Group Presentation- Chapter 8
The chapter that my group and I will present is Chapter 8- Deliberative Communities and Societies
The chapter analyzes the way deliberation works in various communities and settings. In addition to that analysis, the chapter also explains how to successfully bring deliberation into a community.
Here are some of the main points that I feel should be focused on in our presentation:
- The connections between public officials, citizens , local media, and private associations when it comes to a deliberation
- Democracy and Deliberation
- How deliberations of the past can influence the modern methods of today
- The various theories in the chapter, like the Structuration Theory
- How exactly one creates a deliberative society (The example used in the book is in a school setting)
When we present we could use maybe a Prezzy. I’ve never used one before so it might be interesting to make a creative powerpoint with a topic that isn’t so exciting. Anything will work really because this is such a short presentation.
Read MoreHomophobia at Halftime
If you’re not one to keep up on sports (like me), you probably don’t know this man pictured above. I didn’t know who he was either until some comments he made earlier this week started making headlines. This man is Chris Culliver and he is a player for the San Francisco 49ers. Instead of gearing up for the Superbowl on Sunday, Mr. Culliver has brought it upon himself to share his thoughts on homosexuality with the world. Here’s what he had to say:
“I don’t do the gay guys man. I don’t do that. No, we don’t got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do. Can’t be with that sweet stuff. Nah…can’t be…in the locker room man. Nah.
In addition to a clear lack of respect for grammar, it seems Mr. Culliver has no problem expressing his homophobia in public. If you look at the facts, there has never been an openly gay NFL player in the history of the league. Now, the NFL was founded in 1920, so does that mean that in more than 90 years there have been no gay football players on any of the NFL teams? Of course not. I definitely think that attitudes lie Chris Culliver’s contribute to the lack of openly gay players. If I was a gay football player I probably wouldn’t come out to my team for fear of persecution or violence.
It’s sad that there may be players who are in the NFL or aspiring to play football as a career who can’t fully embrace who they are for fear of people like Culliver. Homophobia in sports is such a big issue and it’s one that tends to be overlooked. As of now Chris Culliver has offered a half-assed apology in which he claims that the comments he made were, “a reflection of thoughts in my head, but they are not how I feel” As if that makes any sense, it’s also a bold-faced lie. His apology is just to save face and doesn’t even touch on the more severe issue at hand. That there is a culture of homophobia within sports and it is not only accepted but encouraged.
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Diversity on Campus
The issue of diversity is one that I feel is always at the forefront of my mind. Especially since I’ve observed what Penn State has to offer in terms of diversity on campus and its various programs for minority students. Before I decided to come here I was warned that there would be no one like me and that I needed to think carefully about how important diversity is to me. Thankfully, I feel that I have been introduced to people who are just like me but others who are different as well. If you didn’t already know there are many programs and organizations that help to foster diversity here at Penn State. First there’s FastStart and also Blueprint which are both peer mentoring programs for minority students. It’s very likely that a person of color will be made to feel included on a campus that doesn’t seem to have very much diversity. This definitely reassured me because when you look at the specific statistics for diversity at Penn State, it’s a little daunting. 76% of the students here are Caucasian while only 4% of students are African American.
I believe that the way that diversity plays out on a college campus is distinctly different than it does in a “real world” context. Especially on this campus, everyone seems to keep to themselves. Asians with Asians, the Black people stick together, and so forth. Not that I don’t like keeping company with people like me but various problems could arise with this setup. For instance, no one is going to mix unless you’re put in a setting where you have to. I’m not talking about a classroom setting where there is always a variety of ethnicities. I mean the people you eat lunch with or party on a Saturday night with. If you don’t make a conscious effort to make your social circle implicitly diverse then it won’t be. I obviously do not have all the answers as to why people break into such clusters on a big campus such as this. Maybe it is for comfort; people stick with what they know. Or perhaps there is just a comfort in spending time with people who share your same experiences.
The one thing I do know is that diversity is important in all aspects of life. Especially in a college setting, the need for diversity is great. With a great amount of diversity, one learns to appreciate not only other cultures but their own as well. In addition to cultural education, one can become worldlier simply by being exposed to other cultures. The U.S. News article I previously mentioned helps bring the issue of diversity into a much needed national debate. Race relations is something that should matter to everyone, not just minorities.
I don’t feel that my experience here at Penn State is hindered in any way shape or form by the seemingly lack of diversity on campus. If I want I can immerse myself in all types of cultures. However, I do wish that there could be an answer to be found for the questions that I asked earlier as to why this campus is not more diversified. Leave your comments and opinions below whether you completely disagree or see the same things that I do here on campus.
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