Reading and Wrtitng for Social Justice

The Television show Red Band Society, is about a group of misfit teenagers living in a hospital, who all suffer from different disorders. In this TV show, a group of unlikely friends turn out to have a lot in common. Teenagers in Fox’s Red Band Society, are from every social group you could think of. For Instance there’s the shy girl, also known as Emma, who’s suffering from an eating disorder. Then there’s your soccer star Leo that due to cancer has had his leg amputated. In every Hollywood production show our age, there’s always the bitchy head cheerleader and that is Kara. We also have our bad boy Dash, and the new kid Jordi. According to this Television show “normal” teens are age are portrayed to be tall, and skinny. In this show is there is one black, one Hispanic, and a larger group of white kids. In this TV show, the amount of money the children have differs. For instance Kara comes from a very wealthy family, and her moms are celebrities. Whereas Jordi comes from a very poor family, and used to live in a very small home in Mexico. I feel like teenagers in the 21 century, are perpetuated to be young and hip. And they are always popular and have everything they ever wanted. These images of teenagers makes kids feel like, if they are not like what they are portrayed to be on Television then they are social outcasts in society.

 

 

·       Kids playing basketball

·       Old lady taking cans from the garbage

·       Men asking for change outside of Key Food

·       A group of kids yelling at a boy to get off the swing

 

I feel that the group of kids yelling at the little boy to get off the swing, were violating his rights. I feel this way because the little boy has the freedom to be on the swing, and the older kids didn’t have to be bullies and take that right away from him. They were bullying him, and no one deserves that. The group of kids weren’t physically bullying the boy, but they were verbally bullying him. What this really means is that instead of the bully beating up the boy, the bullies used insults to bring him down. And by doing this it breaks down your confidence, and makes you feel like your nothing. I feel that in the 21^st century the two types of bullying that I feel are a major problem are Cyber bullying and Verbal bullying. I feel this way because, instead of being physically bullied, these bullied are breaking down their victim’s confidence, which in the end could cause more damage mentally.

 

On August 9 in Ferguson Missouri, an 18 year old African American, Michael Brown was shot and killed by a Police Officer. Many people feel that the shooting of Michael Brown was an injustice. This is because, the shooter Police officer Darren Williams who is white, shot an unarmed black man. This is an injustice because, Brown was unarmed, which means this is an act of pure racism. It makes me feel like anyone could be shot and killed just out of an act of racism. It kind of makes me scared for my life in a sense. At the time Michael Brown wasn’t doing anything illegal, so there was no reason for him to be shot and killed. This wasn’t an accident, it was racism.  But I feel that at the same time, the people of Ferguson, shouldn’t be rioting in the streets, because they are causing for havoc for the people of Missouri.

Press, Alan Scher Zagier Associated. "Officer Who Shot Michael Brown Resigns in Ferguson." ABCNews.ABCNews Network, n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2014. <http://abcnews.go.com/us/wirestory/15-arrested-demonstration-return-ferguson-27247709>.

Recently in the news, the newscasters have been reporting about the Ebola crisis. Eighty percent of the people who have contracted Ebola in the United States have survived. If I were one of the people who contracted Ebola, I would be scared for my life. This being because, it is a fatal disease and it is also not curable. It would make me feel like people are scared to be around me, because they are scared to catch this terrible disease.  At the same time it would also make me want to live everyday like it’s my last. But at the same time, I would feel like the country hates me, because I could infect a lot of people if the situation isn’t handled properly. It would be all my fault that hundreds of people contract Ebola. I couldn’t handle living with that burden.

“Mean” – Taylor Swift

You, with your words like knives and swords and weapons that you use against me
You have knocked me off my feet again got me feeling like I'm nothing
You, with your voice like nails on a chalkboard, calling me out when I'm wounded
You, pickin' on the weaker man

Well you can take me down
with just one single blow
But you don't know what you don't know                                                         

Someday I'll be living in a big ol' city
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Someday I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
And all you're ever gonna be is mean

Why you gotta be so mean?

      You, with your switching sides and your wildfire lies and your humiliation
You have pointed out my flaws again as if I don't already see them
I'll walk with my head down trying to block you out 'cause I'll never impress you
I just wanna feel okay again

I'll bet you got pushed around, somebody made you cold
But the cycle ends right now 'cause you can't lead me down that road
And you don't know what you don't know

Someday I'll be living in a big ol' city
And all you're ever gonna be is mean
Someday I'll be big enough so you can't hit me
And all you're ever gonna be is mean

Why you gotta be so mean?

                                                                                                                                           

            The song “Mean” written by multi – platinum artist Taylor Swift, is about standing up to bullies or “haters”. Swift wrote this song after critics wrote nasty things about her. This song makes think that you should stand up for yourself. It also makes me think that people bully other people, because they are upset with themselves or insecure. The overall meaning of this song is that being bullied can’t stop you from perusing your dream. In fact it should just make you push even harder to accomplish it.

 

Good about our World	Unfair about our World
-       People caring for each other	-Hunger
-Freedom/ democracy	- Poverty
-working to end sickness	-war
-working to end world hunger	-under privileged people taken advantage of

 

      I interviewed my father, Nicholas and he felt that one of the good things about our world is how much people care for one another. For instance people help random strangers in the fight to end world hunger. People even go overseas to help countries end sickens. This is recently scene in the Ebola crisis. One major thing that is great about this world that some countries don’t even have is democracy. But in comparison there are a few unfair things about our world.  For instance there’s world hunger. But what’s most upsetting about this is that people take advantage of these under privileged people. What I also think is unfair about our world is that we have war and poverty.

 

 

I interviewed my mom, because she always gives back to the community. For instance at my old school, she created a music program for children to learn how to play an instrument. She would also run a canned food drive, and she also did the Marty- Markowitz Brooklyn Borough toy drive. My mom inspires me, because she is very community orientated. She taught me to always give the community, because there is always someone less fortunate than you are. She changes the world every day in my eyes. She recycles, she donates, and she also cares about the environment.