Sociology Final Reflective Essay

Ana Awmack Juan

Sociology 1125

Dr. Charles Quist-Adade

December 21, 2011

Sociology Final Reflective Essay

Reflecting back on the course, the idea that stands out the most is “debunking”. We examined what the concept of debunking is, how it can be used as a tool in questioning the perceived norms and ideologies of society, and how it has helped to provide change by giving a voice to individuals that are affected by these views.

The definition of debunking, as found in the lecture notes, is “looking at both the obvious and surface-level and the less obvious and deeper explanations for social behaviour” (Quist Adade, pg 10). The concept of debunking is a tool that helps us look deeper into societal ideologies, such as the idea of various human races or the perceptions of homosexuality.

The idea of race is a social construct that has marginalized and dehumanized individuals that belong to what are viewed as inferior races or groups. It has been proven biologically, through genetic testing, that the differences between “race groups” are very slight, with genetic differences of only a few percent, ranging from 1.1-3.2% (Quist Adade, pg 100). In essence, we are one human race with different physical characteristics due to our adaptations to our environments over generations. Looking at the movie Indecently Exposed, Jane Elliott does a great job in trying to debunk perceived notions of native peoples, as well as minorities. She does this through education and makes individuals that are considered to be from the “superior race” walk in the shoes of a minority person for an hour and experience how they feel and how they have been treated throughout their whole life.

The concept of debunking has also helped to question ideologies and norms of societal perceptions on issues such as homosexuality. Homosexuality is been perceived as wrong and against God and nature by conservative ideologies. The use of debunking has helped to change views such as the idea that homosexuality is a choice, or that the human interpretations of the bible are the exact views of God. Debunking the ideas of race and homosexuality has helped to give a voice to individuals that may have been previously marginalized and subjected to scrutiny.

By debunking previous colonialistic, ethnocentric and heterosexist views of minority groups, we can become a more diverse society. As time passes, there is evidence of acceptance of minorities, such as the end of slavery, the election of a black president, and the legalization of same-sex marriages in certain places. These achievements are thanks to individuals that have questioned norms that may not seem fair or correct to others, even if the rest of the world has seen it differently.

Debunking has been a great tool in changing societal ideologies and norms that have marginalized individuals that are members of minority groups. Only through constant debunking and education can we change ignorant and uneducated views of individuals and their groups. Before this course, I too had the perception that there were various races but now I know that this was an ignorant and ethnocentric perception.

Works Cited

Elliott, Jane (2004). Indecently Exposed. WestWind Pictures video documentary.

Quist Adade, Charles (2011). Social Structures and Processes. Lecture Notes. Surrey, B.C.: Kwantlen Polytec University.

Observational Essay: Scholarship Fundraiser for Rural Ghanaian Students

On December 2, I attended a fundraiser set up by fellow students in an effort to raise money for scholarships for students in rural Ghana. There were three important aspects that led to the success of the event: the participation of students in the fundraiser, the valuable information from the guest speakers and the impact of the fundraiser will have on students abroad.

The students put in great effort to make the fundraiser a success by having an abundance of food and beverage. The conference room’s projector displayed pictures of last year’s student trip to Ghana as the musical entertainment played in the background. Raffle tickets were also sold for prizes such a one hour photo shoot and even a one night stay at a hotel in New Westminster. To further raise funds, students sold authentic Ghanaian chocolates to entice chocolate lovers to purchase them as well as charms made with Scrabble letter pieces.  The event drew quite a few attendees, at least 50 -75 individuals all happy to be there for a good cause.

The main speaker at the event was Bonnie Sutherland, a director from Afretech Aid Society, a non-profit organization helping people in Africa to achieve their full potential. Bonnie’s speech started off with this statement, “I do not like waste, waste of people, waste of resources”. She provided an example of how a certain company decided to send washing machines as aid for tsunami victims. Not only were the washing machines deemed useless due to the lack of electricity and compatibility with their electrical outlets. As Bonnie explained, many companies send aid that is in essence useless junk to other countries with the sole purpose of receiving a tax benefit. She referred to this type of donations as garbage, as it is useless and it dictates to individuals what they need instead of asking them what they need. Her organization is based on providing communities with what they want in order for them to persevere and to reach their full potential.

The scholarship fundraiser will help to provide Ghanaian youths with a good education in order to help them achieve their full potential. As Dr. Charles mentioned at the event, he was a cocoa labourer working along his aunt and he too received an opportunity through a scholarship which gave him the opportunity to further his education. As Dr. Charles once received this opportunity, he too wants to help other Ghanaian students have access to an education.

This social event helps to demonstrate how some individuals’ or corporations’ good intentions may not have the sole purpose of helping others but instead have a personal agenda such as tax break. Bonnie helps to illustrate how we have an ethnocentric view on what we think others may need but if we put our needs aside, we could stop and ask what the individuals need in order to succeed in life.

Discussion #5

Class Discussion #5

What is Micro and Macrosociology?

(Definitions from Sociology For Everyone textbook pg. 13-4 )

Microsociology is a focus on individuals and/or on small groups and how they behave in particular  face-to-face social networks. The concept of Microsociology was first developed in North America.

An example of Microsociology would be a students within classroom and how he conducts himself, does he interrupt the class or listens and engages in discussions. It emphasizes a focus on the individual.

Macrosociology is the study of society as a whole. The concept of Macrosociology had strong influence from European theorists

An example of Macrosociology would be taking a look at the students as a whole with in the school and not on the individual.

Discussion #4

What are the consequences of the current world population of 7 billion in terms of global social justice?

The obvious answer would be a demand for resources that would lead to scarcity and fighting to acquire them. As I found out in class, that would not be the case as there are plentiful resources. It would seem ironic since there are many individuals in the world that lack essential resources required for survival such as food, medicine and clean water. The issue is not the resources but how they are allocated. As stated by Dr. Charles, unemployment in Canada is unnecessary because if Canada wanted to it could create more jobs. Another issue that came out in the class discussion was the issue of land and living space. Someone in class felt that too many immigrants were coming and using up all our resources and taking up all the land. I think that the student failed to realize that Canada is vast and that a high concentration of the population lives in the lower half of the country and there is plenty of land available.

Discussion #3

How does racism affect minority groups?

We discussed examples of how racism affects minority groups, such as through Apartheid in South Africa, The Holocaust, and the Genocide in Rwanda.

Even though the concept of race is a social construct with no biological support, it has brought forth negative effects such as racism, which has affected many people. For example, Apartheid in South Africa led to marginalization, demoralizing and robbing individuals of their humanity. The difference of physical attributes and being labeled a lower race holds no basis biologically as genetically we are all similar. For example, the Holocaust and the marginalization of the Jews was perpetuated through the Nazi’s use of scapegoating which blamed the Jews for stealing jobs and by their desire to keep their race pure. This led to the death of millions of Jews. Race may only be a social construct that is not real but racism and its effects exist and have affected many people negatively.

Discussion #2

Can we ever be ethnocentrism-free? Why?

I do not think we can ever be ethnocentric free because we are a diverse world with various cultures and beliefs. This is what makes us unique. The issue of ethnocentric beliefs arises due to the fact that as people we conform to our society’s norms and because it is what we know and are accustomed to. Even though someone may be practicing what is the norm within their existing society, if it differs from what we consider to be the norm there will always be a sense of criticism and wondering why “they” do things like that. We have to understand that cultures vary due to our environment and adaptation to it, as it is what dictates the differences between our cultures. For example, in North America we may consider eating dog to be wrong because we have labeled them as pets and man’s best friend, but in other countries they are labeled as source of food, even a delicacy. Even in Thailand, there are street vendors who serve cockroaches, but in North America we considered them a pest and would not consider frying them up for dinner.

As individuals we have a tendency to want others to change their views and beliefs to ours because we may think we are correct or know better. Take, for example, the placement of native children into residential schools in order to “civilize” them because they were considered savages. This was in order to conform to what the society felt was the norm.

Discussion #1

Discussing the difference or similarities between racism in Canada and America

The US is often perceived as being more racist than Canada but the two countries really aren’t that different. The US is commonly known for their involvement in African slavery but Canadian history also has a racist past that has marginalized and segregated individuals. For example, Canada’s history involves the segregation of Japanese who were sent into the interior of B.C. to live in camps. There’s also the denial of the Komagata Maru ship that had Indian immigrants on board, as well as the head tax charged to Chinese immigrants trying to enter Canada. Not only has Canada denied entry to immigrants but it also marginalized and subjected Canadian First Nations to a cultural repressive cleanse that involved the forced removable of their children, who were then placed in residential schools, leading to suffering and a loss of their culture. Even though Canadian ideology is based around multiculturalism, it too has a racist past.