Girl Scouts

Posted on February 22, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

Most of us are familiar with the organization Girl Scouts. The Girl Scouts represent an age range of girls boasting leadership and instilling a number of different skill sets in young women to help them positively through their life both in youth and into adulthood. I myself was a Girl Scout for a number of years of my childhood and though a Girl Scout is most known for their cookies there is a lot more that comes with it. I am an only child and this organization helped me garner different social skills by interacting with other children my age. They held events, ceremonies, trips, and different activities to teach a range of skill sets – many of which I carry with me today. I, as a former Girl Scout, was happy to find out that the organization does not discriminate against the transgender female. For those of you who are not aware, there is a growing number of children who are born one sex but feel completely opposite to their born gender. In the case of the Girl Scout, you can be an accepted member of the organization even if you were born male. There are certain things that must come along with this and there are provisions in place to handle such situations, but the underlying fact is that a little boy, who believes himself female and lives his life as a girl is accepted into the community of Girl Scouts and can learn (along with other young girls) all the positive things the Girl Scouts instill in children.

So, my issue here isn’t with the Girl Scouts, it’s with Rep. Bob Morris from Fort Wayne, IN. The Girl Scouts are hitting their 100th anniversary (I would’ve thought more!) and there is a proclamation in place to honor the group for their service and dedication to young women and the community. Morris could not sign the petition to have the Girl Scouts honored because of their attitudes to transgender and even abortion rights.

Personally, I do believe EVERYONE is entitled to their own opinion. However, I do not believe personal opinions should interfere with the good of the overall population. The fact is, who cares what you think -there are people in the world who ARE transgender who DO practice abortion, who HAVE different religions, and cultures, and ethnicities, etc and they TOO should have the same rights as any one else. They should be ALLOWED to live life freely and in the form they believe is most natural too them without infringing on anyone’s rights and without violence.

Check out the article on globalpost: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120221/lawmaker-says-girl-scouts-destroying-american-fa

Also, check out the Girl Scouts website and see for yourself what they are all about: http://www.girlscouts.org/

notjustmythoughts

Stop and Frisk

Posted on February 15, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

from 2007, but look at the %s for the races... the difference is vast.Interesting that even in this sketch it's white and black...

It does not surprise most New Yorkers that the NYPD are often malicious, aggressive, brash, and racist both as an individuals and in the tactics they implement to “fight” crime. This can be seen in Abner Louima, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell, and many others who were forcibly killed or tortured in the name of “defense” and “crime” fighting. These are the extreme [and common] scenerios. However, there are other tactics used that aren’t as aggressive or overtly racial that overlooked. They get overlooked probably because there are such extreme cases that exist on a more frequent basis than ever necessary, but they shouldn’t be. All unfairness, inequality, and racial tactics of anyone ESPECIALLY the police should be looked at and encite reaction and outrage from the community. One of the most recent police procedures to seep into the media is the “stop and frisk” method. This is not a new tactic used by any means, but the number of stop and frisks are on the rise. The problem being, minorities are being targeted at an alarming rate. NYPD says it’s an important tool in fighting crime. I don’t believe this to be true. Sure there is a chance cops might stop and frisk someone who has a gun and actually be fighting crime, but most people stopped only recieve a summons for small amounts of marijuana or they recieve nothing at all because they were law abiding citizens. I see this is as an Apartheid policy creating an atmosphere of a second class citizen and subjecting them to unfair searches warrented only by the color of their skin, the neighborhood, or their clothing. It’s shameful and disgraceful. The police are their to respect, protect, and serve… I’m not sure who those things apply to, but I can tell you that doesn’t apply to my community…

To read the article about stop and frisk, click the link or copy and paste into your web broswer: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Stop-and-Frisk-Police-Arrest-Color-Civil-Rights-139275573.html

notjustmythoughts

p.s. if you Google Image “stop and frisk” most pictures show white cops frisking black men and minorities… tells me something, what about you?

A threat or worthy of trust?

Posted on February 14, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

First, let me say I apologize for my lack of blogging. Life seems to get away from you at times…

Now, on to the meat of it. I was reading the NY Daily News online and came across an article “White grandfather stopped and cuffed for walking home with his black granddaughter” and I just couldn’t believe it. Well now of course that isn’t entirely true. I definitely believe it, but I guess it’s more that I don’t want to believe it. People often tell me that racial prejudices don’t exist and that I make it out to be more than it really is, but you know I just don’t buy that. And if I wanted proof, well here it is in the most simpliest form. A black girl and a white man together rings alarms in the minds of so many people. Allegedly there was a kidnapping of a black girl by a white man, but when you read, it seems more like there were reports of people spotting a white man who [must have] kidnapped a black girl. So for me, this seems more like they saw him and his granddaughter and thought, well they can’t possibily be together… or related… there must be something wrong here.

The saddest part of it all isn’t the racism they were faced with (though that is of great sadness), but what kind of impression of police that encounter will leave on the little girl. There was no apology, there was no kindness, there was only aggression and police. Those two often go hand in hand, but at 5 you should be faced with positive images of police, not that of threat and racism.

Check out the article: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/white-grandfather-stopped-cuffed-walking-home-black-grandaughter-article-1.1021896

notjustmythougths

Cross-ownership Ban

Posted on January 25, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

Still on the subject of Fighting for Air: The Battle to Control America’s Media by Eric Klinenberg

Dating back to 1975 the FCC had a cross-ownership ban in place that stated that one entity could not own cross own broadcast and newspaper companies in the same market. In 2000, the FCC revisited this ban. It was determined that if the ban were lifted the American people would suffer because there would be a lack of view point diversity. (This lack of diversity began to take hold of radio with the Telecommunications Act in 1996). The Tribune Company fought this with (as you may guess) MONEY. It went on a spending spree for lobbyist from 2000 to 2003. They tripled their spending during this time. It worked. in 2003 the ban was lifted to such a degree that one company could own 45% of a NATIONAL audience. (press release from 2003 http://money.cnn.com/2003/06/02/news/companies/fcc_rules/ )

Fortunately, to some degree, this was revisited in 2011 and Federal Courts urged the FCC to old cross-ownership ban. The some degree lies in the fact that even though changes were made the damage had already been done. Companies that seized the opportunity and gobbled up markets were “grandfathered in” and allowed to stay as one entity. (link to article regarding the courts and FCC http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/3rd-circuit-tells-fcc-to-rewrite-media-ownership-rules).

The FCC failed Americans in those (approx) 8 years. There is no turning back from the media conglomerates created during the years the ban was lifted. My question is, how is the being “grandfathered in” allowed to happen? The South had tried this with limiting Black votes with the Grandfather Clause. Is it just me that believes they are one in the same?

notjustmythoughts

The Other Wes Moore

Posted on January 14, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

It’s been a little longer than I would have liked to write this post, but I had to finish this book in its entirety as well as develop my thoughts. The book: The Other Wes Moore One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore was an incredible tale. To generalize (which is not giving the book the credit it deserves) would be to simply say that this is a memoir of sorts about two men each named Wes Moore. While that is true it is much deeper than the surface of their lives.

I highly recommend this book to everyone – teachers, students, adults, professors. I believe everyone can gain a little knowledge about themselves and the society around them. As you may have already established, I am passionate in my views regarding the disparities of society surrounding race and economics. In the telling of the lives of each Wes Moore I found so many of the things I felt about society come alive in their life stories. Wes Moore presents the book in chapters with two sections to every chapter – his story and Wes’ story. The side by side portrayal allows the differences in their lives (and possibly their fates) to come alive and the disparities glare at you with unapologetic reality.

One thing that remains with me is a question Wes Moore poses to the imprisoned Wes and Wes’ response. The question is in the introductory section of Part III of the book “Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled.” Each part has an introductory section, which is an excerpt from an interview conducted at the prison by Wes. Wes asks, “Do you think we’re all just products of our environments?” The imprisoned Wes answers, “I think so, or maybe products of our expectations.” Wes elaborates on his point saying, “… others’ expectations that you take on as your own.”

I keep thinking about this. Mainly because I am one of those people that believe you are a product of your environment – both the environment inside and outside of your home. But I also think about this because I believe there is validity in the statement. For those that have succeeded, most have done so because they have had people rooting for them – believing in them. They have had mentors or family and friends that believe their success is probable. There are exceptions to this of course – where people want to prove others wrong and show them in spite of the lack of support and belief in them they will succeed. But those exceptions are not what kept this in my mind.

I haven’t always had the easiest life. I was fortunate to have a two family household – so people tell me, but my parents fought constantly. To my mother’s heartbreak in my adulthood I shared a sad truth, I do not have one happy memory with both my parents in it. My happiest moments of my childhood are with my friends, my grandmother, or my parents separately. They eventually separated, when I was 14 and going to high school. My mother lost a husband. I lost a father. I moved in with my grandparents. Even with the instability at home one thing that remained constant was the push from my mother to do well in school. She always told me I could be anything I wanted to be in life and to let nothing stop me from true success. My teachers, in the private school my parents could hardly afford, instilled this same belief – I could be anything. Enough people told me this that I believed and sought out this expectation of me.

The imprisoned Wes Moore was never told those things. His criminal brother Tony did tell him to stay in school, but when you’re in and out of prison and your actions aren’t positive those words hold no meaning. His mother simply asked him not to be like Tony, but never gave him guidance on what he could be. I am not placing blame on his mother… she too was a product of this same reality. The low expectations society places on certain people (the economically repressed and forced urban dwellers) become instead [of positivity] what is ingrained in the budding minds of the youth.

Wes writes, in a section about his life, “‘Justin, you are a good kid, you need to stay away from Wes or you will end up going nowhere like he will.’ Justin simply shook his head and ignored him. It amazed Justin how easily they would write off a twelve-year-old.” This quote details an interaction between Justin (Wes’ best friend) and a teacher. At twelve-years old teachers had a remarkably low expectation of Wes. Fortunately his fate provided strong mentors and people who believed in his success. His mother was always a stronghold in this belief.

And so it makes me wonder, are we the products of our expectations?

Please read the book, you will more than love it. You will be inspired. http://theotherwesmoore.com/

Thank you Wes Moore for sharing your story as well as Wes’.

notjustmythoughts

Happy New Year

Posted on January 3, 2012 by notjustmythoughts

I hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday Season, whatever your celebrations may include (as long as they are peaceful and don’t infringe on anyone’s rights of course).

I’ve been enjoying my time with family and a week travel in Toronto. It was my first time there and WOW, what a wonderful city. It was one of the most friendly cities I have been to…and clean! New York City could sure use some lessons in that department. But with my vacation I have isolated myself from mass media, propaganda, and other forms of society that gets my blood boiling. I will definitely add some of my thoughts (that are notjustmythoughts) soon.

But the new year has got me thinking, what can we do as a society to change things? I started this blog late in 2011 with the hopes of inciting some kind of change in at least one person. Sadly, you never really know who you inspire, aside from those that comment, but does it inspire them to the point of change?

My plan is to continue this blog thru 2012 (and beyond) with the things regarding society, culture, media, and anything in general that I feel isn’t in line with equality, human rights and respect, which goes hand-and-hand with rights.

Until next time, which will be sooner than later…

XOXO,
notjustmythoughts

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Category Archives: respect

Girl Scouts

Stop and Frisk

A threat or worthy of trust?

Cross-ownership Ban

The Other Wes Moore

Happy New Year