Sociology of Diversity
Research Project 1
Introduction
Being part of a group has been a learning experience. I have been in various groups since childhood until now. Accordingly, I have left some of the groups and joined others because of my goals, expectations, and needs. Notably, I have learned a lot from these groups and appreciate their role in my life. As such, this project explores the groups I joined and how they shaped my perception.
Body
As stated, I was a member of several groups in childhood. The first group was an animal conservation group in my neighborhood. As members, it was our duty to protect animals by championing their rights and creating a clean and healthy environment for the animals to thrive. Comparatively, I was also the leader of my pack of friends from school. We were five members; three girls and two boys. As friends, we would walk together from school, and help each other complete assignments. Finally, I had two neighborhood friends, and the three of us called ourselves Famous three, as we aspired to be as wealthy and famous as our celebrity idols.
As an adult, I have joined several groups. Now, I am a member of Amnesty International, which I joined in 2014. Amnesty International campaigns for human rights and has over eight million members worldwide (“Who We Are,” n.d.). I am also a member of the drama club at school. This is in addition to a course group my class started.
I am proud of the groups that I have joined. Being a member of Amnesty International gladdens me because I help make the world a better place by promoting human rights. That there are people in different parts of the world benefiting from our efforts, such as enforcing leadership among dictators, assures me that we can change the world to become a better place. Additionally, I enjoy being a drama club member because I can exercise my talent as I love acting. Further, I appreciate acing’s role in addressing social problems. I am confident that I can touch people’s lives. Being a drama and Amnesty International member makes me happy. Again, I like being part of my class group because I get the latest updates on course work, and read people’s views about the course and non-course topics. The group is also very entertaining as we exchange jokes and memes. I love all my groups.
I find it interesting that my childhood and adulthood groups have some similarities and reflects my character. For one, it is evident that I am passionate about rights for living creatures, as evidenced by my earlier membership in the animal conservation group, and now Amnesty International. Equally, I am concerned about my academic performance because I have been in academic-related groups since childhood. My group memberships reflect my interests. I shared this observation with a friend, and she told me that even in the future, I would be driven by the same needs when I join groups after campus. I agree with her argument. Again, I realized that my family’s culture influences the groups. For one, my family takes education very seriously. My great grandparents emphasized the value of education to their children and sacrificed their wealth so that their children would learn and have a better future. This lesson was passed down to my parents, and now me. By comparison, my love for rights was a result of my interaction with the strong women in my family. They not only love the environment and people, but educate the community on preserving life, and have been active on such issues even before I was born.
Again, I have learned a lot about the membership practices and expectations of my groups. For instance, I learned about joining Amnesty International from an acquaintance. He found me reading a post on human rights, and started engaging me on Amnesty International. He told me about the reason for the formation of the group and the benefits. I was so intrigued and opened their website, and I signed up for membership. As a member, I receive regular updates of any activity, and I can read the news from the website or through the Wire Magazine and annual reports (“Who we are,” n.d.). Comparatively, in the class group, we had some terms for our social media page. For example, we refrain from racist and derogatory comments and no posting explicit content. Most of the activity should be about course work, although heaty jokes are welcomed. The drama club also has rules that were formulated when the group was created, although regular updates are made during meetings. I receive regular communication from all the groups, and I give my input through the relevant communication lines.
The groups have revealed my prejudices. In terms of bias, I learned that I view democracy as the ultimate form of leadership. As such, I frown on anyone or a leader who uses any other leadership style to be a dictator and selfish. This is despite the circumstances that could have led to non-democratic leadership. In addition, I also dislike individuals who feel that human rights should also be limited. For instance, people who support the death sentence. I believe that all life is precious, and my parents emphasized to me the value of life. As such, those who claim that the death sentence is, at times, necessary because of the nature of the crime are not my