People Like Us

"When the rich wage war its the poor who die" 

First of all the Video "People like us" was a very interesting video it made me reflect on the stratification system we live in. "People like us" describes how social class plays a role in the lives of Americans based on where they live such as park avenues penthouses, bayou houseboats or suburban gated communities. The video presents stories of family traditions, different lifestyle and class mobility. It explains how income family background, education, attitudes, aspirations and even appearance mark people as members of a social class. In the video they interview people from diverse socioeconomic groups, the film describes how social class in america has a much influence as race or ethnicity in determining what kind of opportunities a person has in life. 

"People Like Us" explains how the class system does exist and its based on looks, money, popularity, whether you live in a big house, and where people work. The video also describes that as you move through life we separate our selves from people who don't fit in our groups and social class and that America is a country divided by class and by what kind of neighborhood you live in, the type of food you eat, how far you got in school and the way you wear your hair. 

This week in class we dealt with the subject of varying types of social structures. To start there are open and closed systems. An open systems allows for an individual to move up or down in society where as the closed system allows for no mobility. In a closed social system you are born into your class and that is the same one you will grow up in. While discussing this subject it would be helpful to define class in the manner we did as a group class, in this context, is unequal access to economic resources, power, and prestige.