Chapter 14

Social Benefits of Poverty

I grew up in a middle-upper class family. I went to school, played sports, and was surrounded by people within the same social class. The only exposure I ever had to poverty was when my family would volunteer at homeless shelters and soup kitchens. I grew up learning that we need to help people that are less privileged than us.  Around Christmas time every year my mom and dad had my brother and I do research and find a nonprofit organization that we wanted to donate to. We then had to explain to our parents why we wanted them to donate to that particular organization and why we thought that those people needed the most help. Growing up learning the importance of helping people get out of poverty made me believe poverty is bad. Nobody has ever questioned why I think poverty is bad because most people think it is. In chapter 10, the social benefits of poverty was discussed. Social benefits of poverty? How? This concept seemed absolutely outrageous to me. 

The concept that poverty is a necessity in society is devastating to me, but it is true. Society needs people to work for lower wages in order for business to succeed. If people weren't willing to work for lower wages society wouldn't function. 

• "If society fostered full equality, who would do the dirty work?" (Newman)

• Poverty supports occupations that serve the poor like social workers, pawnshop owners, and second-hand stores. 

• Poverty ensures that people will join the military. 

My question is.....

If society needs poverty, why are we trying to help impoverished communities?

Why would we try and fix something that would destroy us? 

Why as a community do we segregate these people because we want to make more money?

The social and economic benefits of poverty in society are valid points as to why we need poverty. How can we fix our necessity of needing people to live in poverty? As a nation, we need to find a way to fill society's need for poor people. We need to come up with a way to fill the "dirty jobs". Maybe people who are flipping burgers should get paid more than actors. Maybe we can come up with an incentive for people to do the dirty work. Maybe we can increase the military salaries. Maybe as a society we can find a way to encourage second-hand products to everyone, not just the poor. 

There has to be a solution to poverty. There has to be a way for society to function without people living in poverty. 

I think that if more people realized the need for poverty, a social movement could arise. Social movements are so powerful and can change social norms and expectations. As a nation we have proved time and time again that social movement can change society. Hell, we proved it today! 15 years ago, the thought of gay marriage being recognized at the federal level was outrageous. In the last five years, the social norms and beliefs regarding gay marriage and equality for every type of love has changed drastically. The incredible, social transformation that has occurred started with a social movement. If we organized ourselves in order to destroy the need for poverty in the United States, it  could happen. 

Chapter 13

My Immigration Story 

My family has been in the United States since the early 1900s. In 1912, my great, great, grandpa Fiskevold immigrated to the United States from Norway. He arrived in New York, like most immigrants of that time, and immediately moved to Minnesota because the climate was similar to Norway's. My great, great, grandpa Stutebeck immigrated to the United States in 1920 from Germany. He also arrived in New York and moved to Minnesota. 

My family members arrived in the United States during a time of rapid immigration that consisted of mainly European decent. My family members were not treated as "outcasts" because they were white. At the time, 7/8 US citizens were white. The social treatment of immigrants in the US changes as the economic conditions change. In the early 19th century, when my family came to the US, immigrants were welcomed because they filled unwanted jobs, and improved the lives of current citizens by contributing to society. This would not be the case today; today's immigrants are commonly seen as a threat.  Many people in the US have resentment towards immigrants because of competition over jobs and resources, racism, and the strains on social institutions. 

Public education is a social institution that has changed drastically since the early 1900s. In the early 1900s, people went to school for only 6 or 7 years, oppose to today, where most people have 12 plus years of formal education. Today, public education has to cater to immigrants unlike when my family arrived. Many US citizens think that immigrants are taking educational opportunities away from current citizens because public education has to cater to the educational needs of immigrants. The hostility towards immigrants regarding education simply didn't exist when my family immigrated to the US. 

In today's economic circumstances, many people are unemployed and rely on government assistance in order to have housing, food, and clothing. The resources provided to citizens during economic hardships is also available to immigrants.  The competition over government resources has created a selfish hostility and resentment towards immigrants. If my family immigrated to the US today, they would feel this hatred along with the millions of other immigrants in the US. The social attitudes towards immigrants in 1920 was much different. Immigrants in the 1920s improved the lives of current residents which changed the attitude and treatment towards them. 

If my family members were immigrating to the US today, they would face many social issues that weren't relevant in the early 1900s. My family would be a threat to the community and face criticism, racism, and hostility. 

 

Chapter 12

Social Structure of Gender 

Gender is socially constructed through institutions, organizations, groups, statuses and roles, beliefs and norms. Women's rights have increased significantly in the last 100 years, but women are still being treated differently than men in today's culture. This is happening because of the social structures in society. 

The media is a social institution that has impacted how women are viewed in society. The media content is created and controlled by men. Men have created the ideal women that women think they should be and men think women should be. The media's influence on society has given gender roles to both men and women, but the roles given to women are unattainable. 

Women are portrayed as sex objects that men own in the media. Women are sexy, wear skimpy clothing, and exist to please men. This stereotype of women in the media creates social norms and beliefs in men and women that women are to have the ideal body, skinny as a rail with large breast. The media's portrayal of a woman's body is unrealistic; women in the media are not real women. But, the social institution of media gives society this belief and creates a social norm. 

Women are given also given a status of a perfect "housewife" in the media. The roles that go along with this status are cooking, cleaning, taking care of children, and pleasing the men. This status goes along with the 50's era where women didn't work. In today's society many women have full time jobs just like men. It is impossible for a woman to work full time, take care of the children, and maintain a perfect house. The media is giving men and women unrealistic expectations for women to meet. 

The media has given society expectations of how women should look and act. These expectations are not attainable or fair for women. The media is a social institution that has given society expected statuses, roles and norms for women. The order and predictability of women in the media is expected by all media consumers, but this portrayal should not be expected of women in real life. 

This is a video Dove made in their real beauty campaign. It shows how the ideal woman in the media is fake. This is the process media content goes through in order to create this ideal woman. 

Chapter 11

Social Construction of Race

People often stereotype individuals and groups by their biological appearance. The personal traits individuals hold categorize them into races. But, across the world cultures have different categories, sub-categories and perceptions of race. This means that race really isn't biological; race is a social construction that differs among cultures. Racial categories that an individual identifies with and the racial categories others identify the individual with can differ. This happens because of the changing social construction of race even within the same community. To me, the most interesting concept of the social construction of race is how people change the race they identify with throughout their life. 

A study on racial identity among adolescents showed that what race they classify themselves in changes depending on their surroundings. The study found that adolescents were more likely to identify with "multi-racial" at school than at home. This is interesting to me because the people around the subject influenced their racial identity. This is a prime example of how race is socially constructed and not biologically constructed. If race was biological, the answers would be consistent no matter the environment. Newman also points out how peoples' racial identity changes depending on how their race will help or hurt them. College applicants strategically choose which race to identify with in order influence the colleges' decision. This is also very interesting to me because my racial identity has never changed. I have always identified with being white because I have light skin, brown/green eyes, and dark blond hair (naturally). I am mostly European, German, Irish, and French Canadian. But, I am also Native American. Half of my moms sibling "look" Native American, dark hair, dark eyes and tan skin. But, I have never considered myself anything other than "white". The social construction of race has influenced my consistency with my own racial identity. Because I don't "look" Native American, nobody has ever classified me as "multi-racial" or "Native American". 

The socially constructed concept of race changes over time, surroundings, and across the world. Race is defined by external forces rather than biology. 

Chapter 10

Family of Four Expenses

Food: $7,250

Transportation:

Housing and utilities: $17,000

Medical: $3,600

Daycare: $14,000

Clothing: $5,000

School Supplies/miscellaneous children expenses: $1,500

Entertainment: $4,000

Total: $43,350

$21,237 over budget

The budget I came up with for a family of four is much higher than the poverty line in the U.S. This gap forces families to cut necessities. After entertainment, the food budget may be cut in order to make ends meet. Cutting a food budget is difficult, but it can be done. If the food budget was lower, the food that the family could afford wouldn't be as healthy. Fresh fruits and vegetables are very expensive. A good bag of grapes or a package of strawberries can be $3-$6, a bag of fresh spinach is about $4. With fresh fruits and vegetables so expensive, it would be much cheaper for the family to eat unhealthy processed food. A family of 4 can eat a fast food dinner for 1/3 of the price as a healthy home cooked meal. Cutting the food budget results in unhealthy eating and health risks. Cutting transportation costs is another option. If the transportation budget is cut it will make work, school, education, and entertainment scheduling difficult.  If the schedules don't work out, then the families' income could decrease, social lives will decrease, and the childrens' education could decrease. If the family cut the health care budget the families health would be at risk. Cutting the health care budget could result in missed work, serious illness, and countless other issues that would decrease the families' quality of life. In all reality, any part of this budget could decease, but the quality of life would also decrease significantly. 

The budget I composed doesn't include any savings. Without having any savings it makes it harder for the children to be able to afford college. It is very difficult to attend college  without any financial help from parents or other relatives. Without being able to afford an education, the opportunities that the children will have in the future decrease significantly. The entertainment budget would be the first cut the family would make in order to afford food and shelter. With out an entertainment budget the children won't be able to do sports and other social activities. This will decrease the childrens' social lives and make them feel isolated. The family's necessities are already double the poverty line; the well-being of this family is at risk. 

Living in poverty, or close to poverty, gives the family a low quality of life. The stress of trying to make ends meet is enough to destroy the parents' quality of life. This family is forced to cut necessities which decreases the well-being of the entire family. The children will have lower education, lower health care,  and lower opportunities in life. 

Chapter 9 revised

Social Structure of Education

The social structure of education is based off of social norms, beliefs and expectations created by society. The education system in the U.S.  is based off of the cultural belief that education leads to successful careers and financial stability. This belief is not necessarily true anymore; many people are waiting tables years after getting a degree. The organizations, groups, statuses, and roles within the social structure of education gave me roles and statuses as a student. 

The organizations within the education system provide structure for school districts, schools, teachers, and students. Standardized tests are required for schools in order to ensure teachers are adequately teaching students what they need to know. This gives schools and teachers requirements. The requirements standardized tests give schools keeps the education system functional. If there weren't standardized tests, schools would have no requirements to meet and the education system would not teach students the nessisary cirriculum. Standardized testing also serves as a way to measure what students need to improve on and what they are succeeding in. This gives parents, students, and teachers the information on what needs to be worked on. 

As a student I went to school because it is an institutional norm that children go to school. I was under the impression that school a necessity in having a comfortable life. I always planned on going to college because of the cultural beliefs and norms that surrounded me. My status as a student gave me roles that I had to take on in order to be successful. I had to respect my teachers and other adults as a student. Respecting people with a higher status than me was a role I took on as a student due to the social expectations and roles. As a student I have taken on statuses within groups. The groups I have been in include my social circle, sports, and other extra curricular activities. The social structure of education gives people distinct statuses that have distinct roles that must be played. The current education system is has these roles and statuses due to external impacts that give society ideas, beliefs, and expectations in regards to education. 

The status I have as a student has been with me for 14 years; I don't even remember not having the status as a student. Being a student has impacted the way I think about everything. I have learned what my status entails and the roles I must take on. For example, I have to be timely with my school assignments in order to remain a student. If I am not timely with my assignments I will not be able to pass my classes. If I don't pass my classes I can not graduate and have the finical success I thrive for. The end result that I am working towards is a cultural belief that I have learned.

Chapter 8

Labeling Theory

In today's society people are labeled as deviant for many reasons. We label people deviant because of actions, behaviors, ideas, and personal attributes that society sees as wrong. Once society has labeled a person deviant that label changes how society interacts with the person. That person is seen differently by others and is singled-out and rejected. Once the label of deviant sticks, it is hard for the person to cope with the consequences. 

Society labeled Tiger Woods as deviant when it came out that he had been cheating on his wife with many women. Today's society views marriage as a monogamous relationship between two people. Tiger Woods' behavior of cheating on his loyal wife violated this social norm and expectation resulting in a label of deviant. He lost multi-million dollar endorsement deals as a consequence of being labeled deviant.  Tiger Woods was an athlete that many people viewed as a role model, after the cheating scandal society's perception of him changed.

Deviant behavior is defined by society; as society changes the label of deviance changes. Today, Tiger Woods has been labeled deviant. But what if society viewed cheating as a norm? Tiger Woods' behaviors would not have been deviant, and he would still have admirers and endorsement deals. Since society views cheating as a deviant behavior, Tiger Woods' will have to live with the consequences of committing the social crime.