When I was watching Disclosure I had noticed many of the people talked about their own story as a Transgender. After watching the video and hearing what all these people had to say is interesting. Laverne Cox mentioned how when she would get on the train in New York City and people would just laugh because of her identity. After hearing some of these other actresses based on what they have to say while acting in these different shows, I was surprised by what they said after because of what occurred in each scene they showed. In the snapshot that my class mate Junie Vallon uploaded, the actor Elliot Page is being depicted in an awards ceremony as he expresses himself as transgender.  On the other hand in the documentary Disclosure, transgender people are expressing their issues about being judged in popular culture. For example, one of the old headlines from this film showed a description of an article of a transgender woman who was arrested by the police for dressing up in feminine clothing. The media made African Americans look bad because they view them as barbaric and it adds fuel to the fire when it comes to racism and hate groups. Watching Disclosure certainly opened my eyes to how we saw transgender in television and media when I was younger. ​​I remember when I was younger I didn’t understand the transgender community, like many others I wasn’t taught much about the LGBTQ community. The concept of a woman or man wanting to change themselves, a concept I didn’t understand. Sometimes when we watch documentaries or films that include the personal and outspoken people on what the film is about, we question our history and what we have been pushed to behave according to tv standards or America. If it doesn’t meet the standards of certain definitions and normal context, it is considered weird, freakish, disturbing, and even fearful, and that would only be an explanation of it because they are dangerous. 

The film “Disclosure” brought up some interesting points about exploiting transgender storylines and where people can fit themselves and relate to while being transgender. One thing I took away from DISCLOSURE is that Trans people are often underrepresented or misrepresented because of the negative connotation of being Transgender. Overall, how trans individuals are depicted is important, especially considering the state of the debate around gender. It is very important for youth to learn everything about transgender so that they have better idea before judge anyone. 

From the first video called “The Abortion Divide” by PBS Frontline, some of these mothers in general came to abortion clinics due to them not being financially stable enough to support another child. A few women has chose the process of abortion by taking oral medicine which starts the contractions and bleeding to terminate pregnancies. Some women find this process disturbing when they are being told that after the fetus is pulled out from the mother, the baby is literally torn to pieces by doctors and therefore ending its life. In SnapShot 11 I like MeiQiChen Snapshot because it really shows that women have the right to choose whether to keep their child or not because it is their own body. Women go through so many things. When a girl got raped and got pregnent and don’t want the baby at that moment they have to choose the abortinon option. It isn’t so easy for women to defend themselves from rape. Also sometimes when someone in a good relationship and their partner have physical relation pregnancy could happen too. It could be an accident. 

I felt that pregnancy could be hard for all women because it can also take the risk of dying if both mom and baby are in there for too long. An Abortion is a procedure to end a pregnancy. For many women, having access to an Abortion is important because it is a key component of women’s comprehensive health care. When I watched the documentary ‘The Abortion Divide’, I heard when one of the women say oh I should have kept this a secret. I think at the end of the day it is all that is your choice and it’s all that matters. If a woman doesn’t think they can keep the baby or take care of the baby they have the right to choose whatever they want. I have seen many girls who got pregnnant and their partner left them and they want to raise their kids as a single mother then they go for abortion too. Abortion used to be illigal in some places. But these days it’s getting better. Womens have their own right to choose. I think this is very important. Also at the same time I feel like some women don’t deserve to be mothers, they mistreat, disrespect their children which leads to bad self-esteem. They criticized their own kids, they beat them for very small matters. My point is if someone doesn’t know how to be a good mom they should not be a mom. They should not be mothers. I read many news stories where mothers kill their own kids. But at the end I think Reproductive justice and sex education is necessary in order to help everyone, not just those who can give birth. And every woman should be aware of it. 

Inequality has affected us females in many ways. Black feminists are not just trying to fight oppression but actually address the issues that are going on. When we hear the word feminist, we automatically think about women who are going against the unjust and cruel treatment by the dominance of men. According to the article (1997) The Combahee River Collective Statement states “There is a very low value placed upon Black women’s psyches in this society, which is both racist and sexist”. According to the text, “If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” It caught my attention because we are women that have to deal with many issues and fight to get what we want. Nancy uploaded a picture of what seems like a march and someone holding up a sign saying “Black Woman Matter”. I think this image relates to the idea of breaking down and analyzing the layers of black language and black feminism and where critical thinking started to go against oppression. Black feminism is important because it focuses on Black women’s experiences, comprehending their situation in connection to race, sexism, and class discrimination, as well as other social and political characteristics. The video, Paris Is Burning, tells us that during the ball, many people really seem to fit in together whether you’re a girl or a boy. How they accept everyone can do anything and do anything. They also talked about the roles that changed in the ’70s. I really like the video because I feel like they can have somewhere to go in life. In the video they also talked about many of the parents also don’t seem like they accept their child as gay. It was said in the video “In a ball room you can be anything you want. You’re not really an executive but you look like one and therefore you are showing the straight world I can be an executive, if I had the opportunity I could be one”. Having different sexuality, being a woman or a different type of education makes society question people’s logic and choices. The value of men is different from women, the value of a white woman values more than a Black man, a value of a black man values more than a Black woman. People in the black community are often being bashed for the color of their skin not by white people but by their own race. It would be amazing to see that change happen, I still see both genders facing inequality between each other and it’s probably because of a tradition it is.

While I was reading one of the article’s which was The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan, one part that stood out to me was when it said “women are still treated as second-class citizens”. As a female I feel like we have been through a lot such as facing many issues and the fact that we ourselves have to speak up so that we can be heard. The politics of housework article talks about how women complain of their own husbands, some are the house chores.  She talks about how women are guilted into doing the housework and how women have something called “Guilt over a messy house”. society pushes women to clean up the home while the men go out and work. But we as a society forget that some men genuinely like a cleaner home so they clean it themselves or they don’t mind cleaning so they do it themselves.  I love the picture posted by MeiQi Chen, it does a great job of depicting just how much women are ‘supposed’ to do in their life. We are not robots and house chores aren’t so easy when also they have to take care of kids and look out for them.  Since men don’t experience things like chores and taking care of the home they never know how women felt. It is simply not as simple as you think waking up very early cooking breakfast and there’s a whole list they needed to do without taking a break. From the article “The Feminine Mystique” by the author Betty Friedan, talks about the struggles of housewives in the 1950s. Men believe that they are above housework because some decide to do manual labor. Women hold a big part in the creation of what is an ideal household. First, they are emotionally for their kids 24/7, plus they make sure their husbands are alright. I think this society still treats women and is unfair, and there are still many families where women do more things, while men do nothing. 

In conclusion just like we have a Black lives matter movement for black people being targeted, women should have a movement called “Women lives matter”. I think men should be taught how to take care of themselves and to provide for themselves, women aren’t maids or an object they can just boss around. Women have emotions and opinions. I feel that women lack exposure to what is out there for them because they play a position that was automatically given to them. 

I had watched The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. It was about how women/ teenagers had to work long hours, low wages, and also unsafe conditions. Women were not permitted to leave the factory or even take breaks, and because the doors were frequently locked to prevent this, many women were unable to evacuate once the fire broke out. The video focuses on the estimation of 500 workers, most were teen, young women. Today most people are not allowed to work more than 8 hours a day, they must have at least a 15-30 minutes break from their shift. The first video mainly focuses on the incident that happened on March 25, 1911, when a fire started in a bin of cotton scraps.  They work so hard and rarely even get paid enough. And end up in danger and death. I think a child shouldn’t work there because they are only kids and too young. These young people are supposed to be in school instead of working there. 

 According to the article Virginia Just Became the 38th State To Pass the Equal Rights Amendment. Here’s What to Know About the History of the ERA” focuses on how the U.S is lack equal right, regardless of sex and their Amendments. After watching both videos “Triangle Returns and The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire”, it was interesting because I don’t think I heard of the triangle shirtwaist. This is something new to me. From what I saw the triangle shirtwaist was a factory in New York City that became a disaster in history. Disasters like the sweatshop fires discussed in the youtube videos are very terrible, but it is due to their very visible nature that we hear about them in the first place. A total of 146 people died from that disaster. I feel guilty for the female workers from the video who were being treated unfairly by the patriarchy. Money is necessary for survival in the imposed capitalist systems in our current world. it’s important to know people’s intentions when you’re looking for a job or pursuing anything because sometimes they don’t align with your needs and intentions as a human being. Sometimes owners only care about their profit they don’t care about their employees life at all.  Another thing mentioned in the article is that there is a solution that helps protest  against violence towards women, lower wages and maternity leave.