Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Time Travel...

Today, we explored racism in 2015 and discussed how society has changed from 1966 until today. Many of you shared powerful contemporary examples, as well as connections back to our film GLORY ROAD, and then commented on the ways various institutions respond to claims about racism.

Your fruitful discussion today sets us up to travel even further back in time, all the way to 1933, as we begin Mildred D. Taylor's powerful novel, ROLL OF THUNDER, HEAR MY CRY.

We met Cassie Logan today, and her three brothers, and we will continue to see the obstacles the Logan famil faces, and how they respond to these obstacles.

Thanks for your insightful and honest reflections today.

Our word of the day was CONCESSION, which is defined as the act of admitting someone else is right, or has a deeper understanding of what may be occurring.

Tonight, consider the article your read about the 1966 West Texas Miners, and what we discussed in class today, and respond with your reflections to this question: how can people learn to see beyond the surface? Think of our class iceberg. And what helps us get to the 90% beneath? Is it really ever possible? Why or why not?

61 comments:

  1. People learn to see beneath the surface by empathy. If you know what the other person is going through and you've gone through that you will understand and see them for who they are. You can see below the surface, you just need to know how to.
    -Angela Xing

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think most people do not think below the surface and I don't think that you can always see below the surface
    David Sampson

    ReplyDelete
  3. I don't think its possible to get all the was to the bottom of the iceberg as unless that person is super open then everyone will always have secrets.
    -Meenu

    ReplyDelete
  4. I don't think its possible to get all the was to the bottom of the iceberg as unless that person is super open then everyone will always have secrets.
    -Menu Ramakrishnan

    ReplyDelete
  5. I dont think it is possible to go 90% beneath the iceberg because most people dont share that much information about them self. And I think people can go beyond the surface by asking the person they are just meeting questions and being open minded about the answers they give.
    -Alondra Pacheco-Flores

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think that you can get to know someone just by talking to them. If you actually take the time to learn a little bit about them, you can see how there lives are. But I don't think that you can learn everything about them. You might be shy to tell your experiences and something that happened to you -- Olivia Gomez

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think that it just naturally come to people to judge by what others look like. Its just sort of inherent. But, we can always try to NOT do that and maybe there will be less discrimination, prejudice and racism in the world.
    --Collin Burns--

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think that what can cause people to see below the iceberg is when they witness other people seeing below the iceberg and understanding the truth and now just what they have seen or heard that may not be true. I think it is possible to see below the surface but it happens rarely and it takes a lot of courage for someone to see the 90% beneath.
    --Emmalyn Mirarchi

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think that people can learn to see under the surface by being nice to other people.
    Julia Proteau

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think that people need to face facts. Blacks aren't about guns and whites aren't about business. So yea.

    ReplyDelete
  11. People can learn to see beyond the surface by getting to know someone more, it doesn't matter what someone looks like on the outside but how they act on the inside. Even if you talk to someone just a little, you can get to know their personality and might even like it. Yes, it is possible, but it's only possible if you try hard enough.
    ~Sara Picariello

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think it's impossible to know who a person really is, the part of the iceberg below the surface, without getting to know them, and that could take years. Everybody judges other people, even if they don't mean to. Sometimes impossible to see beyond the surface. It really depends on the community that you grow up in. Society changes us, whether we like it or not.

    -Olivia Diodato

    ReplyDelete
  13. It is not possible to get to the bottom of the iceberg because even the person your trying to find out about won't know what is at the absolute bottom of their iceberg.
    --Emily Rypinski

    ReplyDelete
  14. What helps people see beyond the surface is seeing what that person is capable of. In the Miners case, they showed people that it doesnt matter if you are black, and that you can be just as good as others, not depending on your skin color.
    -Anna Shlimak

    ReplyDelete
  15. People can learn to see beyond the surface by taking the time to get to know others instead of immediately judging them by their race, what they wear, or how they seem to act.
    Fiona Morrison

    ReplyDelete
  16. I think people can see beyond the surface of the iceberg, and stop racism, and judging on stereotypes, but that depends if they want to. What people should do is try to get to know people better, then they can make decisions on whether or not they like them. If they are as bad as other people say about them, then you try to find people who act different, and never judge by stereotypes. However, the only difference between it succeeding at this is peoples determination to do this. Some people don't even want to listen to how people really are. For example, ISIS is just about being selfish, and are just killing off innocent people who they don't like, as well as judging by stereotypes.
    --Tommy Wacek--

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yes I think seeing beyond the top of the iceberg is very possible. You just have to get to know the person. When you try and get to know them, you can be friends and this helps you do this more easily everywhere.
    ~ Cierra Wilkins

    ReplyDelete
  18. Even though you have sight you should be able to change the way you see people in a "colored" way, like the coach of Texas Western.. The Texas Western basketball team is a great way to show how everybody should be equal. And how, if you use your sight in a racial way, you may miss out, or get beat by the people you were being disrespectful to. Along with having a racial eye towards.
    --Anna Laursen

    ReplyDelete
  19. I think that to look below the surface, we have to have similar experiences to empathize with, for example in the movie dr. Haskins was looked doubtfully on because he coached girls high school basketball, and so he had experiences to empathize with when he was recruiting. Fiona Nash

    ReplyDelete
  20. I think it is possible because if you are mad or got hurt you might hide from people and anything else that is really happening.

    -- Mark Goldsher

    ReplyDelete
  21. I think it is possible because if you are mad or got hurt you might hide from people and anything else that is really happening.

    -- Mark Goldsher

    ReplyDelete
  22. I think it is possible but only only if you take the time to get to know them, otherwise you'll never know the whole story.
    -Tessa

    ReplyDelete
  23. A way for people to think about who people really are and not just what's on top is to think about being in that situation and having someone judge you for what you look like and not on your personality. I think it might be possible to see all of someone but it would be difficult for some because of what some people might be experiencing that either you don't understand or aren't told about.
    -Gwyneth Smedley

    ReplyDelete
  24. I think that is is possible to get past the surface because the white basketball players on the 1966 Texas Westerns got past it, treated them like they would treat any white people, and defended them when they needed it most.

    ReplyDelete
  25. I think that we can learn to look beyond the surfaces by personal experience. I think that meeting someone and talking to them helps getting below the surface. I don't know if it is ever completely possible but I think you can get close to the entire below surface part. Everyone has something they don't tell anybody.

    Stefan Scornavacca

    ReplyDelete
  26. In my opinion it is impossible for everyone in the world to see past color, unless like in the movie the giver everyone is color blind

    --Sean McNamara

    ReplyDelete
  27. Sometimes it can be possible to change and see people for whom they are, and possibly blind meetings could help see past physical appearance.
    ~~~DylanAshe~~~

    ReplyDelete
  28. I think it is possible to see below the surface. If people simply get to know others better and allow them to be themselves, I think we would see below the surface more.
    Liza Toll

    ReplyDelete
  29. People can learn to see beyond the surface by trying to get to know the other persons story and what they deal with instead of just assuming that the are inferior. It is really possible because when people are determined to get to the 90%, they can. If they never make a true effort to try to get to know the person then they will never know the 90%.
    ~~~Clayton Hanlon~~~

    ReplyDelete
  30. I believe that in order to really understand someone, (or get to that 90% beneath), you need to get to know that person. When people don't know others, don't know the reasons for their actions, or simply don't know the person themselves, they can often jump to conclusions. Harmful conclusions. These harmful conclusions can result in racism, where people make conclusions about people they don't even know and judge them based on the color of their skin. So, yes, I do believe it is possible. But in order to achieve this goal, people have to be willing to have the insight and appreciation for all people and their differences, and that's why it hasn't happened yet. We still have a lot of obstacles to overcome.
    --Shreya Kumar

    ReplyDelete
  31. To see the 90% beneath you need to get the person to trust you. If you trust each other, then you can both show what is under the iceberg.

    ReplyDelete
  32. to see beneath the surface you have to talk and socialize and become friends not caring who they are.
    -Jacob elliott

    ReplyDelete
  33. I think that to make people see beyond the surface it takes time, hard work and an ultimate act to set everything right. I think that it is possible to get 90% beneath because it has happened over the years as things and times change.
    -Chris Pickreign

    ReplyDelete
  34. By listening to a persons sitaution before making judgements about them. That would be a way to see below the surface and just to listen and think that theirs a reason why a persons acting a certain way.

    Dwight Childers

    ReplyDelete
  35. I think a way to see under the surface is to get to know someone personally. I definitely think this is possible because I have gotten to get to know people this way.

    ReplyDelete
  36. I think it is possible for a person to see the bottom of the iceberg. I believe that this will happen if the two people in question have a shared experience that they can connect through.
    --Grace Acton

    ReplyDelete
  37. People can learn beneath the surface by stop being mean and and getting to know people. It is always possible to get to know someone if you stop and relate to one another.

    ReplyDelete
  38. people can learn to see beyond the surface by getting to know someone they assume they are suerior to because they are different. I think it is possible to get 90 percent beneath the surface.

    ReplyDelete
  39. I think that it is possible to get underneath the iceberg. All you need to do is get to know a person better. Become their friend. Don't base people just on the way they look. " I look to the day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."- Martin Luther King. Jr

    ~ Lwiza AitDowd

    ReplyDelete
  40. I believe people can learn to see beyond the surface by taking into consideration all the possibilities for example all Asians are smart or thank one race is worthless to the other and one of the only ways (in my opinion) is to see for yourself that the statement you are making is true or not and I believe for some people it is impossible to admit to themselves that they were wrong all that time and for some it is easy to see at of the ice burg but I believe we can never truly get everyone to see all of the ice burg

    --Brooke bourgeois

    ReplyDelete
  41. I think the only way to see below the ice berg is to know them well. If you just see them around you don't really know them.

    --Colin McHugh

    ReplyDelete
  42. It is possible to see beneath the surface, at first you probably won't but if you take chances and get to know the person then you might be able to learn to only see beyond the surface.

    ReplyDelete
  43. This is possible. All you need to see is contradiction. Contradiction against the stereotype that is held responsible for the claims that label it racist. By seeing someone break out of the norm, and search for something different, you see that a racist slur is nothing but myth, and you can see past this.
    --Raiya Suliman

    ReplyDelete
  44. I think it is quite easy for people to learn how to see beneath the surface; unfortunately our generation, and the many before, are incompetent when it comes to empathy, curiosity, and true boldness. People these days don't care what is below because they don't need that information. They always try to take the easy way out. Basically, all we need to do is put forth more effort to get to know and like others.
    ~Magnus Miller

    ReplyDelete
  45. I don't think that anyone can actually truly see below the surface of the iceberg because people can learn to keep things to themselves, but not resist from thinking them. I'm guessing that even some of the fans of the Texas Miners, who did see below the surface for that team, thought that it was kind of strange for colored people to be playing basketball. They kept that to themselves but it was still what was going on in their minds.

    ReplyDelete
  46. I think that people can learn to see past the surface by empathy. If someone is taught empathy then they can see past 90% of people. I think that once someone sees past the surface and actually gets to know the person, more people will start to think that way.

    -Meili Stanten

    ReplyDelete
  47. i belive that the way to find that other 90% is by getting to know someone better. and not judging someone by its stereotypes
    --robert arellsno

    ReplyDelete
  48. People can learn to see under the surface in many ways. One way is that a person who was one racist or didn't like a person to get to know him or her and be able to see that they truly are great people even though before that person didn't see that in them. Also, someone could say to themselves why truly to they not like this person and think really hard and try to see if they are misjudging that person without using something like our iceberg in class.
    ~Caroline Mara~

    ReplyDelete
  49. I think it is possible because if you want to learn to see beyond the surface you should try to learn more about the person or something so you could get to know them better and get to see them beyond the surface.
    --Pasha Sahin

    ReplyDelete
  50. I think people can learn to see beyond the surface once they see how similar they are to that person personality wise. Whether they have the same humor or have the same opinion about something, once you find a connection you realize that they aren't that different at all, no matter what they look like.

    I think what helps us get 90% beneath the surface is trust. Once you get close to someone, you begin to trust them and once you begin to trust them, you talk to them in a whole new way. And once that happens, you really begin to see the real person inside.

    I think it's possible to get 90% beneath the surface, but I think it's really hard and it's really rare for someone to open up about themselves. I honestly believe the only way to learn about someone is through talking and hanging out even when the person is at their lowest moment -- actually, ESPECIALLY when that person is at their lowest moment. But there are quite a lot of people who don't like to have people around when their sad and they don't like to speak their mind to just anyone, so it's hard to find out what's going on in their head. And if you don't know that, then you can't really know about THEM as a person.

    ~ Allie Hunter

    ReplyDelete
  51. I think that people learn to see below the surface by investigation. There's the well known saying, "curiosity killed the cat" and then the not as well known ending to that saying, "but satisfaction brought him back". I feel like if people actually tried to get to know others, information that they never would guess they would say they say. People might get a little mad at you at first for prying but then if they trust you enough, tell you what you want to know. I really don't think that it's possible to get the full 90% beneath the surface. People don't openly talk about their deepest, darkest secrets so good luck trying to get all of those out. And even if you do manage to do so, what about the feelings that they can't even understand themselves. Or that they can't translate to something that doesn't just sound like a mess of words.

    ReplyDelete
  52. I think that if people let go of the past and step into the future and not just assume or jump to conclusions and try to be patient with each other. It might just so ever slightly help to change the world to a better place than what it is now.

    ReplyDelete
  53. I think it is possible to see the 90% beneath the surface. I was watching a show today called "boy meets world" in in this episode corey found a way around being beat up by the school bully and he found that if you become friends with him then you wont get bullied. After a day or two he started to use the bully/friend to his advantage by taking kids lunch and other things because no one wanted to mess with the bully that he was with. But at the end he realized that the bully is more than he thinks he is, turns out he was very poetic and caring which no one thought of him. In the end they were friends because of their personality not because of their looks and weren't stereotypical.

    --Will Armstrong--




    ReplyDelete
  54. I dont believe that you can get to the bottom of the iceburg, but you can get very close. It's almost impossible to find a person without secrets or feelings they are hiding deep down. That person might not even know they have those feelings! But I do believe you can get 90% beneath the surface. To that you have to trust the other person and they have to trust you. Be honest, kind and be yourself!

    ReplyDelete
  55. i think that the only way to know the other 90% is to set aside differences and get to know them
    __ isaac

    ReplyDelete
  56. It is very possible to get to the bottom of the iceberg if your relationship with the person is strong enough. I have two friends, One named Tracy,one Josh. I could get farther down Tracy's iceberg because she knows and trusts me better and i know her better to. With Josh's iceberg i could get 90% down but not the very bottom as i could for Tracy because she is my best friend. The way to get to the very bottom of the iceberg is trust.
    -Ainsley Jones

    ReplyDelete
  57. I think that to get deeper into the iceberg, you need to practically go inside the person. I think that its impossible to know more than 50% of someone's iceberg.
    ~CharlieCarbonell~

    ReplyDelete
  58. People can see beyond whats on the surface by seeing how nice they are or how they care about themselves or others rather then a physical appearance or physical disability. So yes I think it is possible.

    -~=<({[ Tom Hart ]})>=~-

    ReplyDelete
  59. I think it is possible to reach about 70% beneath the surface. You can never know exactly what to expect or what exactly has happened but if you push, you might be able to get 70% beneath.

    ReplyDelete
  60. I think that it is possible to reach about 85% if you really have a good relationship. I don;t think youcan get to the very bottom of the iceburg because there are feelings that are just to deep down to know as a friend.

    Devin Patel

    ReplyDelete
  61. I think that is impossible to go beyond at least 65%. Just like charlie said i think you would have to go inside the person to know what is really going
    -Ben Hays

    ReplyDelete