Post 2

From the beginning of this course until now we have covered many subjects which are still affecting our society like racism, sexism, advertisements, and hierarchy of power. All of which seem to be corrupting our society and stopping us from evolving.

Racism has always been a touchy issue which people usually try to avoid discussing. Racism is still alive and kicking. If it's not out in the open in urban cities, it's walking around in suburbia. It has recently been moved from the schools to the worldwide web. The worst thing you could be in America is black, according to yahoo users. Everytime a black person happens to be in the headlines, monkeys, drug dealers, lazy, welfare recipients, criminals, jailbirds seem to be the common words in the commentary section. Though America has came a long way since Civil Rights era, but the current state of the country has reenergized some feelings of old America that was hidden or controlled. People have to remember that President Obama does not represent the entire race of black people. He is also as white ad he is black. Plus he is not the second coming of Malcolm X.

As someone of the opposite sex, I find it appalling how women have been portrayed in the media in term of what society perceived them to be. This world of macho men have for so long been trying to silence and cripple their capability. Women for a large has been objectify as sex toys, caretakers, and second class citizen. It is a recurring act that men always use women to boost their own ego, but a woman will get vilify if it’s the other way around. “the men’s movement was often critical of women and feminism while making no sustained critique of patriarchy.” says Bell Hooks, the author of  Popular Culture, Masculinity and Media.  This men controlled-society has been rigged by men on all account so that women have been always under their authority. From the Bible where Eve has been cast as the villain for the fall of mankind to women in Saudi Arabia not been able to show no more than their eyes in public, men will always find a reason to blame women for their own insecurities.

Some of the most blatant sexism in our society has being created in the media, advertisement to be exact. Advertisement whether we want to admit it or not has influenced what we consume. The theme “sex sells” has been repeated over and over, mostly by men who use it as an excuse to push the boundary of sexuality further. And most of the time it is women’s sexuality are being used. As the author of Where the Girls Are, Susan Douglas, said “Since the 1950s,women growing up in America have been indelibly imprinted by movies, television, ads, magazines, and popular music. It’s true that when we’re born, we come with this twisted coil of DNA inside us that determines whether we’ll be shy or gregarious, athletic or klutzy, cautious or daring.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sf3Jm9k31Ko

Everything is form of advertisement. From where we go to school to what we wear, all has been influenced by what we see when we are watching television, surfing the web, reading the newspapers, playing in our cellular phones, driving on the road and seeing the billboard signs, and from word of mouth. Advertisement is basically selling people a bunch of stuff they can certainly live without, but through brainwashing and manipulation people find themselves craving for these superficial things rather than spending what they are worth.

The future is not all hopeless, this society has come a long way to be where we are now. But in term of racism, we will never move forward as long as race of people being label as black or white. Identifying people base on a color scheme is very divisive especially when both colors are the opposite of each other. Sexism toward women is going to stop at one point because men are becoming more ignorant toward education while women embrace it. Women will get in the position they need to be to make certain decisions which will allow an even playing field. And advertisements which for the most part are brainless and redundant will become less effective if our phallic society get in touch with their feminine side. As of right now they only know one way how to portray women.

Douglas, Susan. Where the Girls Are. . New York: Three Rivers Press, 1994. Print