All together now !

                As a U.S citizen I have the duty to make something out of myself. I’m supposed to go to college and please society’s needs. I always like to think of myself as my own person. I don’t like conforming to the world around me. But in a way I have unfortunately. I’ve gotten so caught up in the money making aspect of life that some things just aren’t as fun as they used to be. Living in this world I have to duty to be open to difference. I’m supposed to accept everyone no matter how odd or wild they may be. Taking this class, I’ve realized that music can help with this very thing.

                Music has always had an influence on society. We allow music to determine what kind of person we will become. At times we don’t even listen to the lyrics but to the voice. If the voice sounds angry we can infer that we should be angry too. During 9/11 music was very influential. Not everyone agreed with the President’s decision to go to war. Many people made songs encouraging it, while others spoke up and disagreed. They were bashed for doing such a horrible thing. Music can also tell us about how a person lives. In certain places music is banned and is basically a sin. For example, in Morocco, Hip-Hop is looked down upon, but a group of youth didn’t care. They used it as a way to express their opinions and to tell their stories. If you listen to the words of a song you can tell a lot about the society. Songs in America talk about sex and money. In Morocco the rapper there rapped about their struggles. It all depends on the situation of the artist. Many musicians around the world see music as a getaway. Their home life is so horrible they had to find something to make them feel better. Punk music isn’t about the art but about the expression. Most punk singers cannot sing, so they scream. They scream to make a statement.

                What does it mean to be a global citizen? Not many people see themselves as citizens of the world. They are only consumed with themselves and don’t care about anything around. Most people are about the right here and right now. We’re supposed to be aware of what we’re doing and know where we are in the world. That means we need to know where we stand on this world and if we’re doing any good.  We all should care about what whether or not if we’re contributing our share in our communities. It’s sad when people miss out on opportunities because they didn’t take the time out to get to know their neighbors. Getting to know someone is a part of being a global citizen. When we do this we have allowed ourselves to be involved in the world around us. In the films we see there is so much stereotyping, we don’t even realize it. In Real Bad Arabs we saw that Arabs are seen as a dangerous group of people. When we start making assumptions we don’t allow these people to be human. We don’t see them as one race and that is the human race. We separate ourselves, even in our music. There are songs out there that talk about being better than the bums on the streets. As global citizens we have to realize that everyone is the same. We have to be open to difference. Being open to difference doesn’t mean we have to turn into those types of people, but we just respect the differences. Instead we are judging and nit helping. We aren’t connecting. If we took all of the high fidelity music in America there would barely be in music.  It’s the only music we listen to and we don’t do it together, we stay in our cars and rooms with the music. Using participatory music makes everyone get out and meet people. I feel that it is perfectly healthy to talk to different types of people.

                In conclusion, we need to start connecting more. In order for this world to get any better we need to stop sticking our noses up in the air. Global citizenship is an automatic title because we’re all human. We all belong to the human race and no one should feel bad for being different. It could a lot better if people would give back to their communities. Going to the farmer’s market, I saw that selling vegetables and bread was a way of life for these people. It would make more sense if we bought our produce from them, but our society is stuck on making money. I just feel that in order for us to be good global citizens we have to let go of our supersized egos and be involved in the world around us.