look me in the eye

“I imagined someone telling an autistic person to look them in the eye…I was already aware that its difficult”
“…unable to look others in the eye. He cannot connect with people the same way I can when I look someone in the eyes.”
“The image I had was a book about truth and integrity, with looking someone in the eye traditionally being a visual clue of honesty.”

These three posts all contain a different view on a certain act that most people think is a simple act. The first post has simpathy for a child who is unable to look a person in the eye. They have knowledge on autism and would most likely be more understanding to someone unable to look another person in the eye. The second post “he cannot connect with people the same way I can” displays understanding that there is a certain “connection” when people look each other in the eyes. It is almost a given that when you talk to someone you look each other in the eyes. Not doing so can lead people to think any numbers of things about you like you are being “rude” or “sneaky.” The third post reaffirms this belief that looking people in the eye is a “visual clue of honesty.” Looking people in the eye when talking is a cultural “norm” and not doing so can lead to many “assumptions” on what ones motives are. This is evident by so many people in our class have different views on what the cover was trying to convey. The act of looking someone in the eye is not as simple as it appears to be

Wiki Website

I have some ideas about what the layout/design of the site could be like. I think that the design I have in mind would allow for everyone to put their ideas on the site, while still having a site that meshes together well. Summer22 talked about using personal profiles, Ontherecliner talked about giving information about bars/nightlife, and BradytoMoss wanted to contribute information about intramural sports on campus (I didn’t feel complete until I had THREE examples).

The site layout that I had in mind would be somewhat of a forum and I have another website that is setup in the exact same way that we could use as a model. Basically it would have many different categories on the left side of the page. In the center of the page would be links to the newest posts of the day. We could allow not only ourselves but also other students/faculty to post comments on the website. This would ensure that if other people visited our site it would be constantly updated.

However,  I don’t want to get ahead of myself. These ideas are all contingent on people agreeing with the layout/design of the site. I do think this setup would be great for allowing everyone to keep their own ideas/individuality on the site, and also to bring all these ideas together on one site and be easy to navigate.

 The website is:

 www.coastguardocs.org

“Arab”

Etymology of Arab: ” c.1391 (Arabiens), from O.Fr. Arabe, from L. Arabs ” from Ar. ‘arab, indigenous name of the people, perhaps lit. “inhabitant of the desert”

Dictionary.com definition of “Arab”:

1. A member of a semitic people inhabiting Arabia and other countries of the Middle East .

2. A member of any Arabic speaking people.

A key point to note in this definition of “Arab” is that it does not mention Muslim. This is because being “Arab” doesn’t mean that you are Muslim and being Muslim does not mean that you are “Arab.” Another confusion that we (Americans) have with “Arab” and also the “Middle East”, is that all “Middle Easterners” are “Arab”, which is not the case (Humphreys 2005). To say that all the people in the “Middle East” are “Arab” is like saying that everyone in Asia is Chinese.

Being “Arab” as Dictionary.com presents it requires either speaking Arabic, or being a member of a semitic people inhabiting Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries. ”Middle Eastern” countries include North African countries, i.e. Algeria, Morocco, and Egypt.

In order to unpack “Arab” it is hard to overlook the stereotypes associated with the word in our culture today. From past experiences there can be some negative connotations that go along with “Arab”, but I think that that has more to do with our culture, than it does with the actual definition of the word “Arab.” Some sterotypes today about “Arab’s”; they are terrorists and they are Muslims.

While it is obvious that the first stereotype isn’t true, a possible reason behind the first sterotype is September 11, 2001. While Osama Bin Ladin and a majority of the hijackers were indeed of Saudi Arabian nationality, therefore making them “Arabs”, the vast majority of “Arabs” are not terrorists. It can sometimes be hard to give “Arab’s” a chance after September 11, 2001 because many Americans feel blanket hatred for the acts of a few. I’m not going to attempt to discuss anyone’s feelings about the cowardly acts of terrorism carried out, but a whole group of people can’t be categorized because of the acts of a few people.

 The second stereotype, that all “Arab’s” are Muslims, is also inaccurate and I believe that it has much to do with the simple fact that many Americans are completely unaware of Islam. Islam is a religion, and is not exclusive to “Arabs” (although it was started by an “Arab”) and “Arab’s” are not required to be Muslim, some Arab’s are Christian.

The word “Arab” has undertaken a huge transformation in our society since September 11, 2001. It is sometimes “thrown out” to ”categorize” a person of Middle Eastern background, possibly even in a negative way to to transform a person to one’s own stereotypes.

There is a lot hiding behind the word “Arab” and while the sterotypes are not true, they are part of our culture today and the only way to change one’s views on the meaning behind the “simple word” is to learn more about being “Arab” and what it encompasses.