Rodney's Rambling's

 Introduction to Race and the Social Matrix  1)       What is American           a.       Hotdogs and hamburgers from Germans b.       Picknics from French c.       Barbecue from Tainos d.       Africans the sauce on the smoked barbeque e.       Chinese fireworks and f.         Spanish -the cowboy lasso-twirling and gun-toting g.        Our language reflects the cultures of the Spanish and English, the Irish or the Portuguese, the Germans or the Africans.  2)       Our music reflects the cultures of all the people who migrated to America a.       Cajun and Creole in Louisiana b.       Polynesian music in Hawaii c.       Eastern European polka d. Chinese/Japanese/Poles/etc. all influence us. e. Punk to funk comes from Europe and Africa. 3)       These differences are cultural and can be seen in more tragic ways. a.       Consider Bias crimes where Blacks and or African American groups are the leading group that are victimized b.       Whereas gender

  Social Movements a.       Social movements are great forces for social change b.       Often hindered by both governments and opponents   1.       Understanding Social Movements a.       Social movement =organized effort by a large number of people to bring about or impede social, political, economic, or cultural change b.       Major difference between social movements and special-interest groups                                i.       Special interest groups normally operate within the system 1.       Conventional political activities such as lobbying, election campaigning                           ii.       Social movements work outside the system, engaging in various kinds of protests, including demonstrations, picket lines, sit-ins, and sometimes outright violence.                         iii.       It's a form of  political action by other means because they lack the resources and access to the political system that interest groups typically enjoy 2.