Amst 201 Youth

[emilyespich-blog]

Looking at my finished mind map I can’t help but recognize a theme that describes American Youth Culture: organized chaos.  While I was reviewing the course objectives and reflecting on the course material it was extremely obvious how everything in a youth’s life is intertwined and helps shape who they are and who they will become.  Youth culture consists of many sub categories including, but not limited to, sexuality, rebellion, crisis, conformity, consumerism, hangouts, and behavior.  All of these sub categories play an independent and integrated role in forming youth culture.  The youth culture today consists of many stigmas against sexuality, from past and present.  The homoromances from the time of war might have impacted the way people viewed simple friendship between men from then on out.  Sexuality today is also used as a form of rebellion.  Rebellion is a major thing for some youths.  They can rebel in many ways, one common way is their sexual orientation or participation in sexual behaviors.  These practices can sometimes lead to crises, such as teen pregnancy.  Other crises youths experience include fitting in and childhood obesity.  These particular crises lead to the need for teens to feel they need to conform to society's standards to fit in.  This leads to a culture that revolves around conformity and consumerism.  The need to buy the clothes that are ‘in’ and hangout at the hip places is impossible for most kids to ignore.  The places where kids hang out then influence the activities they partake in.  The places they migrate to is also usually influenced by their social and economic backgrounds.  Their socioeconomic backgrounds then also influences their behavior and cultural norms.  This in turn is the very way kids are raised and the single most important factor in their own culture.  All of these subcategories connect in many ways, but can also stand alone in influencing youth.  That is why the way I would describe the American youth culture would be organized chaos.  

[emilyespich-blog]

Grease - Final Film Analysis

https://youtu.be/wzWmxjYNfz4

Grease is a film based in the 1950s.  It is about a pair of not so rival gangs and their journey through their senior year.  Danny, the greaser, and Sandy, the good girl, met the summer before their senior year and had a romantic time.  They thought they would never see each other ever again.  Plans changed and Sandy ended up attending the same high school as Danny.  After a rocky start the two finally fell in love and become the it couple.  

This movie showcases teenage rebellion and conformity.  Sandy ends up changing herself to please Danny and conform to the gang she wants to be a part of.  Sandy goes from being the good girl from australia to being a big-haired, leather pants wearing smoker.  Sandy feels she has to do this when she starts to think that Danny won’t continue to be interested in her compared to all the other girls he hangs around with.  This can also be seen as a form of rebellion.  Even though her parents are not part of this movie you could almost assume their exact reaction to their little girl completely changing her looks and picking up different habits.  Smoking is also a major form of conformity in this movie.  There was at least one person smoking in almost every scene that didn’t involve them being in school.  This movie does a good job of portraying the image smoking created of being cool.  The first scene where we see Danny, the ‘coolest’ guy at school, is of him smoking on school grounds.  

Another concept from our class that was covered in this movie was gangs.  The gangs portrayed in this movie are not of the same nature of the ones we learned about in class, but they are still gangs.  The T-birds and the Pink Ladies are the ‘gangs’ in this movie.  These gangs are not shown to be violent, they are pretty much just a group of kids hanging out together.      

These gangs play a major factor in creating the image of youth culture in Grease.  They reinforce the idea of belonging and conformity.  They also prove the general idea of kids always hanging out with their friends and typically having one group of friends at a time.  The opening credits of Grease also foreshadows a different element of youth culture.  The movie starts with a short animated opening scene of all the characters waking up and going to school.  The way each person is drawn to look when they wake up and the actions they perform between getting up and going to class are directly connected to the type of social class their characters are in.  An example of this is how Sandy wakes up looking gorgeous and wearing a sheer robe and gets ready in front of a vanity (like a typical higher class person might) and Danny wakes up with his long hair in a messy afro and gets dressed as quick as possible and heads off to school (like a typical middle class high school boy might).  

This movie also has a large emphasis on smoking, drinking and sex.  These practices are portrayed as the norm for the youths in this culture.  The act of smoking, again, is tied to being cool and popular.  The same goes for sex really.  It seems to be the one thing most of these kids are living for.  However, one very common practice that is much less risque was the dancing.  This movie focuses on dancing as a common pass time, as it was during the 50s.  Rydell high school hosts a dancing competition that everyone, even the ‘cool’ kids, attends.  I feel like this is not something that is common in youth culture today, but it definitely was during this time period.  

As I have mentioned several times already the youths in this film seem sex crazed and focused on being cool.  They also seem to really care about their freedom to do what they want.  There are very few adults in this film, so this gives the impression that there are not a lot of rules enforced by parents.  The way boys and girls are portrayed differently in this film seems very proper for the era it is based on.  The girls are focused on romance and true love, where the boys are focused on sex, looks and summer flings.  The only jobs teenage girls are showed to have in this movie are waitresses and hairdressers.  Whereas the teenage boys are shown being mechanics.  These gender stereotypes were still pretty prevalent in this time period, but they were on the verge of getting better, which is shown in the fact that the principal is a woman.

Overall, Grease really focuses on teen conformity and rebellion.  The way most of the main characters dress and the slang language they uses gives the impression that they are teens trying too hard to be their own persons.  But in doing so they usually end up being just like everyone else.  This movie is a great portrayal of youth culture, plus who doesn’t like watching John Travolta shake his booty.  And those duets though.  :)  

[emilyespich-blog]

Hipsters in the News

Chris Rooney wrote an article entitled “Hipsters Represent the Worst of Youth Culture.”  I chose this article after only reading the title for one specific reason - “hipster” is a common word nowadays and a topic all Americans are familiar with.  This article starts out with an explanation of your typical hipster: rugged, bearded, cool nerd type who sits in coffee shops and stares at their laptop.  Then the hipsters of today are brutally compared to rebels of Ancient Rome.  The author compares the rebels of today to the rebels of yesteryear with a harsh tone.  He claims that modern rebellious youths are lazy and less daring.  He states that hipsters today would have to dress as ISIS fighters in order to even rank near youth rebels of Ancient Rome.  Another point Rooney makes is about how hipsters find “ghetto” towns and try to transform them into hip hangouts.  This usually involves like ten coffee shops and a bookstore or something.  With this he presents the argument that hipsters push the poor people out of towns that are affordable to them.  I am not so sure if I agree with this point and if I would want this thought portrayed to later generations.  To me this gives hipsters a really bad image, when honestly I think for most of them it is simply about fitting in with the ones who stand out.  Youths are all about rebellion, but most do not want to do it alone.  Hipsters have a similar look about them, but I wouldn’t go as far as forcing a similar personality on them as this author does.  Views, yes, most would agree on a lot of controversial topics, but the way someone chooses to look does not dictate their attitude.  I think this article definitely reinforces the obvious truth of youth rebellion.  

Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/chris-rooney/hipsters-represent-the-worst-_b_7909686.html

[emilyespich-blog]

Reading Response - “Dummy Smart”

Victor M Rios conducted research on black and Latino boys and their affinity to use crime and overall insubordination to alter the way society views them and to establish their own in society.  Rios uses multiple sociological evidences and examples from his own research to breakdown the complexity of this youths behavior.  

Rios argues that as a result of poverty and lack of access to opportunities to obtain the capital needed to survive, these underprivileged youths have developed a social capital of their own.  These was created through illegitimate means such as theft or violence in order to earn their “organic capital.”  An example of this is when the young man Rios observed stole a bag of chips just to put the owner in his place.  The young man said the only reason he stole the chips was because he did not feel respected by the owner so he took matters into his own hands.  The youths he was associated with seemed to think this was actually a success.  The youths felt like they had no control prior to this incident, but then they were able to go into the store all together and the owner wouldn’t say anything to them.  

Rios makes a point to mention that even though it was only a twenty-five cent bag of chips the man only stole the bag to make a statement.  The man was only looking for power and respect, something that is not easily found for black and Latino youths during this time.  The boys are not looking for freedom when committing these “crimes for attention,” they just want to be noticed and make a point.  

A major form of resistance that Rios covers in the act of “going dumb.”  This includes the youths, who are actually intelligent, representing themselves to authority figures, such as teachers and police officers, as dumb and ignorant.  They also give the appearance of taking part in a criminal act, when they really aren’t, in an attempt to mock the system that associates them with these characteristics.  By doing so, they are able to feel empowered while they drain the power from the system.  

A personal tie in I have to this reading deals with the place where I work.  I work at nursing home in Lafayette next to St. Elizabeth Central.  The diversity in the employees and residents both are very low and extremely noticeable.  There are a total of two black CNAs and one black dietary aide (the department where I work).  It is all too noticeable the way these select few present themselves.  Though none of them are men, they do seem to try to bend the simple rules (such as time limits) and make it known to everyone by announcing how they do not care if they are not where they need to be in time.  They try to use their “nonchalant” yet still forcibly noticeably to bend the rules of their work society and feel more empowered in their fewer numbers.

[emilyespich-blog]

“Miss Representation” Analysis

As the opening credits rolled I was instantly ashamed of my generation.  But then I thought, who is to say that the millennials are really THAT much different than generations before us.  Aren’t we just products of our culture just like humans always have been?  This documentary just goes to show that our culture is shaped by our media and how much that impacts the members of society.  

The weight portion of the documentary struck a soft spot for me.  I am studying to be a dietitian, so I have had extensive educational lectures about eating disorders and how our current media is affecting this.  I am one to advocate for media destroying the image of women and putting unobtainable goals in young girls’ minds.  

The political portion of the documentary was almost infuriating.  I think it was most upsetting because my views are completely opposite from what was presented.  I do not care what gender, race, ethnicity, or religion a leader is.  I only care about their credibility.  It should not matter what the person looks like or believes, only if they will get the job done.  I believe that the educated portion of my generation would agree with me, it is just the fact that there is not enough of us yet to make a difference.  

The Hollywood portion was surprisingly eye opening.  Obviously, I knew that Hollywood was a scam.  However, like that girl stated “we don’t even question it”  Women are always portrayed as only caring about finding love or having sex.  This is something that is very offensive to a woman who is working hard to one day have a successful career.  My future includes my fiance and a family but it also involves a career, something that is not always portrayed effectively on TV.  

I 100% agree with all the arguments made against reality tv.  I do not even have cable for this exact reason.  I can’t imagine paying monthly for half the channels that are offered to portray a falsehood of women behaviors.  Most of the reality TV shows revolve around women and show them being focused on sex, looks and money.  It allows young children who have unlimited access to these shows forget that there are women out in the real world who are complete opposites of this.  They grow up thinking that is what older women are like because that is what they are exposed to.  

The way women are portrayed on news stations has always seemed odd to me.  I grew up watching Local 12 news (based out of Cincinnati OH) and I remember the only lady news reporter transforming from a normal, young attractive lady to an older women with caked on makeup and increasingly “hip” outfits.  It is distracting, but the normal news viewer probably needs the person talking to be attractive.  

Some factors I think should have (and need to be) brought up during arguments of gender in the workforce include the accessibility to childcare, availability of jobs, need for two working members of a family, and general thoughts towards the working world.  I also think they viewpoints in this documentary might have been kind of slanted because these women grew up in the very begining of women being able to leave the house.  Child care is more available now which allows the women to get out of the house.  The media is still relatively new, especially social media, we are still figuring it out.  I think one day everyone will look at the media and realize it is not entirely true because by then it will be more common knowledge that it isn’t.  Our society is constantly changing, maybe this is just an in between phase.  People do not accept change well, women leaving the home is a huge change for society.  We just all need time to accept it.

[emilyespich-blog]

“Fools” - Reading Response 7

This essay reviews how the policing, incarceration and deportation of Salvadoran immigrant youth are impacting the urban lifestyles in Los Angeles and El Salvador.  Zilberg argues that the U.S. immigration policies, created in the late twentieth century, have created a zero-tolerance atmosphere for gang activities.  This has resulted in deportation of gang youth to El Salvador, including those convicted of lesser crimes.  Zilberg then analyzes this situation to have actually increased gang membership and violence in the US and El Salvador both.  All of this is creating massive identity crises among youths who have been deported because they feel like fools banished from the kingdom.  

Most of the deportees have grown up in the US and feel more connected to our culture and people than to their own nationality.  The Salvadoran youths have even developed their own language in the US, stemming from living in largely Mexican American neighborhoods in LA.  They also grew accustom to the lifestyle and culture of these neighborhoods, all of which are not consistent with Salvadoran culture.  The main divider between deportees and Salvadoran locals comes from the gang interactions.  The deportees more often than not belong to gangs who were known rivals to the Salvadoran MS gang that is prevalent in both countries, especially in LA and San Salvador.  Visual markers of gang affiliation, such as tattoos, puts the rivals at odds for employment opportunities, social interactions and violent attacks.  All of these aspects of the deportees’ culture, lifestyle and beliefs put them in a vulnerable state for identity issues.  

The deportation of these youths just fueled the growth of gangs.  In El Salvador, gangs grew rapidly as the rejected youths looked for familiarity and acceptance.  These groups grew larger and eventually gained plenty of power.  The sheer number of members of these gangs lead to an increased amount of illegal immigration due to the contacts members had in the US.  

All of Zilberg’s points go to show how humans are impacted mostly by their surroundings and peers than origin and ethnicity.  This is portrayed in the way the Salvadorans felt more attached to the population of LA than to people of their own nationality.  Another point Zilberg bluntly states is the ineffectiveness of discriminatory deportations.  The laws enacted to decrease gang rates ended up increasing gang activity in both countries involved.  This was probably the result of improper reasons for deportation and no reasonable explanations.  

This essay’s main points closely parallel the Cuban “Frikis” who encountered a sort of deporting and discrimination against those with HIV.  The deportees were sent to sanitariums where freedom including everything all teens longed for: long hair, rock music, ripped jeans.  The youths outside of the sanitariums longed for these freedoms.  This situation is almost exact opposite of the “Fools” situation; however, feelings of belongingness, freedom, and isolation are all common in both.    

[emilyespich-blog]

Reading Response 6 - Dancin’ in the Streets

Dancin’ in the Streets to a Black Girl’s Beat uses Double Dutch as a sort of metaphor for black women being able to identify as both minorities of “black” and “woman.”  Double Dutch started as a schoolyard game that young black girls in the late twentieth century played as a way to express their freedom.  The combination of precise yet unique movements and catchy rhymes allowed the young girls to connect and feel free.  This harmless activity eventually evolved into a competitive sport.

Gaunt gives a background of Double Dutch including how it began in the 1940′s and was played usually on the streets of cities such as New York.  Double Dutch began as a mixture of dance and “musicking” which allowed the young girls to express themselves freely both physically and verbally.  The rhythmic beat of the music allowed them to put their own personal touch to the Dutch by adding in their own kind of dance moves.  This kind of freedom had to have been extremely important to these girls, especially being from the social class they were.  Being young, black, and female was none too fortunate.  By playing Double Dutch, these girls had an organized outlet to help relieve some of the built up frustration with society they were inevitably feeling. 

In 1975, a couple police officers founded Double Dutch as a competitive sport for women because it was seemed to be a ‘feminine’ sport compared to the majority ‘masculine’ sports already founded.  This is a very strong opinion that ran most of the decisions made until the early twenty-first century.  Masculine vs Feminine played an important role in many things such as toy advertising, job specifications, and educational opportunities.  

Once Double Dutch was considered competitive, the creativity seemed to be diminished.  The rules and regulations of the sport put firm grips on the amount of music and movements allowed during Double Dutch.  This seemed to upturn the women’s freedom and creativity.  Along with all these came the inclusion of men in the sport.  However there were strict rules along with that, such as only one man allowed per team.  These seemed to enforce the gender shaming ideals instead of the sense of freedom once associated with this sport.  

This chapter can be related to the podcast on Cuban punk rock by the word freedom.  Cubans considered punk rock as a way to express their feelings in a otherwise strict and limiting society.  In Cuba, playing punk rock was restricted, relinquishing the freedom outlet of Cuban teens just like the regulation of Double Dutch in America.     

[linzysarahhh-blog]

RAISING CONSUMERS

Parents teach children to be consumers by being examples of consumers themselves.  Parents buy certain items for their households and I know from my own experience in my childhood that the brands of foods or items that parents buy will stick with their children well into their adult lives.  For example, my mother would only ever buy Cream of Wheat, plain name brand, not the instant kind, and now I will only purchase that kind.  Parents also teach their children to be consumers by talking to them about quality or certain items, such as cars and clothing.  One more way that parents teach children to be consumers is by simply leading by example, children see how their parents live, and typically want to be like them when they are adults so they purchase the same things.

Schools teach children to be consumers mainly by their “school supply lists”.  These lists of requirements teach children that they need to buy certain things in order to be successful in school.  School uniforms are another way that schools teach children to be consumers, this teaches them this by making them think that in order to be able to attend school, certain items of clothing must be purchased by their parents.  Last but not least, school fund raisers, specifically book fairs.  These teach children that they need to buy the books and items that are advertised to them.

Society’s expectation of youths to fit in is the one concept that I could think of when reading this last question.  I know that when I was a teenager, I worked so that I could afford gas and clothing that was popular.  Society, popular culture, and clothing companies all played a huge role in me thinking that I needed to buy North Face jackets, Sperry’s, get my nails done, and make sure that I had my hair highlighted,  All of these things cost a lot more money than other items that I could have been purchasing.

The significance of this is that while youths are preoccupied with what they need to be buying in order to fit in with others, they are passing what they should be focusing on such as school and relationships with others regardless of appearance or affluence.

[emilyespich-blog]

I really liked your point in answering the first part.  It made me realize all the brands I buy just because of my mom bought them.  I mean even down to I shop at Payless (Kroger) simply because that is where my mom shopped when I lived at home.  It is a comfort for me to purchase the things that surrounded me as a child.  I also liked how you pointed out just little things your parents tell you will effect they way you buy things.  My dad is a very frugal man, the complete opposite of my mother, but there were certain things he made sure I knew which brand was better to buy.  Mostly things for my car, but his way of deciding what to spend money on definitely sticks with me in most of my major money spending experiences.  

I loved your section about school consumerism.  The school supplies list was always very intimidating to me because most of the time my mom could not afford everything on it.  We always got the cheapest versions of the items on the list and that made me feel like I was not as equipped for school as my peers with the five star notebooks.  

[awesomeelegantdetectivebouq-blog]

Raising Consumers

I think parents, teachers and the surroundings the child is brought up in, mainly impact the kind of consumer the child is going to be and the process the child is going to follow to be a consumer. Kids usually imitate elders around them and the people the kids spend their most of the time with. Kids see how elders behave, observe their actions and then, follow their foot-steps. This is how consumerism is carried away from generation to generation. I will go through the following examples to elaborate my point. Parents are the most important part of the kid’s childhood and they have a large impact on them. Parents buy presents and give them to their kids on their birthdays or on special occasions. This is when a child learns about gifts and thus, about consuming gifts. In schools, kids have “show and tell” days when kids get their own toys and talk about them. This goes for a few weeks. Here, schools teach children to be a consumer by buying toys. There are many aspects of culture which teach youths to be a consumer. I will talk about one of the aspects, fashion culture. In the previous assignment about fashion, we got to know celebrities influence fashion choices of the youths because they signify ideal beauty and then, how award shows, social media and television play an important role in spreading out the influence. To stay updated about fashion and follow the current fashion tradition, the fashion culture makes the youths to buy specific clothes and accessories the celebrities wear. Thus, culture conditions youths to be consumers. I think consumerism satisfies human needs and luxuries. But, these needs keep on increasing until we realize we are consuming far more than basic needs of life.

[emilyespich-blog]

I think you could have delved a little bit deeper about how children imitate elders.  I really liked that you used that as your main argument and I agree with that, however, what about the kids who watch adults and learn what NOT to do?  I have always felt that the best lessons I learned in life were from my mother but in terms of what not to do.  I never really imitated her actions, and my consumerism behavior is because of her but not a mirror image of hers.  I liked the premises of your argument however, I just thought I would point out the alternatives. 

[emilyespich-blog]

Hercules Analysis

Hercules is a movie about a who goes from “zero to hero just like that!”  Hercules didn’t fit in with all the other kids in Greece.  He was big and clumsy and everyone tried to avoid him.   He felt like he wasn’t like everyone else, and he wasn’t.  He decided to “go the distance” to find out where he came from.   His adoptive parents, whom he loved dearly, told him about the medallion they found on him when he was a baby.  It was a symbol of the gods, so he goes on a life-altering journey to find out where he comes from.  He finds out he was born a god but was turned mortal by his father’s evil nemesis.  Zeus tells Hercules that he must perform acts of a true hero before he can be restored as a god and return to Olympus where he feels he belongs.  

Hercules starts rigorous training with Phil.  Through a coming of age montage he becomes a fit, ready-for-action hero.  Hercules is then physically equipped to take on all of the monsters terrorizing Greece.  These heroic acts, however, do not lead him back to god-hood however.  The act of saving his damsel in distress is the act that does so.  The moment he decided that another person was more important to him than his own life was his most heroic moment.  

Disney portrayed a lot of ideas and lessons through this movie.  Hercules came from a town where he was not appreciated and his talents were seen as hindrances.  But he and his parents refused to let that stop him from becoming who he was meant to be.  He kept on fighting and looking until he found where he belonged.  Hercules was able to decide his own destiny.  He did not let people’s words or the fact that he was turned mortal stop him from becoming a god.   That is a very important lesson for kids to be able to learn.

Once Hercules did regain his title as a god, he decided that was not what he wanted.  He had found something even better than a prestigious title, love.  He chose to give up what he had been fighting for to chase an even bigger dream.  This is something that is important for kids to understand, too.  Just because you have made it to the top, does not mean you have to remain there.  Hercules achieved one of the goals, took just enough time to appreciate the benefits and then moved on to the next.  

This movie also uses a very rich vocabulary and an elementary introduction to the greek gods.  The sheer educational aspects to this film are remarkable.  Disney movies are well known for their educational experiences through entertaining movies.  Hercules is not an exception to this normality. 

[emilyespich-blog]

Children Consumerism

I personally was taught to be a consumer by my mom.  Every time we all had the day together we would go shopping or go out to eat.  As a young kid I began to associate family time with being out and spending money.  Even to this day I associate shopping with euphoria and family time.  During my school years I remember feeling pressured to have all the nice, new school supplies and clothes.  When there are that many children together all day every day, most are going to feel the need to try to fit in.  Sadly, kids these days associate fitting in with looking like everyone else and having what everyone else has.  Another way my schooling encouraged me to be a consumer was through the various programs where you did something to get ‘money’ and then were able to spend all the ‘money’ you had on anything you wanted.  An American culture norm that has impacted me and many other youths is the idea that success is measured in what you own, how you spend your time and living comfortably.  Even as a hard working college student I feel the need to spend what money I do have on nicer things than I should be able to afford because I feel that I am successful.  Buying things, nice things, helps to solidify feeling successful.  The significance of the youths being so influenced by consumerism just fuels the consumerism.  This can be good for the economy and keeping jobs in retail; however, there can also be consequences.  Youths enveloped with consumerism may be more inclined to steal to get what they want.  Or some might be driven to work more than they focus on education, leading to fewer people equipped for higher manager jobs.  

[emilyespich-blog]

Reading Response: Babes in Tomorrowland

Chapter two in the book entitled “Babes in Tomorrowland” argues the ideal that the way children are raised will directly impact the way society functions in the future.  “Making a Manageable Child” offers multiple insights on how to raise children to be productive members of society.  The differences in race and social class were argued to have made a difference in the way the child acted and choices they made.  Sammond explains that during the early twentieth century Walt Disney, social reformers, social researchers and the media provided an idea of a “normal” American child.  They assured the population that Disney products provided what was necessary to raise productive adults who will foster successful futures for themselves.  This idea for a “normal” child was based on the white, middle-class values.  

A major goal of the Progressive movement was to assimilate the large amount of working class immigrant families by teaching them values of the middle-class America.  The movement fought to eliminate their ethnic and cultural values that were viewed as values that lead to a life of crime and poverty.  This movement focused on the children because they are the future, so they made it available to the parents how they were expected to raise their children.  

This article uses “Pinocchio” as a metaphor for the kids becoming “real.”  Like Walt Disney made clear in “Pinocchio” if a parent puts enough time and effort into molding their child and loving them regardless, they will become a “real boy.”  The “real boys” grow up to be successful members of society, regardless of ethnicity and social class.  

This chapter reinforces the idea of how society and parental influences affect children.  An ongoing theme I have experienced throughout this course is the impressionable nature of children and the consequences of this.  This chapter argues the importance of the impressionable nature of children and the parents responsibility to raise children who can contribute to society.  

[emilyespich-blog]

Toy Paper Part Two: Crayola Crayons

Over 100 years ago the first box of Crayola Crayons was produced.  Today more than 12 million crayons each day are produced and packaged in Easton, Pennsylvania.  The company is well known for their consumer safety and awareness of potential hazards.  Being a company whose products are marketed almost solely to children, consumer safety is a huge concern of theirs.  The company claims to maintain the process of molding crayons as though they were making food in order to ensure that their product remains entirely non-toxic.  

The first step in production is melting paraffin wax.  The Crayola factory uses almost 100,000 pounds of wax every day.  After melting the wax, it is shuttled to the mix kettles.  Here a strengthening additive and a powdered pigment for color.  The colored liquid is then pumped into a steel rotary mold that makes 110 crayons each rotation.  The wax mixture is ejected into the molds and cold by water to form the crayons.  The formed crayons are ejected out and a robotic arm carries them to the labeling station.  (Fun fact, each Crayola crayon is wrapped twice in order to increase stability!)  After labeling the crayons are separated by color and packed.  

The seven colors of the rainbow are produced daily at Crayola.  Exotic colors, such as periwinkle, are only made at times where the factory is making the larger packs of crayons.  After packing the crayons, the date code is added and a metal detector makes sure there is nothing but crayons inside.  The boxes are then bundled onto pallets and sent off to stores around the world.  

As the workers in the video made it very clear, the typical worker seems to love working there.  They even love the responses they get from telling people they work there.  It seemed like most of the people have worked there for their whole lives.  Generations of families work at the factory, I think that is very fitting for the product they produce.  I liked how the one worker in the video spoke about how much she still loves to color.  It shows that the workers are passionate about what they do.

References:

The Life of an American Crayon.  YouTube. https://youtu.be/w0Fell7h6Uc.  Posted Jul 9, 2012.  Accessed Jul 10, 2015.  

Elise, Craig. Inside the Rainbow Factory Where Crayola Crayons Are Made.  http://www.wired.com/2014/09/how-to-make-crayons/. Sept 04, 2014.  Accessed Jul 10, 2915.  

[emilyespich-blog]

Reading Response: Crazy by Design

“Crazy by Design” recaps the views towards teens throughout the 1990’s.  This decade is referred to as “the decade of the brain.”  “The decade of the brain” fostered the categorization of adolescence as a neurological condition.  It was thought that people “suffering” from adolescence needed medical care instead of time to mature and grow.  

This shift from mental disability to mental stabilization came about from a growing awareness of disorders, including neurological, through the Americans with Disabilities Act.  The discovery of brain imaging allowed a better look into how and when the brain developed.  This helped to inform the population and lead to the acceptance of adolescence.  However, the general population was not so convinced that this was ‘normal’ behavior for their child.  They, sadly, liked the idea of it being a mental setback because that meant it wasn’t their fault.  No one wanted to take the blame for their child’s unruly behavior.  This way also provided a solution, medication.  Schools and governments also quickly accepted that this was a mental disability in order to dismiss the raising concerns about juvenile crime rates on mental health issues other than issues such as poor education, poverty or unemployment.  

After showing that adolescence was not a mental disability, parents then had to be more careful about watching out for actual mental disabilities and be made aware that those still exist.  This caused many problems especially during such a time where school violence was not uncommon.  Elman, however, points out that the fact that teens were thought of as having mental illnesses might be blown out of proportion.  

The shift from mental disability to metal stabilization is historically important because it foreshadowed how the teenage brain is structured and maturing.  This is something that needs to be understood when dealing with teenagers.  They are very impressionable and have a higher risk of making inappropriate decisions because that is what they are designed to do.  It is part of their learning process.  

[emilyespich-blog]

Childhood obesity is a major crisis throughout the world including the United States.  Obviously in order for the size of the children to increase the amount of food consumed must also increase.  Not to mention the extreme availability of food to most Americans at any given time on any given day.  Children learn to over consume foods through many different seemingly innocent practices.  A common way children are lead into obesity is through infancy feeding practices.  When an infant is consistently overfed by his or her parent their bodies are rewired to associate eating with pleasing mom or dad instead of relying on their hunger response.  Once eating becomes more social than survival obesity typically follows.  Another way obesity is ‘encouraged’ is through fast food advertisement and availability, especially in marketing towards little kids.  A subset of this crisis is definitely the crisis that is unhealthy food marketing towards young children.  This is nothing but the large corporations trying to make money from their most influential clientele.  Even marketing to parents how easy it is to feed your child fast food is a corrupt process.  Parents and authorities are concerned that obesity will run wild through the current generation and lead to very serious health risks and extremely expensive consequences.  Not to mention shortened life expectancy.  As a nutritional professional in the making I am more concerned about crises like this than the average person in America, but it is common knowledge.  This is going to effect the future job market as more and more people become “un-qualified” for more manual jobs.  It will also effect the way things are made in the future to accommodate the larger sizes of people.  It is also a crisis because it goes to show how focused on food our culture is.  Americans rely on food to be readily available and could never handle a day if it ever wasn’t.  

[amstyouthculture]

Emily, I think you really nailed this assignment (perhaps because of your professional interest in the subject!)!  You make very clear statements regarding the culinary abundance of our current historical context, as well as food marketing strategies and baby feeding practices that impact this culture and the future of the world.  In adding a little more complexity to your response, how does the debate about childhood obesity impact teens?  Like fat shaming?  How do issues of class, race, and gender take hold in this debate about childhood obesity?

[emilyespich-blog]

I would really like to think that fat shaming will become less of an idea, but for all the wrong reasons.  Obesity is an epidemic already, and it will only get worse before it gets better.  For now, yes, I think fat shaming is an awful consequence many parents accidentally force on their children.  It is becoming slightly more acceptable to be overweight, but childhood obesity is not accepted well in this culture.  The tolerance may increase in the near future, but I don’t think that will help our case.  Obesity is something that should not be ‘shamed’ but instead needs to be treated with respect and knowledge.  Teens are extremely sensitive and need more support and teaching in the area of preventing obesity.  I personally think obesity needs to be regarded even more as a disease, because the people who suffer from it deserve respect and support from their peers.  

Historically I would definitely agree with the separations of class, race, and gender into differing weight categories.  Currently, I would argue that these categories are not so strict anymore.  Mostly because of ease of food and jobs for all demographics.  There are some demographics who are typically  more privileged than others and that definitely effects the numbers, but today’s society is heading in the direction where that idea is diminishing quickly.  Obesity is an increasing problem, which sadly makes it more widely accepted.  Both of these will have extreme consequences in the future.

[emilyespich-blog]

Childhood obesity is a major crisis throughout the world including the United States.  Obviously in order for the size of the children to increase the amount of food consumed must also increase.  Not to mention the extreme availability of food to most Americans at any given time on any given day.  Children learn to over consume foods through many different seemingly innocent practices.  A common way children are lead into obesity is through infancy feeding practices.  When an infant is consistently overfed by his or her parent their bodies are rewired to associate eating with pleasing mom or dad instead of relying on their hunger response.  Once eating becomes more social than survival obesity typically follows.  Another way obesity is ‘encouraged’ is through fast food advertisement and availability, especially in marketing towards little kids.  A subset of this crisis is definitely the crisis that is unhealthy food marketing towards young children.  This is nothing but the large corporations trying to make money from their most influential clientele.  Even marketing to parents how easy it is to feed your child fast food is a corrupt process.  Parents and authorities are concerned that obesity will run wild through the current generation and lead to very serious health risks and extremely expensive consequences.  Not to mention shortened life expectancy.  As a nutritional professional in the making I am more concerned about crises like this than the average person in America, but it is common knowledge.  This is going to effect the future job market as more and more people become “un-qualified” for more manual jobs.  It will also effect the way things are made in the future to accommodate the larger sizes of people.  It is also a crisis because it goes to show how focused on food our culture is.  Americans rely on food to be readily available and could never handle a day if it ever wasn’t.  

[emilyespich-blog]

The Power of the Zoot Reading Response

This chapter of The Power of the Zoot, Luis Alvarez unpacks the Zoot Suit lifestyle during the 1940s.  He supplies a thorough investigation of the aspects and tribulations of the Zoot culture.  Some of these include the attire of the Suiters, the way they spoke, the music they listened to, the attitudes they portrayed, and finally the meanings attached to the zoot suits.  This describes the culture that emerged during WWII among non-white teens.  The most common participators included Mexican American men and women, African American men and Asian American men.  

These ideals were accepted by the non-white youth as a means to be nonconformists to the American cultural ideals.  They felt like the ideals of the American culture discriminated against them all.  They also used the new cultural influences as a way of rebelling against their parents’ conservative natures.  The most impacting result the suiters received from this movement is the opportunity to create their own identity separate from the negative and inappropriate ones that have been forced upon this group for decades.  Something else exceptional was the breaking of gender norms.  The women were no longer wearing “girly” dresses and helped to allow women to become more empowered.  

A very significant take away from this chapter is the recognition the zoot suiters received from themselves and others in terms of power.  The formed a very tight knit group that kept gaining more and more power and recognition.  This achievement no doubt play a significant role in segregation laws and overall acceptance of minorities.