Aspects of Culture/Ethnicity

CULTURE
STUDENTS NAME
INSTITUION
DATE
"Dad, Mom, I'm gay." Once a parent hears these words from their children, the first shock is often followed by feelings ranging from anger and denial to panic and guilt. It's also the start of a very difficult journey that, with understanding and emotional support, can bring acceptance and even beyond. When a friend or parent learns for the first time that a person they love is gay, their feelings can range from confusion to bewilderment or anger to fear. Based upon interviews and discussions with parents of gays and lesbians, "Beyond Acceptance" gives information and knowledge that will help parents and to understand their children well and build stronger relationships with them (Griffin, 1996).
Now fully updated and revised, "Beyond Acceptance" is a ground-breaking book that gives parents the knowledge and comfort they need to accept their gay children and build stronger family relationships. The book is based on the experiences of other parents and it lets them know they are not unaccompanied and it also aids them get past the emotional stages leading to reconciling with their children. When most of us contemplate opening up to someone, especially when it is one of our loved ones, we experience fear. Horror of being cast off is one of the factors that keep many of us from sharing who we really are with those who we love. The book ‘Beyond Acceptance` looks at each of the numerous possible reactions, divided into steps, not only in order, but also in a unique way. It helps you to be prepared before one takes this very important step of opening up to their loved ones. This book also prepares you if/when you receive a response you were hoping would not come. The book is a mixture of expository interposed with first-hand experiences of thoughts, feelings, growth and reactions, and everything in-between.
The experiences in the book are shared in almost a round-table aura, which makes sense, as they were taken from a series of meetings of the national group called PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). These meetings were started to give parents of lesbians and gays an ability to share their feelings and thoughts as a support network both for parents and for their children. The whole collection includes experiences from 23 different families and parents, people who are no different from our parents, siblings or friends (Griffin, 2003).
The book ‘Beyond Acceptance` is organized as a chronology. It travels from finding out through comparison and contrast of what was and what will be with obstacles along the way and winds of change in taking a stand and telling others, religious thinking and levels of understanding among others. One point that is clearly made, which is also the ultimate conclusions of the book, is the stunning amount of misinformation inside the thought processes of the general public. In the beginning, most of the parents were not only just confused, but angry with their children. They believed that their child was doing something wrong or that the parents themselves had done something to cause their child's orientation and the way they were. While sharing with each other, they hear of and share the sorrows and pains that their children and they suffer due to ignorance. The parents become more conscious of the inequities of society in relation to the orientation of their children, and quite a number of them decide to become activists and take a stand on behalf of their children and society in general.
Social Group Interaction Patterns
Everyone is born into a cultural and social setting—family, social class, community, religion, language—and consequently develops many social connections. A child's social setting affects how he or she learns to behave and think and, by means of instruction, punishment, rewards and example. This social setting includes home, neighborhood, school and, perhaps local religious or law enforcement agencies. There are also the child's most informal interactions with friends, relatives, other peers and the news and entertainment media. The way individuals will respond to all these influences, or maybe which influence will be the most dominant, tends not to be predictable. However, there is some substantial similarity in the way individuals respond to the same influences pattern i.e. to being raised in the same culture. Additionally, culturally induced behavior patterns, such as body language, speech patterns and forms of humor, become so deeply attached in the human mind that they operate often without the individuals themselves being aware of them.
Every culture has a somewhat different web of meanings and patterns: systems of trade and government, ways of earning a living, religions, social roles, traditions in clothing and foods and arts, attitudes toward other cultures, expectations for behavior and values and beliefs about all of these activities. Within a huge society, there might be many groups, with completely different subcultures associated with ethnic origin, region or social class. If one culture is dominant in a big region, its values may be considered right and may be promoted—not only by religious groups and families but also by governments and schools. Other sub-cultures may come up among special social categories, such as criminals and business executives, some of which may go past national boundaries such as scientists and musicians.
The social class into which individuals are born affects what diet, language, tastes and interests they will have as children. Such influences, therefore, will determine how they will perceive the social wo...