuss how this was possible, and then we realized that he must have been convicted at an extremely young age. As Terrill commenced his presentation, he shared that he had been wrongfully convicted at the age of 17. This is a scary concept to think about, because being 17, if the police told me that I could leave and go with my mom just by signing a paper I would probably do it.
I think one thing that was interesting, was how he had us write our names then sign our names next to it. I didn't even think twice about doing this, and didn't even review what exactly I was signing. It's scary to think how naive 17 year olds can be, and how much weight a signature can carry.
I was also shocked by how much injustice our legal system had done Terrill and how it isn't fair that the people that wrongfully convicted him don't have to suffer any consequences for their actions or inaction's. I think to make our legal system more just and to reduce the number of wrongful convictions that occur in our nation, we need to have a repercussion for officials who wrongfully convict an innocent person or for police who talk someone into signing their life away without being aware, or for police who bully false confessions out of people. In order for this to stop, we need to have punishments for those who do wrong.
I really enjoyed hearing Terrill speak and I think that the real world application was extremely interesting and relevant.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Affirmative Action
Ultimately, should race be a factor in college admissions?
This fall, I filled out 11 college applications. As I recall, each one asked my gender, race and even religion. And I have to admit, stating that I was a white, Roman Catholic, female, made me wonder if I was making myself seem 'average.' A lot of my friends wondered the same thing and complained that they wished they had some aspect of their heritage to make them self stand out. One of my friends even boasted about being 1/32 Native American (Cherokee to be exact). I constantly hear kids at DHS whining about how they wished that there was something about their race, ethnicity or religion that would make them 'stand out' or have an 'edge,' solely for the purpose of applying to schools.
I have two very qualified friends applying to similar schools. One who is white and one who is of a minority race. They both have very high GPAs and very high ACT scores, and they both are extremely involved in diverse clubs and activities. When my white friend got deffered from a school and my minority friend was accepted to the same institution, my white friend instantly explained that it was because of race. Regardless, if I agree or not, that race played a roll in the admissions decision, this topic if more than relevant for people at our age.
I do believe that affirmative action should be a factor when admissions boards are deciding on who to accept to specific schools. However, I also think that economic status (regardless of race) and social standings (regardless of race) should be considered with the same regard.
I don't like the way University of Michigan conducted this with a point system, because it was basically saying here are several points for being born the way you are (for race) and here are only a few points for explaining what you have gone through, what tribulations you have faced and the economic struggles you have endured (for the personal statement). I think that the best way to approach affirmative action is in a holistic way where all factors of admissions are considered.
This fall, I filled out 11 college applications. As I recall, each one asked my gender, race and even religion. And I have to admit, stating that I was a white, Roman Catholic, female, made me wonder if I was making myself seem 'average.' A lot of my friends wondered the same thing and complained that they wished they had some aspect of their heritage to make them self stand out. One of my friends even boasted about being 1/32 Native American (Cherokee to be exact). I constantly hear kids at DHS whining about how they wished that there was something about their race, ethnicity or religion that would make them 'stand out' or have an 'edge,' solely for the purpose of applying to schools.
I have two very qualified friends applying to similar schools. One who is white and one who is of a minority race. They both have very high GPAs and very high ACT scores, and they both are extremely involved in diverse clubs and activities. When my white friend got deffered from a school and my minority friend was accepted to the same institution, my white friend instantly explained that it was because of race. Regardless, if I agree or not, that race played a roll in the admissions decision, this topic if more than relevant for people at our age.
I do believe that affirmative action should be a factor when admissions boards are deciding on who to accept to specific schools. However, I also think that economic status (regardless of race) and social standings (regardless of race) should be considered with the same regard.
I don't like the way University of Michigan conducted this with a point system, because it was basically saying here are several points for being born the way you are (for race) and here are only a few points for explaining what you have gone through, what tribulations you have faced and the economic struggles you have endured (for the personal statement). I think that the best way to approach affirmative action is in a holistic way where all factors of admissions are considered.
Race Relations in the US
I think one of the most interesting ideas that I discovered while looking at these articles, is the concept that in the middle of the century, white will be the minority. Personally, I think that one of the reasons for this change in demographic, besides the obvious population influx of minorities, is the idea that maybe people in our nation are more willing to marry and have a family of people outside of their own race. I don't think the change in demographics has anything to do with white people leaving our country or that the influx of immigrants is so great that it alone would cause the percentage of minorities in Lake County to go increase 10 percent. I think that there has been a shift with younger generations to look past race when seeking suitors, and that the reason for a decrease in the white population would be due to more children being of mixed race.
I think that this shift in demographics is kind of exciting and demonstrates how our society is changing for the better. Race is no longer an exclusive club. I think that as a society we might be on the break of overcoming a lot of racisim and issues involving race, because the younger generations are so willing to interact with other races.
As white as the minority, I wonder what social and cultural issues will be presented in the future. I wonder if when my kids apply for college if affirmitive action will work in the opposite way it does today, to provide opportunities for white people.
I think that this shift in demographics is kind of exciting and demonstrates how our society is changing for the better. Race is no longer an exclusive club. I think that as a society we might be on the break of overcoming a lot of racisim and issues involving race, because the younger generations are so willing to interact with other races.
As white as the minority, I wonder what social and cultural issues will be presented in the future. I wonder if when my kids apply for college if affirmitive action will work in the opposite way it does today, to provide opportunities for white people.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
"White Like Me"
Based on the chapter you read, do you agree with these assertions? Does racism and privelege benefit whites? Did you think the chapter was convincing even though it used anecdotal rather than statistical evidence? How does your own personal experience match up or relate to what Wise describes?
After reading the chapter titled "Privilege" of this book I was kind of annoyed. I feel like this author kind of exaggerated certain aspects to frame his 'stories' in a way that would put a twist on them that involved racism. I honestly don't see a correlation between some of these stories and to racism. For example, Tim Wise talks about a time when he was permitted to enter a classroom after a test had begun, he connects this to the concept that he must have not been turned away because of the fact that he is white. I see absolutely no way how this connects. And in my own experience have seen the exact opposite occur while taking the ACT.
I feel like Tim Wise is trying to make me feel guilty for being white and in fact chooses a quote by James Baldwin that exemplifies exactly this idea, "guilt is a luxury." The source of this quote is Playboy and this shows how Wise needed to look to outlandish sources in order to find evidence that supported this thesis.
While I do recognize some of the 'benefits' and 'priviliges' that Wise nods to, I don't think it is fair to compare these socially and culturally constructed notions, to cases involving the law and legality. His examples are a stretch to say the least.
One thing that I found interesting was his ideas regarding teachers. On page 20 and 21 Wise explains how our nation could be much more fair if all educators were not racist and were fair. However, one thing from this section that I don't neccisarily agree with the idea that whites/asians try harder or perform better than lations/blacks. I feel like the kids I know who aren't white try harder than the white kids in school because they often feel like they have something to overcome or their parents 'want better for them.'
All in all, I feel like Wise had some good points and I appreciated that he used stories rather than statistics to get his point accross, but I think that he is being slightly dramatic in his linking of the stories to racism. I don't think racism in our country at this point of time is as bad as Wise framed it to be. There is still a lot of room for improvement in the social and cultural sense, but in a legal sense things are fair in the United States.
After reading the chapter titled "Privilege" of this book I was kind of annoyed. I feel like this author kind of exaggerated certain aspects to frame his 'stories' in a way that would put a twist on them that involved racism. I honestly don't see a correlation between some of these stories and to racism. For example, Tim Wise talks about a time when he was permitted to enter a classroom after a test had begun, he connects this to the concept that he must have not been turned away because of the fact that he is white. I see absolutely no way how this connects. And in my own experience have seen the exact opposite occur while taking the ACT.
I feel like Tim Wise is trying to make me feel guilty for being white and in fact chooses a quote by James Baldwin that exemplifies exactly this idea, "guilt is a luxury." The source of this quote is Playboy and this shows how Wise needed to look to outlandish sources in order to find evidence that supported this thesis.
While I do recognize some of the 'benefits' and 'priviliges' that Wise nods to, I don't think it is fair to compare these socially and culturally constructed notions, to cases involving the law and legality. His examples are a stretch to say the least.
One thing that I found interesting was his ideas regarding teachers. On page 20 and 21 Wise explains how our nation could be much more fair if all educators were not racist and were fair. However, one thing from this section that I don't neccisarily agree with the idea that whites/asians try harder or perform better than lations/blacks. I feel like the kids I know who aren't white try harder than the white kids in school because they often feel like they have something to overcome or their parents 'want better for them.'
All in all, I feel like Wise had some good points and I appreciated that he used stories rather than statistics to get his point accross, but I think that he is being slightly dramatic in his linking of the stories to racism. I don't think racism in our country at this point of time is as bad as Wise framed it to be. There is still a lot of room for improvement in the social and cultural sense, but in a legal sense things are fair in the United States.
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