Summary
According to "Why my own father would have let IS kill me" (2015), Being gay in Muslim society is against the religious, Taim (24) had shared his past experience living as gay guys in Iraq. During his college, he decided to meet a therapist who helped him from suffering from his own ascribe trait. He circled with supporting Christian friends however, this trait was been fatal problems under a religious belief. One of his Islamic friend who joined IS, hunting him down when he found out the secrete. The friend asked Taim's father, a religious man, to take his son for a death penalty. Later, Taim knew that the father also preferred him to die if the friend would have stated the truth. Finally, his mom successfully saved his life yet his heart has been devastated by his own father.
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Response
In many countries, we always hear the phrase 'Unconditional love' and 'Love is blind', the two phrases are related to our belief and bias. However, the phrase as such 'Human being is equal' or 'Human being born free' both cope with beliefs. After we are born norms, culture or religion come later to from behaviors and mindsets. Focusing on discrimination, for instance, race, sex, gender, age, religion, or disability all are heated topics that people fight each other around the world.Taim would have died if his mom hadn't successfully saved him from IS and his father, therefore, as a daughter yet a parent, how could a strong religious belief blind father's love toward his own child on his gender? Gender is one of ascribing traits that everyone born with and we have the right to be as we want to be if it doesn't harm others, only bias frames our thought and discriminates against others. You are unable to label or judge others from their gender. For example, ordinary typical thinking is women weaker than men, but there are many female athletes who are stronger than normal men. Her strong physical strength builds up because of her practices, there are cause and effect that shape her physical power. As same with Taim's story, the father's decision was no fair reason base and his act is hurting his own son while he is being alive.
In Thai culture, we have some common bias is the idea of judging people from gender, we believe sons are more precious than daughters, we have a phrase that having a daughter is like having a toilet in front of your house, it means that being a girl in the family, you only bring bad reputations and a lot of problems to the family. Such as if you have a good husband and successful married life your family won't bother you but if you have not had a happy married life they might blame you as the person who brings bad reputation to the whole family, in addition, the belief creates conflict and problems in family relationships. Luckily, my parent does not have that kind of thought. In Chinese families also prefer a boy more than a girl in which a girl is treated differently. Many kids have been suffered from parents' unfair love.
Culture, norm, or religion are tools to control human behaviors: some are legal, some are illegal, some are not reasonable or make sense, so should we still follow those beliefs or rules? What if our acts are not illegal but have a contradiction with religion, so do we have the right to criticize if it against human rights? What should we do? Should we act against the belief? Do we have the right to protect ourselves from the unfair judge? It may have had many different answers to answer in each situation. As Taim's father act in my opinion he had a brutally decision many people in different cultures may be also agreed with me. Since there are not right for any person to allow others to kill another, it's a part of crimes. The sentence fits with human rights rules and again even if the dog would not kill its babies how the father could do that to his own son even it against religion!
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Question
In Thai culture, we have a strong senior system in many places like in workplaces, schools, or in the family, what junior can do if the senior is totally make a wrong move?
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Reference
- Why my own father would have let IS kill me (2015, July 23) BBC magazine. bbc.com/news/magazine-33565055
I was a bit surprised when I came to Num's question. But that was good; it pushed me to think about why she had asked that question instead one I had been expecting. I wonder if anyone else was surprised by the question that Num actually asks us to think about.
ReplyDeleteAs I was reading both the summary of her chosen article and then her response to it, i was reminded of how much things have changed in my own life time. Although Australia under the influence of the Christian religion was never as bad as some countries still are under Islam and other religions, it was still awful. When I was in primary school and high school, being gay was still illegal in Australia — that sounds weird now because so much has changed in the last twenty years or so. And earlier this year, my country finally legalized same-sex marriage, which had seemed so impossible when I was in school last century that I had never even thought of it. Back then, being gay was the worst possible thing. And parents did reject their children if they found out they gay. Today, attitudes in Australia have changed enormously. Religion is much less important than in the past, and I think that Australian society is far more moral than it used to be. And that seems to me like progress.
OK. I didn't really answer Num's question, but I'm sure that the Thai people in our class will have some ideas about that. My response came from my experiences, which are Australian. I'm looking forward to hearing a Thai response to the controversial issues Num has suggested for us to discuss.
I think that if we blurted out their mistake, the problem would happen. Certain older-generation people might label it as aggressive behavior therefore compromise is a must thing in Thai and Asian culture, leading to obstacles in some cases. However, I hope that you don't harshly blame them. Because they grew up in a different environment and times which results in a discrepancy perspective. Cooperation with others requires empathy sometimes. Moreover, I saw that many of them are likely to change their mindset and listen to ours.
ReplyDeleteAs Num’s response makes me realize about my family, since my dad has never done houseworks and he thinks that is me, my mom and my sister have to be responsible it(as he earns mostly income, despite my mom earns as well). Although this situation is unfair ,he always be kind except this behavior. Furthermore, I have known German cultures that male and female populations are equally right such as accepting women in business or male can do the chore as well. Therefore, we should be aware of human rights or the behavior should not make others feel badly.
ReplyDeleteTo answer Num’s question, people who mature enough should be a role model for youth to convey them the truth behavior that should be legal and ethical. However, in Thailand has a lot of seniors, who cannot be the role-model such as corruption or breaking the law. In this case, if I has found these behaves, I will not follow their behavior, definitely, I cannot change their notions. The ethical or law can change them. Therefore, undergoing of juniors behavior depending on the right behavior of adults.