Remembering All The Boys

 Gang violence is a big problem in many communities. The story, Remembering All The Boys, by Elvia Bautista, shows that there are many people tired of gang violence. People who lose their life no matter if it was because of gang violence or something else shouldn’t be forgotten. No one should be judged for how they lived their life before they died. A lot of people that participate in gang activities have various factors n their life that causes them to make these choices even if it’s the wrong choice. Some of these factors include: the need for a sense of belonging, feelings of hopelessness, and feeling there’s no other options in their life. Because of the mistakes they made in their life does not mean they should be forgotten in death. The author goes around putting flowers on other graves even if it was for the opposite gang. She doesn’t want to sound like a hero or if she’s stopping the war against the gangs. She wants everyone involved to be remembered regardless of what they did in their past.    

Creating Yourself

In class we saw a picture of a red headed teenage boy.  He was sitting on the floor with his legs crossed and he was drawing in his left leg. The leg he drew in was diagonal. The picture was from a bird's eye view and he was drawing with a green pencil with his right hand. it looked sketchy like if he was creating himself. at the bottom of the picture there was a title that said, " Life is about creating yourself".  The font was kind of cracked and had black letters. The message behind it was that you create who you  are as a person. You are your own person and you have your own unique qualities that no one else has. What the title said is a true statement because in life you do what you want to do and you make your own choices. Everything you do is creating who you are little by little. You might not realize it right away but everything you do with your life describes what kind of person you are.

Being Content with Myself

Color and race does not define who you are. Each individual has their own personality. No matter if you’re Black, White, or Asian doesn’t mean you have to act or dress a certain way. In the story, Being Content with Myself, the author tells his story of what he experienced. He was judged harshly because he didn’t dress or act like a person of his race. Many people put labels on others based on race, color, or ethnicity. The author stayed true to himself and found the strength to reach himself to be the person he wants to be not what other people want him to be. He made the decision to listen to his inner voice. Being stereotyped is very common. Individuals should be themselves. Everyone needs to stop being so judgmental towards others.         

I Am Nobody’s Nigger

 Certain words can really hurt or bother a person. The word “nigger” is used a lot and can be reacted to in a negative way. In the rap Dean Atta wrote he talks about how he doesn’t appreciate being called a nigger. He brings up rappers that use that word like nothing. Like if they were going against themselves by saying that. When people say nigger they are being portrayed as low class and “ghetto”.  Not all black people are "ghetto" and there are a lot of successful people that think that term is offensive. People shouldn’t say that word like its nothing because they don’t know how it can reflect on others. In the rap Deans main point is about how black people been through a lot and should be respected. It really stood out to me when he says, “ call me “nigger” cos you’re scared of what “brother” means.”  Bother shows love with more meaning and nigger can sound negative. People need to think about what they say before speaking.  

Doll Face

A lot of people tend to follow styles that other people have. Its like you have to look a certain way to be accepted or to feel pretty. A lot of that has to do with the media. In class we were presented with a short video called The Power Media Can Have, it was a very interesting video that caught my attention. Watching this video really made me realize that many people try being someone they aren’t. In the video there is a mechanical robot looking thing that watches the TV and imitates what it does by putting makeup on. The TV starts to move further and further away. When I watched that part in the video I thought the meaning behind it was that people need to be their selves. When we watch TV we see so many styles and trends and as a society we think we need to follow those trends to feel pretty. Its okay to change a little but too much change isn’t good because then you aren’t you self. You’re someone people expect you to be. In the end of the video the TV points to us and makes us think, are we doing the same thing?