Justin's Awesome Blog

The Site!

2006-12-08T10:13:00.000-08:00

I've finished a large portion of my website. Check it out at http://www.duke.edu/~jjl11

Also, I've complied a video featuring many Duke students and their input on self-segregation. At the end, you'll be in for a surprise. Although I'm a horrible poet, I decided to write a poem about self-segregation (very poorly).

Self-segregation isn't just my topic for a Writing class, it's actually an issue that deeply concerns me. To be completely honest, back in California, my friends were predominantly white, and I had no problem with that. I enjoy the friends that I have now, but I really feel limited sometimes because I don't have the opportunity to interact with other races. Also, I get the feeling that when a third-party views a self-segregated racially homogenized group, they start to have all these perceptions of our race. That's another thing bothers me toe: "our race." Ideally, we shouldn't label ourselves solely by our races-- I feel that does not define me.

I've had many responses from other students saying that they didn't congregate in racial groups until they hit college. And now that we're stuck in our little cliques, it'll be extremely hard to break free and meet other people. But I contradict myself, that's not true. Interaction is the decision of the individual, albeit influenced by social pressure. This social pressure can be defined as the comfort zone in which each race feels comfortable.

More to come!

Formal Introduction

2006-10-29T11:22:00.000-08:00

I am a freshman at Duke University. In this blog, I will discuss the topic of self-segregation and its implications on society as a whole. As diversity is often an element of college admittance, I will try to examine how "diverse" our campus really is. Can diversity be defined as statistically having a diverse population of students, or do we need to look deeper and examine the social conglomeration patterns of students?

Here are some thought-stimulating questions:

1.) Is self-segregation a problem?
2.) If so, how can the "problem" be corrected?
3.) What is the primary racial composition of your friends?
4.) Do you feel more comfortable associating with people of the same race?
5.) If you interact mostly with people of your own race, do you feel there are repercussions?

Observations

2006-10-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

As seen in the first week of Freshman Orientation, it was apparent that the Asians, African-Americans, and Indians-Americans had a tendency to flock together with their respective groups. Although this observation does not hold true for every individual person mentioned, it is undeniable to say otherwise.

Here's more proof: take a look at the lunchroom and notice the seating patterns of certain students.

How about just taking a look around campus?

It's true that self-segregation is everywhere. The real question is, is this tendency a problem?

Welcome to Justin's Blog Site

2006-10-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

In this blog, I will examine prove the inherent racism of self-segregation on college campuses. Self-segregation, which has become a common sight on college campuses, is in fact a problem and needs to be resolved.