Blog 6

1/27/2015

Describe two central themes in Ms Davis' speech on "How Does Change Happen?" Within a 200 word (minimum) post write about Angela's words and work as they relate to two new ideas that you learned in the textbook. Use two quotes from the textbook in your post.

Blog Requirements
Post one original post each week along with a response to one student. Your original post should be at least 200 words, your response should be no less than 50 words.

Post your original post by midnight (11:59 p.m.) on Wednesday of each week and respond by midnight on Friday of each week (11:59 p.m.).

60 Comments

jorge ferrer

3/9/2015 01:39:55 pm

Angela Davis talked about very important things that got me thinking and also learned new things from her speech. During her speech she talked about how her childhood was related to racism and segregation. She remembers how white and black had their own bathroom etc. segregation is now done (currently) but racism still goes on. One of the things that Angela mentioned was the word struggle and change. Getting a little of topic but I can relate to what she said. Many people know what it feels to struggle but there are a lot of people out there that say “struggle?” Living in Oakland and trying to get out is a struggle. I grew up with many bad influences and im still struggling to be successful coming from Oakland. There are three phrases that I enjoyed hearing from her, “the change we want, the struggle to change, and the change we achieve” I liked these phrases because I can totally relate. Angela talked about movements for change and brought up the civil rights movement for example the Black Panther movement. I was never really sure of what they did but now I know that they helped civilians (African Americans) against police brutality. Every time police officers stopped people the Black Panther movement had a book of laws to let people know the rights they had which I thought was pretty awesome standing up to police officers who I personally hate too.

Emerson Lovato

3/12/2015 04:56:16 pm

I came up with similar thoughts after watching the Angela Davis speech. We have all struggled somehow and we all want things to change but in reality we don't do much to make those things happen. We have to be active in our communities because the more we participate the more informed we are. I need to make better choices in my life instead of wasting my time doing things that just kill time, I should focus on getting involved in my community because I want a lot of things to change. I struggle a lot and I was always complain about all my struggles yet I haven't done anything to change that. The Angela Davis speech helped me realize that If I want change I must do something about it.

Nafi Watson

3/10/2015 02:19:24 am

The Struggle to change, the change we want, and the chage we achieve are three things Angela Davis touched on in her speech. These three things are the things we need to be able to have change in this world. I really enjoyed how she structured her speech because she made it understandable for me to understand how change works. A lot of people come into this world talking about how they wish they could change the world, but what they sometimes fail to realize is how to go about making that change. Like she said about the whole segregation thing is someone believe that we need to have equal rights,so they stood up for what they believed in and made a change. It's sad because today's generation don't respect that change that was made , so the take a a lot of things for granted. Having change and being the change is very important in this world if it wasn't for change we would not be where we are today.

Michael Le

3/11/2015 07:50:05 am

I agree with you when you say that today people don't respect the sacrifices our ancestors had to make to bring about changes. Some of us were born into privileged lives so we don’t acknowledge the inequalities that some people face on a daily basis.

Hang Nguyen

4/30/2015 09:35:07 pm

I agreed with you when you said today's generation take a lot of things for granted. We are born in peace time, when all the racism is still going on but basically is very minor in compared to the past. They live more for themselves, rather than for the community. Everybody want to change, but the point is who will have the courage to change, and the strength to keep on staying until the end or not.

LENA COLETTO

3/10/2015 02:55:32 pm

The two strongest themes that Angela spoke about was the injustices and wrongs (racism/ any type of prejudice) of our culture, and the amazing ability that we as ordinary people can come together collectively to change the world as we know it. She put it as simply and beautifully as this is not the way things are supposed to be and they will not always be like this.She spoke about using our imaginations, this was the most empowering message that I got from her. To use our imaginations, to have a vision. Before action comes thought, knowledge, commitment and discipline. It all starts with an idea and that idea is within us. Collectively the key. Its not enough just to have an idea, or to put in into action, there needs to be ideas, action and people power to get the wheels of change moving. The way Angela spoke about change seemed to make it attainable, and possible.She spoke about the unglamorous work of movements. This is very important to recognize; I think a lot of us have this image in our minds of what the fight for change looks like and it can be radical, exciting and explosive. Its important to realize that there are many forms and paths on the road to change; a lot of them including grunt work, or boring, necessary work. As Angela said there needs to be commitment. She opened my eyes a bit more to seeing activism as a reality instead of a fantasy. I think this is one more aspect of how she brings this sometimes abstract concept of change a little bit closer. The strong movements that she was apart of in the 60's and 70's did not produce the exact change that they had hoped for; but it did change the structure. Change doesn't have to be exactly how we envision it, it just has to be. Instead of just having a gloomy doomed feeling she was able to shed some light of hope.

Tory Burleson

3/11/2015 03:43:18 pm

Hi Lena, I love what you wrote about realizing that making a change doesn't just have to be a fantasy. I found it to strike me the in same way. Her words about creating a movement and a change for the world we live in make it seem doable. I found it to seem realistic because of the way she broke it down, like letting us behind the scenes of the hero's in our history. I agree that we need to get together as a collective to spark a change and that means moving away from our obsessions with our individual lives.

Huimin Huang

3/12/2015 07:56:08 am

I like your post. people can make a change if they have the idea and get people together to make that change. People are the power. we use imagination then we come together collectively and we will have the ability to make changes. Even people can't get their exact change at the end, but there will be a change at least. The point is step up and get close to our goal,

Luna Flores

3/12/2015 08:22:44 pm

I really liked your post. I agree with the fact the imagination process is a big starting point to making a change. It takes a lot of thinking in order to figure out what is setting up the injustice, how can it be changed, what will it take, who will it benefit, and how will it affect the future. Al of this gets figured out during the imagination process before it gets put into action, which is necessary because trying to go out and just going with it will not be organized or set up for success.

Qin Chen

3/20/2015 03:34:48 pm

I agreed with what you said. Before I know Angela ’s speech, I usually feel what people do to change is useless. What they do is like what you said, bored. They cannot attract people for what they do, then it will be hard to change. I usually think it is not important to be interesting to change something; however, I was wrong.

stephanie linford

4/10/2015 11:49:03 am

I agree with you the way she spoke made everything in my body feel what she was saying was possible and going to happen. I really liked the message you got from her was about using our imaginations and then put it into action. In the 60's & 70's this was a bigg issue and sparked alot of intersest. You are right it wasnt the change they had hoped for but it started what we know now and continues to stregthen. I belive the hope she put in you , me, can be shed onto new people. That way we are united and the change they wanted back then can happen now.

Michael Le

3/11/2015 07:45:58 am

The first major theme that Angela Davis spoke about were the human ability to feel struggle, want to change, plan to change, form groups based on shared struggles, make changes, fail at making changes and keep pushing forward to change. The second major theme that Angela Davis spoke about were the injustices that exist in our culture, how it pushes us to extremes and how it shapes who we are today. These injustices that Angela Davis spoke about makes us show our true colors. I believe that these injustices weed out the true leaders from the people that don’t want to step up. Injustices such as sexism and racism have been around for a very long time, and whether directly or indirectly, is taught to us from a young age by our surroundings and family. I believe that we are taught these injustices so that we can stay away from them and just push on with our lives. I believe that we are taught to be selfish and only worry about ourselves because taking on the task of bringing about movement and change is too difficult because that oppression has been around for so many years. All of this came to my mind after listening to Angela Davis’s words about wanting change but not realizing that we need more than discontent in our lives to make change happen. This opened my eyes because I see how it is true. I always say that I want to see change and that I will make change happen by moving my family out of the ghetto but I realize that is only the smaller picture. Angela Davis talked about change in a bigger light. She talked about helping the people around us make changes also.

Harin Yoon

3/11/2015 03:13:51 pm

The first theme that she talked about was how ordinary people can change the world. She simply encourages everyone to be part of the group that will step up and fight for justice around the world. She reminds us that this injustice is not the way it is supposed to be and it will never be like this all the time. This part really gave me sense of freedom and energy that all of us really can change the world if we used our talents and imagination to look for the ways to change the world. We also need to think about how our changes will not bring the changes in the ways we expected but will still affect the future positively. The second theme she discussed was about general problems that we are facing everyday such as racism, sexism, and many more. She talks about how these will take commitment and time for us to change the systems and minds of the people. And we also have to focus on understanding the background of the movements so we are able to respect the changes and spread the right ideas about the movements.

Erkhes Bat-erdene

3/11/2015 05:03:25 pm

I love the energy and atmosphere she radiated when she was talking! I do believe that if everyone did coalesce for a cause, that we can accomplish it. However, I do not think that sexism and racism are going to disappear anytime soon. These two injustices are rooted in every civilization and I do not think we can "solve" the problem very easily. I think it'll take generations for these injustices to be solved. But I do very much love the sentiment.

Dongho Kim

3/13/2015 04:40:30 pm

Yes she encouraged and reminded us by keep asking us to imagine world without racism, sexism, and segregation. She used the word "imagine" over and over again, so we can picture positive future for our society. I also noticed she kept mentioning changes for systems and people's minds will take time since those are not something that can be change instantly.

Lin Chen

3/11/2015 03:30:52 pm

In Angela Davis “How Does change happens” , the two important points, as she mentions is “one has to do with the tendency to erase the contributions up those who have perhaps done the blows to bring about progressive chains.” As a example, people in US must know the famous person Martin Luther king in the Civil right movement, but most people do not even know that there was a group of black women who organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The second point she mentioned was “other ones has to do with the difference between the change we want, and the change we struggle for one hand and the change we actually achieve. ”She talked about the issue about the black and white. Things will changes, even the enormously things can change. It is important to work with your imagination and to use your imagination, but it is not enough. Knowledge, to use knowledge to remake the world becomes better.

Bolortsetseg Jargalsaikhan

3/12/2015 07:57:54 am

Hi, Chen
I agree with those statements. The people who have done most of the contributions in the background don't get the credits they are supposed to get. The group behind Martin Luther King and the group of women behind Rosa Parks boycott, etc. Those people are deserved to be known for their work for the causes that made the history, not just be hidden behind one person. Also when she talked about how the change (segregation and racism) we wanted is different from what we actually fought for (no segreation, but still racism).. It made me to think to how long it will take for people to end racism all together if the segregation took years and years to be erased...

Tory Burleson

3/11/2015 03:35:25 pm

Ms Davis talks on multiple occasions in this speech on how we can not allow the state to create our social meanings and on how we need to focus on collective victories. What I take from this is that idea of individualism feeds right into the capitalistic government that we have in place. Instead of getting together as a people and as a collective we are supposed to be focused on each of our own individual needs. This is put in place for a reason, because you can not create a strong sense of community if one is focused on the individual. At this point we do let the powers at hand create the society we live in and create the meanings within that society. We are taught that in history there are these heroic people who started a change/ social movement, but Ms. Davis talks about the collective group of people who came together to put those heroic spokespersons in place. That is one of the many reasons I feel that the people in power want to keep us focused on material things and ourselves, so that we become unable to get together and really create a change.
Another thing that she mentioned that I had never thought about is welfare being a right of a citizen. If you do not have enough to support yourself then the country which you are a part of should provide that for you until you can provide it for yourself, but that is a political ideology that isn't consistent with how the government wants us to view it. They want us to look at it as an individual burden because we might have to pay more taxes. All that ties into the fact that we are very self focused and can't grasp the bigger picture.

Qin Chen

3/11/2015 03:57:27 pm

In Ms Davis’ speech on “How Does Change Happen?”, she told us, if people want to change something, first, they should “erase the contributions up those who have perhaps done the blows to bring about progressive chains.” If people who want to change do not erase this people’s contribution, it will be very hard to let normal people to remember what they do, because what normal people focus is usually people that has contributions. And people that has contributions are always people that let others notice the problem, what they hope is others focus on the problem not themselves. Second, “other ones has to do with the difference between the change we want, and the change we struggle for one hand and the change we actually achieve.” If people do not know the difference between them, they may do double work to get this change, even worse, what they do may let others feel they are crazy; because they think we already reach the goal, they do not know what is the things that is this people want to change. Change is hard, but we still need to do, because our world is still not perfect.

Lin Chen

3/13/2015 03:38:36 pm

Hi Qin, I have a same idea when you said people would take more attention on one who has huge contribution.Truly, when one's voice is loudly than other, people will ignore others' voices!. And I don't mean people must forget the contribution of other people, but I mean people can not just forces on one person!

Ri'Chara Glenn

3/11/2015 04:15:09 pm

“How does change happen”, Angela has said a lot of things but some which I caught were things about reflecting back on historical memories. Understanding the historical context in which events took place in our country and other countries, and what were their purposes. She explained how they impacted the future of our generation because “change” existed. However, she did explain that our current social and political intent is actually contradicting a lot of our original intentions from the past when reforms and laws were changed or modified. Basically for example, a law was passed to end segregation but racism still presumed. The point of ending segregation is also to end racism but it didn’t happen that way. The main idea of this part of the speech was to inform us that change is build upon collectivism and unity. Therefore, completely eliminating individualism will call for a better change. I believe you can’t go as far as disrupting the natural order of things. We lived in pretty much a fixed society, though demolishing individualism is pretty tough in most situations. But there’s power in changing things that are hand written or typed such as laws, documents or even letters that are set out to regulate our country. She’s ultimately saying that with the help of the community coming together to promote change, then change can happen.

A second theme is, “recognizing change”and how we should take advantage of it. She told a story about her friend who was going to college and that she was given fair services suited for her because she was pregnant. Angela interprets this message by saying that we must give back to people in society so that those people can do things for a greater and better cause in the future. She explained that Affirmative action was created to cease discrimination and allow access for people to enroll in college. This in turn allows individuals the rights for receiving education. I know some of us do not realized the accommodations that most of us get and if we do we don't really take advantage of their services due to our own personal reasons. I think what Angela wants us to understand is that we should explore beyond the horizons and acknowledge the kind of change we have now and take advantage of it instead of wishing for something to happen.

Angela Tam

3/11/2015 04:25:15 pm

The first main theme that I noticed in Angela’s speech was, the point about how we need to develop a critical impulse. To do this we need to understand that we have this ability as ordinary people, not as “heroic individuals”. This will help us understand that we have the ability to become great critical thinkers through practice. We need to use knowledge in transformative ways and we need to use knowledge to remake the world. Once we can develop this critical impulse we can come together with other, inspire others to also think critically, and have a group of individuals ready to change the world. We need to learn and acquire leadership properties, and not think that leadership is only for select individuals. We have the ability to lead knowledgably. We need to educate ourselves and think critically about the history that we are told and seek the history we aren’t told. We need to spread true history and make sure that we acknowledge why history is being told to us the way it is and why certain things are omitted.

The second main theme is that the victories we win are not always the ones we fought for, but we need to celebrate them anyway. I think she made this point so that we would not be discouraged by efforts gone to waste. Because a little change is better than no change at all. Small changes break ground for future changes. Changes inspire others to continue to have a voice. She mentioned that while the victories aren’t always the ones they fought for, the victories helped to change the terrain of the struggle.

So in our history book we are sort of made to believe that history happened the way it did. We have individual heroes that are glorified instead of showing the collective efforts of the whole group. I believe this is a strategic tactic that helps to further divide us as heroes and ordinary people. To discourage the individual that doesn’t think they are educated enough to speak, or heroic enough to stand up, or credible enough to have a voice.

Erik Hoffmann

3/12/2015 12:38:44 pm

I agree with you. Society needs to realize that we have the power to make the change we'd like to see in the world. The feat of the individual is emphasized in our history books to discourage collective change. There's more of us then them, but nobody thinks of it like that for fear of losing what they've already accomplished. People are so scared of the structure of the system, they forget to realize that ordinary citizens make up 99% of the population, and those in control are only 1%.

Shameim Lowther

4/29/2015 05:40:07 am

Its earier said than done becasue society keeps us so concerened on our individual well being that we cant even help ourselves outside our family. We as a society make up the top 97% but the 3% that are in control we as citizens help facilitate their power by being slaves to our government. we work pay taxes, shop, entertainment, loans on homes, school, cars, and bills, debt, so so for us to come together and stand for change or a common cause let alone vote it's going to take something that unifies us all colectively and not individually to sacrifice time, energy, to fight for it. We need to be proactive as a collective consciousness for a bigger change.

liang zhang

3/11/2015 04:25:20 pm

from her speech i learned that how important the the danger of heroic individualism,and the" diversity" of this country. she used story of her childhood to show how the people are being races, and how the black segregate with white. black's cant use white's bathroom and park. untill today, there is still racism and segregation in our community, but its not as bad as before. it is like what Ms Davis said, " this is not the way things are suppose to be, this maybe the way the way now, but they are not suppose to be this way, they will not always be this way" if we look back ,we are getting alot better than before. maybe 10 years later, we will be better than today, too.Struggle,different group has different meaning to them. Some people alway want thing to be change, but they forget if they want thing to be change, the best way is they are doing it to make it change. from Ms davis "other ones has to do with the difference between the change we want, and the change we struggle for one hand and the change we actually achieve" people have to know what they want, and what they have done, and what we really need to change. if we dont know that, we may just waste our time to do the things we wanna to do, not we need to do.

Harin Yoon

3/12/2015 03:26:29 pm

Yes! we need to realize how many people out there are really doing so much work behind the scenes. We need to really respect that and help out by joining them or spreading more awareness through our imagination. Your positivity made me positive about our world too. Sometimes we really have to appreciate what we have before we start complaining about the presence. Hopefully, 10 years from now will be better.

jorge ferrer

3/13/2015 04:29:22 pm

i like what you said in your comment, "i learned how important the danger of heroic individualism, and the diversity of this country." many people who want to bring change (positively) get murdered, for example dr Martin Luther king and many more. this government is so fucked up they act like they care to bring positive changes and maybe they do but in reality they only look out for themselves. i am currently taking african american studies and i am now realizing how fucked up has the whites been to african americans. everyone is a human being and should be treated equally. whites have always thought of them selves as been powerful people not they are wrong because every individual is a strong human being.

Erkhes Bat-erdene

3/11/2015 04:33:52 pm

Two central themes that caught my attention from Angela Davis' "How Does Change Happen" was the ability of ordinary everyday people to change the world collectively, and the prejudice our current culture will has. Ordinary people have more power than the 1%. By using our imaginations, by having a vision, and by having a goal to accomplish, and by sharing it, we can begin to change our world for the better. And all it takes is an idea to start it, and the people to make it grow. Although some change may seem out of grasp, they really are not if the people collectively decide that they want to stand and change the world they live in. Injustices in our current society still exist every day in the form of sexism, racism, and disparity. From the moment we are born, we are shaped by our surroundings, and these surroundings can be great or they can be awful. We are subconsciously learning about sexism, racism, and class disparity every day. It will take time and severe commitment to bring about positive change and change sexism, racism, and class disparity to become the exception, not the norm. Change happens through dedication and time, and if we want to change the world, we have to take action.

Angela Tam

3/16/2015 10:04:24 am

I agree that we are learning sexism, racism, and class disparity. It is a shame that we aren't learning to have a voice and being inspired to shape our surroundings. We grow up and tend to accept things as they are. This is why I think that Angela Davis' speech was so powerful because it talk about how much stronger we could be as a collective whole.

Jacob Bandel

3/11/2015 04:34:27 pm

In the first major theme’s Angela Davis spoke of were the humanity’s ability to ignite struggle,the want of change, forming groups based on struggles, make said changes, fail at making the changes, and keep pushing for that change.After that she talks about the second major theme that of the speech which include the injustices that exist in our culture and how it shapes us. These injustices that Angela Davis spoke of makes us show our true nature. I honestly believe that these injustices sort out the true shepherds from the sheep in our society.Inequity’s Such as sexism and racism have been around for many decades, and whether directly or indirectly, is taught to us at a young age by our friends and family. I think that we are taught these injustices so that we can stay away from them and just push on with our lives, and our journeys to self discovery. I also think that we are taught to be very selfish and only worry about ourselves because taking on the task of bringing about movement and change is too difficult thanks to the deep rooted oppression.All of this came to me after hearing Angela Davis’s words about wanting change but not realizing that we need more than discontent in our lives to make the change. This opened my mind because I see how this can be a reality, and also i think i can imagine how it would all play out.Honestly i always say that I want to see notable change also that I will make change happen by moving my family out of the ghetto. Angela Davis talked about change in a bigger light. She talked about helping the people around us make changes also.

Dongho Kim

3/11/2015 04:59:32 pm

One main idea Angela Davis said in her speech was that ordinary people have power to create a new world. Anyone can be an activist, revolutionist, and hero. People need to keep on working to change to make things really change and they have power to do so. She talked about many movements in history such as woman’s right movement, Asian American movement, and Indian movement and we should remember heroic things people did during these movements. We forget about heroic things people did in the past. She herself changed the terrain of struggle. We need to think about way we actually want to change things. Another important idea was that she explains was how important it is for people to imagine world without racial and sexual segregation. We face racism in our life all the time and it is important to use our imagination to think about different future. She talked about diversity, saying diversity is about “Visual affect”. She also talked about Civil Rights movement of the 1950s–60s and the black panther movement in greater historical context to explain racisms in the past.

Heidi

3/11/2015 04:59:57 pm

Two main themes from Ms. Angela "How does change happen" are themes that have remained true in our contemporary world.
For instance, the theme of ignorance or conformity in our world with the way in which things are right now, and how that has held us back in our improvement of our society rather than improve or change our values. The way in which she talks about MLK and how we celebrate his struggles which made our world what it is today, but ever since then it is obvious that not many more people have stood up to be leaders just like him to continue to better the world for people who have suffered in history, and still suffer today. A way tho think about this is thinking about the word "diversity" and how we believe that because this word exists that there is actually more acceptance towards different people, likewise just because we celebrate MLK and have a African American, Chinese, or some Latinos day or month does not mean those groups of people have over came their struggles. In a way we allow ourselves to be conditioned to think that our world is already a great equal world, and social change is not as necessary as it was back then. However, not because things are not the way they were before, does not mean there is no room for improvement. This leads to the second theme which demonstrates some sort of settlement, due to the history that has been given to us in a different way than what it actually happened. Also, Angela made me think about the commitment for change that most of us do not have. Most of us have the knowledge when it comes to think critically about our world and the necessary changes, however when it comes to the action to get the change we truly need the commitment will not be there.

Huimin Huang

3/11/2015 05:00:25 pm

one of the central themes in Angela Davis's speech"How Does Change Happen?' is to use our imaginations. if we want changes. we have to imagine the change we want. indiviual needs, racism, segregation, woman's rights......few movement that Angela Davis had discussed are used the word imagination. for example, people back in the day didn't want segregation. and they imagine about it, and plan about how to change it, they step up and did it and they changed it. now we don't have segregation today. all because they did imagined the change they wanted. and the injustices had change. we have to have the picture first so we know how to step up and fight for it then we may have our change achieve. and the other thing is we help each other to change. how does change happen! we help people around us. for example, Angela Davis had discussed about civil rights movement that how the black panther party had a law book on one hand and a gun on the other hand to help people to protect thier rights against the police brutality, and that the change they want is one step closer to achieve. the way things are not suppose to be will not always be like that if you want it to be change.

liang zhang

3/12/2015 02:17:27 pm

im agree with you,people do need imagineation to think about our future. so people can get all kinds different ideas instead of just one idea. we are in a diversity wrold, there are so many different kinds of people in the state. one of the idea i dont really agree with you is that you said right now, we dont have segregation, yes,we dont have the visible segregation, but i think we still have invisible segregation, for example, in some of the small town, the white people dont play with white, they will separate youself along if you are a aiian. cause i had that experience when i was in MI.

Fode Cheick Toure

3/12/2015 07:46:04 pm

I agree with you. Racism and segregation still exist in our society. But they are invisible and sometimes visible Because there is no way to hide it. Some people can't just hide racism. They are racist by Nature. they don't like the idea that USA is a melting pot.
We as people should be together, and thrive toget her as one nation.

Roy Christopher

3/11/2015 05:42:41 pm

I felt odd watching this video I don't know why. A lot of it was about historical change. Some themes would be would be struggle for change, racism and segregation, including. She also talks about collective empowerment and individual benefits. It was pretty cool she let us in on some behind the scenes info on movements and hero’s in the past I can see racism still and at times I can see segregation. But the segregation isn’t on purpose in a way really. As for when she talks about understanding struggle I agree. Some people see question marks when you say “the struggle” like seriously you can see the lost in their eyes haha. They don’t know what you’re talking about. Towards the end of the video when she talks about how people ask her does she think things they’ve done were in vain. I agree it was not in vain just thinking about it myself. They may not have gotten the structural change they wanted, they changed the measures of freedom and gave it a new terrain. The degrees of freedom I guess you can say has changed a lot due to past historical movements, and not just the sixties. I think that goes for a lot of collective groups who fight for change. They may not get the exact path of change they wanted but they help set a new bar level of something that most people were probably scared to stand up for.

Tonivi Truong

3/15/2015 02:37:49 pm

Hey Roy Christopher, I understand what you mean when you say you feel odd watching this video by the way. What she touched up on seems to be alot of the segregation movements when the main topic was the stand a stand and make a change. Collectly, groups who fight for a change, desire more freedom, more equality And little by little, we are making the step towards it all. Not that we are there, or anywhere close, but a little step is better than no step at all. Rather, it makes a huge either in this world where there are many "problems", "struggles", and discrimination.

Emerson Lovato

3/11/2015 06:23:30 pm

Angela Davis's speech was very informative and made me do a lot of thinking. She talked about a lot of things but the two things that caught my attention the most were The Want of Change and and the Change that We Actually Achieve. She talked about her experiences as child and how black people couldn't go to places because only whites were allowed. During her childhood, she experienced many uncomfortable situations. Most of the things she went through, we don't have to go through because of all the positive changes that have occurred the past few decades. We face a few struggles on the daily basis but nothing like Angela Davis did. Segregation didn't allow people of color to do anything, they were forced to follow rules that kept them segregated and treated unfairly. She talked about using knowledge in transformative way, remaking the world and making it better. A few things have changed but there's a lot to be done in the future, as things change positively the world becomes a better place and all people feel good about the change that is happening. We still face racial problems now a days but it seems like we have forgotten about these issues because most of us are not doing anything to make the change happen. However, we can't change it all because like Angela Davis said there's things that we want to change and the change we can achieve. We can't change much if we think as individuals, however a lot can be done if we unite and act as a whole because the power of the people lies in unity of all people.

Nafi Watson

3/12/2015 05:29:27 pm

I agree with you I like how you said if we unite we can change or make a change. I wish we had more rosa parks and Martin Luther kings or Malcom x that know something wasn't right and they came toge to make what was wrong to something right.

Roy Christopher

3/17/2015 02:30:37 pm

I agree with what you said about how today things have changed from when she was younger til now. Also how most of the things she went through we don't have to go through anymore. And its all due to changes like you said. And they all required steps and achievements in the change we wanted, like Davis said. Also the best way to mke a change is to unite.as a group. If its just a small group/organization no ones going to really look at the problem or consider it worthy to deal with. At the same time there's nothing wrong though with thinking as an individual. You could still be influencing others and setting an example. Any little but significant thing can help and others take notice.

Yvette Castillo

3/14/2015 06:48:21 am

I agree with your post Emerson, when you said that we still face racial issues and that we have forgotten these issues and were not doing anything to make a change. Its sometimes possible and not easy for a change to happen but if we all unite and Point Out these issues there can be a possible change. if people unite there is power.

Erik Hoffmann

3/12/2015 04:56:11 am

Her two main themes in her speech were the emphasis the system places on issues at the individual level and not for the community and the importance of collective victories. She stresses that a lot of important victories have been centralized around 1 main figure of the movement, which is likely a male. An example is how the civil rights movement was largely centered around Martin Luther King, though the group of people who chose him to be their spokesperson were in fact women, who also didn't get credit for helping incite the Montgomery bus boycott, which was largely made famous by Rosa Parks. This shows the emphasis that the history that is taught to people in this country places on the individual, and not on the collective. She also talks about how the state redefines the context of some words to change their social meanings, such as how "democracy" has come to mean the opposite of what it stands for, or how diversity has changed from racial diversity to a generalized term for different people. She emphasizes that we must view our actions as a society not on how it affects individual people or populations, but how it affects us as a whole. It is essentially a capitalistic mindset that places importance how things affect individuals, but more importantly how it doesn't affect the individual thinking about it. She highlights how nothing can change if we think that's how things are supposed to be, and how the ability to change the situation lies in our own hands.

Bolortsetseg Jargalsaikhan

3/12/2015 07:49:48 am

The 2 central theme/ideas I found most caught my attention during her speech were the idea of how different the result of fights we fight for is different from what we actually expected, and the ideal of how individualism without its communities. If I understood correctly when she mentioned individualism in her last half of her speech, she also included that when there is a victory, the people forget about the communities and main groups who made it possible. But rather they just give credit to only one individual as portraying them as heroes, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. The people who started the boycott following Rosa Parks and those who elected Martin Luther King Jr. were all forgotten. The history doesn't mention everything that happens and doesn't give everyone who contributed those causes. Also, the other idea was what we get isn't actually what we fight for, such as racism. When everyone was fighting against racism and segregation, they didn't get what they hoped for when they won. Like she mentions, the segregation is over, as law placed separating people depending on their skin color, but racism, the ideals of people discriminating in generally hasn't been erased in people's minds. There are still cases of people being discriminated in different ways than usually depending on their skin color. Even though theses won't be same as everyone's main ideas they got from her speech, these are what stood out to me mostly and made me realize that they could be true.

Fode Cheick Toure

3/12/2015 07:53:05 pm

Angela Davis' "How Does Change Happen" In her speech, The theme that caught my attention is in These three phrases “the change we want, the struggle to change, and the change we achieve” . And the second theme includes racism and segregation. She remembered living in an apartheid system where black and white people lived apart. Her mother told her that she couldn't go to the amusement park because black people were barred from it. It was for white only.

This concept of separation and exclusion still exists in our society. There are too many obstacles that are put in place by the people in power to prevent people of color from succeeding in whatever they are trying to accomplish in life.

Angela David's mother also told her that" this is not the way things are supposed to be. This might be the way they are now. This is not the way they are supposed to be. They will not always be this way".

I think we all should fight collectively on every single issue of our time in order to build better future for ourselves, and our children. We should not seat down and let things the way they are now. We as people have the power to change the world, to make it a better place to live in.

Luna Flores

3/12/2015 08:12:16 pm

Two main ideas that I heard Angela Davis talk about and stood out to me the most is how she spoke about that it is simply ordinary people are the one that cause change, and how much imagination and commitment are important. The say that she explains it is one of the first steps in creating a change is being able to see and imagine the change. It always start with people wanting better for their future and thinking of was of making those changes. I think its is important to understand she means that any one can make a change but you have to want to make the change for yourself or nothing is going to happen. I like the she spoke about how much work goes into actually starting to even make noise to begin any change. By having to do the nitty gritty things such as walking door to door, handing out fliers, getting people interested over all is hard work. That was the second main idea, many people want change but it takes hard work and commitment to change. All of this circulates around a line she said, ”The Struggle to change, the change we want, and the change we achieve.” The struggle is getting started, motivated, and commitment because you can want change all day long, but simply thinking about to and wishing for it will not change anything. Having a collective consciousness among those who want to make a change. Then comes what change is it that’s needed or desired, coming up with how to present the ideas and how it will benefit people over the course of time. Using the knowledge that everyone brings to the table and not just those that went to school but using life experiences as knowledge. Lastly, how much you actually get done, how did you impact the community as a whole, and how long will the change last.

Yvette Castillo

3/14/2015 06:42:09 am

Angelina Davis talked about how in her young days she lived a cruel experience. There was a lot of racism between blacks and so she grew up already knowing what was going on and things weren't right like her mother said. Angela pointed out how segregation and all the injustice started with imagination. And from there the change continued. She then says how its not enough to simple imagine a different future while everything crumbles around us. She also talked about knowledge and how to use knowledge in a right way where we can change the world for the better. Angela went on with saying that most people are not informed about the important people that made a change like Martin Luther King and the female that made a book of Montgomery bus boycott and the women that started it, no one really realizes they are the motors of history. This was a great example I feel like just by hearing her speech there is hope in making a change. One thing that also got my attention was when she talked about the word diversity. and that diversity was just a visual affect. That was deep. because everyone are all people.

Tonivi Truong

3/15/2015 02:32:23 pm

The first theme Angela Davis talked about is how anyone can make a different in the world. She talks about the injustice in the culture and how it can be different if people really play their part. By using one's talent and imagination, they can expand and go very far in where their want to be. Many times, looking into the world in a positive way more often than negative, can effectively change the community in a positive way also. The second thing that Angela Davis talked about is how we should take advantage of the opportunities we are given; we need to be able to recognize the change and use it to our advantage. She talks about Affirmative actions, and boycotts, and how it was basically not one person taking a stand, but a group, a group that came together to seek a more positive growth that would stop discrimination and encourage equality. Thinking of doing something is different than actually doing it in many ways. And Angela believes that we are "thinking" these changes and that we should try to implement them more.

Guadalupe Hernandez

4/30/2015 06:29:33 am

This thought about affirmative action and boycotts being held by groups of people and not one person or leader is true. We have seen people protesting by yelling sometimes using violence, and this, in my opinion, isn't the right way to be heard. Only because you yell doesn't guarantee that you will be heard. We have to work together as one, not a hundred running around causing a muck, but as one, and deliver a strong hit. I agree that we need to stop thinking about change, and need to start getting up and make change. I will admit I am one of those that has not gotten up to participate in the process for change, but I do feel like this class has opened my eyes a lot. So with this I will definitely be more informed about what is going on, and if I feel it is in my right to speak up, I will.

Anqi Sun

3/17/2015 10:18:00 am

In the video how does changes happen, what we can see are two important topics that Angela used. The first major theme that Angela Davis talked bout was the human ability to encourage people to call for change. By using the knowledge, we can let people eel struggle, want to change, plan to change, form groups based on shared struggles, make changes, fail at making changes should be necessary and keep pushing forward to change. From her point of view, knowledge should be helping people to “remake the world a better for all inhabit”. The second theme that Angela mentioned in her speech was that “the Victories we do with are not always the victories we fight for, but we shall celebrate for them otherwise”. In the second part of her speech, she used the example of the revolution against the police violence that happened in Oakland few decades ago. By talking about the example of how those people at that time of how they monitor the action of the police violence, she was trying to make the audience to realize that everyone can be part of a protester. A fighter who fight for their own liberty, It can be a weapon for people all the races in the world, and this could be a power “weapon”.

Maurice Ainsworth

3/17/2015 02:06:01 pm

I love Angela Davis. In this video, Ms. Davis touched on many things that I could identify with. However, her ideas on collectivity rings the loudest. In the introductory portion of her speech, she was talking about segregation, she mentioned that " Segregation was disestablished because ordinary people became collectively aware of themselves as potential agents of social change". I perceive this to be the motivating factor that sparked the civil rights movement. For a brief moment, we were all on the same page, or at least, more of us were, than were not. Today, collectivism is rare. An example of the discord we experience can be seen in our text book. On page 434, there are two guys holding up signs that request an end to affirmative action, and another guy holding sign saying that affirmative action is racism. I wonder how we go from the civil rights movement, to acting like it never happened.

Another point Ms. Davis brought up was something that her mother told her when she was a child. "This is not the way things are supposed to be, and they will not always be this way. I understand that collectivity prevents oppression on a large scale. The problem, is that the powers that be are more treacherous than our conviction at times. It seems as though, the best we can do, is hold fast to our mission, and hope it catches on.

Patrianna douglas

3/19/2015 05:24:38 pm

The two major themes that stuck out for me in Angela Davis speech is the importance of collective change and critical impulse and in relation to the readings in the book at what point in time should the congress step in to reform collective national crises and national demand. She describes critical impulse as a commitment to a use of knowledge in a transformative way. I believe that as a nation it is going to take a lot for people of many states, different regional economic problems to join hands and take their differences aside towards a collective effort in reforming our major problems. As she described you cannot have a limited view on broad affairs and those involved in the fight. At some point you must put aside the minor differences to work together as a community and use facts and knowledge to demonstrate the majority of the problem. One person can never make a serious change in the example of Dr. King, he was a figurehead for a movement and by the time he became seen as the majority leader of the movement he had been put affront by a collective effort of individuals who laid the groundwork to give that face more credit. We do not often know who the bottom creators of the movement are but there are many.
Current issues reflect the limitation of congress to overstep state boundaries. As stated in the book only about roughly 2 million are involved in the general national government branches, a small number as opposed to the over 4 billion population of America. We have to help them dictate by uniting among the states and not just those within our own to continue for mass change across the USA. If we cannot do that the national government cannot make broad adjustments that will affect the quality of life of all. In the end it does start with one person but do not exclude others because you do not agree with the entirety of their views but find a common ground to achieve larger change. I hope that within my community I can help activate my neighbors by having a larger outlook on the commonalities in the change we would like to see and not the few negatives that we do not see perfectly eye to eye on. Once we have a collective basis for the change it can be fine tuned by a larger and more streamlined governing source.

Patrianna Douglas

3/20/2015 01:36:16 am

Guadalupe Hernandez

4/9/2015 03:41:43 pm

Angela Davis' speech went over a few things. One of those being how difficult change may seem and appear. Secondly, what change we really want and what we accomplish and how. Now in days we face different social beliefs such as sexism and racism. We may not realize what an impact it truly has on us, but since these ideas have been around for a while they are carried on, even though we know it is wrong some continue with the same mentality. It's easy to pass law that ultimately are meant to stop social ideas such as these, but the hard part is changing the opinions of individuals. The way change can happen is by all in a community to collectively agree and decide t fight for change. Some ideas may seem distant, but if we speak up, and act for change, change will happen.

Shameim Lowther

4/29/2015 05:28:14 am

‘This is how things are, but not the way its supposed to be, and it will not always be this way.’
Racism has been abolished but the legal form of racism has been established. To de-establish racism we need ordinary people collective the power to create a new world. Change is collective and not designed to be a individualism that pits one against groups that have suffered….
After listening to Angela Davis’s speech I gained great insight on the meaning of diversity, and change. She spoke about government, social instutions, and racism- can change by inporting certain habits, and imaginations through time through community and collectiveness.
She discussed how social meanings are socially constructed and they define it-but we as a people have the power to define and change it.
In this I learned that because you may not be able to transform your dream in a lifetime-by creating a habit, and advocating for change it will be a platform for other groups, generations to adopt a new critical stance in they way they perceive change.

Stephanie Linford

4/30/2015 09:00:43 pm

In Angela's Davis Speech on How Can Change Happen? has my brain going 1,000,000 miles an hour. This beautiful lady went through segregation in Alabama different toilets, water fountains, schools, neighborhoods,etc. she expresses how she felt as a child when she couldn't go here or there because the color of her skin. She expresses how segregation has stop leagally

Stephanie linford

4/30/2015 09:07:23 pm

but RASICM is still alive. My own facts to back up Ms.Davis are all the police shootings going on across states on black community members and other low income community members that may live in urban communities. Her story as a child really toched me & broke my heart to realize by the time she was 5 years old. She knew she was shut out of everywhere, she knew she was different just because the color of her skin. She couldn't have a normal childhood because rasicm was alive & not as low-key as it is now

stephanie linford

4/30/2015 09:27:53 pm

The story about her mother and things she would tell Angela as a ws its not right! Angela realized so quickly the difference between black and white. Her mother would tell her that the seperation was wrong.. That everything that was going on is wrong and one day in her lifetime she will see that its not right. But has she seen that yet? Has America as a Country of equality nd filled with diversity like we do...has America seen it?

Hang Nguyen

4/30/2015 10:00:50 pm

This is the blog that I like the most so far.
The speech started out with Angela Davids talked about her past, with double bathroom and water fountains. That was the time went discrimination went go high and the way she talked about it is so touching. They couldn't go to the amusement park because i was for the white only, and she was just a child back then. " This is not the way things supposed to be" - exactly! People are originally born with rights and personal special things.Racism and segregation are not supposed to be exist. "They will not always be this way"
The change we want, the struggle to change, and the change we achieve. It's easy for people to say I want to change the world, but it is not easy find the courage to start the change, and the strength to keep standing until the last minutes. We want the world with no discrimination, the differences, people see us as who we truly are, not how we look like or hoe people assume us to be, but how many people did actually stand up and raise their voice? Make a change?
It is not easy when you are being look down on, be push on the bad places that you have no way to get out, that you keep stuck in that place. The place that hold back your feet, won't make you increase and ruin your future, keep you in a "low" level all the time. That's why it is "struggle". I have known the situation when a young child wanted the go to university, to develop his future, but is community says no, they hold him back because they have been on with ill-educated their whole life, and see that as the way things should be. and they keep on getting poorer.

Zane Samuel

5/1/2015 04:04:13 am

Angela Davis discussed change, the struggle to change, the change we want and the change we achieve in her speech. She related change to how society was when she was growing up, segregation and the struggle for equality. As she relates segregation to racism it's clear that yes, segregation may be over however racism in modern day America still exists. This is an example of how the people struggled for change, the change they wanted and received a change they wanted however did not achieve the the full effect. Yes, the people gained their freedom and equal rights, however they did not achieve a non racist America. Angela also discussed the black panther movement and their struggle against police brutality against African Americans and people of color which can directly be related to modern day protests against the same thing. Decades ago people fought for change and eventually reached a point where they felt like that change was achieved. Today we can see that the change may have been achieved then, however now the same crimes are occurring and as we struggle to achieve change, the change we may acheive may be very different than the change we want.

steven gissentanner

5/1/2015 08:30:54 am

As I sat and watch Angela Davis give her speech the thought of how bad it must have been for her when she was growing up in her time period. She said that it feels different to go in a public place and not have any type of signs or restrictions or limit to where she could go. I shocking to see that all different race go through some type of trials and tribulations throughout the hundreds of years.

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