WHAT AM I? Analyst paper of myself

Tonica Vickerie
Ellen
April 22, 2007
WMST250-0101

Analyst Paper

Different people experience different reactions to the same powers that society provides. These powers affect the daily routine of individuals with oppression or privilege. What might be effective for one could be dangerous for another. An unmarked person is known to be a white male in middle class representing privilege. A marked person is a minority female of lower class representing oppression since they deviate from the norm. Due to these distinctions of marked and unmarked people, assumptions have concluded what is accepted and what isn’t. This essay will observe the life of two individuals living through the same powers. These powers include religious beliefs, location, nationality, and upbringing. These individuals are both female and middle class, yet their race is what will determine the life they live. The experiences they encounter might fulfill privileges and oppressions at different settings as they analyze the events within those days. The purpose of this experiment would investigate how unrecognized powers such as these could affect certain people. There is more to a marked person then just their gender and race; it is the heritage and social standards that makes that person into that category. Therefore, this experiment will record the reactions of these two individuals handling the situations that they occur in their surroundings within these powers. Then they will conclude the experiment with a legitimate proposal of the results they accumulated. These results will create assertions of how power influences life for two similar individuals. This will characterize and categorize each power into a matrix domination that is compared to the preferences of the world. In the end, this essay will also develop a ladder in which the individuals determine which power will mostly affect a marked or unmarked person.
Christianity

My religious beliefs are from a Pentecostal Christian Church. I believe there are three trinities but only one God. I attend a Church of God where we are open to certain ideas that might not be accepted in other churches. The church is very small and only holds about hundred people. The dress code is open as people come in with jeans and t-shirts. Sleeveless shirts are acceptable as long as to much skin is no being shown. The music is more upbeat and lively. We change the words of secular music with inspiration of Godly words. We are open to any kind of music that tells the world about God. We use instruments such drums, pianos, and guitars at every service. There is service three times out the week, one which is directly for the youth. We travel to concerts and have civilized coed sleepovers within the church. On special occasions, we let the youth or the children preach to the congregation. We are known for step teams and the dance ministry as they travel to other churches. We have a Youth Council Board that comes with fundraisers and events for the church. Also, they are advisors for the youth and children when they have trials. We are not stringent on time because sometimes people need to hear the word and all that God has to say. One of our good traits is the ability to not condemn. There are many gays in our church, but we don’t curse them. It is our duty to change the lives of this people through reasoning and wholeheartedness.
Having this religious view sometimes has its advantages. Because the church has no set rules, members are more likely to express their problems knowing that we don’t criticize. More people feel welcome and comfortable because we are willing to listen and learn. Our church is lively because of the instruments we play and the energy we receive. People enjoy the music because we use beats that are common with different words. Adults and children have the privilege to preach and sing among the congregation, which is not known in many Catholic churches. Most churches are very strict about what you wear and things should be run. Some churches don’t allow anyone to preach but the bishop himself. We are privileged because the church gives us many opportunities by being different. We have concerts and dinners inside and outside of church. Other denominations just use Sunday for service, but we use three days out the week. Other churches use traditions hymns with an opera beat. The lyrics are mostly biblical verses that were changed into modern terms and added to music. Our church is very thankful that we are able to accommodate religious morals with our own. However, having this privilege does bring consequences at times.
Sometimes it is better for a church to be strict. Laying that foundation allows others to realize the seriousness a certain sin is. Our oppression lies in the fact that we allow certain things to happen even though we know it’s wrong. Other churches then badger us because we prohibit these acts such as gays in the church, or that we don’t have a specific dress code. This oppression can also be viewed globally because of the diverse cultures and practices that come with it. Other denominations look at us as being to wholehearted. There are so many interpretations to what the bible can mean that people seem to take it out of proportion at times. There are times when churches disagree with the way we run our service or the events we partake in. Because we allow coed sleepovers, other churches believe we are denying the law of abstinence. They believe that those type of events increase sexual conduct and misbehaviors. Also, churches take the seriousness of dress code believing that there is proper clothing that should be worn so there wouldn’t be any distracting. These giving reasons suggest that being open and wholehearted has its disadvantages. We are oppressed because we have an open mind that others don’t seem to agree with. Therefore, they question our religious views.

Nationality

My ancestry starts in Georgetown, Guyana located in South America. Most of family lived there for all their adolescent years. There weren’t many schools there and it just so happened that my mom and dad attended the same school. They met in high school at the GOC and started dating. Soon enough they had my oldest brother and gotten married when he was about four. My dad worked for the government and my mom was a nurse. On special holidays, my dad would come and visit my uncle who lived in the United States. When he came down here, he was astounded by the Department of Defense. My dad decided that he wanted to join the U.S. military when he was visiting the U.S for the first time. He left my mom back in Guyana in pursuit of his dream. Later on, he moved my mom and brother down when citizenship was an easy process. My parents created two more children in the new lifestyle we had. More of my family members started immigrating to grasp the American dream. We took advantage of every possibility by moving into different areas. We first started in the “ghetto” in Silver Spring. We gradually then improved as we settled in a small house in New Carrolton. We took any opportunities in jobs as my dad enlisted in the military and my mom became part of Human Resources. We adapted to the American culture, but we never forgot our culture.
Moving into the U.S. culture provided us with higher opportunities and better living. We found a three bedroom house that accommodated everyone. Our income increased frequently as my dad worked for the post office and my mom became one of the heads in the Human Resource Department. We were able to have substantial living after some years of adapting to the food and transportation. In Guyana, it was known to the driver side was on the right. My mother and father continued their education with the varieties of college that was reachable. My dad continued at University of District of Columbia. My brothers and I were able to have a legitimate education and enter into the work world. Gaining citizenship wasn’t that hard because my dad and my brother enlisted into the military. We took advantage of the department stores and shops that were available that wasn’t available in Guyana. Most importantly, we stayed true to our culture and incorporated the U.S. culture also.
The voyage here had its benefits; however, those benefits started to change after illegal immigrants became the issue of society. The land that was once open for free opportunity takes years to process “outsiders” papers for citizenship. My cousin can’t move up here unless he marries someone from America or goes through the process. He has to provide specific papers and go through numerous background checks to ensure that he is not a threat. September 11 has also contributed to the immigrants’ oppression because companies take critical concern of non-citizens believing they could pose as a hazard to the company. Immigrants have a hard time surviving in the United States much less getting a visa. Since the legal process takes years to consider, most immigrants just comes here illegal because it’s easier. Everyone desires to have the American dream myth of freedom. The reality is that the American dream is specified for a limited amount of individuals. There is the belief that opportunities are open to everyone and that we are the nation of democracy. However, some immigrants are not entitled to those opportunities or the rights that are linked. Education for immigrants is much harder since most immigrants are poor. Therefore, the students attend schools that lack all the credentials of a successful learning environment. Being part of a different country discriminates the potential of an individual. We are known to do the work that no one wants, yet we are criticized when we slack off. Health care becomes a big issue because we can’t afford enough for full coverage of injuries or life and death situations. Nationality can be an effective power because it deprives immigrants from doing their potential, or making the economy better because of the severe laws.
Upbringing

I was raised with the notion that women should keep their household neat and tidy. We are to do all chores inside the house while the men work outside. I had to clean every inch of the house while my mom cooked the meal for the day. My dad and brothers mostly worked on the lawn or fixing things that seemed to be broken. As I grew up, my workload increased to the point where I felt like I was the only one doing work. I vacuumed every carpet, cleaned all the bathrooms and washed every dirty dish. My mother still believes that women should do all the work because that’s our duty. Constantly, we argue that times have change since then. My parents grew up where that tradition is continued. Women have low salary jobs that end early enough for them to go back and prepare the family meals. I was raised to learn how to provide for my family because a man wants a woman who can cook and look good. Sports were a male trait because women were like jewels that shouldn’t be harm. Activities that involved sweating and strength were a male trait.
It is difficult to find the privileges of having women treated under this manner. However, this tradition called for a revolution by women and for women. Feminist movements gained women rights in sports, government, etc. I am now able to vote for a worthy president in the next election because of Women’s Suffrage. I am able to participate in any sport that interests me because of Title X. I am able to become a lawyer with a few more years in college because the discrimination was outlawed. The tradition allowed for a rebellion that would change the minds of people such as my mothers. This acknowledged women as more than just housewives, but as employees. There’s the ability for women to have the same job as a male and live in an independent household without men. This tradition released a movement that seemed impossible to accumulate due to the lack of respect women had.
Though the privilege was a great gain to the women society, the oppression still lies within the male dominant society. Men are more likely to gain those high professional jobs because their employers believe that they are less of a burden. Women have too many burdens such as pregnancy or surgery that affects the company in their performance because they have to take such a long leave. A long leave could deter the company from gaining any profits or closing a deal if women are placed in those high positions. Thus, the qualification usually requires male employees because they are more dependent. There are only a few women who hold corporate jobs with a high salary. Most women jobs are known to be talk show host, teachers, or nurses. The salaries of women’s job are not nearly equal to the salaries of men. Since my goal in life is to be a corporate lawyer, I’m going have to work extra hard to just to be considered for a law firm. Not only are jobs oppression, but sports are one to. Women sports have little support or no support when it comes to publicity or audience attendance. The majority of the audience attention still focuses on men sports and men entertainment. There is something about violence that promotes a male populated sport then a female one. The girls’ track team never received that much recognition because it was all about the men’s basketball team in high school. This kind of oppression gives doubt to why women should have equal power when the world is still male dominated. It takes forty-two presidents before a woman has a near chance of winning. Even now many people, including women, believe that Hillary Clinton wouldn’t be a good president and they wouldn’t vote for her. If thoughts like this are still going on, then what women have fought for was done for nothing. The years of rebellion were a waste of energy if people including my own mother still have their mind set that the women should stick with tradition. Mankind has the literal term that male majority rules with no female minority rights. Male have dominated with their perceptions of capitalist that doesn’t include females.

Location

I live in the urban suburbs in Bowie, Maryland. I call it the “urban suburbs” because it is a mixture of the city and the family life. The area I live in has six hundred thousand dollar homes surrounded by trees. My house has two acres of land on top of a small hill. People like to call it the house on the prairie because it looks just like the houses in that movie. The area is filled with African American neighbors and there is an amusement park down the street. It’s a really quiet area with a few kids playing outside. I had a choice of what school I could attend during my high school years. One school is what I call the “urban school” and another is what I call the “suburb school”. The urban school, Largo High School, acted as it was a school in the city. It was over populated with a mixture of low class and middle class black students. A fight broke out once every other day that centered on hoods and gangs. Rap and Go-Go genres was the popular thing to play on the radio. The dress code was ridiculous before uniforms were enforced. Girls wore short skirts with see through tops and hooker hill while boys were white beaters and pants down to their knees. The suburban school, Bowie High School, was an elite high and middle class school with a mixture of white and black students. They wore no uniforms and fights never happened that much. Going there was like being in an old fashioned movie where the cheerleaders and the football team were the king and queen of the school. These schools were so different, yet they were located in the same area.
Living in this location has its privilege because it is a quiet area. The neighborhood is highly respected by the residents. There is no loud music played by cars rolling by or kids outside after dark. The neighbors greet one another as they do their daily exercise. My house is spacious with lots of land surrounding it. Because we live on a two acre lot, other houses are as far away as possible. The backyard is big enough for kids to play in without having to worry about them getting into the streets. Inside my house, there are enough rooms for everyone so it is not crowded. We have enough room to place everything that could not fit in our old house into our new house. Most people are not able to afford homes like the one I have because of the cost. Living here is a privilege because my parents have the financial status for the monthly payments. Most people are astonished by the house because of the vacancy and capacity that the house holds. However, the area that my house is in causes oppression.
The situation was ironic because I originally thought the schools were productive. The school that I attended was the “urban school” which had a large black population. The school had kids that came from every part of the region that were not supposed to be there. Fights happened often that interfered with the learning process. When I came to college, I lacked the credentials that an average high school student should have learned. I was put into a program that aided me in gaining the information from those curriculums that my high school failed to cover. Learning at that school was hard due to the illegitimate teachers that worked there. Some of them were up to par, but others were only teaching to gain a paycheck. The books were falling apart and out of date. Some teachers had to print the updated versions and split them among the class. If someone was to ask me what I learned from each of those classes since my freshman year, I probably would not be able to provide a good answer. Living in the suburbs seems like a nice thing, but the area still has some underdeveloped sections. I would have thought that the taxes my family paid would have given us better textbooks; however, they were used to build new schools. The government tried to avoid dealing with the problems in the schools that we have now by making new schools; instead, they should just repair the old schools that we have now.
In conclusion, these four aspects of life have generated into four powers that affects my everyday life. My religion has more of an open mind about certain situations that other churches condemn with strict force. Nationality and Location plays a vital role in the American society because where you come from impacts the class in which you will be placed. Lastly, my upbringing decides how I react to life’s obstacles. These are my personal perceptions of my life being a black young woman whose parents are immigrants. Due to these demographics, my life is held with certain boundaries that the government poses. For instance, my location portrays that I am part of a middle class society; however, I attend a school that upholds low class qualifications. My matrix of domination has a double negative because I am not the white male; however, we will encounter a life that is a white female and see how her perceptions of life compare to mine. She will observe the same powers that I have, and record her findings about life. Then she will interpret her findings and come with a final conclusion.