Just overheard a brief snippet of conversation between two young boys

[justiceischeap]

I was getting ready to go pick up my lunch and in passing I heard one boy, maybe 12, say "And if you're female you don't get paid the same." The other boys reply was, "Well, that's just stupid."

It's heartening to hear these two young men talking about something so "heavy" and thinking that it's stupid that there isn't equality in regards to pay. It gave me a brief moment of hope for the future.

[tazkcmo]

1. Poor kids

I have hope for them because soon they'll be taught better. I feel confident that some time soon a more enlightened member of our society will educate them on women's proper role in American society and the inherent superiority of the American Male (If he's white).

[justiceischeap]

2. They were both white but one was a ginger, so he has his own issues, I'm sure

Just the fact that they were discussing this tells me it'll stick with them. I don't know that it's normal conversation for kids so young.

[tazkcmo]

3. Seriously

This is the 2nd post in recent days of of an over heard conversation of young people in that age range I have seen. Both relate similar feelings/view points. As I responded in that post, I eagerly look forward to the day these young people can vote.

[jwirr]

16. A ginger? Is that what my neices are called? Explain please.

[OnlinePoker]

17. Light red hair color

These kids are supposedly evil spawn. They get picked on a lot just for their hair color. When I was growing up, I only got called "carrot top", but now it can go all the way up to physical violence.

[jwirr]

23. Thank you. I was thinking maybe it referred to my three nieces who are descended from a white

mother and a Jamaican father. But now it is referring to two of my granddaughters. So far as I know they do not have any of these problems in our small town. We of course just think of them as beautiful.

[AngryDem001]

28. How did that 'evil spawn' shit start?

How mind-numbingly STUPID.

[OnlinePoker]

29. See rocktivity's post below.

It explains it very well. I and my younger brother had red hair as kids whereas my two older siblings were brunettes. My father was convinced my mother had screwed around because my parents and grandparents all had black hair. Turns out one of my mom's uncles also had bright red hair as a kid, so the gene was dormant until my brother and I came along.

[No Vested Interest]

44. Is this what was rumored about Prince Harry? nt

[calimary]

49. Well, they do refer to him as a ginger, too.

[rocktivity]

26. A redhead -- and a genetic thing

Last edited Tue Jul 7, 2015, 12:57 AM - Edit history (5)

Redheads were traditionally considered evil spawn (at best) and proof of infidelity (at worst) because it wasn't understood that people can carry and pass on the redheaded gene, or have redheaded children, without being redheads themselves. It also gave rise the term "treated (or beaten) like a redheaded stepchild."


rocktivity

[Arugula Latte]

27. "Ginger" used to be a mostly British term for what we called "red-headed"

but now "ginger" has become more common here. There was a Southpark episode called "Kick a Ginger Day" and unfortunately many kids did so in real life both here and in England -- pretty awful.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/kick-ginger-day-south-park-2465031

Terrified schoolchildren were left battered and bruised after being attacked by classmates – because of the colour of their hair.

Police are investigating the assaults, which took place on the unofficial Kick a Ginger Kid Day, launched by students.

Senior staff say pupils – boys and girls – who carried out the attacks have been “strongly reprimanded”.

[Ilsa]

30. If my kids were redheaded, that would be

"Redheads' Holiday from School."

[Arugula Latte]

48. Definitely!

But it's ridiculous this is even a consideration for people.

[japple]

32. You're ALL wrong. This is a ginger.

[jwirr]

33. And she is beautiful also.

[Rebl]

41. Agreed! That's a ginger

What a pretty kitty.

[calimary]

50. Hermione Granger in the "Harry Potter" series had a ginger cat.

A longhair, but it was also that same color scheme.

[randys1]

51. And if he is the right kind of kreeeeeeeeeestian he will be even more valuable

as a citizen.


etc
etc

I would put a smiley here but it is so not funny, but you know what, I think that while the USA as we know it likely cant survive the Koch Bros and the idiots aka teaparty/cons, I do think we will survive in some format and future generations will be much smarter and much more mature than we are.

[Solly Mack]

4. :o)

[Wait Wut]

5. I'll be 50 in 1.5 months.

I think our upcoming generations are smarter, more compassionate, more environmentally/socially aware, etc. I routinely have conversations with my friend's kids. They amaze me. The only concern I have is their lack of joy. Some of them seem so hard at such a young age. They may know more at a younger age, but I think it's destroying their optimism.

I think there's hope. I don't even hate their music.

[Rod Beauvex]

7. Question.

I've wondered just how much smarter kids are today are as opposed to, say, how smart the baby boomers were back in the days of protesting Vietnam, and look how things have turned out since then.


Personally, I've begun to think the it is the internet that has had more to do with changing attitudes these days. Fewer people living in a bubble, and skewing this is the fact that younger people tend to be bigger users of the internet.


As for your last point, I do think pop music is becoming fun again. Not to mention there are more sources of amateur and semi-professional music available.

[Wait Wut]

12. I agree. I also have another theory.

MMORPGs have played a huge part, as well. That was where I first noticed "kids" interacting with adults, having opinions, asking questions. It was weird for me, at first. At 42 my best friend on WoW was a 16 year old kid with the mind of a 30 year old. We'd discuss world events, politics, social issues and then they'd go off on their own to find places like DU. It's progressed from there. I don't do online gaming much, anymore, but I peek in on an old forum occasionally. Yep, discussions of raids still turn into political debates. Although, I haven's run into discussions on invading Canada, lately.

The internet is a tainted blessing. Young people can find information and become active in many positive ways. But, we're all aware of the multitude of cons. There are those rare occasions when a young person strolls into the FAUX News world and gets addicted to the hatred and vitriol.

[tazkcmo]

53. Me too. n/t

[liberal N proud]

6. It is hopeful that they think it is stupid

They might be the change that is needed to bring equal treatment.

[flamin lib]

8. So I'm talking to my 11 year old grandson.

"So you know you're among the luckiest people on Earth, right?"

'Really?'

"Yeah, your born white, male and straight to a 'traditional' family. Your little sister will make 1/3 less than you if she does the same job just as well as you."

'That's messed up!'

"Yeah, and when you grow up and do well in your professional life you will be able to do something about it. Remember that."

'I will, Granddad.'

[alfredo]

35. It hits home when it affects family. Many hearts were changed when one of the kids in

my wife's family came out. She did it over Thanksgivings dinner. Best Thanksgivings ever!

[TRoN33]

9. My four year old boy once said..

Dad, I love my mom. We are the same.

When a four year old said that I practically have a good hope for a better future for EVERYBODY.

[pnwmom]

13. I have two sons and both would have been more likely to say "female" than a "girl."

Even at 12, they didn't refer to adult women job-holders as "girls."

Maybe they would have at the age of 6.

[Mariana]

15. Really. Kids use the language they hear.

If the kid heard an adult say "female" when talking about this issue, the kid would most likely use the same word in the same context.

[justiceischeap]

24. Kid definitely said "female" the whole conversation was sort of surreal for me.

It also left a tiny smile on my face and made me wonder what kinds of conversations he was hearing at home (good one's it sounded like).

Stonecarver, it happened and I quoted the exact language they used. Just because you think a 12 yr old wouldn't use that language doesn't mean this particular 12 yr old wouldn't and didn't.

[1StrongBlackMan]

14. You weren't there so how can you say what was said? ...

FWIW ... I know plenty of 12-ish kids; Some would say "girl", others would say "female" and, you know what? ... The more aware, ones would say female!

[Rozlee]

11. I picked up my grandchildren from school.

They wanted a fast food treat and asked for Burger King. I told them I was boycotting them because they didn't pay their taxes and it wasn't fair because we paid ours and rich people had a lot of money and didn't pay theirs. My 8 year-old grandson piped up with, "But, most taxes go to fight wars, so why pay them anyway?" That took the wind out of my sails. He has high functioning autism and is a very literal thinker. I couldn't find a way to explain to him where he didn't come back with the basic argument that taxes were used for more harm than good. I'm sure as he grows older, he'll learn the meaning of complexities and see the world as not being as simplistic as he sees it now.

[SheilaT]

18. On the other hand,

you could simply go back to the unfairness of big companies not paying taxes in the first place.

I have a grown son with Asperger's, so I'm very familiar with that literal thinking. It can be challenging, but also very interesting and enlightening to deal with.

[gordianot]

19. Many years ago I had a deaf student show me the sign for Ronald Reagan.

It was an "r" mimicking a pistol. I asked Why? Answer "bad cowboy movies, bad actor". I had to agree, we went into a discussion about "B" movies. At 14 she had some very strong and well informed opinions about Ronald Reagan.

[xfundy]

21. Smart kid.

[silvershadow]

20. 12 year old boys...smarter than the PTB. Who'da thunk it? nt

[NewJeffCT]

22. The sad thing is -

I remember thinking & saying the same thing back in the 1970s when I was a kid. "Who could be against equal rights for women? Isn't our country all about everybody being equal?" (ERA was a big issue back in the mid 70s, if I recall)

So, 35-40 years later, it's still an issue. While it's definitely gotten better for women in the workforce over that time, there is still a long ways to go, and the change has not happened nearly as fast as it should have happened.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

31. It wasn't that long ago when they would say, "Of course not, they're girls."

[homegirl]

34. There is hope, see my grandaughter's theater review

Slut the Play
by with love and squalor

There was never any doubt in my mind that theater can bring ideas center stage and open your eyes to issues, but I hadn’t experienced that in a while, until I saw Slut the Play. As a high school senior, one of my English courses I am taking is Feminism, which looks at issues of gender equality through an intersectional lens. Last Monday we took a trip to Bond Street to watch Slut the Play, performed by the Arts Effect, an all girls theater group based in Manhattan. Slut the Play, is controversial, but more importantly, it’s eye opening. The play takes place in New York City, and tell the story of Joey Del Marco, a sixteen year old girl who is sexually assaulted by three boys she thinks of as friends. Joey, played by Winnifred Bonjean-Alpart, experiences a Hester Prynne like form of ostracism as she is labeled a slut and a liar, after going to the police following her assault. Joey tells her story to the police (and the audience) with slight interruption for short monologues of other characters, including the girls of the self titled “Slut Squad.” Slut the Play, isn’t a sad play with a happy ending, but rather a gritty and realistic look at the ever growing issue of sexual assault in High Schools. As a young woman I am not unaware of this issue, we occasionally discuss it in school and have looked at it thoroughly in my feminism class. Sitting in the audience I thought to myself, I am glad I am seeing this play, but more people need to. And those people are young men, and parents, those who can lend a helping hand to girls if they need it, and support them in any way they need. Slut also highlights an issue that I think has become most prevalent in high schools: slut shaming. Blaming girls for sexual assault because of how they dress, or simply holding judgment against someone because of how they wish to express themselves through their clothes or their actions. Slut the Play tackles this issue in a raw way that sticks to reality, which makes it all the more influential. Slut the Play is not just a play, its more than a performance, in fact, it’s a crusade, an educational journey that has already taken a trip across the country in order to further inform schools about slut shaming and sexual assault, it’s a movement, and its happening now.

[blkmusclmachine]

36. Faux Nooz will set them straight. Count on it.

[Cartoonist]

37. Change happens faster than you think

I'm 60 now. When I was a kid, we heard the question that probably still gets asked today. What do you want to be when you grow up?. I was a boy, so I could answer doctor, fireman, pilot, and an infinite number of careers. Girls could only answer, nurse, teacher, or mommy. I call that a huge step forward.

[FourScore]

38. So simple, even a child can figure it out.

But not the GOP.

[1dogleft]

39. just to many

pathetic syrupy posts for me to take.Good night

[redwitch]

40. Really?

And it's too, not to. Duh.

You're rude.

[Bettie]

42. That's how my boys are too

The older ones are 13 and 12 and they think all that stuff is stupid.

They listen to the news and have definite opinions on things.

I'm raising kind and justice minded young men and it makes me proud of them.

[Liberal_in_LA]

43. k&r

[Cha]

45. My thoughts exactly! Yes, it's wonderful to hear youngsters who just get it!

Mahalo justiceischeap.

[Nye Bevan]

46. Those boys are certainly much more conscious of socioeconomic gender inequality

than I ever was at that age. Or any of my friends at that age, as far as I can remember. Those exceptional young men are wise beyond their years.

[justiceischeap]

47. Again, I'm curious what led to that specific conversation

I was tempted to stop them and ask but I didn't want to seem like a weird adult.

[Prophet 451]

52. How were they discussing that at 12?

Not to condemn their thoughts but at 12, my major concern was whether Iron Man could beat Doctor Doom.

[justiceischeap]

54. I don't know... I wonder that myself.

It was an odd conversation to overhear.