CAPs #1 Christian Boehm

Good or bad, we brand ourselves on a daily basis and then people view us accordingly. With that said, most folks around the world aspire to have self worth and/or respect.  However, each individual can obtain this through accountability and trust.  That’s why people around the world work hard to preserve and protect their identity.  According to (Martin and Nakayama, 2013, p.170) “Identity is the core of who we are and who others think we are. And how do we come to understand who we are.”  I believe this is why Twitter and Facebook are popular worldwide is because each individual can shape their own portfolio and identity of who they are and how they want to be viewed.  In a sense we are shaping who we want to be.  According to (Martin and Nakayama, p. 170) they call this impression management.

This past week there have been violent disputes from protesters with police in Kyiv, Ukraine.  The violence has been out of control for two months due to a sweeping anti-protest law.  Ukraine’s political arena is deteriorating because of the resignation of the government.  The Interfax News agency reported. Today, people are demanding the president’s resignation.” (Globalpost, 2014).  The people of Ukraine are now labeling the protestors as heroes, partly due because the protestors are common every day hard working folks.  Unfortunately two protestors died after clashing with police.  The protestors range from young to old.  For example, Petro Turchyn, a 72 year-old pensioner from Kyiv said on the president possibly reshuffling his government.  “But if it’s a criminal versus normal people, what kind of compromise is that.”  (Globalpost, 2014).  Another protester, named Ivan Moroz is a 40 year-old construction worker with two children is not leaving home soon because he believes deeply how corrupt the Ukraine government has become.  He’s fighting for his family. At the time being it doesn’t look like President Yanukovych will be negotiating anytime soon.  Hopefully there will be no more deaths associated with these protest.

Too often we view the identity and/or personality of protestors as rebels or people who just want to cause problems.  In this case and most cases people want to be heard because they have a strong view.  In regards to the current international event from above the intercultural communication is that Ukraine’s political leaders have little respect for the protestors.  Their identity is to stay strong and assume these protestors will go away.  Many times political leaders are narcissistic in their views. To put more sizzle into this reflection I think the following quote by Rights activist, Rigoberta Menchu Tum sums up the identity and intercultural communication as it relates to the events in Kyiv.

“Peace cannot exist without justice, justice cannot exist without fairness, fairness cannot exist without development, development cannot exist without democracy, democracy cannot exist without respect for the identity and worth of cultures and peoples.” (Science, Soul, and the Spirit of Nature, 2005)   

Rigoberta Menchu Tum

References

Martin, J.N. & Nakayama, T.K. (2013).  Intercultural communication in contexts (6^th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Global Post. (2014, January 24). In Kyiv, no mood for comprimise

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/140124/kyiv-no-mood-compromise

Author, Irene van Lippe-Biesterfeld  (2005). Science, Soul, and the Spirit of Nature: Leading Thinkers on the Restoration of Man and Creation. Bear & Company.

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