technicallyzanyfestival-blog

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Media

Where can the line be drawn between the difference of online hate and free speech?

        We can decipher the two when looking towards the category of danger or mental harm. When a negative opinion is repeatedly expressed at the expense of someone else, risking there mental health, or any threats or signs of danger have been produced, this can classify under to title of online hate opposed to free speech.

Presentations-

Media vs the Media: As I did research on this topic I was quite surprised to find that so many popular American news sources that are commonly recognized to be left-winged had some of the highest rates of biased production.

Social Stereotypes: This presentation was interesting as I adored learning the depths of just how much control social media has into mounding our views of certain groups of people simply by lack of or over exposure to what many wish to highlight or hide away.

Online Hate: This was an interesting topic as in the teen world, especially during the late 2000′s, cyber bullying was a grand issue. Its intriguing how they acknowledged to access to expressing a negative opinion without having to face to reproductions (witnessing the victim hurting) first hand.

Information Privacy: This topic was that of a chilling one. I was unsettled as they explained that our phones are always listening in and storing information. This is why if we simply talk about certain products, events, etc., ads for these will start popping up all over our media outlets.

Media Violence: This presentation also left me with a feeling of unsettledness, they discussed how people utilize the media to threaten or bully someone. It came to light that every since people were able to remain anonymous on different sites, there are no emotional conflicts towards the attacker, thus making it easier than ever to feel as though shooting threats and online violence  could ever be seen as acceptable. The media has made it far too simple to instigate real life dangerous situations.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Students For High Impact Charity

David’s presentation was educational and well constructed, however it was prominent that the company that hired him had a biased towards certain charities on day one. As he made an effort to highlight how efficient the play pump was and how amazing the malaria nets were. His points were valid in both topics, however his delivery in tone of voice flunci=uated from positive and negative between the two. When faced with questions that would require labyrinthine answers and expanded knowledge from souly what he presented, David fell nervous, jittery, and quite dismissive. He was not equipped with the proper knowledge on the topic to adhere to the class’s further curiosity. This dismissiveness would follow into day two and three of his presentation, so we as a class learned to observe and not ask too many questions; an unfortunate downside to this presentation. On the second day we were taught about animal cruelty. Videos were shown of the horrid truth of the meat industry. My stomach turned as we witnessed animals being slashed alive and hung upside-down to bleed out, animals being skinned alive, grinded alive, and more. WHat i found interesting is that donated money is actually much more effective in the sense of ensuring that animals won’t be born to be tortured than becoming a vegan would. We also learned about different charities that were researching and preventing human extinction due to natural disasters. On the last day, he showed us which charities are the most effective and why. He also went over what ways to donate would have the biggest impact. After the last lesson I came to the realization that money really does talk. In most cases money would produce a larger change than a donation or change of any other sort. Overall his presentation was well rehearsed and educational. I take away urge to do enough research of different charities before I donate if i decide to do so in the future. It was a beneficial presentation to the class and many perspectives were altered.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Human

           This film utilized imagery, music, and spoken word to bring the audience members through the journey of jaw-dropping tales of strong human beings. The way this film was directed is with every shred of intent in each shot. Many shots between interviews were that of a slow moving camera in the sky over vast amounts of land. It is quite intriguing to me as in some shots we saw people working, and some were simply land. The shots that were iced with sorrowful music sparked emotions of misery. A clip that stuck with me is that shot of New York city at night with the beautiful glowing lights. Contrary to the majority of the scenes, New York had upbeat music. I think the film was trying to pray first world countries to be in a state of happiness induced by the realm of our addiction to technology and inability to disconnect from our bright environment. I view the multiple consecutive shots of mesmerizing nature from different unlabeled places all over the world to be a representation of how this earth is shared by each and every one of us, yet the factor of where one is born can have such a vast impact on the quality of life. In many cases, distance is the difference between being trapped in the poverty cycle or not.

What responsibilities do we have to each other?

What is it to be human?

               Our responsibilities to each other are to share our resources with one another, and to spread kindness and love. We owe it to each other to always have an open mind and open ears. We need to listen to each other’s stories and respect and acknowledge the battles of others that some may never dream of encountering. It is our duty to drop social ranks and view and treat each individual as an equal, because when it comes down to it, we are all human in the end. To be human in itself is to love unconditionally, to make mistakes and grow from them without fear of judgement, and to interact and bounce concepts off of each other. Our minds are so powerful, we have such a great amount of control over how we think and act yet at the same time almost none at all. We are all wired different with common foundations. To be human is to feel pain and mould into a better version of one’s self.

What human rights issues were addressed?

                  The human rights issues that were addressed were discrimination against women, violence in relationships, labour rights, and poverty. I was taken a back as i listened to the story of a Syrian woman who had been stabbed by her husband simply for going to work. Her husband’s view was that women should not be working, and for this she was brutally stabbed. I myself am on my feet at my place of work my entire shift, and after only eight hours my feet ache and I need a break, so it shocked me to hear that a man who was doing hard labour felt his bones physically enduring a slow and horrific phase of being crushed, and even so he was still forced to work. After watching this film I can wholeheartedly appreciate what I have been blessed with in life. The heart-wrenching story of Mom’s who had to rummage through a landfill to provide food for their families is nauseating. The Moms would take a bit of the food first to make sure that it wouldn’t make the kids sick. By doing this the Mothers would often get sick simply due to the only source of food they can obtain. Also living in poverty was another family who had fell into the cycle because the father of one became blind and could no longer provide anymore. The Mom had to care for their child so income was sparse. This film has put life into perspective, not solely due to the tragicness of these stories but the realization this film gave me that if these people were born on the same planet, just on another part of it, they would reside a completely different value of life.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Info sheet Racism and Discrimination

Who?:         Racism and discrimination are endured by a vast variety of people. Racism in itself is heavily felt by dark skinned people all around the world. Due to subconscious teachings of black being inferior to white; light is good, dark is evil, etc., with an increase in darkness comes a higher prejudice against said person. When we mend discrimination with racism, we can see a crystal clear relationship. From passed up job opportunities to being denied service, black people secomb to most racial discrimination by far. This is not to leave out all minority race groups, especially indigenous people. They are sometimes viewed as drug addicts with no work ethic, this leading into not being thought of in opportunities that could better their quality of life.

Women are subjected to discrimination far too much in our day and age. Many of us do it subconsciously, whether it be feeling more comfortable with a male server, electrician, construction worker, etc. Women are seen to be less capable of certain tasks than men.

Some other people who experience discrimination are those of the LGBT+ community. Certain job titles still are not viewed as an appropriate place to express one’s homosexuality. In many occasions gay couples will be denied service from businesses due to strictly the fact that the consumers are gay.

Where?: Racism occurs all over the world, because of the social normality, for things such as skin colour, ethnicity, and religion. We are mainly discussing racism within America and Canada. America and Canada’s racist status quo remains unique and alarmingly oppressive. This racism is entirely based on skin-colour and one ideal image. One’s nationality is immaterial. In terms of discrimination, discrimination also happens all over the world and on a greater scale. Discriminatory traditions, policies, ideas, practices and laws exist in many countries, some having discrimination towards different groups more than other countries would. In some places, controversial attempts such as quotas have been used to benefit those who are believed to be current or past victims of discrimination

When?: Nobody knows when racism was birthed. In many cultures, dark skin is viewed to coordinate with poorness with the ideology that if you worked outside, you were poor and tanned. A spotlight shown on the cruelty of racism during the slave trade in the 17th century. Black people were used as slaves due to solely their skin colour. This ignited the flame of white power. Once slavery was claimed illegal in the late 1800’s that mindset didn’t die. Segregation showed the epitome of discrimination. Jobs were not given, seats were not sat in, schools were not attended to, etc., simply because of a colour.

  With many protests for equality throughout the 18th and 19th century including our modern “Black Lives Matter” movement, segregation was banned and minds were slowly but surely opening. However the view of black people of less than was not fully stripped. Plantations turned to prisons and beatings turned into “necessary action”. Police brutality formed such a movement. Today we can still witness discrimination against minority groups even though many rules and regulations have been put in place, there is still the fight for equal views and opportunities.

What?: Racism: the belief of some races being better than others and the actions resulting from that belief. Racism is not just saying offensive comments to one of a different cultural background but offensive to their community as a whole. Canada supposedly to be a very multicultural country is exposed to more occurences of racism than expected.

Discrimination: prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially around race, age or sex. Some might think racism and discrimination are the same thing, but in reality they are not. Discrimination targets an individual’s gender, sexual orientation age as well as race. Majority of people are exposed to discrimination such as groups of teenagers, women, LGBTQ and those of colour.

Why?: Racism and discrimination are seen as very common topics around the world, making them immune to some, but there is a reason why it happens. Racism has been brought from generation to generation, especially during the time when the europeans were colonizing different countries of different ethnic backgrounds. Not only is it a form of hate from old times but a stereotype of a certain race. Older generations bring their dislike and bias towards a certain or multiple races, and younger generations adapt to it. Stereotypes are similar in a way except the racism is not coming from a person you know but a large group of people who have thoughts about the certain race. For example saying asians can’t drive, but just because a person has been in a bad situation with one, doesn’t mean they are all bad drivers. Discrimination is similar in the sense of stereotyping a large group or having an opinion about them because everyone thinks its right. For example, some people think women should not work and just stay at home to take care of the children. Because of people being so influenced by what others of society think, racism and discrimination seems common in a way. Although there is no way to stop racism and discrimination since it will always be around especially with older generations, there is a way to educate the younger generations about the misuse of it. There is a large misuse of the word ‘racist’ and ‘discriminate’’ because some people do not know what the real definition of racism and discrimination is. Educating, and not labelling everything as racism and discrimination could be ways to have the terms not be so common.

Vision/Goal: The first step to demolishing racism and discrimination as a whole is to educate ourselves about this issue and to know the kind of effect that it can have on our society. Generations need to be raised and taught how to treat people equally and correctly or else we will never be able to grow and change this world-wide issue. Another reason is that we need to stop viewing each other as greater or superior to one another. The hope is that by doing things such as these, all people can live without fear, and instead with hope and love, however this can only be achieved as a society and not individuals. It will take a great amount of effort to demolish or at best decrease racism and discrimination from our society,

Background/issue: - what has caused the inequity? What have you identified as the inequity? Social inequality is linked to racial inequality, gender inequality, and wealth inequality. The way people behave socially, through racist or sexist practices and other forms of discrimination, tends to trickle down and affect the opportunities and wealth individuals can generate for themselves. Today in Canada we have legal protection for victims of discrimination and a constitutional guarantee of equality rights for all. Employees cannot be treated differently because of age – unless they are under 19, in which case different standards apply. Remember, the BC Human Rights Code does not permit employers to discriminate against employees based on personal characteristics – like age, race, religion or gender and other personal characteristics.

So, for example: Employers cannot refuse to hire you because of where you come from. Employers cannot fire you because you are pregnant. Employers cannot force you to retire because of your age. Employers cannot harass you sexually.

Human rights

Poverty

Poverty is the deprivation of common necessities such as food, clothing, shelter, and safe drinking water, all of which determine our quality of life. It may also include the lack of access to opportunities such a s education and employment which aid the escape from poverty and/or allow one to enjoy the respect of fellow citizens

Although one of their group members was missing, i found this presentation to be very educational and wee executed. I am happy to know that the world’s population living in extreme poverty has gone down by twenty-four percent in the last twenty-eight years. It disgusts me to find out that one seventh of Canada is living in poverty. It simply doesn’t make sense to me. We are labeled as a first world country yet we have over fourteen percent of our population living in conditions equivalent to those of third world countries. There is no excuse for Canada to allow Canadians to be limited to resources; a major factor in why so many are trapped in the poverty cycle.

LGBTQ

LGBTQ = Lesbian, gay , bisexual, Transgendered, Twin spirited, Queer, and Questioning

The LGBTQ is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender/transsexual people. In use since the 1990’s. the term lgbtq is an adoption of the initialism lab which itself started replacing the phase gay community which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent accurately all those to which it referred.

This presentation was executed very well. I personally am always extra attentive when Leon is presenting, as he always delivers his presentations with confidence and ensures to audience is not bored, which appreciated. Something that stuck with me from this presentation is that police officers used to raid gay bars simply to ensure that they knew nowhere was safe for them. To be living in constant fear only due to one’s sexuality is a state that I cannot fathom.

This topic is also what is wrote my human rights essay about:

LGBTQ+

By: Madison Neal

              Love is light. A saying rolled off the tongues of those blanketed buy its warmth, those who love fearlessly and freely, utterly and entirely welcomed to express it. But there is another flame of love, it’s as well, warm and bright, all though it’s punishing to reach and is guarded; bordered buy police badges and twisted metaphors, laws prohibiting anyone to bask in its beauty and mobs set to attack those who seek to. This love is denied to the LGBTQ+ community. During the 60’s and 70’s, more and more people were expressing their love for the same sex in a wave that unsettled and angered many civilians. Gay people had no safe space to love one another. Police often raided gay bars to ensure those inside knew that being who they truly were would never be okay. Gay marriage was illegal in Canada until July 20, 2005, and the U.S. until June 26, 2015. Even then it was frowned upon by a plethora of close minded people. Gay couples have been and still are denied service from businesses and are mistreated in society.

           The light of self love is also stripped from the category of transgender/two-spirited people. There has been reports of a transgender woman being shot down by a gunman in a car driving by, simply for appearing to be transgender. They have been and recently under Trump, still are denied to serve their country in the United States. These inequities endured by the community are only a sliver of the inhumane deeds excerpted on those in it. people are placed in conversion camps and cleansing therapy to this day, attempting to “fix” people whom are in no way broken, but rather different.

       A conception of wrongness associated with this topic is not a natural trait, it is taught by those who were also brainwashed at a young age to give love a shape that only fits between a man and a woman. Lack of exposure is the route to closed minds across the globe. As with anything, when something is never brought to light we cannot perceive it as normal, and to add on top of the weight of “abnormality” to such affection, it has been is deemed inappropriate in the past to execute in public, and has been despised when done in front of children. We can view this in separate generations. As protests and fights for equality by generations before the Millenials were held, much attention was brought to precisely how unjust the laws were surrounding the way of life of the LGBTQ+ community. Because of these protests and exposure Millennials grew up with a great decrease of censorship of the community and what kindness and care it obtained. This would birth people whom would use the likes of social media to debate and discuss with those still set in a different viewpoint. This paved the way for the next generation (Generation Z) to be flooded with exposure of the topic. Today we see television shows based around gay culture and multiple gay characters with many stories of all too real hurdles forced by a group of people to overcome, this includes shows for children; a notable step in progress given the utmost disgust portrayed around allowing children to be educated on any factor of the topic. This generation is growing up with LGBTQ+ role models whom they can confide in by merely clicking on a youtube video. The magic of the internet has been a crucial tool. With its gift just clicks away, my generation is forming in this world as one who is known to convey gay and transgender as anything but a choice. We can see transgender kids as young as five years of age embracing who they truly are. The origin of injustice was and will never be a feeling, it is and has always been lack of exposure accompanied by insulating purely negative notions to the people.

            My vision for the future of the LGBTQ+ community is that we can mould and raise people in our society and eventually all over the globe to be educated on the topic. Ignorance is born from withholding of knowledge. With minds filled with exposure of “gay culture” and all the bright unique traits of the community, I yearn for no individual to ever have a shred of fear when it comes to being oneself. I as a Catholic am very accepting and interactive with many members of the community, as many Christians overall are. However, I am aware of the closed of extreme religionists of Christianity do not feel the same way, due to what the bible says. I wish to change their way of thinking and  see those people be enlightened on the fact that the bible is filled with metaphors. There are heart-wrenching stories of people begging God not to make them gay, when in reality it is how God formed them and I believe that if god loves all of his children, than he will accept the very ones that he created.

           The constant lingering of danger due to one’s sexuality is that of atrocious. I envision a society where those of the community would feel safe regardless of any location, and that little boys and girls are not told to “man up” or “act like a lady”. Children’s brains are not at a stage of development equipped to completely know what they identify as. It is these social stereotypes that are another burden for those who come to the acceptation later in life that whom they were presenting to the world is but what they were told to be. I want to improve the quality of life for people who are only expressing what they feel in bars or at home, for them to be not just legally but socially free to show affection in public without crude stares or judgements. To witness schools implicate sexual education on both heterosexual and homosexual relationships, the children of the world are the future of it, and if we want to change the future it must be made a priority to train them to be accepting and understanding the complexity of all forms of love, as it is all in the end the same.

Racism and Discrimination

Racism is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce and inherent superiority of a particular race. People with racist beliefs might hate certain groups of people according to their racial groups

In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment.

Discrimination is any action or behaviour that causes a person to be treated  in an unfair, hurtful and negative way. People may discriminate because they have a prejudice against someone or because they have a stereotype of that person.

People may discriminate without any intention to hurt someone but someone may still be hurt and disadvantaged by another person’s actions and behaviour. (racism is a belief, a set of values, an attitude — a group of assumptions that view and construct in a negative way a group of people used on their racial background.

My group presented on the topic of racism and discrimination, I feel our presentation went smoothly and i feel that the audience responded well to our multiple interviews of people’s encounters with racism and discrimination. Something i found interesting while doing research on this topic is that in many countries in Asia, lighter skin represents wealth, because if you work outside it means you have an underpaying job. SO if one is tan, it is a tell that they work outside and are therefor poor

Child Soldiers and Military Recruitment

War is reciprocal and violent application of force between hostile political entities aimed are bringing about a desired political end-state via armed conflict.

The military use of children takes three distinct forms: children can take direct part in hostilities (child soldiers), or they can be used in support roles such as porters, spies, messengers, look puts, and sexual slaves; or they can be used for political advantage either as human shields or in propaganda.

I admired this presentation for its projection and detail in knowledge. I also enjoyed the kahoot at the end. I found this to be a good strategy; letting us know there would be a kahoot at the end, and that the winner would earn a prize, because it kept the class engaged the entire time. Something that left me with a pit in my stomach is when the presenters explained how in some countries, military goes into villages and/or towns and forcefully strip able-bodied boys and sometimes girls away from everything they know to battle. I couldn’t imagine waking up one morning thinking my day is going to pan out as usual, only to be taken away from my family and friends and thrown into extreme danger. It is inhumane and revolting.

Violence in Relationships

Violence - is any act that results in or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, and psychological harm or suffering, including threats of such acts and coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether in public or private life.

This presentation was well done and knowledge on the subject I had not known before was brought to light. One thing that truly stood out to me wa the topic of the relations of the LGBTQ community and violence in relationships. Before this presentation i always thought of violence in relationships to me more often a male abuser towards a female, and sometimes a female abuser towards a male. It had never occured to me that the community are more likely to be subjected to an abusive situation in a relationship. I learned that this was due limited resources and lack of education upon these groups. The LGBTQ community is often excluded from the definition of relationship abuse because of their identity and lack of exposure.

Genocide

Genocide is the elimination of an entire group of people classified by race, religion, etc.

This groups presentation was also well executed. I found it interesting and surprising to hear of the multiple genocides that have taken place over the years, as far as my knowledge had reached before the presentation, there had only been two, i now know there were virtually triple that which were addressed in the presentation.

Extra notes:

Gender

Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women, extending from the biological to the social.

Biologically, the male gender is defined by reference to the presence of a Y-chromosome, and its absence in the female gender. However, there is debate as tot he extent that the biological difference has or necessitates differences in gender roles in society and on gender identity, which has been defined as “an individual’s self-conception as being male or female, as distinguished from actual biological sex.”

Homelessness

Homelessness is the condition and social category of people who lack housing, because they cannot afford, or are otherwise unable to maintain, regular, safe, and adequate shelter

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Blood Diamond

          This film opened my eyes to the cruel reality of the use of child soldiers. Although acknowledging the fact that it was glorified for entertainment purposes, it still took me on the horrifying journey of a broken man trying to piece his family back together. I was astounded as the father hid the grand diamond he found on his person, due to the fact that he just witnessed a fellow labour worker get shot by the captain for doing exactly so. It made me question if he had given up on his family and had subconsciously given up and wanted to end his misery, although i was proved to be wrong as he went out of his way to hide it and ensure he didn’t get caught. An ironic scene of the film as it would be this very diamond that brought his family together in the end. An extremely unsettling moment for me was when Vandy’s son didn’t even recognize his own father when he tries to save him. This just goes to show the power of repeated trauma to brainwash a child. Another captivating piece of this story was the journey of the change in Danny’s heart and outlook. It intrigues me as to how he moulds from a materialistic male on the hunt for money to giving his life out of pure want for Solomon to bring his family together.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Granville Island

            I have to admit, when I saw the list of things to check off, I was quite confused as to how such a selection would be found in Granville island. Although, as we searched for items that would match to the list, I was nothing short of surprised. I had no idea of how much advertizing all of the little shops really did have, or all of the gorgeous artwork displayed in windows, signs, and more. There were a plethora of meaningful things in Granville Island, it's just that I had never looked for them before. I came to know that Granville Island is also proud of using materials of those that are local and/or sustainable development. Something that stood out to me was a shirt with Donald Trump’s face drawn as a peach that read, “impeach”. I found it refreshing that the shirt could blend humor while getting a political message across. Granville Island has countless hidden beauties, except they are hiding right under our noses, we just have to take a glance.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Action Plan

entry 1 -we had some hard times with rejection from multiple hotels and dental offices when asked to donate supplies. However in the end we were able to collect donated items from the ironwood dental clinic. I am excited to put these packages together.

entry 2- Today we handed out our care packages in downtown eastside. It was a surprising experience as we did not expect the receivers to exit so much gratitude towards us. Something i will not forget is the fact that a girl who seemed to be no older than twelve years of age asked for two packages, on for her and one for her Mom. No child to have to live without a roof over their head.

entry 3- As we presented at the open house I was not surprised that only a few people came by the social justice hallway, simply due to other events going on, but when people did come i felt joy as the expressions shifted on faces as we explained our action plan and our experiences in the eastside. I will take away gratitude from this project. It truly was an eye-opener.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

What is Social Justice?

          My definition of social justice is the ongoing fight for universal equality. It is the practice of stripping away injustice with widespread protests, strong individuals, and not taking no for an answer. It is the study of the history of social triumphs and injustices that shape different social and legal systems around the world. Techniques to create change are analyzed and executed in these movements. My role as a young person turning social injustice to social justice is to mould my future by ridding of prejudice on as many platforms as I can to educate bystanders as well as the people who are against such monumental movements.

Ampathy vs. Action

Apathy is the lack of emotion and without any interest or concern, suppressing one’s emotions like concern, excitement, motivation, and passion. One with ampathy has no interest in or worry about social, spiritual, philosophical, or physical life, whereas action is the drive to get out there and do something; to make a change and put a plan into motion. Action is what stems social justice movements. All one needs is an idea and determination

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Bias

1. Do I have biases? What are they?

2. Where do my beliefs come from? Why might they be different?

3. How do my personal experiences and circumstances affect my perceptions?

4. What roles do my culture and language play in my perceptions?

5. Have I been privileged? In what ways?

6. Have I been oppressed or marginalized? In what ways?

7. Do I perpetuate the status quo? How?

8. Do I challenge the status quo? How?

9. How do I respond when someone disagrees with me? How do I treat others with beliefs and values different from my own?

           I do have biases, biases shape us. My beliefs and biases come from my upbringing of a kind-hearted catholic home, they lead us to our friends, distance us from our enemies and mould our opinions. I personally have many biases. It is much easier for me to find agreeable  arguments from a person or people whom I either surround myself with, knowingly share the same beliefs with, or have been fed the idea that said person and/or people is a better source by a plethora of voices only having a bias towards them. I like to think that my biases come from experience, for example, if a dog and a cat were placed in front of me, I would immediately produce a bias against the cat assuming it is mean, and the dog is nice, simply because I have been scratched more times by cats than I have been bitten or scratched by dogs. My biases are very prominent and I find it difficult to make any judgment without the slightest shred of bias.

2. My beliefs stem from my upbringing in a catholic church and attending catechism, this playing into my Mom consistently sharing the power of hope, faith and positivity. Also, i come from a quite isolated town called Hamilton. As I attended Hamilton Elementary School, eight years of zero tolerance bullying and an overwhelming flood of open arms and the magic of treating others the way you would like to be treated surrounded me daily. I’m grateful for this, as I still apply these traits and knowledge today. My beliefs may be different from others due to the fact that Hamilton is so isolated so I grew up with smiles and the promotion of equality all around me. Many people simply grow up in cities with very different ways of culture, some not quite as positive, and some pregnant with closed minds and completely different ways of life.

3. My personal experiences and circumstances affect my perception in a way that gives me the eye of spotting the fact that not everything is truly as it seems. I have witnessed people mentally push through brick walls disguised as cotton candy. Through my competitive dance I can appreciate the raw hard work that goes into being successful.

4. The fact that I am an English peaking Canadian plays an enormous part on my outlook on everyday life. In my experience, I as a Canadian have always been taught to have an open mind and to radiate acceptation. Although not the complete population of Canada practices this culture, through time I have been here, this is virtually what I’ve observed here. My country has carved my perception to be one of empathy and understanding what separates right from wrong. I can acknowledge the cruelties executed in history here and desire to never repeat them, for it is not a quality of today’s Canada to not make ambience. I am undoubtedly driving down a simpler road than others when it comes to the language I speak in my society. Many main television shows, music, movies, etc., are made with the English language. However it is a shame of mine that so many English speaking North Americans don’t carry any desires to speak other languages, whereas in Europe, people speak an average two to three languages. English is one of the most well-known language which can create a sense of relief knowing that if I travel there is a high chance the locals will speak my language; a privileges too many can’t obtain.

5. I’ve been privileged in many ways. I am a white person living in Canada attending high school with two working parents. I am able to show my face, wear what i wish, speak freely, have drinkable running water and so many more. The soul fact that I feel safety, rather than fear when the sound of police sirens ring is a privilege in which i was blind to until this recent couple of years. The privileges that I have in my society are my skin colour and that I sit above the poverty line. What many people let slip away is the privilege so big as water. I mentioned this previously because it never seizes to show me when I travel and am not able to grab a glass and place it under the tap. British Columbia is so beautiful and I believe many people take our many tools and privileges placed at our fingertips for granted, including myself.

6. I’ve been oppressed and marginalized due to the fact that I am a female. This played into co-ed sports. I was underestimated when I played basketball as a child with girls and boys, also in my abilities to lift as much weight as my male peers in gym class and run as fast as the boys in training for my hip-hop dance group.

7/8. I perpetuate the status quo in the ways that I go about my everyday teenage routine of going to school, activities, work, etc. I don’t skip days of school to change something I don’t agree with or make petitions. However I go again the status quo with my voice during my everyday routine. I speak my mind wherever I am or whatever the situation may be if its safe and I think that it needs fixing. This has created both positive and negative outcomes for me, so I am learning to practice this with more caution, however if ones feelings go against the status quo, I feel that safely executing thoughts should never rest.

9. I try to keep my responses towards people who don’t agree with me assertive and respectful. I do have to admit however, I am quite a stubborn person. So if someone doesn't agree with me I think of the points that they will create and counter them in my argument. Through my stubbornness though I do listen to what people are saying, and can acknowledge when I am in the wrong or can simply obtain a better understanding of why one doesn’t agree with me. The way I treat others with different beliefs and values than my own completely depends on what their believes and values are. For example beliefs as in religions are something that I will always treat people as if I did or didn't know, however values are where I start to shift. My values are to treat others how you want to be treated, have empathy, be passionate and execute equality. If one’s values were to base everything in their life towards a better outcome for themselves, or if someone’s values were crude towards any specific group of people, the chances are I would still treat them accordingly to my values, but on a vastly smaller scale.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

1. I don’t agree with this because I believe that one should have to live out their lives with the weight of what they did always following them around. Prison life is not better than the free world. Violence, lack of hygiene and 24 hour supervision is not better than the free world. The death penalty only ends the misery for many criminals.

2. I agree with this statement within the reason of manner and language. Canadians are kind people, and if others are coming from somewhere else where certain ways of culture are considered rude here, don’t do them. It is a lack of respect from foreigners when it comes to that topic. Also, I believe everybody should be allowed to speak their native tongue, however I feel that in the workplace and school environments, the National language should be spoken so nobody feels singled out.

3. I don’t agree with this statement as I don’t see homosexuality as a behaviour. I view it as something one is born with and cannot change. Love really is love and no person should be punished for love simply because society hasn’t been exposed enough to such love.

4. I agree with this fact. My teenage co worker watched as an elder aimed to open our restaurant is quite heavy glass door. We also don’t speak vastly differently from our parents to our elders. It would seem as though the unwritten rule of treating elders with the utmost respect doesn’t have a place in the minds of many in our society.

5. I agree with this because a lot of stress from the young to the old is in relation to money. As a young person, one stresses to get into a good school to obtain a good job in order to make a comfortable amount of money. We work our whole adult lives to live comfortably. Money would take a great amount of emotional pain and even get families out of poverty. Money would certainly make life a whole lot easier.

6. I agree with this because I personally don’t view animals as equal to humans. I do love them, however i value the life of a human more than an animal. The complexity of the human brain is very intriguing and simply doesn’t match to that of animals.

7. I don’t agree with this statement because many people on welfare have children, and cannot afford childcare, forcing them to stay home and live off of food stamps and welfare.

8. Personally, this statement depends on what crime is being committed. For petty things such as vandalism and fighting, I think the brain of a fourteen year old is not fully matured to have a crystal clear distinction of right and wrong, and/or simply does not care. However, with murder or other extremely violent crimes I lean towards the agreeing side of this statement; permanent damage should be punished, also one is old enough to have a conscious.

9. I don’t agree with this statement because as a Catholic, i was taught to always forgive even without an apology, and i stand by this teaching. When one is always one the hunt for revenge, it only lets the other person win, causing the revenge seeker unneeded pressure and stress.

10. I agree with this. Men’s sports are more popular. Yes, it could be due to the lack of women’s sports televised. However, i have watched many sports played by both men and women and i gravitate towards watching men play sports more than women. I am entertained more by the male sport as typically men collectively and genetically are faster with their moves, which makes for a more intense game.

11. I disagree with this statement because equality isn;t just legalizing something, it’s socially accepting it. I believe in homosexual rights as much as i believe in heterosexual rights and therefore feel that gay couples should be allowed to freely show affection in public the same amount as straight couples do.

12. I am guilty of buying products made in underdeveloped countries under poor conditions, however I do acknowledge that there is something very wrong. Big corporations use extremely cheap labour to make the post potential profit out of their product and because people are desperate for jobs in underdeveloped countries, companies take advantage of workers.

13. I agree with this statement because I have been at work with all my co-workers speaking in a different language, day after day. The feeling of exclusion only increases with each time it happens. Even if no harm to the person out of the loop is being said, they cannot know for sure and shouldn’t have to even wonder about it in the first place.

14. I don’t agree with this. I think that the company's biggest responsibility is to please its customers. Without them in the first place, there would be no shareholder to buy.

15. I am on the fence about this statement because I do not believe that any country or area should start a war for any reason of any kind. Violence is not the answer and there is another way all the time. However, in terms of self defense I agree with this statement. We have a military to keep this country safe, and I can appreciate that.

16. I don’t agree with this statement because I find digging into why people don’t like my opinion educational and helpful. With every person that doesn’t like one’s opinion, there is a reason behind it, and I believe it is vital to see all things from different points of views to get the absolute understanding of the topic.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Ted Talk- Anonymous Extraordinaries

          Natalie opened my mind about big movements and protests. I always thought that the people who were behind the leader simply just marched in planned marches and made signs and used their voice to support the cause. Natalie taught me that behind every great leader are a plethora of different leaders who contributed the same number of hours, blood, sweat, and tears into what is trying to be accomplished, just not in the spotlight of it all. I found it interesting how a group of young people can drop everything and turn something which her parents thought to be crazy and irresponsible, to getting their bill passed by the president of the United States. I found it compelling when she shared her story about her struggles with being mixed race. The fact that people told her she had to choose between being black or white broke my heart and warmed it at the same time, knowing that a girl who had gone from not wanting to be what she couldn’t change, to leading a movement into the light of recognition by never giving up.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Controversial Nike Ad

          I applaud Nike for this ad a great amount. The slick frame changes to Colin Kaepernick's Face was a subtle way of Nike claiming that they as a company agree with his views. However I appreciate how a main reason they used Kaepernick in their campaign was to show an example of someone who had risked everything for their “crazy dream”. The marketing strategy of this advertisement was well thought out though. Due to the controversy of the post, the ad reached increasing numbers of screens and was a topic on the tonight show with Jimmy Kimmel. This ad was came across as a motivation that anyone truly can to anything; using handful of stories of great success from those who seemed to be at a lesser advantage than others. Nike’s recent efforts to include everyone equally has been highlighted by this ad, which tells all people of any shape or form to “Just do it”.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Why are Families Being Separated at the Border?

          It is the treatment of animals deployed by the United states onto a plethora of Mexican children, holding those who attempt to cross the border seeking asylum in cages in warehouses. Since the expanded for of the “zero tolerance policy” came out as a new official government policy, officers are deemed to refer all migrants wishing to cross the border without documentation to the Department of Justice for prosecution of a crime, stating their children as unaccompanied minors. Children accompanying adults would be purposefully separated from their parents to be held at juvenile shelters and the adults at adult detention facilities. Due to videos of cries from separated children, and widespread media coverage of this crisis, many protesters gathered in the fight to put a stop to the inhumane injustice that was taking place. Thankfully, in June a federal judge ordered an end to family separations at the border along with the reunification of all separated families. Unfortunately, come the reunification deadline of July 26th, hundreds of families are kept separated with the government claiming close to 800 parents ineligible for reunification, including hundreds of parents who have been deported already without their children.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

Seeking Asylum

          I found the article heartbreaking and the contents of it inhumane. I cannot comprehend how one man has so little empathy for other human beings. It is unsettling that a family fleeing from everything they know got sent away nine time from the border. Officers feel that they are invincible with Trump behind their back. I was in disgust when I came to know that one of the officers told a refugee that Donald trump was going to be president, and there is no asylum. It is unfathomable to me how a person can look into the eyes of broken people looking for a way out and practically spit on them. I never knew that immigration itself was so hard to achieve in the first place. I was very naive about all the customs that had to be gone through. Ir surprised me that there are around 700,000 cases of asylum seekers and hope to be immigrants, and only 350 judges. People whose lives are at risk have to simply wait. I am not able to piece together what that would feel like; to travel so far only to have to go back and wait. I admired the author's standpoint of the issue and how she highlighted all the wrongdoings of Donald Trump towards immigration laws. She seemed to have a respect for the system moulded over decades. She came across as an activist for immigration and asylum seekers, simply giving readers fact after fact of how Trump has stripped away another law beneficial to those of poor fortune. He has reversed many grants of asylum including a Salvadoran women fleeing domestic violence. He has also made it so that asylum seekers require that the government is actively condoning persecution by non-state actors which is a higher bar for applicants to meet. I am proud to live in Canada, where we are know to have quite a liberal policy on asylum. If one arrives and claims to be a refugee, no matter what country one comes from, Canada will always look at a claim from anyone in the world. With immigration in itself, the wait to be accepted is fairly long, however it must be as certain protocols must be in place.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

What is Power?

          Power is the ability to have others do what one would have them do. It determines who gets to determine the rules of the game. Those with power are taken seriously and can persuade those from family, to work life, to relationships. There is civic power which is getting a community or large amount of people to make choices that one desires. Civic power consists of physical force and a capacity of violence, as well as wealth, which births the ability to by results, and more often than not, to buy more power. There is also State action; the use of law and bureaucracy to convince people to do or not do certain things. Another factor of civic power are social norms, which is what other people think is okay, operating in a softer way but certain. This factor changed the laws of gay marriage and is a big influencer in the changing of equality in our society. We also take a look at ideas. An idea can motivate hundreds of thousands of people into changing their thinking and actions. The last source is numbers. Lots of people creates power by expressing collective intensity of interest. Power operates in three laws. The first one being that power is never steady stating that if one isn’t taking action, they are being acted upon. The second being that power is like water in relation to how it flows through our day to day lives. Politics is getting a grasp on that flow and moving it into a direction of one’s choice. Policy is the power of freezing and perpetuating particular flow. Our third law is that power compounds. Power begets more power, the same with powerlessness. Rules must be set up to ensure one person doesn’t have all the power. We see this in protests by the working class demanding higher wages, and equality for all. One can change what one believes is not right. We can use strategies of others who have accomplished gaining power. It is always floating around us, it just takes one to know how to harness it to create change.

[technicallyzanyfestival-blog]

What is Bias?

          Bias is an inclination of preference for or against a certain individual or a group that collides with impartial judgement. Many assumptions are made through biases. We subconsciously play into stereotypes of people and form attitudes and specific views of members of a category. These assumptions and associations stem from the course of a lifetime. Bias is something one is taught from a very early age and has great exposure to. When Bias is executed, those who obtain a bias are usually unaware. When someone views something that goes directly against a person's beliefs or values, it is easy to create a negative biased towards them. Many people with bias are unaware that they have one. No actions are made with intend of a particular view on an individual or people, which is an implicit bias. Many see specific people in higher seats of power than others and are exposed to highlighted notions on who is superior to another, this aids in both implicit and explicit bias. An explicit bias is when someone is aware of their bias and their actions are voluntary with intent. Those who have strong political standpoints often have explicit bias, knowing they will not agree with that of the wing they do not support. Explicit bias can be quite harsh and is very small minded.