Instructor Article: Forgiveness is not part of the Lessons Learned

Instructor Article

Forgiveness is Not Part of the Lessons Learned

By: Charles Quist-Adade

Paraphrastic Reading

The title of this article has a very good point, as George Bush learned nothing from the terrorist attack that took place in the year 2001 in the United States. His reaction to the event was how was he going to get revenge. Failing as a human being to even question the devastation he was about to impose on millions of innocent people. To top Bush’s disgusting attitude he didn’t give the slightest care to how many innocent lives he would take along the way with his war plans.

” Listening to the speeches and interviews by US President George W. Bush and his team, sorting through the countless op-ed articles, commentaries, and editorials of leading politicians, opinion leaders and spin doctors in the US one year after the heinous terrorist attack on New York and Washington, the word “forgiveness” appears to be a scarce commodity. Instead, both politicians and the media appealed to the worst human instincts- nationalist hatred and lust for retaliation.”

This passage re-solidifies this articles purpose of failing to forgive. It truly states what the United States has done since the terrorist attack which is to adopt nationalist hatred and the need for retaliation. It seems the more damage done to the innocent Afghan people the more accomplished the American people feel.

This segment is important because it shows how twisted people in power can be. Many people knew and felt, that Bush’s idea of invading Iraq was wrong. Yet no one banded together as a nation or country to put a stop to the massive killing George W. Bush was drafting to enact.

Instructor Article #1 Negotiation, Not Retribution

Instructor Article

Negotiation, Not Retribution

By Charles Quist-Adade

Affective Reading

 This article is about innocent lives lost to violent attacks and wars. It briefly touches on the tragic event of September 11, 2001 in the US and then shifts to a much broader issues of genocides and wars among developing countries. It explains that mainly industrialized countries “fund” these social issues, by manufacturing and supplying the deadly arms that enable these acts to take place. As this article states “Lord Pamelston’s understanding was that in politics there are only permanent interests, not permanent friends.” This idea can be directly applied to the relationship of Osama Bin Laden and the United States. Before September 11, 2001, Mr Bin Laden had been “courted, trained and armed by the US,” but now is known as the master mind behind behind the terrorist attack of the Twin Towers. As the title suggests, our industrialized nations need to grieve over the lives that were lost, and negotiate solutions to these problems; rather than claiming retribution in the form of war. Which leads to the deaths of millions, majority innocent, with absolutely no connections to the first tragedy that occurred but in the end pay for it with their life.

I feel great sympathy for the innocent people of Afganistan, and the war they face with the US. The terror they must feel with all the gunfire and bombs is so unnecessary and undeserving, as they never did anything to the American people themselves. Yet their homes, lives, families, and cities are being destroyed over an unresolved issue; it’s sickening.

I think the selling of deadly arms to under-developed countries should be looked at more closely to make sure the weapons are being used in a civilized manor. The ability of a well off person letting their greed look over the fact that the profit for the weapons is more important than a life is very sad and disappointing.

I believe the issues of innocent lives being taken due to retribution will not change, as greed will always be apart of human behaviour, especially with people in a powerful position. However we can hope societies, countries and continents will one day learn the process of negotiation.

I know these issues will take generations to one day be resolved in a peaceful negotiated manner.

Human Trafficking: Issues in Social Justice (entry 3)

Human Trafficking

Darrick Brake

Issues in Social Justice

(Dialect Reading Method)

Box:1 What questions did the text raise?

Box:2 How did the text answer this?

Box:3 How does the answer match my own ideas and experiences?

What is human trafficking?	The purposeful movement of any person(s) to places in which they are sold, purchased, forced labour and bondage.	It wasn’t until grade 12 that i realized how big the human trafficking market was. I was horrified to realize that is was not only happening in countries of poverty but also in my country Canada. It is a huge issue.
How are these crimes committed?	The crime is committed by buying and selling people. A trafficker is an individual who does the purchasing and selling, by either promising a better life to men who are oppressed in their own country or exploiting children and women, these people become victims to human trafficking.	It is a scary to think how easy it is nowadays to become a part of this fast growing industry. Traffickers have become so smart by using tools such as the internet to catch their next victim; I now realize why my mom was so strict about computer use when I was little.
The outcomes of being a victim?	Men who are forced into labour face dangerous working conditions. Children who are forced into military face a very high risk of death. Children and women who are used for sexual exploitation face high risks of sexual diseases and damage to reproductive organs. Many victims are tortured or abused and suffer extreme psychological disorders.	The consequences the victims face was already known to me. It is extremely
Actions to address the problem?	Many organizations have been created in the efforts to stops this awful crime.	I am glad that there are big organizations such as UNODC and Interagency Task Force, who work to try and stop such monsters for committing these crimes and hurting innocent people.

Discrimination Faced by Members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community: Issues in Social Justice (entry 2)

Discrimination Faced by the Members of the Lesbian, Gay,

Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Community

Carrie Buist and Andrew Verheek

Issues in Social Justice

(Paraphrastic Reading)

This article is about the problematics  and discrimination that lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgenders face in several different areas of their everyday lives. It explores the social construction of gender and sexuality and highlights the existence of heterosexism in the United States. The article relates sexual identity to other severe forms of discrimination, such as racism and sexism. The topics explores in the article are: hate crimes, employment, housing and economic marginalization. Although more attention has been paid to the LGBT community over the last few years it still deserves more attention that what is has received today.

-chosen segment-

“Official status on the violence inflicted on transgender individuals is limited; yet according to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) through the use of a report conducted by Kay Brown (1999), transgender people have a 1 in 12 chance of being murdered.” (35)

  Throughout the article we come to understand the hardships the LGBT community face. The hate crime section surprised me the most and I find it sad that so many crimes go unreported due to the fear of violence transgenders face. Another reason crimes go unreported is because the individuals in this community don’t believe the police or authorities will take them seriously.

  I selected this segment because i think it is absolutely sick that an individual is killed due to his choice of sexual orientation or community they belong to. I believe society has a lot of work to still to do fix this issue.

Religion and Homosexuality: Issues in Social Justice (Entry 1)

Religion and Homosexuality

Issues in Social Justice

Frank Tridico, Jacob Armstrong, and David Barry

(Affective Reading Method)

  This reading is about homosexuality within religion. It discusses the power and influence the church and state hold in our society. The reading highlights two groups ( ex-gay and gay affirming Christians) who are in a constant battle trying to belong to their faith while being unaccepted due to be homosexual. They try to change the Christian doctrine to allow themselves to have their faith and be who they are at the same by reforming certain areas of the Christian religion. The authors believe their groups intentions are seen as more of a threat than a reform and do not see them progressing any distance quickly. The article does a good job including and making clear societies heterosexism views.

  After finishing this reading i was rather confused. Coming from a non-religious background the historical points and definitions to some of the religions took some time and re-reading to understand. However i feel sorry for the homosexual individuals who feel lost and must hide their true self  due to the idea of being marginalized or frowned upon for their sexual identity.

 I think what the ex-gay and gay affirming groups are trying to makes sense. As they are trying to allow themselves to be who they are and have a religion they are going through a battle at the same time. I wonder if they would seek more comfort in creating a religion that was a new sect entirely to themselves.

  I believe a person should be accepted no matter who they love or which sexual identity they hold. I don’t see how being a homosexual makes a person any less human than a heterosexual when they both have the same human characteristics. In the end each individual feels pain.

  After reading this article i know that society still has a much bigger problem with homosexuality than i had thought. I also learnt that who are homosexuals are not just fighting for religious Christian beliefs for themselves but also a long historical framework of the religion. I know that individuals who are homosexuals are no different from individuals that are heterosexual. I respect that my aunt had the courage to come out of the closet and tell my family that she was a lesbian. To this day we love her the exact same as we love her for who she is and not who she loves.

Public Space and Criminal Justice: Issues in Social Justice (entry 4)

Public Space and Criminal Justice

Charles E. Crawford

Issues in Social Justice

(Dialect Reading Method)

Box:1 What questions did the text raise?

Box:2 How did the text answer this?

Box:3 How does the answer match my own ideas and experiences?

What is Public Space?	A location that is designed, all people have access rights to it with unplanned encounters with fellow citizens, and these encounters are subject to the norms of courtesy in that given society; a description given by Roger Scruton (1984)	I never really thought to myself what public space actually is. I was surprised to see such a definition to describe something that I thought was so simple.
Why does Public Space have to be regulated?	-it is important to maintain a clean and open appearance to give neighbors hoods a welcoming identity -some behaviors have big effects and can eventually turn a space into a lack of social control or a “broken window,” this allows the opportunity for more crimes to take place	In my own experience I always try to avoid any public area where I feel unsafe as I don’t like to put my safety in jeopardy. I think the analogy used of comparing a rundown society to a broken window is very fitting. Broken windows are dangerous and unsafe much like a society that lacks social order
What laws apply to homelessness?	- It is very hard to create laws that restrict the use of public space, as it seems the laws forbid individuals who are poor/homeless  from using the area. - Laws such as banning panhandling and prohibitions on sidewalk sitting; are all attempts to keep social order, maintain public safety and restore/maintain societies norms.	I think it is odd in some areas of the united states it is illegal to feed the homeless. I think in a way this issue of laws against these people is discrimination as they have nothing else and rely on public space for survival.

My biographical Sketch

My name is Brittney Blackall and I am an eighteen year old female and graduated from Clayton Heights Secondary in June 2011. I decided to pursue my dream of becoming a criminal lawyer and now attending my first year of study at Kwantlen Polytechnic University.  I am currently completing my Associates of Criminology Degree and then plan to transfer to Simon Fraser University to complete my Bachelor of Arts, majoring in criminology, and then onto law school.  My main hobby is horseback riding, and my discipline is dressage and I own two horses which are my pride and joy.  I also ride horses for other people and manage barns.  I also studied to become a licensed equine massage therapist but saw no promise for a career.  Up until this year I competed in horse shows locally but gave it up to adjust to University and focus on my next goal of becoming a lawyer.  My understanding of sociology is rather brief.  In grade twelve I studied social justice issues which brought many different views of world issues to my attention with many different ways of looking at them.   Although I am enrolled in this course because it’s a requirement for my degree, I look forward to learning about the different ways sociologists study society.  I am also very interested to learn how sociologists entertain the term “deviance”, as this is a part of my study in criminology.  I believe the two courses will help educate me as they are different, but they are also linked together in many chapters of my studies.  This course will also teach me to weigh all sides of conflict before pre-judging or rushing to a conclusion without clearing looking at the why.  I am considering travelling with Dr. Charles Quist-Adade on the four week trip to Ghana, Africa.  I think this experience would not only be a milestone of firsthand experience and education but an experience that would broaden many skills to help me as a lawyer.  From this point I plan to keep an open mind and absorb as much as possible.