Identity and Social Interactions

I think that there is both power and healing in embracing our own and others’ brokenness and need for mercy, just like Bryan Stevenson said. If we could learn to become a more merciful people and be more accepting of the perceived “brokenness” of others, we would begin to realize that we are all people.

I loved how each TED talk we watched this week gave us a glimpse into the lives of groups and communities that have been traditionally thought of as having less value in our world: the impoverished, Native Americans, immigrants, women, and people of all different races. Furthermore, each speaker offered a unique possible idea to help mend the damage that has been done by centuries of discrimination, kind of like kintsukuroi! I think that as future social workers, we should really embrace the idea of “kintsukuroi” because while we are eager to “repair” these damages, we should not try to completely forget the brokenness.

Jacqueline Novogratz’s story about Jane was refreshing because it reminded me that poverty is not just about financial resources—Jane was able to use her creativity and innovativeness to rise above the technical poverty line, but she was still “trapped.” This is yet another example of how people are not at fault, the system is. However, I liked that Novogratz said, “Broken systems are an opportunity for innovation and invention.”

I’m glad that we have had previous readings about the history of discrimination against Native Americans, because I was better able to understand Aaron Huey’s presentation. I think Huey is a prime example of being not just an ally, but an advocate of a population. He talked about doing something that has really resonated a lot with me this semester: refusing to consent to being a witness of discrimination and mistreatment. By staying silent, we are adding to the problem. Mellody Hobson talked about this too when she defined being “color brave.” Being color brave is all about talking instead of staying silent. Pretending not to notice race is dangerous, because, as we have learned in the past, differences are something that should be celebrated! Something I have really realized in regards to this (pretending not to notice differences, whether it’s different races, abilities, or identities) contributes to the idea that some differences are better than others and people with the “worse” differences should be ashamed. This is why I am going to try to be bold, get comfortable with discomfort, and be “color brave.”

As a woman, I could identify with Jimmy Carter’s talk about the mistreatment of women. Additionally, I grew up in a church that discouraged women leaders. I always thought this was strange, but I never questioned it. Now, I realize that this is a dangerous point of view, especially since I have grown up in a country where I do have the power to challenge these ideas. I owe it to my fellow women without influence to take action at home, in my day-to-day life, so that they can one day take action as well.

Sources:

Novogratz, J. (2009, February). An escape from poverty. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/jacqueline_novogratz_on_an_escape_from_poverty.

Huey, A. (2010, September). America's native prisoners of war. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/aaron_huey.

Le, T. (2011, December). My immigrant story. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/tan_le_my_immigration_story.

Carter, J. (2015, May). Why I believe the mistreatment of women is the number one human rights abuse. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/jimmy_carter_why_i_believe_the_mistreatment_of_women_is_the_number_one_human_rights_abuse.

Hobson, M. (2014, March). Color blind or color brave? [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/mellody_hobson_color_blind_or_color_brave.

Theories of Difference Part II

            I don’t know about the rest of y’all, but I felt pretty convicted while completing our reading and video assignments this week. Not that this is a bad thing at all! It definitely helped me recognize my shortcomings and areas of my life in which I need to improve, which I know will help me become a better social worker. I absolutely love the idea that differences should be celebrated—that differences are not scary or bad or that there are good ways or bad ways to be different. Like Rosie King says, “Why not celebrate uniqueness?”

            Previously, I had not given a lot of thought to “ableism.” In fact, it was a pretty foreign concept to me, which isn’t too surprising considering it is “minimally examined and understood” (Peters). But after reading “Recognizing Ableist Beliefs and Taking Action as an Ally,” I realized I have definitely done some things that fall under the individual limiting factors. For example, one that really stuck out to me was the act of not acknowledging a person with a disability. I don’t do this with bad intentions or to be rude or purposefully exclude someone from society, but rather with the mindset of not calling attention to someone’s disability. However, now I know that ignoring someone definitely does not make them feel any good either! I love that I’m able to learn about how to treat people better every day in this class. As for institutional supportive factors, I think there is definitely power in the positive portrayal of disabilities in the media because, let’s face it, the media is extremely influential! That’s why it’s encouraging to see agencies starting to use people with disabilities in their modeling campaigns. I also looked into “My Left Foot,” the movie that is mentioned in the reading, I watched the trailer—it looks incredible and I hope I get the chance to watch the whole film soon.

            

I think that people that are both elderly and have a disability fall under the intersectionality theory we learned about a few weeks ago. I absolutely love the idea of using the strengths based theory with this population! (That’s one of my favorite theories.)

            The readings over Christian privilege were especially eye opening because I do identify as a Christian. I’ve always known that as someone who practices Christianity, I am part of the dominant group—the group that never has to worry about missing school for religious holidays and being catered too in other ways. I’ve never realized how extreme it is though—for example, time itself is centered around Christianity. However, now that I understand the meaning of “ally,” I know that just because I identify with one group does not mean I cam be an agent of social change for another group. I think that previously, I hid behind the idea of “I can’t relate to this group, therefore, I don’t need to try to make a difference for them.” But now I know that I can, in fact, be an ally, and eventually an activist, for people of not only different religions, but races, gender identities, sexual orientations, abilities… the list goes on. Because again: “Why not celebrate uniqueness?”

Sources:

King, R. (2014). How autism freed me to be myself [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/rosie_king_how_autism_freed_me_to_be_myself.

Adams, M., Blumfeld, W., Castañeda, C., Hackman, H., Peters, M., Zúñiga, X. (2013). Readings for Diversity and Social Justice. New York, NY: Rutledge.