Bourdieu’s: Cultural Capitol, The Embodied State, and Racial Inequalities.

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Bourdieu explains Cultural Capitol as a non-financial social asset that promotes social mobility. Social mobility pertains to one’s position with-in a society, and can refer to specific groups, certain races or entire nations.

Bourdieu expresses the embodied state as the result of ,or a view of some- thing in particular that is both learned and develops one’s particular views; in regards to their specific beliefs (What ever they may be), and people can take possession of those belief, which are learned through socialization with others. Bourdieu also speaks of another form of embodied state; passive beliefs(Inherited), and are commonly thought of as passed from previous generations, and in the midterm can be perceived by people either knowingly ,or by submitting to an aggressor without really even realizing it, therefore there is no arguing or resisting; now others make their decisions for them.

This storyline begins with the picture of any ordinary family (The nuclear family), and tells a story of how easily one’s life can be ripped apart, and just how fragile our lives can be. Derek and Danny Vinyard along with their parents lived in Los Angels California; dad was a firefighter, they had a stay at home mom, both kids were doing well socially and academically, and life was good. Until the day that would change their lives forever. The patriarch of the family is murdered by a black drug dealer while he attempted to put out a fire in South Central Los Angeles.

Now let’s stop and think !!!!

• What would you do ?

• How would you feel inside? Are you angry? How angry are you?

• How far off from your true self can you really imagine being?

• What is the worst thing you could do to another person (In the name of love and, or sorrow)?

• Think to yourself (be honest, how do you really feel inside)?

This could be your mother, father, sister, brother, daughter, son, lover, etc… What would you do? How do you feel now?

• who are you? Really?

While reading Bourdieu, this particular film kept flashing through my mind like bits and pieces of a nightmare, and till this day is a subject that most avoid. I must warn this is a subject that some may find sensitive, and I only touch base on it to tell the story from my point of view, and how I feel about travesties such as this one.

What seemed to have been the all American family living their lives just as any other family would (without race or color factoring into the equation) they were happy, healthy, and most importantly a family. The Vinyard family after being struck by tragedy begins to break down both emotionally and physically until only the fragments of a life they use to know existed. At his wits end Derek the eldest brother is lured into world that would have devastating consequences(for everyone). Derek turns to a group known as the Neo-Nazi (skinhead) movement. Bourdieu speaks of what he refers to as the Habitus; physical characteristics and expectations from social groups that are learned through their experiences within that particular group, and then one tends to adapt those feeling, attitudes and beliefs from others. Where the doxa refers to fundamentally learned unconscious beliefs ,values and are viewed as universal(This group played of his vulnerability and grief, but this way of thinking was already unconsciously put into his mind by his father. Which explains Derek’s eventual complete submission to this group of outlaws after his father’s death. The illusio; Bourdieu expresses as a social agreement of sorts that people are expected to abide by, and these rule are considered common sense amongst them . Derek's situation seemed to incorporate within it all of Bourdieu's theories of the embodied state. In my next slide I would like to show a short clip of the movie (Make sure you hit play) in order to show you the learned social naiveties that Derek and eventually Danny fell victim to, starting at home, and then spiraling into a life of insanity.

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What started as a simple basketball game, wound up being what was obviously a racially motivated challenge toward one another.

After the game, the parties involved exhibited what Bourdieu referred to as the habitus; The dispositions (, i.e. Characteristics., temper, outlooks) that turned this game into a war, and the true nature of the particular belief s of both races came out. The “blacks” (as they put it) were pissed off because they lost the basket ball game, and felt the need for revenge, and attempts to rob the Vinyard family to save face. The deeply rooted hatred way down deep in their subconscious mind skewed their outlook as far as beliefs and values went. And guess what? No one won!!!!!!

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It’s not difficult for one to relate to the idea of the anger and rage that can come from the loss of a loved one, and there are no words to comfort the grieving from that suffering . The secondary victims are most often left to live life with the devastating after affects of the violence. Crime that comes from senseless acts of violence or hatred of any kind are beyond immoral and reprehensible; it’s hard to even describe how I feel , but here is what I do know; all actions preformed by any individual in regards to violence they will eventually pay for their crime against others. I believe it is called karma, and I truly do believe it’s exists.

Derek will paid the ultimate for his crimes, and now Danny will pay for the what is known as the social reproductions of learned and/or inherited values, which were chosen for him. (Play Videos)

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“How Did White Supremacy Start?

“Since blacks in Africa were poor and had little food, shelter, water, and money, whites came in and said, "We will pay for all of you to go to America." Little did they know, the only reason they were going to America was to become slaves. Black slavery started the idea of White Supremacy. White Supremacists have always thought of African Americans and people of other race as detestable people. An old American Indian legend has it that the black race represents mistakes on the part of "The Creator". For a long time the White Supremacists have treated people of color differently from whites. Caucasians thought of themselves as the highest ranked people of Earth. Anyone one else besides them were considered outsiders, and were made slaves and regarded as a lower rank than white residents of the U.S.A. The Ku Klux Klan is one of the most terrifying White Supremacists groups in the world. This group has been around ever since the time of the Civil War. Even though blacks had gained more rights after the Civil War, blacks and whites were still not treated equally. Groups were forming, including the Ku Klux Klan, to fight back against some of the rights that blacks had gained after the Civil War. At first the Ku Klux Klan was supposed to be just a social group but soon it turned to a more violent group. Burning crosses and lynching were some of the ways they harassed and tortured their victims. The Ku Klux Klan still remains today, but it is much smaller and not as big a threat as it used to be”.

https://sites.google.com/site/whitesupremacysite/how-did-white-supremacy-start

White Supremacy and Capitalist Patriarchy; is something that Kate Blewett and Brian Woods described as a global system, and their beliefs were simply this; white supremacy is the most oppressive system in the world, and this system has continued to refines its self over time, therefore expanding it and maintaining its power; all the while keeping its victims (The oppressed), and most of the implications and injustices of class inequality is believed by many to have been caused by white supremacy. These inequalities changed the course of our history forever. Sometimes I think about what the world would have been like if it weren’t for systems like these. To think about all the tragedies that came from this era“ The Almighty White Man”, Life would have probably been extremely different; as to what that world would look like we will never know, will we? Social inequality will continue long after most of us our gone from this world, but we don’t have to be victims to these inequalities. The only way to overcome inequality and injustice is to keep fighting for our rights, be kind to others, reach for your dreams, don’t steel the dreams of others, and listen to Danny’s message “life is to short to be pissed off all the time”.