Long week of class

I just got done with one long week of class. The class actually lasts 2 weeks and it's only Monday through Thursday but the class lasts from 11:30am-4pm. It's LOOOOONG. The professor is one that I don't particularly care for because of his opinions. He's rather harsh sometimes and very intense. Since I've had him before though, I knew sort of what to expect and readied myself for it so I wouldn't get so offended this time. Well...guess what? He managed to offend me but this time I was able to keep control of myself and even though I was angry, I tried to let go. This time he decided he would talk about the series "Twilight". If ya'll have been paying attention, then you know that I'm quite obsessed with it mainly because it's a fun storyline and I like the characters (namely the leading vampire...hehehe). Anyway, he said that he rented the movie the other night because it was a movie he wouldn't typically rent. He said he enjoyed it. It was fun. Then something possessed him all of the sudden and he said that he was offended by it. DO YOU KNOW WHY????? Because he said, "My people weren't represented." My people meaning the Latino/as. What the heck????? I immediately fired back with something like, "Did it have to include Latino/as to be a complete story?" He said yes and that it didn't show any representation and that was racist. Then people in the class (who haven't even read/watched the movie or any of the books) started chiming in. Now, if I hadn't read any of the books or seen the movie, I would feel as if I had no part in a discussion about the series. Anyway, everyone was confirming or agreeing to this bullcrap that the book was racist in that it criminalizes the dark-skinned people (the Native Americans are beasts who have uncontrollable tempers and the only black person in the movie just happened to be a bad vampire). I got so upset with what was being said about this and I just felt like screaming but I just had to keep my mouth shut because I wasn't going to win since I was a white girl. The professor was saying that this particular interpretation could be debated depending on which side you look at it from. Obviously since I'm white, I'm not gonna see the "oppressive, racist" nature of the series. The author, Stephenie Meyer, is Mormon and apparently her faith had influenced her in writing this story. I read somewhere that according to the Mormon faith, the people of color had the mark of Caine on them and in order to save their souls, they would have to marry a white person to cleanse themselves and their offspring would lighter skin--therefore, cleansing them. Or something like that. So, in this series of stories, it's all about how the pale, beautiful vampires are the utmost in beauty and everyone wants to be like that. I also read that Stephenie Meyer was trying to watch out for racism in her book by not necessarily saying the skin was white but "diamond" colored. Anyway....all this aside, I was so mad that people who hadn't even read these books were making accusations and presumptions that they didn't have anything to back it up with. I was mad also because they were taking the joy out of a harmless story (in my opinion) and this series of stories made me start to read again for leisure. How dare they take that away from me and turn it into racist, white power material!!?? Does that make me a racist for enjoying the story line? I think not. Not every story has to have every nationality under the sun to be "complete". In fact, the stories I've been reading for him don't always include anglos so can I call him on that? No, because I'm white and I'm always represented. What a CROCK OF......


*sigh* Well, that's what I've been dealing with so far this week. I've got a project due next Thursday for the last day of class and a paper also. I probably won't be updating til after that but I will be sure to let you know what kind of other ridiculous argumentative debates we come across between now and then. :)