Final Entry

I feel that I’ve learned a lot through the process of writing this blog and I feel more confident in answering the question “To what extent should I, as a citizen, respond to globalization.” I’ve come to the conclusion that awareness is one of the most important aspects of globalization. We need to be aware of the disheartening stories as well as the inspiring ones in order to fix the current problems in this world. 

Looking Back

Taking a look at what basic needs are and how different they are around the world was important for me to see. I’ve realized the world is a diverse and complicated place and what is right for me isn’t always right for person in another country. I believe everyone should have the right to clean water, food, housing, clothing, health care and it isn’t acceptable for civil societies to have their citizens dying from lack of food and water. Being aware of this issue has made me not only grateful for the things I have in Canada but it also makes me want to contribute to helping people who don’t have anything.

I’ve expressed my pride in being Canadian because of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms and I still feel that way. Here are the basic Canadian rights:

• Fundamental freedoms
• Democratic rights
• Mobility rights
• Legal rights
• Equality rights
• Language rights
• Minority rights

Without these rights Canada would be a completely different place than it is today. For starters I wouldn’t be able to voice my opinion on topics that I’m passionate about and people who are the minorities, whether it’s based on skin color or sexual orientation, most likely wouldn’t have equal rights. I’m very passionate about human equality and wish every person around the globe had the same basic rights and freedoms that Canadians have.


One of the darker aspects of globalization I learned about in this unit was human trafficking. This is a huge issue around the world and not enough countries are making an effort to change anything. As I stated in my blog I think education is the key to this problem that is concerning so many young women. But how can I contribute to the solving of this problem? How can I respond? Well not everyone is turning a blind eye to this underground problem, like the store The Body Shop. One of their many campaigns is to stop the sex trafficking of children and young people. They sell products were the profits go towards this campaign and have petitions in stores that customers can sign. By shopping at and supporting The Body Shop I'm contributing to the ending of this problem, even if it is a small difference. This goes to show how important it is as a consumer to aware of what a business supports and it's affect on the planet.


Media has a huge impact on this planet in both positive and negative ways. In the negative ways it can distort facts and provide the wrong information to the wrong people resulting in disaster. But it can also provide inspiration and a place where people can stand together for a cause. Take for example the Tank Man. His courage and determination to stand up for what he believed in was an inspiring act for people around the world. I'm personally very grateful to be able to know about this man's brave act because it shows me that even one person can make a huge difference.


In this unit I was a little shocked to see the actual state of the gender gap. I though that women's pay rate and state of equality in the work place was in a better state. As a young woman this concerns me and I want to be aware of this issue as I apply for jobs. Men and women both have their strengths and weaknesses and should be working together to complement each other, rather than competing.


The text book talked about transnational corporations like Wal-Mart and their affect on communities. Using businesses like these are convenient at first but I think they will end up costing us in the future. Mega businesses make it nearly impossible for smaller businesses to become successful and workers rights become abused in the process. I personally want to make a better effort to support smaller and worldly conscious businesses like The Body Shop. 


From this unit I learned that globalization has a huge impact on the spreading of diseases like AIDS and SARS. Without it most likely AIDS and SARS wouldn't have come to North America, but it has and we have been forced to become educated on how to protect ourselves . Disasters like these can destroy many people but we will only succeed if we world together to find a cure. 


I learned that even the smallest contributor can be considered a global citizen. I didn't really consider myself a global citizen until I really sat down and thought about my worldly impact. I've started small in bettering the world but hope to expand my contribution as I get older.


Finally I talked about how we all play a part in how we contribute to our world; from students to consumers to corporations. At the beginning of this entire course I was sure that I wouldn't be able to make any difference in this globalized world but I'm starting to believe differently. As global citizens we all have a part to play in the better of our world, no matter how small the contribution is.

So how should we respond to globalization? We need to realize that globalization is an equilibrium of good and bad and only when the world works together can the problems of it begin to be solved. It needs to be approached with understanding, respect and with an acceptance of responsibility. In order to chang the world one must start within.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." ~ Mahatma Gandhi

An Active World

Global citizens can work alone to make a difference but it is easier and much more productive to join together with others to make a change. Here are some examples where globalization has helped people join together to make a change.

Roles in a Globalizing World

Students

"Breaking borders . . . one stereotype at a time." 

- Breaking Borders Club motto

At a young age making a difference can seem extremely overwhelming. "I'm only ____ years old. How can I really make a change?" Making a difference in this world may seem challenging but it isn't impossible. For example, Students at Edmonton's Harry Ainlay High School decided to stand up and make a difference by starting the Breaking Borders Club in 2006. Their goals were to build worldwide understanding of cultures, traditions and religions. The students even started letter campaigns urging governments to take actions to help child soldiers in Africa. Without globalization these students wouldn't be aware of problems like these and wouldn't be able to make a change in the world.

Consumers

When enough people join together boycotting companies can be a very powerful way to get businesses to change their ways. Because of boycotting companies like Avon, L'Oreal and Gillette stopped testing on animals and in 2005 it also forced J. Crew clothing stores to stop selling furs. But boycotting wouldn't nearly be as successful if the internet weren't there to help spread the messages protestors are trying to make people aware of.

Corporations

Even corporations have a place in making a difference. The Body Shop is one of these stores and they have become completely conscious of how their products are being made and where the ingredients come from. They pride them selves on the fact that they source responsibly, reduce their impact on the earth and are strongly against animal testing. They also are the leaders of campaigns to stop sex trafficking and the spread of HIV. The Body Shop really is a shining example of what a responsible and effective business should be. 

These examples show that everyone can participate in being a global citizen. Student, individual, company; it doesn't matter. We all have a part to play in the bettering of our planet.

What Does It Mean To Be A Global Citizen?

I was born and raised in Canada and therefore am a Canadian citizen. But am I a global citizen? According to the organization Oxfam, a global citizen is someone who

• is aware of the wider world
• respects and values diversity
• is willing to act to help others
• accepts responsibility for his or her actions

Global citizens take responsibility for making globalization work for as many people around the world as possible. Global citizens look beyond what is and envision a world of universal equality and justice. They are the people that create positive change in this world.

 “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” 

― Mother Teresa

So am I a global citizen? At this point in my life I’m no Wangari Maathai or William Wilberforce and haven’t contributed much to the bettering of the world but I do cast my stones, however small they may be.  My best example would be my work as a volunteer at the SPCA. One day a week I help to better the lives of animals who have been abandoned and I'm proud of that contribution. And as get older and more experienced I want to be able to contribute even more to this world. People that make big moves in life are the ones that make an impact on this world and I want to be one of those people.

Worldwide Heath

Illness pandemics are throughout our history and some have even happened in the last 10 years. What aids the spreading of these viruses are carriers of the disease - anyone from rats to soldiers - traveling long distances. This was the case for both the Spanish flu in 1918 and the black plague in the 14^th century. A more recent case of fast spreading illnesses was the SARS out break in 2003 where 774 people died worldwide. A small number in comparison to the millions of deaths from the Spanish flu and black plague, but scary non the less. The disease started in China but rapidly spread worldwide because of fast and easy transportation. Because of globalization diseases such as SARS and AIDS have been able to spread around the world, affecting everyone. Yes, it wasn’t one of the positive out comes of globalization but because of globalization people worldwide were able to learn about these new diseases and how to protect themselves against them. Because of globalization organizations have been formed to create an awareness of AIDS and people from around the world have been working towards a cure. It makes me nervous to know that in this day and age it is so easy to become infected with foreign diseases like SARS but it makes me content to know that our government knows how to effectively deal with pandemics like this.

Blood Oil

Blood oil is oil that is obtained through violence and bloodshed. Throughout history blood oil has come from many countries including Nigeria and Sudan in Africa.

Before reading about blood oil in the text I knew that just like there are blood diamonds there were things like blood oil. I didn’t know however the existent of the bloodshed connected to oil. I have learned that in 1995 the Nigerian government executed nine Ogoni activists who wanted to preserve their land from being destroyed by the oil industry. Also beginning in the 1990’s a civil war broke out in Sudan and millions of Sudanese were displaced and there were numerous reports of genocide. These facts deeply disturb me and even make me question humanity. Are humans so savage that we are willing to murder anyone that stands in our way of making some money? I know that not all humans are like this but it still horrifies me that to some people making money holds 

more value than a human life.

The Invasion of Iraq 

It’s hard for me to believe that America was justified in its invasion of Iraq. There has never been any proof of “weapons of mass destruction” and the only other reason the U.S. would want to invade Iraq would be to protect Western control over the countries oil resources. I think the U.S was afraid that with Saddam Hussein controlling Iraq the global supply for oil was at risk. Even U.S allies such as France, Germany, New Zealand and Canada didn’t think an invasion was justified. People from around the world even started anti-war rallies including Rome, which had a rally of three million people, the largest anti-war rally in history. In my opinion the invasion was solely for the purpose of protecting oil.

Transnational Corporations and Communities

Wal-Mart; virtually known worldwide, this mega business is worth over $400 billion but comes with a ton of criticism. They have been criticized for supporting sweatshops, child labour and low wages. On the other hand supporters say that Wal-Mart helps to expand the economies and provide a large number of jobs.

In the short run Wal-Mart seems like a good thing to support. They provide tons of job opportunities, offer cheap products and help the economy grow. Not all places are receptive to their presents though, like smaller towns like Cochrane. Cochrane citizens rallied when Wal-Mart wanted to open a store in their small community, which I believe is completely understandable. A small town like Cochrane would be destroyed by a mega business like Wal-Mart and here are some reasons why:

• Cochrane is run on small local businesses and Wal-Mart would replace the need for these stores.

• The closing of local shops would result in lack of business diversity.

• Higher paying jobs would be replaced by low Wal-Mart wages.

I believe large transnational companies like Wal-Mart seem great at first but are damaging in the long run. They end up riding of the backs of countries with low labour costs and standards and Wal-Marts only seem to mainly benefit North America. I would like to be able to say that I don’t shop at Wal-Mart and I don’t support underpaying employees or possible sweatshops, but I can’t. I’m sometimes embarrassed that I continue to support companies like Wal-Mart, even after I know why their products are so inexpensive. I would love to be able to support small businesses but financially I can’t always do that. Life is expensive and shopping at big businesses makes life a little easier in the short run.

Communities: From Local To Global

Communities are things that virtually everyone is apart of and now a days you can become apart of a community even if you aren’t a social butterfly. I don’t consider myself a social butterfly but I am apart of local communities as well as virtual ones. For example, by day I’m apart of the Cochrane humane society community because I’ve been volunteering there for well over a year. And by night I’m apart of the online gaming community. I’m proud to be apart of both these communities because they contribute to my overall happiness and provide social and moral satisfaction. They’ve made me who I am as a person; influenced what my likes are and what my stances are on different subjects. Just from being apart of these communities I see how important globalization is in my daily life and how reliant I am on it. 

The Gender Gap: Women vs. Men

Today in the textbook I learned about the gender gap between men and women. This means, according to the dictionary, “The discrepancy in opportunities, status, attitudes, etc. between men and women.” It’s not something that I’ve really had to deal with in my life but as I’m considering options for my future career it’s something that I need to be concerned about. According to the text, in 2003 women earned 71.2 per cent as much as men. I knew that the gender wage gap existed before reading this but I didn’t think it would be that extreme. And because the career path that I am considering taking is a male dominated industry I am nervous about whether or not I will even have a chance at competing with male co-workers. I don’t understand how this standard could be acceptable to employers. I'm a young woman who wants to have a successful career and I want to be paid equally, especially if I pay for the same education and contributed the same amount of hours as a male co-worker. I think that when applying for a job being aware of what my possible employer’s stance is on a genders pay is would be beneficial.

Ultimately I believe both sexes should be treated as equally capable of completing given tasks. Sure, there can be some definite differences between men and women, like physical strength and abilities to multitask, but this is why both sexes should work together rather than competing against one another. Men and women have different strengths and weaknesses but that shouldn’t be a deciding factor for who is better suited for a job or how much the person is paid.

The Communication Technology Connection

Communication technology has played a huge part in the expansion of women’s rights and has been an extremely positive influence, although it does have its problems. One of them being that many places, mainly developing countries, don’t have access to contemporary communication technologies and therefore are deprived of even knowing about what they can do to improve gender equality. I myself have found that even I was ignorant to the extent of the gender gap and I have full access to resources such as books and the Internet. 

Media Impact

There’s no denying the media plays a huge role in how we perceive the world and it can promote change in both positive and negative ways. TV shows, movies and Internet websites can influence different culture’s life styles and it isn’t always perceived positively.  In March of this year youths in Iraq were stoned to death by extremists for adopting western clothing and hairstyles. It seems that at this time many Iraq citizens aren’t ready to accept these western trends and many are still living in the dark ages because practices such as stoning are still a norm. This aspect of media in strict places like these, in my opinion, is negative and unproductive. These youth were influenced by western culture and because of where they live, they paid for it with their lives.

Tank Man

Now obviously not all media exposure is as negative as the example. Media coverage around the world helps us stay connected with the world and aware of what is happening around us. It can broaden our consciousness of the world and even inspire change. Take for example the “Tank Man.” News coverage of this mans bravery and willingness to stand up for what was right was spread around the world. I personally feel inspired and from this man’s actions I can see that even one person can make a difference by standing up for what he/she believes in. To me, 
and I’m sure many others, he is a symbol of hope.

The Internet

The cyber universe is a vast land filled with fountains of information on virtually any subject. It can provide awareness for various campaigns around the world such as the protests against the use of Guantanamo Bay. More recently it was a place for people to ban together to petition against passing the Internet censorship laws and SOPA and PIPA. In the US SOPA and PIPA are acts that are suppose to help to prevent online piracy but the terms of the acts are too broad and could easily become abused. Because of the large out cry of protests across the Internet the progress of SOPA and PIPA have thankfully been delayed.

Approaching the Internet

Now one must remember that the Internet isn’t perfect. It is filled with loads of information but this material is unfiltered, which means that anyone can post any type of “factual information” without having any accurate sources. So this just means that you should be careful with selecting sources and take certain information with a grain of salt.

Additional Information:

News article about youth in Iraq being stoned the death for wearing “western styles.” (WARNING: contains graphic images): [Link]

Info on what SOPA and PIPA entail: [Link]

Human Trafficking

Globalization certainly isn’t perfect and has darker parts to it; one of those parts being human trafficking. Human trafficking usually involves women from other counties trying to escape their current country by becoming involved with companies or individuals that offer them jobs as civil servants in North America. Little do they know their employer’s intentions are to force them into prostitution or drug dealing and because most of the time they are illegal immigrants their rights are often exploited. And it isn’t just North America that has this festering underground problem. All around the world human trafficking is practiced and in some places it’s even illegal. So the question is how do we solve this popular problem? Some say education is key. If these women were properly educated it would help to decrease the amount of girls falling into the claws of pimps and drug dealers because they would know better. Some have suggested the use of heat goggles to determine if living beings are being shipped to countries in containers. Whatever the solution, something needs to be done. It’s an unscrupulous act that cannot be ignored by any country.

Milestones of Democracy and Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Because of the atrocities of WW II the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 as to prevent such a recurrence. The document states, “human being are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” Individual rights are set in to six areas:

• Political rights
• Civil rights
• Equality rights
• Economic rights
• Social rights
• Cultural rights

It sets a standard that hopefully one day all nations will adopt to better the lives of their citizens. I’m proud to know that it has served as a model for similar documents such as the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

 

In 1982 Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau signed the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, committing it to Canada. The purpose of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was to focus on evolving human rights and freedoms for Canadians and pledging to keep them protected. Here are the rights and freedoms listed below. 

•  Fundamental freedoms
• Democratic rights
• Mobility rights
• Legal rights
• Equality rights
• Language rights
• Minority rights

The Charter also states “such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.” As a hole I believe the Charter is a huge advancement for human rights and as a Canadian citizen it makes me proud that this is what Canada’s standards are. I’m proud that we are one of the few countries that fully support same-sex marriage and recognize that every human should be treated equally and have the same rights. Sure Canada isn’t perfect but we are on the right path and hopefully by leading by example other counties will follow our standards for equally.

Early Ideas of Democracy and Human Rights

Today I read in the text that many believe “democracy” and “human rights” go hand in hand but that’s not always the case. The text gives examples of ancient democratic societies and their standards for human rights. Here are my interpretations below.

Ancient Greece – In the sixth century BCE male citizens of Athens had the right to vote, partake in debates and could participate in the Olympics. Greece was considered a democratic society but it didn’t have equal human rights. Women were treated unequally and Greece also endorsed the use of slaves.

Ancient Rome - In the first century CE Roman emperor Claudius decreed that contoured people should become Roman citizens and could even become part of the Senate. He also enforced laws protecting slaves who were sick. Although slaves had their heath cared for they were still slaves, second-class citizens and didn’t have full human rights.

Ancient India – In the first or second century CE the Laws of Manu were written for Ancient India. The laws were formed from traditions that existed long before that and consisted of statements of how women, children, and various members of different classes of people – according to Hindu religion – should be treated and how they should behave. At first glance this may seem like a good way of ensuring human rights but for women these rights weren’t always fair or just. For example, it states that wives should worship their husbands as gods, women must never do anything independently and should always be accompanied by a man.

Basic Needs

This chapter started out talking about basic needs and whether or not they are a human right. This topic like many others connected to globalization cannot be answered by a simple “yes” or “no.” What are basic needs? Are they the same for everyone? Who is responsible for making sure they’re met? Firstly, I need to establish what I think are basic needs from most important to least, according to the life styles of North American people.

1. Clean water

2. Nutritious Food

3. Heath care

4. Clothing 

5. Housing

6. Personal hygiene

7. Education

8. Socialization (friends, family)

These are what I consider the basic things one needs in order to become successful in Canadian and American society, but I feel that the standards for people in other countries would be much different. For example, the standard of living for housing, clothing and education in parts of Africa are very different in comparison to North America. Obviously clean water, food, clothing and health care are rights that everyone should have, regardless of where you live, because they are crucial for sustaining life. As for responsibility I believe it’s up to the Canadian or American government to care for its citizens. When someone is elected into that position of authority over a country they need to accept responsibility for their people’s wellbeing. As for other counties I can really say who should be held responsible because not all counties have the same standards and customs as Canada and the US.

Intro

Chapter 13: Human rights, Democracy, and Globalization

“To what extent should I, as a citizen, respond to globalization.”

There is no straight and simple answer for this question and there are many things to consider when it comes to developing a standpoint on globalization. Globalization isn’t a topic that is simply black and white, but is full of areas of grey. Truthfully I feel overwhelmed with the though of how I, a single individual in this vast world, can respond to the large issues and benefits of globalization, but though these next few chapters I will attempt to answer this question for myself.