Essay 2: Gender, Race, and Ackright: How We Oppress Ourselves

Notes:

     As we continue to move forward in the course, we are starting to change the subject from strictly an issue of race, and have shifted to the subject of sex, and the system behind “gender roles.”

     Now, I want to move the class into the subject of current pop culture, specifically in regards to Hip Hop, and focus on ideas of sexuality (both physically and physiologically) and gender roles within the hip-hop community/aesthetic.

     The next essay that we are reading for this week is by the Journalist/Feminist Activist/Teacher/Satirist, Joan Morgan. I feel like this assignment is important because I love hip-hop (among a couple other genres), but I am constantly confronted with the issue of misogyny and the oppression of the female body. Because of that, I think we should write about it. So first, read this excerpt:

“From Fly-Girls to Bitches and Hos” Joan Morgan

     This essay is an excerpt from her book, When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost: A Hip-Hop Feminist Breaks Down (1999), where Morgan continues to discuss different themes regarding gender and race oppression, or the perpetuation of hatred and death with each chapter of the book.

     BUT one thing that we should keep in mind as we read this very stimulating article, is that it is somewhat outdated. Yes the themes of systematic racial oppression in America that she discusses, and the violence embedded in hip-hop culture is still very real, BUT there has been a lot of change in tastes and trends since this book was written in ’99; that’s almost 20 years of scene evolution! And, although a person could probably still argue that hip-hop contains themes consistent with those that Morgan discusses, in 2017 the climate has changed, and people of all genders, races, orientations and creeds are demanding equality.  

     For this week, I want you guys to use a combination of the essays that we’ve read so far, and also information and data that you collect from an outside source. You don’t have to use the Library Databases (yet!), but you will be using the internet to research some magazines, and draw conclusions about what you see/read.

Recommended Websites (if you read something that's not on this list, you can use that too):

Vibe

Urb

Complex

XXL

Source

Your Writing Assignment:

Survey the current issues of several magazines aimed at fans of rap music. Look through their front pages, make note of the ads, the images and themes of the websites, and the types of articles that they are hosting on their homepages.

What images do they present of women, men, and human relationships? How often do they reflect the themes that Morgan discusses? How often do they contradict the themes that Morgan is discussing? What other themes and patterns do you find? To what extend, if any, have the subjects and attitudes of hip-hop changed since the 1990s? Even still, with all the change, what still needs to change to make the scene even more “equal”?

After your Intro, begin your argument with a discussion of Gender Identity (reference the Devor article), and observe how these “gender roles” play a role in your life and community. Then begin to explore how these types of roles affect the lives of men and women in terms of power structures; in the story of America, who is always the “more powerful” or “head of the household?” This will create a nice springboard for your discussion of gender within hip-hop.

***

Guidelines:

3-4 Pages

MLA Format - Header, 12pt Font, Times New Roman, Double Spaced

Use a reference or direct quote from at least one (1) essay/article that we've read for class, and use two references or direct quotes from (2) different magazines in your research.

Work Cited Page

Acetylcholine binds to what type of receptor?

a. What does acetylcholinesterase do?

b. What happens if acetylcholinesterase is inhibited (blocked)?

c. Will ACh increase or decrease in the synapse? Increase because once the enzyme is eliminated, Ach will increase in production resulting in more responses

What type of receptors do the following bind to?

a. Epinephrine and norepinephrine

b. Dopamine

c. Serotonin

d. Histamine

i. How does a monoamine oxidase inhibitor work (MAO-I)?

ii. How does a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) work?

Amino acid messengers:

a. What kind of channel does GABA open? Causes an IPSP or EPSP?

b. What kind of channel does glutamate open? Causes an IPSP or EPSP?

Mr. Macho. He is sitting at the bar with his friends. He is the sole surviving bachelor of his over 30 group of friends. He still lives in his parent’s house, is 31 years old, and exercises at the gym six days per week. He takes laxatives daily to keep his body weight down so he can maintain the same physique he had in high school. He's trying to impress his friends by eating 12 jalapeno peppers stuffed with cheese accompanied by an equal number of tequila shots.

Questions: Is Mr. Macho at risk for water intoxication, dehydrated, or in fluid balance? What factors are affecting his body fluid level and which hormones for fluid balance are affected by his lifestyle? Is his fluid volume dropping? If so, which hormones are released to compensate for this loss? Is Mr. Macho at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify his self-induced condition?

The Lovers. They are sitting in the corner at a small table. Dante is finishing his masters’ degree in philosophy and plans to work at the nonprofit agency until he can form his own cult movement and ultimately run for a political office at the federal level to convert our government to Socialism. He's drinking his third cappuccino, which is the only thing he has had to drink all day. He has labored, slow, shallow breathing resulting from a gunshot wound to his chest when he was a teenager. He rolls his own cigarettes and smokes the equivalent of one pack per day.

Questions: Is Dante at risk for water intoxication, dehydrated, or in fluid balance? What factors are affecting his body fluid level and which hormones for fluid balance are affected by his lifestyle? Is his fluid volume dropping? If so, which hormones are released to compensate for this loss? Is Dante at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify his self-induced condition?

Sally loves everything sweet and suffers from a moderate to severe anxiety problem. She also loves carbonated drinks and frequently drinks soda and water. She also drinks no less than two 12 oz. glasses of water with bicarbonate soda every day because her friend told her it was good for her skin. Sally takes 10-12 tablets of TUMS per day for the “calcium” and she likes the taste. She is eating a candy cane ice cream sundae with marshmallow sauce accompanied by an orange sherbet Sunkist soda float. She’s beginning to nervously hyperventilate while listening to Dante as he begins pontificating again about the need for Communism in the United States.

Questions: Is Sally at risk for water intoxication, dehydrated, or in fluid balance? What factors are affecting her body fluid level and which hormones for fluid balance are affected by her lifestyle? Is her fluid volume dropping? If so, which hormones are released to compensate for this loss? Is Sally at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify her self-induced condition?

Mr. Salty. This is not his lucky day. He just turned 50 and it’s time for his first Colonoscopy. He is consuming 4 liters of the horrid hypertonic solution of sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, and potassium chloride. He’s had dibs on the men’s room all afternoon.

Questions: Is Mr. Salty at risk for water intoxication, dehydrated, or in fluid balance? What factors are affecting his body fluid level and which hormones for fluid balance? Is his fluid volume dropping? If so, which hormones are released to compensate for this loss? Is Mr. Salty at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis?

Mr. Puffy. This gentleman is 65 years old. He has smoked two packs of non-filter cigarettes per day since he was 15 years old. His face is ruddy with a nose like WC Fields. His lips and nose are blue and he is breathing through pursed lips, having trouble evacuating the air from his lungs. He has a barrel chest. The expiratory area of his respiratory center is fully activated. He sips a small glass of port wine and reminisces about the old days.

Questions: What is your understanding of Mr. Puffy’s respiratory diagnosis? Is Mr. Puffy at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify his self-induced condition?

Young couple with their first baby. This is their first excursion out of the house with baby. They’ve been unable to sleep because baby is awaking all-night and asleep all day. Baby has been vomiting for the past 2-3 days, unable to keep down clear liquid or formula. Her mother told them not to worry; “spitting up” is normal. They're both exhausted and trying to enjoy their first restaurant dinner together for months. Baby is in her car seat trying to sleep but appears fidgety.

Questions: Is baby at risk for an acid- base imbalance? If so, is it respiratory or metabolic alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify this condition?

Aquarius. She's sitting alone at a table drinking distilled water hoping to be discovered by a famous movie producer. She has the lead role in a small off-Broadway play. Directors in the past have often told her that she should drink a lot of water before a performance to help with her voice quality. Her aesthetician recommends 4-5 liters of pure water per day for her skin hydration. Taking this to heart, she has been drinking at least this much water a day and more. She will only eat protein, no carbohydrates, and takes laxatives to maintain a slender figure. She's also a novice jogger with great determination, putting in at least five miles per day. She rehydrates with pure water only. The only thing she has had to drink today is distilled water.

Questions: Is Aquarius at risk for water intoxication, dehydrated, or in fluid balance? What factors are affecting her body fluid level and which hormones are affected by her lifestyle? Is her fluid volume dropping? If so, which hormones are released to compensate for this loss? Is Aquarius at risk for respiratory or metabolic / alkalosis or acidosis? What is the compensatory mechanism working to rectify her self-induced condition?

To all York College Medical Center Employees and Trustees:

We have been given a generous grant by an anonymous donor. The terms of the grant stipulate that the money can be spent to forward the “spirit” of the York College Medical Center’s mission, especially if it benefits the staff and community as a whole. No other specific instructions were given, meaning that as a community, we can use the money as we please. The Board of Directors have decide on two options that employees must vote on:

Option 1: The money can be distributed such that EVERY employee gets ALL of the following:

A guaranteed $5,000 raise every year for 3 years, for a total of $15,000,

A minimum of 4 weeks paid vacation for all employees

Up to 2 free meals per day in our fabulous cafeteria (it’s a good cafeteria)

Option 2: All the money goes into a trust that will be used to treat patients for FREE. This includes all surgeries, visits, therapy etc. (Just like St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital). The only catch is, the patients must reside in Queens, NY, unless they are an employee, in which case residency is not an issue. (ALL employees and their dependents will get free system wide care as well)

Which option will you vote for and why? You must justify your reasons and link it to some of the topics we discussed in class. Do this in a minimum of 5 paragraphs.

1. Which of the following is true regarding saturated fatty acids?

they contain one carbon double bond

they contain multiple carbon double bonds

they contain no carbon double bonds

they are the building blocks of nucleic acids

2. In anaerobic respiration (fermentation), one glucose can yeild 2 ATP's, and lactic acid is a by-product.

true or false

3. Which of the following is true regarding saturated fatty acids?

they contain multiple carbon double bonds

they contain one carbon double bond

they contain no carbon double bond

they are building blocks on nucleic acid

4. Which of the following is most important in determining what type of chemical bonds will form between atoms?

protons

neutrons

valence shell electrons

all of the above

5. Which of the following explains why water has a high surface tension, heat capacity, and heat of vaporization?

adjacent water molecules readily form covalent bonds with each other

water molecules are polar covalent thus form hydrogen bonds with each other

the non polarity of water

water molecules form ionic bonds with adjacent water molecules

What does it mean that structure and function are related in physiology? ​

Research the medical term homeostasis. What does it mean and how does it apply to the integumentary system?