cape

Oliver Moreno

Social Movements

Cape

            The first thing my group did was help out in the protest on March, 4. I've never been part of protest before it felt good to be part something that was going against the norm. It was great making posters with my peers and hearing different chants from different groups in the class. It felt good to go up on stage and say our group's chant by the free speech area. I believe we got a lot of people's attention with marching around campus. Similar what we lean in class in order for a social movement to be successful it needs the proper funding and the proper people to carry out the message. When people went up to our table and wanted information about pre-trial expansion I felt like I was a teacher and they were the student.

            It felt good to do something with people that have similar perspective and beliefs as you. Being part of social movements has great benefits. First, it lets you be part of a team; everyone needs to be social and be part of a group that they were passionate about. Second, being part of a social movement's means you're trying to change the world somehow. The elite think this society is perfect the way it is. I believe this society still needs to go through transformations in order to be considered an efficient and good society. Remember humans created this society. Everything a human does is not perfect, because how something that is not perfect can created something perfect.

            Social movements are important in our society to create change and lower the inequality level in this society. Imagine if Dr. Martin Luther King didn't go against the norm and contributed to the civil rights movement. No color person would be allowed near whites. Being Deviance can pay off.

Movie

            The other activity my group decided to do was to show of pre-trial expansion. The film we choose was about people who have experience injustice by our justice system. One of the people that were wrong was an African American who went to jail because of a ticket we had. It was with jail for a month because of a ticket. His family didn't have money to bail him out, so he stayed in jail until his court date came. It's ridiculous how long it takes to go to court for something minor. The only people that this is affecting are the poor. People who don't have money and are accused of a crime and taken to jail have to stay in jail. Because they don't have the money to get bailed out. We never see a rich person who has committed a small crime stay in jail for a good while. Rich people have connections and they abuse these connections.

            After the film we had a discussion about how our justice system is a joke. This justice system needs improvements. The creators of this present justice system were all rich and made this current system to benefit them. In order to create a new and effective justice system both the elites and the lower/working class have to come together. By having both parties this will lead to both parties point of view seen. The movie discusses how social movements are good for things to be changed. One of the main people interviewed was a woman who would organize different social groups and get them to create a positive protest. They used non-violent tactics that got the media's attention. This society we have to fight for rights and beliefs. If you are passionate about something and you have enough people that share the same passion should fight for your beliefs.

 

Listening Table

            The listening table was another tactic my group did. This tactic was very convenient because it was the same day of the protest march. Our group decided to make posters and charts about pre-trial expansion. We did a small presentation poster which showed different facts and gave more information about our cause. It felt good to discuss pre-trial expansion with new people. Some of the people who approach our table seem interested in to learn more about Cape and pre-trial expansion.

            I believe one on one conversation with people is the easiest way to pursue people into joining your movement. Fraternities and sororities do the same thing when they want people to join their orgs. Rush week is when different orgs table and they want people to join their org. Having a one on one conversation with a person it gives you a connection with the person. History and experiments showed that people tend to like people with the same values and attributes. Having conversation with people and lead to a connection and a friendship.

            One of the things I learn about the listening table that most people don't like to go up to tables. They have to have something that intrigues them to the table. People want to be entertained and they want to be sold about the movement. Listening table are good for recruiting people. If you have a good attitude and sell your movement it's easy to get more members to join. Now days thanks to facebook or another type of social media meetings and protest areas are now aware to the public.

 

Chalking

            The last thing my group did was chalking in the free speech area located at Fresno State University. During the semester as a class we went to the free speech area and we chalk facts about domestic abuse. It was very successful getting people's attention around campus. People were walking through the free speech area and they saw words on the floor and they stopped to read what it said. It was interesting to see people's reaction about different facts. When my group chalk in the floor in the free speech area had similar results as the one we did as a class. As we were writing facts about pre-trial expansion on the floor people would stop and ask us about what we were doing. Some of the people walking by wanted to learn more about pre-trail expansion.

            Chalking was a great experience because it lets people know the facts about your subject without spending money on advertising. Plus the message gets sends to the population that can help you the most. As we discuss in class, the people that are most likely to protest are college students and sing people. Because people with children and are married have the obligation to take care of their family. College students should be the prime target because some students are young and passionate and want to be part of something that can change their life. Social movements are important in our society. Social movements are a great way to change something about our society. Deviant behavior can be a positive thing. The more we fight for our rights the more inequality drops.