The Indigenous Roots of Rock and Roll

As I reflect back on the course material while I write this assignment, the words that stand out to me are: Social Movement; Propaganda; Ideology; Competition; Homework; Link Wray; Jim Keen; Slaughterhouses; Biodiversity; #MeToo; Cooperative Learning; Seed Monopolies; Demobilization; Corruption.

Words like these stand out to me because throughout this course I was faced with challenges to find meaning and depth to these words. I was put to the test through each assignment to explore my inner thoughts to come up with detailed and well-prepared answers to questions I sometimes struggled with.

I work a full-time job, and trying to keep up with the readings and assignments in my “spare” time was definitely a challenge most days.

Key Learnings

  • Social movements bring on change.
  • Link Wray was a Shawnee Native American who put a stamp on rock and roll.
  • Competition is not actually good for us or natural.
  • Public Relations is just a fancy term for Propaganda.
  • The ideas we have, instilled in us from childhood, form ideologies about gender, race, and homework.
  • Indoctrination can be passive and active.

Most of all, I learned that my mind can still be challenged and tested with these subjects, and with each unit, I felt my knowledge expanding.

To express my learning, I want to go through each unit individually and focus on the key elements, what stood out to me most, what transformed my thoughts about those topics, and what I would like to expand on for future learning.

Unit 1 – A Rock-and-Roll Introduction to Social Movements

Throughout Unit One, I was able to explore the meaning of a social movement. What are those protests I hear about on the news linked to? This course enlightened me that social movements are about promoting change to issues that are ongoing in the world today.

Currently, the #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo movements are all over the news with recent developments for each.

  • With the unlawful killing of George Floyd, an African American male by a White police officer, the #BlackLivesMatter battle to end racism exploded worldwide.
  • #MeToo has also had recent developments, with Harvey Weinstein being found guilty of sexual assault charges more than two years after the first allegations against him.

Reading the stories in #MeToo Movement by Laurie Collier Hillstrom for this course brought feelings of disgust. I didn’t realize what a misogynistic world we still live in.

Watching the documentary Rumble, I felt enlightened to racism in the South of the United States and that the Ku Klux Klan did not only target Black people. I was amazed to hear of the racism towards Native Americans and that they were almost treated worse than African Americans.

Link Wray touched so many people with his distortion on the electric guitar. The power chord that he played started a movement and created a genre of music. Link Wray is someone I had never even heard of before, yet he is a musical icon.

Key Takeaway

It only takes one person to stand up against a cause to make change. That one person can influence a nation to join together and get things done.

Unit 2 – Ideas

Reflecting on Unit Two, I find it ironic that homework is not beneficial, yet my university education consists of all at-home study and homework.

Key Learnings

  • Ideology is when we have a set of ideas that we don’t question, which direct our expectations, goals, and actions.
  • Our parents indoctrinate us, much like Hitler and Goebbels indoctrinated the Germans—though with different intent.
  • Homework is not beneficial for children. It can cause:
    • Loss of academic interest
    • Physical/emotional fatigue
    • Pressure and cheating
    • Denial of leisure time

I was raised in a Christian family. Religion is a classic example of indoctrination.

Reflection

This course taught me that the way I think and the things I believe may have come from brainwashing. It makes you question if you really know who you are…

Unit 3 – Ideology

This unit explored propaganda, also known as public relations.

Key Learnings

  • Propaganda has a negative connotation, while Public Relations puts a positive spin on it—but they mean the same thing.
  • Manufacturing compliance: People can hate smoking as long as they do nothing about it.
  • Facebook is a mechanism used to control society.

COVID-19 and Propaganda

I feel that COVID-19 is a perfect example of propaganda:

  • Slogans like “Stay at home”
  • Inflated death toll numbers
  • Sensationalized cases to instill fear

Social Movements and Media

  • Demobilization stops a social movement from developing.
  • Social media platforms help movements reach millions instantly.

Unit 4 – Competition and the Manufacture of Consent

I am a competitive person by nature. After reading No Contest by Alfie Kohn, I learned:

Key Learnings

  • Competition is not healthy and not natural.
  • Cooperative learning is better than competitive grading.
  • The ideology of competition justifies the status quo.

Reflection

During COVID-19, I see both competition (for jobs) and cooperation (community support).

Unit 5 – Global Mirrors Local Issues

This unit was the biggest eye-opener.

Key Learnings

  • Global food supply hijacking by big corporations.
  • Factory farming abuses animals for mass production.
  • Seed monopolies exploit farmers.

Social Movements and Action

  • Action must follow ideology.
  • Whistleblowers like Jim Keen take a stand despite consequences.

Anti-Vaxx Social Movement Exploration

I chose the Anti-Vaccination Movement because of COVID-19.

Key Learnings

  • Anti-vaxxers fear toxins and autism.
  • Herd immunity only works if most are vaccinated.
  • Not all movements align with personal beliefs.

Personal Stance

I support vaccinations—they have eradicated deadly diseases.

Conclusion

I have learned so much in this course:

  • The elements of social movements
  • The impact of propaganda, indoctrination, and competition
  • The power of cooperation and mobilization

Future Learning Interests

  • More on today’s social movements
  • How society is conditioned by corporations
  • Famous whistleblowers and their impact

Final Thought

One voice can impact a nation.

  • George Floyd’s death reignited #BlackLivesMatter.
  • Alyssa Milano amplified #MeToo.
  • Jim Keen exposed animal research abuses.

These individuals effected change by mobilizing resources and spreading their message.






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