Amanda Fournier's Blog (Fall 2018)

Kahne and Westheimer give a very interesting analytical breakdown of service learning and its many goals in the article "In Service of What? The Politics of Service Learning." I have decided to do extended comments on Marissa's blog this week because I feel that she made a few great points worth emphasizing. In connecting this week's article to Kristof, Marissa said in terms of the homeless, "I just help them out even though they don't know that I do... I wish they knew who I was sometimes." Although some people may interpret this as wanting recognition for service, I believe Marissa is trying to say that she wishes she had a connection with the people she was helping. Many organizations run food drives, clothing drives and more where people donate stuff but never come in contact with the people their donations are going to. For years I did my service through working behind the scenes in food pantries, creating Thanksgiving baskets, and other more i...

Conservative Pro-Life - Nationwide: 38% - RI: 27%  Against abortion because it is terminating a life  Many people, both religious and non-religious, believe strongly that abortion is wrong in all cases Some people take a more moderate approach and believe abortion should be banned  except in cases like rape, incest, or if pregnancy endangers the mother's life Liberal Pro-Choice - Nationwide: 62% - RI: 73% Believe the woman has the right to choose whether or not to terminate pregnancy  Some people do not agree with abortion but also do not believe the government has the right to intervene in that decision  Many people feel strongly that abortion should be banned after a certain point in pregnancy  Roe v. Wade   Roe v Wade is the current Supreme Court precedent case Affirms the right to get safe abortions legally Many conservatives want Roe v Wade overturned while most liberals want Roe v Wade to...

White men hold the power. Regardless of how you feel about this statement, it is an undeniable fact. This has always been the case thus far. However, many are hoping to rewrite this statement. Ideally, the statement would look more like this: power is held equally by all races and genders. The odds of the statement taking such a drastic edit after the 2018 midterm elections are slim. However, most of the minority and female candidates running for political positions this year are aware of this. Most realize that the process will take time.  In some cases, people like Stacey Abrams are finding success. Stacey Abrams is a black woman who won the Democratic nomination for governor of Georgia. Although many hope to see more successes like Stacey Abrams, for many candidates, just inspiring a movement is enough.  To quote Linsey Fagan, "if I can inspire more people to run fearlessly and in a way that's authentic, that would be a positive outcome for me...

Lesbian Women who have the capacity to be attracted (romantically, emotionally, sexually, etc.) to other women  Ellen DeGeneres  - Came out on the  Oprah Winfrey Show - Married to Portia de Rossi LGBTQ Umbrella term for all folks who have a non-normative gender or sexuality Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning  Laverne Cox - Trans woman - First trans person nominated for an  Emmy - LGBTQ activist  Metrosexual A man with a strong aesthetic sense who spends more time, energy, or money on his appearance and grooming than is considered gender normative Brad Pitt  - Always looks presentable and well put together - Puts a lot of time, money, and effort into his appearance  Sources:  http://itspronouncedmetrosexual.com/2013/01/a-comprehensive-list-of-lgbtq-term-definitions/ https://www.starpulse.com/top-10-metrosexual-celebs-1847843203.html https://www.globalcitizen.org/en...

In "Safe Spaces: Making Schools and Communities Welcoming to LGBT Youth", August does a fantastic job delivering the argument that LGBT youth are not being protected in today's schools. It is the job of educators to protect all students, especially those who are typically marginalized, and most are failing to do so. By neglecting to talk about LGBTQ families and individuals or even going as far as to talk badly about LGBTQ community members, teachers are shaming these students simply for being who they are.  August speaks heavily about integration and interpretation. For our class, this should not be a new concept. Many pieces we have read lay out very similar ideas. In the article we read last week, Christensen mentions the lack of representation of certain groups in media. Certainly the LGBTQ community is under-represented, especially in children's media. However, it is important that children see people and families different from their own because it te...

In "Unlearning the Myths that Bind Us", Christensen's argument may be troubling to some. Christensen argues that children's books, movies, and TV shows seldom do not include stereotypes. This is particularly alarming because by reading and watching these, according to Christensen, children are receiving a "secret education". This "secret education" is teaching children untrue and harmful stereotypes at an age when they are most impressionable.  I have chosen to focus on Disney films because there are so many examples of racism, sexism, and blatant gender stereotypes. When children watch a movie which negatively depicts a certain race, they will start to believe that this race is in fact inferior. When children watch movie after movie in which the beautiful princess is saved by her handsome prince, they are taught that looks are more important than anything else and that women need men to save them. As adults we can look at these mes...