CNN's Black and White Test

I cannot understand how ignorant society is when there is a racist system and we expect that kids will not point to the darkest skinned person as the bad child, the ugly child and assign every other negative characteristic to blackness. Even the dictionary states that black has negative semantic properties and white is the antithesis of black: benevolent.

Obama being elected president has only served to exacerbate such ignorance. The election was supposedly symbolic of equality and racial justice; however, it does not erase the fact that the United States was built on the backs of slaves. Slavery in the U.S. was race-based and the system: racism, helped Caucasians and other minorities while hurting African-Americans and those visible minorities who may have been mistaken for or categorized with African-Americans.

There will always be racism. The media reinforces racism and racism will not end until they study the children in the study that went against saying that the study and showed a complete lack of bias towards all skin tones and independent thinking beyond their peers.   

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

There was a temporary victory for equality. I awoke to the news that a court had ruled against the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. Growing up around military, this was significant to me in a way that most would not understand. I support gay rights and I do believe that Don't Ask, Don't Tell promotes inequality and is a direct violation of privacy; privacy meaning that employers should not be concerned with the sexual practices of an individual in the same manner that it is illegal to ask whether a woman is pregnant; however, I believe that Don't Ask, Don't Tell provides a loophole for those heterosexuals in the military who would like to be discharged. 

Don't Ask, Don't Tell is a homophobic policy that violates privacy and promotes the stigmatization of homosexuals. However, it is also a loophole for those serving who would like to receive a discharge from the military. I want to have a volunteer military that is proud to serve. It is disheartening that homosexuals are not allowed to have the same rights as heterosexuals serving in the military. It is also wrong for heterosexuals to use homosexuality as a means of terminating their service. I do believe that Don't Ask, Don't Tell should remain the policy of the U.S. Military but not to keep homosexuals out--that aspect of the policy is blatant discrimination and needs to be erased, but to keep those who are not serving with loyalty and pride a shameful way of getting out.