Racism

Racism is discrimination directed against someone of a different race based on such a belief. That is just the online definition of what racism is. In our own words racism is disrespect of others because they look different, or do things differently. We make fun of them, or don't want to be around them because they look, act, or just aren't what we are. We all know that racism is a huge thing in our society. It has been going on for ages, and still continues till this  day. Those who are around racism, can only imagine how bad it can get at certain times. It is a huge problem in our society and it needs to be fixed, no matter what people say about them attempting to fix it, racism will never be fixed unless we all work together.
     Now in this article that was read by our Social Justice Class, "OK, so what do you think racism is?" the writer gives us 12 questions to answer for ourselves, while also giving us his opinion on them. He gives several different examples in his questions of what people think is "Racist." Here are five of the questions that were asked, and they are answered by me.

1. Is is racist for a police officer to pull over a black family out for a Sunday drive simply because they happen to be in a "white" neighborhood?  The answer to this could be both yes and no. Yes, because some police officers, (not all) are sometimes judgmental on different races, but this is only because of what comes into their prisons. It can also be no because sometimes the officer really does indeed think that people can look "suspicious." The officers are only doing their job, and they need the answers in order to find out if their thought was right or not.

2. Is it racist for anyone, regardless of color, to use the word "nigger"? In my own opinion i feel that whites should not be allowed to use that word, one because back in the olden days that word was use for disrespect towards African Americans and used to insult them, saying they were nothing to us "white folks." But now a days people use it to be funny, or just in a normal conversation. You see white kids calling each other it, just "because." So maybe not to everyone it is racist, but to others like myself it is.












3. Is it racist for a person (of any color) to tell race-based jokes? Yes it can be racist for anyone to say "jokes" about other races. One because it is disrespectful to anyone who it is towards, and two if you don't like it when people do it to you... then what makes you think they like it towards them? No matter if you are joking or not, its still messed up to talk negative about someone because of where they came from.


4. Is it racist for a particular group of people to be economically and socially isolated in one part of our community? It isn't always made out to be "racist" only because some people when they join a new school, or a new job they feel more comfortable around their own kind at first. It takes time for people to warm up to others, and if this means they have to stay around people of their own color, then so be it. We see people all around our world who are in interracial relationships, have friendships with different races, so there is no need to call that being racist.

5. Is it racist for the Border Patrol to target populations that are clearly Latino in its search for immigrants without proper documentation? No this isn't racist because the Border Patrol is only doing their job. Immigrants of all kinds need to be stopped because it is not fair to others who work hard and get paid, for when we have the government over here paying for these people who just came over illegally.

Holocaust

Holocaust Timeline: 
1933:
January 30: Adolf Hitler appointed Chancellor of Germany by President Von Hindenburg.
March 22: The first official Nazi concentration camp opens in Dachau, a small village located near Munich
April 1: Boycott of Jewish shops and businesses
April 7: Laws for Reestablishment of the Civil Service barred Jews from holding civil service, university, and state position
May 10: Public burning of books written by Jews, political dissidents, and others not approved by the states
July 14: Law excluding East European Jewish immigrants of German citizenship.
1934:
August 2: Hitler proclaims himself leader and Chancellor 
1935:
May 31: Jews barred from serving in the German armed force
September 15: "Nuremberg Laws": first anti-Jewish racial laws enacted; Jews no longer considered German citizens; Jews could not marry Aryans; nor could they fly the German flag
November 15: Germany defines a "Jew": anyone with three Jewish grandparents; someone with two Jewish grandparents who identifies as a Jew
1936:
March 3: Jewish doctors barred from practicing medicine in German institutions.
March 7: Germans march into the Rhineland, previously demilitarized by the Versailles Treaty.
June 17: Reichführer SS Himmler appointed the Chief of German Police.
July 12: Sachsenhausen concentration camp opens.
October 25: Hitler and Mussolini form Rome-Berlin Axis.
1937: 
July 15: Buchenwald concentration camp opens.
1938: 
April 26: Mandatory registration of all property held by Jews inside the Reich
May: Flossenburg concentration camp opens.
July 6: Evian Conference held in Evian, France on the problem of Jewish refugees
August 1: Adolf Eichmann establishes the Office of Jewish Emigration in Vienna to increase the pace of forced emigration.
August 3: Italy enacts sweeping antisemitic laws
1939: 
September 1: Beginning of World War II: Germany invades Poland. In the following weeks, 16.336 civilians are murdered by the Nazies in 714 localities. At least 5,000 victims were Jews.
October 12: Germany begins deportation of Austrian and Czech Jews to Poland.
October 28: First Polish ghetto established in Piotrkow.
November 23: Jews in German-occupied Poland forced to wear an arm band or yellow star.
1940: 

May 10: Germany invades the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France.May 20: Concentration camp established at Auschwitz.June 4: Neuengamme concentration camp opens.June 22: France surrenders.August 8: Battle of Britain begins.1941: Between July and and October 1941 there were over 148,000 Jews murdered 
1942: 
March 17: Extermination begins in Belzec; by end of 1942 600,000 Jews murdered.
May: Extermination by gas begins in Sobibor killing center; by October 1943, 250,000 Jews murdered.
-Deportation of Jews from Germany, Greece and Norway to killing centers; Jewish partisan movement organized in forests near Lublin.
1943:
April 19: Warsaw Ghetto revolt begins as Germans attempt to liquidate 70,000 inhabitants; Jewish underground fights Nazis until early June
June: Himmler orders the liquidation of all ghettos in Poland and the Soviet Union
1944: 
Group of German officers attempt to assassinate Hitler.
1945: 
All of the countries get their liberation while Japan surrenders and WWII is over 



As you can see there were a lot of events that had happened during WWII. WWII was one of the biggest wars that had happened. Many innocent people had lost their lives just because of what they believed in. Hitler even being Jewish, despised them and was what we call Antisemitism. The Holocaust was part of WWII and was a war that destroyed property of Jews and murdered them all which we call a Genocide. The Kristallnacht was known as "The Night of Broken Glass" this is because almost 2,000 synagogues were destroyed and over 8,000 Jewish shops were sacked and looted while over ten thousands of Jews were moved into concentration camps. Concentration Camps were the places that Jews were put into when they were captured by soldiers and they were treated miserably the whole time in them. Ghettos was basically the city (Jewish Quarter) for the Jews during the Holocaust. All of the Jews were gone through Deportation while the Holocaust went on, which meant that the Jews were removed from their country and settled into the concentration camp countries. The Holocaust violated the 10 commandments in many ways, but it mostly violated the 5th commandment, 7th commandment and the 8th commandment. These commandments were broken because Hitler killed, stole and blamed the Jews for everything wrong with the world. 

5 Commandment

          The fifth Commandment is "You Shall not Kill," This could also be known as one of the most important commandments. Even though God has made this the commandment we must respect people and their decisions. But as Catholic's we must respect the dignity of the person from the moment of conception throughout entire life until natural death. In a research project we had to look up 18 different topics that people do to not follow this commandment. In these topics they included information of what they were, why people do it and if the church is against that topic or not. Three topics i felt that were most important were Abortion, Racism and Assisted Suicide. 
         Abortion is a topic which doesn't just involve religion, but in everyday life. While involving yourself in Abortion you are killing one of God's creations. After all of the abortion is done you will have guilt inside of you and regret everything, you can't start over and redo the abortion after it is all done. Abortion is pretty much another way of murder. Except you are just murdering a child that hasn't even gotten to live their life yet. Abortion is a violation of the Fifth Commandment, the church does not except anyone who does this. Yes it is a freedom choice because the congress hasn't banded it yet, but it should be. I feel if you are in your teenage years and get pregnant you should grow up and take the responsibility. Don't end a babies life just because you feel that you aren't ready for a kid. There are always other options such as adoption. Adoption is probably one of the best ways to resolve the problem of abortion. 
         Racism is known not just in the church but also in all over the world. Racism has been going on in the world since it first began. The church of course doesn't except this in their society. God made all people equal for a reason. Yes, people are given their own opinion but you need to understand that not everything you say will make a person happy. Feelings can get easily hurt just by one thing you said, you could not even mean for it to be racist or rude but the person will think differently. No person is greater than another, so don't go thinking you are. Racism ruins our society and it needs to stop. People are free to their opinion but should learn when they need to stop so they don't hurt another person. 
        Assisted suicide is the distinct from Euthanasia in that a person who is suffering requests help from doctors, nurses, family member or friends in ending his or her life. God is the only person who can take a persons life and only when he is ready to take them to heaven. A family member is there for the support of the sick person, not to kill them. The church is highly against assisted suicide. Assisted suicide goes highly against the fifth commandment. Now, i feel differently about this. I know it isn't considered excepted in the church but i feel that if a person is nearly on their death bed you shouldn't let them suffer anymore and let them leave the world before it gets worse.  Although you are taking a persons life away without God's permission i feel that they should not have to suffer. 

Trayvon needs justice

Trayvon was a 17 year old boy who was shot for no apparent reason at all. George Zimmerman, a man who shot Trayvon for looking "suspicious" makes me really upset that he didn't get arrested on the spot. A person who takes an innocent teenage boys life should be punished extremely. There was no "self defense" being done in this situation at all. George Zimmerman was doing it because as he said in the phone call "These assholes get away with everything." He wanted to feel as if he was doing the right thing, which he WASN'T. Trayvon and his family are getting a whole bunch of support, and they deserve it. The parent's of Trayvon lost a wonderful son who didn't deserve to die. Reading articles from the internet, people are having an assembly in which over 1 million people wear their hoodies up to support him. A lot of teenagers that I am friends with or even just know wear their hoodies up white, black, Hispanic and so on. Wearing a hoodie up should not mean anything suspicious to anyone. Zimmerman will soon get what he deserves and that is to stay in jail where he belongs. I give total respect for his family and hope all the support from everyone all around the world is helping them go through this horrible thing that has happened to their son.

Trayvon Martin's Death

On February 26th 2012 in Sanford Florida a 17 year old boy was shot in the chest by a "neighborhood watchmen" because he looked like a "threat" to him. Trayvon was said to be walking to his father's fiancee's house after going to a corner store to get skittles and an ice tea. According to the watchman the objects that he didn't see seemed to be threatening to him. The mans name was George Zimmerman, he claimed to shoot him because it was "self defense." Zimmerman was not arrested for this terrible action. While Zimmerman was on the phone with the police, he was told not to follow Trayvon for safety reasons, but he didn't listen and he still followed him. Trayvon knew that he was being followed, but he didn't make a scene about it until Zimmerman had gotten closer to him. Parents believe that this death was caused not for "self defense" but for racial problems. The Congressional Black Caucus called for a federal investigation which showed that " blatant disregard for justice." Both of Trayvon's parents feel that it was done because he was black. The clothes he was wearing were "normal" you see an average teenager in a hoodie, tennis shoes, and sweats all over. There was no reason for Trayvon to look "suspicious"  to Zimmerman. After Zimmerman had started following Trayvon, Trayvon had started to notice and when he ran he was screaming for help. People in the neighborhood were reported that when they called the police for help you heard a boy screaming for help in the background. When i read and watched the reports it seemed like the police weren't listening or taking the situation seriously. Because they said they were going to send help after they were told he was shot and laying on the ground dead.

President Obama himself even spoke about the incident. He called it a "Tragedy" and thought all about his daughters. He said this, "If I had a son he would look just like Trayvon." Saying this, Obama wanted Trayvon's parents to understand that all of the parents of the world are going to understand and treat this situation seriously because of the stupid reason that Trayvon was killed. Trayvon wasn't killed because he was walking to his fathers fiancee's house, he was killed because he was black the Zimmerman didn't think about anything else but that. Having a conversation with my friends about this situation we all had the same opinion. Zimmerman was horrible on making that call to the police, because Trayvon did nothing wrong, all he was doing was walking home. Zimmerman also had no right to follow Trayvon either, because he was doing nothing wrong.
The fact that Zimmerman hasn't been given any charges makes me wonder what police really think about his whole situation. Because as listening to the conversations with the police it sounded like they either didn't care, or just didn't take it as seriously until they found him dead on the ground. Zimmerman needs to be punished for what he did. People all around the world are having assemblies, rallys and debates on this whole situation. The killing of an innocent kid with no criminal record, no gun, and walking home is not fair in anyways at all. Skittles and hoodies have emerged into symbols of activism.

The "R" word

Throughout our generation we have heard several different types of words that mean certain things. People take the words we say in different ways. People who we are close with won't take it as seriously as a person who you barley know would. When someone uses the word "retarded" they are calling that person stupid or they did something that was just really not called for. Without even knowing how the person will take it they call them names. I don't really use the word "retarded" because i know how much it hurts to be called names that are rude or mean. The word retarded can be acceptable at some points because you don't always mean for it to mean what it means. Banning the word wouldn't really stop people from saying it because its just a habit of them saying it to people. I feel that if you know the word bothers the person then you shouldn't say it around them. But if you are with your friends or someone that you know it won't bother than it shouldn't really be a big problem for them if you said it. You really just need to think before you speak because something that seems fine to you may not be okay with another person.

My Teacher won't let me swear on the internet

In class our teacher gave a little lecture about how he sees a lot of inappropriate language over our twitter accounts. As teenagers we tend to to use language that isn't nice. Our teacher has told us that if we want to continue to use profanity on our twitters we are to unfollow him and make a new twitter that is used to school purposes. I myself use foul language at certain times, but i do not want to have two twitters to use so I can force myself to watch how i type on twitter. Our teacher told us that if we decide to use bad language and he sees it there will be disciplinary actions forced upon us.
Yes it is true we have a free of speech but if the site is used for school use it is only right to follow the rules and to use the website with good use, not bad. Profanity has become apart of the teenage language, we've grown up with it and have learned the words easily from hearing them all the time. I don't have a problem with people who swear all the time on the internet because it is their choice of how they want to be seen by others.

As we grow up all we know about is the internet and social networking. Things such as facebook and what i brought up earlier, twitter. These social networking give us the freedom to say what we want, knowing that we have the ability to add anyone we want including family. That saying "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Well it can go with this topic. If you speak like that on facebook or twitter do you speak like that to your parents or other family members? You also have to think about colleges and jobs, now-a-days they look you up on your social network sites to see what kind of person you are outside of school.
What I'm trying to get to is that if you feel like you shouldn't be saying something on the internet that could hurt you in the future, then don't say it at all.