Wednesday, March 26, 2008

This is a general question that kind of relates to Undercover. I have noticed that when someone says a really strong opinion, people who disagree tend to either very strongly oppose it/argue, or they will not voice their full opinion and try to downplay the difference of opinion. I am more interested in the second reaction. Why do you think people can be more soft-spoken and passive even about something they disagree about when faced with someone who has a strongly opposite view? Have you ever been in this position?

Monday, March 17, 2008


To spin off what Kirsten said: it is interesting to see how people react to you wearing a hijab. She got reactions from people she didn't know. I got reactions from people I knew. So since everyone is so jazzed up about facebook, who would feel comfortable putting a picture of yourself wearing your hijab as your profile picture? If you feel comfortable doing it, change your picture and let us know people's reactions. If not, explain why you don't feel comfortable having this as your picture. If you don't have a facebook, feel free to throw in any comment you want about this idea.
Hey Everyone, 
I am going to pull a maddy here and post something out of turn. sorry!!! Just wanted to share an experience i had yesterday.

As i was going home from our undercover shoot yesterday, we stopped for food, and at that point i still had my hijjab on and looked as muslim as a girl with white skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes can. As we walked into the place there was an almost immediate change in atmosphere.... it was really interesting.... i cant explain it. I sort of experienced what Hannah and Molly did. At first when we sat down I was getting a lot of not-so-respectful looks from mostly white men in more dressy clothing and a little more subtly suspicious looks from the women with them. My parents noticed it to. Then our server came up, all smiles and hellos and all of a sudden all the hostility was gone. Everyone went back to eating and talking and i even got a few smiles from people when leaving. I think its safe to say our conjecture about one person changing their attitude can affect the attitude of the entire establishment.... or whatever it may be.

=] Thoughts? Comments?

I think this is a good thing.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Hello all... This is a really interesting story about societal influences on gender and self image/esteem. It is a really good, and short read... so when you get a chance, read it! :) I think, although fiction, it truthfully portrays the society we live in...

X: A Fabulous Child's Story -- by Lois Gould © 1972

Thursday, March 13, 2008

I know it's not my turn on the blog, but there I just had to write about this. I was listening to MPR this morning, and they were talking about an investigation of Saddam Hussein's government and how it had supported many terrorists. They made some reference to "uniting Muslims for jihad". This made me so sad and angry, because the last thing the Muslin community needs are those kinds of comments that imply that all Muslin people would want to unite and be terrorists together. It reminded me why we are doing undercover: to show that "Muslim" and "terrorist" are not interchangeable words. We know that this isn't true, and that Muslims around the world contribute really valuable, beautiful things to their communities. This is what the world needs to know.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

So, alot of the topics we've discussed (on this blog and in person) come back to how we percieve ourselves and how the media alters our self image. I found a book, I think is really great in helping promote a positive self image. Body Drama takes a really interesting approach to making women and girls feel comfortable in our own skin, answering questions about our body and promoting all types of people. It eliminates myths and shows us real women. I think it's worth reading "You’d think a Miss America swimsuit winner would feel completely confident about her body, right? Not always! So I decided to write the book I wish I’d had as a teen and in college—an honest, funny, practical, medically accurate, totally reassuring guide to how women’s bodies actually look, smell, feel, behave, and change. Alongside real-deal photographs of women just like you and me (no airbrushing, no supermodels, no kidding) you’ll find medical pictures of things you need to be able to recognize, true confessions by yours truly, and the encouragement you need to appreciate the uniqueness, strength, and beauty of your body. What are you waiting for?"—Nancy Redd " What do you think about this kind of media?

Saturday, March 08, 2008

Hello all! I am thrilled because this is election year. I have been watching the debates, debating others about which candidates rock, and watching political adds. The now infamous Clinton 3am add was particularly interesting to me. I know we have always talked about how people use images to convey strong feelings and emotions -- but here was a perfect example of a politician using this technique! Also, this is no indite on the ability of Clinton to lead the U.S. (almost every politician has done this -- remember Huckabee's Christmas add?) Here's the URL for the Clinton add if you have not seen it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M70emIFxETs
I wondered what you all think about this political tactic...

Monday, March 03, 2008

I'm not sure how many of you have given this topic much thought or experience but I was wondering what you thought about relationships and what we call them.  There're a lot of terms thrown around: boyfriend, friends with benefits, best friends, acquaintances, hook ups....  Remember "We Don't Let Label's Stick?"  I almost think it's sort of like that.  I've given it some thought and I feel that these labels are unnecessary and often harmful.  Every relationship is different and it's foolish to put a person or two people into an invented category where they don't fit.  That's my opinion.  What do you think?