Debate on Affirmative Action, some arguments for

Hello. So, the debates. I think ours went well. Since I've been neglecting the blog, I decided I should post something about it - or about my part, at least.

About the resources I used... Yeah... I could give you the sources and links except for the fact that I sort of kind of accidentally deleted the folder in which I had them from my bookmarks toolbar... If any question comes up about something specific though, I won't mind looking up the specific sources I used again, so let me know.

Keep in mind these are my notes: I didn't say them all exactly like they are written here, nor in the exact order, and I did skip some parts. But here it is anyway:

Breaking stereotypes; Fairness; Examples

We believe certain stereotypes can never be broken without affirmative action. For a very long time, women were considered less capable than men, and blacks were considered less capable than whites, and so on. It wasn't a matter for discussion, those ideas were considered facts. Racism and sexism and xenophobia were acceptable. And it took a lot to change that.

We understand it may not have always been fair. In an professional setting, between a man and a woman, for example, of course the most qualified individual should get the job, regardless of anything else.

Today, although racism and sexism and xenophobia still happen indirectly or passively, they aren't considered acceptable anymore. For example, mutter a racial slur in any serious workplace, and you'll be called to attention for it and might even be fired.

Looking back, would this change have happened naturally, without Affirmative Action and all the other similar initiatives? Would these attitudes have changed on their own? Because what Affirmative Action did was almost force companies and employers to put aside their prejudices and hire people they considered and thought inferior. Would they have done that if they hadn't been forced to do so?

We believe we're on the right path. Certain attitudes are not considered acceptable anymore; stereotypes have started to change, and we believe they will continue to change with the help of Affirmative Action.

Thing is, we're not exactly there yet. And the evidence for that is very easy to verify, both in independent studies and in real life.

• Minorities and women remain behind in what concerns employment;

• The unemployment rate for black people, for example, is over twice the one for white people;

• Employers still tend to hire men more than women;

• Another example is the difference in payment. Even with all the different factors considered – age and experience, education, etc – minorities and females typically earn less money.

Then you have specific practical studies and tests when there's a sort of set up, in which two almost equal résumés are sent to a company, being the only difference the gender or race of the person who's supposedly applying for the job. On those studies, the minority always gets turned away. If it weren't for the seriousness of the issue, it'd be almost funny how blunt companies are about that.

Qualifications

Affirmative Action is not about preferential selection, where a person is hired to a certain job solely because of their race and gender. It's about the preferential selection among equal or comparable candidates. Being reasonable, a company would never hire a person – whatever minority they might belong to – if they weren't qualified for that position. They would – and actually still do – however, not hire that same person out of prejudice. It's not about blindly hiring minorities who are not qualified and taking away the jobs of people who are qualified, it's about giving the minorities a chance, at the very least.

Diversity won't happen on its own. The “colour blind” policies – as they're often refered to – only put minorities at a disadvantage, and that existing imbalance will only continue if there are no initiatives – like Affirmative Action – to put a stop to them.

Demeaning

We also don't believe it's demeaning in any way for the minority involved. Blacks and women and other minorities weren't considered capable or competent enough to have decent, well paying jobs not so long ago. And that discrimination still happens today, that much is clear by now. So, is it really that shameful that there's still a need for help for certain minorities to get started, to actually have access to opportunities?

Rationally, we know everyone is capable and competent regardless of colour, gender, religion, preferences, or anything else. But that wasn't that the case before, and we're still not at a point where everyone is considered equal, specially in what concerns employment. We do believe it makes sense that those minorities would get a “head start”. Putting it in simple terms, it's almost like making things right, now that we have a different mentality in what concerns equal rights and opportunities. Allowing the minorities to have those opportunities is what Affirmative Action is about.

Past, Progress

Looking at our not so distant past, we've certainly come a long way, minorities and women have made a substantial progress towards equality. And we don't think we could have gotten to where we are today without that initiative that was Affirmative Action.

Like it's been said though, evidence shows that this kind of discrimination still exists and still happens on a daily basis. The differences in unemployment between races and genders, the non equal pay, the indirect or subtle preference for white males over other racial minorities or females, so on.

In our opinion, not only was it a good idea when it first started happening, when actual laws and quotas began appearing for companies to follow forcefully; as it is a good idea now. Looking at our past and comparatively at our present – at how minorities managed before and how they manage now – even with the problems that are still there, it seems we're headed the right way. We're not there yet, but we're headed the right way in what concerns equality.

Affirmative Action definitely took a part in that progression and improvement – and logically, for us – if it's been working so far, we should keep doing it.

Debates coming up

I'm sorry for abandoning the blog for so long. I just thought I'd share a very good website I found about "how to debate effectively and rationally". All the guidelines are very well explained, and while some topics covered there seem common sense, you see a lot of them being ignored in actual debates. It might be a good idea to give it a good read and really take everything in.

As for the actual research on our topic, I'll leave that to the individual members of the group. The debates wouldn't be much fun if everyone knew what everyone else was going to say, right?

Good luck for these next weeks everyone!

The Kite Runner - Movie

In 15 parts, all with HQ available.































Enjoy. :)

Point of View Assignment, a little help

As you know, the class assignment on The Kite Runner is tomorrow. It's going to be about rewriting an excerpt from a different point of view, on about 400 words.

I've mentioned this before, but last year I went to a Creative Writing workshop on our faculty, given by Dr. Janice Russell. What did she focus on? Writing under different perspectives (read points of view). After a bit of digging through my bookmarks, I finally found the entry from the Creative Writing Group blog which has the powerpoint she used. It describes all the different POVs you can use, and it is filled with examples (The Kite Runner is actually mentioned as one for "First Person").

And that's all I have right now. See you tomorrow.

"Who was your best friend when you were young?"

We were talking about The Kite Runner last class and started going through the book's chapter on it.

The first little task we did in class was from page 135:

Freewritting: Who was your best friend when you were young? What kinds of things did you do together? Did you ever fly kites together? Were you ever in a contest together? Were you ever jealous of your friend? Why or why not? How has that friendship affected your life?

I'll start by sharing a little text I wrote for English last semester (Joana might remember it).

I wasn't a very sociable child growing up. I never really liked school that much, and would get “sick” every chance I got to be allowed to skip a few days. My mother tried enrolling me in some dance lessons once, but I absolutely hated it and stopped going eventually. I was only truly happy indoors. It was the only place where I truly knew how to fit in. After a couple of different psychologists, it was decided there was nothing wrong with me, that it was probably just an awkward phase. There was more to it, as I later found out, but for the time being, I was happy that way.

A pet was the way to go, my mother decided. We were getting a kitten, for me to take care of. I was so happy when Luna finally came home. She was this really cute and fluffy, one month old kitten. With time, she became my closest friend.

When I was alone in my room, feeling sad for whatever reason, I would talk to Luna about it. She always looked concerned, specially if I was crying. It truly seemed like she could understand my pain, somehow. I would tell her everything bad that had happened at school or at home, everything that had made me uncomfortable or upset and she would listen. I would tell her my secrets and my fantasies and she'd let me go on and on, always patient and always paying attention.

Being a cat, Luna would purr whenever someone gave her attention, not only when I was telling her my stories and funny secrets. I enjoyed imagining I had an accomplice, someone I could really open my heart to without the fear of having it broken. I swear, she would sort of wink at me sometimes. I do understand this is pretty much all in my head and that it was probably just a blink. But I don't really care, I'll always wink back at her.

Luna is well over eleven years old now. Her age is visible, as well as her sickness. I still talk to her, although not with the same seriousness as before. Once she's gone, I know a very special part of my heart will disappear with her forever. Even if most of our interactions were my imagination, I don't think I could have survived if I didn't have that sweet little animal to unburden with.

A bit corny, I know. But that's how I felt. And it got me a 16.5, so I'm good.


Unfortunately, Luna had to be put to sleep on the 22nd of February, two months ago, at the age of 12.

It was difficult to me writing about it in class, seeing as we had 10 minutes and then had to share with the person sitting next to us. I ended up choking up and not finishing it on time and not doing the sharing part. But here you go, I'm sharing.

She wasn't really an "Hassan", as she wasn't human, but she was my best friend nonetheless. From all the people I loved - my mother, brother, best friends from school - that was my best, closest and dearest friend. My baby and my accomplice. My life would not have been the same without her. Like I said on my essay from last year, a little part of me has died with her. Sure, I'll survive and I'll have other pets in the future who I will love with all my heart. But what I had with her was unique. And it's gone now, which makes me extremely sad.

Pictures of Luna on my own blog if you'd like to see her.

BDD, a couple of very useful resources

While I was working on that BDD cause and effect article we have to deliver on the 15th, I came across two very valuable and interesting resources that I think might help you with your own article.

I found a great book by Katharine A. Phillips, M.D., who focused most of her career "on clinical research on body dysmorphic disorder as well as obsessive compulsive disorder, other anxiety disorders, and personality disorders." [source]

The book is called The Broken Mirror: Understanding and Treating Body Dysmorphic Disorder. The name pretty much says it all. It's very well written and very, very comprehensive. It covers the different definitions for BDD (as well as for all the other disorders that usually come with it), the common symptoms and behaviors of the condition, the effects it has on peoples' lives, statistics, common misconceptions, possible treatments, and a lot more, all illustrated with testimonies from actual patients who live or have lived with BDD.

You can get it from Amazon (co.uk or com) and, alternatively, you can read it on GoogleBooks. The book isn't complete on Google, but the parts missing are minor. You can see it from the contents page right on the first pages: whatever is underlined in blue is available, and vice versa.

That book by Katharine A. Phillips alone should be enough, but here's Dr. Phil with an entire show on Body Dysmorphia. The level of information and authority is not nearly the same, of course, but it's easier to assimilate things visually, so there you go. And besides, who doesn't love Dr. Phil, right?

Oral presentation: Islam in Afghanistan

Islam is the official religion of Afghanistan, with 99% of its population being Muslims, and the second largest religion in the world. Muhammad was its founder, and is considered one of the prophets of God by all Muslims, to whom the Qur'an - central religious text for Islam - was revealed to.

Monotheistic religion: Islam accepts and worships only one god. “Allah”, being the standard Arabic translation for the word “god”, became how the Islamic god is known as throughout the world.

Abrahamic religion: any religion that can be traced back to Abraham. This includes Christianity and Judaism, referred in the Qur'an as the “people of the book”. Muslims respect these religions because they believe that they all worship the same god, and that the different religious leaders are all prophets to this same god.

The same religion has He established for you as that which He enjoined on Noah - the which We have sent by inspiration to thee - and that which We enjoined on Abraham, Moses, and Jesus: Namely, that ye should remain steadfast in religion, and make no divisions therein: to those who worship other things than Allah, hard is the (way) to which thou callest them. Allah chooses to Himself those whom He pleases, and guides to Himself those who turn to Him.
Qur'an. 42:13

Although Islam is a very rich religion in terms of tradition, the most basic laws and rules are all very similar to those of Christianity and Judaism. For example in what concerns God, afterlife, family, sexuality, social status, social issues, diet, etc.

Despite all of these similarities, Islam still clashes with these (Christianity and Judaism) and other religions because like all other religious groups, Muslims believe that their religion is the true religion.

Now then, for that reason, call them to the Faith, and stand steadfast as thou art commanded, nor follow thou their vain desires; but say: "I believe in the Book which Allah has sent down; and I am commanded to judge justly between you. Allah is our Lord and your Lord: for us is the responsibility for our deeds, and for you for your deeds. There is no contention between us and you. Allah will bring us together, and to Him is our Final Goal.
Qur'an. 42:14-16.

Tension and conflicts are inevitable.
Certain laws for freedom of religion have been created since the invasion led by the US in 2001. Now, in the Constitution of Afghanistan, while it says that “Afghanistan shall be an Islamic Republic”, it also says that, “Followers of other faiths shall be free within the bounds of law in the exercise and performance of their religious rights”.

Oral presentaion about Islam in Afghanistan together with other religions - some bibliography

I thought it'd be nice to put up some of the most general resources we used to make our oral presentation. So here you go.

CIA, The World Factbook - List of several different facts on Afghanistan, which includes religion.

Search Quran - Online Quran, where you can either read the different books or search for specific topics.

Religion Facts - One of my personal favorites. This website has pretty much everything you may need or want to know about any religion covered, and all presented in a very objective way too. You have a list of religions organized alphabetically, a few of the most controversial and discussed topics, comparisons between religions, etc.

Islamic Web - Filled with useful information and resources.

IslamiCity.com - "IslamiCity’s mission is to share with the world an understanding of Islam and Muslims and promote peace, justice and harmony for all people. [...] It provides a non-sectarian, comprehensive and holistic view of Islam and Muslims to a global audience." An interesting site about Islam. It's clearly very biased, but it also gives you a nice look into the culture and mentality that goes on behind Islam.



By Dr. Zakir Naik, a series of 24 videos (I admit I didn't watch all of them) about general misconceptions people have on Islam, together with some general notions of the religion. Again, somewhat biased, but to be honest, a lot more factual and reasonable than I first thought it'd be. Worth to watch.

Oral Plan - Draft

This is our initial plan for the oral presentation we'll be giving on the 25th. Since the oral is supposed to be a background research on The Kite Runner, we've decided to study religion in Afghanistan.

Like I said, this is only a draft, and it may be altered until the actual presentation.

Person 1 * Islam as the official religion in Afghanistan, with 99% of the population being Muslims. + Definition
Person 5 * From these 99% of Muslims, the Sunni Muslim and the Shi'a Muslim were created + Definitions, Reasons to why the division happened
Person 2 * From the other religions that exist in Afghanistan (1%), one is Christianity.
Person 3 * Judaism.
Person 4 * Hinduism.
Person 5 * Sikhism.

Always considering how each religion could clash with the others and how even inside the same religion (in the case of the Sunni and Shi'a Muslims) conflicts happen.

I think that should cover the 20 minutes.

See you tomorrow.


EDIT
As shown in the order above:

Person 1 will be Ana (me),
Person 5 Saul,
Person 2 Miguel,
Person 3 Diogo,
Person 4 Ana.

Hello world!

Welcome to our group blog.

We've been having a few problems getting organized, but everything should be sorted out soon.

Enjoy. *waves*