The image I chose to write about is a woman on a train with her bag. A man is standing over her, giving off a creepy vibe from what I can tell. The lady is not pleased to have him next to her and nobody is doing anything about it. I found a deep connection with this piece for many reasons. I felt as if the girl was me on the bus or subway. Everyday I go outside I feel uncomfortable and unsafe traveling to school, work or something simple as taking my dog for a walk. Men repeatedly call out to me to try and get my attention. I am often called “beautiful”, “gorgeous”, “babygirl”, “sexy” or  “sweetheart” by random men of all ages. About a month ago a man touched my bottom in a subway escalator at broadway junction and when I confronted him he denied it and continued to speak to me. I felt sick to my stomach and powerless, as if I was frozen in time and everything else around me was not. Women and young girls grow up having to encounter sexual comments and remarks just by walking to the store. We are afraid to leave our homes in certain clothing and tight dresses because we know what to expect. To me this painting is showcasing fear a woman endorse from a man. This is a message to women that we are not alone. To men it is saying they should be aware of how they make women feel just by looking at them in lust.

First and furmore, I hope everyone had a good and relaxed spring break. I want to discuss the “12 Reasons It Should Be Illegal for Doctors Not to Treat Trans People” reading. I was very surprised at how non-binary and trans people are treated. I knew they were not equal and mistreated but when it came to a life and death after I assume they were treated way better. I am embarrassed and ashamed as a human. The stories from individuals about their traumatizing experience with the healthcare profession. I think a lot of people would be surprised at these stories because being denied health assistance is outrageous and sinful. You might as well point the gun to their head if that’s the case. Moving on to “A Birth Story” This was an interesting article to me. I seen the title and picture and thought to myself what discrimantion can women possibly have to go through. As I began to read the article, I am also shocked by the experience LeConte had to go through. She was talked about like she was invisible and disrespected. Her choice to undergo vaginal birth was criticized nor was it taken seriously. My point of view regarding the medical profession is completely different. I never thought anyone let alone a pregnant woman had to experience this. The flim “Period:End of Sentence” was a nice film to watch. I felt so bad that women and young girls had never used a pad before. As a girl myself, I know that relying on clothes to help with the bleeding is not helpful nor comfortable. These women felt embarrassed around men. Dropping out of school for this reason is not ok. Women stop learning after 5 grade because they can’t deal with having their menstrual period and being at school. This is an oppression I never thought women would ever have to face. They struggle as women because they are women. We have no control over what happens to our body yet we are punished for it. These oppressions that Trans gender, black pregnant women and women in India all have one thing in comment is that they are struggling to be who they are and chose to be. I believe things will change for instance, The women in India were taught to make pads and sell them in their community. Overall This topic taught be a lot about Indian women’s culture and how it is not easy.

The story by Aleichia Williams and her experience on being a black Latina is a prime example of Identity politics. She specifies that when she moved from the big city New York to a small town in North Carolina it was a cultural shock for her. Aleichia explains that the Spanish girls in her class did not like her and talked about her in their language, thinking she didn’t know the language. Her classmates couldn’t believe she was latina because of how dark she was. This is what identity politics is, she was hated by a group of latina girls because she was a dark skinned spanish girl. Aleicha instantly realized that she was not only Spanish but black as well. In North Carolina, she had to learn how to identify as two different races. She was placed in a category she had no idea she qualified for. I guess identity politics means to be placed in a category based on one’s race, sex, cutlure, religion, etc. Wherever you go throughout the world, we become a part of different identities. For instance, how Aleichia grew up in New York she was always latina. However, in North Carolina she is considered black and spanish. In the novel about the blonde lady in the bar by Alicia Garica, is a real eye opener about identity politics. The author talks about a drunk blonde in the same bar as her. She makes a comment about how black and white people should just be equal and move on from black oppression. However, Alicia explains that in today’s society everyone, specifically white people don’t try to understand slavery and what the whites did to the black people. They just want everyone to move on and be equal. The author made me realize that we will never truly move on from black oppression for the simple reason that we need to understand what went on. Nobody wants to deal with black history and what we had to endure from white people. Instead of just wanting to be equal, let’s try to analyze and understand it. Topics that I would like to explore for the rest of the semester is bullying, drug use and how it affects children and families. Also I think how broken houses can be passed down through generations. Lately, I think many women have gotten into the idea that men are supposed to provide everything for them. I don’t think that is right, because why work for freedom all these years and liberation from men just to depend on them all over again.

What is meant by the quote is, black women suffered the ultimate oppression. Oppression that places them at the furthest possible place. There were multiple oppressions, racism, sexism, women’s suffrage, equal rights amendment, hetesexualism etc. Black women had to deal with more than one of these problems. Which is why the author so metaphorically says  “We might use our position at the bottom”. The traumas and fear of class oppression does not get any worst then being a colored individual, who is lesbian, and she is a women. A bottom tier character in society is what black women have been and still are battling everyday. “A clear leap into revolutionary action” This means when you are at the bottom of the change of life or important people there is no way to go but up. This quote is a metaphor for black women making a decision to work their way up to equal rinks as white men. “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.” I think it explains that considering black women are at the bottom of the change of importance, if they received equal rights and freedom to do absolutely anything. This meant everyone else should be freed too. The term “identity politics’ ‘ means Politics only caters in favor of a specific gender, in this case white men. Most laws that are put out only benefit men. For instance, the law that only men can vote is beneficial for men in America, not women. In “Paris is Burning” film, many of the young speakers said that society only caters to men and women, not transsgender or others. They can’t make a way in the world because people excluded transgender or gay men from being somebody because of their gender they choose. Which is where the ball comes in, these balls are held to make them feel like they can be whoever they want. A businessman going into work in Manhattan, school teacher, the next Marilyn Monroe or Christie Brinkley, a dancer, actor/actress, a respected  politician, soldier, etc. These are just a few of the things they are denied they can’t be. Politics only worked in favor to white men during the 20th century. I believe race and gender has to do with Capitalism for the simple fact that the governrment tries to control the transgender and black women. They thought they did not deserve to be a part of the wealthy living lifestyles. Politicians believe they must have big businesses for transgenders and black women to shop at and no career to maintain a living.

My understanding of liberated women from Pat Mainardi, “The Politics of Homework” is that they were women who did whatever they wanted to. They showed skin and wore tight clothing that showed their cleavage. These women have sex before they are married, live with their significant other for years. They have a lot of sex and have careers that they chose to pursue. A career they desired for themselves and worked hard to obtain. Liberated women do as they please and answer to no man. This doesn’t make them less of a woman but an empowered woman who makes her own choices. Women who don’t have husbands to take care of or be the soul provider for them. These women don’t have to cry at night laying next to their husband because they want more for themselves than being a housewife. In “The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm” by AnneKoedt, explains the concept of how a woman achieves an orgasm. I feel that in the sexual society men were the ones getting pleased and felt full satisfaction during sexual incourse. What many men are not aware of is that women don’t achieve an orgasm from penetration but from the clitrous. Women who receive orgasms from men are liberated for the simple fact that they are being satisfied too, not just men. I don’t fully understand “Women’s liberation” however, I think it was women who were wives and lived with their husbands. They had the same housework as anybody else did, but the husband shares the housework with his wife. The woman in the reading teaches the man to complete house tasks. Tasks that men don’t even think about because when they were growing up, their mom would do all the housework. Now becoming a man living with a woman, they must figure out how to maintain a well kept home. “The politics of Homework” shows that the personal is political. The author says, “American men are not accustomed to doing monotonous, repetitive work…Which is why they would rather repair a cabinet than wash dishes” stating men in politics don’t do this over and over. She goes on to say, “that the oldest form of oppression in history has been the oppression of 50 percent of the population by the other 50 percent.” women have battled with oppression, personality and politics. From not being able to vote to doing all the “shitwork” at home. America described what a women’s role should be in society just like how they decided black people’s roles were. When a family sends their son off to war, it is no shock that the mother feels a greater sense of grief because she nourished him to the man he is today. While the father feels proud and brags about his son’s heroic choice to go into the fight for their country to his guy friends. Oppression is sometimes personal as they are political.