https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi Unexpected Journey en-us 2021-08-28 23:05:00 UTC 2021-08-30 01:38:47 UTC hello@padlet.com dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702170909 I was raised in Reading, Pa. ]]> 2021-08-28 21:07:21 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702170909 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702172584 Upon graduation, I left Reading and joined the U.S. Army. Basic Training was a blast! 

The Army wasn't all bad...]]> 2021-08-28 21:12:46 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702172584 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702174754 I lived in Europe, specifically Germany, for nearly six years (off and on), spending over two years in Nurnberg (my favorite city in Germany). ]]> 2021-08-28 21:17:59 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702174754 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702175507 It was in Nurnberg where I started college in earnest. I attended the University of Maryland in Europe. Go Terps!]]> 2021-08-28 21:20:36 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702175507 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702176795 I travelled across Europe, going to Spain, France, Italy, Austria, and Switzerland. ]]> 2021-08-28 21:24:28 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702176795 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702201261 Being in the Army wasn't all fun and games; I had a job to do. As a military policeman (not me, a generic picture), I was responsible for providing security and law enforcement operations where ever I was stationed or deployed. ]]> 2021-08-28 22:37:37 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702201261 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702204916 My most memorable mission was being apart of Operation: Joint Endeavour. We deployed to Bosnia Herzegovina in January of 1996. It was cold, at times, very difficult, but immeasurably rewarding; we were doing something that matter. My perspective on life was forever changed. ]]> 2021-08-28 22:49:52 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702204916 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702205868 After I left the Army (1999), I went to Chicago to go to law school. Although I loved the theory of law and the city of Chicago, I realized that being a lawyer wasn't for me. So, I left law school and...]]> 2021-08-28 22:52:54 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702205868 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702206469 I moved to Miami and became a teacher! I taught high school English at Miami Northwestern High School, and I loved it! I had found my true passion in life!]]> 2021-08-28 22:54:55 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702206469 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702215847 Eventually, I moved with my wife and daughter back home to Pennsylvania. I have been teaching ever since. ]]> 2021-08-28 23:28:42 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702215847 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702217046 Now, over thirty years later, I can reflect on my life experiences with perspective and wisdom that have not only enriched my life but my teaching, as well. ]]> 2021-08-28 23:32:36 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702217046 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702219348 As in life, examining literature through various lens provides varying perspectives in which to see things for the first time. Being opened-minded to incorporate different viewpoints (such as this class) is part of the fun! ]]> 2021-08-28 23:40:07 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702219348 dkase70 https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702457014 Beyonce's Lemonade attacked the societal oppression and stereotyping woman, as a whole, have endured forever. Although I am not a huge fan of Beyonce, I feel that motive was to redefine a woman's narrative. Yes, her videos were provocative, but more importantly, they were meant to be empowering, asserting a woman's place at the front and demanding respect, if not outrightly taking it.

Lemonade felt like a manifesto for womanhood. It wasn't simply shouting out, "hear me roar," but more "get the hell out of the way." Lemonade illuminated the complexities of not just black women, but all women, of the pressures of being expected to play multiply roles, to weave in and out of a purely patriarchal society to "get ahead" without coming off as a "bitch," or "cutthroat," instead of running parallel with men and afforded the same consideration that they are given.

I felt Hook's analysis of Lemonade, although insightful and for the most part, accurate delved too deeply into the monetization of black women and their bodies, instead of appreciating Beyonce's attempt to create a newer and needed narrative of women and the demand to be treated and viewed equally, in all manner of social and societal expectations.  What Beyonce did was raise the conversation about the lack of equality and the persistent stereotyping of black women, specifically, and women, in general. 

In her own way, Beyonce has pried open the bleary eyes of indifference and given us all a new set of glasses from which to look out upon. ]]> 2021-08-29 07:44:38 UTC https://padlet.com/dkase70/we643afn1anr1vbi/wish/1702457014