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After writing my last blog post and re-reading some things in the book Zulus by Percival Everett, I started remembering all the things in this book that I found extremely interesting. We read this book towards the beginning of the semester, so I sort of forgot about it until now. Going back and looking at this book I started thinking about the word “Value”. The definition of value as a noun by the Merriam-Webster dictionary is “the monetary worth of something” and the definition of this same word as a verb is “to consider or rate highly”. What I was thinking about is the value of a human. Do humans really value other humans? In the books and articles that we have read it really does not seem like we do. Especially in the medical world because we have read about so much discrimination and racism. Why do we not value each other’s lives? 

In the book Zulus on page 105 it says “Everything around her was skin, like bark on a tree and she was not adipose, but meristem tissue. She was life and they should beg her forgiveness.” And then later down on this page Body-woman Rima was talking to her and she said to Alice “you are a vehicle and nothing more”. This woman is here tearing down Alice and saying that she is only a “vehicle” and her life has no meaning other than to reproduce. Alice is trying to stay positive and says she is meristem tissue. Adipose tissue is a fatty tissue that stores energy in the form of fat and cushions and insulates the body. Meristem tissue is found where growth takes place and it gives rise to similar cells. Alice is trying to say that she is not just some fatty tissue that does almost nothing. She is the tissue that is special and can reproduce. Her life has meaning. She is trying to value her life while the rebels are not valuing her at all. They just want to use her body. Like Body-woman Rima said, she is a vehicle that they can use, and they do not think she is anything more than that. No one values her as a human and throughout the whole book everyone is tearing her down. However, she knows she has value.

In Zone One by Colson Whitehead, once the disease had infected a person then they no longer had any value. Once a person is infected, they are bound to be killed. They cannot be saved after they are infected. Something in this book that I did find very interesting is when Mark sort of creates a story for the stragglers before he has to get rid of them. He tries to give these people value. They once were normal people with normal jobs, and they should have all had value. But once they were infected, they were as good as dead and their lives meant absolutely nothing because they were dangerous. This is a bit different than Alice in Zulus because they have no choice but to try and rid the world of these zombies. While for Alice they chose not to value her as a person. 

In an article I read called Grave Robbing, Black Cemeteries, and the American Medical School by Allison C. Meier, it talks about students in medical schools who stole the bodies of African Americans to use for dissections. These cemeteries were often not protected because most of the people buried in these cemeteries were poor and usually African American. The bodies of African Americans, like it said in the article, “were involuntarily used in medicine”. African Americans all throughout medical history have been treated like test subjects instead of humans. The families of these people thought their loved ones were still buried in those graves and little did they know, their loved one was actually lying on a medical table in some college being cut up into pieces. 

Humans do not value other humans. I will never understand this. We are all humans and just because someone doesn’t look like your standards or is overweight, or even black does not mean they should be put down. An African American has a family just like everyone else and works to make a living just like anyone else. They are human and they deserve to be valued. Doctors seem to have a very bad history of not respecting people. Men, women, and even children. Doctors think they can test on whoever they want without consent. These doctors do not seem to think about anyone but themselves. Everyone should understand the worth of another human and think highly of them. Everyone has value and we should not let terrible people ruin our value. I think a huge problem in our world is not valuing each other. We all need to understand that we are all equal and each one of us has value. Everyone needs to be a little more like Mark and try to understand someone else’s life.

Throughout this course, I have seen many posts comparing the circumstances of “Zone One” to the current landscape of the United States. Emphasis on comparing, there are several arguing that a dystopian zombie infestation is on par with, or even better than, the overall current condition of the country. I am not a proponent of disparaging comments and I do not want to devalue anyone’s opinion, of course everyone is entitled to their own perception of our country. However, I do believe that as a nation, the United States is better off in its current state than it would be if we were dealing with an ongoing zombie issue. 

I am not arguing that the United States is perfect, or ignoring the fact that there are many issues in regards to poverty across the country. The United States, like many other countries, is far from a finished product; we are constantly attempting to implement new systems to be as fair and just as possible. I think to say that something like the Trump Administration is equal to the American Phoenix government is rather extreme.  

Realistically, if the United States were to fall into an apocalypse, than yes the wealthy would have the best chance of survival. I think that contending The Trump Administration or Republicans are the only ones that would act in a matter of self-interest is rather short-sighted. Many popular Democrats are also very wealthy, Bernie Sanders is a great example. I find it hard to believe that in the event of complete nation-wide chaos he would act in a manner unlike that of the elites within the American Phoenix. Although that’s morally questionable, I do believe that is the reality. 

Secondly, we need to look at the current state of our country. Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan’s Washington Post article “The Painful Truth about Teeth” was an example used to promote the idea of income inequality. I don’t disagree that the inability to receive proper dental care is a terrible situation. I personally have great insurance thanks to my father’s profession. I have no way of relating to a person that is struggling to get the help that they desire. But I think to place the blame on the concept of income inequality and the 1% isn’t necessary. The United States is currently doing very well economically. Income inequality is an argument used to basically state that “this person has more than that person.” That is allowed, and it is perfectly understandable that some people would be wealthier than others. Jeff Bezos is constantly ridiculed for reasons I can’t comprehend. He provides services that people want. People value those services higher than the value of the things he needs to live a basic life and continue his business. The result is profit. In my opinion, that isn’t immoral. I don’t think he should be mandated to give up a substantial amount of his wealth because others have less than him. You can be envious of the wealthy and empathetic to the poor, and also be just in your beliefs. You can disagree with that belief, as I am sure many people do, and I don’t think that makes them a bad person. I believe that Socialism-esque tax brackets actually limit mobility. If a business owner is on the cusp of a bracket that would decide whether or not they get taxed 15% or 50%, why would they attempt to inch forward if the result could be detrimental to their business?
I am okay with economic disparity. Personally I don’t see an issue with the rich getting richer; I’m more inclined to be worried about if the poor are getting poorer, and the fact of the matter is they are not. To say that our country parallels that of a dystopian nightmare because there is a person in office that you don’t like is pretty contrived. The gap between the poor and the rich is lessening, and that is because the poor are entering the middle class, not the other way around. Sadly there are people that can’t afford the care they see fit, but our rights that have been outlined to say that you have the freedom to seek any care that you see fit, not that the care will be granted to you. I don’t believe that this country or our government parallels that of the events surrounding “Zone One” at all, and I wouldn’t think that no matter what administration was in office. I’ll make those comparisons around the time that I need to start worrying about zombies.

From birth to now, I have always been aware. Aware that I was most likely lesser off than someone else, had looked different, even lived differently. When I was younger I often found myself to be insecure about the way I lived. When my parents divorced, I was split right down the middle. I moved between the two different homes on Friday at the Stewarts Shops at 4 pm on the dot. Never earlier and never later. 

Kids found it different, considering divorce wasn’t common in my area at that time. They always wondered why I would bring a large backpack packed to the brim with stuff if I stayed an extra night at either home and didn’t have time to return my items. I remember having to sit with a woman and talk about how I felt regarding the situation and if I was comfortable and enjoyed both places where I resided. 

Traveling between the two houses made me feel as if I was transforming just as much as my lifestyle would. My dad was always super easy going and a lot more carefree. On the other hand, my mom was a lot more strict and had more structure, yet was also a bit easy going. I had to be more aware and alert when at her house, she always challenged me mentally and encouraged me to do as much as I could for school to better myself. My dad was the opposite, though he did encourage school work, there was a lot less to be worried about. 

Despite that, I was always insecure. My lifestyle revolved around that idea. My father was an older man and struggled to find a steady job, until he eventually retired. Money was always tight but there was often wiggle room. We would eat the same things, and a lot of pasta, only because it was the cheapest. An article from Hunger and Health (Feeding America) states, “An estimated 1 in 9 Americans were food insecure, equating to over 37 million Americans, including more than 11 million children.”  Beginning at a young age I had become food insecure, not even realizing that it was a real thing.  

As I grew up and was able to become more independent, I would go out to eat with my friends and become insecure about what to order.  I didn’t want to order big meals because that would cost more money and I only had a small amount to spend every couple of weeks. However, my friends weren’t necessarily in the same situation as I was growing up so they would buy whatever they wanted and ended up wasting half of the food at whichever place we decided to go to, which I could never imagine doing.  

Growing up on a tight budget between both households, has taught me to manage the money I do have at any given time and not spend it on pointless things.  It has also allowed me to gain self control and appreciate the true value of a dollar. I have learned to become less insecure about the situation I have been raised in and make the most of it because there are more people in this world that live the same as I do, if not worse.

Earlier this semester, our class had a Skype conversation with Professor Ben Chapman after we listened to a podcast called “Food Safety Talk 163: Grown on Chia Pets” by him and Don Schaffner. Chapman and Schaffner spoke about food safety in their podcast, and they discussed their research regarding it. In our Skype conversation, Chapman went into further detail about an event that occurred during one of his research studies on food safety. There was an incident where during a deception study, one of his research participants became highly upset when they discovered they were not disclosed the full truth about the experiment. The study involved a biological marker on raw chicken, and in this case, it was nonpathogenic E. coli. The experiment was done as a deception study in order to obtain accurate, unbiased data regarding whether or not people wash their chicken before cooking it. The biological marker was utilized to see the projected spread of bacteria on chicken when people are preparing it. The nonpathogenic E. coli was mentioned in the consent form given to participants in the study, and it was referred to as “biological tracer organism” (Chapman and Schaffner, 2018). The participant was unhappy to discover later on that this biological tracer organism was E. coli.  They felt as though they were lied to about what the study entailed, and believed to have been put at risk of contracting something harmful.

I personally could understand why someone would get upset or feel scared when finding out they had been exposed to E. coli. The bacteria E. coli is normally presented to people as harmful. This is true, but only to an extent. There are different strains of E. coli, and some are indeed, safe and nonpathogenic. I myself have done many experiments with E. coli in biology labs, therefore I personally wouldn’t even think twice about being at risk if I was told I came into contact with E. coli. However, I fully understand why someone without the same experiences as me with this bacterium would be scared upon finding out they were exposed to it. This whole situation told to us by Chapman really made me realize how important it is for consent forms to present information as clearly and thoroughly as possible. It also made me think, was I ever presented with full disclosure of the risks behind the E. coli that I did experiments with?

As I thought back to the times where I worked with E. coli, I realized that I was in fact not thoroughly told what risks working with the bacteria posed. I also thought about how I performed experiments with E. coli even back in high school, where one might think a description of the bacteria we were using would be sent home to parents to ensure them that it was safe. Our parents were never notified, and no consent forms or descriptions of the E. coli strain we were using was ever presented to us. I was told the bacteria wasn’t harmful, but I wasn’t given any proof, nor was there any elaboration. Upon thinking back to this situation, I can understand even more as to why someone who may not have a background in science as I do would be concerned when they hear they came into contact with E. coli. Chapman stated that he understood the participant’s concerns as well, and that is why he strove to make changes in the wording and explanation in the consent form to prevent another situation like this from happening again in the future (Chapman and Schaffner, 2018).

Overall, learning about this research situation and the misunderstanding of E. coli made me notice that I myself went through a similar event, but I had a different reaction. I realized that the difference in my reaction to that of Chapman’s research participant is that our backgrounds with the terminology differed. It made me understand just how important the wording and explanation of the terminology used when presenting someone with a description of what they are going to experience is. I may have been presented with a lack of information just as the research participant was, but luckily, I had a better experience due to my understanding of E. coli. This pushes me to never assume what others may already know or not know, and that I will always be sure to fully explain everything I present to someone if I am to do research myself one day.

In Zulus we are left in the aftermath of the war that killed off so many on Earth. There is not much mention of what exactly started the war, but the impacts of it are clear. In Medical Apartheid, we are provided with information on the war that has been waged against black people for centuries in the U.S. Harriet Washington focuses on how this war was led throughout the medical industry primarily, but in conjuncture with the context of the racial issues of the time, depending on which era she is talking about. The first war discussed is done in the public eye with an acknowledgment of the actions taking place, while the war discussed in Medical Apartheid is done in private, with heads turned in the opposite direction. Each act of war is harmful in different ways, but it is also hurting the population as a whole, even if certain people don’t feel any direct consequences.

In Percival Everett’s Zulus there is a world left over after what could be described as the apocalypse. We are never told exactly why the war began or what happened during it, but we are continuously reminded of what it has caused. After Alice Achitophel is moved out of the city and the group has to walk through the scar, she notices that the earth has a distinct red color, similar to the color of blood. She asks “Why is it red like this?” and Theodore Theodore responds that “The war did it (Everett: 57).” The earth around them has been altered severely by the conflict, and there is not much they can do about it. Even when she asks direct questions about how the scar was created, there is not much of an explanation given to her about exactly why or how it happened. The only explanation is that the war caused it, simple as that. The attitudes left over afterwards are even more pessimistic, with Alice Achitophel saying “God must have died during the war (Everett: 17).” The war has left everyone disheartened and scared for the future, since they think it will only lead to the demise of humanity. Although they can’t be sure of it, Alice Achitophel and Kevin Peters do eventually spread the Agent and actually kill everyone, but they couldn’t know that in the beginning. In Medical Apartheid there is not a war as defined by its literal definition, but there is an attack on black people within the U.S. going on during our history, and even present, that Washington presents us with. She tells us that, because of the population that doctors and scientists were made up of primarily until the last few decades, “They could afford to be frank… Therefore, a doctor could be open about buying slaves for experiments, or locating or moving hospitals to areas where blacks furnished bodies for experimentation and dissection (Washington:10).” The fact that black people were being attacked wasn’t being publicized because there was no way to tell everyone when a lot of people were illiterate, and even if it had been known there isn’t a strong case to argue that people would have cared. The black community was well aware of the acts taking place around them, and even today when it is mentioned many are seen as gullible for believing such myths. This war was done privately, but the effects were the same as the war that occurred publically.

The impact that the medical experimentation on black people had is still prominent today. The medical system is seen as untrustworthy to many, and there are fields within the industry that are heavily based off of these experiments, such as gynecology. Although this conflict was not waged publically there were still major impacts like the war that occurred in Zulus. The literal meaning of what a war is and isn’t does not change the impacts that a literal or figurative war can have. In many ways people may even call the experimentation and dissection of black people a literal war. They were targeted and many thought they would eventually be killed off, but they were also mostly unable to defend themselves, so it could be seen as an ethnic cleansing as well. Even though in Zulus some people immediately died after the agent was released the first time there were also people left behind. These people were hurt in the long run, just like the people who were not directly experimented on were hurt in the long run in the U.S. Even though they were not directly impacted it still harmed them because of the cultural effects this experimentation has had.

The class text Fortune’s Bones life gives 21^st-century readers a glimpse into the life of an enslaved man in 18^th century Connecticut. Although the details of his life are not entirely clear, we do know that he was mistreated as a result of his position in society. Growing up in the northeast, most of my education on the Civil War was spent on learning about the Confederacy’s oppression of black lives. However, learning about Fortune gave me insight into slavery that proved northern states were just as guilty of contributing towards institutionalized racism. One could argue that Fortune’s master was kinder than the horror stories of slavery we may be familiar with; Fortune’s bones indicate that he was in generally good health throughout much of his life. However, a claim like this seems to be ignorant of the very fact that he was enslaved. Fortune did not enjoy the legal rights or privileges of Dr. Porter’s family, as explained by the Mattituck Historical Society. (MHS)

There were two major events of Fortune’s life that stood out to me: His religious involvement as an enslaved black man and the treatment of his body upon his death. I believe that the former may have influenced the latter event, based on the society he lived in. According to the Mattituck Historical Society, the Congregational and Episcopalian churches in 18^th century Connecticut encouraged the education of enslaved races, with the goal being that they would convert to Christianity. When I spoke with one of our class’s Teaching Assistants about this topic, she mentioned that enslaved people brought various religious traditions from Africa during their journey to this continent. In order to continue their religious traditions, she informed me that they often masqueraded their beliefs as Christian ones. This could potentially explain why so many slaves in Westbury were encouraged to adopt Christianity, since religion may be a tool for controlling groups of people. According to MHS, “Slave owners were prominent members of both the Congregational and Episcopal churches; nearly all of the ministers and several deacons owned slaves.” Furthermore, Fortune was reportedly “baptized in the Episcopal church on December 20, 1797; he died in 1798. There is no month or day given for Fortune’s death. He may have died two weeks after his baptism, or a year after.” (MHS) Was this a way of asserting cultural dominance by Fortune’s slave master? The ambiguity surrounding Fortune’s life, along with how his corpse was treated seems to suggest unholy motives on the part of Dr. Porter.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of his life was the scientific experimentation that was performed on Fortune’s body following his death. We may not know much about his life, yet there is plenty of information about his physical body. The record-keeping of black lives throughout American history fails to recognize the complexities of their life, rather it seems that many non-black Americans were invested in using black bodies for medical research.

In current day, we are encouraged to write a will stating who receives things that were in our ownership and what they are so when we die no one must worry about it or fight over anything. However, if our name is not known and our body cannot be identified then the will becomes useless. Unidentified bodies are called either Jane Doe or John Doe (dependent on the person’s gender), to respect that they do have a name. There are certain ways in which we can respect the dead properly, yet there are so many instances of disrespect of the dead.

Mutato nominee means name change in Latin. In the book Bones by Marilyn Nelson, the skeleton/man that the story centers around was an African American male named Fortune. When he passed away his body was dissected and abused, as he never provided his consent. His name became lost after some time, and his skeleton later ended up in a museum where the man’s name, who they forgot used to be a man, was changed to Larry. Luckily for Fortune, someone took interest in this story and created a book based off of this skeleton and gave readers some insight into what had occurred and honored Fortune’s story in the process.

Another example of disrespect of the dead came from Zone One by Colson Whitehead, where there are both human characters and zombies. The zombies are somewhere between life and death so there is question as to whether or not it is moral for humans to kill them. Is it putting them out of their misery like we do to animals who are so sick that they have no chance of recovery?

In Zulus by Percival Everett, the main character, Alice Achitophel, broke free from her old fat body which was beheaded and emerged in a new body that she inhibited. Although she had changed bodies, she was still part of her old one and despite the fact that her old body was beheaded, she was still able to survive and inhabit her old brain. She would have times where her new body would shut down and she could focus on what was she was experiencing in her old head, similar to when J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter would have moments where he experienced things from Voldemort’s perspective. Since Alice was unable to be killed in her old body, the abuse the rebels from the camp her old body was stuck in was even more tortuous and reminds us that we should think about what feelings a person would have when their body is opened and examined after their death. How can their body be treated in certain ways without their consent?

Henrietta Lack was an African American who died from cervical cancer and after her death, doctors extracted her cells without her consent and used them for medical research as the article Henrietta Lacks from the John’s Hopkins website describes. The extracted cells were labeled “HeLa” and the medical researchers discovered that, for the first time in history, “a human cell line was able to be reproduced in a laboratory setting.” After this discovery, the cells were used to help study many medical problems and help the researchers determine a cause and move towards finding cures. Additionally, questions of human immortality surfaced because of Henrietta’s reproducing cells.

In Home by Toni Morrison, a man was killed in a fight between him and his son that they had been forced into. The fight between the two of them ended with the father’s death and afterward his body was left uncared for. When the main characters of the book found out about this, they went to gather the bones and created a proper burial for the man so he could rest at peace, be remembered, and be respected. Since they did not know his name, the grave marker said, “Here Stands A Man.” (Morrison, 145). Another example of forgotten dead later recognized is in New York City. A large area that was an African burial ground was forgotten and the land was built on and covered as years past. According to the MAAP article on this historical burial ground, an estimated 10,000-20,000 bodies are buried in this hidden cemetery that extends beyond where the physical land dedication is. The land was forgotten about for years and then rediscovered when the area became a construction area for a new building project. When the first skeletons were discovered their remains were roughly treated and not properly cared for. After backlash from the public, those who were disrupting the remains were forced to do so more cautiously, but even then, the remains of each of these individuals was not respected. The national monument structure that was built at the site stands to represent and respect the dead. The center of the monument was built in a spiral shape with a circular globe in its center. The spiral around the globe has etched symbols in the walls in representation of different cultures, languages, and religions to honor all of the possible ways of respecting the dead underneath the site’s ground.

Another time in history when deceased bodies were disregarded was in the era of World War II when the Nazi’s became overwhelmingly powerful. According to A Teacher’s Guide to the Holocaust, in 1933 there were a few Nazi concentration camps that were running and at these camps the Nazis mass murdered the people they had imprisoned. Nazis would create mass burials for their murder victims. They would simply dig a very large hole and once they filled it with bodies, they would cover it and begin a new hole.

Respect for others should be given no matter what circumstances occur. Love or hate, power or not, life or death, everyone deserves some respect. But remember, dead people are still people. They lived a life and had thoughts and opinions to consider just like the living do.

Since the beginning of this class we have continually mentioned loops and cycles and applied them to what we have been learning. When this semester began, our professor asked us to bounce a ball against the wall and catch it in the rebound. The exercise came with unclear intentions at first, but after reading the class materials and reflecting, that exercise symbolized practice and reception and a continuous loop.

In Disney’s The Lion King, there is a famous song called The Circle of Life. This song encompasses the ideas of how life is a cycle. Humans, similar to animals, go through a life cycle: birth, childhood, schooling, jobs and career, retirement and death. During the years when a person’s focus is their career, they often get married, begin a family, and then later care for their elders. Throughout this lifetime humans also create their own habit cycles. The process of learning requires a loop of mistakes and reflection to allow forward progress. That loop is meant to ensure that the same mistake is not made repeatedly and that a person is able to move on and acquire knowledge. Unfortunately, sometimes one person’s progress is made at the expense of other people.

Each year we literally circle around the sun and each day our planet spins on its axis and provides us with a day and night. On our Earth, natural disasters occur destroying an area and allowing for its regrowth afterwards which strengthens the environment, allowing it to stay healthy.  Forest fires are a common example of this. The forest fires burn all the vegetation and afterwards plants begin to regrow, and the forest is eventually rebuilt. “Blood. The river of life.” (Everett, 21) is the idea that without destruction our earth would not function the same. Death often needs to occur for life to be appreciated.

Humans have created theories of Earth’s end and have been continually wrong, yet each time a theory failed a new one is created. This creates an everlasting cycle of trying to predict the future.

Home by Toni Morrison includes a scene where the main characters buried a man’s body at the base of a spilt tree. This symbolized the main characters becoming adults and beginning a new chapter in their lives. There are many ways to respect the dead through a funeral and burial based on cultural traditions. One type of funeral tradition is a New Orleans Jazz funeral where there is a period of mourning and after the burial the group parades around in celebration of that person’s life.

In class we learned about an African burial ground in Manhattan. Here there is a structure built in a spiral and when you walk down to the center there is a globe etched into the platform’s ground. This physical structure represents the cycle of life that occurs in our world.

In Zulus by Percival Everett, the main character, Alice Achitophel, breaks free from her old body and comes out in a new one as a symbol of a rebirth. Just like we are born to die, some people believe that when we die, we are reborn. Another idea of rebirth comes within your lifetime. You may find a way to cleanse yourself and move forward to become a better version of who you were. Creating a cycle of growth.

Race: a divide of power between people based on their beliefs or traits. Looks/appearances and the labels we place on people and groups affect how we view and treat them as well as their mental states. Throughout human history we have separated and categorized ourselves based on appearances. Someone always must run the top of the food chain, must lead the pack and carry all the power. The ability to lead has been chosen by ancestry and physical concepts such as wealth. The leader is the person decorated in certain attire which separates them from others.  

According to the Heng Inventions: Reinventions, Race Studies, Modernity, and the Middle Ages article by Geraldine Heng that we read in class, those who celebrated the Jewish traditions were made to wear badges identifying their religion during 1218-1275. Appearance was used to separate people based on their belief system and when these people were set apart, they were discriminated. The article called this act “Political imagery…”  (Heng, 2013). Skin color is another visual indication, representing ancestry, that people have specifically used as a social divider in United States history. Those with darker complexions were considered black and used as physical laborers while those with pale complexions were deemed white and took a role of power. In the Heng Inventions article, the word race is continually revisited. On page nineteen the article states, “race is a structural relationship for the articulation and management of human differences, rather than a substantive content.” Additionally, I thought that when race was again mentioned on page twenty that the idea of race and class relating was a good point. It reflects the idea that appearance can be used as a tool to group people and classify them, although, this is not an accurate depiction of people in most cases.

In Clay’s Ark by Octavia E. Butler, the community is not based on appearance like most. It is typical for humans to label others based on appearances. Depending on where you reside on this globe your perspective on what outsiders and/or immigrants look like and your idea of beauty changes. Clothing can be used to indicate certain qualities about a person according to society. Cliques are a popular way for people to separate themselves based on appearances. Often, these small groups of people look and dress very similarly. The movie Mean Girls is an excellent representation of cliques.

Different cultures have different ideas about what constitutes beauty or acceptance. Some traditions merit wearing specific outfits for activities. For example, Native American groups still wear traditional outfits when performing a traditional dance during ritual ceremonies. Tribes from rainforest regions are another group that look similar but, can be identified within the larger groups based on their appearances. Another example of society valuing conformity is the military who are forced to wear the same outfits and cut their hair into the same style. Convicts also are forced to wear the same jumpsuit outfits. Firemen, police officers, EMT, doctors and nurses all wear the same outfits as well. There are so many examples of these similarities in dress within groups that can be spotted in our daily lives. Sometimes certain clothing items and accessories are indicators of wealth and power.

Our government is predominantly white males. Our nation tries to represent diversity within the government but is still largely run by old white males. Looking back on the Presidential history of the United States it is obvious.

The effects of these labels could be negative or positive. Negatively, groups could be excluded, harmed, or ridiculed. Conversely, they could also be honored or viewed as role models. Labels can also affect how a person thinks of themselves and will most likely change their behaviors overtime to accommodate the label. For example, if a person was called the class clown they may begin to believe the label and become more confident in making jokes around their classmates. However, if someone was to be called fat repetitively that could also impact their self-image or mental health and drive them into having an eating disorder.

Appearance is surface level, but an individual’s character is beneath the surface. Characteristics and personality make someone who they are not what color their skin is, what religion they celebrate, or what clothing they wear.