I showed up at the Trumpet Blossom Cafe about 20 minutes before the show was supposed to begin and I was afraid there wouldn’t be any seats. Boy, was I wrong. The place had a few people scattered throughout the venue but I was able to find a table near the front no problem.

The show didn’t begin until about 9:30 and 75 Dollar Bill walked out accompanied by Sue and Alice (who know the members of the band). Daniel Wyche had been expected to perform but had to pull due to a family situation. I thought it was cool of Sue and Alice to take his place due his unfortunate situation. However, after about 10 minutes, I was falling asleep. I should put a disclaimer here and say that I haven’t gotten much sleep this week because you know, college. So maybe it wasn’t just the music that had me wanting to pass out.

Sue, Alice, and 75 Dollar Bill started off with slow and, what I deemed, melo-dramatic music with a whole lot of ah-ing. As the music kept playing at its slow and melodramatic pace, it also got deeper or darker, if you will, and I legit felt like I was at a funeral. The four of them sang about 6 or 7 songs all with similar pacing, rhythm, and style. Which I found boring and tiring. It could have just been me that felt that way because the audience cheered and clapped at the end of every song and were, from what I could tell, having a great time.

75 Dollar Bill, Sue, and Alice played for about 40 minutes. After that, Sue and Alice got off the stage and let 75 Dollar Bill play by themselves. Members of the duo are Che Chen and Rick Brown. Now, I want to preface this by saying that both of these men are really talented and I can definitely tell why they have a fan base but I was not a fan which may be due to not really having any understanding of the genre that was played.

The duo played 3 songs in the span of an hour. Do you ever have those days were 5 minutes seems to last an hour? Yeah. That was me. The songs were slow and instrumental which in a sense were good but due to my lacking of knowledge in that genre I couldn’t really enjoy the music to the capacity that the rest of the audience could.

I should mention however, that in that entire venue the only person who was completely done with life in that moment was me. Everybody else was super excited, clapping, cheering and having a grand time. After what seemed like forever, let’s be real, that entire night felt like forever, Tashi Dorji and Tyler Damon took the stage and played for about an hour. They also played 3 songs in one hour. It also felt like forever. The only difference was that while 75 Dollar Bill played more slow and soft songs, Tashi and Tyler played loud and fast songs.

I don’t know if it was because, at that point, my head felt like it wanted to explode but for reason I couldn’t get invested in Dorji and Damon. It wasn’t for lack of talent on their part but I think that I was just done for the night. They woke me up in the beginning though so props to them. Dorji and Damon’s songs followed the pattern of loud, soft, loud. Which was fine. It was better than listening to only slow music for another hour.

Each song that was sung received cheers and applause from the crowd. When Dorji and Damon ended their set, it was the loudest I had heard the audience cheer that night. Which was great. I’m glad that the audience, 75 Dollar Bill, Tashi Dorji, and Tyler Damon’s fans, were able to appreciate the night and the performances to their full capacity. As for me, we now all know which genre is not for me.

To hear 75 Dollar Bill and Tashi Dorji and Tyler Damon, look below.

The post Mission Creek: Tashi Dorji & Tyler Damon @ Trumpet Blossom Cafe 4/7/2017 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It’s lit.

That was a common thought that kept entering my thoughts when three talented and powerful artists took the stage. They were Meka Jean, Flint Eastwood, and Mykki Blanco.

The night began with Meka Jean who immediately jumped right into singing her songs. She was quite impressive and I definitely enjoyed listening to her. She performed on the floor in front of the stage instead of actually on the stage which in turn created a great atmosphere but terrible video angles. Below is her music video for her song, “Too Good For You.”

After about 10 minutes, Flint Eastwood took the stage and brought back the energy left by Meka Jean. Their style of play was like a genre of rock and pop. I could be totally off but that’s what it sounded like to me. Let me tell you though, Flint Eastwood had one of the greatest stage presences I’ve ever seen live before. I found myself captivated not only by her presence but by her passion.

It’s pretty easy to tell when someone has passion for something and it’s even easier to see when someone doesn’t have that passion. Flint Eastwood, like Meka Jean and Mykki Blanco, had amazing passion and it made me enjoy her songs even more. One thing that I thought was endearing was that after every song she performed, which was like 6 or 7, she would say “Thank you” to the audience. One of my favorite lines from the night was when Flint Eastwood told the audience to purchase some merchandise but if nobody did then she understood because “we’re all broke, so fuck it, let’s have fun.”

This lead into her closing song which really brought some high energy into the Blue Moose Tap House. It was a great song to end on. Listen to Flint Eastwood’s song “Queen” below.

After Flint Eastwood finished her set, people were buzzing and ready for Mykki Blanco. However, it wouldn’t be until about 40 minutes later that Mykki Blanco arrived on stage. The audience didn’t mind one bit. When he ran on stage, he was meet with loud cheers and applause. Blanco’s entire performance had me saying, “it’s lit” and “I’m shook.” I didn’t know what to expect when I entered the venue but I was surprised and awed.

The energy that Mykki Blanco created was insane. It was something that I had never been apart of and I loved it. It felt amazing. What was even more amazing was that Blanco was trying to get a point across. To speak about queer issues in a way that doesn’t immediately turn people off. My favorite quotes of this evening were said by Mykki Blanco. They were:

“Happiness and compassion are birthrights.”

“It’s 2017, educate yourself.”

“Protect trans woman, Protect Black children.” (This line was said twice. Because that’s how important it is.)

Mykki Blanco was nothing like I expected and it was perfect. Listen to Mykki Blanco’s song, “High School Never Ends” below.

All three created an atmosphere with so much energy and passion that I didn’t know what to do with it but enjoy it and be happy to be in the presence of these talented and powerful artists. I would highly recommend checking these artists out because all three were straight-up badasses who gave zero fucks.

To look at the Mission Creek Festival schedule click here.

The post Mission Creek: Mykki Blanco @ Blue Moose Tap House 4/6/2017 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

In Part 1 of Breaking the Stereotype, I talked about two black male characters from CW shows The Flash and Arrow that I felt broke a negative stereotype in some way or another.

Part 2  featured two black female characters from the CW’s The Flash and ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder.

Part 3 featured a Latino male from the CW show, Jane the Virgin.

Part 4 features a Latina character that I think is a positive portrayal.

Once again, I am only doing one character because a lot of shows I watch don’t feature Latina characters. Which I need to fix that ASAP. But anyway. The character is, once again, from a CW show. Honestly at this point, I should become a CW ambassador because almost every single show I watch is on the CW. Anyway the character is, Rogelio de la Vega’s daughter, Jane from Jane the Virgin. 

Jane Villanueva, Jane the Virgin, The CW

Stereotype Broken: Sexpot and the Harlot

Jane Villanueva, played by the amazing Gina Rodriguez, is a young woman who dreams of becoming a writer. She attends grad school in order to achieve this goal. She is a mother to a one-year old son. The show is basically a telenovela but not as crazy as a typical telenovela and because no matter how I try to explain the show, I will do a terrible job so instead watch the extended trailer below. The main gist is that Jane gets artificially inseminated with some dude’s sperm or as it’s called in the trailer, specimen.

Jane breaks the stereotype of the Sexpot and the Harlot because her sexuality isn’t at the forefront of the show. She’s not seen as an over the top sexual object. The fact that she’s never had sex and ends up pregnant is the main story line in the show but the reason why she breaks these stereotypes is because the show never makes her a sex object.

Often times, Latinas are put into three categories. The ugly Latina maid, the sexy Latina maid, and the over the top sexual Latina. Jane is none of these things and that is why her character is, in my opinion, a strong one. With Jane it isn’t about how sexy she is but rather everything else about her. Rafael and Michael, the two guys vying for her love, aren’t solely in love with her for her looks. They love her because of who she is.

I guess the real reason why Jane is a welcome change from the typical way Latinas are portrayed is because there is so much more to her than her looks. She has real substance and isn’t just a diverse character on a show put there so that the network and the show don’t look racist.

Latinas and other minorities need positive portrayals on television. We need to see that there is more to us than the negative stereotypes perpetuated by the media. The CW does a good of getting these positive portrayals out there. They’re not perfect but they are definitely better than what is normally seen on TV.

This is the fourteenth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be new articles discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Breaking the Stereotype Part 4 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

In my last two articles, titled Breaking the Stereotype Part 1 and Part 2, I discussed four characters who I feel do a good job of representing black males and black females in shows that I watch. Now, the characters portrayed aren’t perfect and free of stereotypes but they’re a welcome change of pace from what is usually seen on TV aka negative stereotypes.

For Part 3, I will be discussing a Latino character that I think has positive characteristics. This is another character from the CW. I probably should mention that I don’t endorse The CW, I just watch shows from that network. A lot. Anyway, on to discussing positive portrayals of characters.

Rogelio De La Vega, “Jane the Virgin”, The CW

Stereotype Broken: Latin Lover

Rogelio De La Vega, played by Jamie Camil, is dramatic and generous. He’s a lot more than that but describing him in full detail may take some time. He portrays a telenovela star in the show. Which is great because Jamie Camil is actually a telenovela star.

Anyway, Rogelio had a daughter with Xiomara named Jane. They end up together after years of not seeing each other. Rogelio in his drama and general awesomeness is also very vain, but omg he’s so fab and hilarious.

Anyway, the Latin Lover stereotype consists of a man always being romantic. Which due to Rogelio being “charmingly vain” he’s only really romantic with Xiomara not with every single woman he meets. Another part of the stereotype is that they are usually up to no good. This is the farthest thing about Rogelio. Not only does he give Jane a fake scholarship so that she can go to grad school, but he is always giving Xiomara support to pursue her dreams. There’s a lot more to the Latin Lover stereotype, but that would also take a lot of time to go over, so not going to do that.

The whole reason I’m bringing this up is because Latino men tend to fall into two main categories in television. Either the extremely macho man or the not so manly macho man. Rogelio falls somewhere in between, and that’s a good representation about the Latino male compared to all the negative representations in television.

Okay, so I’m going to be honest. Most of the shows I watch don’t have a lot of Latino men. Unless I head over to Univision and watch some awesome telenovelas like Tres Veces Ana. Some shows that I watch have Latino men but they make them so racially ambiguous that I honestly couldn’t tell you what their race was.

For example, Blake Jenner–not related to those Jenners–is Cuban-American. But in the all the shows I’ve seen him in, (Supergirl and Glee), never once has his Cubanness (is that a word?) shown through. Sure, it doesn’t “need” to, but that’s the problem.

Latinos and other minorities have the blessing or curse, whichever way you want to look at it, of being racially ambiguous. Meaning you honestly couldn’t tell what race we are just by looking at us. Maybe we’re Latino, maybe we’re white, maybe we’re Black, or maybe we’re Asian. Some people may say that’s a good thing. Others may say not so much.

Let’s be real, racism isn’t going away in the next few years, maybe not for centuries, and maybe it will never disappear which is precisely the reason that we need Latino representation on television. And not the typical negative representations. No. We need positive portrayals. Latino boys need to be able to see someone like them on television in a positive light.

In both Part 1 and Part 2, I discussed two characters but when going over the shows that I watch, there are either no Latino men or they are so racially ambiguous that I don’t even know if they are Latino. So, I leave you with Rogelio. I hope to find more positive portrayals of Latino men soon. And when I do, I’ll write an article about them.

This is the thirteenth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be new articles discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Breaking the Stereotype Part 3 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

In Part 1 of Breaking the Stereotype, I discussed two characters in TV shows that I have seen that I think are positive portrayals of black males. Moving along with the theme of characters breaking the stereotypes given to their race by society, this article is going to talk about two shows that have positive portrayals of black women. This article will discuss Iris West from The CW’s “The Flash” and Annalise Keating from ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder.”

Iris West, “The Flash“, CW

Stereotype Broken: Independent Black Woman

Now I know the name of the stereotype may be misleading and you’re wondering if I just pushed the feminism movement back but if we look at the stereotype, it’ll make sense.

Often times, the independent black women is shown as narcissistic, overachieving, financially successful, emasculates black men, and has virtually no love life. (Thanks Wikipedia. Sometimes you are very helpful.) Iris West, portrayed by Candice Patton, is a journalist at Central City Picture News and the daughter of Joe West, who I wrote about in my last article. She is a member of Team Flash meaning she helps Barry Allen/The Flash beat the bad guys.

Iris is independent in the sense that she doesn’t need guys to support her and she is not narcissistic as she tends to care about the well-being of others before herself. She is an overachiever in the sense that she wants to succeed at her job which includes putting her life in danger in order to get the truth behind a story. Iris doesn’t emasculate men. Sure, the black men she deals with in the show are her father, (spoiler) her brother, and her new boss, but she doesn’t even make snide comments about them.

Her love life is doing great/not so great. Let me explain. Spoiler ahead if you haven’t seen season 1. Her finance, who was white, dies at the end of season 1. She grieves for him during the entirety of season 2. So her love life is explained as she is grieving the loss of her first love and can’t move on. Her single life has nothing to do with her being narcissistic and overachieving but rather with the fact that her finance died.

The way the show displays Iris as not a damsel in distress and not as narcissistic, overachieving, emasculator of black men is a breath of fresh of air compared to how black women are usually portrayed in television. Iris definitely has her flaws, but overall she is a positive portrayal of the black female.

Annalise Keating, “How To Get Away with Murder”, ABC

Stereotype Broken: Jezebel

Annalise Keating, portrayed by Viola Davis, is a criminal law professor and a ftc defense attorney. Discussing more about Annalise will give spoilers away and I don’t want to be that person, so I will try to give as little away as possible. Often times, black women are seen as extremely sexually promiscuous.

The show has created a character that is about much more than her sexuality. She is a bad ass. She is shown without her wig/weave. She is successful and married. There were a lot of talking points that I could have chosen but I chose Jezebel for a reason. I don’t know if you would consider the following a spoiler but I warned you regardless. The show starts off with Annalise being married to a white guy, Sam. She then cheats on Sam with her boyfriend Nate.

Then, after a series of events, her past lover returns and it’s a woman, named Eve. They get it on. Now, sure you might be thinking, “Damn. Why did I chose the Jezebel stereotype?” Well, like I said before, Annalise is more than her sexuality. She’s queer, black, female, and the lead character on a TV show. She doesn’t desire sex 24/7. She owns her sexuality.

Annalise being seen as more than a sex object is nice to see on TV. Once again, there are issues with the character of Annalise but for the most part, she is a positive portrayal of the black women.  Which is always a good thing to see.

Seeing positive portrayals of any minority member is a good thing for today’s youth because we need to be able to look at mainstream media and say, “That could be me.” We don’t have a chance of doing that when almost everybody in mainstream media is white and even characters who aren’t white are portrayed by white characters. It’s important to know that not everything displayed is negative and that there is such a thing as a positive portrayals for minorities.

This is the twelfth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be a new article discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Breaking the Stereotype Part 2 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It’s no secret that the media tends to portray negative stereotypes about minorities. That being said, it’s important to give acknowledgment to parts of the media that gives a positive portrayal or at least spins the negative stereotype around.

Recently, a lot of the shows that I have been watching have one thing in common. They have positive portrayals of certain minorities. So I have decided to give credit where credit is due. Now the portrayals aren’t perfect as there are still some issues with the characters but the fact that TV shows are even giving these positive portrayals is a good thing.

For the next few articles of this column, I will be looking at gender and race and highlighting a few characters from different TV shows. First up, I will be looking at the black male. Click here to see some stereotypes.

Joe West, The Flash, CW 

Stereotype Broken: The Absent Father

Joe West, portrayed by Jesse L. Martin, is a police man at the Central City Police Department. He is the father of Iris West and the foster father of Barry Allen. Joe and his daughter were left by Iris’ mom and Joe’s wife leaving, Joe to raise Iris alone. He then becomes the foster father of Barry Allen after Barry’s dad goes to jail. (Not a spoiler, you find this out in like the first episode.) The show flipped the role of the father leaving by having Joe be the one to have to take care of his daughter.

Then they did another solid by having a white kid see Joe West as a father figure. Barry’s dad is alive and he doesn’t need to see Joe as a father but he does. Joe isn’t the absent black father instead he’s just a father. Which is a good thing to see especially since on most shows with black families, the father is excluded from the narrative.

John Diggle, Arrow, CW

Stereotype Broken: The Black Best Friend

John Diggle, played by David Ramsey, is a former bodyguard and best friend to Oliver Queen. However, he isn’t the “black best friend.” The black best friend is someone whose entire existence revolves around their white counterpart. John Diggle is not that. Not only does he have his own storylines apart from his storyline with Oliver but he isn’t there to solve all of Oliver’s problems and he doesn’t drop everything the second Oliver needs him. The reason this is important is because a lot of times the black man is simply there to be a helpful guide for the white person. To lend a hand when the going gets “tough.”

The relationship between John and Oliver is generally equal. John does help out Oliver more than Oliver helps John but that has more to do with the fact that Oliver is the main character and all the villains want to kill him. Seeing a black man as more than a BBF, black best friend, is refreshing to see since pretty much anything you watch involves a black best friend so that the white main character doesn’t seem racist.

For all the shows I watch, these were the ones that stood out to me as positive. I’m sure there’s many more and I really do hope that there is. However, for all the positives that I see there are at least three negative that I see. The point of showcasing these positive portrayals is because it’s important to know that not everything displayed is negative and that there are people who are trying to make a difference by displaying positive portrayals.

This is the eleventh article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be a new article discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Breaking the Stereotype Part 1 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

That question was a constant throughout the conversation that took place between an audience, Leslie Nolte, Nate Kaeding and Shumpei Yamaki. Nolte used to be a dancer, Kaeding used to be a pro football player, and Yamaki used to also be a dancer. The hour long discussion was about the 1st and 2nd act of the lives of dancers and athletes.

The 1st act is the actual career that a dancer and athlete has. The 2nd act is after. After the injuries that no longer allow that dancer or that athlete to continue the dream that they always had in their minds.

The conversation started off with the MC of the night saying that for dancers, they know that their career is going to end. It’s simply a matter of when. When this happens, when the dancer or athlete makes the decision to end their professional career, that is their first death.

Shumpei Yamaki began his introduction by saying that he came from Japan at the age of 21 and wanted to breakdance and be a student. He was going college in Philadelphia while at the same time being a part of a hip hop dance group. He couldn’t manage being a part of the group and maintain good grades in college and so he moved to the University of Wisconsin. His senior year of college he was hit by a drunk driver. The accident caused him to severely damage his left knee and his right arm. The accident resulted in his mom telling him to take an art/ceramics class which would work as a way for him to rehabilitate his arm. He then went to grad school at the University of Iowa for Art/Ceramics. (Hire a qualified Lansing auto accident attorney to represent your case in getting a full claim for any damages suffered in road accidents).

Keep yourself informed about road safety by exploring these texas Crash reports.

Leslie Nolte began her introduction as if it was her 20 year old self up on the

stage of The Mill. She believed that no doubt she thought her career would never end. But then the surgeries happened. She tore her ACL and her MCL in one leg and then tore the ACL and MCL in her other leg. Even with everything that the “universe sent my way to say maybe this isn’t your path” she was still getting job offers and contracts at the age of 21. Her husband and her were living in Chicago because thats where the companies that wanted to work with her were. Her husband, Mark, then moved to Iowa City and didn’t expect Nolte to follow him. However, weeks later, Nolte discovered she was pregnant. For her, this was the moment of truth for her dancing career.

Nate Kaeding began his introduction by saying that as a young athlete, he never thought “What’s next?” For him, it was always, “How can I get better?” Kaeding was a star athlete in college and he had, what he called, “tunnel vision.” The only thing that mattered to him was making it to the pros. Through constant training, he was able to do just that. In the first play of his career, he tore his ACL. He continued to play pro football picking up multiple injuries but his body was “never quite the same.” Kaeding said that his torn ACL was the “beginning of the end for me.”

Nolte discussed what she called the transition period between Act 1 and Act 2. As a female, she was forced to choose between family and career. Could her family withstand her career and could her career withstand her family? The answer for Nolte was no.

Nolte admitted to being pissed for 10 years after she left Chicago to start her family. She stated that the reason she was pissed was because she never really got to see what her reality could have been. Instead, she was left with the wonder. The “what if?” She doesn’t know what she could have been and it has left her with the question, “Is it better to succeed and then fail or to never have succeeded at all?” She always thought that the path she ended up taking “was forced upon me.”

Kaeding discussed that when when the profession one has dies then it’s time to change your mentality. You have to begin the process of writing the next chapter in your life. Kaeding admitted to being a “one trick pony.” Due to the fact that his ability to score field goals wasn’t a skill set that you could apply to other careers. He stated that for years people tell you to “follow your passion.” But when your left with a blank state later in life you have to build a new skill set and one way to do that is by “thanking the past for leading you.”

After Nolte, Kaeding, and Yamaki finished telling their stories, the MC asked the crowd to come up with questions. The first question was what advice would the 20 year old versions of Nolte, Kaeding, and Yamaki give themselves to prepare for their 2nd act.

Yamaki stated that he had never really stopped dancing and loved his passion for ceramics. Nolte said that she would tell herself, “Don’t be angry. Leslie, move on.” Kaeding’s advice for himself would have been to prepare himself by focusing on other things.

All three are parents so the question was “What role did being a parent have in their transition of their 2nd act?”

Kaeding replied that it showed him, especially after his career ended, that he couldn’t be selfish. Being a father allowed him to be more well rounded and have a less singular focus.

Nolte stated that she wouldn’t have been able to do what she had planned to do when she was younger and have 5 children. She asked herself if she would trade her 2nd act with her 1st. Her answer was no. Her children mean everything to her. She stated that the fight of being a good mom and being a successful company director is hard.

Yamaki responded by saying that his daughter was the reason he had so much passion into pottery. His daughter was his core and motivation for having passion for what he does. He stated that he wanted his daughter to respect him and to believe in him.

The last question asked was “After moving into your 2nd act and seeing others start their 1st act, how do you feel?”

Nolte responded that at the beginning of their transition period she did feel jealousy and anger at seeing others accomplish their dream. She stopped having these feelings when somebody thanked her for helping their dreams come true. Her jealousy and anger turned to happiness.

Kaeding replied that he feels more pain for the guy that misses the game winning kick as opposed to feeling happiness for the guy who scored the game winning kick. He feels nostalgic whenever he goes to football games at Kinnick because he knows that he can never replicate those feelings. The feeling of running through the tunnel, the feeling of playing.

Yamaki responded that he felt great because “I’m full of myself and I don’t really see any better dancers than me.”

Listening to Nolte, Kaeding, and Yamaki really gave me something to think about. Dancers and athletes know that their body is going to break and they know that their career is going to end either right away or years later. Yet, they still push through it, they still strive to accomplish their goal. Tonight gave me a newfound respect for dancers and athletes.

The post Witching Hour: First Death @ The Mill 11/4/2016 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Racism is one of those topics that people want to slide under a rug and not talk about, withstanding workplace bias challenges. Usually, it’s white people. In general, white people aren’t aware of their own privilege simply because they don’t need to be. White people don’t have to face the racial discrimination that people of color have to deal with, and even those who are aware of their privilege don’t ‘help’ out people of color.

Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum writes in her article titled, “Defining Racism: ‘Can We Talk,'” that there are three forms of racism: active-racism, anti-racism, and passive-racism. She writes:

“I sometimes visualize the ongoing cycle of racism as a moving walkway at the airport. Active racist behavior is the equivalent to walking fast on the conveyor belt. The person engaged in active racist behavior has identified with the ideology of White supremacy and is moving with it. Passive racist behavior is equivalent to standing still on the walkway. No overt effort is being made, but the conveyor belt moves the bystanders along to the same destination of as those who are actively walking. Some of the bystanders may feel the motion of the conveyor belt, see the active racists ahead of them, and choose to turn around, unwilling to go to the same destination as the White supremacists. But unless they are walking actively in the opposite direction at a speed faster than the conveyor belt — unless they are actively anti-racist — they will find themselves carried along with the others.”

Active racism is behavior that would be deemed racist such as violence and overt discrimination. It’s typically fairly easy to see when someone exhibits racial behavior. These are the people who go out of their way to be racist.

Anti-racism is the exact opposite. These are the people who go out of their way to make a difference. To be different. They are the ones who are AWARE of their privilege and who do whatever they can to dismantle systematic racism. The reason these people are praised for supporting the ideas and general lives of people of color is that they are working AGAINST the system. They are going against social norms and everything that they have grown up listening to.

Finally, if you aren’t a racist who is happy for the oppression of minorities but you also aren’t doing anything to support them in escaping their oppression then you exhibit passive racism. Think back to the conveyor belt example. Just because you are facing in the opposite direction, you are still going in the same direction. You are still going the same direction as those who exhibit active-racism. Being aware of the system in which you benefit from and doing nothing about it doesn’t mean you are helping in any way. You are simply content with continuing to benefit from the oppression of others.

Choose which form of racism you want to exhibit. Putting the topic of racism underneath a rug is something we can’t do anymore. Something we should never have done. Racism is alive and that doesn’t change even though there are people who don’t believe that it still exists.

It’s obvious to see. We see it when a black football player exhibits his first amendment right and gets told to shut up and to be grateful for the fact the he was raised by white parents, we see it when unarmed black men are shot, and we see it EVERYWHERE. Racism exists wherever we look. From the people who insult and attack those of other races to the people who protest social inequality, and to the people who sit down and do nothing.

Who are you? A racist, a supporter of social equality, or someone who does nothing?

This is the tenth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be a new article discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Three Forms of Racism appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Here’s the thing. Up until a month before I started college, I had no idea that there was a Hispanic Heritage Month. Zero. Zip. Nada. Not a clue. I found out because somebody, who is white, brought it up. The conversation that happened is the one below: (WP stands for White Person).

WP: What is it that you do during Hispanic Heritage Month?

Me: What?

WP: You know, how do you celebrate it?

Me: What?

After this interaction in which a white person told me there was a thing called Hispanic Heritage Month I googled it and a whole bunch of info popped up like the stuff I mentioned above. I was surprised that Hispanics got a whole month “dedicated” to them. However, then I realized that nobody really talked about it, which was upsetting. Here I was, trying to figure out who I was and yet nobody really talked about what it was like to be Hispanic in American society. (Or maybe they did and I just didn’t have the resources.)

So, what is my whole point?

Some minorities, to use the politically correct term, are given a time frame throughout the calendar year that is “dedicated” to them. Nothing really gets accomplished though. They don’t really do anything for our groups (the ones we have been placed in due to the color of our skin and our heritage).

I googled other heritage months and these are the ones I found:

Black History Month: February (Oh, shocker. They get the shortest month.)

Irish American Heritage Month: March

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month: May

Hispanic Heritage Month: September 15-October 15

Native American Heritage Month: November

Now, some people would say, “We already give you a month! You want more?”

Why yes. Yes, we do. Aside from the fact that a single month is not enough time to celebrate an entire cultures history and traditions, let’s also think about the fact that someone who doesn’t have white skin is immediately thought to be less than (not by all, but by enough).

I want to be able to walk down the street on Mexico’s Independence Day with my Mexico soccer team jersey and not have a white male come up to me and yell, “MURICA” in my face. Like, great buddy, good for you. Fun Fact: I AM AN AMERICAN.

Why was this white man screaming the mispronounced name of my home country in my face?

Oh, right. My Mexican jersey and my brown skin color. My skin color doesn’t scream white American citizen and since I decided to join in the celebration of my parents’ home country it garnered a reaction. The reaction of a white male yelling in my face. You could argue that if I hadn’t had the jersey then he wouldn’t have yelled in my face. Maybe. But that’s the point. Am I, a citizen of the United States, not allowed to show appreciation, nay, pride for the place that my parents were born and the culture that I have grown up with? Am I supposed to disallow the culture that is responsible for the person I am simply because it makes others uncomfortable?

I shouldn’t have to hide my Mexican culture to please anybody. I don’t think a month is enough for cultures to truly celebrate the history and traditions that they have but I do think the months are good for one thing: reminding us that we shouldn’t be ashamed of who we are. At least, that’s what Hispanic Heritage Month does for me.

These months do one thing that is a positive. They get people talking; about race, about inclusion, about equality. And in this time and age, that is a stepping stone in the right direction. These months do something else and that’s getting people to ask about White History Month.

Like, why isn’t there a month for white people? Um. Maybe it’s because, and I’m just guessing here, every month is White History Month. We go to school and learn about dead old white men and how great they were. (Which in reality, a lot of them were actually really terrible.) Even in college, I have to hear about how white people are so great and we could learn from the past white leaders. Like yes, I as a colored woman totally relate to the rich white man. I mean, we’re twins.

Having heritage months for racial minorities doesn’t mean that the contributions of the white men aren’t talked about. We just need some time to remind people that you don’t have to be white to be a contributing member of the United States.

So for the dates of September 15 to October 15 and beyond, get the conversation going. Learn about cultures other than your own. Learn about the contributions of those who share a different skin color than you. Get to know someone from a different racial group. Let yourself be open to new possibilities, new friends, and new cultures.

This is the ninth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be a new article discussing how minorities live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns the under-represented groups of White America. This could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss cultures of different groups and interviews with a variety of people including those of the racial majority. Discrimination against everybody but the racial majority has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into the worlds of those they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Hispanic Heritage Month appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The game itself is quite simple. You and your team have 90 minutes to score a goal. No hands, except for your goalie but he/she is there to stop the ball from going in. You and your team have to pass the ball to each other in order for someone from your team to score. A total of 11 play at one time, this number includes the goalie.

Soccer also includes no timeouts. Your coach can’t call a timeout in the middle of the game to tell you what you’re doing wrong or to give you a quick breather. Nope. He/She has to wait until 45 minutes have gone by and its halftime or the game ends. As for substitutions? Most competitions allow for only three substitutions.

From June 3 until June 26 the Copa America will be taking place. The hosts? The good old USA. (I sadly could not get any tickets for any games). The Copa America brings together every country, who qualifies, that belong in either North, Central, and South America. Due to being hosts, USA automatically qualified. Mexico also automatically qualified. There are a total of 16 teams who will be attempting to win the trophy.

You see, like any sport, winning a trophy gives you pride at the fact that the team you supported won. At the international level in soccer it’s more than just team pride. It’s national pride. Nothing feels better than telling people your team is better than theirs. Bet on your team at fun888asia. Actually, one thing does and that’s telling people that your national country is better than theirs. No matter the topic.

The reason I’m bringing this up is because there is a stereotype that all Latinos are obsessed with soccer. This stereotype is both true and false. While you can find about 30 Latinos sitting around watching a game. You will also find about 30 other Latinos who couldn’t care less. The enjoyment of soccer has nothing to do with race, culture, or family. It has to do with personality. My mother hates when I spend all day watching soccer games but my uncle will be seated right next to me.

There are may reasons why some people choose not to watch soccer and the main one is that there are times when neither team is able to score and the game, if it’s not a championship game, will end in a tie. This leads many people to say, “Soccer is boring because sometimes it ends in a tie.” Well yes and no. Matches sometimes do end in ties but that’s not boring. That’s the beauty of it. In basketball, you know that scoring will consistently happen. In soccer, you don’t know. It’s the suspense of knowing that the game could go on for 89 minutes and then someone scores. Your team could lose the game at the very last minute. On the flip side, your team could win at the very last minute.

In honor of the 2016 Copa America I wanted to show not only amazing talent done by these soccer players but also the goals in an attempt to convince people to watch the Copa America and cheer on their national side. (Or just pick the team with the hottest players).  I will of course be cheering for Mexico and USA.

The 2015 Copa America was hosted by Chile. The final came down to Argentina and Chile with the winner of the tournament being Chile due to penalties. Hopefully the host’s winning will be repeated this year.

If neither USA or Mexico wins, you will find me crying in the corner.

Here’s a video of moments that made up the 2015 Copa America. Some moments are goals and skills and others are fights and arguments. (Which to be honest, are probably my favorite part).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPzhXwm8184

As I said before a total of 16 teams will be playing in the tournament. I have decided to include those teams here as well as how they did in the 2015 Copa America and their current FIFA Ranking. From these, you can go to the Copa America website and create a bracket. If you so wish.

If you don’t care to watch, that’s fine. You can join my mother in her judgment of me. If you would like to see what the big deal is then I highly recommend you watch. You can watch on ESPN, Fox, find the matches illegally online, find the matches legally online or you can watch on the Spanish channel, Univison. Even if you don’t want to watch the actual game, just listen to the commentary. It’s hilarious.

Soccer isn’t something that every single Latino loves and it isn’t a boring sport. I would rather watch a 90 minute scoreless soccer match than a basketball game and basketball is my second favorite sport.

Regardless of whether or not you want to watch:

Here’s a video of fights that happened in 2015. Because they always make me laugh.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fFABx6mAy4

Here’s a video of goal celebration fails. Because these always make me laugh.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5sF4PUtnpQ

Here’s a video of some goals from 2015.  If you don’t want to see all 100, skip to 14:58 to see the top 20. 16:37 to see the top 10 and 17:30 to see the top 5. (Order is subjective).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UCGGpQCszQ

My point is, watch soccer. It’s eventful, suspenseful, blows your mind, and at times, hilarious.

UPDATE on 2016 Copa America:

Group A: U.S. and Colombia advanced to Quarterfinals. Costa Rica and Paraguay knocked out.

Group B: Peru and Ecuador advanced to Quarterfinals. Brazil and Haiti knocked out.

Quarterfinal Matches: June 16: U.S. vs Ecuador

June 17: Peru vs Colombia

Group C: Current leaders are Mexico and Venezuela.

Group D: Current leaders are Argentina with Chile and Panama.

Quarterfinals take place June 16,17, and 18.

Semifinals take place June 21 and 22.

Third place takes place June 25.

Final takes place June 26.

Click here for easy to read schedule.

This is the eighth article of the column titled “Living in White America.” Every month there will be a new article discussing how one immigrant group, Latinos, live in America. This column will have articles dealing with anything and everything that concerns Latinos, this could include political and social talks. Some articles may discuss a culture of a different Latino group and interviews with a variety of Latinos will be added as well as interviews with non-Latinos asking for their opinion. Discrimination against Latinos has gone on long enough and now it’s time people get a look into a world they dislike so much. 

The post Living in White America: Soccer appeared first on KRUI Radio.