Discrimination and Women's Rights
Make Lemonade
How has discrimination affected and shaped America in the past?
Jews were discriminated against and violently attacked. This and discrimination against African Americans. This raised a lot of awareness in the U.S. Many people now have stopped discriminating, but some people will always do it no matter what.
Most African American's in the United States were settled in the south. This was not very good because most cities and towns in the south were "Jim Crowded." The term Jim crowded meant that the towns were very segregated. There was a law about segregation that was passed in the early 1900's but that doesn't mean it was always obeyed.
What are examples of discrimination in America currently?
- Syrian refugees gets house checked by FBI for terrorism plans
- People that are goth get discriminated as soon as they go anywhere in public do to their clothing
- Being too skinny or too fat is wrong according to many people of today's society
- People are denied jobs or fired when discriminated against
- People are judged, name called, pushed, shoved, beaten, abused and killed for their appearances and beliefs
- People are mistreated and abused just because someone thinks something bad of them
- People are led to drugs and alcohol because of the discrimination they get
What are examples of discrimination in the world currently?
One of the most discriminated things in the world today in people that are gay and lesbian. It has taken too much time to realize that it is okay to like the same gender. Ellen Degeneres is one of the many lesbian/gay famous people in the world. She is liked by a lot of people, but a lot of people despise her, because she is lesbian. She is one of my favorite famous people in the world and I like many do not care if she is lesbian.
A Japanese family has just moved to Canada. The son they have has been attending school and been getting piked on a lot. Not many people from Japan move to Canada so the kids might not be used to it. This is an example of the little things that have happened and are currently happening and things that need to stop. This kid has done nothing wrong and he gets bullied everyday, just because he looks a bit different than the rest of the kids.
Why do you think people judge other people that they may not know and hold prejudice ideas/opinions against them?
I think that people judge other people because they are jealous of them. 90% of guys I know absolutely hate Justin Bieber. I think that 89% of these people are just jealous he can do things they will never be able to do.
A second reasoning I have is by popularity. A lot of people judge kids by their popularity. I have witnessed this happen in multiple scenarios. Some of the "popular kids" have made fun of the "unpopular kids" because they dye their hair a "weird" color. Or maybe even the clothes they wear because they're family can't afford it.
What are the major events woman's rights history in America?
One specific major event in women's rights is when women were allowed the right to vote. It is the 19th amendment, that was passed June 4, 1919 and ratified on August 18, 1920. This of course gave women the right to vote. At first, men were not so fond of this amendment. Eventually people stopped fighting it and decided to join it.
In 1916, Margaret Sanger opened the first birth control shop in Brooklyn, New York. It was shut down about a week after it opened and Sanger was arrested. A few years later it was made legal to purchase birth control pills. It is almost unbearable to think that women had such little rights that they couldn't even buy birth control pills.
How are women treated differently than men in America currently?
- Women are seen as incapable until they prove themselves
- If women stand their ground it is considered aggressive and rude
- Women are offered lower offers than men for jobs
- Women only get promoted on performance
- Women get less credit in group projects
- Women can't show any emotion without being emotional
- Women are ignored in meetings
- Women are not always invited to work meetings because they aren't "good enough"
- Women are Judged on appearance more than men
How are women treated differently than men in the world currently?
If a man gets a job in politics, he will be treated differently than a woman in politics. The man, if a good politic, will be treated as a high individual and respected. If a woman went into politics, regardless if she is good or bad, she will be treated with disrespect. There is no difference between the two. The only difference and the deciding factor if you'll be judged, is if you're a boy or a girl.
One more example of discrimination or judging between men and women in the world today is who they sleep with. If a women sleeps with many guys then she is considered a "slut" or a "whore". With men it seems to be a lot different. If a man sleeps with a lot of women it is considered to be "legen- wait for it -dary. Or the guy who does it is considered to be a "savage". This shouldn't be different if it is a guy or a girl.
Who are the key famous people fighting for woman's rights in America or the world today?
Hillary Clinton is one of many women fighting for women's rights today. Hillary Clinton is fighting to be the United Sates of America's first female president. She is a democrat running in 2015. She is fighting currently with Bernie Sanders. Clinton believes that becoming president would be a big step ahead in the women's rights movement.
Alice Paul is one of the biggest women's rights activists in the world. She dedicated her life to passing the 19th amendment, and she got her dream. She was one of the biggest people in the activists industry. She helped change the course of America. It may not be completely fixed, but is certainly a huge step towards fixing it.
What connections can you make about discrimination and woman's rights to the characters and events in the novel "Make Lemonade"?
One connection I can make from "Make Lemonade", is when LaVaughn took Jeremy to buy shoes in the shoe store. This wasn't the biggest example in the book, but it was certainly one that stood out. When LaVaughn and Jeremy walked into the store everyone just kind of stared at them awkwardly. After that, when they actually started looking at shoes, people were not helping them, or even offering to help them because they look poor. This is a terrible thing to do even if they are poor.
Another example of discrimination in the book is Jolly going anywhere in public with her kids. If you are 17 and have two kids, you will be judged no matter what. This happened to Jolly a few times. She would walk around, even bring her kids to day care and people will think, "what a slut". This is not an okay thing to do. It may look different but that's okay. There is nothing wrong with different.