I think that the racial inequality in education isthe first essential “take-away” point. According to Chapter 33, how tracking undermines race equity indesegregated school, Michelson presents, “public schools separated by raceare inherently unequal, and school desegregation has played a central role inefforts to provide the equality of educational opportunity that is essential toAmerican dream” (Michelson, 2005, P 323). I agree on this point. The education system inAmerica today has a huge problem. Before 1954, the legislation of the states inthe South had indicated that the black children were banned to enter the schoolwhere the white children were educated. In 1960, there were 589 schools in NewYork, but only 95 schools where black children were permitted to receive theireducation.
The black children grow up in the environment of being treated likeanother creature from another planet. Although there is no legal separationbetween black and white schools, in fact, the US public schools are still blackand white schools and more. The school in which the residential addressdetermines the students. The second “take-away” point is aboutmedia representation.
According to Chapter 42, Framing class, vicarious living, and conspicuous consumption, Kendallpresents, “media always show construct a reality of social class that is not anaccurate reflection of society” (Kendall,2005, P 403). I agree on this point. Mediareal and social reality exists deviation, media representation practical methodsare mainly on the news fact selection, news language use, and conversion. Thereason of the media cannot reflect that besides ideology factors, the strongclass to counterpoise, control of the disadvantaged groups of collective criedand media on economic profits also are significant factors.
Hence, it is easyto say that social “realistic” is constructed by media. The reasonsthat the media can’t reflect the social reality can be summarized the followingpoints. Firstly, the media has a strong political function. In this politicalpurpose, the most critical task is to publicize or publicize the legitimacy,authority, and domination of the government, so media education is a necessary key.Media looks like giving us lessons. It teaches us what kind of values we shouldhave and how to follow all kinds of rules and systems better. The second pointcomes from the control or absence of discourse power.
The government constructsand controls discourse power through media. It can be said that the media isthe spokesman of the government’s right. They often stand together with thegovernment. Therefore, the voice of people who live in lower classes often wasneglected. The ultimate factor accounts for the pursuit of commercial profits.
In the market economy system, all commodities must be market-oriented. Themedia has given up social construction and only obey the logic of market andcapital. Under the stimulation of this business culture, people start to pursuematerial needs and follow the business needs. Thethird “take-away” point is about racial slavery. According to Chapter 6, Racial Domination and the Evolution of RacialClassification, TUKUFU ZUBERI presents, the institution of slavery hasexisted from before the dawn of human right down to the twentieth century, inthe most primitive of human societies and the most civilized (TUKUFU ZUBERI,2001, P 61). Iagree on this point.
From 1619 the first batch of African blacks wastransported to the New World began, blacks have long been in the United Statesas slaves of discrimination and enslavement. Although the 1865 US FederalConstitution amended the 13th amendment to the abolition of slavery, slaveryhasn’t disappeared in the United States, the United States Mississippi to March1995 formally announced the abolition of slavery; the United States declaredthe ultimate abolition of slavery the state.With the legal existenceof slavery, apartheid in the United States has been very popular. In some partsof the United States, the law even makes it clear that blacks and whites needto be separated in public places such as buses and restaurants, and blacks mustgive their seats to whites. Until 1964, the US Congress passed the “CivilRights Act” to prohibit the practice of apartheid and discrimination inpublic places policy, the United States from the legal sense also black peoplewith equal rights.Butthe legacy of slavery and apartheid, which had long existed legally, was deeplyrooted.
Today, in the United States, ethnic minorities, especially blacks, arestill at the bottom of society. In fact, apartheid is everywhere in the UnitedStates. Even in 2006, the United States Louisiana also appeared a white femaledriver forced the black car students to white student’s seat phenomenon.Although the driver was suspended after, this shows that “apartheid”consciousness in the United States
