Connections on Wise "Between Barack and a Hard Place"

Tim Wise argues that, although we have a black president, we really haven't come all that far as a society in terms of SCWAAMP, particularly the W part. We can see this, and how his argument relates to the Brown v. Board of Education case in the following video:




When we see here, that the study done by Dr. Clark at the time of Brown v. Board of Ed has the same results today, we see how little our society has advanced to diminish race-bias. In a major-ally white class, it is easy for us to look at how SCWAAMP affects our ideas of race. This video gives us an eye-opening portrayal of how SCWAAMP affects ideas of race for people of color. Kiri mentions that as a child, she knew she couldn't be a princess because princesses are white, not black. Relating to Christensen's essay, "Unlearning the Myths That Bind Us," it is not until just now that we have had a black Disney princess. It is easy to imagine that, as Christensen argues in her essay, the children in this video were affected by the "secret education." It forces us to be aware of how powerful the subliminal message is in teaching children the values of society. Clearly our society is still teaching children that being white is more valuable, and therefore more desirable, than being black.

Let's pull back the lens a bit, and get a larger view:



In his interview, Tim Wise coins the phrases racism 1.0 and racism 2.0. He defines racism 1.0 as "the sort of old school, overt kind of bias that people can realize when they see it." He warns that although our society is moving away from that type of bias, what we need to watch out for is racism 2.0, which he calls "enlightened exceptionalism." This allows people in the culture of power to hold onto their biases, and consider minority individuals that are intelligent, articulate, and successful to be exceptions to the norm. Wise states that "the proof of racial equity will be the day that people of color can be as mediocre as white folks and still get hired." This video is a great example of the role stereotypes play in racism 2.0 and of why we need to be critically aware. Although these people are concsiously aware of what stereotypes exist, they may be unconscious to the fact that they are accepting of some of those stereotypes, and because of that they are serving to keep SCWAAMP in its place.

Here are two examples of racism 2.0 in action:









In these videos, we see how people act on biases they might not even be aware that they have. Awareness is the key. Wise writes and speaks out on these issues to raise awareness. The first article we read by Johnson was specifically explicit about raising awareness to these kinds of issues, instead of just turning the other cheek, or sweeping it under the rug. When we use awareness to critically analyze the way things are, we can start to make things change for the better:

Argument for In The Service of What by Kahne and Westheimer

In this essay, Kahne and Westheimer discuss two different viewpoints on service learning: the charity view, and the change view. Those who support the charity viewpoint want to promote a sense of altruism in students by encouraging them to focus on the rewarding emotional experience of volunteerism. Those who support the change viewpoint want to encourage students to think critically about the socioeconomic state, how dominant ideology works to create inequalities, and how it might be reconstructed.

In one passage, the authors argue that while "almost all discussions of service learning practices emphasize the importance of reflection[,] for the most part . . . descriptions of reflective activities do not include the kind of critical analysis that might help students step outside dominant understandings to find new solutions. Clearly, having students share their thoughts and experiences with one another can be valuable, but reflective activities (commonly in the form of journal entries and discussions? may simply reinforce previously held beliefs and simplistic, if generous, conclusions . . . students may use their developing ability to articulate powerful logical arguments to 'maintain their most deep-seated prejudices and irrational habits of thought by making them appear more rational'" (p. 12).

This passage struck a chord in me as I remembered my experience this past summer as an Americorps VISTA. I was assigned to be an Arts Advocator/Literacty Coordinator for an urban community youth program. Going in I was very excited about what I could offer to the community, and what the experience would offer me. Each week we would be lead, by our service coordinator, in a superficial discussion of our week. What did we accomplish? What were our struggles? How could we do better?
At the end of my service term, I felt frustrated and disheartened. I felt I was unable to make any real, positive changes, I felt I was unsupported in trying to do so, and I felt prejudiced against the community I had been trying to serve. What shocked me about this passage was that it made me wonder about the method of our reflections. If we had had deeper, more critical discussions about the state of the community and the dominant ideology that was keeping it in that state, I might have had a different experience. If we had focused on restructuring dominant understandings, instead of applying bandaids, I might have felt better about my impact on the community.

Kahne and Westheimer, I believe, argue that while performing charitable acts is a positive experience for students, it is less valuable an experience without some critical reflection on the socioeconomic structures involved. Considering my own experience mentioned above, and the articles we've read and discussions we've had in class, I would have to agree with that argument. I feel it is due to the critical nature of this class that I am becoming a more open-minded, understanding individual. I feel this type of analysis is crucial to my future as an educator.

In my Intro to Lit Theory class, my professor is always pointing out the importance of critical thinking. Here are some youtube videos we watched recently which reinforce that notion. I think they somewhat relate to the argument of Kahne's and Westheimer's essay.

WARNING: this clip features explicit language

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We have to think critically about everything, even Disney movies, as suggested in Linda Christensen's essay, "Unlearning the Myths That Bind Us."


I think it might be interesting, in class, if we could all share a story about a situation in which we feel some critical analysis might have bettered the experience.

Gayness, Multicultural Education, and Community by Carlson (Extended Comments to Beckah's blog)

I am of a similar mind to Beckah. It is upsetting to realize what a huge issue there is surrounding homosexuality in our schools and communities. The two links she provided really accentuated the problem; the fact that young people are feeling compelled to commit suicide because they are being so victimized for being homosexual is, truly, awful. In both of the examples of this occurring, the bullying took place in a school. Beckah raises an important question, "if this had been going on for so long, how could a teacher not recognize it? They must have at least somewhat witnessed it since most of the bullying was at school. Do you think they were just “sweeping it under the rug” and ignoring it?"

I hope we all can agree, as prospective teachers, that the teachers should have been aware of what was going on, and done something to stop it. We are responsible for the well-being of our students, when they are in school, they are under our care. I believe raising awareness about homosexuality, in class, is a great way to start. Take for example, this article, which states that homosexuality is not an individual's "fault," or not something they choose, but rather it may be a genetic disposition. 

Teaching books relating to homosexuality, such as And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson, or Am I Blue? Coming Out of the Silence, or any others listed under that link, is another good way to raise awareness, especially since literature puts the reader in touch with a character on such a personal, and emotional level. This also gives teachers a perfect opportunity to have discussions about homosexuality with their students.

If teachers can make students more open-minded about, and accepting of, homosexuality, I believe that will have to translate out into wider society. As those students pass on an open mind to their children, and so on and so forth. In class I would like to discuss this further, and also, what we can do to recognize bullying in school, and put a stop to it.