1
2
Editor- In- Chief
Ken Day
Editors
Grace Carpenter
Kevin Hudson
Faculty Advisor
Dr. Pheobe Godfrey
Table of Contents
Introduction Page 6
By the Editorial Team of
e Mirror
Behind the Curtain of Urgency
: Page 31
e Intersection of Struggle Between Physicians and Patients Within the
Emergency Departments of America
Sean Creamer
Invisable Dissability
Page
71
Liam Cohen
e Truth about Legal Immigration
Page 73
Lily Brin
Freedom on Wheels:
Page
95
Car Culture and Identity Construction among Chinese Students in the U.S.
Joesen Liang
Reections at the Jazz Club
Page
139
Ian Rothauser
Honey, Paris is Still Burning!
Page
146
Josephine Stokland Watson
S A F E T Y
Page 156
Grace Carpenter
4
The Mirror Mission Statement
e mission of
e Mirror
is to provide undergraduate
students a platform to showcase their work and educate
the community on sociological issues. We strive to expose
students to the process of publication and assist them in
reaching their full potential, while also pushing them to en-
gage with critical thinking, creativity, intersectionality, and
their sociological imagination.
e Mirror
aims to create a
space where undergraduate students can have their voices
heard and to learn from one another.
Made by Undergraduates, for Undergraduates
5
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that the land on which we gather is the
territory of the Eastern Pequot, Golden Hill Paugus-
se, Lenape, Mashantucket Pequot, Mohegan, Nipmuc,
and Schaghticoke peoples who have stewarded this land
throughout the generations. We thank them for their
strength and resilience in protecting this land, and aspire
to uphold our responsibilities according to their example.
Courtesy of Native American Cultural Programs at the University of Connecticut
6
Introduction
e ideas and opinions displayed within the introduction are not reective of the
beliefs of the University of Connecticut, the University of Connecticut’s Sociology
Department, nor the authors and artists within Volume Four of e Mirror. e
content presented in this Introduction is the sole property of the editorial team of
Volume Four of e Mirror.
Background
Welcome to the fourth edition of e Mirror, an undergraduate student
run Sociological journal for the University of Connecticut. e Mirror was
originally founded admis the COVID-19 pandemic. In the rst edition, published
in the Spring of 2021, the editors focused on the ideology and norms of Western
culture. ey, along with their authors, challenged assumptions about the world
they interact with daily, encouraging readers to reect on perceived “facts”
and internal biases. e editors of Volume 2, released in the Spring of 2022,
emphasized societal inequalities. ey built o the foundations of Volume 1, with
a new direction inquiring how oppression redenes societal standards over
7
time, shaping the meaning of equality itself. As the editors and authors coped
with the changing world around them, they encouraged readers to investigate
the institutions that maintain hierarchies of oppression. e third edition came
in the Summer of 2023, exemplifying the disillusionment felt by oppressed
groups living in the “land of the free”, which proves time and again to threaten
the livelihoods (and oen lives) of its citizens. e edition compiled pieces
that displayed student struggles with a lack of control over their academic and
personal lives.
e year 2024 unfortunately did not produce an edition of e Mirror
due to the graduation of all the previous editors. We, the current editors of
the journal, were interested in the opportunity of continuing edition four to
ensure students’ voices are lied. As Sociology and English majors, we believe
upliing the work of students as scholars and activists increases in importance
8
as activists across college campuses in the US continue to be penalized academi-
cally and criminally. e importance of keeping spaces available where students
have the ability to critique Western ideology, consumerism, capitalism, and op-
pression is understated when college campuses that contain student protests are
threatened with the removal of federal funding. As an anti-intellectual sentiment
spreads throughout mainstream media and the government, it is a critical part
of e Mirror and Sociology as a eld’s mission to encourage critical thinking
among its readers. As we continue with Volume 4, it has grown even more essen-
tial to the spirit of the journal to be a voice by and for students of UConn to criti-
cally examine the world and its social structures.
It is our pleasure to bring you this fourth edition in the Spring of 2025.
Inspired by past themes, we decided to focus on “Communities through Crisis”.
Across the past editions, themes of classism, racism, injustice, inequalities,
9
capitalism, and overall discomfort were prevalent. Our editing team consists
of various identities. We are BIPOC, White, Queer, Transgender, and Women.
Due to our involvement in oppressed communities, we are constantly
aware of how systems of domination (whether that be state sanctioned
discrimination and violence or interpersonal bigotry). As Sociological scholars,
we are interested in how oppression impacts who has access to community
involvement and how members oppose, care for, exclude, and include one
another. ere is one topic all the pieces have in common; how oppressed
communities operate under systems of domination is not only reective of the
society itself, but the resilience and survival of the individual people within
them. An essential theme for us is community; engaging with it locally and
examining our relationship with it broadly, we learn profound things about
ourselves. e value we see in community comes greatly from the UConn
10
encampment of the Spring of 2024, where students and community members
connected both in location and in shared values.
For the UConn 25
Starting this project in January as Trump was again inaugurated into oce,
it was impossible not to acknowledge the policy changes and breeches of human
rights that seem to come every day. We discussed our fears and anxieties: Will the
lile protections gained by minority groups in the alleged “post Civil Rights” era
be again stripped, or rather, how quickly? How will our immigrant community
members far when I.C.E are visible on our Connecticut streets? (Austin I
ce
activity prompts fear in Connecticut communities
). rough the editing process,
we also shared methods to stay grounded and formed a support system for each
other both intellectually and emotionally. e Mirror has granted us a purpose
amongst the beginning of this administration. We three found power through
11
holding those we love close and not leing them go. Volume Four being about
exercising our power of resistance, we dedicate this edition to the 25 UConn
students and community members arrested in the UConn encampment for
Palestine in April of 2024 (Ayah Galal
Arrests made as police move in on
UConn protest)
.
Last April, an encampment against the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian
people (Golieb Finkelstein:
“one can reasonably say...”
) took place in the
center of the UConn Storrs campus, as well as others around the country. Over
the course of a week, students, alumni, and outside activists of many faiths,
backgrounds and views gathered. Poetry readings, musical performances, teach
ins, and the sharing of knowledge took place. Participants took care of each
other, pooling together resources to provide food, sleeping equipment, and rst
aid. An entirely peaceful protest headed by students exercising their rst
12
exercising their rst amendment rights to hold opinions and gather, students were
under 24/7 police surveillance and the threat of academic consequences. Aer
almost a week, in the early morning of Tuesday 4/23/2024, 24 UConn students
and one alumni were arrested for disorderly conduct and criminal trespassing
(Ayah Galal
Arrests made as police move in on UConn protest
). Justication for
the arrests included that “...the group was warned multiple times over a period of
days that while they were free to be in the space and exercise their free speech
rights, the guidelines needed to be followed and the tents needed to be taken
down. at was ignored” (Ayah Galal
Arrests made as police move in on UConn
protest
). Following this, in August of 2024, UConn’s administration updated their
outdoor policy to include restrictions like “Obstructing public access. Blocking
access to public spaces or hindering anyone’s ability to enter or exit an area. [...]
Camping or encampments. [...] Outdoor Activity Disruption: No outdoor activity
is permied to disrupt another outdoor activity. [...]
13
Failure to comply may also be subject to law enforcement action, including
criminal penalties” (Oce of University Compliance
Outdoor Activities
Policy
). With the stated purpose of supporting “a safe environment for the
University community and our visitors and clarify the expectations, restrictions,
and requirements related to the use of outdoor spaces, whether scheduled,
unscheduled, active, or passive” (Oce of University Compliance
Outdoor
Activities Policy
), this updated policy eectively restricts any exercise of
students right to protest, and the use of amplication of sound on campus. e
encampment asked UConn’s administration to disclose what of our budget is
being spent supporting Pra and Whitney, who build military aircra engines
that support 34 armed forces worldwide, including the United States’ (Pra and
Whitney: An RTX Business
Military Engines
).
In the year since them, multiple student organizations continue to use
14
their public voice and organizing power to resist American support of the
genocide in Gaza and recent governmental policy changes that threaten human
rights, both within the US and globally by their support in military aid in foreign
wars. On Friday, March 7, 2025, the US government announced they would be
canceling $400 million in federal contracts and grants in response to Columbia
University’s “failure to squelch antisemitism on campus” (Associated Press
Columbia University: Trump Administration cancels $400M in grants and
contracts
) aer the university’s Pro-Palestinian encampment in the Spring of
2024. Anti-Semitism is prevalent throughout university campuses and societally,
as is Islamophobia and Xenophobia. In theory, the purpose of higher education
is to challenge the views and diverse ideas of students. In practice, with threats to
federal funding in public universities, this begins to become not the case, and it
is no surprise that the UConn administration would seek to squelch any form of
student protest.
15
Since mid-March, ICE has detained numerous international university students
who participated in student protests (Sanchez
Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest has
chilling eect on free speech at US colleges
). Mahoud Khalil, a former graduate
student at Columbia University and Palestinian immigrant and activist, was
arrested on Saturday, March 8th of 2025 “... over his role in protests against the
Israel-Hamas war at Columbia University last spring” (Watson et al.
Palestinian
activist Mahmoud Khalil...
). His green card was revoked, he has not been
charged with a crime, and though his deportation was temporarily blocked by
a New York judge, he has been ordered to stay in I.C.E custody in Louisiana
(Watson et al.
Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil...
). We believe that all
students have the right to voice their opinions and be heard and considered.
Because of governmental exertions of power such as this, it has been made clear
that the voices of marginalized students are specically being threatened and
16
and silenced. We believe it is of utmost importance that the voices of progressive
students be uplied and supported through critical analysis and Sociological
inquiry during times where our rst amendment right to free speech has become
unclear.
Our Editing Process
We felt it was of great importance to honor the wealth of varied experiences
and perspectives that informed the art and writing that make up the contents of
this journal. Just as importantly, we strived for a sense of cohesion amongst these
selected works, for the sake of the reader’s experience and a sense of thematic
continuity for the journal as a whole. We’d like to highlight two core concepts that
acted as guiding principles along our editing journey from its outset. e rst of
these two was the theory of intersectionality as coined by American civil rights
advocate and scholar, Kimberlé Crenshaw. She herself denes intersectionality as
“a lens through which you can see where power comes and collides, where it
17
interlocks and intersects” (Crenshaw,
Kimberlé Crenshaw on
Intersectionality, more than two decades later
). Diving into the origins
of the theory, as well as its usage in practice amongst peer-reviewed and
independent writings forced us to think critically about the way in which
the form of Sociological writing itself can be further nuanced to more
thoughtfully explore a wide range of topics. is also meant challenging our
preconceptions about what intersectionality means and how it can be used in
sociological analysis.
In practice, this led us to the second of our core guiding concepts,
positionality. Several writers have mused on philosopher Linda Alco ’s
original concept of positionality, including authors Frances Maher and Mary
Tetreault stating positionality: “includes an acknowledgement of the knower’s
specic position in any context, because changing contextual and
18
relational factors are crucial for dening identities and our knowledge in any
given situation” (Maher, Tetreault,
Frames of Positionality...
). As editors in a
Sociological space, this meant rejecting the notion of our viewpoints or critique
as having an empirically “objective” or infallible quality to them; our social
positions, privileges and disadvantages alike, frame our views and analysis of
society and how we will interpret pieces commentating on it. We believe there
to be immense value in these dierences in positionality, but they serve the
reader best when they are acknowledged and clearly disclosed. As such, we
urged our writers and artists to do the same throughout the editing process: to
position themselves in their work directly, in the abstract of their pieces, or to us
throughout the process. Ultimately, we hope this makes clearer for readers the
perspectives and individual contexts from which the journal’s writers and artists
commentate on Sociological topics from, while simultaneously encouraging the
creators of these pieces to nuance their analysis by acknowledging and
19
reconciling with their individual experiences, biases, and social position as its
relates to their creative voices.
Overview of Seleced Works
Sean Creamer’s
Behind the Curtain of Urgency
explores the struggles
both patients and care-providers experience within America’s health care
system. Specically, the paper argues that the way emergency care functions
and is carried out is emblematic of many of the broader systemic dysfunctions
plaguing the country’s emergency departments and health care institutions.
ese systemic dysfunctions have a multitude of detrimental eects on both
physicians and patients and their quality of care. To us, the paper shines in its
thorough but sensitive analysis of these systems and those struggling within it
from various intersectional stances. Analysis of the healthcare system can oen
fall short in its lack of acknowledgement of systemic failings or impersonal
voice towards those aected by them; however,
Behind the Curtain of Urgency
20
valuably uses this framing in its exploration of an important and nuanced topic,
critical to nearly all Americans, at some point in their lives.
Invisible Disability
by Liam Cohen is a multi-media collage piece driven
by the artist’s experience of living with an invisible disability. is experience
can be incredibly isolating; from the self, physically and mentally, as well as
your perception of others. e piece in its combination of illustrated elements
and physical media paints an evocative image of the experience of a diverse and
varied community of people, drawn together by a shared experience of struggle
and resilience. Liam has vulnerably created a piece from rsthand experience to
speak to an oen unseen and neglected community.
Lily Brin’s
e Truth About Legal Immigration
is a critical analysis of the
American immigration system, and the obstacles immigrants face due to the
construction of this system.
21
It challenges the narrative that immigrants should “wait in line” with thorough
historical analysis of the handling of immigration throughout the country’s
history, spanning various presidential administrations and policy reforms. A
consistent theme of the paper is the immigrations system’s convoluted and
unreliable nature for an incredibly vulnerable population of the world. e paper
is detailed in its exploration of specic case studies and statistical analysis of the
ramications of the immigration system as it has existed throughout history and
is it now.
Freedom on Wheels
by Xuanting Liang is a deep dive into car culture and
its signicance to Chinese students as a means of integrating into American
society. e paper centers globalization and the changing tides of economic,
cultural, and educational exchange between countries that has accelerated in
modern times. e car, to these students, is more than just a status of wealth of
22
material consumption, but is symbolic for freedom, individual expression, and
asserting gender identity. e piece meaningfully engages with the implications
of these young students confronting American society and how that manifests
in their self-identity and consumer behaviors in an eort to nd and form
community.
Ian Rothauser’s
Reections at the Jazz Club
is a poem inspired by the
author’s experience at a jazz club in London. With an overlying theme of
asserting and seeking community in response to our increasingly individualistic
world, and the various systems that promote it, the piece interweaves
anecdotal elements with inner-dialogic musings on this conict. e writing
thoughtfully acknowledges that our participation in systems of inequality drive
us further away from true collective community, but engaging with this distance
meaningfully means reckoning with this paern of action, even in the most
23
unlikely of places.
Josephine Stokland Watson’s
Honey, Paris is Still Burning!
, while
playful in its title, is grounded in a thorough and nuanced analysis of the 1970
documentary Paris is Burning. While the analysis of this lm is central to the
paper, so too is the piece’s exploration of the complications of living as a Black
Queer person in a world irrevocably shaped by systems of White colonial
domination. Queerness and blackness have intersected at various points
throughout this history, and Josephine beautifully celebrates the resilience
members of these communities have demonstrated amidst these oppressive
societal constructs, while urging readers to continue this ght amongst their
communities today.
And
S A F E T Y
, by one of our own editors, Grace Carpenter is a poem
delving into the implications of goodbyes for members of marginalized
24
communities. ese seemingly simple expressions hold within them a legacy of
violence and threat against the members of these communities; saying goodbye
to friends and loved ones within these spaces is a heavier statement than one
outside of them might imagine. Grace compassionately explores the layered grief
and anger they feel confronting this reality while emphasizing the importance
of valuing these connections and providing a potential direction for the feelings
these communities experience so deeply in the face of oppression and fear.
e Journal’s Cover
For our cover, we decided to use a triskelion. ough having a Greek
name, this symbol was mostly used in ancient Celtic art as a representation the
cycle of life; life, death, and rebirth and how they all ow together. It reminds
us of the connection between past, present, and future. As editors, we felt it was
important to continue the mission of
e Mirror
of giving voice to
25
student scholars and activists. It is your job as a reader to interact with these
pieces. Listen to what the authors are telling you, then reect on what they mean
for your own life. Broadly, we believe it is our job as human beings to learn
from the past, act with love in the present, and hope that the love will transcend
generations. Our country was founded on white supremacy and a patriarchal
belief system. Since the rst European selers arrived on the nation’s land,
oppressed groups have acted in resistance to their exploitation, economic, social,
and legal discrimination, and the use of fatal force as a means of acquisition and
social control. Perhaps, some may suggest during the Obama administration, this
country saw some forms of equality for its people. ough a “color blind” and
equitable society has never taken hold since the founding of the United States,
the eort to reach social justice will never cease. As young people navigating this
oppressive system, we urge readers to look within themselves and to the
26
people around them and ask- How can we move forward with the beerment
of all individual lives, and this planet, in mind? In the words of the author and
Afro-Feminist activist Toni Cade Bambara, “Revolution begins with the self, in
the self” (Bambara at. al.
e Black Woman...)
. Look inwards, look around you.
Reach your hands towards those you love, and seek to reach beyond your circle
to create a community that challenges everyone involved to grow.
27
Resources
Austin, Ma. “Ice Activity Prompts Fear in Connecticut Communities.”
NBC
Connecticut, NBC Connecticut
, 28 Jan. 2025, www.nbcconnecticut.
com/news/local/ice-activity-prompts-fear-in-connecticut-
communities/3485394/.
Ayah Galal, Ma McFarland. “Arrests Made as Police Move in on UConn
Protest.”
Gray Local Media,
30 Apr. 2024, www.wfsb.com/2024/04/29/
pro-palestinian-protest-continues-uconn/.
Bambara, Toni Cade, and Eleanor W. Traylor. e Black Woman: An Anthology.
Washington Square Press
, 1970.
28
Resources
Crenshaw , Kimberle. “Kimberlé Crenshaw on Intersectionality, More than Two
Decades Later.” Columbia Law School, 8 June 2017, www.law.columbia.edu/
news/archive/kimberle-crenshaw-intersectionality-more-two-decades-later.
Golieb, Joey. “Finkelstein: ‘One Can Reasonably Say, without the Qualication
of Plausible, at Israel Has Been Commiing a Genocide in Gaza.’ .” e
Daily Campus, 3 Mar. 2025, dailycampus.com/2025/03/03/nkelstein-one-
can-reasonably-say-without-the-qualication-of-plausible-that-israel-has-
been-commiing-a-genocide-in-gaza/.
“Military Engines | Pra & Whitney.” Pra & Whitney: An RTX Business , 2025,
www.prawhitney.com/en/products/military-engines.
29
Resources
“Outdoor Activities Policy.” Oce of University Compliance: University Policies,
University of Connecticut , 20 Aug. 2024, policy.uconn.edu/2024/08/21/
outdoor-activities-policy/.
Press, Associated. “Columbia University: Trump Administration Cancels $400M
in Grants and Contracts.” CNN, Cable News Network, 7 Mar. 2025, amp.
cnn.com/cnn/2025/03/07/us/columbia-university-grants-canceled-trump.
Sanchez, Ramon. “Mahmoud Khalil’s Arrest Has Chilling Eect on Free Speech
at US Colleges.” CNN, Cable News Network, 18 Mar. 2025, www.cnn.
com/2025/03/16/us/mahmoud-khalil-columbia-protests-free-speech/index.
html.
30
Resources
Maher, Frances A., and Mary Kay Tetreault. “Frames of Positionality:
Constructing Meaningful Dialogues about Gender and Race.”
Anthropological Quarterly, vol. 66, no. 3, 1993, pp. 118-126.
31
Behind the Curtain of Urgency
e Intersection of Struggle Between Physicians and Pa-
tients Within the Emergency Departments of America
Sean Creamer
Abstract
Every year, 140 million Americans walk into emergency departments hoping
for urgent care—many leave disappointed, neglected, or unheard. Behing
the Curtain of Urgency: e Intersection of Struggle Between Physicians
and Patients Within the Emergency Departments of America, how systemic
dysfunction leads to struggle of both patients and physicians. rough a
sociolegal lens rooted in functionalism and intersectionality, the analysis reveals
how triage systems are bole-necked by the biological model, how neglect leads
to poor communication, and bias thrives. Meanwhile, physicians face burnout,
32
Abstract
and institutional barriers that prevent compassionate care. Drawing from
patient reviews and frontline healthcare research, the paper highlights the
urgent need to take a closer look at common educational and systemic methods,
and how a new method based the intersections of struggle can lead to a more
functional and empathetic Emergency Department.
33
Background
e Emergency Department is failing you and every other American,
the emergency care system is failing. If you ask most Americans, they
will say to avoid the emergency room at all costs. is is because of the
institutionalized protocols designed around making the most money,
disregarding the emotional burden for both patients and physicians. It
also creates systemic problems that ignore the background and social
characteristics of the patient. Ironically, the emergency room is the only hope
for some Americans, so why won’t we answer this wake-up call? e hospital
is not all to blame in this mess, as physicians in the emergency department
have to jump through hoops of healthcare, understang, and burnout. is
system is burning from the inside out, and it is about time we face our fears
and tackle our best shot at creating a beer Emergency Room. Around 140
34
emergency room every single year, and it is a staple in our healthcare system
(CDC, 2021). ose 140 Americans were failed when they walked in, and
something with this much importance and usage has to be analyzed, which
will be done in this paper. First, I will review all the relevant knowledge that
is known to be needed and important to the analysis. I will use sociolegal
analysis to review this process in the following paper. I will start by introducing
the theories used, functionalism and intersectionality, to divert the struggle of
both parties. Aer introducing the theories, I will lay out the methods, using
rsthand sources of physician and patient struggle. en, go into how the
theories can guide successful interventions. en, we will explain why this is
important and why we must act now.
35
Background of the Emergency Departments in America
e Emergency Department (ED) is America’s cornerstone of
preventative care. Beginning in the 1960s, the emergency room was developed
to treat emergency cases. At rst, these emergency rooms had rotations of
doctors of multiple specialties, and their time in the ED was considered
an aerthought of their medical careers. Only in 1979 was the specialty
of emergency medicine founded as we saw an exponential need for the
emergency department. e primary mission of the emergency department
is “designed to minimize morbidity and disability from acute illness and
injury” (Anderson, 2006). ese cases can range from trauma to infection
from various diseases. ese emergency cases are meant to be life-threatening
injuries, hence why, ideally, emergency rooms are constantly open. When
walking into an emergency room, patients are met with a nurse or technician
36
to determine the severity of the case, which is a process called triage. is
triage process is essential to decide whether or not the patients are in dire
need of stabilizing treatments or can wait to see a physician. is is crucial in
the emergency environment as there are many patients. If a case is critical,
resuscitation eorts will range from cardiopulmonary resuscitation to shock
treatment or surgery. If resuscitation is not required, there is stabilization, which
is making sure the patient is back to their normal baseline function and does not
relapse into a critical state. Aer all these processes, we have discharge, when
the patient is signed o by the doctor and released from emergency care. is
is the process of the emergency room, which requires dening the problem,
preventing disability or death, and then releasing the patient from care.
37
Functions and Roles of Workers in the Emergency Depart-
ment
ere are many moving parts in the emergency room. e most prominent
structure of the emergency room is the dierent job roles that contribute to
the operation. e emergency department is a complex system with many
working pieces involved with specic functions. e main job of the emergency
department is to work closely to prevent death and disability. Starting with triage
is usually provided by a nurse specializing in primary screening, allowing the
department to determine if you need to be seen immediately. e function of this
role aligns with Anderson’s theory of decreasing morbidity to prevent mortality
and disability, which is directly impacted by the amount of time before care. e
physician’s role is also vital as the physician is an educated professional who can
execute interventions. Physicians are the cornerstone of the department as they
are the doctors who diagnose, treat, and solve critical cases. Physicians
38
are the decision makers on whether or not patients need medical interventions,
transfers to dierent departments or hospitals, and discharge. e physician is
at the top of the pyramid in the Emergency Department, but like every pyramid,
if the boom is not there, the top falls, and the nurses and technicians also serve
critical roles. Many unique roles allow the emergency room’s speed to meet
demand, ranging from technicians and administrative roles that allow for check-
ins, routine examinations, and tests to be done at more incredible speeds.
It is evident that everyone is important and plays a role in the Emergency
Room. Every job has a purpose and a goal: to create a beer-owing
environment. With this workow and role specicity, how do we still fail to
provide high-quality care?
39
EMTAL A
More recently, our emergency departments have seen growing use for
non-emergency-related diagnoses. is is mainly due to implementing the
Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). Passed in Congress
in 1986, the EMTALA is critical in the analysis of emergency care as there is
no barrier to entry to get seen in the ED. is allows for guaranteed access
to emergency services independent of ability to pay, socioeconomic status,
or insurance status. is includes screening by qualied medical personnel
that either clears them from a medical emergency or provides the patient with
stabilizing treatments. Stabilizing treatments are also included in the EMTALA
as the hospital cannot deny treatment that would decrease medical risks (US
Congress, 1986). e EMTALA has created a service that is accessible to
anyone within the borders of America, which includes undocumented,
40
uninsured, and low-income Americans.
e Reality of Patient Care
e openness of the emergency room makes it one of the most utilized
medical interventions in America. e EMTALA is a critical part of the social
structure of the emergency department as it is freely open to everyone. Still,
because of this, there are downfalls as this may be the only option for many
Americans. e Safety Net Healthcare System: Health Care at the Margins
by Gunnar Robert Almgren and Taryn Lindhorst explains how the “safety net
health care centers” (emergency departments, urgent care, EMS services, etc.)
are populated and relied on by the people who are “socially vulnerable” (Lamb,
2013). e safety net is what America’s emergency departments have turned
into, as almost 10% of the US population does not have access to healthcare
(Hale, 2024). Twenty-six million people can only get medical access by paying
out of pocket or exercising the right granted to them by EMTALA.
41
is proportion of people has changed the scope of emergency medicine
from critical medical conditions to primary care. Primary care means that people
who do not have access to personal primary care doctors will get checked for
non-life-threatening cases like the common cold and cases that present with
mild symptoms. Most of these cases come from people of lower socioeconomic
status who have nowhere to go. is is also seen as the emergency departments
respond to the majority of conditions that are within the homeless and non-
citizen populations, and this can range from the common cold to violence or
even drug addiction. Most Americans with healthcare do not need the emergency
department as they have regular primary care visits, suitable income to aord
health insurance (or jobs that oer benets), and fewer environmental stressors.
ese sociological factors have caused this shi from emergency care to primary
care.
42
Physician Struggle
Emergency care workers also struggle with socioeconomic barriers within
the emergency department. Physicians are immensely pressured to get through
the high quantity of patients. e pressure to discharge patients is one of the
main challenges, as there is limited space but high volumes of patients. Professor
Megan Moore from the University of Washington studies social work care in
healthcare and researched social workers in the emergency department, as
this can help show what problems physicians face. e lack of resources and
coordination that leads to the pressure to discharge patients shows how this high-
speed environment impacts physicians. Moore goes as far as to say how mental
health concerns within the emergency department are overlooked because of
this (Moore, 2018). is is a failing system, as mental health emergencies are real
medical emergencies.
43
Overlooking patients because of the volume that emergency departments
have to turn over is a common theme throughout this system in America.
ese problems with turnover create bad relationships between physicians
and patients and create stereotypes and biases that aect patients and doctors.
Eeva Sointu, an assistant professor of sociology at York St. John’s in England,
researched 27 medical students and what learning on the job during rotations
was like. rough this study, Sointu talks about the hidden curriculum and
how doctors classify a “good” or “bad” patient. Sointu’s study shows how
socioeconomic status is linked to how these doctors deceive patients, leading
to an inequality in care (Sointu, 2016). is inequality of care is essential to
the study of the emergency department, as physicians regularly see people of
low socioeconomic status. e struggles that are faced with the bias created by
the presented cases are reinforced by this fast-paced environment. Burnout,
stress, and mental health are essential factors when looking at how emergency
department workers treat patients. ese interactions are critical to care as the
patient-provider connection is positively linked to beer health outcomes.
44
stress, and mental health are essential factors when looking at how emergency
department workers treat patients. ese interactions are critical to care as the
patient-provider connection is positively linked to beer health outcomes.
Goals and Roadmap of Analysis
In this microcosm, it is essential to analyze the struggles of the healthcare
workers and the patients because we can use the intersection of their struggles
to nd interventions that will heal both parties. In this environment, there is an
apparent struggle between the two parties. Physicians and healthcare workers
swore an oath to care for their patients. ey want to provide high-quality care
but need the tools and environment to succeed. e sociological environment
that goes into provider and patient interaction is studied at the highest level
in the eld. In a restaurant, you have multiple working parts: kitchen, servers,
bartenders, managers, and other accessory sta. ese roles are designed to
work together to create a service to the best of their ability. ere is structure
45
to all jobs, workow, and management, and workow has not been investigated
in terms of our emergency departments in America. Analyzing the struggles
between workers and patients will allow us to nd common themes aecting
both parties and create beer solutions for beer interactions with emergency
care in America.
eories
Functionalism
Émile Durkheim’s theory of function shows how all aspects of society
serve a purpose and have a role. His theory points out how social structure
and intuitions allow society to maintain stability and cohesion. Functionalism
assesses the needs of a society and references groups and how people ll
those needs. is theory allows for promoting collective thinking and working
together as a society. Durkheim called this “collective conscience” in his early
book
e Division of Labour in Society
(Durkheim, 1893). In today’s society,
46
the Emergency Department should, in theory, allow for beer cohesion and have
an accessible and important role for all Americans. It is important to use this
theory to think of the ED as a functional part of society, whether it is performing
its function and whether there are institutional barriers that create downfalls that
do not support the cohesion of our society.
Intersectionality
Kimberlé Chenshaw’s theory of Intersectionality shows how multiple social
identities, such as race, class, and gender, interact to create a unique social prole
and unique experience of privilege or oppression (Chenshaw, 1989). is theory
allows for a beer understanding if you use a single-variable analysis. Chenshaw
derived this theory when looking at the social movements and how black women
faced both racism and sexism. Chenshaw used this theory to say how black
women face unique forms of discrimination that would not be seen in a one-
dimensional analysis of race or gender. is is important in terms of healthcare
47
because many avenues of discrimination and stressors aect dierent social labels,
and it is important to look at them together and not independently.
Methods
To conduct this analysis, it is important to examine the struggles of the
physician and the patient. To do this, I will consider rsthand accounts and create
journeys of both the physician and patient to see how their struggles overlap and
pinpoint where these journeys intersect for further research and implementing
interventions via policies or technology.
Patient Struggle
It is important to separate the dierent types of patients from dierent social
groups to identify patient struggles. Socioeconomic status is the main driving factor
that can change the experience patients face in the emergency department. We can
look at specic emergency departments in areas of polarizing status to determine
these polarizing dierences. To nd areas of dierent statuses, I used
48
the US census to nd lower-income, high-volume areas that would allow for
a higher sample size and beer review. Aer identifying the locations, it is
important to look at the rst-hand accounts, which include Google reviews of
emergency departments. Google reviews allow us to get a look from a non-biased
and primary source as the reviews are from patients’ non-biased perspectives
and quantify the rating compared to other areas of high income. Using the themes
from Google reviews, I investigated other rst-hand accounts and analyzed
specic problems to create a beer natural journey for the patient. When
choosing areas of interest, the most important factors were average household
income, percentage of uninsured persons, and minority population (Black and
Latino). ese metrics were important to compare and contrast as they gave us a
spectrum of how dierent social groups preserve and experience the emergency
room. I also selected cities with greater population density because there is more
representation in the Google reviews (n>25).
49
A er looking at those statistics, I selected three cities with higher and lower
average household incomes, as shown in the table below.
United States Census, 2022
e high-income cities are represented as Boston, Sea le, and Denver, and
low-income cities are represented by Li le Rock, Chicago, and St. Louis,
respectively. Choosing these cities would give the best representation and
spread across all social groups of patients to nd the everyday struggle
between all groups and the struggle of speci c groups.
Physician Struggle
To identify the physician struggle, I have combed through primary
articles regarding burnout, mental health, and systemic problems. When
identifying physician problems, these methods focus more on the healthcare
50
system and what limits the physician’s ability to provide top-tier care. To
determine the dierence in area, race, and class, I have looked into the patient
reviews to see if I can nd common themes expressed by the patients that are
independent of the physician to look back and see the misinterpreted struggle
that is being expressed by the patient that is falling to blame on the physician.
e methods are designed to create a roadmap, allowing us to analyze the
physician’s process to see where they struggle most and cross-reference with the
patient.
Results
Patients Struggle
roughout the research, it was undeniable that, independent of the area,
the emergency department had a bad reputation among all patients. Across the
country, all patients were disappointed with the outcome of the emergency room
as there was no overall rating of over 2.9 stars, which came from Baptist
51
Health Medical Center in Lile Rock, Arkansas. e common themes of all
these Google reviews were wait time and communication. roughout the
initial analysis of the Google reviews, the main goal was to nd rst-hand what
patients struggle with the most on the ground level and see if that is a shared
struggle. e common theme falls around triage as people wait for long periods,
and the triage system overlooks their pain.
Siing in the ER waiting room for over ve hours with a family member waiting to be
seen- meanwhile a middle-aged lady is rocking and writhing in pain, retching, crying
out for help and watching this lady NOT be helped- not even given a warm blanket
when asked for one- is disturbing me and many others around me. Workers are
too overloaded or so burned out that they simply have no compassion for this poor
woman. -Lucy Seash
is was a Google review from Baptist Health Medical Center in Lile Rock,
Arkansas, which shows how the triage system failed this woman, who was
in pain in the emergency department’s waiting room. e triage system was
a common theme in the reviews, which makes you think that the emergency
department is creating a system that allows the waiting room to function
52
incorrectly.
Another common theme seen in the Google reviews was poor customer
service. Across all negative reviews, it was a common theme that the sta
was not communicating and neglecting their patients, as many reviews show
how the sta was not present and that they would not communicate well with
their patients. is can stem from many internal problems in the emergency
department, but even if this problem is the fault of the system, the fact that it is
still being put on the patients means that the struggle should be analyzed from
the patients’ point of view. is was a prevalent theme across all six emergency
departments, and this Google review represents that problem.
I sat in the waiting room for 7 hours and in a room for one hour. Never seen by a
nurse or doctor with extreme tooth pain. No one even looked at my tooth or came by
to make sure I was ok. Ending up leaving mad and hungry because I was there since
3pm to 11pm and still hadn’t been seen. Sta is nice, but do they even have doctors in
the ER? because it sure don’t seem like it. All I wanted was antibiotics for my infected
tooth. It was a Sunday and have here. - Renna Wade
53
is review from SSM Health in St. Louis shows how Renna was neglected in
the emergency department. Questioning if doctors even work in the emergency
room which is an obvious aw in the system. Patient neglect was a prevalent
theme as the patient is at its lowest when they are in the emergency room. ere
should be solid communication between the physician and the patient in stressful
patients as it keeps them at ease and does not leave them questioning their health.
According to rst-hand accounts, this aspect of care needs to be improved and is
a common point of struggle between all patients.
e nal points of struggle were specically through the dened norms
of how people of minorities and low income are treated in the emergency
room. ere are pronounced discrepancies in healthcare for people of lower
socioeconomic status and minority groups because of institutional racism.
However, we can see all of it unfold in this Google review.
54
Nurse Karen is an older white nurse who is sadly still one of the nurses there.
Normally she questions you before you enter. Her name’s negative connotation is
exactly how she is. She is entitled and is very rude to patients. God forbid you have
an emergency at night she will judge you for that even though it is not part of her job.
She minimizes pain for those of color and has a terrible aitude. She should not be in
health care. If I could report her to the board of nurses I would. It is white health care
professionals who act like this to people of color who are ruining health care. Don’t
minimize anyone pain period point blank. Also, it is not your job to judge someone
for coming to the ER late. Do your job and care about your patients. You are ruining
MGH’s name. - Palmi Duby
e experience that the patient experiences can be explained by
intersectionality as these negative interactions are linked to their unique social
prole. ere is blatant discrimination in our healthcare system from the
education that is passed down through the system, it shows and aects the
patients of America. Palmi Duby felt the wrath of prejudice in this emergency
department at Massachuses General Hospital in Boston. rough the analysis
of the patient’s struggle through the use of rsthand sources, we see three
main points of struggle that are neglect of pain, lack of communication, and
discrimination.
55
Physician Struggle
When researching physician struggle, the main sources were primary articles
and rsthand sources. e main struggle I found was burnout and mental health
within physicians. It is no surprise that the emergency department is a high-
stress environment. is struggle runs deep within the system as physicians
are trained to be stressed through academia. From the competitiveness of
admissions to medical school to the high content volume, it is easy to overlook
this problem as they are bread to desensitize stress. Especially in a department
that is in the face of death and trauma, there is a higher amount of stress within
the emergency department. Inecient work processes and work burdens cause
this institutional problem. It is also reported that around half of physicians
experience symptoms of burnout. is problem is the root cause of physician
pain and struggle. e eects of burnout also have an unequal spread
56
between gender and age, as younger and female physicians experience a higher
portion of burnout (West, 2018).
Discussion
Dysfunction of e Modern Triage System
roughout the research of patient and physician struggle using
sociological theories, we can break down the social problems that align with
these struggles. Functionalism shows how, for a microcosm to form a proper
cohesion, each cog in the system must perform its role. According to the
patient’s rst-hand accounts, the triage system does not fulll this role and can
stem as a dysfunctional part of this system. From our rsthand accounts we
saw this prevalent within the rst google review as a patient described this as
representative of the current system: “middle-aged lady is rocking and writhing
in pain, retching, crying out for help and watching this lady NOT be helped- not
even given a warm blanket when asked for one.” is is a quote from the
57
research showing the emotional pain neglected within the modern triage
system used in the US, which is the Emergency Severity Index. e rst triage
level involves life-threatening cases that need immediate care; the next level
is high-risk scenarios. e following levels are dened by the quantity of
resources needed (Christ, 2010). is is where the triage system fails us.
e function of the triage system is to create a systemic order that would
cause the least amount of trauma and pain across the board. is shows that
the triage system was created to bring the most money to the hospitals as it
is trying to use the most resources rst. e cases that have used the most
resources will create the most money, so those are prioritized aer levels one
and two. If the system does not perform its function, the whole system will
suer from shortcomings. e system’s stability is at risk when we create a
faulty cog, leading to the patient’s struggle through neglect. To restore the
58
function of the triage system, it should cater to both the severity of the case and
the individual’s feelings, as emotional stress is also critical to the patient’s health.
e triage system is the rst downfall within the emergency department as pain
is neglected and prioritizes the biological eects on the body while ignoring
the psychological feelings of the patient. e dysfunction of the triage system
also negatively aects physicians because of the stress patients experience.
ese long wait times and neglect of severity cause the patients to be more hurt
and more dissatised with their care, and because of this, there is already a
disconnect with the physician before they conduct their screenings.
Lack of Communication and Neglect
Another common theme in the reviews was neglect and rudeness towards
the patients in the emergency room. e lack of communication is derived
from understang issues that come with the emergency department, creating a
struggle and divide that does not allow physicians to get close to their patients,
59
resulting in patients not geing the best care. ese struggles are rooted in many
things but can be described through the intersectionality theory and institutional
racism. ese theories are the root of the hidden curriculum. In Eeva Sointu’s
‘Patient/’ Bad’ Patient: Clinical learning and the entrenching of inequality, Sointu
interviewed twenty-seven medical students in rotations to see how the job
training reinforced a hidden curriculum. e hidden curriculum is learned from
on-the-job experiences, passed down from senior physicians, and through social
interactions. Sointu explains how there are groups of good and bad patients as
decient patients, and these patients are characterized by cultural health capital.
Cultural health capital is a theory created by Janet K Shim, which states that
people with beer cultural skills, aitudes, and behaviors have beer healthcare
services. is includes basic health knowledge, personal connections, and
involvement in health. All of these categories are unequally distributed towards
minority groups in America. is comes into play heavily in the Emergency
60
resulting in patients not geing the best care. ese struggles are rooted in
many things but can be described through the intersectionality theory and
institutional racism. ese theories are the root of the hidden curriculum. In
Eeva Sointu’s ‘Patient/’ Bad’ Patient: Clinical learning and the entrenching of
inequality, Sointu interviewed twenty-seven medical students in rotations to see
how the job training reinforced a hidden curriculum. e hidden curriculum
is learned from on-the-job experiences, passed down from senior physicians,
and through social interactions. Sointu explains how there are groups of good
and bad patients as decient patients, and these patients are characterized
by cultural health capital. Cultural health capital is a theory created by Janet
K Shim, which states that people with beer cultural skills, aitudes, and
behaviors have beer healthcare services. is includes basic health knowledge,
personal connections, and involvement in health. All of these categories are
61
All of these categories are unequally distributed towards minority groups in
America. is comes into play heavily in the Emergency Department as there is a
higher population of people without healthcare or of lower socioeconomic status
who rely only on the emergency room for care. is causes the discrepancy
in cultural health capital to have a more detrimental eect. is is shown in
Sointu’s paper as her experiences with learning physicians show doctors distaste
for people who are not interactive with their health, do not follow medication
instructions, and have health-compromising environments. ese interactions
were shared in my analysis of the Google reviews as, at times, patients felt
neglected when in emergency rooms. Physicians who are embodied by the
hidden curriculum forget about the backgrounds of their patients. Hence,
intersectionality is an important way for us to teach future physicians about
care. Teaching systems that allow the physician to create a multi-dimensional
background will allow for beer empathy for the patient. Physicians tend to
62
forget how patients’ income, gender, class, and race aect their care, and
this is a root of neglect. Pulling physicians away from just the biological model
and allowing them to think of their patients as also a social entity of their
environment will allow for beer care.
Physicians are indoctrinated into this type of care. However, it needs to be
addressed by the overall system, as physician burnout is also widespread across
all physicians, as stated in the results. It is unfair to the patients and physicians
that the system overworks all the workers, leading to a lack of quality care across
the board, especially in the Emergency Department. Our system must have
empathy for all personnel involved.
Conclusion
Moving Away from the Biological Model
e biological model is essential in Medicine, but it is also necessary to
think that everyone in the system is human.
63
Physicians and patients alike suer from stress, and that has caused many
problems in our healthcare systems. ere is more to a patient than their
lab results and symptoms, and doctors at times neglect this. e view of
intersectionality will allow for a complete analysis of a patient. Teaching and
practicing intersectionality can allow physicians and patients to think of the
medical eld as not an exchange of services, but an exchange of social services.
Remember in this high stress and essential eld that everyone within it is
human, which will allow for society to create interventions that can beer suit
the new human model on both sides of the problem. is intervention can
create beer outcomes for all patients, especially patients of the emergency
room of low social economic status that face the hidden curriculum and
systematic process that allow for subpar care. e best way to move from the
solely biological model is to educate physicians on a new social model that
encompasses the patient’s socioeconomic status and creates beer care for them.
64
Allowing a System of Sympathy
Physicians face the highest suicide rate among professions. is is due to
overworking, job stress and dealing with death daily. e system creates doctors
that are machines meant to bole up stress and produce money for the hospital.
is aw creates an environment of hostility for patients and physicians and is
not a stable system for the future. I want to end this paper sharing the stories of
Dr.Shalon Irving and Dr.Hawkins Mecham. First Dr.Mecham aer working one
hundred hours a week in Bualo, New York aer the death of his parents and
emotional abuse in the workplace woke up in a motel around a pool of blood
aer sliing his wrists (Steussy, 2019). Dr.Shalon Irving a new black mother that
died three weeks aer complication of high blood pressure (Montagne, 2017).
ese stories represent thousands of Americans that are emotionally abused by
the system. I promise you that if we had a system of sympathy, Dr.Mecham
65
would have never been siing in a pool of his own blood, and Dr.Irving’s
daughter would have known her mother.
66
References
Anderson, Philip, Roberta Petrino, Pinchas Halpern, and Judith Tintinalli. 2006. “e
Globalization of Emergency Medicine and Its Importance for Public Health.”
Bulletin of the World Health Organization
84(10):835-839. Retrieved March 5, 2025
(hps://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/84/10/en/).
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2023. “Emergency Department Visits.”
National Center for Health Statistics. Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://www.cdc.
gov/nchs/fastats/emergency-department.htm).
Chaerjee, Rhitu, and Rebecca Davis. 2017. “Black Mothers Keep Dying Aer Giving
Birth. Shalon Irving’s Story Explains Why.” NPR, December 7. Retrieved March 5,
2025 (hps://www.npr.org/2017/12/07/568948782/black-mothers-keep-dying-
aer-giving-birth-shalon-irvings-story-explains-why).
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References
Christ, Michael, Florian Grossmann, Daniela Winter, Roland Bingisser, and Elke Platz.
2010. “Modern Triage in the Emergency Department.”
Deutsches Ärztebla
International
107(50):892-898. Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://www.aerztebla-
international.de/10.3238/arztebl.2010.0892).
Crenshaw, Kimberlé. 2017.
On Intersectionality: Essential Writings
. New York: e New
Press.
Durkheim, Émile. [1893] 1997.
e Division of Labor in Society.
Translated by W. D.
Halls. New York: Free Press.
68
References
Hale, Jessica, Nianyi Hong, Ben Hopkins, Sean Lyons, Eamon Molloy, and e
Congressional Budget Oce Coverage Team. 2024. “Health Insurance Coverage
Projections for the US Population and Sources of Coverage, by Age, 2024–34.”
Health
Aairs
43(7). Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://doi.org/10.1377/hltha.2024.00460).
Lamb, Michelle M. 2013. “Review of e Safety-Net Health Care System by Gunnar
Almgren and Taryn Lindhorst.”
Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
24(3):1407-1409. Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://muse.jhu.edu/article/519292/pdf ).
Moore, Megan, Margaret Cristofalo, Danae Dotolo, Nicole Torres, Alexandra Lahdya, Leyna
Ho, Mia Vogel, Mollie Forrester, Bonnie Conley, and Susan Fouts. 2017. “When High
Pressure, System Constraints, and a Social Justice Mission Collide: A Socio-Structural
Analysis of Emergency Department Social Work Services.”
Social Science & Medicine
178:104-114. Retrieved March 5, 2025
69
References
Sointu, Eeva. 2017. “‘Good’ Patient/‘Bad’ Patient: Clinical Learning and the Entrenching
of Inequality.”
Sociology of Health & Illness
39(1):63-77. Retrieved March 5, 2025
(hps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9566.12487).
Steussy, Lauren. 2019. “Doctors Share How Burnout Nearly Led em to Suicide.”
New
York Post,
February 19. Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://nypost.com/2019/02/19/
doctors-share-how-burnout-nearly-led-them-to-suicide/).
U.S. Census Bureau. 2022. “QuickFacts: United States.” Retrieved March 5, 2025 (hps://
www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045222).
U.S. Congress. 1986. Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. Public Law 99-272, 42
U.S. Code § 1395dd.
70
References
West, Colin P., Liseloe N. Dyrbye, and Tait D. Shanafelt. 2018. “Physician Burnout:
Contributors, Consequences, and Solutions.”
Journal of Internal Medicine
283(6):516-529. doi:10.1111/joim.12752.
71
Invisible Disability
Abstract
Invisible disability makes the disabled person invisible. When I was ill nobody
knew until I told them. I put on a mask pretending that I was ne while I was
drowning under all the medicine that had become my life. I felt like I was gone,
replaced by fatigue, pain, and the fog of illness. is artwork depicts that feeling
of invisibility and the emotional pain that comes with it.
72
Pencil drawing of a crying eye painted with splotches of watercolor
in blue, green, and purple. Surrounding the eye is a collage of
torn papers that invoke medicine including a prescription label,
pharmacy receipt, and other related papers.
73
The Truth about Legal Immigration
Lily Brin
Abstract
e U.S. immigration system is oen seen as a way to build a beer life—but in
reality, it’s full of barriers that leave millions stuck, waiting, or completely shut
out. is paper inspects how outdated laws, like the Immigration Act of 1990,
have created long wait times, unfair limits, and almost impossible paths for
people trying to come to the U.S. legally. ese policies hit hardest for people
from countries with large populations, especially immigrants from BIPOC and
lower-income communities. Whether it’s family members waiting decades to
reunite, skilled workers stuck in limbo, or asylum seekers locked in cages while
their cases drag on, the system isn’t just broken—it’s harmful. Under the Trump
administration, these issues only got worse. From slashing refugee admissions to
74
Abstract
trying to eliminate the Diversity Visa program, Trump’s policies revolve around
exclusion and fear, weaponizing bureaucracy to keep people out. is paper
cuts through the noise—ghting misinformation and exposing the cruelty baked
into the system. By breaking down the real impacts of policy and calling out the
repercussions of it, this work aims to be part of a bigger movement: one that
replaces fear with truth, and apathy with action.
75
When Americans faced the topic of immigration, the common phrase said was
wait in line. Despite the idea that the borders of the United States were open,
the inux of immigrants entering the country in 2000, 2010, and 2015 was too
much for the system to handle. e most prominent immigration legislation,
e Immigration Act of 1990, updated the long-needed immigration system for
the country to deal with inuxes of immigration to the United States. However,
the act’s lack of exibility created signicant damage in the system, aecting
millions of future immigrants. Family sponsorship was the most commonly
used path of immigration, which experienced extreme backlogging from large
countries like Mexico, and created decade-long waiting times. Backlogging for
the Employment-Based path was so prolonged that some immigrants could
die before geing their visas. e Diversity Visa Loery lacked governmental
assistance in adjusting to a new life in the United States, despite the value of
76
diversity it represented. Refugees and Asylum seekers sought help but came
across obstacles and long waiting periods, which could lead them to cages. e
United States’ restrictive legal immigration system is not equipped to handle the
inux of immigrants which le millions of immigrants to jump through several
hoops to reach the land of the free.
e Immigration Act of 1990 caused many of the prominent immigration
problems that the United States faced, regardless of being the most prominent
legislation for modern immigration. e Immigration Act of 1990 was enacted
“to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to change the level, and
preference system for admission, of immigrants to the United States, and to
provide for administrative naturalization.”1 On the day of signing this act,
President George H.W Bush praised the act as being “good for families, good for
business, good for crime ghting, and good for America.”2 Despite the system’s
77
rocky past, the government put through a concrete piece of legislation that
controlled how immigration proceeded in the United States. However, there was
one major aw that crippled the 1990 Immigration Act in the decades to come.
e Immigration Act lacked any statutes that adjusted the quotas according to
the rates of immigration owing into the country during the 1990s. e leading
aws were country caps and visa quotas, which restricted high-population
countries the most. Country caps limited the availability of visas for “natives
of any single foreign state” to “7 percent,” regardless of the world’s various
populations and conditions in each country.3 As a consequence, the country
caps began the subtle backlog of applications in the 21st century.
In addition to country caps and quotas set forth by the Immigration Act
of 1990, the immigration system in the United States fell behind in its ability to
handle the rise in immigration. e immigration system fell behind further with
78
each year, not only because of country caps and quotas but because of the
rising numbers of immigration. In 1990, only 19.8 million immigrants arrived
in the United States.4 In just ten years, the number grew to 31.1 million, then
39.9 million in 2010.5 e Immigration Act was not prepared to handle the
total increase of 30 million immigrants. erefore, a slow but harmful backlog
developed which created problems to follow that aected millions of immigrants
worldwide.
Family sponsorship was the most widely used path of immigration, which
caused extreme backlogs that led to immigrants waiting for decades. With family
sponsorship, a United States citizen could le a visa petition for their spouse,
child, parent, or sibling.6 Due to the broad access of family sponsorship, sixty
to seventy percent of all lawful permanent immigrants in the United States had
“family-based roots.”7 However, due to the 480,000 preference limit on family-
79
based roots.”7 However, due to the 480,000 preference limit on family-
sponsored visas and the country caps, the system struggled to catch up to the
millions of petitions led over the next couple decades.8 e United States
Department of State’s monthly Visa Bulletin, a summary of immigrant arrival
statistics, displayed a chart listing the backlog-dates of where the system was
in ling family-sponsorship petitions.9 e chart also took account of certain
high-rated immigration countries, such as Mexico, where they showed the
most extreme backlogs. e F2B visa for unmarried children backlogged nine
years in 1991.10 Over twenty-four years, the F2B visa only progressed four
years to 1995.11 At this rate, immigrants would have to wait decades for the
results.
is extremely long process to get a visa could potentially last a lifetime.
Following Immigration trends, if an 18-year old Mexican permanent resident
80
les a family-sponsorship visa petition for their child in 2000, they could wait
decades for the results. From 2000 to 2015, the rate at which the F2B category,
which processes applications for residents’ adult children, progressed four
months every year. When the Visa bulletin progress nally reached 2015, at the
calculated rate, the year would be 2054 when the Mexican immigrant gets their
visa. By that time, the immigrant would be 72 years-old. ese decades-long
backlogs aected millions of families’ plans for a new life due to the government’s
lack of management of the outdated regulations and quotas.
Another commonly used path, Employment-Based Immigration, was also
met with extreme wait times so dramatic that some countries waited decades for
their citizenship. In the Immigration Act of 1990, the level for all Employment-
Based Immigrants was 140,000.12 ere are dierent types of visas that are
available to immigrants. e main categories for permanent visas were E1
81
through E5, ranging from college graduate professors working for a university
to unskilled workers working in a factory.13 Temporary Visas were available
to people who entered the country and did not plan to remain permanently.
Such categories were the H-2A visa, which allowed “temporary or seasonal
agricultural” workers to enter the United States for a period of the year while
they lived in their native country.14 Despite the various types of visas, many
were backlogged for several years.
Due to the Immigration Act of 1990’s country caps, the processing of
these visas created severe backlogs in some countries, especially India. e
government’s progress of the petitions for visas is so slow that an Indian
national could “expect to wait up to 50 years” to get a green card.15 Yogi
Chhabra, who worked as an IT professional, was “in the same job for 20
years.”16 Chhabra, who was 55 years, was worried that his visa application
82
might outlive him.17 Vasant Marur, a biomedical researcher, had the same belief
that one “might actually die before you can get a green card.”18 e quotas and
the country caps made the Immigration system fall behind, leaving millions of
immigrants to wait in agony for their permanent residence in the United States.
Immigrants wish for the successful and opportunistic lifestyle that Americans
achieve in the United States. Because of these backlogs, the United States risks
losing the passionate and talented individuals that can help the nation prosper.
e Diversity Visa loery was the last resort for people from outside the
United States to gain entry into the country. e program, a chance for the
United States to diversify and create a preconceived connotation of winners
within the United States workforce. However, the nation lacked governmental
resources and service to support them. With a quota of 55,000 winners per scal
year and a only a month to register, the Diversity Visa Program was unlikely for
83
migrants who could only use this path to win.19 20 e program and
this path of immigration helped the United States in “shaping signicant
migration ows from dierent regions of the world” in African Migrants.21
Every year, around 20,000 Africans gain residence in the United States.22
is path of immigration gives opportunity to many immigrants who are
oen neglected to enter the country.
However, Diversity Visa winners have struggled to get a decent job
and pay when they emigrate. A study by Michael Kremer showed that
Diversity Visa winners were slightly less likely than other legal permanent
residents to be employed, even if the immigrant’s level of education is higher
than the permanent residents.23 A study about the experiences of Diversity
Visa immigrants in the United States showcased how unrealistic their
expectations were before immigrating. When the participants arrived
84
in the country, they found lile to no options for jobs.24 Tog, one of the
participants, described the process as a “take it or leave it” situation, explaining
how the dicult and routine jobs were the only jobs he could get and had to
take to survive.25 e interviewed immigrants said that the program lacked
governmental support, some even requesting the program to support them in
nding jobs, housing, health care, and schooling.26 e Immigration Act of
1990 did not give any support to the Diversity Visa program, disadvantaging the
immigrants and leaving them to fend for themselves to the rigors of the American
workforce.
In the age of terrorism and civil wars, many refugees and asylum seekers
ran to the United States’ borders for help but were met with a long, convoluted
system of maybes, and, in some cases, cages. e application process for asylum
was tedious and apathetic due to the conditions it placed asylum seekers in.
85
When an immigrant physically stepped foot in the United States, they were
given an Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, Form I-589,
by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.27 e fourteen-
page application had to be in English, or it would be denied and returned.28 If
the refugee did not have the proper paperwork to apply for asylum, they had
to establish a case of credible fear of returning to their country to Customs
and Border Protection.29 If the government denied the case, it resulted in
immediate deportation to their native country, unless the refugee led for an
appeal to their case.30 is cruel system disadvantages any immigrants who
lack the acceptable traits, like speaking English, required to assimilate to life
in the United States, excluding the undesirables from the alleged American
melting pot.
If the United States’ government accepted the credible fear case,
86
the appeal for a credible fear case, or the application form, the longest and
most intensive step came into play: the long wait for a judge to review their
application.31 is step could last for several months due to the surge of cases
throughout the decade. Approximately 100,000 asylum cases were processed in
2012, until the number rose to 500,000 in 2017, causing the system to fall behind
further with each year.32 While they waited, some asylees lived “in detention
centers, where ‘boles of water, bags of chips and large foil sheets intended
to serve as blankets’” were “‘scaered’ around a cage.”33 Seidu Mohammed
and Razak Iyal, two Ghanaian asylum seekers, spent 860 days in and out of
dierent detention centers, weaving through the prolonged process of geing
lawyers, presenting their cases, only to be denied.34 ey were squeezed in with
“common criminals, drug dealers, and murderers,” given fast food and pulpy
juice, and prevented from practicing Muslim prayer.35 36 37 e system
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overloaded in the past decades, abandoning hundreds of thousands of refugees
to fend for themselves. Human lives were in the country’s hands, and they
crumpled those lives up and threw them away to suer in isolation and
darkness. Just because they didn’t t the mold of an assimilable immigrant, they
were out casted by the system and le to suer in harsh conditions.
e United States continues to oppress immigrants today by limiting
immigration into the country. On October 1st, 2020, Republican Representative
Mo Brooks introduced the American Jobs First Act, which plans to “repeal the
diversity visa loery program.”38 is act will aect millions of immigrants
in the future who rely on this path to get into the country. e Trump
Administration also has plans to cut the refugee quota to 15,000 in the 2021
scal year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.39 e country is still repressing the
lives of millions of immigrants from gaining the same opportunities as citizens.
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To improve the system, the country has to give immigrants equal treatment, no
maer where they come from. Only then will the legal immigration system being
to repair itself from its toxic past.
e United States’ Legal Immigration system failed to keep up with the
inux of immigrants wanting to enter. e Immigration Act of 1990 caused
the slow backlog of applications due to the country caps and the visa quotas
implemented within the four main paths of immigration. Once the backlogs grew
considerably, millions of immigrants waited decades for their application to be
processed. Some could even die before their application was seen. Even if one
was accepted, the journey would be treacherous. e winners of the Diversity
Loery did not get any support from the government and found only laborious
jobs available for them. Moreover, the system turned away many asylum seekers,
despite their horric circumstances, aer months of waiting in detention centers
89
for their appeal. With this information, the phrase, wait in line, was no
longer appropriate. ere was no line. ere was only an obstacle course of
numerous challenges that were rigged against immigrants and the time they
had le.
90
References
PRIMARY SOURCES
NEWSPAPERS
CBS News
(New York, NY)
Washington Post
(Washington, D.C)
Associated Press
(New York, NY)
Press-Republican
(Plasburgh, NY)
GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS
U.S. Congress. Senate Judiciary Subcommiee on Immigration and Refugee
Aairs.
Immigration Act
, 101th Cong., 1st sess., 1990. hps://www.
congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/housebill/40/commiees.
U.S. Congress. House. Judiciary Subcommiee on Education and Labor.
American Jobs First Act,
116th Cong., 1st sess., 2020. hps://www.
congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-BILL/8477/TEXT?R=27&S=1.
SPEECHES
Bush, George H.W. “Immigration Act Signing Ceremony.” Washington, D.C.
1990.
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References
SECONDARY SOURCES
BOOK ONE AUTHOR
Meno, Joe.
Between Everything and Nothing.
Berkeley, California:
Counterpoint Press, 2020.
JOURNAL ARTICLES
Imoagene, Onoso. “Aecting Lives: How Winning the US Diversity Visa
Loery Impacts DV Migrants Pre- and Post-Migration.”
International
Migration,
Vol. 55, No. 393 (July 2017): 170-183.
Hailu, Tekleab Elos, Mendoza, Bernadee M., Lahman, Maria K. E., Richard,
Veronica M. “Lived Experiences of Diversity Visa Loery Immigrants in
the United States.”
Qualitative Report,
Vol. 17, No. 102 (December 2012):
1 - 17.
WEB SOURCES
U.S Department of State Bureau of Consular Aairs. “Visa Bulletin for October
2000.” Accessed October 22, 2020. hps://www.immihelp.com/october-
2000-visa-bulletin/.
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References
SECONDARY SOURCES
WEB SOURCES
U.S Department of State Bureau of Consular Aairs. “Visa Bulletin for October
2015.” Accessed October 22, 2020. hps://travel.state.gov/content/travel/
en/legal/visa-law0/visabulletin/2016/visa-bulletin-for-october-2015.html.
U.S Department of State Bureau of Consular Aairs. “Family Immigration.”
Accessed October 22, 2020. hps://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/
legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin/2016/visa-bulletin-for-october-2015.html.
U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. “Application for Asylum and for
Withholding of Removal Instructions.” Accessed October 6, 2020. hps://
www.uscis.gov/sites/default/les/document/forms/i-589instr.pdf.
U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. “Obtaining Asylum in the United
States.” Accessed October 19, 2020. hps://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/
refugees-and asylum/asylum/obtaining-asylum-in-the-united-states.
U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. “Questions and Answers: Credible
Fear Screening.” Accessed October 19, 2020. hps://www.uscis.gov/
humanitarian/refugees-and-asylum/asylum/questions-and-answers-
credible-fear-screening.
93
References
U.S Department of State. “Employment-Based Immigrant Visa.” Accessed
September 19, 2020. hps://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/
immigrate/employment-based-immigrant-visas.html#overview.
U.S Department of State. “Temporary Work Visas.” Accessed September 19,
2020. hps://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/employment/
temporary-worker-visas.html.
U.S Department of State. “Diversity Visa Program.” Accessed September 25,
2020. hps://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/
employment-based-immigrant-visas.html#overview.
Pew Research Center. “Foreign-born population in the United States,
1990.” Accessed October 18, 2020. hps://www.pewresearch.org/
hispanic/2020/08/20/facts-on-u-s-immigrants/.
Pew Research Center. “Statistical Portrait of the Foreign-Born Population
In the United States, 2010.” Accessed October 18, 2020. hps://www.
pewresearch.org/wpcontent/uploads/sites/5/2012/02/PHC-2010-FB-
Prole-Final_APR-3.pdf.
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References
SECONDARY SOURCES
VIDEOS
“Green Card, Immigration Backlog issue.” YouTube video, 7:20.
Posted by “BDCTV,” April 10, 2018. hps://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=7wvS4McGC7U.
“Why seeking asylum in America is so dicult.” YouTube video, 2:20. Posted by
“Vox,” July 12, 2018. hps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwqm8T_IFzk.
THESES
Kremer, Michael. “e diversity visa loery: A Study linking immigration
politics to immigrant characteristics and experiences.” Senior esis. Tus
University, 2011.
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Freedom on Wheels:
Car Culture and Identity Construction among Chinese
Students in the U.S.
Xuanting Liang
Abstract
is study explores the intersection of car culture and identity construction
among Chinese international students in the United States. While luxury car
ownership among this group is oen perceived as a display of wealth, this
research uncovers deeper motivations tied to personal identity, masculinity,
and cultural adaptation. Using qualitative methods, including in-depth
interviews, ethnographic research, and autobiographical analysis, the study
examines how Chinese male students perceive luxury cars as a marker of status
and masculinity, whereas female students generally approach car ownership
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Abstract
from a more practical perspective. Findings reveal that beyond social status,
car ownership signicantly enhances international students’ mobility, freedom,
and quality of life, allowing them to navigate social and cultural spaces with
greater autonomy. e study also highlights the contrast between American
and Chinese car cultures, emphasizing how driving in the U.S. serves as both a
necessity and a symbolic integration into American society. By analyzing these
paerns, this research provides insights into the broader implications of material
consumption, social identity, and cultural adaptation among Chinese students in
a globalized context.
K: car culture, Chinese international students, identity construction,
masculinity, cultural adaptation, mobility, social status, material consumption,
globalization.
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Background
When discussing American cultural and social values, the car is more
than just a means of transportation; it symbolizes freedom, individualism,
and gender identity. Since the early 20th century, the automobile has been
deeply embedded in the heart of the American Dream, representing personal
success and independence. With the development of globalization, the number
of Chinese students in the United States continues to grow, making them an
essential part of educational, cultural, and economic exchanges. According to
the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in China, more than 317,000 Chinese students
enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities in the 2020/21 academic year, making
them the largest source of international students in the United States. is
notable presence raised their academic prole and drew widespread aention
to their lifestyle.
98
e typical stereotype that “Chinese students look rich because they always
drive luxury cars” has triggered a discussion about the lifestyle of this group.
As a female Chinese student in the United States, although I do not drive
luxury cars, I admit that in my observation, many Chinese students do choose
brands such as Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Mustang, Maserati, and Porsche. e
phenomenon is oen seen as a display of wealth. However, behind this choice
is not just a display of wealth but a reection of personal taste, identity, and
the pursuit of the “American dream.” e “American dream”, in my denition,
is oen associated with the pursuit of personal success, freedom, and social
mobility, which frequently expressed through material possessions such as cars
and houses.
From my observations, luxury cars have a special appeal for Chinese male
students studying abroad.
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is phenomenon has stimulated my research interest in why Chinese
overseas students buy luxury cars, especially how gender aects the dierence
between male and female overseas students in car buying and cultural
integration. erefore, this paper will focus on the motivations of Chinese
male international students who choose luxury cars and, through comparison
with the perspectives of female international students, reveal how the choice
of luxury cars is intertwined with male international students’ identity, cultural
values, and the desire to integrate into a new environment. In addition, this
study will explore how study abroad experience and luxury car choice work
together to shape the expression of masculinity among Chinese international
students. rough such analysis, I aim to gain a deeper understanding of how
gender roles are manifested through consumer behaviors in cross-cultural
seings and how these aect international students’ social adjustment and
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cultural integration.
rough an in-depth analysis of Chinese students’ driving choices, this
study aims to more fully understand their life experiences in the United States
and how these experiences shape their identities and interactions with American
society. is is not only about how individuals seek and shape their own
space and identity in the ow of globalization but also helps us understand the
complexity and diversity of cultural integration in the contemporary world.
eory
is study adopts interpretative theory and focuses on the constructive
nature of social meaning and its role in real life. Interpretative theory provides
an in-depth analysis of how individuals construct meaning in social interactions
and act on those meanings. is theory holds that individuals’ behavior and
interactions are based on their perception of social meaning and are inuenced
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by role expectations and individual aributes.
is theoretical perspective is closely related to the objective of this
study. is study focuses on the intrinsic motivations of Chinese male students
studying abroad to purchase luxury cars and explores how they give these cars
specic social and cultural signicance. Do these students see the car as a mere
tool to demonstrate wealth or as a symbol of personal identity and cultural
values? rough an interpretative theoretical perspective, this study aims to
reveal how international students form multiple understandings and views of
cars.
In addition, this paper will explore how luxury cars have become a
manifestation of masculinity from the perspective of Chinese male students and
analyze how gender aects this behavior paern. By examining their choice of
luxury cars and their sociocultural motivations, this study will deepen our
102
understanding of the meaning behind the behavior of Chinese international
students and how these meanings are expressed and transformed in their
interactions with American society. is will not only help to understand how
individual international students nd and shape their self-identity in the context
of globalization but will also reveal the complexity and diversity of cultural
integration.
Methods
By using various methods, including interviews, ethnographic research,
and autobiographical analysis, this study aims to delve into the meanings that
Chinese international students ascribe to luxury automobiles and the process of
their formation. Interviews allowed me to gain insights into the personal views,
emotions, and decision-making process of international students in purchasing
luxury automobiles from the interviewees. e ethnographic research method
allowed me to comprehensively understand international students’ behaviors,
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motivations and cultural values through long-term observation and engagement.
is revealed the inuence of the social context of the interviewees behind these
practices. e autobiographical analysis is my subjective thoughts as one of the
individuals in this environment and is an addition to the information in this
study.
In the interview, I mainly consider the views of international students on
cars from three aspects:
1. Vehicle acquisition and motivation
Describe your vehicle (make, model, price). When and why did you decide
to buy a car? What was the primary motivation for choosing this car? Who
sponsored your car? If it’s a parent sponsor, how did you convince them?
2. e impact of vehicles on personal life and acculturation
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How does life with a car compare to life without a car? Does a car
improve your quality of life? Has the car helped you assimilate beer into
American culture? Does it increase your social activity? Do you feel that
car ownership has helped reduce loneliness and made you feel more part of
American society?
3. Personal identity and social inuence
What do you think your car represents about you? Does owning a vehicle
increase your social appeal? For example, did it increase communication
with the opposite sex? Does owning a car make you feel more free and
independent? In what ways?
At the beginning of the study, I rst interviewed ve male Chinese
international students in person. Further, I expanded my interviews through
their referrals to reach more international students who drive luxury cars. All
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interviews were audio-recorded with the consent of the interviewees. As
the study progressed, I realized that recording had limitations, such as the
possibility of causing the respondents to feel uncomfortable answering, so I
added Online asynchronous interviews as supplementary methods.
I also took special care in including respondents of dierent genders
and economic backgrounds to ensure a diversity of perspectives in the study.
For example, one of my roommates, a female international student of modest
means, had a very dierent perspective on car purchasing than my initial male
respondents. is diversity of perspectives allowed me to explore whether
international students from various backgrounds assign dierent meanings to
cars.
e sample selection for this study was based on the principles of
convenience sampling and snowballing, where participants were selected from
106
my known population and then introduced through them to other respondents
from similar social circles. is included ve males and two females. rough
this comprehensive research method, I gained a comprehensive and in-depth
understanding of international students’ perceptions of car purchasing and the
signicance of cars in their lives. e analysis also included my perspectives
and experiences as a Chinese international student with a car to complement
the research information.
Findings
is article will be divided into three main parts, exploring in depth the
symbolic meaning of the automobile in American culture and its impact on
Chinese students. First, I’ll explore how car ownership has become a form of
expression in realizing the American Dream. Cars not only give individuals the
ability to move freely but also symbolize control over their destinies. As society
107
changes, so does the symbolism.
I will then delve into the core concept of freedom and how it relates to
driving a car. Freedom is generally understood as the fundamental right to
choose one’s way of life and to achieve one’s goals. In this section, I will discuss
how the car can be a tool to achieve these freedoms and how it can help
international students break free and live the life they want.
Finally, I’ll explore the connection between cars and masculinity. Driving
has long been seen as a symbol of male strength and control. is paper will
pay special aention to the formation of this concept in purchasing luxury cars
by Chinese male students studying abroad and explore how they consciously
or unconsciously demonstrate their personal power and social status through
luxury cars. rough these analyses, I aim to reveal the dierent roles and
deeper meanings of automobiles in the life of overseas students in the American
108
context compared to China.
Comparison of Chinese and American Car Cultures
Regarding cars and the United States, we automatically think of American
car culture. In my interviews, whenever I asked my interviewees whether owning
a car made them feel part of American culture, all of them mentioned American
car culture. e United States is a nation on wheels, and the number of cars in
the United States is among the best in the world. Stephanie Dooper (2017) stated
car ownership in the United States has reached a point where it represents a
fundamental aspect of American life: freedom. True or not, from an outsider’s
point of view, the United States is a country of extreme freedom, one of which is
its wide-open roads and road trips. Like the American Dream, the automobile
embodies the ideal of mobility, status, and opportunity. Even to represent a part
of ourselves. One of my male interviewees said, “American car culture is an
important part of American culture; men like cars, and women like cars. So,
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if you have a car, you have more opportunities to participate.” Another female
respondent said, “American society can’t get anywhere without a car, so owning
a car can take you to more places, such as seeing dierent scenery. “I only
thought about buying a car aer my friend bought it, since she took me to
many places I had never been to. I was stuck on campus for the rst few years
since I didn’t have a car.” Many facilities in the United States are suitable for
cars, such as large parking spaces in front of warehouses and drive-through
paths at many restaurants. Most houses have more than one parking space. In
addition, many scenic spots also provide car services, such as campgrounds for
car camping, and you can drive directly to the scenic spots.
e situation in China is quite dierent. Parking is very dicult. Given
the large population, most Chinese people live in apartments. Even if they own
a car, it’s hard to nd a parking spot. And even owning a property requires
110
renting a parking space, not a free one. China’s urban planning is too compact
and people-oriented, so there are only a few parking Spaces in front of the mall.
erefore, I prefer to walk to the supermarket in China. In addition, most of
China’s urban construction revolves around public facilities, meaning improving
the public transportation system is considered more important than upgrading
the lanes. In addition, the biggest criticism of me and the previous female
interviewees is that the car cannot directly reach the scenic spot. We all like to
travel, but I’m not particularly eager to travel in China. Aer arriving at the scenic
spot, we need to park our car in the parking lot several kilometers away from the
scenic spot, queue up to buy tickets, and wait for the shule bus to pick us up and
take us to the scenic spot. When we nished, we had to wait for the shule bus to
return to the parking lot. During the peak tourist season, the shule bus is usually
full, which could be a beer travel experience.
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A Car Is a Choice in China, but a Must in America
is dierence may be due to dierences in population density between
China and the United States. e population of China is much larger than that of
the United States. In addition, it has to do with ideology. In China, there is more
emphasis on collectivism, that is, everyone, living a good life together. However,
in the United States, people tend to be more individualistic and self-conscious.
Americans prefer to ensure their own lives before caring about the lives of
others, while China is completely the opposite.
So, when I asked my respondents if they owned a car in China, most said
they didn’t. One of the main reasons is that most of the respondents are from
Beijing, where they need to draw lots to register their cars, and if they draw, the
cars can be legally registered. Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Shanghai have the
same policy. is is because these cities belong to China’s developed cities,
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and the population far exceeds the city’s capacity. According to the 7th census
bulletin of Shenzhen in 2020, the permanent population of Shenzhen in that
year was 17.49 million. Connecticut’s population was about 3.6 million that year,
and New York City’s was about 8.8 million that year. As a result, the population
density of China’s developed cities is much higher than that of New York City, not
to mention Connecticut.
Also, because of the high population density, the probability of trac
congestion is much higher than in rural America. erefore, the vast majority
of respondents mentioned that they prefer to take public transportation,
such as subways in China. China’s subway system is more developed than the
United States, and Shenzhen has 284 stations. e Guangzhou Subway has 271
platforms, the Shanghai Subway has 459 platforms, and the Beijing Subway has
nearly 490 platforms. By comparison, only New York City’s subway system in
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the United States meets the same standards. Many rural areas still need subways.
Safety was also a big consideration, with every respondent noting that public
transportation in the United States can seem dangerous in addition to being less
convenient. Driving is, therefore, a safer option, especially at night.
erefore, contrary to the United States, the car culture in China needs
to get more aention. Not having a car in China is not a very important factor
aecting one’s life, although it can cause some decrease in happiness, such as
the crowded subway in the morning. But a car is not a necessity. But cars are a
must in Connecticut, where there are only a few passenger rail lines, leaving only
walking, hailing, and buses. However, many places you want to get to are outside
walking distance, expensive taxis, and unsafe buses. is also explains why car
culture thrives in the United States; outside of urban areas, cars are a necessity.
Cars give people the freedom to go when they want, provide mobility, and give
114
people a sense of security.
Cars, Freedom, and Intercultural Experiences for Interna-
tional Students
e second word that came up a lot in the interview was freedom. When
interviewees discussed the benets of buying a car, they all mentioned freedom.
Before we can talk about freedom, we need to determine what freedom is.
e dictionary denes freedom as the condition or right to do, say, think, etc.,
whatever you want, without being controlled or restricted. In other words,
freedom is a free choice. Ian (2004) proposed that “individuals have the freedom
to do, be, or have what they choose, and this freedom is called” the freedom of
individuals to choose relevant options.” e content of that freedom- the choices
individuals can make- depends on their circumstances.” ese environmental
factors include social norms, economic conditions, cultural background, etc.,
which dene the range and variety of options available. Freedom can only
115
be achieved if certain constraints exist. For example, for a caged bird, the
sky is freedom. In this context, the “cage” is a constraint. So, in the group of
international students, what kind of constraints do vehicles help them escape?
To solve this problem, we rst need to understand the context in which
international students live in the United States. Take my personal experience
as an example. Before, I owned a car and didn’t know any friends who did,
so I hardly ever le campus. e furthest I’ve been is the Price Chopper
supermarket. I lived in the McMahon dorm, sharing a small space with a
Mexican roommate I didn’t know at all, and the daily cycle was limited to
classes, the cafeteria, and the dorm. I remember one spring break snowstorm.
e night before the storm, I walked to the Price Chopper to buy cup noodles
to eat during spring break; it was snowing heavily. Because the dining hall was
closed all spring break, I needed to learn how to use an American food delivery
116
app at that time. I felt like I was surviving, not living, and I felt a huge sense of
rejection, a sense that I didn’t belong, and a lack of personal space.
One female interviewee shared her birthday experience: not knowing where
to celebrate, she had to order a Tea More Coee takeaway from her dormitory
to ‘celebrate,’ it was one of the worst birthdays she had ever had. Another male
respondent mentioned that he oen went hungry at night because nearby shops
and restaurants closed early, and sometimes, it was dicult to nd take-out food
to order aer dark.
In addition, newly arrived students need to become more familiar with the
U.S. price system, and the exchange rate dierence between the RMB and the U.S.
dollar (about 7:1) makes many students feel that the cost of living in the United
States is seven times that of China. is feeling forces international students to
save money, even if the food in the canteen is not to their taste, they have to
117
eat there daily. In addition, most international students arrive with inadequate
language preparation and cultural backgrounds that are very dierent from
locals, making it dicult to integrate into the local community or make friends
quickly.
All of these factors have combined to create a helpless and isolated prison
for newly arrived Chinese students. ere is a sense of distress in the life of a
new student; we are always trying to catch up with the course’s progress, ghting
against our own collapsing emotions, and trying to live. But before we talk about
luxury cars as aunting wealth, owning a car changes students’ lives, no maer
how much it costs. In Automobility and freedom, John(2016) mentioned:
“e car oers considerable exibility, privacy, and control - all closely tied
to personal freedom. To drive is not to be bound by a train or bus schedule
or by the xed route they travel. Driving is insulated from the weather and
oen (but not) always allows people to cross longer distances faster. Cars
enable us to control our internal environment - the temperature and
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seating can be adjusted to our liking. Driving also gives us control over
where we live, work, shop, and play. Cars take you where you want to go.
You can take a detour and drive down a road for 3km and then jump onto
a deserted beach where no one else exists. One feels a certain power when
driving: that’s why people like it - the power and the freedom.”
Owning a car makes the student’s life truly called life, giving the student the
right to choose. On a social level, all respondents said the vehicle helped them
socialize. One male interviewee said having a car helped him join a local sailing
club, which allowed him to meet some local friends. Another male respondent
said that having a car allows him to pick up other friends when he travels,
which makes the relationship between him and his friends closer. Another male
respondent said having a car allowed him and his girlfriend to span distances.
His girlfriend goes to school in New Jersey, and he’s in UConn, so he’ll be able
to see her more oen once he gets a car. One female interviewee said she likes to
see the sea, and having a car allows her to see the sea when she is in a bad mood.
119
is eliminates the isolation and loneliness of international students in society.
When asked if they felt integrated into American culture and local social
circles, most respondents said owning a car did not signicantly help them
integrate into American culture. One male interviewee mentioned that it takes
work to integrate fully into American culture due to cultural dierences. Another
male interviewee has made some local friends but still feels distant from American
culture. My personal experience was similar, and while having a car made it easier
for me to participate in Chinese-English exchange events and meet some local
students, it didn’t do much to immerse myself in American culture or build deep
friendships.
However, it is worth mentioning that even without complete cultural
integration, owning a car still exposes students to some aspects of American
culture to a certain extent. For example, because Americans love the outdoors,
120
students who own cars are also more likely to drive during the holidays to
explore the outdoors and enjoy the natural beauty of the United States. In
addition, having a car can also help international students participate in some
interactions organized by local people. For example, my friends and I aended
the Cherry Blossom Festival held by Yale University a few weeks ago. Having
a car can make the life of international students more exible, with fewer
restrictions on time and place, so that they can participate in some of their
favorite school activities or outside activities.
In general, cars allow students to choose their own lifestyle rather than
helping them integrate into American culture. Cars enable students to balance
American and Chinese culture and explore a lifestyle that suits them.
On a life level, owning a car gives students more choices. In terms of
housing, all of the interviewees I interviewed lived in apartments about a
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15-minute drive from campus. ey can choose housing that is cheaper than
the school dormitory. I moved to the basement, about ve minutes drive from
the school. Although it is a basement, it has its kitchen and bathroom, so I don’t
have to deal with my roommates upstairs. At the same time, the rent of living
o campus will be slightly lower than that of living on campus. For example, the
rent of my room, including water and electricity, is about 600 dollars a month.
International students need privacy in the United States and not be forced to
share a room with someone they don’t know. In addition, driving also brings
about lifestyle choices. Several respondents also obtained Costco membership
cards to shop at Costco at the beginning of the month and cook more palatable
meals at home. One female respondent said she enjoyed Trader Joe’s fast food
and that owning a car enabled her to shop at Trader Joe’s frequently. Even
though my monthly living expenses are not much more than in school, I can
allocate more money to my quality of life than to survival. is
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gives international students a greater sense of participation in their own lives.
ey can decide what they want in their lives and consider everything carefully.
is participation in life gives international students a sense of belonging to
their home. is is when home is truly called a place to enjoy life freely, not a
temporary residence.
erefore, for international students, owning a vehicle greatly improves
their quality of life. It enables them to enjoy life more fully and freely and
helps them connect with American society. By participating in daily activities,
international students nd a sense of belonging and security in American life,
and the car becomes a way to nd a balance between American and Chinese
culture. A vehicle allows them to explore and experience, nding their footing in
both cultures.
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Luxury Cars as a Sign of Social Status and Masculinity for
Chinese Students
Cars are not just a convenient means of transportation but also a symbol of
social status and personal taste. In my interviews, I found that men and women
have completely dierent concepts about car selection, and men are more
aracted to luxury cars. erefore, in the following paragraphs, I will focus on
the analysis that for many overseas students, especially men, luxury cars not only
represent a way of life but also a manifestation of masculinity.
Masculinity generally refers to the aributes, behaviors, and roles associated
with men shaped by social, cultural, and historical contexts. In the article
“Men, masculinity, and Manly Behavior”, the author analyzes that men (usually
biological men, but women can also exhibit masculinity) claim rights belonging to
the dominant gender group and enjoy privileges. To enjoy the benets of being a
member of the dominant gender group, they must demonstrate that they are
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are a special kind of social being. So, they consciously or unconsciously do what
an individual male must do to be recognized as a man and exhibit convincing
manly behavior. It concerns “how a man should behave” or “what qualities a
man should have.” ese ideas can be disseminated and reinforced through
family education, the media, literature, and social interactions (Schrock,
Douglas, and Michael Schwalbe, 2009).
In “Predicting Aggressive Driving Behavior: e Role of Masculinity,
Age, and Car Power,” Krahé, Barbara, and Ilka Fenske (2002) proposed that
personality paerns of masculinity contain three related components: (1) apathy
toward women, (2) viewing violence as a sign of masculinity, and (3) viewing
danger as exciting. ese components correlate strongly with how men behave
in interviews and discuss their reasons for choosing a particular vehicle.
125
First, male interviewees show a carefree aitude regarding women in
interviews. One of the questions was: “Do you think buying this expensive car
will improve your aractiveness to women?” Some of the men laughed, which
had two meanings: they thought the question was funny, and they were trying
to be nonchalant. To my surprise, no men thought buying a luxury car made
a woman more aractive. On the contrary, they proposed to buy a luxury
car, which aracted more admiring looks from men. Before this study, I had
speculated that male international students bought luxury car owners to aract
female aention. Still, aer completing the study, I found that buying luxury
cars was not strongly associated with aracting women. Rather than using
luxury cars as a means of enhancing masculinity to aract women, men see
women, especially beautiful women, as a display of masculinity.
126
Lauren Dundes (2023) introduces the concept of the” passenger princess,
“referring to the idea of car-loving men placing aractive women in the
passenger seat as a” decorative accessory.” In this context, the role of women is
understood as a foil to the dominance of the male driver. erefore, whether
buying a luxury car or choosing a beautiful woman to sit in the passenger seat, it
shows the man’s masculinity.
In addition, male students oen struggle to distinguish themselves from
women when shopping for a vehicle. For example, my female interviewee chose
a Mazda CX-5, while I chose a Subaru Forester. We have taken advice from
men when choosing a car, and they usually don’t recommend either model.
In their opinion, these models need to be more powerful and faster. And the
models they recommend are usually more powerful and look cooler. is
choice reects the importance they place on their vehicles’ performance and
127
appearance and indirectly shows an expression of their masculinity.
Second, the boys want to be aggressive as an expression of masculinity.
For example, one male respondent mentioned that he chose the BMW because
it had a “temper” and was not easy to handle, which he felt matched his own
“temper” and therefore thought the car was a good t for him. Another man
who bought a manual transmission sports car specically mentioned that he
liked the loud engine sound the vehicle made while driving, which he saw as a
sign of strength. “Rumble is reminiscent of racing, oen playing to the male
fantasy of being a racer, the ultimate symbol of internal combustion engine
masculinity.”
Krahé et al. (2002) examined a ranking of the six aspects that men
value most when buying a car, assuming adequate resources, with speed and
sportiness at the top. ese choices reect their use of the car as an outward
128
expression of an individual’s masculine aributes, not just as a means of
transportation but to express oneself and individuality.
ird, men oen see danger as a stimulus. In the study “Boys on the
Road: Masculinity, Car Culture, and Road Safety Education,” Walker and his
colleagues (2000) found that participants generally agreed that racing, driving
at high speeds, and accelerating to overtake when trac lights turn green bring
great pleasure. e car becomes a stage for young people to fulll their emotional
needs. It allows them to feel that they are “growing into a man” and thus gain an
identity worthy of respect. Dangerous driving is not only a display of masculinity
but also a way to construct and maintain hegemonic masculinity and establish
social status. Whether it’s young people encouraging risky behavior among
themselves or mocking those who don’t want to drive aer drinking, this paern
of behavior shows up.
129
One male interviewee I interviewed once passionately discussed with
me the speed and performance of his car. He described his car as having 354
horsepower, far more than my Subaru. My Subaru had about 160 horsepower
and struggled to reach 65 MPH at high speeds. I expressed admiration, and he
showed me a video of him driving. In the video, he is seen playing loud music
while holding his phone and rapidly increasing the gas pedal to 120 miles per
hour, which is a very clear, dangerous driving behavior. I then asked him if he was
worried about geing pulled over on the highway. He replied that police cars were
rarely seen on US-6 at night. He also mentioned when he had a high-speed duel
with a female friend driving an Audi sports car. He was impressed and admired
because, in his opinion, few women can drive an Audi sports car.
Another interviewee casually mentioned in the conversation that his car had
been scrapped due to improper driving, so he had replaced it with a new one.
130
As for the cause of the car’s scrapping, he explained that on the way to school,
the accelerator was pressed too hard on an uphill section of 195, and the car was
damaged.
ese stories make it clear that the pursuit of speed is central to the male
driving experience, not just because of the speed itself but because of the thrill
and the pursuit of masculinity it represents.
Aordable Masculinity
Now, let’s look at the price of cars and why Chinese students, especially
men, prefer luxury models. e root cause is their pursuit of masculinity. ese
students want their cars to demonstrate exceptional performance - such as
blistering acceleration, loud exhaust and engine sound, and exceptional handling.
ese are qualities that only luxury cars can provide. By contrast, Japanese
models like my Subaru are reliable but slow to accelerate, lack rousing sound, are
less luxurious in appearance and interior, and need beer handling. ese
131
Japanese cars, including Mazda, Nissan, and others, are oen seen as a means
of transportation for women’s daily life and shopping. is not only reects
the dierence between the sexes in the choice of vehicles but also reects a
social concept: women do not understand the car only as a tool; Men, on the
other hand, are seen as connoisseurs of vehicles and the true realizers of value.
Ellaway and colleagues (2003) stated that Men’s self-esteem is more strongly
related to car access than women’s; on the other hand, for women, mastery was
more closely related to car access, emphasizing perhaps the practical rather
than the symbolic importance of cars in women’s lives. is dierence in the
role of cars is further reected in the ndings that car type is associated with
psychosocial benets for men but not for women. is concept also invisibly
places men in a dominant and superior position.
Finally, as a supplement, I want to explore whether the purchase of luxury
132
cars by Chinese students can be seen as self-satisfaction, especially given that
they may be in a more subordinate position in the social structure relative to
whites. Buying luxury cars may be a way for them to seek economic equality or
superiority over whites.
In one of my interviews, I asked several people if they felt that driving a
luxury car made them feel superior to a white person. I get no answer; they think
they only buy luxury cars because they want performance, and their families
have enough money to support that. It’s normal for them to say they like their
car and think it is the best, but it’s not because they want to compare themselves
to anyone. I agree with them because most Chinese students who come to the
U.S. come from middle-class families or above, so buying a luxury car is not a
problem for them. From my daily interactions with other students, I learned that
their monthly living expenses ranged from $4,000 to $6,000 a month (excluding
133
rent), and my car costs $18,000. So, buying a luxury car for more than 40,000
dollars is not a problem for most families of overseas students.
Conclusion
is paper aempts to describe the impact of owning a car on the life of
overseas students in the United States from three perspectives:
• e necessity of a car in the United States
• e impact of a car on personal life and cultural adaptation
• e symbol of a car on personal identity
I’ve found that having a car is necessary for students who study in non-
American cities and are looking for a certain quality of life because a car gives
them the leeway to go wherever they want. Owning a car can give Chinese
students more choices and freedom in life, which can help them nd a suitable
lifestyle in the United States and greatly enhance their happiness and sense
134
of belonging in life. In addition, owning a car also helps Chinese students
participate more in American culture, such as outdoor sports or festivals. Finally,
Chinese students’ pursuit of cars is only a few generalized luxury cars. Some
Chinese students still choose ordinary cars or cheap used cars. It has something
to do with their family background. e myth that Chinese students drive luxury
cars arises because many students are from middle-class families, so buying a
luxury car is not a problem for them. Pursuing luxury cars is also linked to the
masculinity of the children of these wealthy families (especially boys) because
luxury cars (such as BMW, Mercedes, and Porsche) are equipped with excellent
performance, which can satisfy their pursuit of excitement and speed while
driving. is kind of performance is achieved by something other than ordinary
Nissan cars. So, when economic conditions allow, they will choose performance
cars.
135
ese results conict with my assumptions before the study began. Before
my research began, I guessed that men buy luxury cars to aract women’s
aention because good-looking female students will accompany many male
international students who drive luxury cars. Buying luxury cars is not to aract
beautiful women but to show and compare their masculinity to men of the same
age. So does having a beautiful girlfriend and riding shotgun in a fancy car. My
second guess is that international students buy luxury cars to realize the social
purpose of integrating into wealthy circles derived from a friend of mine. Her
father had only given her a budget of about $20,000, and she scraped together
more than $10,000 from her rent to buy a Mercedes. She did it because all her
friends drive fancy cars. However, there were no similar cases like hers in my
interview. More people buy luxury cars because their parents have a high budget.
One boy I interviewed said that when buying a car, his parents gave him a budget
136
of 40,000. Another boy said his parents had given him a budget of 50,000.
e limitation of this research is that I did not include race because my
research targets at this time are mainly Chinese students. If it can be improved in
the future, it is a good topic to study the status of Chinese students in the United
States from a cross-cultural perspective. In addition, a comparative study of car
ownership aitudes and expressions of masculinity across cultural and ethnic
backgrounds is also worth investigating.
137
References
Benne, Kathleen P., and Margaret Diane LeCompte. 1991. e Way Schools
Work: Sociological Analysis of Education. 2nd ed. London, England:
Routledge.
Carter, Ian. 2004. A Measure of Freedom. London, England: Oxford University
Press.
China, U. S. Mission. 2021. “China Remains the Top Sender of International
Students to the United States in 2020/2021 - U.s. Embassy & Consulates
in China.” U.S. Embassy & Consulates in China. Retrieved May 2, 2024
(hps://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/china- remains-the-top-sender-of-
international-students-to-the-united-states-in-2020-2021/).
Dooper, Stephanie. 2017. “Cycling around the Car: An Analysis of America’s
Car Culture, Cycling for Transportation in the Netherlands, and an
Exploration of Policy Solutions.” University of Louisville.
Dundes, Lauren. 2023. “‘Even More than at, Men Love Cars’: ‘Car Guy’
Memes and Hegemonic Masculinity.” Frontiers in Sociology 7. doi:
10.3389/fsoc.2022.1034669.
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References
Ellaway, Anne, Sally Macintyre, Rosemary Hiscock, and Ade Kearns. 2003.
“In the Driving Seat: Psychosocial Benets from Private Motor Vehicle
Transport Compared to Public Transport.” Transportation Research.
Part F, Trac Psychology and Behavior 6(3):217– 31. doi: 10.1016/s1369-
8478(03)00027-5.
Krahé, Barbara, and Ilka Fenske. 2002. “Predicting Aggressive Driving
Behavior: e Role of Macho Personality, Age, and Power of Car.”
Aggressive Behavior 28(1):21–29. doi: 10.1002/ab.90003.
Meyer, John M. 2016. “Automobility and Freedom.” Pp. 213–29 in e Greening
of Everyday Life. Oxford University Press.
Schrock, Douglas, and Michael Schwalbe. 2009. “Men, Masculinity, and
Manhood Acts.” Annual Review of Sociology 35(1):277–95. doi: 10.1146/
annurev-soc-070308-115933.
Walker, Linley, Dianne Butland, and Robert Connell. 2000. “Boys on the Road:
Masculinities, Car Culture, and Road Safety Education.” e Journal of
Men’s Studies 8(2):153–69. doi: 10.3149/jms.0802.153.
139
Reflections at the Jazz Club
Ian Rothauser
Abstract
Reections at the Jazz Club is a piece I wrote while a lile too intoxicated at
a jazz club in London. Before editing, the poem mainly focused on themes
of inherent community and the refusal of individualism. While these themes
still remain in its current form, the piece now also discusses the diculty
of post-industrial living as well as class disparity. Aer I wrote the original
piece I thought about how I, a privileged white American with the chance to
study abroad, sat up in a jazz club semi-preaching to my journal about global
community. While rewriting and editing I hoped to alter the piece more so
to center the idea that although collective community is a sacred gi which
we all possess, I cannot forget that we continue to function within systems of
inequality. For us all to thrive within our collective community is to be honest
about how oen we complicity close ourselves o from it.
140
How could one say we owe each other
nothing?
I have never heard a louder wrong.
Man on the sidewalk approached me in line
selling local zines about all
there that’s on TV
here there everywhere.
“Sorry my friend, I got no cash.”
e guys on the keys both wear glasses
pair of shades and thick frame prescriptions
all while the guitarist can’t stop smiling.
Back row with my buddies
richer folks in the private seats up front.
141
We all bathe in red fringe lamp light.
We all were blessed with cognition
for who knows why
but maybe the reason doesn’t maer
all that much
and here comes the drum solo.
Dark
oral dress hugs me tight.
e server still asks,
“And for you, sir?”
I love them anyway.
We all aren’t any more special than our neighbors.
We all are siing center stage
and it’s so terribly lonely to think
you’re any dierent than the Earth who surrounds you
142
and here comes the bass solo.
Drink hits the table and it’s small as
the complimentary candle.
I’ll sip this cocktail with the patience of squeezing
packed mud through a piping bag.
Gentleness cannot exist in a vacuum
and we are all the same kind of beautiful creature
packed together tightly in
a warm liquid cosmic fusion.
Perhaps the only fundamental truth
of this lived state; we owe
each other everything.
We all got the same rst birthday gi
and what is our reciprocity?
143
we all are ripples on the lake
synthesized as an abstraction
but at least we send waves across the water
in one way or another.
Here comes Cool Weasel Boogie.
“Sorry my friend, I got no cash.”
“Well carry some if you wanna be
someone who’s anyone.”
I appreciated him as he walked away.
I know he’d appreciate if someone paid.
Justied, frustrated, it seems he hates me now.
Honestly, as apology I love him anyhow.
One big world quilt we are,
the folks who still choose to witness music
and dance with whatever moves best,
whether or not our threads were stitched
by machine or pin-pricked hands.
144
Honey, Paris is Still Burning!
Joséphine W.S.
Abstract
Paris Is Burning is a documentary lm created by Jennie Livingston that
documents the lives of Black and Brown Queer and Trans folk in New York
City during the late ‘80s. e subjects of the lm are members of the Ballroom
scene, a Queer subculture that centers around competitive balls where houses,
groups of Ballroom community members, compete against one another to
win prizes and establish their presence. e lm highlights many issues that
aect Black and Brown Queer people, such as abandonment from family, low
socioeconomic status, and violence. Black and Brown Queer people have been
marginalized due to the establishment of colonialism and the concept of
145
Abstract
Whiteness. Queerness is rooted in Indigenous societies across the world and
cannot be separated from Black or Brown history.
KEYWORDS: Queer, Black, Whiteness, Colonialism, Ballroom, Trans, Femme,
Queerphobia, Vogue, Balls, Houses, Indigenous, Socioeconomic, Acceptance,
Authenticity, Identity
146
On March 16, 1976, legendary diva Diana Ross released “Love Hangover,”
a disco masterpiece of breathy vocals and smooth instrumentation. As the
groove presses on, Ross pulls the listener onto the dance oor as she exclaims
her thirst for love, wishing to be trapped in an endless
love hangover.
Each and
every beat draws you into a heavenly atmosphere where tranquility coats your
senses. Now emboldened to move, you embrace the chest-thumping bass and
percussion, le ing go of your worries to make space for the thrill of
love
, sweet,
sweet
love
.
147
Fast-forward to the mid-to-late 1980s; Octavia St. Laurent is pictured
walking a ballroom category as “Love Hangover” plays in the 1990
documentary lm Paris Is Burning. Serving
femme queen realness
, she
poses with poise and elegance, showcasing her ine able beauty for all to
see. Octavia, resembling a statue that of a goddess, embodies con dence as
she allures her audience. Just
as “Love Hangover” puts
you in a trance, Octavia St.
Laurent’s presence lls you
with admiration and
into another dimension. “Love Hangover” is a song emblematic of Queer
love and acceptance. As the tune resonates, you feel as though you have been
wrapped in a warm embrace —and this is how I felt as a young Queer kid
watching Paris Is Burning for the rst time.
148
Jennie Livingston’s
Paris Is Burning
is a documentary lm far ahead
of its time. Out of all the noteworthy Queer docu-lms of the time, of
which there are very few,
Paris Is Burning
stands out as an intersectional,
raw
documentation of Queer lives, representing both people of color and
Queerness during a time of rampant racism and Queerphobia. e lm focuses
on several members of the New York City Ballroom scene, showcasing the
tight-knit, underground community they’ve cultivated through resilience. e
origins of the Ballroom scene can be traced back to mid 19th century drag balls
that took place in major cities such as Washington D.C. and New York City.
e contemporary Ballroom scene features a style of dance called voguing,
and members of the Ballroom scene vogue competitively to win prizes. Vogue
conveys Black and Brown Queer femininity through its ve elements, providing
an important outlet for Trans femme and feminine individuals to express
149
themselves. Ballroom is comprised of many categories that celebrate the beauty
of Black and Brown Trans women and femmes who exist at the core of the
scene. e modern Ballroom scene emerged in the late ‘60s and ‘70s and is
comprised of various houses that operate like families. Ballroom has provided
a home, shelter, and chosen family for generations of Queer youth in New York
City, and this is best depicted through the stories of the subjects of
Paris Is
Burning
. Queer folk are oen rejected by their families and as a result, seek a
subculture such as Ballroom to be able to express their true selves and feel loved.
But, this is only the surface of a much larger issue that is rooted in
colonialism and Whiteness. Trans women and femmes of color exist at the
very boom of society as a result of hundreds of years of dehumanization and
subjugation. Yet, in liveliness and trendseing, they reign supreme, inuencing
our popular culture signicantly. So, how
exactly
have Black and Brown Queer
150
people been forced to the margins of society?
To many, Whiteness is viewed as a biological aribute of people of
European descent, not as its true form —a colonial invention that can be traced
back to the 17th century. Whiteness was conceived for one, sole purpose: to
provide a “logical” basis for genocide, slavery, and the dehumanization of people
who did not t the description of Whiteness. Not only did the establishment
of Whiteness exclude peoples indigenous to every inhabited, non-European
continent, but also Queer folk existing within these civilizations. In the 16th and
17th centuries, Portuguese colonial rule in North, Central, and South America
criminalized Queerness among the Indigenous population, treating it as a “sin”
and burning “sodomites” at the stake. Spanish colonial forces also imposed vile
punishments on those suspected of expressing Queerness, killing many in an
aempt to eradicate Indigenous peoples and their cultures. During this time
151
in Africa, Portuguese explorers demonized African Queer expression in their
ethnographic reports about homosexual relations among the Congo people.
e mass genocide of Indigenous peoples by White, European colonial
powers was all done in an eort to propel White people to the top of the social
hierarchy, whilst exterminating people of color and Queerness to enforce their
subjugation.
I, as a Black Queer person, am fascinated and deeply disturbed by
this repressed history. Why is it that I can recite the reasons the American
colonies wanted to part ways with Britain, but not the treacherous acts of
violence commied against
my
African, Queer ancestors during the dawn of
colonialism? is is because the institution of Whiteness in the United States
keeps its inhabitants purposefully ignorant, and considers pre-colonial, Black,
Brown, and Queer history as absolutely insignicant. Anti-Black Queerness
152
and the history of the African transatlantic slave trade are deeply intertwined, a
fact that I did not learn until my senior year of high school while working on a
project about the history of Black Queerness.
I look to
Paris Is Burning
as a beautiful example of Black and Brown Queer
resilience. Despite the historical repression of Queerness through religious
indoctrination, societal subjugation, slavery, and genocide, Black and Brown
Queer people are shown embracing their identities in this documentary. Each
subject of Paris Is Burning has persevered through a multitude of struggles, and
have collectively witnessed cherished members of their community be killed for
their Queerness, yet still make it a point to lead authentic lives. Ballroom provides
an escape from the daily struggle of living Black, Brown, and Queer. ose most
susceptible to violence in the Queer community are Black Trans women and
femmes due to the societal demonization of femininity when
153
expressed by someone assigned male at birth (AMAB). Black, cisgender women
face hypermasculinization as well, and in particular, all people of darker skin
tones experience this to a harsher degree. What serves as the context for this
hypermasculinization of Black people? Well, the enslavement of millions of
Africans by White colonizers is the answer. Race, just like Whiteness, was
constructed as a way of justifying the dehumanization of Black and Brown
people through methods such as slavery. By asserting that race existed at a
biological level, White colonizers could then argue that hypermasculinity
was inherent to all Black folk, that they had a high pain tolerance and lacked
intelligence. rough this lens, Black females were viewed as lacking femininity,
which was an ideal that only the palest, most subordinate White females could
fully realize. White females were not capable of doing the intensive labor of
Black, female enslaved persons because they did not possess their “inherent”
154
masculinity. On the other hand, slavery forced Black males to act in accordance
with the hypermasculine standards ascribed to them, and any aempt at
feminine expression led to brutal oppression.
is
is dehumanization, tearing
Queer joy away from people who have expressed Queerness long before the
birth of Whiteness, race, and colonialism.
Queerness
cannot
be separated from Black and Brown history. ey are
deeply
intertwined, tracing back to pre-colonial times when Indigenous people
across the world existed free from the oppressive construct of Whiteness. e
current administration of the United States may be aempting to erase this
history, but through the power of our voices, our silencing
can
be put to an end.
Today, when I watch
Paris Is Burning
, I think about what the cast members of
whom have passed would have to say about the current state of our country.
What would
they
do? Octavia St. Laurent lived her life
proud
to be a Black,
155
Trans woman. Venus Xtravaganza led her life with many aspirations up until
her untimely death.
ey
, during such an oppressive period for Black and
Brown Trans women and femmes, resisted societal expectations and their
subjugation. We
must
carry the torch and ght back against anti-Queerness,
because honey, Paris is
still
burning.
156
S A F E T Y
Grace Carpenter
Abstract
S a f e t y
was born from a nal project for my advanced composition class last
spring. e class focused on LGBTQ memories and literature in which our
projects consisted of making our own Queer artifacts. As a lesbian, I wanted to
capture the changes I have seen in the community. Queer spaces have become
less about love and more about protection. “Love wins” has become an
outdated slogan for the LGBTQ community. “Delay, Deny, Defend” has been
traded in. Usually used by insurance companies as a way to prolong the claims
process, outright deny coverage, and then vigorously defend their decisions,
even in court. is tactic is seen as a way for insurers to minimize payouts and
maximize prots. Minority communities are using this slogan as a way to use
systems made to subjugate them against themselves.
157
Abstract
Queer people are tired of being targets. BIPOC are tired of being targets.
People with disabilities are tired of being targets. Immigrants are tired of
being targets.
Join together and protect each other. Remember who the enemy really is.
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I was never one to say
“Stay Safe”,
I didn’t think it was valuable enough
I always ended conversations with “I love you”.
It seemed more tender, as if love would save us.
Love was our protection, there was no threat it could not ght.
Now I say as a parting favor to all my queer friends
Now I say as goodbye to all my Black and Brown coworkers.
Now I say as goodbye to all the women in my life
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I sit with a constant pit of anxiety,
One that I haven’t known for years.
… Not since my Grandfather died
But, what is there to grieve?
I understand the many points of view...
But now, no one wins...
We will all burn.
But now, instead of saying “I love you,”
I say “Stay Safe”.
My love will not save them.
But maybe my anger will.
160
Thank you for reading
The Mirror
, Volume 4
161
