Transgender Parenting (Sumblog 7)

Casey French

This week, we watched an excerpt from Transgender Parenting which consisted of a series of interviews by different parents. Each parent discussed the difficulties of raising a child in our society. Our concept of "family" is defined as one man and one woman, but transgender parents challenge the social norm. What makes us male or female is determined solely on our reproductive organs at birth. All of our traits, behaviors, and attitudes are shaped around this critical factor. The roles of the family institution has been ingrained by the premise of biology and parent identity. What it means to be a mother or a father is interpreted by a distinct set of characteristics. For example, in the documentary, one transgender parent was contemplating what she considers herself to be once the baby is born. She questioned why she had to justify herself between the two roles.

Does this institution have to be like this? Of course not. The purpose of this institution is to provide children of future generations the same amount of care and affection as any other family unit. I believe that it is working, but it is faced with many obstacles. When the family unit separate, it creates a strain on parenting relationships for transgender people, especially if the child lives with the other parent. Another obstacle is revealing their new gender identity to their children, which could have a significant impact on how a child interprets gender transformation. No family is perfect, but if the intention is to raise a child, transgender parenting serves no threat to the structured family institution.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/12/sharon-shattuck-transgender-father_n_3910749.html

In this interview, a woman shares her experiences with her father who transitioned into a transgender woman while she was in middle school. Her father Trisha found it difficult to come out to his children for fear that exposing his new gender identity might negatively impact the family unit.

Experiencing Social Inequality (Sumblog 6)

Casey French

 

As with custodians, there is an obvious stigma attached to being a bus driver. The documentary film The Philosophy Kings reminded me of other occupations that are often assumed to be low-income, manual labor jobs. I take the bus almost every morning. Most people greet the bus driver with a friendly "hello", but others simply flash their student ID and find a seat. They barely give eye contact, because to them, it does not matter to them who the person behind the wheel is. Public transportation is sort of like custodial work...behind-the-scenes, uninteresting, and not worth their time. On most nights when I am returning home, I always get the same bus driver. I always greet him with a "How's it going" and his response is always "Wonderful!" in a very cheery, enthusiastic voice. One day, I asked him "Do you really mean it? You can't be wonderful every night. This weather is terrible!". He just laughed and said "Better to have an optimistic outlook on life. I mean, what am I suppose to say? I am a bus driver who drives in circles for hours. Nobody cares about anything other than their destination."

As I got to know him, he is actually a really nice guy. This job is temporary for him because he told me that he is able to retire, but is waiting for his wife to retire so they can travel the world together. I felt terrible that people could ignore such an interesting person based on his stigmatized occupation. He is alienated by his peers and the passenger he picks up. If people considered his ambitions and motivations to keep the job, our preconceptions would change. Whether to retire and travel with a spouse or simply to support a family, the struggle of having an occupation stigmatized by society makes the life of a bus driver so much more difficult.

 

Apparently there are quite a few job-shadowing clips that show how under-appreciated custodians are within the school environment. I thought his introductory quote "service is driven by needs" really demonstrates that their work is no different than any other profession.

Double Consciousness (Sumblog 5)

Casey French

This week, we discussed about majority and minority cultures and the four considerations of microaggressions. Certain minority groups are divided by this concept of double consciousness. In this theory proposed by W.E.B. Du Bois, specific environments influence the language and behavior of an individual. They are faced with this dilemma of polarizing both environments in which an individual would mediate between the two equally and therefore would not have a pure form of culture. By not associating oneself with either culture completely, that individual would face an identity conflict known as double consciousness. The other option is to pick one and associate themselves with one culture while facing the consequences set by society. I like the example of The Butler shown in class. Although I haven't watch the movie, there is a clear understanding that the butler, who essentially lives two realities, stays stagnate between a white and black environment. His son, however, proudly associates himself with the black movement, but his decision ultimately causes conflicts within the community. 

I also thought that the idea of microaggressions was an interesting concept. We as a society use subtle attempts at stereotypes without consciously understanding the psychological damage of our actions or words. The "Shit Girls Say" example shows how we are discriminating against a group of people to make an individual superior or an exception. It's meant to be a compliment, but also an insult at the same time. We don't always mean it, but on the receiving end, it is highly offensive.

I have the best example of how stereotypes and prejudices influence the way we perceive minority groups within the United States. In this episode of The Office, Michael hosts a diversity training activity in which he puts a variety of different races and ethnicities on a note card. The employees have no idea what they represent and have to rely on how others treat them to understand their identity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HK-Cf9R4q-c

By using these preconceived stereotypes, it shows a symbolic form of microaggressions that associate a certain ideology onto a specific culture.  Although it is a funny clip, it really shows how society acknowledges minorities with sometimes derogatory association.