September 5, 2009
Today I had a rude awakening when it was one of the funniest, most hectic, and drama filled days at Parkview. I really didn't think it could get any worse than CSI, the whole entire SPokane Police, and the news stations pulling up because of Gang fights and runaways. But...I decided to come to work early today, at 8am and work all the way til 5 (usually I go 9 to 4). Although today wasn't what I would consider a "scary" day at parkview...meaning I didn't have any threats or guns pulled out, it was rather interesting.For starters, I had a tenant call me to tell me about her personal life. However, this isn't a normal situation with her, considering she is scared of every freaking person and thing on this planet. She called to inform me that, "I had sex with that friend of mine, that guy that has been taking me around everywhere...it was sooo strange. I haven't had sex in.....18 years!" WOWZA! And what the heck do you say to that? 6 months ago, I would have had my mouth dropped to the floor, but today I simply replied...."oope!" She responded by letting me know how incredibly uncomfortable it was and questioning whether it was going to get better for them or not, since, you know, she didn't have an "o" and "couldn't wait for it to be over." I simply told her that she needs to be confident with who she is and what she is doing, and I am sure her sex life will improve significantly. SERIOUSLY........GOOD LORD! It wasn't so much that she was telling me about her sex life, or lack thereof, but the thought of this woman having sex was out of this world. Not to discredit her, but I would rather not know about the sex lives of my psychologically and emotionally screwed up tenants. And especially someone who hasn't had sex in about as long as I have been alive, I can only image. I could do without.As if that was too much to ask.
It wasn't about 10 minutes later when another tenant comes in, whom we have been haivng some problems with regarding "noise disturbances" aka domestic violence. Her boyfriend beats the living crap out of her, to the point where the cops are called and the children below her are suffering psychologically from all the trauma. So, when I told her he was no longer allowed on this property and enough is enough, she proceeded to tell me she was competely unaware of what was going on....like I am seriously that stupid. I mean you can look at the guy and tell he is crazy....or I guess you could see the bruises all over her body. Either way, if she wants to get beaten up, that isher decision, but not on my property. So, after yelling and screaming at me last week..she came in today all good and dandy. She must have had an epiphany over the weekend. She kicked him out... or so she says. She is in disbelief that her boyfriend has to leave the property, and can't believe that people think they were fighting. You know why? Cuz " WE WERE JUST HAVING SEX!!!" she says as she was standing in front of my desk in the office. If it wasn't for my morals, I would have started laughing so hard, but I had to put that aside and look at her like a bright green elephant just walked into the room. I looked at her, not sure if I should tell her that her boobs are falling out of her t-shirt or if I should just be quiet for a few minutes. So, I stared at her gaping, and then once again, had to imagine her and her disguisting boyfriend having sex. This time, I was wondering what in the world kind of sex this was if it sounded like he was beating her. This is some extreme S&M. I mean, be wild and crazy...try some new things, but beating the crap out of eachother while having sex? Hmmmm, no wonder. Anyways, since she can't read, I showed her how to fill out her money order and simply told her that, she is entitled to her personal life, but when it is affecting the lives of others, whether it be sex, arguing, fighting, parties, television... she will be asked to leave. Once again, I could have done without the image of her and .....ohhh man.
Enough said about that.If only I could say the rest of the day was mellow, and I got to finish up all my paperwork and organize in my office. Yah right! I was kept up all night from the police banging on my neighbor's door the night before. FIrst of all, my neighbor is an 18-year old female, with a 2 year old daughter...this tenant is either drinking, smoking, hanging around wtih random sleeze ball boys, or trying to make friends with the next dude taht comes along. Her daughter very frequently calls me or my roommate "mom" cuz she is confused as to who her real mother is. (So sad!) She's a girl who is very caught up in all the wrong things. At first it made me sad, until I realized that she continually puts herself in the worst positions. Well, anyways, after a couple hourse of police knocks and yelling into her apartment, she finally came to the door. She must have realized that it really is possible for them to come in with a warrant, and then she really would be in deep shit. So....the seven cop cars that were surrounding the complex and refusing to leave finally got a hold of her. come to find out....she was arrested for armed robbery. Well word on the "street" is that she is an accessory to the fact. Either way, I guess I ahve to proceed wtih yet another eviction. Probably because she started hanging out wtih Tamik, the girl above me, who happens to be the neighbor trickster...if you catch my drift. So, my day was over...almost. I went swimming, and when I got back....I hear a lot of commotion coming from Ms. Armed Robbery's apartment. 'Hmmmm, she is in jail, so that is pretty interesting,' is what I thought to myself. So, without hesitation (this is the first time I have acted so quickly and directly) I walked right up to her door (which is missing the door handle...wtf!) and banged on it like I was the Spokane Police. One of the guys who was blatantly high came to the door and I said in a very strict and stern voice, "Where is A---?" He looked at me dumbfounded like "wtf lady?!?" And I said, "Look, I know Alex isn't here, and not ONE of you guys are authorized to be in this apartment. I suggest you get out of here immediately. If you are not out in the next 5 minutes, I will call the cops. And I am NOT joking." And I turned and walked away. Not even five minutes later, people started piling out of this 2 bedroom apartment. It wouldn't have surprised me if 5 or 6 people were in there, but watching them come out......11, 12, 13.....14, 15.....15 people piled out of that apartment! And what a wide variety of people! I really didn't feel bad for raining on their parade, to be honest. Well, its midnight now, so I guess I can try to get some sleep.
Maybe tomorrow will be even more adventurous.In the meantime....I have to keep track of the funny things my tenants and/or friends say to me on a day-to-day basis.....
QOD #1:"You look very.....special today. Very....smart and professional." Lorin Emery, the biggest creeper on the face of this planet, who only tells me these things when his wife (also a huge weirdo) is not anywhere to be found. "special, smart, and professional" wtf ....I look the same every freaking day!
QOD#2:Karen: "Pete and I decided you need to play hard to get. that is really the only option at this point."Kenzie: "Well, believe me, I can do that. but hopefully he realizes he wants me back BEFORE hard to get turns into 'I don't give a shit'....well cuz ...I guess then I won't give a shit!
"QOD#3:Shawna: "Gosh, I see Jared Walker and his ugly girlfriend everywhere, they always break up...get together...break up...get together. Probably because she has so much cellulite.Kenzie:"Well, shit I dont have any cellulite really and my boyfriend broke up with me!"Shawna: "Well I don't have ANY and I don't have a boyfriend at all!!!"
QOD #3:Kenzie : "What do you want to be when you grow up guys?"Ross (My 10 year old boy): "i am gonna be the next Adrien Peterson!!!!"Shaya (his 9-year old sis): I wanna be a singer, a lawyer....or A PROPERTY MANAGER! JUST LIKE YOU!"Kenzie: "ohh, wow that is SO cool!"BUT REALLY what I meant was, OMG don't do that to yourself! You have no idea what you are saying right now!QOD #4:At master's swim practice.....Man #1 (he's about 32 yrs old) "When I grow up..I wanna be JUST LIKE MAC!"Girl #1 (she is about 27 yrs old) "Yeah, no kidding, me too
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
it gets better n better
Today I had a rude awakening when it was one of the funniest, most hectic, and drama filled days at Parkview. I really didn't think it could get any worse than CSI, the whole entire SPokane Police, and the news stations pulling up because of Gang fights and runaways. But...I decided to come to work early today, at 8am and work all the way til 5 (usually I go 9 to 4). Although today wasn't what I would consider a "scary" day at parkview...meaning I didn't have any threats or guns pulled out, it was rather interesting.
For starters, I had a tenant call me to tell me about her personal life. However, this isn't a normal situation with her, considering she is scared of every freaking person and thing on this planet. She called to inform me that, "I had sex with that friend of mine, that guy that has been taking me around everywhere...it was sooo strange. I haven't had sex in.....18 years!" WOWZA! And what the heck do you say to that? 6 months ago, I would have had my mouth dropped to the floor, but today I simply replied...."oope!" She responded by letting me know how incredibly uncomfortable it was and questioning whether it was going to get better for them or not, since, you know, she didn't have an "o" and "couldn't wait for it to be over." I simply told her that she needs to be confident with who she is and what she is doing, and I am sure her sex life will improve significantly. SERIOUSLY........GOOD LORD! It wasn't so much that she was telling me about her sex life, or lack thereof, but the thought of this woman having sex was out of this world. Not to discredit her, but I would rather not know about the sex lives of my psychologically and emotionally screwed up tenants. And especially someone who hasn't had sex in about as long as I have been alive, I can only image. I could do without.
As if that was too much to ask. It wasn't about 10 minutes later when another tenant comes in, whom we have been haivng some problems with regarding "noise disturbances" aka domestic violence. Her boyfriend beats the living crap out of her, to the point where the cops are called and the children below her are suffering psychologically from all the trauma. So, when I told her he was no longer allowed on this property and enough is enough, she proceeded to tell me she was competely unaware of what was going on....like I am seriously that stupid. I mean you can look at the guy and tell he is crazy....or I guess you could see the bruises all over her body. Either way, if she wants to get beaten up, that isher decision, but not on my property. So, after yelling and screaming at me last week..she came in today all good and dandy. She must have had an epiphany over the weekend. She kicked him out... or so she says. She is in disbelief that her boyfriend has to leave the property, and can't believe that people think they were fighting. You know why? Cuz " WE WERE JUST HAVING SEX!!!" she says as she was standing in front of my desk in the office. If it wasn't for my morals, I would have started laughing so hard, but I had to put that aside and look at her like a bright green elephant just walked into the room. I looked at her, not sure if I should tell her that her boobs are falling out of her t-shirt or if I should just be quiet for a few minutes. So, I stared at her gaping, and then once again, had to imagine her and her disguisting boyfriend having sex. This time, I was wondering what in the world kind of sex this was if it sounded like he was beating her. This is some extreme S&M. I mean, be wild and crazy...try some new things, but beating the crap out of eachother while having sex? Hmmmm, no wonder. Anyways, since she can't read, I showed her how to fill out her money order and simply told her that, she is entitled to her personal life, but when it is affecting the lives of others, whether it be sex, arguing, fighting, parties, television... she will be asked to leave. Once again, I could have done without the image of her and .....ohhh man. Enough said about that.
If only I could say the rest of the day was mellow, and I got to finish up all my paperwork and organize in my office. Yah right! I was kept up all night from the police banging on my neighbor's door the night before. FIrst of all, my neighbor is an 18-year old female, with a 2 year old daughter...this tenant is either drinking, smoking, hanging around wtih random sleeze ball boys, or trying to make friends with the next dude taht comes along. Her daughter very frequently calls me or my roommate "mom" cuz she is confused as to who her real mother is. (So sad!) She's a girl who is very caught up in all the wrong things. At first it made me sad, until I realized that she continually puts herself in the worst positions. Well, anyways, after a couple hourse of police knocks and yelling into her apartment, she finally came to the door. She must have realized that it really is possible for them to come in with a warrant, and then she really would be in deep shit. So....the seven cop cars that were surrounding the complex and refusing to leave finally got a hold of her. come to find out....she was arrested for armed robbery. Well word on the "street" is that she is an accessory to the fact. Either way, I guess I ahve to proceed wtih yet another eviction. Probably because she started hanging out wtih Tamik, the girl above me, who happens to be the neighbor trickster...if you catch my drift.
So, my day was over...almost. I went swimming, and when I got back....I hear a lot of commotion coming from Ms. Armed Robbery's apartment. 'Hmmmm, she is in jail, so that is pretty interesting,' is what I thought to myself. So, without hesitation (this is the first time I have acted so quickly and directly) I walked right up to her door (which is missing the door handle...wtf!) and banged on it like I was the Spokane Police. One of the guys who was blatantly high came to the door and I said in a very strict and stern voice, "Where is A---?" He looked at me dumbfounded like "wtf lady?!?" And I said, "Look, I know Alex isn't here, and not ONE of you guys are authorized to be in this apartment. I suggest you get out of here immediately. If you are not out in the next 5 minutes, I will call the cops. And I am NOT joking." And I turned and walked away. Not even five minutes later, people started piling out of this 2 bedroom apartment. It wouldn't have surprised me if 5 or 6 people were in there, but watching them come out......11, 12, 13.....14, 15.....15 people piled out of that apartment! And what a wide variety of people! I really didn't feel bad for raining on their parade, to be honest. Well, its midnight now, so I guess I can try to get some sleep. Maybe tomorrow will be even more adventurous.
In the meantime....I have to keep track of the funny things my tenants and/or friends say to me on a day-to-day basis.....
QOD #1:
"You look very.....special today. Very....smart and professional." Lorin Emery, the biggest creeper on the face of this planet, who only tells me these things when his wife (also a huge weirdo) is not anywhere to be found. "special, smart, and professional" wtf ....I look the same every freaking day!
QOD#2:
Karen: "Pete and I decided you need to play hard to get. that is really the only option at this point."
Kenzie: "Well, believe me, I can do that. but hopefully he realizes he wants me back BEFORE hard to get turns into 'I don't give a shit'....well cuz ...I guess then I won't give a shit!"
QOD#3:
Shawna: "Gosh, I see Jared Walker and his ugly girlfriend everywhere, they always break up...get together...break up...get together. Probably because she has so much cellulite.
Kenzie:"Well, shit I dont have any cellulite really and my boyfriend broke up with me!"
Shawna: "Well I don't have ANY and I don't have a boyfriend at all!!!"
QOD #3:
Kenzie : "What do you want to be when you grow up guys?"
Ross (My 10 year old boy): "i am gonna be the next Adrien Peterson!!!!"
Shaya (his 9-year old sis): I wanna be a singer, a lawyer....or A PROPERTY MANAGER! JUST LIKE YOU!"
Kenzie: "ohh, wow that is SO cool!"
BUT REALLY what I meant was, OMG don't do that to yourself! You have no idea what you are saying right now!
QOD #4:
At master's swim practice.....
Man #1 (he's about 32 yrs old) "When I grow up..I wanna be JUST LIKE MAC!"
Girl #1 (she is about 27 yrs old) "Yeah, no kidding, me too!"
what the hell people?!
For starters, I had a tenant call me to tell me about her personal life. However, this isn't a normal situation with her, considering she is scared of every freaking person and thing on this planet. She called to inform me that, "I had sex with that friend of mine, that guy that has been taking me around everywhere...it was sooo strange. I haven't had sex in.....18 years!" WOWZA! And what the heck do you say to that? 6 months ago, I would have had my mouth dropped to the floor, but today I simply replied...."oope!" She responded by letting me know how incredibly uncomfortable it was and questioning whether it was going to get better for them or not, since, you know, she didn't have an "o" and "couldn't wait for it to be over." I simply told her that she needs to be confident with who she is and what she is doing, and I am sure her sex life will improve significantly. SERIOUSLY........GOOD LORD! It wasn't so much that she was telling me about her sex life, or lack thereof, but the thought of this woman having sex was out of this world. Not to discredit her, but I would rather not know about the sex lives of my psychologically and emotionally screwed up tenants. And especially someone who hasn't had sex in about as long as I have been alive, I can only image. I could do without.
As if that was too much to ask. It wasn't about 10 minutes later when another tenant comes in, whom we have been haivng some problems with regarding "noise disturbances" aka domestic violence. Her boyfriend beats the living crap out of her, to the point where the cops are called and the children below her are suffering psychologically from all the trauma. So, when I told her he was no longer allowed on this property and enough is enough, she proceeded to tell me she was competely unaware of what was going on....like I am seriously that stupid. I mean you can look at the guy and tell he is crazy....or I guess you could see the bruises all over her body. Either way, if she wants to get beaten up, that isher decision, but not on my property. So, after yelling and screaming at me last week..she came in today all good and dandy. She must have had an epiphany over the weekend. She kicked him out... or so she says. She is in disbelief that her boyfriend has to leave the property, and can't believe that people think they were fighting. You know why? Cuz " WE WERE JUST HAVING SEX!!!" she says as she was standing in front of my desk in the office. If it wasn't for my morals, I would have started laughing so hard, but I had to put that aside and look at her like a bright green elephant just walked into the room. I looked at her, not sure if I should tell her that her boobs are falling out of her t-shirt or if I should just be quiet for a few minutes. So, I stared at her gaping, and then once again, had to imagine her and her disguisting boyfriend having sex. This time, I was wondering what in the world kind of sex this was if it sounded like he was beating her. This is some extreme S&M. I mean, be wild and crazy...try some new things, but beating the crap out of eachother while having sex? Hmmmm, no wonder. Anyways, since she can't read, I showed her how to fill out her money order and simply told her that, she is entitled to her personal life, but when it is affecting the lives of others, whether it be sex, arguing, fighting, parties, television... she will be asked to leave. Once again, I could have done without the image of her and .....ohhh man. Enough said about that.
If only I could say the rest of the day was mellow, and I got to finish up all my paperwork and organize in my office. Yah right! I was kept up all night from the police banging on my neighbor's door the night before. FIrst of all, my neighbor is an 18-year old female, with a 2 year old daughter...this tenant is either drinking, smoking, hanging around wtih random sleeze ball boys, or trying to make friends with the next dude taht comes along. Her daughter very frequently calls me or my roommate "mom" cuz she is confused as to who her real mother is. (So sad!) She's a girl who is very caught up in all the wrong things. At first it made me sad, until I realized that she continually puts herself in the worst positions. Well, anyways, after a couple hourse of police knocks and yelling into her apartment, she finally came to the door. She must have realized that it really is possible for them to come in with a warrant, and then she really would be in deep shit. So....the seven cop cars that were surrounding the complex and refusing to leave finally got a hold of her. come to find out....she was arrested for armed robbery. Well word on the "street" is that she is an accessory to the fact. Either way, I guess I ahve to proceed wtih yet another eviction. Probably because she started hanging out wtih Tamik, the girl above me, who happens to be the neighbor trickster...if you catch my drift.
So, my day was over...almost. I went swimming, and when I got back....I hear a lot of commotion coming from Ms. Armed Robbery's apartment. 'Hmmmm, she is in jail, so that is pretty interesting,' is what I thought to myself. So, without hesitation (this is the first time I have acted so quickly and directly) I walked right up to her door (which is missing the door handle...wtf!) and banged on it like I was the Spokane Police. One of the guys who was blatantly high came to the door and I said in a very strict and stern voice, "Where is A---?" He looked at me dumbfounded like "wtf lady?!?" And I said, "Look, I know Alex isn't here, and not ONE of you guys are authorized to be in this apartment. I suggest you get out of here immediately. If you are not out in the next 5 minutes, I will call the cops. And I am NOT joking." And I turned and walked away. Not even five minutes later, people started piling out of this 2 bedroom apartment. It wouldn't have surprised me if 5 or 6 people were in there, but watching them come out......11, 12, 13.....14, 15.....15 people piled out of that apartment! And what a wide variety of people! I really didn't feel bad for raining on their parade, to be honest. Well, its midnight now, so I guess I can try to get some sleep. Maybe tomorrow will be even more adventurous.
In the meantime....I have to keep track of the funny things my tenants and/or friends say to me on a day-to-day basis.....
QOD #1:
"You look very.....special today. Very....smart and professional." Lorin Emery, the biggest creeper on the face of this planet, who only tells me these things when his wife (also a huge weirdo) is not anywhere to be found. "special, smart, and professional" wtf ....I look the same every freaking day!
QOD#2:
Karen: "Pete and I decided you need to play hard to get. that is really the only option at this point."
Kenzie: "Well, believe me, I can do that. but hopefully he realizes he wants me back BEFORE hard to get turns into 'I don't give a shit'....well cuz ...I guess then I won't give a shit!"
QOD#3:
Shawna: "Gosh, I see Jared Walker and his ugly girlfriend everywhere, they always break up...get together...break up...get together. Probably because she has so much cellulite.
Kenzie:"Well, shit I dont have any cellulite really and my boyfriend broke up with me!"
Shawna: "Well I don't have ANY and I don't have a boyfriend at all!!!"
QOD #3:
Kenzie : "What do you want to be when you grow up guys?"
Ross (My 10 year old boy): "i am gonna be the next Adrien Peterson!!!!"
Shaya (his 9-year old sis): I wanna be a singer, a lawyer....or A PROPERTY MANAGER! JUST LIKE YOU!"
Kenzie: "ohh, wow that is SO cool!"
BUT REALLY what I meant was, OMG don't do that to yourself! You have no idea what you are saying right now!
QOD #4:
At master's swim practice.....
Man #1 (he's about 32 yrs old) "When I grow up..I wanna be JUST LIKE MAC!"
Girl #1 (she is about 27 yrs old) "Yeah, no kidding, me too!"
what the hell people?!
Friday, December 5, 2008
While at Work, a Surprise
So a couple days ago, a couple of my coworkers and I were chatting, and one of them brought up an interesting book she'd started reading. She began describing it, say how there was an ex-football player inmate who'd recently finished his time and just got out. She explained that there was this rich paraplegic man who saw him in a bar or somewhere and approached him, asking him to sleep with his wife so they could have he and his wife might have kids. He said he wanted him since he didn't want any suspicion by anyone outside thinking it was anyone other than his own kid--that is, he wanted a blond haired, blue eyed kid. Now after my coworker said that, my other coworker suddenly said, "oh, this whole time I thought he was black." My other coworker laughed and said "yeah I guess since I didn't say you would assume that, since he was a football player and in prison."
That was so revealing to me, because I'm not going to evade the point--I, too, thought he was black the whole time and had a moment of confusion when she said a blue eyed blond baby would be born. Obviously what we've been discussing is not only prevalent, but these stereotypes are completely lodged in people's heads, so much so that they don't even really realize it.
After reading Jessica's latest post, I also agree that a lot of people see female athletes as lesbians actually, at least in basketball. I took a class by Victor Villanueva where we had to read a fiction book about a black lesbian and an Asian lesbian, both basketball players. It talked about how a bunch of the girls are lesbians actually and also it seemed like most of the players were of color. I wonder if this book is really based on truth, and if not is it too perpetuating stereotypes? Because I had no previous judgements about athletes being lesbians, until this book and Dr. Villanueva talked about it. I do feel that people think athletes are very masculine--sports clothes can look really look masculine, and the sports themselves are from sports men played. This reminds me of another point brought up earlier, I think by Jessica, about other sports and whether these stereotypes are just about certain sports. I really think it is, because swimmers are not really seen as masculine or lesbian, because it's an individual sport that is still very much geared toward both sexes. Horseback sports are also equal in judgement for the same reasons, and other sports as well: tennis, volleyball (where I know of a few instances where my guy friends only watched it because of their outfits and the way it made their behinds look), track, etc...
Anyways, I do not think people assume that every black person is an athlete, but I do think that people assume that many athletes are black/of color. And I see it in sports. Are stereotypes there because the reality caused them to form, or is reality there because people stereotyped athletes? And another question I hesitated to bring up... are stereotypes stereotypes if they are reflected in reality? I have class in a few minutes, but I am going to investigate the manner and pull out some statistics on this matter.
That was so revealing to me, because I'm not going to evade the point--I, too, thought he was black the whole time and had a moment of confusion when she said a blue eyed blond baby would be born. Obviously what we've been discussing is not only prevalent, but these stereotypes are completely lodged in people's heads, so much so that they don't even really realize it.
After reading Jessica's latest post, I also agree that a lot of people see female athletes as lesbians actually, at least in basketball. I took a class by Victor Villanueva where we had to read a fiction book about a black lesbian and an Asian lesbian, both basketball players. It talked about how a bunch of the girls are lesbians actually and also it seemed like most of the players were of color. I wonder if this book is really based on truth, and if not is it too perpetuating stereotypes? Because I had no previous judgements about athletes being lesbians, until this book and Dr. Villanueva talked about it. I do feel that people think athletes are very masculine--sports clothes can look really look masculine, and the sports themselves are from sports men played. This reminds me of another point brought up earlier, I think by Jessica, about other sports and whether these stereotypes are just about certain sports. I really think it is, because swimmers are not really seen as masculine or lesbian, because it's an individual sport that is still very much geared toward both sexes. Horseback sports are also equal in judgement for the same reasons, and other sports as well: tennis, volleyball (where I know of a few instances where my guy friends only watched it because of their outfits and the way it made their behinds look), track, etc...
Anyways, I do not think people assume that every black person is an athlete, but I do think that people assume that many athletes are black/of color. And I see it in sports. Are stereotypes there because the reality caused them to form, or is reality there because people stereotyped athletes? And another question I hesitated to bring up... are stereotypes stereotypes if they are reflected in reality? I have class in a few minutes, but I am going to investigate the manner and pull out some statistics on this matter.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Hmmm...
Betsy brought up some interesting questions and I'm not quite sure how I feel about all of it but I have a few thoughts. At one time, weren't Jewish people believed to be better at sports than other people? I think I remember learning about that before. So now there has been a shift to African Americans being more athletic. Why the change? I have no clue but it will most likely change again. The idea that they were once bred to be bigger is an interesting idea and I never thought about that before. But not all athletes of color are slave descendants. Plus, if they are better athletes from breeding, why don't more black people become athletes. In my experiences, I have met as many African-American non-athletes as African-American Athletes. So I think that if that was the only reason...well I don't know how to end that sentence but I think I made the point.
In response to Aaron's question. I don't really think that my thoughts about student athletes have changed. The dumb jock stereotypes for me have mainly been aimed at football and basketball. Since we didn't really work with those athletes it is hard to say the ones we did work with changed my perspective. Even though it is ignorant and as a somewhat educated person I should be able to look beyond the preconceptions, I am unable too.
I do disagree with one thing that Aaron brought up though. I don't feel that female athletes are generally seen as being leaders for participating in sports. It seems like a lot of female athletes are stereotyped as being masculine and/or a lesbian. Especially in the media, if a woman plays she's always trying to compete with the boys. That's what I see anyway.
In response to Aaron's question. I don't really think that my thoughts about student athletes have changed. The dumb jock stereotypes for me have mainly been aimed at football and basketball. Since we didn't really work with those athletes it is hard to say the ones we did work with changed my perspective. Even though it is ignorant and as a somewhat educated person I should be able to look beyond the preconceptions, I am unable too.
I do disagree with one thing that Aaron brought up though. I don't feel that female athletes are generally seen as being leaders for participating in sports. It seems like a lot of female athletes are stereotyped as being masculine and/or a lesbian. Especially in the media, if a woman plays she's always trying to compete with the boys. That's what I see anyway.
Follow up
In response to Jessica, when I think of the way I have stereotyped student athlete’s as being less intelligent then most, I have only ever thought of those who play football, basketball, and only male athletes. I think this comes from the media’s portrayal of athlete’s, and my acceptance of this over the years. Given that, I would say that the athlete’s participating in the less publicized sports are probably less likely to face the same kind of stereotypes, because they have never been criticized for a lack of intelligence, and therefore people don’t think of them in the same way they do those athlete’s who play the more publicized sports. On that same note, I havenever thought of female athlete’s in the same way that I do males, and I think a good majority would agree with that. It seems that people give female athlete’s a bit more credit because for a women to be in a leadership roll, its assumed that she is driven, goal oriented, and determined otherwise she would not be in such a position, and because of those notions (which too have been promulgated by the media, which often times dictates history) female athlete’s are less likely to be stereotyped as dumb jocks.
To answer the question "for student-athletes of color, does the reputation of being student athletes outweigh ethnic stereotypes? Are they intertwined at all?" I would have to say no the athlete reputation does not outweigh ethnic stereotypes. The ethnic stereotype is that if you are a student of color you are an athlete, and if you are an athlete of color, people assume you attained that position because of your ethnicity and whatever athletic abilities are supposedly inherent to your race (a stereotype). This point was raised throughout the blog, and even lead Betsy to question why it is that the most talented athlete’s are of color.
This leads to Katie's question about how whether it is the University or athlete’s themselves that perpetrate these stereotypes, and their response to them. To be honest, I don’t think the athlete’s care about the stereotypes, and that lack of care could be translated into the athlete’s perpetuating the very stereotypes that seek to degrade them. All of them are aware of the dumb-jock connotation that comes with playing a sport, but what really can they do about it? It has yet to get to a point where there intelligence or lack there of has caused disruption on campus or within their own community, so I really don’t think its anything they have gotten tired of fighting, so much as it simply may not be an issue.
Concurrently, the university is just catering to the needs of the demographic of students they chose to recruit. If there is a division between students and athlete’s its not because of the academic resources provided by the university, so much as it is due to the fact that the athlete’s make up such a small part of the university population, but represent the university as a whole. Therefore, if the university chooses to recruit "high-risk" athlete’s then they know that in order for those students to be successful they must set up a work environment that best caters to their needs so that those athlete’s can cater to the needs of the university. The only real reason why there is a division between the athletes and other students is because they are more recognizable figures than most on campus, and therefore like any other minority group, are subjected to immediate scrutiny or praise.
As for my own question after reading all the responses and our experience, I’d like to know if anyone’s view’s on these athlete’s changed, and if so why or why not? Where is it that we get these stereotypes, and why are we, intelligent people well versed in the politics of racism and Burke’s rhetoric of identification, still so willing to continue to stereotype others? Just curious.
To answer the question "for student-athletes of color, does the reputation of being student athletes outweigh ethnic stereotypes? Are they intertwined at all?" I would have to say no the athlete reputation does not outweigh ethnic stereotypes. The ethnic stereotype is that if you are a student of color you are an athlete, and if you are an athlete of color, people assume you attained that position because of your ethnicity and whatever athletic abilities are supposedly inherent to your race (a stereotype). This point was raised throughout the blog, and even lead Betsy to question why it is that the most talented athlete’s are of color.
This leads to Katie's question about how whether it is the University or athlete’s themselves that perpetrate these stereotypes, and their response to them. To be honest, I don’t think the athlete’s care about the stereotypes, and that lack of care could be translated into the athlete’s perpetuating the very stereotypes that seek to degrade them. All of them are aware of the dumb-jock connotation that comes with playing a sport, but what really can they do about it? It has yet to get to a point where there intelligence or lack there of has caused disruption on campus or within their own community, so I really don’t think its anything they have gotten tired of fighting, so much as it simply may not be an issue.
Concurrently, the university is just catering to the needs of the demographic of students they chose to recruit. If there is a division between students and athlete’s its not because of the academic resources provided by the university, so much as it is due to the fact that the athlete’s make up such a small part of the university population, but represent the university as a whole. Therefore, if the university chooses to recruit "high-risk" athlete’s then they know that in order for those students to be successful they must set up a work environment that best caters to their needs so that those athlete’s can cater to the needs of the university. The only real reason why there is a division between the athletes and other students is because they are more recognizable figures than most on campus, and therefore like any other minority group, are subjected to immediate scrutiny or praise.
As for my own question after reading all the responses and our experience, I’d like to know if anyone’s view’s on these athlete’s changed, and if so why or why not? Where is it that we get these stereotypes, and why are we, intelligent people well versed in the politics of racism and Burke’s rhetoric of identification, still so willing to continue to stereotype others? Just curious.
Monday, December 1, 2008
once again (briefly)
i do not have a lot of time to discuss this, but i would like to vehemently reiterate that the majority of the undergraduate students of color on this campus ARE NOT ATHLETES.
taking data from the institutional research report, the number of students of color enrolled fall 2008 was 2,296 on the pullman campus, while white students accounted for 11,342 students. a staggering statistic.
roughly tallying the number of student-athletes, we have around 345 total. even if EVERY STUDENT ATHLETE was a student of color, it would be nowhere near the total number of students of color.
stereotypes exist because information is false and it is taken as fact. hurting not only the students targeted, but society as a whole.
taking data from the institutional research report, the number of students of color enrolled fall 2008 was 2,296 on the pullman campus, while white students accounted for 11,342 students. a staggering statistic.
roughly tallying the number of student-athletes, we have around 345 total. even if EVERY STUDENT ATHLETE was a student of color, it would be nowhere near the total number of students of color.
stereotypes exist because information is false and it is taken as fact. hurting not only the students targeted, but society as a whole.
A Continuation...
First of all Katie posed an interesting question that I would like to address. She mentioned that diversity comes mainly from WSU's athletic department in that many athletes are those of color. Katie wondered if WSU was to blame, which I felt was a fair question. However, I decided that WSU, while participating somewhat in the stereotypes that athletes are students of color mainly, the problem arises long before that. I mean, I think various societal factors fit in when looking that the reasons behind the large amount of athletes of color. Throughout elementary school, middle and beyond it is reinforced that athletes are often of color, especially black. Even I, who hardly knows sports at all, know a few famous athletes and they are nearly all black: Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Muhammed Ali, etc. The only white ones I can think of are Babe Ruth, Michael Phelps, Reiner Klimke... anyways, you get the point. So yeah, it really seems like one of two things are going on here: 1.) People of color, namely, Black individuals have better athletic abilities or, 2.) Stereotypes cause a skewed perspective within our society that causes everyone to believe Black individuals are better at sports and thus are reflected. I am prone to believe that 2 is correct, especially from hearing about a test some psychologists did a while back. I can't remember the numbers completely now, but I learned about it in my Chicana Studies class that these scientists did a few tests on white groups of people vs other groups of people. The one most pertinent was between two groups of white people and two groups of black people, same numbers and genders, to determine whether stereotypes played a role. They interviewed all of them, but in one group of white and black people they made sure to bring up their race (just kind of nonchalantly ask about it, sort of imbedded within the other questions) while in the others they didn't. Then, they had them all play golf and this is where is gets interesting--in the groups where they mentioned the race of those being interviewed, the black people did like eight strokes better than the white people, but in the groups where they didn't mention their races the scores were nearly identical. This was further tested based on white women and Asian women while doing math tests and white people and black people on some academic testing too.
So, with that said, I will return to Katies inquiry. Because these tests further bolster the idea that stereotypes play a vastly bigger role on individual talent often times than actual skill, I believe that more than WSU is at work in building these stereotypes here. They are brought up within all people and with them come expectations. People expect people to be a certain way based on their looks. Jessica wrote earlier that "to reduce everyone within a social group to one quality is dangerous" and I completely agree--yet it is happening constantly.
At the tutoring session, I expected the students we were going to help were going to be less skilled at writing based on two levels: 1.) That they aren't English majors and it's just for a GenEd class and 2.) Because they were athletes. Both can be factors for being a little clumsy at writing--if you don't like it, if you haven't practiced a lot and also if you don't have much time, as Sarah mentioned. So I guess I made fair judgments but still carried the stereotypes of race with me (and it was actually kind of manifested--many who came in were those of color). So that brings up another issue actually: because stereotypes are in place, they are often reflected (if you are told you are made for something or are really good at it for a long enough, or vice versa, if will be unconsciously reflected by you.) and thus encourage these stereotypes.
So that gets me to an interesting point... that is, I'm now a little less clear on my stance. I mean, is it because of stereotypes that black people seem to be better at sports or is it because they are actually good at sports that the stereotype persists? I remember I was chatting with a friend once and he made a point that black people were bred through slavery to be physically better, thus more are better athletically than white people. I couldn't really completely disregard this, since it might be partially true that only the strong survived while enslaved, and it made me wonder. What do you guys think about this argument?
So, with that said, I will return to Katies inquiry. Because these tests further bolster the idea that stereotypes play a vastly bigger role on individual talent often times than actual skill, I believe that more than WSU is at work in building these stereotypes here. They are brought up within all people and with them come expectations. People expect people to be a certain way based on their looks. Jessica wrote earlier that "to reduce everyone within a social group to one quality is dangerous" and I completely agree--yet it is happening constantly.
At the tutoring session, I expected the students we were going to help were going to be less skilled at writing based on two levels: 1.) That they aren't English majors and it's just for a GenEd class and 2.) Because they were athletes. Both can be factors for being a little clumsy at writing--if you don't like it, if you haven't practiced a lot and also if you don't have much time, as Sarah mentioned. So I guess I made fair judgments but still carried the stereotypes of race with me (and it was actually kind of manifested--many who came in were those of color). So that brings up another issue actually: because stereotypes are in place, they are often reflected (if you are told you are made for something or are really good at it for a long enough, or vice versa, if will be unconsciously reflected by you.) and thus encourage these stereotypes.
So that gets me to an interesting point... that is, I'm now a little less clear on my stance. I mean, is it because of stereotypes that black people seem to be better at sports or is it because they are actually good at sports that the stereotype persists? I remember I was chatting with a friend once and he made a point that black people were bred through slavery to be physically better, thus more are better athletically than white people. I couldn't really completely disregard this, since it might be partially true that only the strong survived while enslaved, and it made me wonder. What do you guys think about this argument?
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