Author: Nuzat Choudhury

This quote really stuck out to me because of the truthfulness it holds. When women come forward about their stories regarding the sexual harassment they faced, they are often immediately discouraged by others to take it to court. Society tends to focus more on the aftermath of the harasser’s life rather than the victim’s. Back in June, a large group of young women, who I’ve met through my high school career, came forward with their stories of sexual assault and how the people around them reacted. Many spoke about how they didn’t speak about it until much later on because they didn’t feel like it was the “right time”. A large portion also wrote about how their parents wouldn’t want them to go to court because it wasn’t the “right time” and that their family’s reputation would be ruined. Sexual assault has been so stigmatized in our society that the victim is more prevalently blamed, than the actual harasser.

Our society values individualism and independence, but we don’t realize that we are all interconnected on a deeper level. We can see this through our actions and how they not only impact ourselves, but others around us. In Coates’ well spoken response to majority leader Mitch Mcconell, he brings up the point of “whether we are courageous enough to be tied to the hold of them (past mistakes).” American society has been built on the system of favoring whites over any other race. Ignoring the past and reducing the racist structure just furthers the system of white supremacy because we were meant to learn from our mistakes and grow so we don’t repeat them. Something can not be our fault, but it is still our responsibility to diminish the negative impacts it has caused. If society continues to emphasize separation of people rather than working together collectively, it won’t progress in a beneficial way. Actions cause a ripple effect and if we all work together to stop the impact of past actions from spreading, the action will no longer be a problem for us to face.

Through sections 4-6, Coates makes his claim about how impossible it was for African Americans to assimilate into American culture by presenting a chronological timeline. He begins with writing about the beginnings of America and how the whites, who were once colonized, began to colonize Africans. Coates brought up more historical evidence by referencing specific laws that that dehumanized black people to “untouchables”. For example, “In 1705, the Virginia assembly passed a law allowing for the dismemberment of unruly slaves—but forbidding masters from whipping “a Christian white servant naked, without an order from a justice of the peace.” Slaves were not considered living individuals but were merely treated as property needed for economic gains. He later writes about the countless injustices faced by African Americans, even after slavery was abolished. Using more historical evidence: “Eric Foner recounts incidents of black people being attacked for not removing their hats; for refusing to hand over a whiskey flask; for disobeying church procedures; for “using insolent language”; for disputing labor contracts; for refusing to be “tied like a slave.” and “Black schools and churches were burned to the ground. Black voters and the political candidates who attempted to rally them were intimidated, and some were murdered.” The system was built to favor the white man over the black man: there was no room possible for blacks to grow. That can be seen through all of the evidence presented by Coates, and it is even present in today’s society. Black people were consistently denied privileges, even the most simple ones such as home ownership.

I chose this topic because I feel like a lot of people are talking about the negative impacts of fast fashion and the alternatives. While shopping sustainably is the best choice, I’d like to write about some issues with small sustainable brands, as well as why fast fashion is so harmful to our environment.

Alexander’s introduction allows ample support of the claim “we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it.” She begins with an example of Jarvious Cotton’s exemption from voting and the fact that his lineage has suffered from the same issue. This immediately gives proof of how the racial caste is still present in modern America as the fundamental right of voting was restricted across multiple generations. Similarly, African Americans have suffered through the generational disadvantage of accumulating wealth. For example, there has been a specific instance in the past where black communities have became extremely successful in gaining economic freedom, but were destroyed by white mobs (Tulsa massacre). How are African Americans expected to succeed at the same rate as their white counterparts when the patriarchal lineage of white people were never restricted from basic materials needed to thrive (accumulating wealth or voting in elections)? Alexander also writes about the uncanny similarity between mass incarceration and Jim Crow segregation. Under Jim Crow laws, African Americans were expected to take a literacy test (practically impossible to pass) in order to vote. Today, after African Americans are released from prisons, “… they are often denied the right to vote, excluded from juries, and relegated to a racially segregated and subordinated existence.” and “they are legally denied the ability to obtain employment, housing, and public benefits—much as African Americans were once forced into a segregated, second-class citizenship in the Jim Crow era.” This correlates to the literacy test as it places unnecessary barriers that prevent African Americans from integrating into and succeeding in American society.

Legally Blonde Article

I chose this specific article because it brought out aspects of my chosen film that related to feminism when I didn’t even realize it. For example, Elle’s admission video to Harvard was a classic “dumb blonde moment” and I thought she chose to do this because she felt it was really important to her. However, the article points out that Elle chose to do this because she knew that people tend to objectify her based solely on her looks, so she twisted the situation and used it to her advantage. The admissions board that consisted of older white males couldn’t catch on that she used their blatant sexualization to help her, rather than hurt her. The article also speaks about Elle’s and Emmett’s relationship and how the movie could’ve turned into a cheesy romantic film, but stayed with the theme of ambitious career women achieving their goals. I personally didn’t realize that the film could’ve changed its entire meaning if the relationship was a bigger focus. Since the film was set in the early 2000’s, it definitely made a larger impact as men were considered to be the sole breadwinners. Yet, Emmett didn’t try to make Elle feel like she was not worthy of being a great lawyer, but supported her instead. The article ends with talking about the feminist movement and privilege, specifically the third wave feminism where women of color, trans women, and disabled women were left out of the picture. The film definitely did not have an inclusive cast which parallels the third wave feminism. Overall, this article corroborates a lot of my pre-existing opinions on the film and also gave me a more thorough analysis.