JimmieJ Public Discourse MLS 590

In conducting interviews for my research project, I found out how much social media meant to high school students.  I always thought that it was important, but one of my interviewees commented on their social media presence being purely a way for them to fit in and that is wasn't necessarily something they wanted or need personally.  I was blown away by this feeling of having to fit in with their peers in a such a manner that would make them go against their values and beliefs.  I really think there needs to be more education on what social media means in life and how people are more than what a profile says about them or the pictures and comments that are placed online.  Kids need to learn to value who they are more than what others think of their profile.

Changing years of oppression and discrimination for people that have been on the bottom seems next to impossible in our current social, political and economic environments.  However, one answer to helping raise people from Nobody's to Somebody's is to provide them with mentors and opportunities to achieve success.  For those individuals that are born into disadvantaged circumstances, it can be very daunting to work an entire childhood to escape negative circumstances.  With the help of people that have defied the odds or of those that have the means and abilities based on an established position, a true difference can be made in the lives of Nobody's. I think President Obama recognized the need to lift up boys and young men of color when he established My Brother's Keeper.  The initiative is aimed at connecting mentors to those in need so that a network of support and opportunity can become available to they children and young men.  Branches of My Brother's Keepe

Marginalization of minorities came up in conversation often tonight and I could not stop thinking of the following: Charles Barkley is going to have a show air Thursday, May 11th on TNT called American Race . He is a very outspoken personality in the media and the show sounds like it will provide a good discussion about race in the United States.  The first episode looks at Baltimore, linked here . 70 Acres in Chicago: Cabrini Green Here is a trailer that looks at the impact of the demolition of the Cabrini Green high rise public housing.  Unfortunately, the link to the full show deactivated recently, but here is the shows website, America Reframed (PBS) . Finally, a story about the discriminatory practices centered around water distribution in Zanesville, Ohio.   Here is a TIME magazine article discussing the circumstances in greater detail.

This week’s prompt was a difficult one for me because I did not feel that I knew as much about the real lives women as I could.  So I enlisted the aid of an expert, my wife.  Truthfully, I was surprised in the conversation that we had because my wife made me aware of not only her knowledge of the topic, but also that women’s representation was clearly something that she is passionate about. The first piece of knowledge my wife shared with me was the desire for some celebrity couples to build and raise their families in almost total secrecy until the children reached older ages.  For example, Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake went through lengths to protect their first child from the cameras for almost the first year or so of his life.  Pictures uploaded to social media would not fully capture the baby’s body and face, but rather parts such as hands or feet.  This type of consciousness on the part the celebrities, in my mind, shows a desire to be real.  Justin Timberlake and Jessica

I feel like I agree in many respects with Malcolm Gladwell.  The weak connections of social media make it easy for someone to “scroll” over your “post” for action.  Lacking the in person connection makes it difficult to advance movements and ideas.  As was said in class, so many people show up because word is spread through social media, but they can often be left wondering what is next.  Social media can allow for the absence of leadership because just seeing a post makes you aware of the issue at hand, but that does not mean you will feel the need to act on what you saw. However, social media’s ability to gather large masses of people with a common vision or goal is incredible.  The determining factor in people’s participation comes down to how serious or important is the idea or movement to that individual.  Looking back on the Civil Rights movement and what people were fighting for made it easier for people to actively pursue change.  The stakes were high enough that much cou

Being raised in a military household taught me many lessons in life that I feel have made me the man I am today.  During my mid-twenties, with spare time on my hands, I decided to become a mentor through Big Brothers Big Sisters.  This decision would be life changing in more ways than I ever imagined. Mentoring youth in need is more than a noble cause, but rather an opportunity to provide a young boy or girl with insights and knowledge as they grow up and navigate the world.   My mentoring experience partnered me with a 6 year old boy, Chris, with no father figure in his life.  Male relatives were present for Chris, but his mother was seeking something different in his life.  When I met both of them for the first time, I do not believe any of us were ready for the experience.  I was thinking too linearly, the requirements of the program called for certain things and that was my expectation.  Chris’s mother seemed to feel the same way as we would negotiate monthly activities f