Final Essay Post

Michelle Zamora
Professor Wexler
English 495ESM
13 December 2012

Negative Views of Law Enforcement

In the United States, the image of the police force is contradictory. On the one hand, they are seen as protectors of the innocent, men and women who respect regular citizens and the law.But there's a second image, one that gets wider media attention. Reports of corruption, unnecessary use of force, and racism hit the media more often than any other type of news. The film Babel, directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, portrays law enforcement as violent, uncompassionate and suspicious of every individual they interact with; the police are not to be trusted.

The perception of law enforcement in the US isn't unwarranted. One of the first incidents of police brutality and abuse of power televised for the nation to see began with the Civil Rights Movement. African Americans and white civilians walked in a peaceful protest to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the current laws of the time. Segregation, racism, unfair and often violent treatment of African Americans was rampant within the south, often going completely unchecked by local authorities. Law enforcement reacted in a brutal fashion and citizens could see first hand how African Americans were treated by those who took an oath to protect and serve: Fire hoses were used to spray protesters, many were beaten with clubs before being arrested. This incident forever changed how the public would view the individuals who wear badges.
Yet another famous incident takes place in the 1992, in Los Angeles, California. Rodney King, while on parole for a robbery, fled from officers, leading them in a high speed chase. But when King was finally apprehended, he was beaten by several officers while others stood by and watched. However, the entire incident was caught on video and quickly circulated through the news media. The country responded in outrage, and when the four officers responsible for the beatings were aquitted in court, several riots broke out in cities all across the country. Since this incident, several other occasions of police brutality caught on tape have circulated throughout the United States, prompting many to become distrustful of law enforcement.
In the movie Babel, the audience is introduced to several characters from different countries around the world. Amelia, a woman of Mexican heritage, is the caretaker of two young children, Mike and Debbie, who are both blonde and blue eyed. Mike and Debbie's parents have been delayed in Morocco due to an accident, causing Amelia to choose between missing her son's wedding or taking the children with her when she is unable to find a baby sitter. Deciding her son's wedding was too important to miss, she takes the children with her to Mexico without incident. But on her return trip back to San Diego, everything goes wrong. Leisa Rothlisberger explains it best. "On the way back to San Diego, border officers question Amelia about the two white children sleeping in the back of the car and ask for notes from the children's parents giving permission for Amelia to take them out of the United States, paperwork Amelia does not have...The border officials treat them as suspects, searching the car and making them nervous...When the border officers shine the flashlight in Santiago's face, he becomes even more perturbed by the way he is treated." Fearful of the consequences that both he and his aunt may face, Santiago flees the border patrol and drops his aunt and the children off in the desert, promising to pick them up after the sun rises. Amelia, left with little choice, exits the vehicle. The desert overwhelms her and the children, and she leaves them in a shady area so that she can brave the desert on her own to find help. But when she is pulled over by an officer, his indifference to her plight distresses her further. After the officer and Amelia fail in their attempt to find the children, she is taken to an office where another officer tells her that it isn't any of her business whether or not the children are safe, and deports her without the opportunity to get her belongings from her house. Amelia is never given the chance to explain he predicament, and is treated unfairly from the very beginning of her interaction with the border patrol.

The most extreme case of police brutality in the film takes place in Morocco. Yusef and Ahmed, two young sons of a goatherder, accidently shoot an American woman who is riding on a tour bus. They both run away, and the situation immediately becomes international news. The Moroccan police force conduct an investigation, leading them to the man who sold Yusef's father the rifle. Law enforcement believe that the incident was enacted by terrorists, and they treat their suspect as such. They surround both the innocent man and his wife,  beat them while they are being interrogated before an explanation on how the rifle was obtained can be given. When the Moroccan man is finally given the opportunity to explain how he got the rifle and who he sold it to, the police head to Yusef and Ahmed's house to verify the information. When the officers come across the two boys on the road and ask them for directions, instead of thanking them or simply saying "goodbye", the head officer threatens them in a cruel manner. The image of the Moroccan police force here in the United States is less than favorable. According to Business Anti-Corruption Portal profile on law enforcement in Morocco, the US State Department in 2010 stated that "corruption and impunity are pervasive in the police force. These factors have reduced the effectiveness of law enforcement officials as well as their respect for the law." Despite this report being released several years after the movie's release, it is clear that there is some truth to how the officers in Morocco are portrayed. In cases of officers abusing the authority that they are granted, it often takes several years for any meaningful chances to take place. Although steps have been taken to minimize law enforcement's ability to take advantage of citizens, the process will be a slow one.

Although the officers in Babel are fictional, how they are portrayed reflect an inescapable truth. Whether based on fact or fiction, individuals who wear badges inspire fear and distrust for many people here in the United States, and others around the world. Reports of police abusing their power are more widely circulated than cases where officers do more than their job description entails. The stress that individuals go through when they put their lives on the line everyday becomes irrelevant. What becomes more important is how they respond to individuals on a daily basis; when officers cross the line, it isn't Big Brother that is watching: It's the citizens.









Works Cited

Business Anti-Corruption Portal, Morocco Country Profile. 2011. Web. 8 December 2012
Rothlisberger, Leisa. "Babel's national frames in global Hollywood". Jump cut: A Review of Contemporary Media. Web. 8 December 2012

World Text Analysis paper

The assignment due next week focuses on my interpretation of the movie Babel, starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. This is the first time I've ever seen the movie; I remember seeing the previews and thinking to myself that I'd never watch it, despite my taste for dramas. I think because they were focusing on the two main stars being in Morocco and using the terrorist angle when there is so much more happening turned me off. After watching it, I decided that I'd focus my essay on the portrayal of police in general in the movie. My interpretation is that, for the most part, the police are people to be wary of, because 2 out of the 3 departments treated the civilians with disrespect and, in the case of the Moroccan force, with severe brutality. Here's the scenes that I'm going to cite:

1. When the Moroccan police department conducts their investigation of the shooting of Susan Jones, they beat up the people they are questioning.

2. When approaching Yusef and his brother, the police threaten the young boys in a vulgar manner if they find that they were lied to.

3. How the Border Patrol spoke to Santiago, treating him with suspicion and disrespect.

4. When the Border Patrol picks up Amelia, he treated her pleas of help with indifference.

5. The only police force that was respectful was the two officers from Japan: how they approached Chieko, spoke to her in a kind, respectful manner.

6. When Chieko brings the officer up under false pretenses, he brushes off her advances yet doesn't make her feel dirty or stupid; he treats her with compassion.

Media Classmates Presentation Reflection

Several of my classmates have used various media forms in popular culture that can be incorporated in a classroom setting. One presentation had the idea of using certain video games in the classroom, and another touched on the use of comic books as a form of literature. I especially loved this last idea. I actually used two popular manga/anime's to teach two of the students I was tutoring about character analysis and how to identify protagonists, antagonists, and various themes found in literature. I personally don't play video games; but my husband is a gamer; I consider it his second full time job. I am familiar with Portal, Portal 2, Bioshock, God of War, and many other games just because I hang out with him while he's playing. I learn about these games through osmosis. That said, I knew that they were great for strategy building, but I never thought of Portal as a game involving psychics or math. That may be because I'm not great at math, and my brain just doesn't process information that way. Something to work on in the future, I'm sure. But using God of War to teach mythology seems like it could work. I'd have to be careful of the portrayal of various Gods, though. And the stories that are told.

Media Presentation Reflection: My groups

I am a terrible, terrible person when it comes with being up to date with technology. Part of that reason is because I cannot really afford half the tech that comes out. And the other reason is that, for the most part, technology that keeps me in one tiny spot causes my claustrophobia to flare up; I can't stand laptops for this reason. Even my phone starts to bug me if I'm talking too long on it, so I tend to try and use my head set. I can come up with countless reasons to explain why I can't seem to keep up with the latest trends and what not, but these are all excuses. Anyway, while my group and I were discussing what to talk to the class about, it occurred to me that many businesses and software companies that come up with new ways to increase productivity inevitably trickle down to the masses. As a kid, I was enrolled in classes to increase my typing capabilities but I didn't own a computer until I was 15 years old, and even then it was a very old fashioned mac, where the CPU was attached to the monitor. Then, when I entered college, all my papers needed to be typed out on a Word document. Then we had to make Power Point presentations, much like a person would in the corporate world. Now we have communication software like Skype, that enables you to have face to face (sort of) conversations with people all over the world. You can conduct classes, lead presentations; it seems almost limitless at this point. Which means that I really can't afford to be ignorant of the things that are happening around me. I worry about the repercussions, though. Kids are stuck on videogames, their phones...I must be too old fashioned still.

Myth Presentation Reflection

Reading the chapter on the Female Divine and then having to read the myths that went along with it was a little daunting. There were several long stories, and in addition to this, the myths themselves were sometimes really dense. In fact, my group members felt the same way. I suppose being an English Subject Matter major I should be used to reading material that isn't written in modern English. But there were other myths in the book that were translated into Modern English; the authors/publishers gave us a myth with the modern translation as well as the original as dictated from the people who hold the myth close to their hearts. I believe they were Native American. I digress!

I really enjoyed working on this project. Not just because I had two fabulous ladies helping me out, but because the informational chapter was so enlightening. In high school, several of my peers started referring to themselves as Wiccan, complete with the Pentagram, etc. They weren't treated very kindly; they were called devil worshipers, among other unpleasant words. But when I took the time to look into it, the history behind the practice was extensive and unlike Christianity, the gender of the god is female. The readings for the presentation stipulated that archeologists took for granted that societies started out as matriarchies, despite the low number of what could be seen as female artifacts. I just find it so baffling that people, whose job is to focus on EVIDENCE, can stray away from that path in order to have it coincide with their own theories. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. I know too much to expect anything else. What further disturbs me is when spiritual folk want to put an emphasis on gender within their practice. Each gender has their merits and downfalls. To stereotype straight across the board is ridiculous especially because each person is so different. Again, digressing! But you see what I'm trying to get at.

More on Media Literacy Readings

Perhaps the most striking sentence that gets my wheels whirling concerns childhood. "There is the idea that childhood as we know it is dying or disappearing and that the media are primarily to blame for it." Okay. I am going to be a mom very soon. But even before this kid starting growing in my tummy, I was aware of just how many kids spend their time in front of a TV, either watching movies, playing video games, or tuned in to programs with adult content. I recognize that I spent my fair share of time in front of the boob tube. However, I also enjoyed my days outside playing with my friends just as much. Much has changed within the last 15-20 years. Sex, violence, etc. are all more easily accessed by kids. One critic argues that children are learning more about the "secrets" of adult life and are demanding access to it. My thoughts? Since when is a parent supposed to give in the the demands of their kids? Since when is it not the responsibility of the adults to monitor what their kid is watching, playing, etc? My mom and dad both worked full time. I was left to my own devices for most of the day. But when they came home, they talked to me. Asked me what I did, what I learned, etc. They knew what I was being exposed to and tried to explain what I was seeing, or to tell me they didn't want me watching it. (The Simpsons is the only show I was banned from because I mimicked Homer Simpson and my mom couldn't stand that guy). My point is that the blame is too easily shifted. Yes, I do think that the media should take some responsibility. But if a parent can not be there to facilitate, control, censure what their children are being exposed to within their own home, then the fault doesn't lie with the media, it lies with the parent.  That said, there is such a thing as protecting too much. But that is the decision of the parents. There needs to be a balance. Maybe I don't know what I'm talking about because my kid isn't even here yet. So we'll see how long I can hold on to these views.

Media Literacy Readings

The history of Media Education is not what I thought it was. To be quite honest, I didn't even think that there was such a thing 20 years ago. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that such a topic was taught, but not at all surprised with the agenda behind it. The readings define Media education as "the process of teaching and learning about media; the outcome - the knowledge and skills acquired." Professors started teaching it because of the vast number of hours kids spend in front of a television. To ignore this fact completely is like trying to cut out a significant portion of the overall education people receive in their lives. I find myself agreeing with the first critics of media education: the media can be harmful and damaging to kids and adults. At the same time, not everything the media presents to us is meant to corrupt/brainwash the masses.

Granted, I grew up on TV so I am a little biased. I laughed when anvils fell on the heads of unsuspecting characters, when Gallagher used a mallet to squash watermelons onto his audience and jumped up and down on a very over sized couch. Come to think of it, I still laugh when I see these images. Yes, I could see how these sources of entertainment could be seen as "low culture". But there isn't anything malicious about it. I'm not going around dropping anvils on people's heads. I'm not throwing food at strangers or jumping up and down on furniture (well, not anymore although I really want to sometimes). Not everything we see on TV or read is suspicious. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that the images presented to me daily on TV forced me to do critical thinking. I was a tomboy growing up (I still am, basically). And when I saw young girls who were supposed to represent girls my own age, wearing makeup or crying because they were being teased, I got defensive. I knew that not all girls acted that way because I knew who I was. I beat up bullies who picked on my brother; I climbed fences and onto the rooftops of the neighboring buildings. TV didn't teach me to be a damsel in distress. It showed me that there were some girls that acted that way but that I certainly wasn't one of them. So this idea that media can be blamed for people becoming sexist, racist, homosexual, etc. is a bit ridiculous.

Ah!! Poetry!

I am probably the worse English major ever. I didn't have a lot of exposure to poetry growing up, whether it be in the classroom or otherwise. We read Shel Silverstein, and occasionally Rhoald Dahl rhymed in one of his stories. But, as far as I can remember, there wasn't a lot of emphasis on poems. If there was, it was more instructional in terms of being able to identify metaphors, similes, and what not. There was no focus on meter until High School, and even then, my professor didn't really help us understand it. I still don't, to be quite honest. It may be a rhythm thing or perhaps I just can't hear the inflections. Every subsequent professor I've ever had didn't really focus too much on meter; I felt like it was almost glossed over. I'm in charge of my own education, so at this point I have no excuse. That said, poetry almost always made me feel as if it was a chore to read it. I can read a novel until the cows come home, but poems are more difficult for me. I used to write them when I was in high school for fun, but I've always had trouble reading them. As the poems got more "advanced" the harder it was for me to follow along. My intentions when my kid enters this world is to read to him all sorts of poems, if only to get him accustomed to it. I wonder if part of it is ear training. Something to consider, I guess...

Poetry!

Untitled

Sometimes he visits me

A mute apparition

But with a whisper of his name,

He dissolves into nothing.

Never a smile

Never a coded message

Until the day I walked across a stage,

And moved my tassel the opposite side

He appeared before me,

Words of spun gold tumbled from his mouth

“Well done.”

Fractures

It started out with two

Until a dream sprouted

Then two became four

Sand slides through a glass,

Pressure fractured one

Leaving only three

Until with the coming dawn

There was only one left

Poetry Exercise

This is the poetry exercise we did today in class....my brain still isn't working...hmmm

ENGL 495: Multigenre Literacy in Global Context
Poetry: Creative

Complete the following creative writing (poetry) exercises. 

1. Alliteration and Assonance Lists

Create a list of word pairs and phrases that are built around alliteration or assonance. Remember, alliteration is when words in close proximity start with (or contain) the same consonant sound (as in pretty picture). Assonance is when words in close proximity echo vowel sounds (bent pen). Try to come up with at least ten of each. 

Alliteration: Pink purse, bucking bronco, Beautiful brat, Crazy cat, Demented demon, Dirty door, She sales sea shells by the sea shore, Stupid stories, Breaking Bad, Dangerous dude,

Assonance:  dream team, boob tube, youtube, fright night, steep feat, mellow yellow, free tree,

2. Metaphors for Life

Make a list of significant life events – birth, death, graduation, marriage, having children, starting your own business. Next, come up with a metaphor for each of these events. Remember: a metaphor is when we say one thing is another thing. A simile is when we say one thing is like another thing.

Metaphor: Life is a dance.

Simile: Life is like a box of chocolates (as a metaphor, this would be life is a box of chocolates)

Tip: Choose metaphors that are visually interesting. Metaphors for life as a dance or box of chocolates are both concrete and easy for readers to visualize.

Death: Dying is the next big adventure

              Marriage:  Marriage is a marathon

                  Marriage is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle

Graduation:  A college diploma is a license for a job

                    Having Children:  Having children is climbing Mt. Everst

                      Having children is like the movie Nightmare on Elm Street

Staring  your own business:  starting your own business is a nightmare

                                              Staring your own business is like poker

                              

3. Lyrics and Musicality

Choose a catchy song that you enjoy and rewrite the lyrics, but stick to the rhythm and meter. Try to go way off topic from what the original lyrics were about. You can play the song while you work the exercise or search for the lyrics online and use those as your baseline. The idea is to get your mind on the musicality in your writing.

This is to the tune of "Little Sister" by Elvis Presley

Brownie sundae, don’t you

Brownie sundae, don’t you

Brownie sundae don’t you taunt me with your fudge,

And say your very nice

 for me to eat

Brownie sundae, don’t you

Make me eat your fudgy self

I walked into the town market

To pick up a new bowl

when I passed the deli

Dancing on the counter

You tried to get me to eat you

Whenever I need to eat something

You want my attention fast

I can’t eat what’s easy

I need what is healthy

But just this one time will do

Well I ate you for my breakfast

When I was a little kid,

Now that I’m much older,

We can’t be such good friends

Diabetes is what you will give me

Rough, rough draft of my poetry analysis essay

Identity, Otherness and Isolation Found in Nature

Emily Dickinson’s poem “This is my letter to the world” reflects on personal identity, otherness and a tremendous sense of isolation.

Dickinson doesn’t strictly adhere to one metrical form. She alternates between iambic tetrameter and tri-meter respectively. The poem itself is only 8 lines, with a rhyme scheme of ABAB CBCB. However, the simplicity of the form is overshadowed by the complex subject matters. The narrator never explicitly states their identity: are they male/female? Nobility or of the poor working class? The lack of evidence concerning who is speaking to us draws one to conclude that perhaps knowing who they are isn’t important; knowing that they are, is. Yet, I cannot help but feel conflicted as to whether or not this personal consciousness of self can be described as rooted in strength. “This is my letter to the world,/ That never wrote to me,…To hands I cannot see…Judge tenderly of me!” The repetitive use of the personal pronoun draws the reader’s attention as if there was a spot light illuminating the narrator’s consciousness, demanding that we acknowledge their existence; “I live” our narrator seems to scream. If the speaker feels confident in their personal identity, they should not feel the need to draw attention to themselves. They should not feel as if they need for us, as readers, to explicitly recognize them. And yet, we as people cannot go through our lives without feeling as if we matter in some fashion. Is the narrator strong for admitting this weakness?

Some people think that a key concept of self is in evaluating who you are in relation to others. The speaker of “This Is My Letter to the World” does this by highlighting how they are different compared to the rest of the population. He or she is writing a letter “to the world” despite the fact that “the world” has blatantly ignored their existence. “Nature” has told the rest of the populace something that is described as being “simple” and overflowing with “tender majesty”. The speaker is aware that some form of communication is happening between the people they are surrounded by, and yet is unable to “see” this message that is so essential that it is “committed to hands” of those who hear it. Despite the reaffirmations that the narrator makes concerning their identity, complete with declarations of “me” and “I” and not of “we”, it is clear that it is only the speaker that is isolated in some form from the rest of the world.

Why this isolation is occurring is not expressly stated. An argument can be made that a clue lies within the word “countrymen”. The poem’s speaker makes it clear that they are an “other”, out casted by Nature , who is described as being female. Nature is speaking directly to the “countrymen” and is intently ignoring the speaker. If we take the word “countrymen” literally, we’ve isolated an entire gender, which suggests a lack of a united female community. If Nature is a woman, why is she only speaking to men? But this argument can’t hold because the speaker has not stated a kinship that could be found in the pronoun “we”; isolation is not found in an entire group of people. The isolation is intensely personal.

Hello

Hello! My name is Michelle Zamora (Ortega, if I ever get around to changing that). I'm currently a senior at my university. I hope Spring 2013 will be my last semester, but hiccups happen. I am in an English Subject Matter program; I had aspirations in becoming an English teacher but I'm currently having serious reservations concerning that. In any event, I love reading and I love working with kids (so far) although I've had very limited experience. But I digress! Throughout my educational career, I've noticed that media has played an increasingly important role in the classroom. With the current advances in technology, it's almost impossible to not have it involved in the learning process. I am not tech savvy. I prefer good ol' paper and pen when drafting essays before I translate it into a word document. Even when I feel especially creative, I always reach for the tools with which I first learned to write. I did not grow up with a computer and find that its been difficult for me to adapt. But with kids these days, its almost unnatural for them to not have some sort of electrical device.

I'm honestly conflicted with this fact. On the one hand, not everyone learns the same way which makes it essential to have a variety of learning opportunities at a teacher's disposal. Technology is predominant in almost any job field, so it makes sense to have computers, etc. be second nature to the coming generations. Technology is becoming more and more reliable, but I find that when it doesn't work, the world stops until it is up and running again. In a speech course I took, my professor used Youtube to show the class examples of speeches for us to imitate. The occasional power point would find its way on the projector, which I was usually so wrapped up in reading that I didn't always hear what the professor was saying (and if I think its important to have a copy of it, then I'm busy scribbling it all down). But when these weren't working, then my professors would spend a significant amount of time trying to get it running, cutting time out from our learning process. Problems have become more slim over the years, but I guess I'm not a visual learner. I prefer conversation, lecture to having visual stimuli. But that's just me.