Race, Class, Gender Journal Word Count (excluding title and works cited page): 1048

Race, Class, and Gender is an anthology of articles that express various interpretation and insights of the relationship between race, class, and gender and how these things shape the lives of people and society. The topics and points-of-view offered in the anthology are vast and interesting. They offer a strong historical and sociological perspective on such issues as prison populations, the working poor, or the life of Muslims in the United States. This journal is my personal reflection after reading this book. How did the reading make me feel? Did any of the readings make me feel uncomfortable? Was there any part of the book that rang true with me? Were any of the articles disturbing, shocking, surprising, or impressive? Finally, an original poem will be included in response to the experience of reading Race, Class, and Gender.

How did the reading make me feel? My initial approach to this book was one of a student. I began reading it somewhat detached and objective, as if I were reading a standard history book. The topic of race, class, and gender interests me but only at a distance. To me, these were things other people had -- the way that a Texan visitor has an adorable accent, but you do not. As an Irish, middle class woman, my own experience of race, class, and gender has been rather uneventful and, perhaps, sheltered from the difficulties that others experience as a result or reaction to their cultural context. However, as I read more I began to see the issues more clearly and I became engaged. I began to see some...

At times, the readings were uncomfortable in the sense that I wanted to stand-up against the injustice being elucidated, at other times the discomfort stemmed from a belief that the injustice was being over emphasized, magnified, or was presented in a very narrow-minded way. For example, in Gallagher's article "Color-Blind Privilege: The Social and Political Functions of Erasing the Color Line in Post-Race America," puts forth an analysis of the history of color/race discrimination and a current attitude among white populations that race discrimination is a thing of the past. Gallagher suppose that the commercialism of race-related symbols, such as hip-hop music, or baggy pants has contributed to a false sense of race equality. While I see his point, I think the article was long-winded, redundant, and over simplified. Does the existence of race-related poverty undermine the advances that minorities have made in the public eye? Isn't it better today, then it was 40 years ago? Isn't it a good thing that African-American sports figures, for instance, can enjoy their wealth publically? Americans have come a long way since the days when the Brooklyn Dodgers refused to sit next to Jackie Robinson. It makes me sad to think that progress is never enough.
Another, perhaps unintended, aspect of this article that I bothered me was the…