TOW #28

When We Rise by Cleve Jones was a memoir aimed to share the uncommonly known story of the queer people of San Francisco in the ‘70s. Not enough people know the story of the gay rights movement in the 1970s. Growing up, I never met any LGBT+ people; they were an idea; they didn’t exist. Now that I know that I’m a part of the community, I’ve actively sought out queer American history. But if I wasn’t looking for it, I would never find it. I would completely ignorant of the fight and struggle of so many people. Queer history should be taught in American schools to make students more thoughtful, well-rounded, accepting people.

The American education system, while not perfectly, teaches of the oppression and struggle for rights of many minority groups. The atrocities committed against these groups should not be compared but rather acknowledged as having similar attributes. The Holocaust is taught. Slavery of African people is taught. Ripping Native-Americans from the land is taught. It is time that the history books include the plight of LGBT+ citizens and what it has taken and still takes to receive some basic rights. If students learn of the fight put up and the terror faced by LGBT+ citizens, then they can build a feeling of empathy and see how LGBT+ citizens are just as human as anyone else. It will help to build the appropriate respect for LGBT+ citizens that is not always taught at home. Once students understand the plight, they can keep that in mind, being more sensitive. Also, while religion has a large influence over people’s support of LGBT+ person’s rights, it should hinder the respect due to LGBT people. No matter who a person is, that person deserves respect. No exceptions.

Because of the benefits that it could have for everyone in our nation, queer history should be taught in American schools.

TOW #27

Jonathan O’Connell is a reporter for The Washington Post. For the past five years, he has been writing about land use and the connection between government and community, as well urban and economic development. In his writing, O’Connell shows the influence that corporations have over U.S. states today. Specifically, Maryland was recently under pressure to keep the Fortune 500 Company Marriott in their state lines because there was question as to whether Marriott would leave or not. Currently, Maryland cannot afford to lose Marriott because the corporation helps to fuel Maryland’s economy by providing thousands of jobs. Also, Marriott’s big name looks good and Maryland officials want to keep it in the state. O’Connell writes The trap that causes states to give millions to corporations like Marriott primarily for the people of Maryland, who would want to know how their economy can be affected. O’Connell uses an anecdote and state government officials’ statements to inform Maryland’s residents of the influence that Marriott has over the state.
O’Connell accomplishes his purpose well. To start the article, he uses an anecdote and ties it directly into the context and topic. He writes,
In 1999, then-Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening was under pressure from J.W. “Bill” Marriott Jr. for millions of dollars to keep the hotel giant Marriott International in the state. Wrestling with how to respond, Glendening stepped into the Annapolis office of fellow Democrat Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., who offered some advice. “He said, ‘Listen, you don’t want to be the governor who lost Marriott to Virginia,’ " Glendening recalled recently.

O’Connell then writes that “17 years later, nearly the exact same thing has happened.” Having the history of the interactions between Marriott and the State gives Maryland residents a better understanding of what is happening and what the likely outcome is. The anecdote also gives a clear understanding of how corporations influence the state and gives insight into the way state government officials think when making decisions. Simply, Marriott’s stature gives it the power to influence the state. With the anecdote, O’Connell uses statements made by state government officials to show Marriott’s influence. When talking about Marriott’s possible departure, David Ianucci, who helped decide the deal with Marriott says, “It was something we had to do… There would have been a fallout of the state’s business climate, reputation had they left.” O’Connell’s use of statements gives a clear example how Marriott effects the state of Maryland and why it cannot leave. Marriott’s departure would greatly impact Maryland in a most likely negative way, and state officials did not want to be responsible for it.

TOW #26

The men in charge, behind-the-scenes are a problem. They’re led by their own selfish agenda, and are willingly to manipulate anyone to acquire what they wish. Governments throughout history have risen and fallen due to corruption and mistreatment of their people. To depict the mistreatment, the painter in this image portrays governmental corruption and the irony of it with his dramatic analogy. The larger mouse represents a judge, or a government official. This mouse is holding another, smaller mouse in front of the cat, a natural predator to the mouse. While he is holding the mouse, he is comfortably sitting out of harm’s way while he gets what he gets transportation from the cat. Corrupt government officials are willing to risk other people’s lives for their own benefit. The situation is ironic because the cat would be just as, if not even more likely to eat the larger mouse. The person in charge is often oblivious to his own dangerous surroundings. He is too blinded by his own desires to notice the his own peril, at least until it’s too late. The man with the power is making decisions for the other man, taking complete control of his life. Also, the transition from a burnt to a lighter orange in the background can represent the transition from corruption and evil to innocence. To fix this problem, the people being affected must stand up. According to the founding fathers of our nation, it is the people’s civil duty to stand up against an unjust government. History has shown that standing up for what’s right can lead to justice and the proper giving of the unalienable rights deserved by everyone. If the people of a nation stand up against the large mouse, they can stop the oppression, and make changes for the better.

IRB Intro Post #4

For the 4th marking period, I will be reading When We Rise: My Life in the Movement by Cleve Jones. I am very excited to read this book having already watched the television mini-series depiction of this story on ABC. When We Rise details the work of Cleve Jones, a young gay man in San Francisco who was a prominent leader in the fight for civil rights for queer citizens in the 1970s. The story covers history that matters to me. It covers history that, unfortunately, I have never been taught. Cleve Jones’s story and so many others’ are stories that need to be shared and taught to everyone ignorant of the history and plight of queer Americans. I am looking forward to learning more about the brave souls who finally said enough is enough.

TOW #25 - Uber Needs To Do Better When It Comes To Diversity by Ryan Grenoble

Uber Needs To Do Better When It Comes To Diversity - Ryan Grenoble

Large companies often find themselves with the dilemma of not having enough diversity in their work forces. Uber, a very popular cab-based transportation company, has recently released its diversity reports. Their reports showed that Uber’s more significant and important positions were ran by primarily white men. It’s commonly known that companies and corporations can benefit from gender and racial diversity. Uber promises to be transparent with their diversity reports in the future as they make the effort to progress. Huffington Post reporter Ryan Grenoble, brings this to attention to Huffington Post readers and per the title says that “Uber Needs To Do Better When It Comes To Diversity”. With the visual aid and strong diction he is effectively show Uber’s diversity while comparing them to other Silicon Valley companies.

At the top of his article, Grenoble includes a news video detailing the story of Uber’s release of the diversity report. This video provided the facts and numbers, which helps the audience know what Grenoble is writing about and why he’s writing about it. This also helps to establish his credibility because he included the factual information for a reliable news source, making the audience more likely to trust and latch on to what he is writing. After the video, he includes his own opinion. He describes Uber diversity as dismal, which displays his opinion on the matter. While he does this, he compares Uber’s diversity numbers to those of other Silicon Valley companies. Uber’s numbers proved to be slightly better. With this comparison, Grenoble sets up the logical argument that is Uber’s numbers are bad, and the other companies’ are worse, then all of the Silicon Valley companies need to improve their diversity. Making this comparison was allowed to audience to easily understand Grenoble’s argument. Hopefully, attention like this can cause these companies to make the needed shift to more diversity in their employees.

TOW #24

Born Bright by C. Nicole Mason is the story of an impoverished young lady made of her life. Having to deal with the disadvantages and oppression that life gave her, she was able to persevere and work hard. Being that most people do not understand the true struggle of the poor, C. Nicole Mason hopes to enlighten many with her story. She begins the story telling of the time when she attempted to be real with her audience of “do-gooders, social workers, politicians, and policy advocates” that did not really know the people they claim to help. Then throughout the story, she writes of the disadvantages she’s faced in her life. Once, when she was at a college fair trying to seize her opportunity, she was hit with the harsh realization that she hadn’t been afforded them from the beginning. “The school representatives… grew annoyed with my lack of understanding of the process and my seemingly rudimentary questions. I did not know what a major was…”. Students who go to college fairs are often expected to know the basics about college and they usually do because of where they were raised. Unfortunately, because the girl was raised, she did not have the necessary background knowledge to easily traverse the fair. Additionally, Mason details the racial tensions she experienced, especially in the classroom. When she started her school’s version of the gifted program, she felt the expectation for her not to do well. “...Black and Latino kids… were tracked out, meaning they were sent back to a remedial or otherwise less challenging learning cluster.” She saw that even though Black and Latino students were admitted into the program, they were slowly teased out. They didn’t have a chance; there was hostile environment against them. Despite this, she was able to continue to work hard a become the successful woman she is today. She turned her lemons into lemonade.

TOW #23 - The Only Way to Handle It

In 1920-1921, the United States received roughly 800,000 mostly European immigrants. Immigration rates had picked back up again after the end of World War I. During this time period, the U.S. was more desirable than ever for people wanting to improve their lives and take advantage of the opportunities the new world power had to offer. However, the massive amount of immigration caused the American government to put a limit on the number of immigrants able to enter the country. Initially, the U.S. passed the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 setting a quota where the number of people allowed to enter was 2 percent of the people of their nationality that were already in the U.S. In 1924, the Immigration Act lowered this percentage to 2 and changed the population-base numbers from the 1910 census to the those from the 1890 census. This made the amount of immigrants able to come in even smaller being that there were less European immigrants in 1890. This cartoon depicts Uncle Sam controlling the narrow opening that is allowing immigrants into the U.S. Uncle Sam is representing the U.S. and it’s government. The funnel is a visual depiction of the restriction of the number of people allowed in. At the opening of the tunnel, there are thousands of people trying to get through the funnel. However, only a few make it through the opening and into the country. The creator of this political cartoon wanted to show the unfairness of the Immigration Act and how it kept out thousands of people who wanted to improve their way of life in a similar way to the first settlers did. With this thinking, the cartoon can also serve as a criticism of American nationalism, the disapproval of “New immigrants” coming into America. Overall, the creator was able to broadcast a strong message about immigration to America in the 20s with this cartoon.

TOW #22 - "Detentions and Travel Orders"

Often times when a new president comes into power, he makes a series of off-the-bat decisions that ultimately help people rate his first 100 days as president. In his first days, President Donald Trump signed the Muslim Ban preventing people from seven predominantly Muslim countries from traveling into the U.S. Later, it was revised, dropping Iran from the list and allowing persons with visas or permanent residents from the remaining six countries to enter the U.S. In his “Detentions and Travel Orders”, Justin Sablich presents the effects of Trump’s travel ban using stories and statistics to how it is not good for the U.S.

Sablich wanted to bring to light effects of the travel ban that weren’t so obvious. Many unfortunate situations have occurred due to the travel ban. Many important Muslim figures who often travel to and from the U.S. have been stopped and unnecessarily questioned. Another incident happened with a man who had been working for the U.S. in Afghanistan for 10 years. He and his family were held for 4 days. Sablich includes these stories to exhibit the extreme inconvenience that people are feeling because of this travel ban. It has made it possible to unnecessarily question innocent people strictly because of their religion and appearance.

Because of stories like these and connotations of the Muslim Ban, international travel into the U.S. has noticeably gone down. Trump’s ban creates the belief that the U.S. is not as friendly of a nation as it is thought to be. Since most other major countries accept Syrian refugees, the U.S. having a Muslim Ban sticks out. This sore thumb has caused numbers of travel into the U.S. to go down. “Flight searches remained down about 10 percent in comparison to the same period a year earlier.” With hard statistics such as this, Sablich can appeal to logos after appealing to pathos with the stories. He mentions how large of an industry travel is and how a decrease in travel can affect the industry and potentially hurt America’s economy.

Logical facts and heart-wrenching stories allowed Sablich to show the negative effects of President Trump’s travel ban. Hopefully, some positive changes can be made going into the rest of Mr. Trump’s presidency.

Detentions and Travel Orders Coincide With Dip in Interest in Coming to America

TOW #21 - GMO, does it stay or does it have to go?

Should organisms share genes like teenagers share clothes? Genetically modified organisms (GMO) and whether they should be used as food have been long a point of controversy. Scientists take genes that can do certain things, like fight of pests, from one organism and implant into another that could reap the benefits. In principle the genetic additions are beneficial and can ward off predatory species. Conversely, GMO products can cause complications cross-contamination with wild species, new toxins, and even cancer. Despite the drawbacks, GMO, with regulation and research, should continue to be implemented in American society for their benefits.

Genetically modified organisms’ original purpose is to make things more efficient. Corn plants, popular subjects for genetic modification, are highly subject of boring by Lepidoptera larvae. However, with the insertion of the Bt gene, corn is able to make it’s own natural insecticide that keeps the larvae from damaging the corn. It is understandable to think that is a favorable alternative to external pesticides sprayed on corn crops. In the same way, some soybean crops have inserted genes that act as in-house pesticides. In 1999, when asked why they use GMO soybean seeds, farmers said, “The majority, 53 percent, said they planted them to increase yields through improved pest control. Twenty-seven percent said they used GMO soybeans to decrease pesticide costs. Another 12 percent said they used GMO soybeans to increase planting flexibility” (Duffy). The increase of production through the the improved pest control in turn lowers cost of crops, making them less costly for consumers.

Admittedly, GMO products have not been tested enough for side effects. Scientists should continue to do research into the effects of GMO products. Also genetically edited organisms have come into the picture. These organisms do not have genes inserted or removed, but rather turned off or on, just our bodies naturally do. This process is not regulated and proves to have similar beneficial effects while seeming less risky.

So whether you think gene-swapping is cool or not, GMO products should continue to be used; they’re beneficial and will continue to be with further research from scientists. GMO products have much potential to help us in many ways in the future.

Bibliography

Chang, Kenneth. "These Foods Aren't Genetically Modified but They Are 'Edited'." The New York Times. The New York Times, 09 Jan. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017. <https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/09/science/genetically-edited-foods-crispr.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FGenetically%2BModified%2BFood&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection>.

Duffy, Michael. "Genetically Modified (GMO) Soybeans | Integrated Crop Management." Genetically Modified (GMO) Soybeans | Integrated Crop Management. N.p., 11 Oct. 99. Web. Mar. 2017. <http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/icm/1999/10-11-1999/gmosoybeans.html>.

Smith, Jeffrey. "10 Reasons to Avoid GMOs." Institute for Responsible Technology. N.p., 15 Jan. 2017. Web. Mar. 2017. <http://responsibletechnology.org/10-reasons-to-avoid-gmos/>.

TOW #20 - Born Bright by C. Nicole Mason

Born Bright, written by C. Nicole Mason, is about the what it really means to be poor. Poverty isn’t just about the lack of money, but the lack of opportunity to thrive, to progress. Mason begins the book recalling a time when she was giving a speech in front of a group of “do-gooders, social workers, politicians, and policy advocates.” She was comfortable with standing before them and telling them about how the impoverished were the problem, how they needed to help themselves. However, having a background of poverty, she knew better. At this particular speaking event, she voiced her true opinion, saying that maybe “it was the systems that were broken rather than the people.” Mason’s anecdotal statement sets up one of the main themes of the entire novel. The poor are systematically oppressed; they are not given the proper chances to help themselves. Mason recounts many times in her childhood when social services did not aid her and her family. She incorporates stories of her childhood very early in the book, to reinforce her ethos. She must do this because she claims that she will be enlightening the audience to something that is not well known: why many poor people do not make it out of poverty. With many stories and remembered dialogues Mason is able to begin to achieve her purpose in the first half of the book. Her anecdotes provide an emotional appeal while she makes the logical argument of why people do not get out of poverty. She does this because if her audience is able to understand the pain in the situation then they will be able to see things from the poor people’s point of view, therefore allowing them to understand what change must happen to make things better. So far I am “enjoying” and finding Born Bright very insightful. I am very eager to find out how Mason completes her argument.

TOW #19 - Pro Bowl Kiss Cam

The NFL partnered up with Ad Council to create a public service announcement about love, fueled by love. At the Pro Bowl in Orlando, the PSA was a simple Kiss Cam that included many different kinds of couples: same-sex, interracial, elderly, disabled. The message was simple: love comes in many forms but nonetheless, love is love. It seems fitting that the PSA was given in Orlando, the same city where a shooting leaving 50 dead occurred at the gay nightclub, Pulse. While this announcement was beautiful and empowering, it was public, and anyone could see it. This brings rise to the questions, was it appropriate to show the same-sex couple with children in the audience? Yes, it was completely appropriate. Homosexuality isn’t “inappropriate” for children. Public representation such as PSAs can improve tolerance, acceptance, and encourage queer youth.

Throughout history, homosexuality, and queerness in general, has held a negative stigma, often being associated with evil and promiscuity. With the outbreak of HIV in late 20th century, the stigma worsened and many Americans believed that homosexualty was dirty and being gay would make one diseased.

For years, queer people have been fighting against the negative stigma and for positive representation in the media. In the same way as opposite-sex relationships, same-sex relationships can be and are gentle, caring, and loving. Simply, the goal of having positive representation is to show that gay people are real people that exist. They live and breath just like anyone else and they are not just people you hear about. Regardless of religious beliefs, positive representation humanizes LGBT+ people and allows children to be at the least, tolerant and accepting. Even further, representation can convey the message that “Gay is OK” and there is a community of people ready to support any youth who may need it. While doing these things, representation works to erase the negative stigma.

Growing up, like anyone else, I was fully aware of the existence of opposite-sex couples and the love one can feel from them. However, I was not provided the same awareness about same-sex couples. Granted, there are many more shows and places where acceptance is taught at an early age, there are still many areas where gay people “don’t exist” to children. This can hinder tolerance and acceptance and leave queer youth conflicted and confused.

So again, was it inappropriate to include a same-sex couple in the Love PSA at the Pro Bowl? Absolutely not. It was a thoughtful gesture that promoted acceptance and equality while giving positive representation to the LGBT+ community. I was happy to see the PSA reminding us that wherever we are, love is love.

TOW #18 - Coatesville (1912) by John Jay Chapman

In 1911, a black man was tortured to death in the public eye of the people of Coatesville, Pennsylvania. The news of the murder swept the nation and soon the man’s death was known by virtually everyone in the nation. As the first anniversary approached, John Jay Chapman felt a moral obligation to travel to Coatesville and deliver a speech to convey how it is on the whole nation’s shoulders. He does this through his use of logical statements and emotional diction.

For his audience to understand that the lynching was everyone’s problem, Chapman made a series of logical statements. His inclusion of logical statements allows the audience to understand his point of view while facilitating the establishment of his ethos. He makes the argument that,“A nation cannot practice a course of inhuman crime for three hundred years and then suddenly throw off the effects of it.” The vastness of 300 years of slavery makes it understandable that its effects cannot be eliminated in a matter of a few years. In combination with the fact that the whole nation knew of tragedy allowed the audience to see how it was on the whole nation’s shoulders. Slavery was a national atrocity that the nation had to overcome as a whole; its effects affect and affected everyone in the nation. Throughout the speech, Chapman uses words such as “guilt” and “cruel” to emphasize the horrid nature of the tragedy. He indicates that the whole nation should feel remorseful for what has happened, reinforcing the idea that the tragedy is everyone’s responsibility.

Chapman’s logical statements drove home his argument that the tragic lynching of a black man in Coatesville was on the shoulders of everyone in the country, and the just the bystanders who watched. Even today, while the effects of slavery have waned, we as an American people need to work together to completely eliminate them.

IRB Intro Post #3

For this marking period I’ll be reading Born Bright by C. Nicole Mason. Mason details the life a young black girl. She deals with struggles and hardships at home and later in the workplace. I got the book suggestion from Aryana and I’m pretty excited to read it. I want to learn more about a woman’s experience, in America especially. I want to understand more in light of the US almost having a woman president and the excellence shown by many of today’s black women. The Hidden Figures movie and Tracee Ellis Ross’s recent Golden Globe have inspired me to read this novel.

TOW #17 - "Don't Dress Your Age" by Julia Baird

It’s hard growing up. Pressures coming from all around us influence our decisions and how we act. On women especially, society places unnecessary pressure to look “age appropriate”. In her article “Don’t Dress Your Age”, Julia Baird uses a personal anecdote and logical facts to convey that women of any age should be allowed to wear what they want without criticism.

To start off the article, Baird includes a personal story that appeals to her readers. She explains how she was admiring a vintage dress when her former partner essentially told her to not get it because it was an “old-lady dress”. Starting off the article with this brief story immediately establishes her credibility, being a woman who’s been chastised about her attire’s age appropriateness. Simultaneously, the anecdote opens up her audience to feeling sympathy or empathy for her. Her feeling of confusion and disappointment in her anecdote makes it seem illogical to so heavily police what women wear. Why should women feel bad for wearing clothes they like?

Once Baird has started the article with strong appeals to her audience, she continues to appeal to logic with facts. After including many quotations of people telling a woman what she should and should not wear Baird writes “We are also told to monitor our appearance in a way men  are very rarely told to.” Since men and women are equal and should be treated as such, how come women face such scrutiny and not men? Baird conveys the idea that it is unfair to monitor women more than men.

Women anywhere in life should wear what they want, according to Baird who conveys this using a personal anecdote and logical statements. Hopefully, we can get rid of the societal pressure for women to “dress their age”.

blink by Malcolm Gladwell

 

Malcolm Gladwell attempts to answer the unanswered in his book blink. It is a common belief that it is better to think before you act; but is that true? With a myriad of evidence, Gladwell answers this question.

To answer his daunting question, Gladwell presents the reader with a slew of evidence that leads him to a conclusion. As a hook he provided the reader with a story of how experts on statues were able to know that his sculpture was a fake when months of investigation by trained professionals said otherwise. First, this gets the audience interested and introduces the theme of the book. Also, it begins to to convey the message that experts have the ability to make mostly accurate judgements. Their expertise removes them from bias and judgement that the common person’s perception would be clouded by.

Gladwell then introduces the idea of thin-slicing with a story about a couple whose relationship future was determined within observing 15 minutes of interaction between them. A scientist was able to breakdown and categorize each second of interaction between the couple. Once the analysis was completed, the results showed the interaction was mostly negative even though it hadn’t seemed that way initially. Essentially this is what experts are able to do subconsciously. They can provide mostly accurate results.

Towards the end Gladwell tells the story of Amadou Diallo, a black man who was wrongfully shot in New York City. The policeman made a snap decision that Diallo was dangerous, which turned out to be inaccurate. By ending with this, Gladwell makes clear of the fact that quick decisions can be good or bad. They can be just as good as or even better than long drawn out ones. Unfortunately however, they can also lead to the wrong decision being made. So sometimes maybe the first choice is always the best choice.

Lights out for the X Chromosome

X Chromosome: X Inactivation by Janice Y. Ahn and J. T. Lee, Ph.D.

The biological processes of our bodies are intricate, thought-provoking, and downright interesting. Millions of involuntary mechanisms work within our bodies to make sure that we function properly.

Specifically, female mammals, including humans, inherit two X chromosomes, which determine their sex. However, complications can arise within a cell if two X chromosomes are both being actively transcribed. Transcription from both chromosomes can result in excess amounts of proteins that are coded for on X chromosomes. To prevent this excess from happening, one of the X chromosomes is deactivated. In their article “X Chromosome: X Inactivation”, Janice Y. Ahn and J. T. Lee explain how X chromosome inactivation occurs through the organization of the article and the facts they present.

The organization of the article allows for the audience to understand the information clearly. The authors cleverly organized the article in a way that made sense. They used different subtitles to provide insight as to what the focus of the next paragraph is. Each paragraph then builds upon each other. The order of the paragraphs matter. The reader cannot understand that a TSIX as the “antisense” of XIST unless he first understands that a XIST is the first factor in the deactivation of an X chromosome. Also, the inclusion of the subtitles “Imprinted X Inactivation” and “Random X Inactivation” give the reader a clear understanding that there are two different types of X chromosome inactivation.

The facts presented in the article give the reader necessary information for comprehension and help to establish the authors’ ethos. Cold, hard facts are often times the best way to explain a complicated process. The facts given in this article such as “XIST RNA is both necessary and sufficient for inactivation” give the reader the players in the deactivation. The accurate explanations allow the reader to picture what happens in the cell in order to deactivate an X chromosome. Also, especially when reading scientific articles, it reassures to the audience to know that thorough study and research has happened to confirm that the information being shared is true. The authors included citations to reinforce validity of the facts and to supplement that automatic ethos they already have, both of them working at Harvard Medical School.

Organization and facts let this essay clearly explain how X chromosome inactivation occurs. So much as been discovered about the processes that take place in our bodies, yet there is still so much to learn. With articles that explain processes that we already know, we can continue to question, discover, and explore more.

TOW 14 - Bullying PSA

According to stopbullyingnow.com’s public service announcement “19,000 bullied students attempt to commit suicide each year.” Bullying comes in many shapes and forms and inflicts an even larger variety of victims. Especially in high school, it may be hard for students to realize that their words matter; they can hurt or help depending how they are used. To try and enlighten those students of the power of words, stopbullying.com shares a scenario in a public service announcement with exaggerated and relatable elements.

The 47 second video opens with the familiar scene of a girl checking her face in the mirror inside of her locker. Her facial expression suddenly changes to a panicked look when she sees two girls walking up behind her. She then looks back to herself and seems to shake off the anxiety that arose from seeing the girls. The girl’s facial expressions show her thoughts and how merely the sight of the two girls can cause fear. Most people can relate to feelings arising as soon a certain person or group of people comes into their sight. This ability to relate allows the audience to immediately understand that the girl, who has probably been bullied before, is the protagonist while the other two girls are the antagonists, the bullies. Also, the attempt to shake off the negative thoughts in her head, shows the mental struggle that a victim of bullying goes through. While there is external influence, much of the battle is within as well.

As soon as the girl attempts to move on about her day, the two girls compliment her, “Nice shirt.” The girl smiles, naturally, but then she receives a text message that harshly takes back the compliment and replaces it with an insult. The girl then holds a pained facial expression as a blood stain grows on her sleeve near her wrist. She then collapses and bleeds out on the floor. Everyone in the hallway is shocked, including the two bullies. Building the girl up to immediately put her down evokes strong empathy for the protagonist. Even though blood stains would not immediately appear in the hallway, the audience can imply that the girl harmed herself as a result of the bullying. The contrast between the seemingly futile comments from the girl and the devastating result leaves the audience heartbroken. The combination of the situation being logically plausible, relatable, the emotional toll it takes on the audience, and the staggering statistic about the number of suicide attempts moves the audience to want change. It drives the audience to root for the girl, and all of the other girls and boys who suffer from bullying while also causing them to root against the two bullies. Rooting against the them can cause people to think twice before making a comment, which as shown by the video, can save someone’s life.

With farfetched yet effective and relatable elements combined, stopbullyingnow.com was able to depict what can happen when bullying occurs. Even though bullying, in its many forms, is hard to conquer, hopefully with public service announcements like these, students and people in general can begin to use their words the right way.