Every millennial grew up spending time with Belle and Snow White. What were these Disney princesses telling us about gender roles in society? Disney romanticized the idea of a beautiful young maiden being rescued by a handsome prince.

"The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" told us all about how life got flipped upside down for a young African American man from the ghetto when he moved into his aunt and uncle's fancy California home. The "Fresh Prince" did not adhere to the dominant culture, which can be described as being "upper-middle-class, white, heterosexual, first language English, and Christian"(Parmar and Krinsky, 2013, p. 32). Other television shows airing at this time such as "Full House" celebrated the "dominate class." The popularity of both shows demonstrates the evolving and diverse identity of the American family.

What sticks out in my mind when I think about music from my pre-teen days, are the plethora of boys bands (I was a Backstreet Boys kind of girl myself) and girl groups that introduced the idea of female sexuality to our innocent perspectives. The scantily clad female made my peers consider how they should be acting and dressing. Parmar and Krinsky state that "If media, for example, plays an influential role in shaping our identities, our views will be limited to what the media presents to us as reality" (33). Many of my peers thought the attitudes and appearance of these female pop culture figures was reality and a realistic goal for the average person.

September 11th, 2001 was a day in history that without a doubt changed the lives of American citizens forever. This tragedy was the first major historical event that I remember, not unlike many other millennials. Our society seemed to be in a state of fear, shock, anger, and grief for a very long period. The dominate culture of the United States shaped