Congresswomen Sheila Character Analysis

Over the last one hundred and thirty years African Americans have little by little-gained freedom for themselves as slaves and domestic servants. Now as a culture they are legally capable of obtaining jobs and positions in all areas of private and public organizations, (Hayes, A. F., & Preacher, K. J., 2010). This particular ethnic group are known to be instrumental in holding their cultures together through times of constant struggle. They have used rallies, protests, silent marches and received help from volunteer organizations to fight for rights as well as obtain justice in a racist and sexist society. This work explores the troubles African Americans face in Americas society today, through stereotypes and how gender roles as African Americans differ from each other as well as the American population.

According to Sojourner Truth, women are just as equal to men and they should have just as many rights and privileges as any man. She draws a picture of her equality to men by professing her strength and hard-working efforts. Right away, Truth’s first goal is to establish a sense of identity and relationship with her audience. She describes events where she has faced discrimination as a black woman to trigger an emotional response. Truth juxtaposes the ideal way man says women should be treated with her own personal reality saying, “Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud puddles, or gives me the best place!” By pointing out the existence of hypocrisy, Truth invites the audience to realize possible injustices in their own lives, which should encourage them to want change and seek to take action against discriminators. Sojourner plays on the emotions of her audience to their attention and their willingness for change by shedding light on her own vulnerable experiences to which they can relate. With the successful use of rhetorical devices, persuasive techniques and Biblical allusions, Truth effectively persuades the audience that there is a difference in the treatment of women, especially in comparison to women of color.

As we deepen our understanding of institutional oppression and sharpen our personal and professional lenses to be mindful of its presence, I grow to understand that this will be a constant challenge that will require a lifetime commitment to mindfulness. In preparing for this paper I became more mindful of the forces within my institution and myself that perpetuate this practice. Silence equals acceptance. Fear of bringing this to consciousness is a tension that will exist throughout our careers. I continue to be saddened by the political climate in Washington. This negative influence will negatively impact the forces of oppression and privilege and tighten the proverbial noose around the necks of the disenfranchised. In

Carrie Lane Chapman Catt not only stood her ground in front of the men representing this country, but the people of the country. Catt may not have the highest status among the men she addressed, but she did have a mature position in the fight for women’s rights. The women of this country, along with Catt, were in an uproar and wanted to have a say in the person that would soon be the one responsible for their national security. In her address to Congress, Catt employs the rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos to create a convincing case for the civil rights for the women across America.

The readings for this week were an interesting mix of journal articles and a New York Times magazine article. The New York Times article; “The Case of Marie and her Sons” is about a Puerto-Rican mother’s battle with the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF) to regain custody of her five sons. The journal articles; “A Social Worker’s Reflections on Power, Privilege, and Oppression” by Michael Spence; “Pregnant With Possibility”, Merlinda Weinberg; and Racial Macroaggressions in Everyday Life”, Derald Wing Sue, et. al.; have illuminated some common issues that can occur during my career that will have a profound effect on the power and control the profession can have in the public sphere.

discussed. One can sense her urgency for the unity of black people and how her past experiences

Inside the town of Akron, Ohio within the 12 months of 1851, an African American female added a shifting speech at the women’s convention that would be remembered for its rawness, genuineness, and effectiveness. Sojourner Truth spoke about the way she was treated for simply being a “black woman”. Not only being black was the problem, also being a woman had a vast effect on the way she was treated. She used personal and emotional experiences to connect with her audience. Sojourner Truth petitions to her audience for the push of women rights – for all women – through a variety of rhetorical devices.

The first time I heard “Ar'nt I a Woman?” was freshman year of high school, during our annual African-American Heritage assembly. The crowd, always restless and inattentive, chattered and snapchatted away as the speech and presenter were announced. A lanky girl shuffled on stage, folding in on herself as she walked, arrived center stage, and began to speak. As she went on, her spine straightened, her murmurs turned to phrases enunciated so clearly her tongue seemed to be working three times as hard as a normal person’s. By the end of the speech, she had the undivided attention of the audience, all holding their breath because of how passionately and honestly she presented this glimpse into life as a black woman. Both Chapter 4 of A Shining Thread of Hope by Darlene Clark Hine and Kathleen Thompson, and Sojourner Truth’s “Ar'nt I a Woman?” speech serve the same general goal: showcasing the mistreatment of African American Women by society . While Truth’s speech is from her perspective, full of rage and frustration, A Shining thread gives her experiences important context. .

“Everything is not what it seems,” while this lyric may seem trite, it holds great truth. People, places, activities, each can be viewed in more than one way depending on the circumstances. From these viewpoints spring complexities and mystery in the shape of differing facades.

for putting on airs and that if we've any sense we wont try", and "And

Many of my life experiences have given me a glimpse of what it means to be in the margins of society. My family’s history of racism and poverty, my father’s physical disability, my experiences as a woman, and growing up in the diverse Bay Area with friends, mentors, coaches, and teachers from different backgrounds has opened my eyes to the disparities in society. When I was sixteen I had a particularly salient experience that awoke my heart and mind to the ideas of social justice. I was in Memphis, Tennessee for a basketball tournament and on our day off we went to the Civil Rights Museum, which was built around the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. We saw the counters from sit-ins, buses from the Freedom Ride, and learned about the systematic oppression of Jim Crow. I was confused by the hate and anger I saw but found myself clenching my fists with rage at the injustice of it all. Yet, what was even more powerful was sitting in the parking lot with my team and listening to our assistant coach, who was an African-American man, share his experiences of racism, how it shaped his identity, and his fears for his two sons. Our head coach then shared about her experiences as lesbian and the ways in which she was continually denied rights because of her sexual orientation.

These three perceptions are distinctly different, but ultimately speak to the contextual nature of Black theology—rooting worship, adoration, and discipleship within the notion a (conscious) living G-d. The first perception explored is the image G-d adored through the lens of Sister Sweet and Mother Darling. At first glance, these women appear different in life style and theology—different churches, different abilities, and different approaches to discipleship. But upon further examination, one discovers the same paradigm at work. Both have lost children to AIDS. Both have committed themselves to a praxis centered theology to process their loss. Mother Darling is street missionary and Sister Sweet is a disabled woman confined to a wheel that feeds the birds and attends to the needs of the Little piece of Heaven Church. Both have found peace in their personalized work for the Lord. Their G-d is a “shelter in a time of storm.” The second perception is the image of G-d as seen through Deacon Zee. This G-d is one of salvation and complacence for Deacon Zee. The “White Jesus” he prayed to for his assistance in finding his copy of the Wall Street Journal—a nuanced symbol for prosperity. This G-d speaks to the corporate nature and element of

Katherine, in spite of her academic depth and brilliance, was deliberately marginalized by her peers. As she was the only black person in the office, her peers made sure to provide her with a “colored” coffee pot which they did not fill with coffee. However, the most blatant injustice was the fact that she lost hours of work because she was forced to run back and forth to the only “colored” bathroom on the entire NASA complex. Nevertheless, her struggles remained an unseen issue to her colleagues because it was not their reality, and the lack of having a bathroom near their desk did not negatively impact them. It was not until she was questioned about her daily absence that she was able to raise the problem with her supervisors and confront her peers. It took her raising the issue, making this “hidden” issue visible, for quantifiable change to take place. Sometimes in order for change to take place, a marginalized group must be willing to make visible injustices they face and someone in a position of authority be prepared to articulate how that injustice is negatively impacting everybody.

Inspired by the Black theology of James Cone, Delores Williams attended Union Theological Seminary to study under Dr. James Cone. While she was appreciative of Cone’s diligence in making space for Black women to participate in furthering Black theology, Williams and others faced great opposition from their Black male counterparts. Kelly Brown Douglas, a Womanist theologian and student of Cone, reflects on while she did know about racism first hand, she had no idea about sexism until she went to Union and her Black male classmates told her she could not preach and could only do certain things within the church. This opposition signaled to Williams and Douglas that their work was essential in liberating all black people and not just Black

Moreover, Sheila is portrayed as the product of her wealthy family and, therefore, the capitalist environment so eventually, she is less likely to take responsibility for her actions than others. Maybe, besides her childish nature, this another reason why she used her power and status to sack Eva Smith from her job in the shop Milwards ultimately giving Eva another cause to commit suicide. However, as the play progresses the audience can obviously see that Sheila is quite acceptive towards social responsibility since, unlike Mr. Birling, she does feel remorse and she does feel guilty for Eva’s death and, more importantly, she does accept her role and responsibility.