Freedom Riders Turned Into Hollywood Movie

If Hollywood attempted to depict the Freedom Riders in movie form, I don't think it would be done authentically with a close rendering of real events to the point where it would be more effective for audiences than the documentary. I feel the documentary will always beat anything Hollywood could ever do, given that it's the "true" story. I believe that Hollywood would try as hard as they possibly could and spend millions of dollars to recreate everything, but in the end, all  the information that would be needed would not fit into a two hour time frame. Therefore, the audience would not react the same way. The viewers would not get a good understanding by any primary sources, actual Freedom Riders, or historians when they would watch the movie made by Hollywood directors and producers. While the Freedom Riders tell their stories, they have so much emotion. They express how they feel during different times of the movement, and are able to recollect what happened. They can also fully describe what they were surrounded by while they were on strike. This includes people, sounds, buildings, fires, destruction, etc. When viewers watch a motion-picture movie trying to reenact everything, the actors are not feeling the real emotions and thoughts that the survivors have experienced. Actors can do as much research on the topic as they want, but truthfully I do not think it is the same. Only real survivors, primary sources, know what happened. Even if they were bystanders, they witnessed something. They were there at the time and have a story to tell. I think if Hollywood did make a movie, it would only work if all the actors were the actual survivors, but Hollywood and the survivors would never do that. Therefore, the most popular place for making movies would never have better success at telling the story of the Freedom Riders than the documentary. 

Parenting in 2012

In the year of 2012, adults parent their children in many different ways. Some parents are very strict with their kids and limit them to what they can do, while others do not have a care in the world. I feel that their should be a middle ground when it comes to parenting. I believe that children should be disciplined, but at the same time, they should have some type of freedom. I have always thought that if you are disciplined and guided by your parents in life, then you will be successful when you get older. On the other hand, if you do not have parents or other people guiding and supporting you, you will have a harder time becoming successful in life. These type of kids may or may not, but I believe may be steered in the wrong direction. My parents have done a good job at raising me so far in my life, and I think this is because they show disciplinary action, but at the same time they give me some types of freedom. Both my parents tell me right from wrong, but they cannot control what I do in my life. My mom and dad have warned me about many things that I have and will face in life, but I feel that I have made the right decisions in life because of their guidance and support. Just because my mom and dad parent me a certain way, does not mean all parents do the same thing. Some of my older cousins parent my younger cousins differently. When my extended family gets together for the holidays, anyone is able to tell that we are being raised in a different manner than each other. For example, when my brother and I are messing around with each other, we can only go so far. Once my mom tells us to stop, that is the end of it, period. But, when my cousins bother each other it is completely different. Their parents will tell them to stop, but they do not feel that they need to listen to their parents. This really shows how our parents discipline us differently. One day when I become a parent, I plan on parenting my kids the way my mom and dad have parented me. I feel that it is very effective, and my children will have respect for me. They will not take advantage of me, but at the same time they will not be afraid of me. I want them to be able to talk to me about anything. I will try to point my kids in a certain direction when they are young, but if they choose not to do it when they get older, it will be okay with me. For example, when I become a parent I will probably want my kids to play lacrosse like I do, but if they choose to play soccer or basketball instead it will be fine with me. I will also have ground rules for me kids that they will have to follow. For example, one rule will be not breaking curfew. In conclusion, I believe that parenting in 2012 is different for every family, but has a big impact on the future of those children

Race-relations in America Today

I believe that race-relations in America have improved drastically over the past couple of decades. There are still certain forms of rascism today that individuals or small groups of people participate in, but as a whole, I feel that America has come very far since the publishing of To Kill A Mockingbird, the Freedom Riders strike, the Civil Rights Movement, and even more. One example showing that the race-relations in America have improved is by having an African-American male as the president of the United States. A majority of citizens in the U.S. have accepted that anyone, no mater what race, can run this country. During the 1960s and prior, this would have never been accepted. I personally feel that it wouldn't have been accepted ten to fifteen years ago, either. In 2008, it seemed that America received a wake up call. The citizens of United States were finally able to realize that individuals want to make positive impacts on our society. It does not matter the color of their skin or even their gender. Even though I truly feel that race-relations in America have gotten better over the past numerous decades, I still think that it could improve even more. One of the major problems that is getting in the way of this are the different stereotypes. Certain people still do not realize that all people are not the way they are petrayed to be. Some examples of this are that all African-Americans are good at sports, all Mexicans are lazy and came into America illegally, and all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists. Obviously these sayings are not true. Everyone in these different race groups cannot be or do what is said. I have been in a situation where someone has told me that all African-Americans have to be good at sport, but I knew there was no point in listening because I knew they were wrong. In conclusion, race-relations in America have changed in a very positive way overtime, but there is always room for improvement.