Social Awareness

List of Issues

• A sparrow that can’t walk
• A pigeon with it’s feet caught together by string.
• Republicans
• An ownerless cat mewls in my backyard and eats the neighbor’s leftover chocolate cake on the back porch.
• Black smog gushing out of a New Jersey power plant.
• Gaza attacks Israel again and again
• A man smacks his dog for sniffing at the fence keeping him in the  house.
• A homeless man comes up to my car and begs for money
• Protesting gets violent and police resort to pepper spraying the crowd
• Long range missiles are developed and shipped to Gaza
• My aunt has to go into a bomb shelter in Tel Aviv
• Egypt is having problems

World Issue
Gaza repetitively attacks Israel because they have one thing in mind- destroy Israel.  Years ago, the Jewish homeland of Judah was conquered by Romans.  To completely rid the area of any Jewish traces, the Romans renamed it Palestine.  For a long time Jews, Arabs, and other groups lived peacefully together under rule from far away.  After two thousand years, the Romans lost control and the League of Nations appointed Britain to look after Palestine.  Under British control, the Zionist movement of Jews flooding into Israel grew and Britain finally shut Palestine’s doors to the Jews.  Jews fleeing from Hitler during the Holocaust had nowhere to go.  To give the Jews a homeland,  the UN suggested to split Palestine between the Jews and the Arabs in 1974.  The Jews accepted the offer and created Israel while the Arabs declined.  They despised Israel and that’s why they are still attacking Israel.  

Sirens in Israel wail signaling another rocket strike.  Because of Israel's’ top security precautions, people made their way to the nearest bomb shelter and came out with very few deaths and wounds.  The Iron Dome, a military defence program, unleashes rockets to meet and detonate the ones sent by Gaza in mid air so no one is hurt. Not all rockets are destroyed though so people still need to go into bomb shelters.  Israel couldn’t sit and watch itself get pelted by missiles.  For Gaza, peace talks were out of the question so Israel launched an airstrike on Gaza.  Before the strike, they dropped pamphlets on the city telling everybody to hide in bomb shelters so nobody got hurt.  Many people in Gaza ignored the notices and continued on with their daily activities.  A while later, bombs fell on Gaza and many died.  The Hamas exaggerated the news on tv and made it seem that the Israelis wanted to kill.  Do you think that Israel actually wants to fight?  Israel really just wants to be left alone so it can exist in peace but the Hamas terrorists won’t put up with that.  

People have tried peace talks but the Hamas just want to destroy Israel.  So do many of the surrounding countries like Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and many other countries.   You can’t reason with terrorists like the Hamas.  But you can stay strong and Protect yourself.  That’s what Israel is doing.  

Source: http://israelunlocked.wordpress.com/the-basics/the-israeli-palestinian-conflict-in-a-nutshell/


Literary Piece Description

Many cliques aren’t evil.  They are more like a dysfunctional, awkward, hormonal band of teenagers who cling to each other.  Sometimes cliques become so big that being “best friends” loses it’s meaning.  At least one person isn't thrilled when someone joins the group.  Drama begins and everyone is struggling to maintain their friendships by losing their individual opinions.  That's when kids get excluded when one person says something unflattering about a kid and everyone else agrees even though inside that's not how all of them feel.  I decided to break down the slow steps in which many cliques use to get rid of an unwanted kid.  

Literary Piece on excluding

Sleep away camp was great for a group of six teenage girls standing in a misshapen oval laughing and giggling.  You can plainly see the one who wants to be a part of the group; curls bouncing as she tries to squeeze her way in.  Her name is Liz.  No one speaks of the slight shift in the crowd that prevents her from joining.  That’s stage 1 in a series of tactics cliques used to signal to a girl that she is unwanted there.  They giggle and laugh while the Liz cranes her neck to hear what’s so funny.  

“What?  Guys!” The Liz whines imitating the other girls.  One girl with a ponytail whips her head around and looks at her with disgust.  “Come on tell me!”  Stage 2: the other girls ignore her and the ponytail girl turns back to her conversation.

When they laugh at some girl who had an “obnoxious face”, Liz laughs.  One girl makes a rude remark and everyone snickers.  Liz does the same, the girls murmur about how mean she is.  She copies them trying to walk in step with them and move as one like the others do. She stops to tie her shoe and the group keeps walking.  One girl sees her and tries to say something but she is interrupted by her friend whining “Did you notice that...?” in her ear.  Stage 3A: it’s easy to tell that they are talking about Liz.  Stage 3b:Everyone turns their head to sneak obvious glances at her that mean more than just a look.  It’s a way of hinting that they don’t really want her there without being mean.  Liz gets the hint but she still plays the part of the friendly girl who doesn't notice it.  The girls don’t know how to get rid of her.  They discuss plans quietly so Liz can’t hear.   Stage 4: Make it obvious.   Say something that excludes the outsider.  Let her know that just because she hung around with them doesn’t mean she is included in “us”.

“You know what?  We should have a group name.  Let’s see, there’s me, Stacey, Samantha, Jessica, Leah, and Mary.  Let’s call ourselves the Super Six!” Liz doesn't say anything because she doesn’t want them to notice it hurt her.  They mutter amongst themselves.  Why is she still here?  What should we do?

Stage 5: Interact with her is if she’s some random person who decided to hang out with them that day not someone who has followed them forever.  Everyone trades glances that seem to communicate: “Where did SHE come from?”  Stage 6:Last resort.  Finally, the ponytail girl removes herself from the group and comes up to Liz.

“You’re really nice and it’s fun to have you around,”  Liz knows what’s coming.  Stage 5: “but we really want to hang out by ourselves today.  We don’t really know you very much and sometimes we just want to be with our friends.  We don’t want your feelings to be hurt but...  Is that OK?”  Liz isn’t surprised but it still hurts her.  She can’t let them see that.

“Yeah! I get it!”  She chirped.  

“We really think you are cool but sometimes...”<--Lies Lies Lies

“It’s cool.”

“Great!” The girl runs back to her friends and immerses herself in the group.  Stage 6B: Overreact and rejoice when they hear she isn’t coming with them.  The girl’s ponytail bounces up and down as she whispers something to them.  Everyone brightens up and cracks jokes as if Liz was a hindrance to their happiness.  

A girl with a nasally voice clears her throat as they walk on the footpath.  

“OK girls I have some juicy secrets and I trust you guys because you’re my BFFLs!  Can I trust you guys to never say a word?”

“Aww sweetheart my lips are sealed!” one girl comforts.  The nasally whine continues on to gossip and spill the secrets of many other “best friends”.

Over my book I watch them making a fuss over who did what, when, why, how, and oh look at that adorable bikini! It’s strange that this happened right after a bunk bonding meeting themed: “We’re a big non-excluding and bullying family at camp happy!”.  

Reading response
The gay pride parade is a great way to show off and be proud of who you are.  It also inspires gay youths and boosts their confidence.  Some people look forward to the parade and some dislike it. "Helping a Gay Child to Come Out" by John Schwartz, talks of a third group of people.  They are the parents of gay kids who aren't ready yet to be openly gay.  His article make me think of the conditions at home.  For some kids they live in fear that their parents will find out that they’re gay.  If home isn’t secure and accepting, the neighborhood school probably isn't a safe refuge either. Bullying is a problem.  But when it comes to bullying gay kids, it has an even more harmful effect.  The constant threat of being victimized by ignorant bullies makes it harder for them to open up about who they are.

I have been insulted because I'm Chinese before but nothing compared to what some of these kids have to deal with every day.  I was insulted by a kid in first grade who had no idea what being chinese was.  He was always calling me "Chinese Person" so I picked out a cool picture book on China and showed it him and he was nice to me after that.  He probably bullied me because he didn't know anything about China and it confused him.  Because it confused him he didn't like it.  I think the main reason that bullies bully gay people is because they are different.  They don't know anything about what being gay is like and it scares them.  They try to get rid of it by harassing the gay kids but it doesn't seem to be working.  That's what prevents some young gays from coming out.  Many parents already know if their kids are gay or lesbian, they were just waiting  for their kid to say, "Hey ma, I have something to tell you...".   The article says that signs of being gay or lesbian start becoming noticeable at age 3.  Some supportive parents try to get their kids to relax by showing them strength through the gay pride parade.  

Another big issue that scares many gay youths is the fear of what their parents  might say.  Some kids aren't born into accepting families and when they figure out that they are gay it's risky to tell their parents.  According to the article one girl told her mother that she was bisexual because she thought “it wasn’t going to crush her as much.”  These kids need a supportive family.  It's horrible that many don't have one.

It's important that they have a safe environment where they can be who they are.  From home, to school they should be comfortable about who they are.  Bullies bully them because they are afraid.  People need to educate them on the essence of being gay.  The gay pride parade is a great way to lift spirits and boost confidence in these kids.  Maybe if enough people show their support more gay children would open up and be who they are.  

Reading Response

Bullying gay kids is a problem.  That's what keeps some gay kids from coming out of the closet and enjoying the gay pride parades.  Some people look forward to it.  Some dislike it. "Helping a Gay Child to Come Out" by John Schwartz, talks of a third group of people.  They are the parents of gay kids who aren't ready yet to be openly gay.  The threat of bullies frightens some kids and some are just not ready.  Kids need to be taught how to overcome their fears and be open about who they are.  


 I have been insulted because I'm chinese before but nothing compared to what some of these kids have to deal with every day.  I was insulted by a kid in first grade who had no Idea what being chinese was.  He was always calling me "Chinese Person" so I found a cool picture book on China and he was nice to me after that.  He probably bullies be because he didn't know anything about China and it confused him.  Because it confused him he didn't like it.  I think the main reason that Bullies bully gay people is because they are different.  They don't know anything about what being gay is like and it scares them.  They try to get rid of it by harassing the gay kids but it doesn't seem to be working.  That's what prevents some young gays form coming out.  Many parents already know if their kids are gay or lesbian, they were just waiting  for their kid to say, "Hey ma, I have something to tell you...".   The article says that signs of being gay or lesbian start becoming noticeable at age 3.  Some supportive parents try to get their kids to relax by showing them strength through the gay pride parade.  

An other big issue that scares many gay youths is the fear of what their parents  might say.  Some kids aren't born into accepting families and when they figure out that they are gay it's risky to tell their parents.  According to the article one girl told her mother that she was bisexual because she thought “it wasn’t going to crush her as much.”  These kids need a supportive family.  It's horrible that many don't

It's important that they have a safe environment where they can be who they are.  From home, to school they should be comfortable about who they are.  Bullies bully them because they are afraid.  People need to educate them on the essence of being gay.  The gay pride parade is a great way to lift spirits and boost confidence in these kids.  Maybe if enough people show their support more gay children would open up and be who they are.  

Nonfiction Response

     "Along the 26.2 Miles, No Hordes or Cheers, Just Odd Tranquillity" by Jere Lonsman shares the stories of different people's experiences with the Sandy-wrecked marathon.  People felt differently on the subject.  Some found it was a road block that they had to work hard to overcome.  Others thought it was good that the marathon was canceled.  

     When runners heard that the marathon was canceled, some knew that they wouldn't back down.  For some it's their first time getting in or running the race.  Some people had come all the way from out of the country to participate.  A group of 11 ran the marathon and ignored the silence.  Just because it wasn't official anymore wasn't going to stop them: “We are here; we are not giving up, the weather is beautiful. Say hello to Mayor Bloomberg for us.” Oliver Wigniolle said.  Two men fond an other solution to the problem.  They ran the equivalent to the marathon's length in Prospect Park.  For many, the marathon is a huge event and they would find what ever ways they could to bring it back.  To them, the show must go on. 

     Not everybody appreciates the marathon as much as them.  As the marathon runners made their way along the path, one woman yelled at them through her car window.  "That's disgusting.  People lost their homes."  Although doing fun things at the same time as something really sad is considered rude, I think that running boosts spirits.  They aren't letting the cancelation of the race push them around.  In a neighborhood the marathon normally passes through, some appreciated the freedom of parking on your block, the lack of yelling people, and congested streets.  Those people have a point.  If the runners ran to raise money for Sandy victims than that would be different.

      I normally like the marathon but it gets boring to watch after a while.  I never knew how important the race is to individual people.  It's a huge lifetime goal and to them having it canceled Is a tragedy.  For some, it doesn't really bother them.  They don't like it when a lot of major streets are blocked off and  it's hard to get from point a to point b.  To many people the race is really important but so is the condition of people's electricity.  I figured, to make the marathon more likable to people who find it an annoyance, they could turn it into a Sandy relief run.  It would mean a lot to people all over the east coast.  That's how they could do their part.