Final Reflective Essay

Social Justice was a very inspiring, fun and interesting class. It helped me learn and understand what is going on in the world today, and what has led to the creation of certain events or beliefs such as racism or oppression. The two books (Issues in Social Justice, and Social Justice Issues in Local and Global contexts) the class was assigned to read were very informative, and helped me learn core concepts of sociology, and using the sociological imagination to view the world. The Sociological Imagination is a term that was first coned by Charles Wright Mills. The Sociological Imagination is the ability to see and understand that actions and choices taken in the past effect, and help create the existence that we are in; and the decisions and actions that we take today also effect other people around the world without us even realizing it, or knowing who we have affected, and the actions that other people take today also affect us without us knowing who they are. What people do or have done in the past effects and makes us who we are today. In other words the sociological imagination is “an alertness, capacity, ability and quality of mind that allows an individual to understand and connect her or his life with the forces that impact it” (Quist-Adade).

I learned a lot in class about the inequalities that people face in everyday life no matter what part of the world they are from. The text book “Issues in Social Justice in Local and Global Contexts” was very helpful in defining core themes, definitions and concepts that we needed to learn. Globalization is one of the most important terms that I learned in the course because it links together most of the ideas that we learned in class. Globalization is the connecting of the world economically, culturally, and politically. It is the integration of social systems across geographical boundaries (the world). Some countries benefit from globalization through tourism because of the country’s beautiful beaches and weather, as well as their amazing modern or ancient cities. Global trade also allows us to have access to fruits, vegetables and spices that cannot be found in Canada or be grown in Canada. Globalization has many positive and negative aspects to it. The positive aspects of globalization is that we get to experience and learn of histories of other cultures and trade with these countries for their resources in exchange for ours. Without globalization we probably wouldn’t be able to taste the different spices that flavour foods from India or the Middle East. Although globalization has its positivity’, it does have its negativities. Globalization also results in exploitation because of free trade, “free flow of the capital, and tapping of cheaper foreign labour markets” (Merriam-Webster). Globalization has huge negative impacts on third world countries; using them for cheap labour to make items that can be afforded mostly by developed countries. Globalization also results in loss in culture in non-western cultures due to western influences to some extent.

This class has taught me to think critically and look at events with different perspectives and with an open mind. It has also told me that the obvious is not always what it seems. It has taught me to appreciate differences and has also made me want to help make a change in the world for the better.

Class Discussion: Who is Both an Oppressor, and who is the Suppressed (the matrix domination)? (Affective)

Oppression is based on race, class, gender and sexuality, and is a result of power. Black Feminism, also known as Anti-Racist Feminism emphasize on all the three levels of the Matrix of Domination.  The three structures in the   matrix of domination are: 1 is the level of personal biography; 2 is the group or community level of cultural context created by race and gen-der, and 3 is the systemic level of social institutions.

I feel that people will never find equality if they oppress others.

I think that the government oppresses people through laws and his/her rule; and at the same time, the government is oppressed by his or her people. Meaning the government must be careful and listen to his/her people as well or they will be overthrown. I also think that some (not all) black males are oppressive toward women of the same race (ie. Wife or girlfriend), and they themselves are oppressed because of their skin colour in a Caucasian dominated society. And finally I believe that soldiers who fight wars are oppressed because they have to follow the commands that they have given, and they oppress others by harming people during a war.

I believe that oppression like many people should be dealt with starting from the root of social structures – institutions.

I know that there are many people that are oppressed and also practice oppression, adn some may not even realize that they are participating in enforcing oppression.

Class Discussion: How does one define the concept of globalization that we hear about every day? (Dialectic)

Globalization is the processes that are leading to the integration of people around the world. It is the methods used to make it possible to travel from one continent to another and create binds with each country across the seas. It is also the integration of economic, cultural, political and social systems across geographical boundaries. It is the development of the world as a whole.

What question in the discussion is raised?	How did the discussion answer this question?	How does the answer match our own ideas and experiences?
How does one define the concept of globalization that we hear about every day?	The world is getting more interconnected through technologies such as ships, aeroplanes, cars, and the internet. Globalization is evident when you have spices that came from India, and own a pair of Nike shoes that were made in China, and you are eating fruits that were grown in Jamaica.	Globalization is both positive and negative. As a result of globalization countries have been colonized in the past and there have been wars over land and oppression of the native people of a country such as the Natives of Canada. Countries have been left shattered and in debt. Factories are built in 3rd world countries to manufacture goods that are available to developed countries. Developed countries exploit the natural resources of third world countries leaving their land polluted. The Positives are that we get to meet different cultures and learn new things, and try new things. With globalization we get to eat fruits that can never be grown in the Canada, and spice our food with spices that are brought overseas.

 

Video: Story of Stuff (Dialectic)

 

What Question did the video raise?	How did the video answer this question?	How does the answer match our own ideas and experiences?
Where does our “stuff” come from and where does it go?	Our stuff is made in mostly third world countries, and from third   world countries natural resources. The government, who is supposed to be for the people ends up bowing   down to large corporate companies instead of looking out for his people; this   is where the trouble all begins, because now the corporation is bigger than   the government. They are the ones who influence the government the most. People in the third world countries end up working in factories for   very little pay and the product that they make is sold for a very cheap price   at the store. The people who make our stuff (ex. iPods, radios, clothing, toys…etc.)   are the ones who are really paying for the real prices of the products. 1/3 of the world’s natural resources have been used already these   resources are mostly coming from underdeveloped countries. Instead of   polluting their own countries, northern countries (developed, western)   countries use third world countries to   make   the stuff and also because it is cheaper. Little do they realize that the   pollution is blown back to the western countries by winds.	We can see that corporations have a huge influence on the government.   The government work more for corporations because they have more money   instead of really looking out for the people. Corporations are the ones who   have created the world’s inequalities and cause the most pollution and create   the most toxics that have already affected our bodies. Because of these   toxics that are put into the products that we buy (ex. pillows) women’s   breast milk has become toxic as well.   People should be more aware of the consequences of corporate   companies because it affects people all over the world, and is destroying our   planet as well. People who create the products and work in the stores to sell   the products are the ones who actually pay for the real products out of their   “real” wages. We should be more careful with what we buy and what we actually need   to buy. Because about 99% of stuff we buy is actually thrown out within   around 6months.

Video: Gacaca Courts (Affective)

The Gacaca Courts were set up in Rwanda after the genocide of the Tutsi people in 1994. After the genocide, Rwanda has become one of Africa’s cleanest countries with the least amount of criminality. The country acts as a community where they have a certain day off and everyone takes their part cleaning their community areas. The Gacaca court system is a traditional dispute settlement system held withe the community. They hold trials in communities where everyone gathers together in an open setting and together try to recall whether the person put on trial is guilty of participating in the genocide or not. The Tutsi’s believe that the acts of the genocide needed justice, reconciliation and forgiveness. The Gacaca Judicial Court is a very different judicial system than Canada’s. If the accused admitted that they were guilty of participating in the genocide they were put in community service and were let out earlier than those who refused to admit that they participated in the genocide.

I feel that the Gacaca judicial system is very good system even though it does have its flaws. I like the fact that the whole community gets involved in participating the courts which is out in the open. The accused and the ones found guilty are still seen as humans and are not isolated the way Canada’s court system isolates the accused and the guilty. I also feel that getting together helps build a sense of community and lets even the accused and guilty socialize back into the community instead of being left isolated from them. I like the fact that the people are willing to forgive the people who participated in the genocide instead of holding it against them for the rest of their lives.

I think that Canada should have a forgiving system as well if they know that the accused is sorry for what crime they committed. They should help them integrate back with society so that they do not feel isolated and continue to do the wrong things. I also think that people in Canada should get together and do something together as a community instead of living such isolated lives.

I believe that after the genocide something good came out of the country where they put their differences aside and allowed space for forgiveness and created a community. I also believe, or would like to believe that the rest of the world will start to get along and forget their differences.

I know that the Gacaca judicial system has flaws such as lack of evidence in some cases. An innocent man could be turned into a criminal easily because the even occurred years ago and there was a lot of chaos at the time. I also know that the way the people in Rwanda are behaving is the most human thing ever because in modern countries you will never find people acting as a community because they are too busy living their own personal lives to see what is going on.

“Social Justice, Issues in Local and Global Contexts”- Charles Quist-Adade. (Chapter 3)-Social Justice and the Social Construction of Inequality and Difference (Dialectic)

 

 

What questions did the text/chapter raise?	How did the text answer this question?	How does the answer match our own ideas and experiences?
The chapter raises the question of whether inequities are socially constructed or are not,	The text went into great detail of how social inequalities are in-fact constructed by humans.Starting off with privilege:  is having unearned advantages over others. Ex being born as a white male in a middle class family. Power is one of the central causes of inequalities. “Power emerges from social interaction and may lead to domination… it may lead to stratification and hierarchies which in turn will create social injustice (Quist- Adade)” such as creating race, racism, classism, sexual orientation identity, heterosexism, gender, and sexism. Difference is socially constructed by “promoting inequalities or unequal access to resources and opportunities (Quist-Adade)”	In my own life experiences it is very clear that social inequalities are man-made, and can be eliminated if everyone pitches in, or wants this change to occur.Corporations are a good example of promoting inequalities; as the saying for corporate world goes, “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer”. Many people in poor families struggle hard to make a living until they die, but most never manage to pull themselves or families out of poverty; while the rich don’t need to struggle and neither do their families because they can receive a great education and carry on easily making more money, and even profits.

Video: The Cell Phone Paradox (2008) (Periphrastic)

This video is about the exploitation of workers, and their country’s minerals in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Niger. The precious mineral that the workers are exploited to get is called Coltan. Coltan is an ore used to help make technologies like cell phones and laptops. The miners are all mostly young boys in their early teens who work without any proper protection gear. They wear old clothing and use a torch that is tied to their head with a rope. The miners are paid extremely low wages and sometimes don’t even get paid at all. The miners don’t even know what Coltan is used for; but, they know that is an extremely precious mineral that causes war. The young kids working in these mines don’t attend school because they don’t have the means to pay for school.

The thing that I find most important in this video is that the workers don’t even know what the mineral they are mining is used for.

I chose this section of the video because I think that it is important that they should know what they are mining the Coltan for. This subject also goes along with Karl Marx’s theory that the corporate world will isolate the workers from knowing what is going on. The workers should be able to have more control over their resources, to make their work more safe with higher wages and no child labour.