Talking Points

I can’t believe this semester is coming to an end. We’ve definitely have talked about many subjects and I have to say I learned a lot. I decided to put the following links so you guys can view. Overall we as society have to realize that when you are a teenager you are at the most important and influential stage of life whether it’s going to shape your life for good or will take you to some bumps on the road.

http://youtu.be/UP42v07aGUw     TEENS AND DEPRESSION

http://youtu.be/gGZcE7w74bQ     How the media affects young women

Glee-Full Images of Teenagers

I never followed Glee TV series but it doesn’t mean I didn’t heard about it; it was interesting seeing these 3 episodes and how they portrait teenagers in “high school”, a lot of rivalry and competiveness take place not just with girls but guys too. But one of the main focus of the last two episodes was bullying in this case is Kurt who is being bullied by Karofsky because he is gay. Bullying is a big issue taking place in our schools especially among teenagers; unfortunately we’ve seen more and more cases ending in suicide of these young victims. But what are we doing as a culture, is there true consequences for the one’s harassing?

Anyone who pretends that our culture is not feeding this rash of suicides is deluded. We still have national politicians calling gay people abnormal, and as evidenced in these comments, there are clearly still parents teaching their children that being gay is one of the worst things one could be. That kind of "teaching" does not go unnoted. Just look at the gang in the Bronx that targeted three gay people for brutal torture...bet they started by bullying kids in school. I am always surprised when people think this issue is a new one; Homosexuality and bisexuality are older than human civilization. The ancient Greeks, for example, were notorious for their varying sexual practices. Furthermore, it requires the schools to respond differently. It's important for parents to know if the school doesn't respond, they can file charges with the state's department of civil right. One the positive side is that now is more organizations promoting bullying awareness and guidance to parents on knowing how to respond if his/her daughter is being a victim.

 

Hip-Hop Wars by Tricia Rose

I was not born in the United States I came here when I was 13 years old so I basically don’t have a more real understanding when it comes to Hip- Hop music meaning that I really never care for it or affected me on any way. I have to say coming to the United States opened my eyes to see how much diversity and culture is all over and for my personal experience I learned to embrace and respect everyone not because I “had to” but because I in some way felt alienated (language barrier, no friends, starting all over again and so on) but you cope with it. When it comes to Dr.Tricia’s argument about the wrong perception of Hip-Hop meaning it is accused of glorifying crime and sexism. I liked how she gave a brief history of how Hip-Hop originated in New York around 1970’s, it was a form of self-expression of the people of the poor, struggling communities, and it was a form of an outlet for them and also creativity. Within the upcoming years it has become just more commercial and losing the real “essence of Hip-Hop. She mentioned on the Time Entertainment article: “Look, I don't want it to seem like I'm bashing everything about Lil Wayne and Jay-Z, because I'm not. I think they're both very talented. If you look at the metaphors Lil Wayne produces, they're amazing; they're very creative. It's the substance. What are you making metaphors about 24 hours a day? Same thing with Jay-Z. Even he has acknowledged that he's "dumbed his music down" so that he can sell records. This economic imperative has had more of an impact on hip-hop than [on] rock or soul or R&B”. Hip-Hop “was mostly for fun and for play. It wasn't primarily an economic industry, where people got involved more for money than for creativity”

 
Probably everyone heard that most parents blame “this music” for their children’s bad behavior such as being disrespectful, bad grades, the baggy pants. Is it really the music? It is something to really think about.