Blog #5 The Globalization of the American Concept of Beauty Leading to Mental Illness

             Is America spreading a low self-esteem disease all over the world?  Is this increase in insecurities contributing to a possible “crazy people” pandemic?  There are global arguments saying that America and its celebrities are causing people all over the world develop anorexia and bulimia to alter their bodies to look like the supermodels they see in advertisements.  The western idea of beauty has been a relevant issue in my life and I feel it is absolutely crucial to teens of my generation.  To this day when I go to the mall with my friends we look at the models on the product boxes and point out that no one has eyelashes like that, or perfectly shaved legs.  

            My small group talked a lot on Friday about the issues all over the world that especially girls are developing striving for that unachievable western flawless look that supermodels have in pictures.  I found Cindy Crawford’s quote really enlightening, “I wish I looked like Cindy Crawford”.  Thus, she was saying she doesn’t even look like how she does in her own pictures.  This is due to all of the computer editing and refining photo shop workers do along with advertisers for her endorsed products.  It was really interesting in the video when we watched how a magazine cover girl was formed from 4 different women – consequently creating “the perfect woman”.  This is a surprisingly popular technique used by many photo shop geniuses, you would never know that Jenny’s body is actually attached to Monica’s face, but with Heather’s lips and Stephanie’s ears.  All these girls are models but each one of them had something imperfect about them that needed to be fixed in order to make other women around the world feel ugly enough to buy the product.

            We need to train our brains to not be so highly susceptible to deception by big companies who are just trying to get at our insecurities.  This is why videos like the one we watched in class on Friday, and the Dove commercial are so important to have.  The people that say that you’re too fat, have thin hair, or need this new mascara to catch boys’ attraction and generally be considered attractive are just wanting you to buy their product to give them profit.  Making money is a huge part of what America was founded on, but we can’t corrupt the world’s mental health in order to get rich.  We must stop this pandemic before it gets out of control. 

Blog #4 Deeper into human rights

          After watching "The Story of Human Rights" I was surprised at how many people have no idea what the most basic rights they have are.  In the first few minutes of the video, the makers decided to conduct research on what average people thought human rights meant.  Interviewers went around city streets and asked people what the definition of human rights were, many people stared blank faced into the camera, or gave a response similar to my personal favorite, "the rights that humans have..."  I was slightly disgusted with society and myself when I realized that I probably would have said the exact same thing.   This was ultimately a wake up call for me as I witnessed that most humans remain in the dark when it comes to their given protections.

          There are 30 articles containing the granted rights documented in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  Ratified at the end of World War II, some of the top listed rights include that everyone be recognized as a person before law, no one shall be held in slavery or servitude, and everyone has the right to move freely within their own state.  While this is just hardly 10% of the stated rights, I can find numerous flaws in the ways our world abides by these statements.  If this document was truly recognized by every country and everyone in the world, then why is there mistreatment of criminals and innocent people filling prisons, thousands of people enslaved even after the end to slavery, and why are people raided out of their homes everyday and forced to live somewhere designated for them in their own state.  Our freedoms have been invaded and controlled. It irks me that people have spent their time making such a document for it to be ignored by power-hungry leaders. 

          I'm curious to know why schooling, especially government classes, don't spend much time going deeper into human rights.  I think for self defense purposes everyone should know what their rights are as humans, and what the certain things are that no one, absolutely no one, can take away from them.  Perhaps a solution to ending the undermining of human rights would be more education, however, I say this hastily because I do not know if people are genuinely good.  Thus, the issue may be the wasted time on the document instead of our failure to follow it.  

Blog #3 "Girls Rising" reflection

I've never been more regretful for how many mornings I've been cranky at the breakfast table because I thought it was too early to be up for school.  I feel ashamed about the countless wishes I made for snow due to the fact that school would be canceled.  Also, all the times I simply conveyed to my friends and teachers that I'd rather be sleeping than getting an education in the classroom.  Little did I know how desired of a place the classroom is and that girls just like me around the world would have traded places with me in a heartbeat.  The documentary "Girls Rising" has opened my eyes and made me grateful that knowledge has always been a constant in my life.  The incredible determinedness that these small girls possess inspires me to continue in school and to make the best of my learning.  Their desire to get an education was truly beautiful.  
In a world where in most countries male preference is a huge deal, girls are very oppressed in society.  These girls were not given fair opportunities to get the same education as boys in their society.  Weather is was because school was expensive like Wadley’s situation or that by the time girls turn 11 or 12 they are to be married and have families, prevents girls from getting a proper education.  The end of the film where one bright young woman discusses how she is change in the world almost brought tears to my eyes.  Something this moving resonates with me the most; yay for female empowerment!  
My grandma always emphasized the importance of an education growing up, she always said "knowledge is power" and that stayed with me forever. I don’t think I could even be going to college right now if she hadn’t helped me through school all these years.  I think knowledge is so important to her because when she was growing up boys and girls were still kept very separate in school. Less was expected of girls’ performance and girls had an entire different curriculum. For example, they learned to sew in school and taught them about family life.  My grandma's grandma didn’t even get to go to school.  I think the way my grandma has influenced me will reoccur in developing countries as women like the ones in the video teach their daughters and so forth.   We need to care and educate the women of society and i’m so excited that we are making progress!

Week 2 Hidden Faces of Globalization Response

          This week of class was extremely interesting, however, what pulled me in the most was the documentary that exposed the reality of factory workers in Bangladesh we watched on Friday. Throughout industrialization and the popularization of monopolies in the global north we've seen a growth in the outsourcing of production.  These production jobs are transferred to developing countries where businesses can take advantage of the desperate need for employment in poor economies.  Deceived in considering this to be a good business decision, Disney and Walmart have a negative global effect by encouraging harsh working conditions for people living food to hand each day.  Thus, this topic really helped me understand the disadvantages of globalization on a deeper level.
          I was ultimately drawn to this issue by the shocking inhumane behavior of the factory managers.   The American business ideals are disturbing to a point where we see greed over moral. The Bangladeshi women in "Hidden Faces of Globalization" disclosed in multiple interviews that they were not treated well in their work places.  One woman said she hardly sleeps and never has any time to herself, another said all they do is work and still don't have enough money to live comfortably.  The documentary's title helps to explain that these women cannot speak up about the issues they face everyday in the factories, they are forced to stay hidden in global eyes.  This allows the bosses of their bosses to continuously take advantage of them and the lack of labor laws in their home country of Bangladesh.  I was hit extremely hard when I found out that they would even be physically beaten if they complained.
          Learning about the working conditions of women in Dhaka I had a bubbling anger in my stomach for commercial America.  If I had unlimited funds and time I would love to do an experiment on exposing Disney and Walmart for their untrue values they hold as "family friendly" franchises.  I would like to conduct public polls on if Americans knew the realities of how their clothes are made if they would still purchase them.  I would see how many of the people that respond with "no" would actually follow through and be able to sustain from buying them.  As an American and a consumer of products that were produced this way, I need to step up and put pressure on the big companies that are using developing country citizens as tools for US capitalism. 

Week 1 Blog: Skin Lightening

          Along with many others who read the skin lightening article titled "Yearning for Lightness" by Evelyn Glenn, existing in chapter 6 of E&Z's Globalization, I, too, was taken aback by the growing use of cosmetic products to alter one's skin tone.  Having lived in the Pacific Northwest my whole life and being of Irish/English ancestry my skin tone is naturally a pale white.  I guess my skin tone is the goal for many women around the world who are purchasing these lightening products.  I now feel guilty for the many hours spent on the beach with tanning oil on, trying to get the perfect golden look.
          In American pop culture there's an attractiveness that comes with being tan.  When my friends go on vacation for 2 weeks and finally return home, the first thing I say to them is, "Wow! You're so tan," and it's a big compliment.  I found it extremely interesting when one of my seminar group mates said that as Americans we are strongly business and capital oriented, thus, if you have worked hard enough to be able to afford a vacation and go somewhere where there's a high UV level that means you're wealthy.  This got me thinking, are American's just as obsessive and fret worthy when it comes to changing their natural skin tone?  Do we tan ourselves to look wealthy just as other countries are investing in these lightening products to look wealthy?  Or is it a deeper rooted issue in racial status?

          If I had unlimited funds and time, I would investigate the true purpose of altering skin tones.  I would interview people and ask them why they use these lightening products.  I would also bring studies back home and ask people why they value being tan.  I would be interested in seeing how results from each region compared and if they were truly rooted in the heightening of one's socioeconomic statuses.  While it may be a good idea to ban these acts of skin tone altering I for the purpose of decreasing racial supremacy,  I have a hard time taking away people's right to look the way they desire.  I feel as if it's important for people to be comfortable in their own skin (literally) and taking that away from them is just not what America or the world should be about.