Oppression In History

The first source I will use is Andrea Ayvazian’s essay “Interrupting the Cycle of Oppression: The Role of Allies as Agents of Change”. She discusses how allies can change in a good way, our society into something better in increasing oppression and the power behind it. The author explain why it is so important to interfere and end the never ending circle of oppression, discrimination, stereotype thinking or prejudice. Oppression can be found in every group and we face it unfortunately every day, for example opportunities for those who are poor get often denied by the wealthier part of society which as we know out of the book are just a small part. Ayvazian defines the word ally and what it is to be one. Furthermore she discusses the importance

Andrea Ayvazian, author if “Interrupting the Cycle of Oppression: The Role of Allies as Agents of Change” defines ally with much detail. Ayvazian says an ally is “a member of a dominant group in our society who works to dismantle any form of oppression from which she or he receives the benefit” (Ayvazian, p. 629). Additionally, she uses the term oppression to describe the prejudice who have access to social, political, and economic power (Ayvazian, p. 629). Allied behavior is defined as taking responsibility from the changes we know are needed to make society better and the ones we tend to ignore (Ayvazian, p. 629). Also, allied behavior is intentional, overt, makes privileges that are so often invisible visible, and facilitates the empowerment of the people targeted by oppression (Ayvazian, p. 629). Moreover, allied behavior is consistent activity that challenges prevailing patterns of oppression (Ayvazian, p. 629).

“The United States of America has a reputation as a beacon of freedom and diversity from the colonial period of its history” (American Freedom). Oppression is at the root of many of the most serious conflicts in the world today. But before oppression could be a part of the world today, it had to be a part of history. Many colonists that lived in the New England colonists came to America to practice their own religion. Wealthy colonists copied British styles in clothes, dancing and etiquette.

January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, a boy by the name of Michael King Jr. was born. He would soon become the civil rights activist we have all come to know, Martin Luther King Jr. MLK faced oppression during his youth and throughout his life. Many people see him as this strong civil rights activist who stood up for what he believed was right, however, what many people aren’t taught is what he had to deal with in order to get there.

Ultimately, the narrative of systematic oppression defines black history in America, yet the systematic oppression from the past caused cultural impediments that combined with systematic oppression in today’s society affect the black community presently. Constantly, the media portrays black people through mostly negative lenses as they’re depicted as having no class, being too aggressive, or through the most typical and praised roles of being slaves or nannies to their employer’s children. Similarly, the wealth gap between black people and other races still exists as a remnant of the injustices black people faced in the past. Furthermore, police brutality continues to occur with little consequences to the officers who attack black people for

What is the denotation of the term oppression? It is defined as unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power (MerriamWebster.com). Mao Zedong, a malicious and dictatorial tyrant, was a leader of China who exposed the nation to numerous forms of oppression. Through the movements known as the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, Mao removed capitalistic and traditional principles from China’s society while implementing both communistic and socialistic ways. During the time period of the these movements, the civilians of China faced cultural, political, and even religious molds of repression. After the first movement, known as the Great Leap Forward, a campaign to radically conform China from agrarian standpoints to an industrialized communist society, millions of Chinese citizens died from famines and other forms of maltreatment. Deaths from hunger reached more than fifty percent in some Chinese villages and the total number of dead from 1959 to 1961 was between thirty and forty million, which is equivalent to the population of California (Edwards). After the time of the Cultural Revolution, over 1.5 million civilians died during the movement, and others were tortured, publicly humiliated, or suffered imprisonment (History.com). The memoir Red Scarf Girl by Ji Li Jiang brings to life the cultural oppression that the Chinese citizens faced during the time Mao Zedong led China.

“The United States of America has a reputation as a beacon of freedom and diversity from the colonial period of its history” (American Freedom). Oppression is at the root of many of the most serious conflicts in the world. Before oppression could be a part of the world today, it had to be a part of history.

In this course we learned about many different types of oppression, from the time America was first “discovered” and the discoverers began oppressing the Indians, to slavery, to the oppression of the mentally handicapped, all the way to more “modern” times in schools were students are being oppressed.

Imagine living in a world that consistently devalues your existence and is heavily populated with individuals who are quick to use and abuse your resources, but are slow to share the wealth that is accumulated from those resources. How would you feel? Unfortunately, certain populations do not have to visualize the disparity that is pictured above. This is because inequity is one of the most demoralizing social issues that plague America today. The worst thing about inequity is the fact that it continues to disproportionately burden individuals who are categorize as being minority in today’s society.

It is a great annoyance to witness at every turn in society a great outpouring of proclaimed victimhood, where in fact very little is truly found. Whether problems or insignificant tiffs are denounced as racism, sexism, transphobia, homophobia, or a great many other forms of “oppression,” the people of our nation are quick to victimize themselves. Everything that ever happens to someone is a great oppressing force, though the United States is easily one of the most accepting countries in this day and age.

Dayna Sandberg Writing 121 May 20, 2016 The Criminal Justice System and Minorities The prison system in America started around the American Revolution between 1765 and 1783. Initially, the prisons were in the form of dungeons and detention facilities. Around the time of the American Civil War, the prisons were just starting to implement systems such as parole, probation, and indeterminate sentencing.

Oppression and discrimination has plagued our society since early times. As a collective society one would think that over time oppression and discrimination would turn into acceptance and equality. Conversely, our society has taken sluggish steps towards diversity, acceptance and equality. Our society is focused on labeling people and putting them into limiting boxes. Oppression occurs across various groups of people based on gender, sex, race, religion, and disability. Members of these diverse groups are discriminated among work places, schools, and other places. Work places and schools promote diversity and non-discrimination, however little seems to be practiced. Oppression across generation leaves damaging consequences hindering society in the growth towards a more accepting environment.

There are many different ways to solve problems at involve practical, thought-out, systematic approaches. Of course, the more complicated the problem the more complicated the solution. The fight to stop the oppression of the unwealthy population has been a battle, often lost, since humans first walked this earth. In the early 1700s the poor in Dublin, Ireland were struggling to cloth themselves much less feed themselves and large families. Jonathan Swift recognized the problem and thought of possibility of the most unique solutions to the problem. He proposed that the poor are simply baby making machines that would raise their children until the age of one and then sell them to the rich to eat. Swift goes into great detail even proving numbers

I attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville which I study Criminal Justice. I am planning on getting my Master’s Degree in Social Work. I have a passion to help people, especially children/youth. I noticed that I wanted to provide counseling and be looked at as a mentor to youth back in high school. I volunteered at Chicago Youth Center (CYC) in Chicago, IL.

There are many reasons why people look back on their life. I suppose it depends on where you stand with yourself and how you choose to reflect. As of lately, I have felt the most content with myself than I have ever in my life. When I look back and reflect I see more positive than negative, even if the reality of that isn’t true. The most meaningful of my life experiences would be when I became a mother and when I found God. Although they both may sound cliché, it is how I found the right path in life. They both tie in together to make me a better person and provide me with a better sense of direction. At first, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to have children. But when it all happened it was like I transformed into a new person. I would watch my daughter sleep and I could think of all of these amazing things that I wanted to see happen in her life. I would mostly wonder what I needed to become so that we didn’t have a rough life. During these moments I became stronger. My motivation would build and like an architect I was creating this blueprint of a beautiful life. From that point on, I made it a priority to put my daughter and her happiness first. Once I did that, everything started to fall together; I had a sense of direction. I had so much support from my family and at the same time I sadly, started to lose friends. My friends had their own lives without kids. It was a bittersweet moment. It is true that when times get tough you see the true colors of others. I was a