Blog 5- Silence!

 While watching both of the TED talks assigned, the one word that instantly comes to mind when comparing the two videos is the word "silence". When most individuals think of the word silence they would typically think of the action of being silent which is not talking/speaking, and staying quiet. However, the silence used in both of these videos are describing silence as a way to ignore and not acknowledge certain cultures, silencing their value while using privilege as a way of taking control of this "silence". 

If both videos were having a discussion about "silence" the Jamila Lyiscott video, "Why English Class is Silencing Students of Color", would start the conversation off with white privilege and how at a young age, minority students and their cultures are often silenced in their classrooms. This video would go on to speaking about how school systems are structured against African American culture and that "slang" is wrong in schools and is looked down upon in the "real world", however, companies and advertisements can make millions off of it and that's "okay".  Due to demographics and social status, African American students and other students of color are typically marginalized as delinquents, illiterates and trouble makers who need to be "saved" by their white teachers in order to grow up and have a successful life. 

"The Urgency of Intersectionality" video by Kimberle Crenshaw would quickly respond to the first video with the sad reality that even if a child of color attends school and gets all good grades and is supposedly "saved from their future path of destruction" by their school systems, this still doesn't actually save them from the privilege they lack and they will inevidently suffer for it due to intersectionality. That although they receive the "proper" education from their schools, there is a very high chance that they can still be victims of police brutality, job discrimination, and other factors that they really have no control of. This silences their rights, their voices, and sometimes even their lives. 

I believe that both videos would conclude that change won't happen overnight. However, if we as a people really dig deep and start to understand other cultures and learn the unspoken privileges' that tie in with intersectionality and find a change and balance within ourselves, then change can truly start to happen regarding social justice. Until we start to SPEAK UP about the unspoken privilege's and opportunities that certain races and genders face and acknowledge that privilege should be something that everyone should have, there will always be a separation and division and unfortunately a silence that certain genders, people of color and people of color with a certain gender will continually face. 

It seems as though the word "silence" can truly speak so many volumes!

Comments

  1. Victoria RestlerOctober 8, 2020 at 8:40 AM

    Love the way you weave the concept of silence between these two videos.

    ReplyDelete

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