This picture reminds me of how my culture views nature. I had to interview my great grandmother for a documentary we're working on talking about traditions and culture. One thing she did growing up was pick strawberries, string beans, and things of that nature. So for my culture doing simple farm work like that and really making the most of the land is seen in good light. Another picture that was required was something that represented our spiritual beliefs.
I'm a Jehovah's Witness, and I'm not going to go into too great detail but this picture is a shot of one of our Kingdom Halls; our place of worship. As a Jehovah's Witness I don't do anything that isn't supported in the Bible. Instead of going to a church I go to a Kingdom Hall, it's more of a flattish building, and isn't too extravagant to draw undo attention.
Since I'm African-American my culture strongly supports equality. After all Blacks used to be slaves because they weren't seen as equal so its natural for me to want to treat others equally. Since those who are part of black culture understand how much of a struggle it was to be seen as equal rather than lesser, and in some cases we're still seen as lesser, it's easy to want to treat everyone the same.
The Jackson 5 are huge in black culture. They made great music and if you look around now a lot of groups try to copy their success. Plus, since blacks have had such a hard time making a name for themselves, anytime one of "us" make it, its great to see. Seeing 5 young, respectful, black men, make good, wholesome music that everyone can relate to was great to see. The Jackson 5, along with Berry Gordy, Aretha Franklin, and the Supremes are all artists who had an impact on black culture, and are success stories that come from that same culture.
The reason I said that when a black person makes it in a sense its a big deal, is because things like this sign held us back from being able to do many things. Segregation was a huge roadblock in black culture, along with Jim Crow Laws that helped support racism. Racism was hard for black people because they were put in positions to where if they took the persecution they lose, and if they fought back they would be seen as the oppressor.
Washington DC has significance to my culture because of Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington; where he gave his legendary I have a dream speech. This is probably one of the most powerful speeches in all of world history, and a had a huge impact. It would be great if MLK could see his dream being fulfilled to a certain extent.
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