Blog 5

After completing the readings for this week my understanding of meritocracy are role that are assigned to an individual based on their families wealth and skill such as the work ethic. This also means that an individual is judged by society based on their families roles such as you are seen as being rich if your family is already rich and you will grow up and be poor if your family is poor. I personally believe that if you give something your all in life then you will be rewarded for your actions. For example I work very hard in football and I believe that my hard work will pay off one day and I will be rewarded by playing in the NFL.  This dream of my and also my hard work is seen by others as the American Dream. Which means that if you work hard for your dreams you will achieve your dreams someday.

                When I think of hard work I automatically think of meritocracy.  I think this because this puts all individual’s working towards their dreams and providing for their family in one class which is the working class. No matter what job a person may do they are doing it to only benefit their life and in most cases their families lives.  I personally believe that you do not need an education or money in order to work for your merits because anyone can start their own business and become wealthy you just need to put in hard work in order for the payoff to be great.

                A great quote from our reading this week to go along with myths and meritocracy is “People do not act on the world as it is but as they perceive and make sense of it” (McNamee. 2010 .p.393). I believe this because  this quote gives an individual a better understanding that meritocracy does not have to do with an individual’s idea of individualism but has to do with the options an individual decides to do with their life in order to make it better for themselves. This also has to do with hard work as I mentioned in the above paragraphs.

        When it comes to equality and equality of opportunity there is often miss confusion well at least to myself. Not everyone is rewarded the same when they complete the same  I think this has a lot to do with what I talked about earlier. If you are born into a rich family and live in a good neighborhood then you will have better rewards than nn and individual who was born into a poor family in a bad neighborhood. I do not agree with this but this life and this is why I work hard every day to better myself and my future.

My personal opinion about globalization and sustainability are very strong and important when interacting with broader social construction of justice.  A great quote from our reading this week that helped me understand globalization and sustainability and interacting with broader social construction of justice is  “But without proper oversight and guidelines, globalization has the potential to be highly destructive” (Yunus. 2010. p.357). I also think liberalization has a lot to do with this topic because it has a lot to do with improving the environment which is what globalization and sustainability is in the end.

“of course, the civil rights movement changed the face of America, affecting laws, public opinion, culture and politics”(Provine, p296).

After completing the readings for this week I thought that the abolitionist movement and the civil rights movement would be the best two social movements because each movement is ran by equality to everything/all. I also thought these were interesting because they both had to do with slavery and abolishing slavery that way it would make the south stop their cheap labor issues.

Both movements had to do with slaves as well as politicians. The politicians were from the north and were doing everything to help free the slaves in the south because they were all for equality. I think that in the end both of these movements were very successful because they were smart enough to learn how to persuade someone’s mindset and in this case a nation because they wanted everyone (every race, religion, sex) to be treated equal and seen as a human being.

         

Overall both movements biggest motivation was social change because once again they wanted everyone to be treated equal and there for that’s what they did. “Grassroots disabilities right’s movement” (Provine, pg 304) is a perfect example because it makes individuals who have disabilities overcome feeling like they are a minority just because they have a disability.

In the end law and social change are the biggest factors in both of these movements and also the structure of Justice I believe. 

Blog Three

Today in our society almost everyone you know over the age of I say 12 has a facebook, twitter, or MySpace.  Social media has become so big and demanding that it honestly takes over individual’s life to a certain existence. For example, cell phone companies have joined forces with internet providers to allow their customers to access the internet at all times when they are mobile. An example of this would be the Verizon Wireless Incredible phone that not only gives you access to internet on your phone but allows up to five other devices such as a laptop to have access to the internet. This is a great idea because this allows individuals to connect through a phone while they are on their laptop on a road trip, or somewhere else besides their normal wireless area.

There are many strengths and also weaknesses when it comes to social media. This can be for many reasons but the biggest weakness on sites such as facebook, twitter, and myspace do not actually know who you are talking to. Yes, it shows pictures and information but you are not 100% sure that the person your communicating with is the person you want to be communicating with unless they are right next to you.  It’s sad to admit it but predators use these websites to target the younger youth because they are  not always mature enough to fully understand the dangers that come with these sites. When facebook first started you were only allowed to join if you had a college email address. This was because they wanted to have an older group and allow the younger youth to stay with myspace. This however changed over the years as facebook got bigger and now almost everyone is on facebook rather than myspace.

The biggest strength from media groups is being able to stay connected with individuals from your past, such as old high school friends who now play sports at different colleges around the nation, family members from back home, and also peers in your classes in college. I know that I personally use facebook and twitter to do all three of these things because it is easier and I do not have enough time in between school and football to be able to pick up a phone and call everyone to stay in contact.  Another strength social media has is the ability for politicians to campaign over these websites. “Kim and Kann argue that the Internet represents the possibility of greater direct political involvement by people who may not otherwise have a political voice” (Provine, 2010, pg. 232). I know that I personally read about the last presidential campaign on the internet and it honestly helped me decide on whom I was going to vote for because I did not have enough time to actually sit down and watch television during the campaign.

                I honestly am very into social media such as facebook and twitter that I use it daily. I always tweet what I am doing, how I feel, ect. I realized how much I was on twitter and how much my life was revolved around twitter that I gave up twitter for lent as well as other things such as fast food. It was hard and still is hard not to log into twitter and let my followers know what’s going on in my life but I will make the forty days. 

Blog Entry #1: Citizenship, Migration and Human Rights

            First we need to define the term human rights and also the term constitutional rights. A human right first started off as being “clear-cut dimensions in the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which almost all nations in the world have endorsed.” (pg 66) Human Rights also have to do with legitimacy on the human condition, which can be seen as vulnerability, and to have the motivation to a dignified life.  Constitutional rights on the other hand have to do with receiving freedom from the government’s constitution and you cannot be legally denied by the government. Here in the United States our constitutional rights are also known as the Bill of Rights which started off as a binding with only the federal government. I believe that when we talk about or try to compare constitutional rights to human rights we all need to realize and accept the fact that there are universal human rights due to different constitutions in each state such as to bear arms.

            After playing the game Against All Odds it made me open my eyes and realize a lot what is actually going on in other countries around the world. A lot of individuals are not as fortune and lucky like we are to have the rights we do to freedom, freedom of speech and so on. Just alone in the first section of the game I had already been warned that I did not answer all of the questions correctly and I could be sent to prison if they wanted to send me. In the second part of the game I was given a short period to pack up my belongings and before the army came and got me. I was only allowed a small bag and could only fit my wallet and passport. Playing these game just shows that we are very lucky to be living where we live and have all the rights that we do have.

            When it comes to Universal declaration of human rights there is often serious objections and concerns. Many individuals argue that it is philosophical more than anything because all of your rights and what you believe in (values) are all controlled by cultural perceptions.

            I think in order to raise awareness for issues to relating to the Justice and Injustices associated with citizenship, migration and human rights all around the nation and worldwide we need to make our voices heard. I personally believe that concerts are a great way to make a point clear about an issue happening and really makes your voice heard. For example after the earthquake in Haiti, singers, rappers, and celebrities put on concerts to help raise money to help all the individuals affected by the disaster. There were also help lines you could donate to as well. Both these concerts and hot lines played huge roles to help Haiti get back on its feet. I think that if singers, rappers and celebrities did the same thing just with a different message one focusing on human rights all over the world it would also make an impact. In book on page 75 it also talks about a bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama. I also feel that protests also can make your voice heard and get your message across clear because you are fighting for what you believe in with other individuals who feel the exact same way.

            Overall, I think that we need to figure out away to help individuals in other countries being controlled by their governments like the characters in the game I played Against All Odds. I know this is easier said than done but it’s something I strongly believe that all individuals should be treated equal not matter what country they live in.