Karlelle Rice
SEO
Dear President,
My name is Karlelle Rice and coming into the presidency I feel that there are problems faced In New York that needs to change. These problems are serious because I have seen a community fall apart day by day due to the lack of education and discrimination against the people. I have experienced personal issues that dealt with both of these conflicts. As a citizen of New York I feel that these issues are not being dealt with or taken seriously.
The education system is failing to meet the needs of New York City kids. Every 26 seconds there is a child dropping out of high school due to the lack of the resources such as computers, text books and paper, which causes him to lose interest in the work. In the schools, kids have to share books or cannot do the lessons because the materials are not there. As a student in the New York City public I face the struggles of trying to get ahead in my work and reaching an advanced level. While taking an Advanced Placement class I felt that I was doing things that other kid’s weren’t able to do in their school, but when my friends came from Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, they told me that the work I was learning they already had done. Kids struggle every day to make it and it is not to succeed but just to get by because there is no motivation or help from society because the people is all focused on the war and other things that are not serious. Having an education is very important because the work and technology of New York City is advancing and we are going to need the upcoming generation to run them.
One may say that the advancement in technology is more important than education to that of the students. The education that is being taught in New York City public schools does not level with the work of third world countries and that of private schools. In the upcoming generation the way the education system is failing the kids, there would be nobody to run the machinery because they would not have the requirement or skill to work the machinery to their best ability or to their full potential. The money is being taken out of New York City public schools to full fill the future world that is wanted by certain people. Because of the technology advancements kids in the public school systems are being deprived out of the education and learning environment that is needed to succeed and make in this new coming world.
Discrimination is seen to only and simply involve minorities otherwise known of as people of color, however this is not the case. As a matter of fact this is a topic that circulates throughout our society. People are being discriminated against every day due to the color of their skin, or their nationality. Some men and women are not getting the jobs they want because the people that work there do not want them there. That’s goes for not just in the work place, but also in restaurant and in any place where it’s not people of their kind. I have experienced a situation in which I felt that my friends and I were being discriminated against our nationality. When it was my best friend’s birthday we decided to go out to eat and when we got to the restaurant everybody was staring at us because we were all black and Hispanic and mostly everybody in the place was white. When we finally sat down, my friends and I started to laugh and make jokes. Then a white guy next us got up and asked for a new seat because he did not want to be near, us and then he told the manager that we were being loud and bothering him. After all of that was said the manager came over and told us that we had to quiet it down or else we would get kicked out. So I turned around and saw that the guy was laughing and everybody in the restaurant was staring at us, which made us very uncomfortable, so we ate our food and left quickly because we did not want to be in that kind of environment. This was a situation that hurt me the most. I thought that people did not still act like any more, and that society was much smarter than that.
Reading about the Civil Right Movement has opened my mind to problems that are still faced today that I never even paid attention on how serious it was. The Civil Rights Movement happened due to the inequality towards blacks. African Americans during the time of the civil rights movement did not have the education or rights that whites had and that caused them to be at a lower level than they were. I feel that history is repeating itself in the education system because the work is behind compared to private schools and schools in third world countries. Discrimination was shown with no cover ups back in the 1950s but know it is still going on but not out in public. It is funny because the Civil Right Movement was not too long ago and the things the blacks fought for they have it but society still has not came out this state of mind that everybody is equal.
As becoming a new president there is many things that have to be fixed and changed. I feel that in becoming a president it has to be proven that the problems will be taken of and down with efficiency. New York is one of the best places for technology and opportunities but is it really opportunity when the education is horrible and there still is discrimination amongst the people. This is just the beginning of the many problems that to come and if there not dealt with now how will the problems in the future get solve.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Changes to a Hectic World (Final)
Dear Mr. President,
Congratulations on your new position as head of this country. I commemorate you on your struggles to get to where you are now however; the hardest is yet to come. I believe that this country has gone through many hard times and the worst is yet to come. I am a high school student that is concerned with the current position our country is in, its progress and society’s issues with racism. I have been witness to many racist acts thought my life and I have yet to begin to explore the world. I have been participating in a program and that has opened my eyes to the many injustices in the world, which has galvanized me to write this letter to inform you that change has to occur.
In society people are often misconstrued as being of another color, ethnicity or of a lower class. Some suggest that people are often stereotyped to be something that they are not, due to their appearance. In my personal life, I have been judged by my appearance just like the main character in the short story, “The Sky is Gray” by Ernest J. Gaines. This short story reflects the segregation between blacks and whites during the Jim Crow era. In this story the author combines the colors black and white to create a shade of gray which foreshadows the future integration of both races. The separate colors of black and white show the true Dominican I am by my boisterous side and the supposable Mexican I am by my calm and shy side.
Through my experiences, one’s life can be in jeopardy by a misinterpretation of an action. I have recently watched the The Murder of Emmett Till which is the murder of a boy who was accused of whistling to a white woman, was beaten and then shot at point blank. In my personal experience I was alleged to be a Mexican person. Even though I was not hurt as bad as Emmet Till, I was pushed to the floor, humiliated and degraded from the social class I am. In both cases, Mr. Till and my actions have caused us pain just because of a misconception brought up by a person’s appearance.
In the short story “Everything That Rises Must Converge” the author Flannery O’Connor suggests that change “… takes time, and the world is in such as mess” (P.406). In today’s world there are many environmental and racial problems to the extent that it will take a long time to solve them. During the Jim Crow era many activists like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. slowly brought this world to what it is today. I believe that people can do the same and continue this change. Even though change has occurred many of the practices from the past still remain today.
In another piece “The Eyes on the Prize, Civil Rights Reader” by Clayborne, Garrow, Gill, Harding, and Hine, one psychologist named Kenneth Clark created a focus group of children and gave them each a black and white doll. Mr. Clark asked: “Give me the doll you like to play with or like the best?”, “Give me the doll that is the nice one?”, “Give me the doll that looks bad?”, and “Give me the doll that is a nice color?” (P.79-80). Their responses where shocking because the majority chose the white doll seeing that whites were superior during that period. In today’s modern society, racism still exists to the extent that small children have already chosen the answers to those questions. The important question as to “Why?” was answered with the statements “It’s White” or “It’s Black”. Many of the children characterized the white doll as good and the black doll as bad. In a reenactment of the doll study (renamed as “A Girl like me”) originally done by Kenneth Clark the children had preference to race. Many children tend to absorb the things that they see and believe that it is okay. A possible reason is because many of the commercials unintentionally show racist views. For example, Barbie commercials which have the “white Ken and Barbie” while they just recently introduced the color ones. In one event I saw a person prefer or treat another child better because of skin color. These where not dolls but real children. I was shocked to see that people who believe in equality still have the thought of segregation because of color. This reminded me of the doctrine “segregated but equal” from the Plessy v. Ferguson case.
In my current school studies the 14th Amendment suggests that citizens have equal protection in the eyes of the law. In my personal perspective people were not really equal because even though they were given equal rights people were restricted by the laws. We still have “freedom” and are given “equality” yet in society it has lost its meaning. In the past and present, people’s actions have not only been restricted by law but also by what is morally correct. Throughout history as laws have expanded, people are beginning to have a sense of how much freedom and equality they actually have. The factor that decides equality I believe is money. Money determines if you go to jail or get bailed out. My economic situation, unlike others before me, has been currently okay but when college comes that will change. Throughout the world many amendments and rights have been twisted in order to use it to ones advantage thus, it questions my view of what is “freedom” and what people consider is “equality”.
I have been raised to believe that “Today’s generations are tomorrow’s future leaders.” I would like to move on from the past and towards the future of this country. In today’s society we have had much racism towards a variety of people. It is hard to believe there are many racist people in the world even though the Civil War is over. Many people live in the past and we need to change that in order to bring people forward and make a change in society. First, as the future president, I believe you could try to get the people together and have the “Voice of America” which are its citizens contribute ideas to the issues in this world. I suggest people should do community workshops in order to overcome racism and have it reduced. In addition to that people should inform their children of past events. A way to do this is to incorporate more current events activities during school, to upgrade their knowledge on how the world is changing. People who can’t afford an education should not be judged because of financial status. There should be more help for the poor in order to stop these misinterpretations that people get. Many should try and stop putting so many false allegations on different ethnicities. For example, that Asians are all smart, that African Americans have a small percentage regarding education, Dominicans are all centered in different Heights, Mexicans all are associated to tacos and that if you go into a certain neighborhood, one might get hurt or harassed.
As implied by the United States people have freedom. In cases where later in the future evidence is found that proves a client’s innocence they should be removed from prison and put on probation. This would decrease the amount of money that Bush put towards prisons and instead put it to schools that need funds. Since we are also equal under the Constitution and the 14th Amendment people shouldn’t have more rights than others. People should not be winning court cases just because one person has more money than another. In other situations the legal system should be reviewed and updated because there are many laws that aren’t necessary. Since America is all about justice then let there be more justice and allow people to have second trials. I believe that not all human lives should be determined on one case. With this people will be more supportive of presidential ideas and back up the country. I believe that people at war should be brought back to their countries because too much money is going into war efforts instead of supporting the country’s future which are its children. If more children are educated then they can help society slowly assimilate into a non racist world that has true freedom for people, and allows the equality that everyone deserves. I am not trying to suggest that America turn communist but the people to have the equality that they have been promised for the past 400 years. People constantly say that education is important then we must train the leaders of the future like they were trained in the past. I suggest that racism in the media and in other locations should be expunged. Many children are absorbing the information that they see and replaying them with Barbie dolls. When observing children at stores they preferred the white Barbie dolls to the black dolls because of the way they were portrayed in the commercials. Another suggestion is that schools should be more integrated. There still exist some schools that still have all black or all white student bodies. When in a captive lunch room many people tend to segregate themselves into certain categories. People already have a classification on what is a supposable “nerd” or considerably “cool”.
I encourage you to expand the minds of the country’s people and not hide information that is crucial. The people who live and give support to this country should have the right to the truth. Who knows the truth may unlock a person’s mind. I believe that the hope for society is to control the media, increase education and decrease the power that the army has. Not everything in the world is resolved with fighting but it can be done with intelligence. One person can have a voice but it takes a crowd to take actions and do something about it. I encourage you as our president to take a stand and make slow changes in order to repair the mess the current world is in. We are the voice and you have the power to change the world for the good of everyone. Thank You for your time.
Sincerely,
Katherine Rojas
Congratulations on your new position as head of this country. I commemorate you on your struggles to get to where you are now however; the hardest is yet to come. I believe that this country has gone through many hard times and the worst is yet to come. I am a high school student that is concerned with the current position our country is in, its progress and society’s issues with racism. I have been witness to many racist acts thought my life and I have yet to begin to explore the world. I have been participating in a program and that has opened my eyes to the many injustices in the world, which has galvanized me to write this letter to inform you that change has to occur.
In society people are often misconstrued as being of another color, ethnicity or of a lower class. Some suggest that people are often stereotyped to be something that they are not, due to their appearance. In my personal life, I have been judged by my appearance just like the main character in the short story, “The Sky is Gray” by Ernest J. Gaines. This short story reflects the segregation between blacks and whites during the Jim Crow era. In this story the author combines the colors black and white to create a shade of gray which foreshadows the future integration of both races. The separate colors of black and white show the true Dominican I am by my boisterous side and the supposable Mexican I am by my calm and shy side.
Through my experiences, one’s life can be in jeopardy by a misinterpretation of an action. I have recently watched the The Murder of Emmett Till which is the murder of a boy who was accused of whistling to a white woman, was beaten and then shot at point blank. In my personal experience I was alleged to be a Mexican person. Even though I was not hurt as bad as Emmet Till, I was pushed to the floor, humiliated and degraded from the social class I am. In both cases, Mr. Till and my actions have caused us pain just because of a misconception brought up by a person’s appearance.
In the short story “Everything That Rises Must Converge” the author Flannery O’Connor suggests that change “… takes time, and the world is in such as mess” (P.406). In today’s world there are many environmental and racial problems to the extent that it will take a long time to solve them. During the Jim Crow era many activists like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. slowly brought this world to what it is today. I believe that people can do the same and continue this change. Even though change has occurred many of the practices from the past still remain today.
In another piece “The Eyes on the Prize, Civil Rights Reader” by Clayborne, Garrow, Gill, Harding, and Hine, one psychologist named Kenneth Clark created a focus group of children and gave them each a black and white doll. Mr. Clark asked: “Give me the doll you like to play with or like the best?”, “Give me the doll that is the nice one?”, “Give me the doll that looks bad?”, and “Give me the doll that is a nice color?” (P.79-80). Their responses where shocking because the majority chose the white doll seeing that whites were superior during that period. In today’s modern society, racism still exists to the extent that small children have already chosen the answers to those questions. The important question as to “Why?” was answered with the statements “It’s White” or “It’s Black”. Many of the children characterized the white doll as good and the black doll as bad. In a reenactment of the doll study (renamed as “A Girl like me”) originally done by Kenneth Clark the children had preference to race. Many children tend to absorb the things that they see and believe that it is okay. A possible reason is because many of the commercials unintentionally show racist views. For example, Barbie commercials which have the “white Ken and Barbie” while they just recently introduced the color ones. In one event I saw a person prefer or treat another child better because of skin color. These where not dolls but real children. I was shocked to see that people who believe in equality still have the thought of segregation because of color. This reminded me of the doctrine “segregated but equal” from the Plessy v. Ferguson case.
In my current school studies the 14th Amendment suggests that citizens have equal protection in the eyes of the law. In my personal perspective people were not really equal because even though they were given equal rights people were restricted by the laws. We still have “freedom” and are given “equality” yet in society it has lost its meaning. In the past and present, people’s actions have not only been restricted by law but also by what is morally correct. Throughout history as laws have expanded, people are beginning to have a sense of how much freedom and equality they actually have. The factor that decides equality I believe is money. Money determines if you go to jail or get bailed out. My economic situation, unlike others before me, has been currently okay but when college comes that will change. Throughout the world many amendments and rights have been twisted in order to use it to ones advantage thus, it questions my view of what is “freedom” and what people consider is “equality”.
I have been raised to believe that “Today’s generations are tomorrow’s future leaders.” I would like to move on from the past and towards the future of this country. In today’s society we have had much racism towards a variety of people. It is hard to believe there are many racist people in the world even though the Civil War is over. Many people live in the past and we need to change that in order to bring people forward and make a change in society. First, as the future president, I believe you could try to get the people together and have the “Voice of America” which are its citizens contribute ideas to the issues in this world. I suggest people should do community workshops in order to overcome racism and have it reduced. In addition to that people should inform their children of past events. A way to do this is to incorporate more current events activities during school, to upgrade their knowledge on how the world is changing. People who can’t afford an education should not be judged because of financial status. There should be more help for the poor in order to stop these misinterpretations that people get. Many should try and stop putting so many false allegations on different ethnicities. For example, that Asians are all smart, that African Americans have a small percentage regarding education, Dominicans are all centered in different Heights, Mexicans all are associated to tacos and that if you go into a certain neighborhood, one might get hurt or harassed.
As implied by the United States people have freedom. In cases where later in the future evidence is found that proves a client’s innocence they should be removed from prison and put on probation. This would decrease the amount of money that Bush put towards prisons and instead put it to schools that need funds. Since we are also equal under the Constitution and the 14th Amendment people shouldn’t have more rights than others. People should not be winning court cases just because one person has more money than another. In other situations the legal system should be reviewed and updated because there are many laws that aren’t necessary. Since America is all about justice then let there be more justice and allow people to have second trials. I believe that not all human lives should be determined on one case. With this people will be more supportive of presidential ideas and back up the country. I believe that people at war should be brought back to their countries because too much money is going into war efforts instead of supporting the country’s future which are its children. If more children are educated then they can help society slowly assimilate into a non racist world that has true freedom for people, and allows the equality that everyone deserves. I am not trying to suggest that America turn communist but the people to have the equality that they have been promised for the past 400 years. People constantly say that education is important then we must train the leaders of the future like they were trained in the past. I suggest that racism in the media and in other locations should be expunged. Many children are absorbing the information that they see and replaying them with Barbie dolls. When observing children at stores they preferred the white Barbie dolls to the black dolls because of the way they were portrayed in the commercials. Another suggestion is that schools should be more integrated. There still exist some schools that still have all black or all white student bodies. When in a captive lunch room many people tend to segregate themselves into certain categories. People already have a classification on what is a supposable “nerd” or considerably “cool”.
I encourage you to expand the minds of the country’s people and not hide information that is crucial. The people who live and give support to this country should have the right to the truth. Who knows the truth may unlock a person’s mind. I believe that the hope for society is to control the media, increase education and decrease the power that the army has. Not everything in the world is resolved with fighting but it can be done with intelligence. One person can have a voice but it takes a crowd to take actions and do something about it. I encourage you as our president to take a stand and make slow changes in order to repair the mess the current world is in. We are the voice and you have the power to change the world for the good of everyone. Thank You for your time.
Sincerely,
Katherine Rojas
Discrimination in Modern Day America.. Mr. President, We Need Change: Final
Dear Mr. President,
The current state of our country is unsatisfactory. Not because of particular laws or policies, but because of the frame of mind of many Americans. It has been over 50 years since the Civil Rights Movement and despite all of the progress made through the years, our society still does not meet the standard and is not living up to the potential that it can due to the way that many people think. In a selection from the anthology, The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader, African Americans received discriminatory treatment and as it continues, we feel the same pain that they did during the Jim Crow era. Similarly, over the years, I have had more than one encounter with people and police where I was viewed as something I am not. In order for our country to make further progress, you as our president, can do a variety of things in order to bring change in the way how society judges people.
In my life, I have had encounters with people that may not be considered racism, but are very similar to it because I was treated differently based on assumptions that were made and stereotypes that get placed on people with hair like mine. India Arie once said, “I am not my hair, I am not this skin”. This beautiful lyric says it all because a person is not the hair on his/her head or the color and texture of his/her skin but the character and personality within. Therefore it is not ok for anyone to look quaintly at, judge, or pigeonhole anyone based on their appearance. I am sick and tired of people making the impudent assumption that because I have thick, natural dread locks that I sell and/or walk around with weed in my pocket. I am sick and tired of being stopped for those conveniently “random searches of backpacks and other large containers” (once is more than enough but two and a half times is ridiculous!). And I am most definitely sick and tired of getting those dirty looks from old ladies and their grandbabies on the bus and in the street. It is beyond provoking walking to school or through the park and being asked if I got that good ****. I remember one time me my mom and her boyfriend were driving home from our cousin’s house in queens and the police decide to stop us because it looked like we were trying to “avoid” them by “turning on a red light”. So we get out and the police search my mother’s boyfriend and me and then one of the police officers decides to say, “You have any weed on you? Don’t worry; you can tell me, I wouldn’t say anything. Just be honest, you got any weed” and I’m like…no. These experiences I have had make me even more aware of racism and the fact that it still exists because it affects me directly. Sometimes I wonder, if I wasn’t a young African/Caribbean American male with long dread locks, would I be having all of these experiences.
A passage that is very important in the relation to my personal experiences can be found in, The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader. Although this selection was all facts, the evidence from these facts have made me aware that the effects that my experiences have had on me is similar to the effects that living during Jim Crow had on the young people of its time.
In The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader, readers were told that segregation was even justified in the school systems because parents and the white race on a whole did not want their children or themselves to learn in the same institutions as blacks. They felt that we blacks were inferior only because they had different color skin. Research was done to see how life in this era affected the psyche of young children. They conducted this experiment with the use of dolls and when the young children were asked questions like, “choose which doll you would rather play with” and “which doll is cleaner and which doll is the clean one”, they all picked up the white doll. But when negative questions were asked, all of the children picked up the black doll. The evidence from that experience proved that the policies and “culture” of Jim Crow had a negative effect on these children. This can be related to my story because when someone constantly associates a person with negative connotations because of the way they look, it has an effect not only on the individual, but also on the people who live around them. Young children especially can be very impressionable and may adopt these stereotypes as they grow up.
In society, individuals tend to look at people and make postulations and that can be dangerous for the one making the assumptions and the one in which the assumptions are being placed upon. Mr. President, you must break the stereotypes by coming into the communities and showing everyone – Black, White, Hispanic, Asian etc – that not every black person walking the street, hanging out with his friend or even walking in the train station with his book bag and other large container is selling drugs or looking for trouble. Bring the media, bring the news reporters, bring whoever is necessary to aid in the curing of the ignorance that has clinched the minds of millions for so many years. By helping to change the mentality of the public, many young adults that have been sent to jail and/or whose lives have been disrupted will have peace of mind knowing that they can go outside late at night and not have to worry about the police stopping them because they “look” like they might have some form of illegal substance on them. Education is also the key because many people remain ignorant to all of the progress and changes that African Americans and other minorities have made in society today. By doing things like hosting meetings and seminars to bring awareness to the people, most of the ignorance in this country can be cured and many people would be able to conduct their lives freely without fear of being discriminated and judged or without being afraid of people because of stereotypes or discrimination.
The current state of our country is unsatisfactory. Not because of particular laws or policies, but because of the frame of mind of many Americans. It has been over 50 years since the Civil Rights Movement and despite all of the progress made through the years, our society still does not meet the standard and is not living up to the potential that it can due to the way that many people think. In a selection from the anthology, The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader, African Americans received discriminatory treatment and as it continues, we feel the same pain that they did during the Jim Crow era. Similarly, over the years, I have had more than one encounter with people and police where I was viewed as something I am not. In order for our country to make further progress, you as our president, can do a variety of things in order to bring change in the way how society judges people.
In my life, I have had encounters with people that may not be considered racism, but are very similar to it because I was treated differently based on assumptions that were made and stereotypes that get placed on people with hair like mine. India Arie once said, “I am not my hair, I am not this skin”. This beautiful lyric says it all because a person is not the hair on his/her head or the color and texture of his/her skin but the character and personality within. Therefore it is not ok for anyone to look quaintly at, judge, or pigeonhole anyone based on their appearance. I am sick and tired of people making the impudent assumption that because I have thick, natural dread locks that I sell and/or walk around with weed in my pocket. I am sick and tired of being stopped for those conveniently “random searches of backpacks and other large containers” (once is more than enough but two and a half times is ridiculous!). And I am most definitely sick and tired of getting those dirty looks from old ladies and their grandbabies on the bus and in the street. It is beyond provoking walking to school or through the park and being asked if I got that good ****. I remember one time me my mom and her boyfriend were driving home from our cousin’s house in queens and the police decide to stop us because it looked like we were trying to “avoid” them by “turning on a red light”. So we get out and the police search my mother’s boyfriend and me and then one of the police officers decides to say, “You have any weed on you? Don’t worry; you can tell me, I wouldn’t say anything. Just be honest, you got any weed” and I’m like…no. These experiences I have had make me even more aware of racism and the fact that it still exists because it affects me directly. Sometimes I wonder, if I wasn’t a young African/Caribbean American male with long dread locks, would I be having all of these experiences.
A passage that is very important in the relation to my personal experiences can be found in, The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader. Although this selection was all facts, the evidence from these facts have made me aware that the effects that my experiences have had on me is similar to the effects that living during Jim Crow had on the young people of its time.
In The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader, readers were told that segregation was even justified in the school systems because parents and the white race on a whole did not want their children or themselves to learn in the same institutions as blacks. They felt that we blacks were inferior only because they had different color skin. Research was done to see how life in this era affected the psyche of young children. They conducted this experiment with the use of dolls and when the young children were asked questions like, “choose which doll you would rather play with” and “which doll is cleaner and which doll is the clean one”, they all picked up the white doll. But when negative questions were asked, all of the children picked up the black doll. The evidence from that experience proved that the policies and “culture” of Jim Crow had a negative effect on these children. This can be related to my story because when someone constantly associates a person with negative connotations because of the way they look, it has an effect not only on the individual, but also on the people who live around them. Young children especially can be very impressionable and may adopt these stereotypes as they grow up.
In society, individuals tend to look at people and make postulations and that can be dangerous for the one making the assumptions and the one in which the assumptions are being placed upon. Mr. President, you must break the stereotypes by coming into the communities and showing everyone – Black, White, Hispanic, Asian etc – that not every black person walking the street, hanging out with his friend or even walking in the train station with his book bag and other large container is selling drugs or looking for trouble. Bring the media, bring the news reporters, bring whoever is necessary to aid in the curing of the ignorance that has clinched the minds of millions for so many years. By helping to change the mentality of the public, many young adults that have been sent to jail and/or whose lives have been disrupted will have peace of mind knowing that they can go outside late at night and not have to worry about the police stopping them because they “look” like they might have some form of illegal substance on them. Education is also the key because many people remain ignorant to all of the progress and changes that African Americans and other minorities have made in society today. By doing things like hosting meetings and seminars to bring awareness to the people, most of the ignorance in this country can be cured and many people would be able to conduct their lives freely without fear of being discriminated and judged or without being afraid of people because of stereotypes or discrimination.
FINAL
July 31, 2008
Senator Barrack Obama,
I grew up learning the eminent cliché, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and I can say that on behalf of all the people I know. There is a reason why we have been told that over and over again in our lives because one may never know an individual’s background just by looking at them at a glance. We live in a “post-racial” society where people of color are insulted every minute due to their racial differences. I myself, in fact, have faced racial slurs and stereotypes all throughout my life.
Since most people I encounter lack knowledge about the different people that come from different places around the world, they tend to categorize people into four general groups: Asians, Hispanics, Blacks, and Whites. I was born in India however my background is Tibetan. I find many people having a hard time believing that I was born in India because I don’t look like their stereotype of Indians. Anyhow, I permanently resided in New York when I graduated from the fifth grade. I immediately began to realize that Indian students were being racially harassed on a daily basis. I was not one of them because I obviously did not look the same way as the others; however I did witness many nasty remarks that the Indian or Bengali students faced. After seeing some of the students being discriminated against, I was afraid to tell people that I was born in India, especially when I actually lived there for ten years. I was really self-conscious about where I came from and I was confused about my identity. I didn’t know whether I was Indian anymore even though a huge part of me is connected to India. People did not bother to ask me where I was from because it was a rhetorical question due to my distinguishable Asian features.
I always faced various forms of ridiculous remarks that random strangers have commented on the streets, subways, and just public areas in general. People would always look at me or my family and start speaking in a language that is supposedly Chinese. Some people even ended up saying “Konichiwa,” after calling me a “chink.” It is a bit funny sometimes because I know I am not Chinese and that’s not the language I speak and they are the ones who are making a fool of themselves especially when they were intending to say “Ni Hao”. Once I wondered to myself whether I was just considered Chinese because of the way I appeared to be. Since many people don’t know about the different varieties of Asians, they end up saying, “They all look the same anyway.” People don’t seem to consider other numerous Asian groups and sometimes it is really frustrating to hear when people consider everyone “the same.” Although we do share similar facial features, we all are not clones because each group has its own culture and lifestyle.
Since I came to America I always received one of the top grades in my class. Before that, I was an average student and I never really cared about school until the sixth grade. That’s when I began to realize the importance of education and I understood how lucky I was to have an opportunity in a country where I received a solid education for free compared to India where you had to pay for school annually. I began to work hard and I suppose it paid off in the end. My parents do pressure me to do well in school and people assume that’s the reason behind my success. My parents do push me and sometimes to the point where I get really frustrated; however that’s not the reason why I work hard in school. I don’t strive to do well because of my “Asian” parents. I mean, my parents would still be the same if I were black, white, orange, blue, or green. My family’s value of education will never change no matter how different our ethnicity could've been. I really don’t appreciate when people tell me, “Oh, you’re Asian, so you’re smart” because I want people to acknowledge my hard work and not the connotations of my appearance. Once, I finally got the courage to tell one person in my school that I was from India and he responded by asking me, “Why don’t you have that dot on your forehead?” Once again, someone didn’t fail to make a racial assumption about me.
My experiences are not even in the same category as African Americans, who experienced heart-breaking hardships; however, ultimately both groups came across several different racial insults. In “Uncle Tom’s Children,” Pease called Richard “You black son-of-a-bitch,” after he forgot to call Pease, Mr. Pease. Pease used the term “black” in a distasteful way. I find myself in the same shoes as Richard sometimes because people always tend to call me a “chink” in any given conflict, usually with a stranger. One day, for example, I was walking from school to the subway with my friends and we passed a bunch of boys who were just fooling around on the sidewalk. The next thing we knew was that my friend and I were pushed by one of the group members. I was taken aback and one of the other members responded to my surprise by saying, “I’m sorry, my fault, my fault, it was a dare. Don’t be mad.” I did get mad. He not only was acting like a jerk but he thought the situation was funny. I asked him if there was any problem and he got angry because I replied back. He then told me, “Shut up, stupid Chinese girl. Go back to China!” and that triggered me to say something unpleasant in return. I was really offended yet apathetic at the same time because he knew nothing about me. I wasn’t even from China and I thought it was really amusing because he doesn’t have the slightest clue that I am from India, not China.
Let me just lay it out there, Mr. Future President: the situation is critical. Racial stereotyping is a part of everyone to any extent and people don’t even realize it. As much as we would hate to admit it, racial assumption is like instinct to us humans. Whoever said America is a “post-racial” society is living in a life of denial. If I have faced numerous accounts of racial slurs, then so have others. Racial misconceptions are crawling inside peoples’ minds like a silent virus, damaging the relationships we have with other races. I believe we should take strong action into preventing future racial impressions. How, you may ask, should we take charge with this situation? Well, I’m not suggesting for you to pass out a law where a racial insult towards an individual leads to a fine because that is not realistic. My approach to this situation is if we can’t stop them today, let us do whatever it is in our power to prevent it from happening tomorrow. What I mean is for us to rewind and find the main causes of these racial misconceptions.
One of the major causes is the media which disseminates racial stereotypes and racist language. Television is a part of every family’s homes and “The average child spends 900 hours in school and nearly 1023 hours in front of a TV” (Kids Health). There is no telling what the child is learning from the television and he or she is obviously learning more from the screen than the teachers in school. Kids, knowing their tendency to be easily influenced, are keeping the images they viewed in their minds and are carrying it with them until they learn how to utilize it. Children are picking up on racial stereotypes at the age of three, a time where they are just beginning to learn how to walk and talk. It’s amazing how the television affects our lives because our ideas, thoughts, and actions are all connected to what we see in the media. I strongly advise that racial slurs and stereotypes be censored in the media because racial slurs and stereotyping are present in TV shows, videos, songs, movies, etc. As soon as we see them, our brain processes the information while interpreting it. Kids, who are endlessly watching television, are bound to encounter elements of racism.
So, I believe you, Mr. Future President, should take strong action into changing the paths our future generation’s decisions. Children will not grow as a person if they carry this trait with themselves. People don’t realize the impact racial stereotypes have on society’s mindset. You must advise the media into ending stereotypical roles that actors portray because people tend to direct their minds through typecasts. There is no single rule or assertion that declared those stereotypes to be true. What our children are watching on television solely impacts the way they perceive other human beings, and we don’t want them to view any individual in that manner. An educated human being knows the fallaciousness of racial stereotypes and we want our children to be headed towards that direction. There is a way for change and the future will be in your hands. So I challenge you, Mr. President, to take initiative to make the children of today better intellectual individuals of tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Tenzing Chonzom
Senator Barrack Obama,
I grew up learning the eminent cliché, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and I can say that on behalf of all the people I know. There is a reason why we have been told that over and over again in our lives because one may never know an individual’s background just by looking at them at a glance. We live in a “post-racial” society where people of color are insulted every minute due to their racial differences. I myself, in fact, have faced racial slurs and stereotypes all throughout my life.
Since most people I encounter lack knowledge about the different people that come from different places around the world, they tend to categorize people into four general groups: Asians, Hispanics, Blacks, and Whites. I was born in India however my background is Tibetan. I find many people having a hard time believing that I was born in India because I don’t look like their stereotype of Indians. Anyhow, I permanently resided in New York when I graduated from the fifth grade. I immediately began to realize that Indian students were being racially harassed on a daily basis. I was not one of them because I obviously did not look the same way as the others; however I did witness many nasty remarks that the Indian or Bengali students faced. After seeing some of the students being discriminated against, I was afraid to tell people that I was born in India, especially when I actually lived there for ten years. I was really self-conscious about where I came from and I was confused about my identity. I didn’t know whether I was Indian anymore even though a huge part of me is connected to India. People did not bother to ask me where I was from because it was a rhetorical question due to my distinguishable Asian features.
I always faced various forms of ridiculous remarks that random strangers have commented on the streets, subways, and just public areas in general. People would always look at me or my family and start speaking in a language that is supposedly Chinese. Some people even ended up saying “Konichiwa,” after calling me a “chink.” It is a bit funny sometimes because I know I am not Chinese and that’s not the language I speak and they are the ones who are making a fool of themselves especially when they were intending to say “Ni Hao”. Once I wondered to myself whether I was just considered Chinese because of the way I appeared to be. Since many people don’t know about the different varieties of Asians, they end up saying, “They all look the same anyway.” People don’t seem to consider other numerous Asian groups and sometimes it is really frustrating to hear when people consider everyone “the same.” Although we do share similar facial features, we all are not clones because each group has its own culture and lifestyle.
Since I came to America I always received one of the top grades in my class. Before that, I was an average student and I never really cared about school until the sixth grade. That’s when I began to realize the importance of education and I understood how lucky I was to have an opportunity in a country where I received a solid education for free compared to India where you had to pay for school annually. I began to work hard and I suppose it paid off in the end. My parents do pressure me to do well in school and people assume that’s the reason behind my success. My parents do push me and sometimes to the point where I get really frustrated; however that’s not the reason why I work hard in school. I don’t strive to do well because of my “Asian” parents. I mean, my parents would still be the same if I were black, white, orange, blue, or green. My family’s value of education will never change no matter how different our ethnicity could've been. I really don’t appreciate when people tell me, “Oh, you’re Asian, so you’re smart” because I want people to acknowledge my hard work and not the connotations of my appearance. Once, I finally got the courage to tell one person in my school that I was from India and he responded by asking me, “Why don’t you have that dot on your forehead?” Once again, someone didn’t fail to make a racial assumption about me.
My experiences are not even in the same category as African Americans, who experienced heart-breaking hardships; however, ultimately both groups came across several different racial insults. In “Uncle Tom’s Children,” Pease called Richard “You black son-of-a-bitch,” after he forgot to call Pease, Mr. Pease. Pease used the term “black” in a distasteful way. I find myself in the same shoes as Richard sometimes because people always tend to call me a “chink” in any given conflict, usually with a stranger. One day, for example, I was walking from school to the subway with my friends and we passed a bunch of boys who were just fooling around on the sidewalk. The next thing we knew was that my friend and I were pushed by one of the group members. I was taken aback and one of the other members responded to my surprise by saying, “I’m sorry, my fault, my fault, it was a dare. Don’t be mad.” I did get mad. He not only was acting like a jerk but he thought the situation was funny. I asked him if there was any problem and he got angry because I replied back. He then told me, “Shut up, stupid Chinese girl. Go back to China!” and that triggered me to say something unpleasant in return. I was really offended yet apathetic at the same time because he knew nothing about me. I wasn’t even from China and I thought it was really amusing because he doesn’t have the slightest clue that I am from India, not China.
Let me just lay it out there, Mr. Future President: the situation is critical. Racial stereotyping is a part of everyone to any extent and people don’t even realize it. As much as we would hate to admit it, racial assumption is like instinct to us humans. Whoever said America is a “post-racial” society is living in a life of denial. If I have faced numerous accounts of racial slurs, then so have others. Racial misconceptions are crawling inside peoples’ minds like a silent virus, damaging the relationships we have with other races. I believe we should take strong action into preventing future racial impressions. How, you may ask, should we take charge with this situation? Well, I’m not suggesting for you to pass out a law where a racial insult towards an individual leads to a fine because that is not realistic. My approach to this situation is if we can’t stop them today, let us do whatever it is in our power to prevent it from happening tomorrow. What I mean is for us to rewind and find the main causes of these racial misconceptions.
One of the major causes is the media which disseminates racial stereotypes and racist language. Television is a part of every family’s homes and “The average child spends 900 hours in school and nearly 1023 hours in front of a TV” (Kids Health). There is no telling what the child is learning from the television and he or she is obviously learning more from the screen than the teachers in school. Kids, knowing their tendency to be easily influenced, are keeping the images they viewed in their minds and are carrying it with them until they learn how to utilize it. Children are picking up on racial stereotypes at the age of three, a time where they are just beginning to learn how to walk and talk. It’s amazing how the television affects our lives because our ideas, thoughts, and actions are all connected to what we see in the media. I strongly advise that racial slurs and stereotypes be censored in the media because racial slurs and stereotyping are present in TV shows, videos, songs, movies, etc. As soon as we see them, our brain processes the information while interpreting it. Kids, who are endlessly watching television, are bound to encounter elements of racism.
So, I believe you, Mr. Future President, should take strong action into changing the paths our future generation’s decisions. Children will not grow as a person if they carry this trait with themselves. People don’t realize the impact racial stereotypes have on society’s mindset. You must advise the media into ending stereotypical roles that actors portray because people tend to direct their minds through typecasts. There is no single rule or assertion that declared those stereotypes to be true. What our children are watching on television solely impacts the way they perceive other human beings, and we don’t want them to view any individual in that manner. An educated human being knows the fallaciousness of racial stereotypes and we want our children to be headed towards that direction. There is a way for change and the future will be in your hands. So I challenge you, Mr. President, to take initiative to make the children of today better intellectual individuals of tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Tenzing Chonzom
(Dear Future President)Finale Draft
Dear future President,
Exploring civil rights this week has opened my eyes. It has shown me how many harsh obstacles African Americans faced. It described what many had to do in order to pave the way for freedom for themselves and other African Americans. In today’s society, many African American, as well as other minorities are still fighting for their rights. The rights being fought are not rights for freedom, but rights for an equal education. Fifty years ago education wasn’t resourceful and wasn’t equal to a white persons' education. During the 1950’s, with the Jim Crow laws enhanced education around that time period lacked resources, and this made it hard for African Americans to have an equal education. With separate but equal laws also passed, this ensured people of color equal rights, but still remained separate from the white race. Still education wasn’t equal, during the Brown vs. Board of Education case it promised equal education among both blacks and whites and to outlaw discrimination against the colored race. In today’s society education has progressed but not the progression many were looking for. New statistics discovered that every twenty six seconds high school students have dropped out, this is for the lack of resources in public schools. Many schools are faced with harsh quarters, no textbooks, lack of teachers, lack of classrooms, lack of school supplies, computers and many more. In today’s world with so much technology emerging, education should be well resourced.Urban public schools have the majority population and should have technology such as computers to explore different ways of learning. Schools should have science labs well equipped with supplies. With technology so big in the U.S, minorities should be able to receive an equivalent education to a white student attending a suburban school as well as a student in a third world country.
As I walked into my new high school, I knew it would be a big challenge, the school had only been open for twelve months and still hasn’t recieved the resources it needs for its new freshmen class. As time progressed, it is two years and still no new changes. I know it’s optional to transfer, but this isn’t just occurring in my school it’s also occurring in other public high schools. As a minority and attending a school such as the one I do, puts more pressure on me to be the BEST. No resources located in my school makes it harder for me as a student, with no resources this makes it difficult for a teacher to teach and assign homework assignments and with the lack of homework assignments it will not prepare one for college. Sharing classrooms and lack of teacher’s work ethics puts me in a horrible situation. Many other teens are in the same situation as I am, and this is why I ask you the future president, to fix the education system. Prevent budget cuts and help make urban minority schools equal to an education given to a suburban student. I believe everyone is entitled to an equal education. High school students as well as elementary students, junior high and college students deserve the same education and many shouldn’t have to suffer because of their ethnicity and stereotypes. Education is an important part of life and should not differ based on one’s community.
Discrimination, a word often use by the majority of the minority population, experienced an incident where they have felt they were being discriminated against due to race, gender, personality and among many more. No one likes to feel as if someone is treating them differently because of certain characteristics they possess. This is a disease for which there be no cure. As a Latino and African American young lady, I have experienced discrimination because of characteristics I possess. I decided to apply to travel abroad to Spain during the spring break with ten other peers to tour the beautiful country.
The whole application process was a breeze, in that the Spanish teacher and I knew one another somewhat well, since she taught me in the sixth, ninth and eleventh grade. I was confident she know how I would appreciate traveling and would embrace the whole experience. I was also confident because of receiving better grades than half the students who applied and academic work on the weekends. Still some doubts were in the back of my head because of my parent’s great involvement in the PTA. You would think this would be a good thing for the school, but it was everyone’s worst nightmare since the staff didn’t want anyone invading their privacy and neither did they like being critiqued. Many in my school, began to discriminate against me the minute they knew whose child I was. This fact made it hard to trust anyone and hard to be involved in any activities the school offered. The day came, when we found out who would be accepted to travel abroad and I was denied. Denied? I asked myself, what foolishness is this? I approached my Spanish teacher and asked her why was I denied. She stood quiet for a moment and then I realized she was discriminating against me. I came up with this conclusion because she didn’t appreciate my voice and my speaking horribly about her teaching ethics as well as the schools. What did the other students selected have over me? I got better grades, I fought for my education in school, and I was very opinionated and did things in my free time so why did the students who did nothing? From that day forward my pride and motivation to do better in my school went out the window. Why try when they were only going to discriminate against because of whom my parents are.
When you come into presidency, I want you to address the education system. Help finally bring equal education to justice. Help all minorities get to where whites are today. Make sure all schools have the proper resources to help all succeed. Let’s take the word discrimination out of minorities’ vocabulary and let’s help decrease ability to others discriminate and feel superior to them. All I ask is the NYC school systems be fixed to help ensure better education for the youths to come, I don’t want others to suffer in their education as I did.
Sincerely,
Ronnae Douglas
Exploring civil rights this week has opened my eyes. It has shown me how many harsh obstacles African Americans faced. It described what many had to do in order to pave the way for freedom for themselves and other African Americans. In today’s society, many African American, as well as other minorities are still fighting for their rights. The rights being fought are not rights for freedom, but rights for an equal education. Fifty years ago education wasn’t resourceful and wasn’t equal to a white persons' education. During the 1950’s, with the Jim Crow laws enhanced education around that time period lacked resources, and this made it hard for African Americans to have an equal education. With separate but equal laws also passed, this ensured people of color equal rights, but still remained separate from the white race. Still education wasn’t equal, during the Brown vs. Board of Education case it promised equal education among both blacks and whites and to outlaw discrimination against the colored race. In today’s society education has progressed but not the progression many were looking for. New statistics discovered that every twenty six seconds high school students have dropped out, this is for the lack of resources in public schools. Many schools are faced with harsh quarters, no textbooks, lack of teachers, lack of classrooms, lack of school supplies, computers and many more. In today’s world with so much technology emerging, education should be well resourced.Urban public schools have the majority population and should have technology such as computers to explore different ways of learning. Schools should have science labs well equipped with supplies. With technology so big in the U.S, minorities should be able to receive an equivalent education to a white student attending a suburban school as well as a student in a third world country.
As I walked into my new high school, I knew it would be a big challenge, the school had only been open for twelve months and still hasn’t recieved the resources it needs for its new freshmen class. As time progressed, it is two years and still no new changes. I know it’s optional to transfer, but this isn’t just occurring in my school it’s also occurring in other public high schools. As a minority and attending a school such as the one I do, puts more pressure on me to be the BEST. No resources located in my school makes it harder for me as a student, with no resources this makes it difficult for a teacher to teach and assign homework assignments and with the lack of homework assignments it will not prepare one for college. Sharing classrooms and lack of teacher’s work ethics puts me in a horrible situation. Many other teens are in the same situation as I am, and this is why I ask you the future president, to fix the education system. Prevent budget cuts and help make urban minority schools equal to an education given to a suburban student. I believe everyone is entitled to an equal education. High school students as well as elementary students, junior high and college students deserve the same education and many shouldn’t have to suffer because of their ethnicity and stereotypes. Education is an important part of life and should not differ based on one’s community.
Discrimination, a word often use by the majority of the minority population, experienced an incident where they have felt they were being discriminated against due to race, gender, personality and among many more. No one likes to feel as if someone is treating them differently because of certain characteristics they possess. This is a disease for which there be no cure. As a Latino and African American young lady, I have experienced discrimination because of characteristics I possess. I decided to apply to travel abroad to Spain during the spring break with ten other peers to tour the beautiful country.
The whole application process was a breeze, in that the Spanish teacher and I knew one another somewhat well, since she taught me in the sixth, ninth and eleventh grade. I was confident she know how I would appreciate traveling and would embrace the whole experience. I was also confident because of receiving better grades than half the students who applied and academic work on the weekends. Still some doubts were in the back of my head because of my parent’s great involvement in the PTA. You would think this would be a good thing for the school, but it was everyone’s worst nightmare since the staff didn’t want anyone invading their privacy and neither did they like being critiqued. Many in my school, began to discriminate against me the minute they knew whose child I was. This fact made it hard to trust anyone and hard to be involved in any activities the school offered. The day came, when we found out who would be accepted to travel abroad and I was denied. Denied? I asked myself, what foolishness is this? I approached my Spanish teacher and asked her why was I denied. She stood quiet for a moment and then I realized she was discriminating against me. I came up with this conclusion because she didn’t appreciate my voice and my speaking horribly about her teaching ethics as well as the schools. What did the other students selected have over me? I got better grades, I fought for my education in school, and I was very opinionated and did things in my free time so why did the students who did nothing? From that day forward my pride and motivation to do better in my school went out the window. Why try when they were only going to discriminate against because of whom my parents are.
When you come into presidency, I want you to address the education system. Help finally bring equal education to justice. Help all minorities get to where whites are today. Make sure all schools have the proper resources to help all succeed. Let’s take the word discrimination out of minorities’ vocabulary and let’s help decrease ability to others discriminate and feel superior to them. All I ask is the NYC school systems be fixed to help ensure better education for the youths to come, I don’t want others to suffer in their education as I did.
Sincerely,
Ronnae Douglas
To our future president
Dear President,
If granted the opportunity, I would like to help you see through the veil that impairs your vision of the true problems facing our nation. That veil is the laws which govern our nation, and are used to stop people from acting in a violent manner. Yet laws can only do so much, they only possess the ability to domesticate people and keep our society out of anarchy. They do not and cannot possess the ability to change or alter the mind. This veil being law, is the primary reason as to why we are all still not united under liberty and justice. Especially in today’s society, where African Americans seem to enforce this concept by wearing a mask, and consequently their passive persona has resulted in hate crimes. Yet, unlike during the times of segregation these crimes are currently done in the dark as opposed to the light. Simply because laws have been enforced to protect the rights of all people. Many groups although they possess the ability to see through the misconceptions are still forced to adhere to these laws, in order to keep a civilized society. Yet, things are far from civilized being that people are still oppressed and are not receiving equal treatment. I am speaking specifically for African Americans, who are still being oppressed with very little being done to better their situation. Major changes need to be placed in this nation’s educational system and the way it portrays the media. For which I believe that these are the two deciding factors on the ability of an African American to triumph over the veil therefore, they as a race can end oppression among their own people.
Looking back through history, hate crimes have been committed in the light because it was widely accepted as something that was just in society. Some whites felt as though there was nothing wrong with the way that they treated blacks and they did not have much of a reason to feel that way. However, in the present those acts are no longer tolerated or publicly encouraged. As a matter of fact they are against the law. In today’s society blacks seemed to seep back behind the vague and revive their passive facades. However, facades cannot instill change as seen in the past. By using a different persona you are not being true to yourself, what you show is a physical representation of who you are attempting to be. This is what caused the continual mistreatment of blacks even to this day. The only difference between then and now is that currently it is being done in the dark as opposed to the light. The abuse it not occurring publicly moreover, behind closed doors where in some cases justice is not enforced. Although they might have been fighting on the inside because they did not on the outside it did not benefit their situation. This is why they will continue to be oppressed, until they are ready to remove the masks, concur the veil and make a change.
Yet, this takes some time and due to a lack of psychological development it is not only blacks which are unable to change but also a variety of other races. These races still cir cum to many misconceptions concerning African Americans. Which is that they are seen as thieves, thugs, and being below society. Basically no matter how low you are you will still be superior to my race that of an African American. This is why education is need to inform, I can recall a personal experience where due to a lack of education racism was acted upon me, and at that moment it was suffocating to the point where you had to acknowledge its presence, and realize that it truly exist. This point shows that there is a veil over our society and education should be seen as a way out. Recalling a time when my friends and I were in the mall going to see a movie, before it began my friends and I went to CVS in order to pick up some snack as well as sodas. As soon as we entered the store it seemed as though eyes were following us. At first I did not think much of it, so we split up and worked our way around the establishment. However, it felt weird and kind of eerie, but I could not figure out the reason behind my doubt until my friends came up to me and informed me that we were being followed around the store, by two men. At first I did not believe them I thought it simply to be coincidental so I picked up my soda and gummy worms. However, as I proceeded to the cash register I realized that I could not afford both so I only took the soda. When I had reached the cashier which was one of the men said to be following us he asked me very harshly where the gummy worms were. As though he was implying that I had taken them and stashed them without his knowledge. I told him that I had placed them back but he did not believe me. I knew that he was being racist simply because we were three black people; I never thought that people would actually characterize me and more importantly believe the stereotypes pertaining to black people. That we all lie cheat and steal, which is not the case. This man who was obviously too young to know better, however too old to change his views allowed me to see the world for what it truly was.
Therefore, this is why I believe that change needs to happen in the educational system where the mind is developed and perspectives are made. I propose that if the schools change they can alter the minds of our youths. However, this is not that simple to accomplish being that currently only fifty percent of African Americans graduate from high school in four years and this feet is much harder for those coming from impoverished families. It is more than obvious that African Americans need resources and they need a reason to want to change and excel in school. In the book "The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader" pertaining to the section in which the children were tested when presented with two dolls. One white and one black, these children were asked a series of questions and one of which pertained to which doll did they thought were good and which doll they thought were bad. They asked these questions to black children and it seemed as though the black children for the most part identified the black doll as bad and the white doll as good. Most need a positive role model and an alternative to jail and fast money. I believe that they either need motivation to understand the world and the end which is expected of them. Once they gain this motivation I feel that they will be more inclined to have a desire to work. This is why I believe that firstly change needs to occur within our educational system concerning the youth, for which they are the future. If young children are being raised to feel as though you skin color identifies with your character than they are being wrongly informed.
Change needs to occur in the media as well, simply because many people are influenced by the colors, luxuries and ideas that seem to hypnotize its viewers. If anything I believe that there needs to be more advertisements and television shows that promote black people positively. Moreover where all people are equally represented, not cases in which commercials flooded with Caucasians have only one black child as a failed attempt to reach out to the African American community. In addition, I believe that television should promote smaller things such as more colored Barbie dolls so that the younger generation can feel proud, as opposed to ashamed of their culture. The black community needs to believe that they do not need to be white in order to find their utopia or to feel superior they need to find self esteem within themselves.
In conclusion, oppression currently occurs more in the dark than in the light in today’s society, primarily because laws can change what a person seems not who they really are. Laws promote peace however, what people cannot or choose not to see is the true anarchy behind this claim. African Americans are still being oppressed; the colored youths resent their heritage and identify their own race as evil. Students are not motivated in school which is why blacks are not graduating from high school in four years they are graduating in five or more. Change, reform needs to happen know, and I believe that it starts with the president. You are the Sheppard of our nation and I believe that you have the ability to instill change and make a difference.
Sincerely,
Jolena Jeffrey
If granted the opportunity, I would like to help you see through the veil that impairs your vision of the true problems facing our nation. That veil is the laws which govern our nation, and are used to stop people from acting in a violent manner. Yet laws can only do so much, they only possess the ability to domesticate people and keep our society out of anarchy. They do not and cannot possess the ability to change or alter the mind. This veil being law, is the primary reason as to why we are all still not united under liberty and justice. Especially in today’s society, where African Americans seem to enforce this concept by wearing a mask, and consequently their passive persona has resulted in hate crimes. Yet, unlike during the times of segregation these crimes are currently done in the dark as opposed to the light. Simply because laws have been enforced to protect the rights of all people. Many groups although they possess the ability to see through the misconceptions are still forced to adhere to these laws, in order to keep a civilized society. Yet, things are far from civilized being that people are still oppressed and are not receiving equal treatment. I am speaking specifically for African Americans, who are still being oppressed with very little being done to better their situation. Major changes need to be placed in this nation’s educational system and the way it portrays the media. For which I believe that these are the two deciding factors on the ability of an African American to triumph over the veil therefore, they as a race can end oppression among their own people.
Looking back through history, hate crimes have been committed in the light because it was widely accepted as something that was just in society. Some whites felt as though there was nothing wrong with the way that they treated blacks and they did not have much of a reason to feel that way. However, in the present those acts are no longer tolerated or publicly encouraged. As a matter of fact they are against the law. In today’s society blacks seemed to seep back behind the vague and revive their passive facades. However, facades cannot instill change as seen in the past. By using a different persona you are not being true to yourself, what you show is a physical representation of who you are attempting to be. This is what caused the continual mistreatment of blacks even to this day. The only difference between then and now is that currently it is being done in the dark as opposed to the light. The abuse it not occurring publicly moreover, behind closed doors where in some cases justice is not enforced. Although they might have been fighting on the inside because they did not on the outside it did not benefit their situation. This is why they will continue to be oppressed, until they are ready to remove the masks, concur the veil and make a change.
Yet, this takes some time and due to a lack of psychological development it is not only blacks which are unable to change but also a variety of other races. These races still cir cum to many misconceptions concerning African Americans. Which is that they are seen as thieves, thugs, and being below society. Basically no matter how low you are you will still be superior to my race that of an African American. This is why education is need to inform, I can recall a personal experience where due to a lack of education racism was acted upon me, and at that moment it was suffocating to the point where you had to acknowledge its presence, and realize that it truly exist. This point shows that there is a veil over our society and education should be seen as a way out. Recalling a time when my friends and I were in the mall going to see a movie, before it began my friends and I went to CVS in order to pick up some snack as well as sodas. As soon as we entered the store it seemed as though eyes were following us. At first I did not think much of it, so we split up and worked our way around the establishment. However, it felt weird and kind of eerie, but I could not figure out the reason behind my doubt until my friends came up to me and informed me that we were being followed around the store, by two men. At first I did not believe them I thought it simply to be coincidental so I picked up my soda and gummy worms. However, as I proceeded to the cash register I realized that I could not afford both so I only took the soda. When I had reached the cashier which was one of the men said to be following us he asked me very harshly where the gummy worms were. As though he was implying that I had taken them and stashed them without his knowledge. I told him that I had placed them back but he did not believe me. I knew that he was being racist simply because we were three black people; I never thought that people would actually characterize me and more importantly believe the stereotypes pertaining to black people. That we all lie cheat and steal, which is not the case. This man who was obviously too young to know better, however too old to change his views allowed me to see the world for what it truly was.
Therefore, this is why I believe that change needs to happen in the educational system where the mind is developed and perspectives are made. I propose that if the schools change they can alter the minds of our youths. However, this is not that simple to accomplish being that currently only fifty percent of African Americans graduate from high school in four years and this feet is much harder for those coming from impoverished families. It is more than obvious that African Americans need resources and they need a reason to want to change and excel in school. In the book "The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader" pertaining to the section in which the children were tested when presented with two dolls. One white and one black, these children were asked a series of questions and one of which pertained to which doll did they thought were good and which doll they thought were bad. They asked these questions to black children and it seemed as though the black children for the most part identified the black doll as bad and the white doll as good. Most need a positive role model and an alternative to jail and fast money. I believe that they either need motivation to understand the world and the end which is expected of them. Once they gain this motivation I feel that they will be more inclined to have a desire to work. This is why I believe that firstly change needs to occur within our educational system concerning the youth, for which they are the future. If young children are being raised to feel as though you skin color identifies with your character than they are being wrongly informed.
Change needs to occur in the media as well, simply because many people are influenced by the colors, luxuries and ideas that seem to hypnotize its viewers. If anything I believe that there needs to be more advertisements and television shows that promote black people positively. Moreover where all people are equally represented, not cases in which commercials flooded with Caucasians have only one black child as a failed attempt to reach out to the African American community. In addition, I believe that television should promote smaller things such as more colored Barbie dolls so that the younger generation can feel proud, as opposed to ashamed of their culture. The black community needs to believe that they do not need to be white in order to find their utopia or to feel superior they need to find self esteem within themselves.
In conclusion, oppression currently occurs more in the dark than in the light in today’s society, primarily because laws can change what a person seems not who they really are. Laws promote peace however, what people cannot or choose not to see is the true anarchy behind this claim. African Americans are still being oppressed; the colored youths resent their heritage and identify their own race as evil. Students are not motivated in school which is why blacks are not graduating from high school in four years they are graduating in five or more. Change, reform needs to happen know, and I believe that it starts with the president. You are the Sheppard of our nation and I believe that you have the ability to instill change and make a difference.
Sincerely,
Jolena Jeffrey
What we can and shall do! (Final Essay)
Dear Mr. President,
Our country has been changing in a rate that may be slow for some and speedy for people in our country. There have been things that have defined our country’s policies for others and shown our country in the most grotesque manner. Yet that has not slowed us down for one second and our country has been growing day after day. You, Mr. President may be the light that minorities have been waiting for. This nation has gone through troubling times where our weaknesses have been exploited and shown to the rest of the world. Mr. President, I admire you for being able to have the power to change the U.S.A.’s problems with innovative ideas that have never been tried before. You are the type of person that you have needed for many years; this nation is in your hands and when you listen to these ideas you will most likely be able to solve problems that have plagued our country since the beginning of slavery. One of these problems is people blacks are still separated now from other people and are only being distinguished by their skin color and not their personalities. Another problem would be if these black children had a better environment to learn in, then keeping them off the streets would be so much easier.
The disturbing times that have been shown before the Civil Rights movement include the time period of the Jim Crow “laws.” Jim Crow “laws” were not really laws, but they were more like customs and taboos that the African Americans of the South had to follow or face consequences that may have been brutal considering to what rule they broke. The case of Emmett Till was a prime example of this and this was due to racial barriers in the South also known as segregation. In today’s world African Americans are still suffering the effects of Jim Crow because they are not being seen as individuals to certain people. I have had a water downed experience due to gangs in my neighborhood. The Latino gang and the gang residing in my building were fighting over a girl and I got caught with in the middle because of my skin color. They were screaming derogatory terms in Spanish about African Americans and they only attacked those of African descent who lived in my apartment building. There were a lot of innocent children beaten because of a girl that both gangs thought were gorgeous.
This experience of mine is also related to the book called Uncle Tom’s Children written by Richard Wright and the prologue called “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow.” During the course of the story, either the main character or the black people were called a derogatory name thirty-three times and that is at least one word for each page of the story. The story is related to my story concerning of the gang fights because in this story the Jim Crow laws were separating races and consequences were not proportional to the actions of the black person. This is represented in my past when I was attacked by a group of Latinos, and the reason for this was my skin color. I was attacked for something that is beyond my power to change and I did not do anything to deserve the physical attack. The attack did not only stop at me, but was carried onto other black children, mainly young boys, and the gang that lived in my building had never even try to retaliate. They realize only retaliating would only cause more people to be hurt themselves and the people around them. They also thought that fighting head on with the Mosholu gang was a bad idea because they had at least five times than the measly ten people belonging to the Gang Green gang. This is related to the past because the blacks knew retaliating against the whites would only hurt them more even though in their case they outnumbered the whites, yet the whites had scared and oppressed them for so long that rebelling was out of the question. Kids join gangs because they do not receive the help they need during school or feel that they cannot speak about personal problems to someone in the school and feel that they can find a better family of friends in the streets. Some of the members of gangs may live in underdeveloped neighborhoods where their schools may not have enough money.
There are many things that need to be changed because of gaps between the wealthy and the poor. The gaps are also represented in the education of the children. Those children who are middle class receive a better education than those who are from a lower class. The children are most likely to be a minority when they come from a lower income family. They are not learning the basic information that they need to achieve in life. The students are not to be blamed, but those students who see school as optional are dropping out at an increasing rate. A high school student drops out every 26 seconds according the documentary called Black in America. The schools of America should be a place where people feel safe and can say whatever they want without having the trepidation of being criticized. There are students that are being paid for doing well in school which is also shown in Blacks in America. Do you need something as materialistic as money to keep children in school? Must we involve something as materialistic as money?
My belief is no. A student should not be encouraged by money because at a certain age finding money through drug dealing will become an option for them. This will waste all the money you spent trying to instill the idea of learning into a child who will find the streets and gangs a place where money is not a problem. There is obviously no need to give money to a child who should push themselves to learn because the education that they receive will help them become a stronger student. Instead of giving money to the children you should put them in after school programs which will lead to helping them focused on long term goals. These students need to be taught that no matter what predicament you are in you can succeed in that area. Life is short and this may be something that some kids do not realize and this may affect them in the long run.
Mr. President, the children of your school need better resources and better training for the teachers. The ability of a child to learn depends on the teacher and that teacher’s teaching ability. Yet this is only partially true, if the student does not have the will to learn, then teaching an unwilling student becomes an unpleasant job. Students may not be able to learn because their schools may not have the money to get the supplies they need to help them during class and they may not want to learn because their school may be a place where it is hard to feel where you can tell your personal problems to a teacher. Some schools may be overcrowded which does not allow that one on one time that some students may need in order to thrive in their in learning environment. You can fix this by splitting some schools down into smaller schools or even by hiring more guidance counselors for a crowded school. These children should not be left behind because they cannot function in a big environment where teachers are unable to give individual attention.
The future is near Mr. President, what you shall do will devastate or construct a new country where learning is something everyone wants to be a part of.
Sincerely,
Jeremy Agyemang
Education vs. Racism
Dear Mr. President,
Congratulations on your new position. My hope as a young American citizen is that you will utilize the power that comes with your position fully and with the best interest of the people of the United States in mind. You are the trusted individual whom the voting generations have chosen to represent us. The people have voiced what they expect of you and you promised to fulfill their expectations. Many of the younger generations, though, have not been able to let you know their desires. How else would you know how you can help and satisfy the leaders of the future? I have decided to help you help me by informing you about the things that are important to me as a student in the New York City public school system.
You might think that we are living in a post racial time but racism still exists. The racism that remains is a more subtle and sneaky form of the disease. Blacks have come a far way and I don’t believe that they should have to suffer from this ailment of society anymore. Children as young as elementary school age are experiencing racism in their schools. The racism is received from other students and even teachers. The run-ins with prejudice can often evoke feelings as severe as those of the slaves during the Jim Crow era. My own exposure to racism in the New York City public schools resembles that of Richard Wright in his piece The Ethics of Living Jim Crow. In the novel, Richard was discriminated against because he had a characteristic that his boss did not like: he was black. Since he was black, in his boss' opinion he was lucky to have a job where white folk were involved. Richard realized that white people had a lot of resources and he was hoping that he would receive a glimpse into the work they do and maybe gain a few pointers. The whites weren't thinking that this information could make Richard a better worker. They only thought of the fact that they were educating a Negro and, in effect, they were making the Negro smarter and closer in equity to the white man.
Similarly, I was judged unfairly when a teacher determined whether or not I could go first in my group. My seventh grade teacher, Ms Roos, decided that the person in my group with the longest hair would go first. Naturally, the hair of a White, Asian, or Spanish girl would be longer than that of a Black girl. Ms Roos’ actions showed preference for a certain race; this is racism. The length of my hair could not rightly determine how smart I was. The situation was used to label me unqualified for the position (even though I was not) and to exclude me from a higher position. In Richard's case, when he asked to learn, Pease said, 'Nigger, you think you're white, don't you?', rather than accepting that Richard would have liked to learn something from the job. Richard was as frustrated as I was. He said, 'I worked hard...I was not learning anything and nobody was volunteering to help me,' and the white men left him with their final thought: 'This is a white man's work around here, and you better watch yourself!'(Page 88) I went to a school where there were more white children than any other race. For my teacher to make a rule so that I did not have a chance to go first based on my profile as a student made me feel as if the world was not fair and I would always be discriminated and excluded in life because of simple and unimportant things like my hair or skin color. These thoughts can damage the minds of our black children and cause them not to want to succeed or even try in life. We cannot allow this to happen.
To prevent this from happening, Mr. President, you need to address some serious problems that plague the black community. The educational system in minority populated areas is disintegrating. The schools in areas where black students and other minorities reside have to be improved. The schools in minority populated areas are not on par with the schools in white populated areas. The black children are learning a lot less at a later time than the white children and as a result, the black children are not succeeding like the white children; they are lagging behind. This is not fair to the black children who realize this fact late in their lives when they have entered college and realize that they are behind the white students in progress. If all men are equal under the law and in God’s eyes, then the resources available to all men must be the same. The black students are suffering and we have to make a change. I am appealing to you, our highest representative in our democratic government to make this change happen. The schools need better facilities, teachers, and guidance counselors to encourage the students who may not be motivated by their parents. The Department of Education must stop cutting funds for the after school programs that allow students to spend time doing homework with access to computers. We need to invest more in the lives of our black youth. The President before you spent the tax payers’ money on wars. I trust that you will make better use of the money by saving for the futures of the children. The money could be used to supply these schools with the modern technology. The black children need to know how to use these new technologies. Every school should have a library. Many of the schools in the city do not have a space that is reserved for a library. The students should have a library in the schools to teach them about the Dewey Decimal System and how to use it. It should be used to introduce them to the world of books. If no one tells them how great books are, then what will motivate them to visit the public library on their own. Teachers are a big deal in a student’s learning experience and their understanding of the material that they are taught. Students need involved teachers who go beyond the watered down curriculum of the city schools. A program should be set up so that if the students are not doing their homework at home then they will eat and do homework at lunch time or they will have a time designated for studying. The textbooks in these schools need to be updated. They are torn, outdated and over used.
Also, the foods in these schools need to be improved. Lately studies about obesity are being conducted and it shows that many black students are likely to become obese. The schools in urban areas cannot afford to buy healthy food for their students. Every now and then they serve a vegetable-filled egg roll or a veggie-burger but it is not often enough because black kids are getting fatter. School should be an experience that teaches students about life and what they need to succeed. Therefore, it should teach them that eating healthy is essential. The black folk are dying about five years earlier than the white folk. This is partially because they cannot afford healthy food because they have low incomes because they did not go to school or because they were not motivated to go to college. Everything points back to the schooling of the children in the black community. That the former President opted to spend the tax payers’ money on the war rather than on the education of the American youth sickens me. The black community elected a qualified politician who has our best interest in mind. This politician is you. We needed a President who cares about the education of the kids of the future, not only the white ones but also the black ones. These children need someone to care about them or they won’t care about themselves. How can they care about their progress if no one shows interest in their progress? If the parents will not get involved and pay attention, the teachers and school community need to pay attention and make sure that the children succeed. Remember, it takes a village to raise a child the right way. Being a teacher does not only involve teaching a subject and handing out grades. Teachers are the back-up and support for the student when the parents aren’t there. Teachers are the encouragement that every child needs. Teachers provide the praise when a child does well. Teachers are the key to sparking a child’s imagination. Teachers are the future for our black children.
Mr. President, we cannot progress as a society and a country and a people when ideas as faulty as racism are maintained pervasively in America. Amending the state of the city schools will have a long term effect on the abundance of racism throughout the United States. When the black children receive an education that is on the same level as the education that the white children are receiving, our society will more readily accept blacks as assets to our country. Also, the whites who are bosses of the blacks will not underestimate them because of their race. We will see more black CEO’s in the corporate world. In addition, when the black children realize that they are equal to the white children in educational aspects, they will stop hiding and they will be more comfortable in their skin and they will succeed. Hopefully, when these changes are achieved, the future black students will not experience the bar from education that Richard Wright received in the Jim Crow era or the prejudice that I experienced in middle school. As president, you are our highest hope besides God. Know that the black community has put their full trust and hope into your efforts. Make us proud!
Sincerely,
Kristina Bryce
Congratulations on your new position. My hope as a young American citizen is that you will utilize the power that comes with your position fully and with the best interest of the people of the United States in mind. You are the trusted individual whom the voting generations have chosen to represent us. The people have voiced what they expect of you and you promised to fulfill their expectations. Many of the younger generations, though, have not been able to let you know their desires. How else would you know how you can help and satisfy the leaders of the future? I have decided to help you help me by informing you about the things that are important to me as a student in the New York City public school system.
You might think that we are living in a post racial time but racism still exists. The racism that remains is a more subtle and sneaky form of the disease. Blacks have come a far way and I don’t believe that they should have to suffer from this ailment of society anymore. Children as young as elementary school age are experiencing racism in their schools. The racism is received from other students and even teachers. The run-ins with prejudice can often evoke feelings as severe as those of the slaves during the Jim Crow era. My own exposure to racism in the New York City public schools resembles that of Richard Wright in his piece The Ethics of Living Jim Crow. In the novel, Richard was discriminated against because he had a characteristic that his boss did not like: he was black. Since he was black, in his boss' opinion he was lucky to have a job where white folk were involved. Richard realized that white people had a lot of resources and he was hoping that he would receive a glimpse into the work they do and maybe gain a few pointers. The whites weren't thinking that this information could make Richard a better worker. They only thought of the fact that they were educating a Negro and, in effect, they were making the Negro smarter and closer in equity to the white man.
Similarly, I was judged unfairly when a teacher determined whether or not I could go first in my group. My seventh grade teacher, Ms Roos, decided that the person in my group with the longest hair would go first. Naturally, the hair of a White, Asian, or Spanish girl would be longer than that of a Black girl. Ms Roos’ actions showed preference for a certain race; this is racism. The length of my hair could not rightly determine how smart I was. The situation was used to label me unqualified for the position (even though I was not) and to exclude me from a higher position. In Richard's case, when he asked to learn, Pease said, 'Nigger, you think you're white, don't you?', rather than accepting that Richard would have liked to learn something from the job. Richard was as frustrated as I was. He said, 'I worked hard...I was not learning anything and nobody was volunteering to help me,' and the white men left him with their final thought: 'This is a white man's work around here, and you better watch yourself!'(Page 88) I went to a school where there were more white children than any other race. For my teacher to make a rule so that I did not have a chance to go first based on my profile as a student made me feel as if the world was not fair and I would always be discriminated and excluded in life because of simple and unimportant things like my hair or skin color. These thoughts can damage the minds of our black children and cause them not to want to succeed or even try in life. We cannot allow this to happen.
To prevent this from happening, Mr. President, you need to address some serious problems that plague the black community. The educational system in minority populated areas is disintegrating. The schools in areas where black students and other minorities reside have to be improved. The schools in minority populated areas are not on par with the schools in white populated areas. The black children are learning a lot less at a later time than the white children and as a result, the black children are not succeeding like the white children; they are lagging behind. This is not fair to the black children who realize this fact late in their lives when they have entered college and realize that they are behind the white students in progress. If all men are equal under the law and in God’s eyes, then the resources available to all men must be the same. The black students are suffering and we have to make a change. I am appealing to you, our highest representative in our democratic government to make this change happen. The schools need better facilities, teachers, and guidance counselors to encourage the students who may not be motivated by their parents. The Department of Education must stop cutting funds for the after school programs that allow students to spend time doing homework with access to computers. We need to invest more in the lives of our black youth. The President before you spent the tax payers’ money on wars. I trust that you will make better use of the money by saving for the futures of the children. The money could be used to supply these schools with the modern technology. The black children need to know how to use these new technologies. Every school should have a library. Many of the schools in the city do not have a space that is reserved for a library. The students should have a library in the schools to teach them about the Dewey Decimal System and how to use it. It should be used to introduce them to the world of books. If no one tells them how great books are, then what will motivate them to visit the public library on their own. Teachers are a big deal in a student’s learning experience and their understanding of the material that they are taught. Students need involved teachers who go beyond the watered down curriculum of the city schools. A program should be set up so that if the students are not doing their homework at home then they will eat and do homework at lunch time or they will have a time designated for studying. The textbooks in these schools need to be updated. They are torn, outdated and over used.
Also, the foods in these schools need to be improved. Lately studies about obesity are being conducted and it shows that many black students are likely to become obese. The schools in urban areas cannot afford to buy healthy food for their students. Every now and then they serve a vegetable-filled egg roll or a veggie-burger but it is not often enough because black kids are getting fatter. School should be an experience that teaches students about life and what they need to succeed. Therefore, it should teach them that eating healthy is essential. The black folk are dying about five years earlier than the white folk. This is partially because they cannot afford healthy food because they have low incomes because they did not go to school or because they were not motivated to go to college. Everything points back to the schooling of the children in the black community. That the former President opted to spend the tax payers’ money on the war rather than on the education of the American youth sickens me. The black community elected a qualified politician who has our best interest in mind. This politician is you. We needed a President who cares about the education of the kids of the future, not only the white ones but also the black ones. These children need someone to care about them or they won’t care about themselves. How can they care about their progress if no one shows interest in their progress? If the parents will not get involved and pay attention, the teachers and school community need to pay attention and make sure that the children succeed. Remember, it takes a village to raise a child the right way. Being a teacher does not only involve teaching a subject and handing out grades. Teachers are the back-up and support for the student when the parents aren’t there. Teachers are the encouragement that every child needs. Teachers provide the praise when a child does well. Teachers are the key to sparking a child’s imagination. Teachers are the future for our black children.
Mr. President, we cannot progress as a society and a country and a people when ideas as faulty as racism are maintained pervasively in America. Amending the state of the city schools will have a long term effect on the abundance of racism throughout the United States. When the black children receive an education that is on the same level as the education that the white children are receiving, our society will more readily accept blacks as assets to our country. Also, the whites who are bosses of the blacks will not underestimate them because of their race. We will see more black CEO’s in the corporate world. In addition, when the black children realize that they are equal to the white children in educational aspects, they will stop hiding and they will be more comfortable in their skin and they will succeed. Hopefully, when these changes are achieved, the future black students will not experience the bar from education that Richard Wright received in the Jim Crow era or the prejudice that I experienced in middle school. As president, you are our highest hope besides God. Know that the black community has put their full trust and hope into your efforts. Make us proud!
Sincerely,
Kristina Bryce
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Education and Separation
Dear Mr. Obama,
Change. A word that frightens many individuals when said—change, has the ability to alter and create new worlds, better societies. Attached to the term, however is the negative connotation of destruction due to the possibility of failure that comes along with the concept. In today’s society a change is necessary for our development. According to the Teaching Tolerance* organization, at least eight African Americans, three whites, and one Latino becomes victims of a hate crime today in America. This idea demonstrates the lack of unity in today’s society as people, like those years ago, separate themselves according to racial backgrounds. This division has the effect of delaying us as a people. Another problem that arises in today’s society in the steady decline in African Americans advancing in educational pursuits. It is said that one black student drops out of high school every 26 seconds. Due to these things, the idea of change is developed. This immense risk raises the bar to find someone who will carefully roll the dice for change. A change that would bridge the achievement gap between African Americans and other races, along with unifies all races together. I call on you, Mr. Barack Obama to make this necessary transition occur.
African Americans have, as many are aware, gone through a tremendous amount of trials and tribulations in order to be granted the right to be considered equal to white individuals. The strive for equality began after the journey to become “free” from the bondage of slavery, entering into a time known as Reconstruction. Due to this transition from slaves to free men, white Americans were unsure about how to take on this sudden change. Jim Crow laws (1619) were then placed into effect, establishing the idea of superiority of white men. Due to the inferior qualities affiliated with African Americans they were treated poorly. Blacks, under Jim Crow law were made to use color-designated water fountains, bathrooms, and dining stores. Black men were beaten and taunted by white individuals for any ideas noted as disrespectful. The story of Emmett Till helps us to understanding the gruel unmoral acts that occurred during this time period. Till, a fourteen year old black male who lived in Chicago, was sent on a trip to Mississippi by his mother. He returned dead and disfigured, after whistling at a white woman in an alternate world of his own where looking at a white woman can cause death. It is through Till that the idea of hate is changed into something understandable. Many were lynched on account of these actions seen as offensive to white people. The inhumanity shown through various acts that occurred during these times of Jim Crow laws would seem absurd; however before you question its absurdity consider looking out your window as the realities of these problems can be seen right outside of your bedroom window.
I want to walk golden streets, with white lilies scattered about. Walk past golden gates and into my own home. I want to peer out at glittering blue seas each morning outside of my bedroom window. When I do look of my window, I will never get the opportunity to see this. These ideas are merely fictions of the imagination. The grass will not always be green and this is a reality that we as a people must accept. However changes to get us closer to this fantasy can be made. After the end of the Jim Crow era people of all races have become equal under the law. Although “separate, but equal” is no longer printed, that is not the actuality in our society. Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians live in their own separate communities. It is through this division that one understands that we have once again continued the division we’ve so determinedly tried to bring an end to.
In my own life there have been many situations that reminds me every day that the partition from the past still remain. “Its cuz’ I’m black”, I said after my friend made a judgmental remark to me about my “weaker than weak” basketball skills. He and I were in the park after classes due to a bet I had lost. If I did not eat all of my food on that given day I had to go to the basketball court and play with him. The outcome—as you know, went against me and there we were on the court. Sweat shorts on and ready to play one of my favorite games, I was excited. Friends for over five years, we took the court like giants ready for battle. As wind rushed by us, David checked the ball to me. I stood there feet planted ready, firm. Waiting. The game had begun. I looked up toward the basket as he followed behind me, ready to “block any shot attempts”. At 6 foot 2 he toward over my small frame and as I stepped up to take the shot I became fully aware of this as his lanky body came into the angle of my shot. The shot went off however but he was not the problem. My shot had not touched the rim at all. “Air ball” he cried continuously. “Air Ball, Air Ball, Air Ball”. Then he said that he could not believe it. That he could not believe a black person made air balls. I watched him. Watched my friend of a different race stereotype me and laugh about it. I laughed too however, then I continued my own taunting by stating that he was discriminating against me cuz’ I’m black, a statement made amongst black teenagers that transforms into a joke. I was embarrassed. Embarrassed that he would even think of saying something like that although we are close. Our relationship had never leaked into that ocean. We have always remained contained in our own area, forgetting about the dramas that were suppose to separate us. Racism ended it all—ended us. It is because of this strong hold it has on society, that I hope you will be able to bring a calm to the situation of racism.
Unity means the gathering of people together. These gatherings however not only bring people closer together physically, but on a deeper, emotional level. This emotional level, allows us to reflect on ourselves as well as on one another. All too often in our own world however we find such togetherness in groups consisting of people who look like us, dress like us, and are from the same place we come from. Many wish not to know those outside of the circle. A large circle, with few people within it. Before you question of the importance of approaching this growing problem, please do keep in mind that every day someone commits a hate crime. It is due to this lack of unity there has been an increase of violence against people of different ethnic background. On April 14th, 2008 at 6pm an African American male was walking down the street of Crown Heights when he was ambushed by Jewish boys with pepper sprays, who attacked him with it. Racial attacks, such as this occur frequently in the Crown Heights neighborhood, on both ends of the playing field. If there was more understanding of the differences people have among one another, it is my belief that these violent actions would not occur. This incident, though much more dramatic than my own, occurs on a day to day basis, causing an abundant amount of pain.
In order to combat these malevolent acts various workshops in the communitiesexperiencing the most hardships should be established. These workshops would revolve around the idea of tolerance. This outreach to the various communities on their own turf, in their own surroundings, would address the problem in a calm manner. It is in this way that allows not to point fingers at one another on the basis of who causes the problems. It is in these workshops that trained volunteers will educate those in the community about ways to tolerate others and the methods to avoid confrontations. These workshops should present information, but also include active learning allowing people to participate in a way that would help them to understand the importance of acceptance. The next stage of this process should then be to develop different videos demonstrating the backgrounds behind those of different values. After this process occurs a phase of interaction between the different kinds of people should occur, and if people still feel uncomfortable with those they dislike, further actions of one on one time with staff members should occur. This one on one process, along with advertisement of the issue and the workshop would cost the government a few thousand dollars, however the price of having to find space for dead bodies and employing more police officers is far more for the state to handle.
Education is an important part of the life of many individuals. It is the gateway to success. Too many African American children are not seeing this however, causing them to be left back in the race toward success. Statistics gathered from the R.A.A.M.P (2006) organization displays such a struggle within the race as 60% of African American males do not graduate with their cohorts, 85% percent of African American males are placed in Special Education, 42% of African American males graduate nationwide, and more African American males receive their GED in prison compared to receiving their diploma in high school. These poor numbers display the struggle within the development of African Americans. I, myself have witnessed this same struggle in my own community, making the numbers genuine to me. Also it should be noted that our society also relates to that of those living through the era of Jim Crow, which can be seen through "The Ethics of Living Jim Crow" through a different learning.
"This is why black people can't go anywhere. Can't do anything" My friend stated as we made our way home. What was I going to say? What was there to say? Were the statistics right? My mouth opened, but I said nothing. I continued to walk. Running away from my thoughts. Running away from my friend's accusations. These statements continued on throughout most of my life thereafter. Or it had become far more present in my life. A couple of days later another friend asked me if she was "college material", if they accept "people like her" into “those” schools. "Yes" I said without really knowing, confused about my place as being of minority status and sure she was too. We watched each other trying to put the pieces together. We had finally admitted within ourselves that we are at a disadvantage in life. We heard it many times, and questioned it within ourselves. In our lives we see no disadvantages, because we cannot see the other side. In "The Ethics of Living Jim Crow" by Richard Wright, Richard too searches for understanding as well. He seeks to comprehend the way in which he is suppose to act with white people. He seeks out the black community in order to do so, along with making his own observations. The lessons he learns are tremendous and help him to cope with the intolerance he faces. We seek to gain the understanding he has gained. His gaining of this information presented the line between life and death. In order to continue onward in life he must gather this information. In my own life this is the case. The understanding of the present disadvantage that we are in makes all the difference in how to approach the situation and bring an end to it. This knowledge would need not only to impact us, as it did in Richard Wright's story, but also our community as a whole. This shortcoming sets up an uneven playing field slides African Americans at the bottom of the sea-saw causing many to say that black people can't do anything, as my friend stated. This understanding, as in Richard's situation would create an idea of survival. One survives in our society by having a high paying job, which would be able to supply us the means of living, unlike in Richard's society one works upward for advancement. What makes the difference between our current day situation and Richard's is the fact that we have the resources in order to make a change and educate ourselves. Guiding him were individuals, who too were just as confused as he on the circumstances he lived in. Blacks must make the conscious decision to open their eyes and see the world for what it truly is. Back then, during these times of discrimination, which was legal, there was no choice but to learn how to survive. As people of color this conscious decision must be made. It is a choice, that truly isn’t a choice (due to laws), but if one wished to provide for their families this decision must be made. Like myself, my friend, and Richard, people will have to start seeing the truth to the situation, but unlike Richard, viable support and guidance can be provided.
In order to fix this ongoing problem dealing with education, or lack of, in terms of African Americans more government funding should be provided. As a public school student I understand the ins and the outs, for the most part, of school funding. Schools provide school lunch and through this they are given money from the government, after parents fill out various forms. As school begins in September faculty hands out these forms and inform us of its importance from the time we are given it. Many students however, who do not eat school lunch do not bother to fill out the forms. This leads to the forging of forms by the school itself, who knows the government does not provide them with enough money and depends on the money gathered from the filled forms. The government does not seem to know how much text books costs for a total of 1,541 students. Additional funding must also be made, for advance placement courses, and honors classes. In my school a class of 30 is perfect, a class filled with 20 students however is far worst, because the school believes that they will not get enough funding to maintain a class of only 20 students or less. With more funding there would be less students in a class, which creates more one on one time for the students and helps them to learn the material. There should also be more free government funded after school programs, which would provide students a place to do their home work along with develop skills they learned in school.
As you can see Mr. President, you’ll be taking a seat in the oval office; however you will be asked to rise up to the many challenges revolving around racial issues. I hope that you will rise to the challenge, although these issues have been going on for a long time, I believe that you have the ability to bring about a change to these current situations reflected in the past.
Change. A word that frightens many individuals when said—change, has the ability to alter and create new worlds, better societies. Attached to the term, however is the negative connotation of destruction due to the possibility of failure that comes along with the concept. In today’s society a change is necessary for our development. According to the Teaching Tolerance* organization, at least eight African Americans, three whites, and one Latino becomes victims of a hate crime today in America. This idea demonstrates the lack of unity in today’s society as people, like those years ago, separate themselves according to racial backgrounds. This division has the effect of delaying us as a people. Another problem that arises in today’s society in the steady decline in African Americans advancing in educational pursuits. It is said that one black student drops out of high school every 26 seconds. Due to these things, the idea of change is developed. This immense risk raises the bar to find someone who will carefully roll the dice for change. A change that would bridge the achievement gap between African Americans and other races, along with unifies all races together. I call on you, Mr. Barack Obama to make this necessary transition occur.
African Americans have, as many are aware, gone through a tremendous amount of trials and tribulations in order to be granted the right to be considered equal to white individuals. The strive for equality began after the journey to become “free” from the bondage of slavery, entering into a time known as Reconstruction. Due to this transition from slaves to free men, white Americans were unsure about how to take on this sudden change. Jim Crow laws (1619) were then placed into effect, establishing the idea of superiority of white men. Due to the inferior qualities affiliated with African Americans they were treated poorly. Blacks, under Jim Crow law were made to use color-designated water fountains, bathrooms, and dining stores. Black men were beaten and taunted by white individuals for any ideas noted as disrespectful. The story of Emmett Till helps us to understanding the gruel unmoral acts that occurred during this time period. Till, a fourteen year old black male who lived in Chicago, was sent on a trip to Mississippi by his mother. He returned dead and disfigured, after whistling at a white woman in an alternate world of his own where looking at a white woman can cause death. It is through Till that the idea of hate is changed into something understandable. Many were lynched on account of these actions seen as offensive to white people. The inhumanity shown through various acts that occurred during these times of Jim Crow laws would seem absurd; however before you question its absurdity consider looking out your window as the realities of these problems can be seen right outside of your bedroom window.
I want to walk golden streets, with white lilies scattered about. Walk past golden gates and into my own home. I want to peer out at glittering blue seas each morning outside of my bedroom window. When I do look of my window, I will never get the opportunity to see this. These ideas are merely fictions of the imagination. The grass will not always be green and this is a reality that we as a people must accept. However changes to get us closer to this fantasy can be made. After the end of the Jim Crow era people of all races have become equal under the law. Although “separate, but equal” is no longer printed, that is not the actuality in our society. Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians live in their own separate communities. It is through this division that one understands that we have once again continued the division we’ve so determinedly tried to bring an end to.
In my own life there have been many situations that reminds me every day that the partition from the past still remain. “Its cuz’ I’m black”, I said after my friend made a judgmental remark to me about my “weaker than weak” basketball skills. He and I were in the park after classes due to a bet I had lost. If I did not eat all of my food on that given day I had to go to the basketball court and play with him. The outcome—as you know, went against me and there we were on the court. Sweat shorts on and ready to play one of my favorite games, I was excited. Friends for over five years, we took the court like giants ready for battle. As wind rushed by us, David checked the ball to me. I stood there feet planted ready, firm. Waiting. The game had begun. I looked up toward the basket as he followed behind me, ready to “block any shot attempts”. At 6 foot 2 he toward over my small frame and as I stepped up to take the shot I became fully aware of this as his lanky body came into the angle of my shot. The shot went off however but he was not the problem. My shot had not touched the rim at all. “Air ball” he cried continuously. “Air Ball, Air Ball, Air Ball”. Then he said that he could not believe it. That he could not believe a black person made air balls. I watched him. Watched my friend of a different race stereotype me and laugh about it. I laughed too however, then I continued my own taunting by stating that he was discriminating against me cuz’ I’m black, a statement made amongst black teenagers that transforms into a joke. I was embarrassed. Embarrassed that he would even think of saying something like that although we are close. Our relationship had never leaked into that ocean. We have always remained contained in our own area, forgetting about the dramas that were suppose to separate us. Racism ended it all—ended us. It is because of this strong hold it has on society, that I hope you will be able to bring a calm to the situation of racism.
Unity means the gathering of people together. These gatherings however not only bring people closer together physically, but on a deeper, emotional level. This emotional level, allows us to reflect on ourselves as well as on one another. All too often in our own world however we find such togetherness in groups consisting of people who look like us, dress like us, and are from the same place we come from. Many wish not to know those outside of the circle. A large circle, with few people within it. Before you question of the importance of approaching this growing problem, please do keep in mind that every day someone commits a hate crime. It is due to this lack of unity there has been an increase of violence against people of different ethnic background. On April 14th, 2008 at 6pm an African American male was walking down the street of Crown Heights when he was ambushed by Jewish boys with pepper sprays, who attacked him with it. Racial attacks, such as this occur frequently in the Crown Heights neighborhood, on both ends of the playing field. If there was more understanding of the differences people have among one another, it is my belief that these violent actions would not occur. This incident, though much more dramatic than my own, occurs on a day to day basis, causing an abundant amount of pain.
In order to combat these malevolent acts various workshops in the communitiesexperiencing the most hardships should be established. These workshops would revolve around the idea of tolerance. This outreach to the various communities on their own turf, in their own surroundings, would address the problem in a calm manner. It is in this way that allows not to point fingers at one another on the basis of who causes the problems. It is in these workshops that trained volunteers will educate those in the community about ways to tolerate others and the methods to avoid confrontations. These workshops should present information, but also include active learning allowing people to participate in a way that would help them to understand the importance of acceptance. The next stage of this process should then be to develop different videos demonstrating the backgrounds behind those of different values. After this process occurs a phase of interaction between the different kinds of people should occur, and if people still feel uncomfortable with those they dislike, further actions of one on one time with staff members should occur. This one on one process, along with advertisement of the issue and the workshop would cost the government a few thousand dollars, however the price of having to find space for dead bodies and employing more police officers is far more for the state to handle.
Education is an important part of the life of many individuals. It is the gateway to success. Too many African American children are not seeing this however, causing them to be left back in the race toward success. Statistics gathered from the R.A.A.M.P (2006) organization displays such a struggle within the race as 60% of African American males do not graduate with their cohorts, 85% percent of African American males are placed in Special Education, 42% of African American males graduate nationwide, and more African American males receive their GED in prison compared to receiving their diploma in high school. These poor numbers display the struggle within the development of African Americans. I, myself have witnessed this same struggle in my own community, making the numbers genuine to me. Also it should be noted that our society also relates to that of those living through the era of Jim Crow, which can be seen through "The Ethics of Living Jim Crow" through a different learning.
"This is why black people can't go anywhere. Can't do anything" My friend stated as we made our way home. What was I going to say? What was there to say? Were the statistics right? My mouth opened, but I said nothing. I continued to walk. Running away from my thoughts. Running away from my friend's accusations. These statements continued on throughout most of my life thereafter. Or it had become far more present in my life. A couple of days later another friend asked me if she was "college material", if they accept "people like her" into “those” schools. "Yes" I said without really knowing, confused about my place as being of minority status and sure she was too. We watched each other trying to put the pieces together. We had finally admitted within ourselves that we are at a disadvantage in life. We heard it many times, and questioned it within ourselves. In our lives we see no disadvantages, because we cannot see the other side. In "The Ethics of Living Jim Crow" by Richard Wright, Richard too searches for understanding as well. He seeks to comprehend the way in which he is suppose to act with white people. He seeks out the black community in order to do so, along with making his own observations. The lessons he learns are tremendous and help him to cope with the intolerance he faces. We seek to gain the understanding he has gained. His gaining of this information presented the line between life and death. In order to continue onward in life he must gather this information. In my own life this is the case. The understanding of the present disadvantage that we are in makes all the difference in how to approach the situation and bring an end to it. This knowledge would need not only to impact us, as it did in Richard Wright's story, but also our community as a whole. This shortcoming sets up an uneven playing field slides African Americans at the bottom of the sea-saw causing many to say that black people can't do anything, as my friend stated. This understanding, as in Richard's situation would create an idea of survival. One survives in our society by having a high paying job, which would be able to supply us the means of living, unlike in Richard's society one works upward for advancement. What makes the difference between our current day situation and Richard's is the fact that we have the resources in order to make a change and educate ourselves. Guiding him were individuals, who too were just as confused as he on the circumstances he lived in. Blacks must make the conscious decision to open their eyes and see the world for what it truly is. Back then, during these times of discrimination, which was legal, there was no choice but to learn how to survive. As people of color this conscious decision must be made. It is a choice, that truly isn’t a choice (due to laws), but if one wished to provide for their families this decision must be made. Like myself, my friend, and Richard, people will have to start seeing the truth to the situation, but unlike Richard, viable support and guidance can be provided.
In order to fix this ongoing problem dealing with education, or lack of, in terms of African Americans more government funding should be provided. As a public school student I understand the ins and the outs, for the most part, of school funding. Schools provide school lunch and through this they are given money from the government, after parents fill out various forms. As school begins in September faculty hands out these forms and inform us of its importance from the time we are given it. Many students however, who do not eat school lunch do not bother to fill out the forms. This leads to the forging of forms by the school itself, who knows the government does not provide them with enough money and depends on the money gathered from the filled forms. The government does not seem to know how much text books costs for a total of 1,541 students. Additional funding must also be made, for advance placement courses, and honors classes. In my school a class of 30 is perfect, a class filled with 20 students however is far worst, because the school believes that they will not get enough funding to maintain a class of only 20 students or less. With more funding there would be less students in a class, which creates more one on one time for the students and helps them to learn the material. There should also be more free government funded after school programs, which would provide students a place to do their home work along with develop skills they learned in school.
As you can see Mr. President, you’ll be taking a seat in the oval office; however you will be asked to rise up to the many challenges revolving around racial issues. I hope that you will rise to the challenge, although these issues have been going on for a long time, I believe that you have the ability to bring about a change to these current situations reflected in the past.
Final Letter
Dear President of the United States,
Throughout history there have been many economic and racial problems in the United States, and I believe that some actions need to be made immediately to try to solve these problems. As President you should be aware that immigration is a serious dilemma in the United States. Immigration has been here since Christopher Columbus. When Christopher Columbus arrived he didn’t even care about the Native Americans. The Europeans stole their lands because Native Americans were perceived as inferior and weak. This land is the only place where immigrants found freedom to escape economic conflicts and religious persecution. America is supposed to be the land of the free, but throughout history immigrants haven’t been treated equally. Many Americans and immigrants have experienced racist attitudes from other people. For example, slaves brought from Africa during the colonial period were mistreated and enslaved because they were unlike everyone else. During the Civil War, white people weren’t thinking straight and they decided to make themselves superior. In addition, during World War II Japanese Americans were forced into Japanese internment camps because people thought they were dangerous due to their physical appearance. Many Americans believed that the Japanese Americans were plotting with Japan. I believe that putting Japanese Americans into camps was absurd because they were citizens and they had rights too. The old world discriminated against colored people, but the immigrants living in America today want to make changes and want to prevent problems such as racial and social discrimination.
I came to the United States when I was two years old and I was practically raised in America. At a very young age I understood that I was different from other people in this country. My parents didn’t want me to grow up in Mexico because they thought that by migrating to the United States I would have a better education and we would have a better life. My father a very hardworking man came here a year before my mother and I. He wanted to bring us here because there was a better chance of having a good life even if it meant working long hours and earning minimum wage. To them it was worth it because we wouldn’t suffer here. America was the land that supposedly granted peace and liberty. I was raised on a low income and my parents tried to do what was best for me.
When I first went to school I remember my mom telling me to read books and to do my homework before playing with my toys. As a small child she invested in me a sense of self development. She wanted me to learn everything on my own. My mother would occasionally help me but most of the time I would have to complete my assignments alone with no help because she didn’t speak English. There was no one to help me so I did everything on my own.
Being an immigrant is not easy because there are a lot of people that believe immigrants steal American jobs. This is false because the only reason Mexicans come here is to help out their families and provide money. If it wasn’t for immigrants then who would do the dirty jobs? Not rich Americans. Immigration is a source for discrimination because so many people from diverse countries migrate to the United States. There is no reason for Americans to discriminate against immigrants because they only want to escape their economic problems at home or want to give their families better lives. I wasn't fully aware about the immigrant situation and how they were treated until my freshman year of high school. That’s when I started to boil up at racist comments and stereotypes. I remember someone at school telling a mean joke: Why are Mexicans so short? They all live in basement apartments. I know that sometimes people tell racist jokes and think it’s funny because we supposedly live in a post racial society. I find it very offending especially that joke. First of all not all Mexicans are short. I know plenty of tall Mexicans and second, they do not live in basements! I know I don’t and the rest of my family doesn’t either! These types of stereotypical comments linger in my head and I start to wonder if the feelings for my culture come from my heart or if my feelings are made up by my mind.
In the story, Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O’Connor, the quote I could relate to was "True culture is in the mind, the mind," he said, and tapped his head, "the mind." "It's in the heart," she said, and in how you do things and how you do things is because of who you are." Julian believes that true culture comes from the mind. He believes this because at a young age his mother had made mistakes while raising him and she had to sacrifice herself to give him what he needed. By watching his mother struggle to keep up with life he learned to make his own assumptions of culture and race. He disagrees with his mother about African Americans and Whites being together, therefore, he did a lot of reflecting about culture today. His “mental bubble” was the only place he felt safe. His thoughts blocked the racist reality of the world. At the beginning of the story his mother was being racist because she was taught African Americans were inferior and today she believes that they were better off as slaves. Since she was raised with this way of thinking her heart automatically tells her that her race is still superior.
Similarly, I observed that my parents believe their culture comes from their heart because they have been raised in their own country and lived there for so long and just like Julian’s mother they had to sacrifice themselves to give me a better future in America. After a few years living in the United States I believe they started to think more about the American culture. So it was a mixture of both. This is where the mind comes in and they start thinking that they can also be Americans because they became integrated in a new culture.
Although my experience is not entirely about skin color I can still relate this quote to my culture and who I am. I believe that true culture is in both the mind and heart. Your culture tells you who you are, not your appearance. When I was little I was taught to keep following my traditions and it's something that was put in my head. My parents taught me everything I needed to know even though I was also being taught to value the American culture. When I was able to tell the differences between economic status and race I entered my own "mental bubble." I started to think that I was inferior because I was an immigrant and then my "mental bubble" helped me block out all the racist things other people had to say. In my mind I am both Mexican and American. My culture comes from the heart because I am very proud of my heritage. Others try to put us down and make us inferior by using stereotypes and I don't care what other people say because in my heart I find my true feelings for my traditions. My heart tells me I'm Mexican because that's who I truly am. I was born in Mexico and if it wasn't for economic problems and my parents wanting to give me a better life in America I wouldn't be here today. In addition, unlike Julian's mother, my parents don't mind the integration of different cultures. Mixing cultures brings us together and helps us understand each other.
Therefore, I challenge you Mr. President, to prevent the mistreatment of immigrants living in this country. As an immigrant I know that many immigrants are thought to be at the bottom of social class and many Americans say they are stealing other citizen’s jobs. The future President of the United Sates shouldn’t agree to build a wall at the Mexican border because it would only be unfair. If they are going to close the Mexican border to prevent an influx of immigrants from the south, then they might as well block the Canadian border and the East and West coasts. Also, they shouldn’t be deported to their countries because most of the immigrant parents have American children. Mr. president I believe that you should come up with some kind of plan to let immigrants who have been here for more than five years to reside in the United States. Why should they be discriminated against? Just because they look different and have a different culture? Just because they don’t have money and aren’t American? You have the power to stop this injustice. Immigrants come here to raise money to send to their families. They come here to have a better life and to give their children an education but as they try to improve their living they also face racial discrimination. This is a problem because they start to question their identity.
After arriving in America a lot of people become puzzled about their identity and what culture they belong to. Flannery O’Connor addresses this issue in her story, "If you'll never learn where you are," he said, "you can at least learn where I am." If other people can't learn about themselves then they can try asking another person. They should be careful and not infer about where they come from because it can be insulting to people. From my experience, when a person first meets me they think I’m American. Yes, I have light skin and light eyes but that doesn't mean I am from here. I found it offending at first but now I understand that it’s my physical appearance that conveys that thought. People should know not to judge a book by its cover. I know where I stand and where I belong. If a person wants to know about my origin, then they should ask me because I get frustrated when people say I'm white. I am of light complexion but that doesn't mean you automatically know I'm American or Italian or from somewhere else. I believe people should be mindful of what they say and think. A person should get to know another individual before making comments about their race or culture.
Mr. President, I believe that racism can never be nonexistent because we don’t live in a post racial society. Racism will always be present because we live in a country with different cultures. It might not be eliminated because certain people are ignorant and don't understand cultural differences but tension between cultures can be reduced. Everyone looks different but we are all human so no one should be suppressed just because of their traditions or complexion. When a person first looks at me, they would probably think I’m Caucasian because of my appearance. Then they would think I was Hispanic, but they wouldn’t classify me as Mexican. It’s okay to be wrong but you shouldn’t judge a person because he or she is different. Therefore, Mr. President, you must create one or many organizations that would try and bring people of diverse cultures together. These new programs would unite the American citizens just like the United Nations bonds with countries internationally. The key to achieving unity is peace, and it is imperative to bring the country together to prevent an uproar between Americans.
Sincerely,
Leslie Pelaez
Throughout history there have been many economic and racial problems in the United States, and I believe that some actions need to be made immediately to try to solve these problems. As President you should be aware that immigration is a serious dilemma in the United States. Immigration has been here since Christopher Columbus. When Christopher Columbus arrived he didn’t even care about the Native Americans. The Europeans stole their lands because Native Americans were perceived as inferior and weak. This land is the only place where immigrants found freedom to escape economic conflicts and religious persecution. America is supposed to be the land of the free, but throughout history immigrants haven’t been treated equally. Many Americans and immigrants have experienced racist attitudes from other people. For example, slaves brought from Africa during the colonial period were mistreated and enslaved because they were unlike everyone else. During the Civil War, white people weren’t thinking straight and they decided to make themselves superior. In addition, during World War II Japanese Americans were forced into Japanese internment camps because people thought they were dangerous due to their physical appearance. Many Americans believed that the Japanese Americans were plotting with Japan. I believe that putting Japanese Americans into camps was absurd because they were citizens and they had rights too. The old world discriminated against colored people, but the immigrants living in America today want to make changes and want to prevent problems such as racial and social discrimination.
I came to the United States when I was two years old and I was practically raised in America. At a very young age I understood that I was different from other people in this country. My parents didn’t want me to grow up in Mexico because they thought that by migrating to the United States I would have a better education and we would have a better life. My father a very hardworking man came here a year before my mother and I. He wanted to bring us here because there was a better chance of having a good life even if it meant working long hours and earning minimum wage. To them it was worth it because we wouldn’t suffer here. America was the land that supposedly granted peace and liberty. I was raised on a low income and my parents tried to do what was best for me.
When I first went to school I remember my mom telling me to read books and to do my homework before playing with my toys. As a small child she invested in me a sense of self development. She wanted me to learn everything on my own. My mother would occasionally help me but most of the time I would have to complete my assignments alone with no help because she didn’t speak English. There was no one to help me so I did everything on my own.
Being an immigrant is not easy because there are a lot of people that believe immigrants steal American jobs. This is false because the only reason Mexicans come here is to help out their families and provide money. If it wasn’t for immigrants then who would do the dirty jobs? Not rich Americans. Immigration is a source for discrimination because so many people from diverse countries migrate to the United States. There is no reason for Americans to discriminate against immigrants because they only want to escape their economic problems at home or want to give their families better lives. I wasn't fully aware about the immigrant situation and how they were treated until my freshman year of high school. That’s when I started to boil up at racist comments and stereotypes. I remember someone at school telling a mean joke: Why are Mexicans so short? They all live in basement apartments. I know that sometimes people tell racist jokes and think it’s funny because we supposedly live in a post racial society. I find it very offending especially that joke. First of all not all Mexicans are short. I know plenty of tall Mexicans and second, they do not live in basements! I know I don’t and the rest of my family doesn’t either! These types of stereotypical comments linger in my head and I start to wonder if the feelings for my culture come from my heart or if my feelings are made up by my mind.
In the story, Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O’Connor, the quote I could relate to was "True culture is in the mind, the mind," he said, and tapped his head, "the mind." "It's in the heart," she said, and in how you do things and how you do things is because of who you are." Julian believes that true culture comes from the mind. He believes this because at a young age his mother had made mistakes while raising him and she had to sacrifice herself to give him what he needed. By watching his mother struggle to keep up with life he learned to make his own assumptions of culture and race. He disagrees with his mother about African Americans and Whites being together, therefore, he did a lot of reflecting about culture today. His “mental bubble” was the only place he felt safe. His thoughts blocked the racist reality of the world. At the beginning of the story his mother was being racist because she was taught African Americans were inferior and today she believes that they were better off as slaves. Since she was raised with this way of thinking her heart automatically tells her that her race is still superior.
Similarly, I observed that my parents believe their culture comes from their heart because they have been raised in their own country and lived there for so long and just like Julian’s mother they had to sacrifice themselves to give me a better future in America. After a few years living in the United States I believe they started to think more about the American culture. So it was a mixture of both. This is where the mind comes in and they start thinking that they can also be Americans because they became integrated in a new culture.
Although my experience is not entirely about skin color I can still relate this quote to my culture and who I am. I believe that true culture is in both the mind and heart. Your culture tells you who you are, not your appearance. When I was little I was taught to keep following my traditions and it's something that was put in my head. My parents taught me everything I needed to know even though I was also being taught to value the American culture. When I was able to tell the differences between economic status and race I entered my own "mental bubble." I started to think that I was inferior because I was an immigrant and then my "mental bubble" helped me block out all the racist things other people had to say. In my mind I am both Mexican and American. My culture comes from the heart because I am very proud of my heritage. Others try to put us down and make us inferior by using stereotypes and I don't care what other people say because in my heart I find my true feelings for my traditions. My heart tells me I'm Mexican because that's who I truly am. I was born in Mexico and if it wasn't for economic problems and my parents wanting to give me a better life in America I wouldn't be here today. In addition, unlike Julian's mother, my parents don't mind the integration of different cultures. Mixing cultures brings us together and helps us understand each other.
Therefore, I challenge you Mr. President, to prevent the mistreatment of immigrants living in this country. As an immigrant I know that many immigrants are thought to be at the bottom of social class and many Americans say they are stealing other citizen’s jobs. The future President of the United Sates shouldn’t agree to build a wall at the Mexican border because it would only be unfair. If they are going to close the Mexican border to prevent an influx of immigrants from the south, then they might as well block the Canadian border and the East and West coasts. Also, they shouldn’t be deported to their countries because most of the immigrant parents have American children. Mr. president I believe that you should come up with some kind of plan to let immigrants who have been here for more than five years to reside in the United States. Why should they be discriminated against? Just because they look different and have a different culture? Just because they don’t have money and aren’t American? You have the power to stop this injustice. Immigrants come here to raise money to send to their families. They come here to have a better life and to give their children an education but as they try to improve their living they also face racial discrimination. This is a problem because they start to question their identity.
After arriving in America a lot of people become puzzled about their identity and what culture they belong to. Flannery O’Connor addresses this issue in her story, "If you'll never learn where you are," he said, "you can at least learn where I am." If other people can't learn about themselves then they can try asking another person. They should be careful and not infer about where they come from because it can be insulting to people. From my experience, when a person first meets me they think I’m American. Yes, I have light skin and light eyes but that doesn't mean I am from here. I found it offending at first but now I understand that it’s my physical appearance that conveys that thought. People should know not to judge a book by its cover. I know where I stand and where I belong. If a person wants to know about my origin, then they should ask me because I get frustrated when people say I'm white. I am of light complexion but that doesn't mean you automatically know I'm American or Italian or from somewhere else. I believe people should be mindful of what they say and think. A person should get to know another individual before making comments about their race or culture.
Mr. President, I believe that racism can never be nonexistent because we don’t live in a post racial society. Racism will always be present because we live in a country with different cultures. It might not be eliminated because certain people are ignorant and don't understand cultural differences but tension between cultures can be reduced. Everyone looks different but we are all human so no one should be suppressed just because of their traditions or complexion. When a person first looks at me, they would probably think I’m Caucasian because of my appearance. Then they would think I was Hispanic, but they wouldn’t classify me as Mexican. It’s okay to be wrong but you shouldn’t judge a person because he or she is different. Therefore, Mr. President, you must create one or many organizations that would try and bring people of diverse cultures together. These new programs would unite the American citizens just like the United Nations bonds with countries internationally. The key to achieving unity is peace, and it is imperative to bring the country together to prevent an uproar between Americans.
Sincerely,
Leslie Pelaez
Gives us rights or gives us death!
Manuel Paredes
Dear Mr. President
There have been many differences throughout history that have affected the great people of America. These differences have destroyed the fibers that hold society together. By destroying these fundamental fibers we as a society have drifted apart. Only you can stop the demoralization of our great country. By our people being prejudice to each other we have influenced the next generation of our children. They too have absorbed our evil ways. Influencing the teens we are now ruining their futures, corrupting them to an extent that cannot be fixed. Students from my junior high school persecuted us because of the way the school was international and so they thought we were all immigrants. You should stand up for immigrants because just like in the Constitution all men were created equal. Although we have gone through radical changes such as the Civil Rights Movement people still hold grudges against people who have differences. We are in the 21st century for God sakes there should be some changes and fast.
Before the Civil War people from Africa were taken hostage and brought to this country and for what? They were made into slaves with no rights to protect them. Working for their masters they were tortured with grueling manual work that could break anyone’s endurance. Finally few years later they were made free from their horrible masters because of the Civil War. This freedom came with great restrictions, restrictions such as the Jim Crow Law. This is where the differences began to appear. As written on “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” it showed how African Americans were freed but still had to face the effects of the Jim Crow laws, “Here my Jim Crow education assumed quite a different form. It was no longer brutally cruel, but subtly cruel.” (Wright, 27). Years later after lynching over unworthy causes African Americans gained more rights but also with a cause. Separate but equal was the motive. Now African Americans no longer faced the brutality of the Jim Crow laws but the prejudice that racists had for them. With segregation of cultures powerful figures began to rise from the darkness of the past. Figures such as Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr began making movements. These movements made a great change for many people of different races. It changed the American history forever. African Americans finally had rights that they deserved. There was no more segregation but more rights were applied to them.
Although it might not be known there is still some kind of cultural conflicts with immigrants. This is still affecting America, prejudice towards immigrants. You might think that this is absurd but it’s not. Just like the people that faced the hardship of segregation this also applies to immigrants. During the Movements of Martin Luther King J.r. and Rosa Parks they were fighting for a cause, a change if you will. A change so that African Americans could have rights. This does not apply towards immigrants now. Right now immigrants are considered as a burden to this country. You know well enough that this is not true but to a lot of people they don’t think the same way as you do. This is why people who care for the rights of immigrants are defending the rights of immigrants. They too are trying to make movements. Movements that can help many immigrants escape that prejudice that they always face. Although the immigrants are being defended there have been no great movements because of intimidation of being persecuted. All they need is support from you and there could be a great difference.
I have witnessed a lot of racism during my life but not personally until I was in middle school. During middle school I went to Ditmas IS62 in Brooklyn. The school was broken up into four different institutes, IMS, LCS, SES and APVA. IMS represented International Middle School, SES represented Studies for Environmental Science, LCS represented the school of Law and Community Service, and APVA represented the school of Academic Performance and Visual Arts. Nobody messed with APVA because of their “talents.” They were considered immaculate. LCS was highly respectable because of their studies of Law. SES was considered as the outlaws of the school because whenever trouble appeared so did the students from SES. IMS was considered as the “goodie two shoes.” There was an only problem. The problem was that IMS was a school just for students who arrived from another country. SES was fast to assume and began to call us immigrants. This is where problems started to arise. The students from IMS were not all immigrants some got offended. This was the start off for the many brawls but what really got to me was that it was cultural differences that separated us.
Just like the times from the Jim Crow era we too were persecuted. During the time I was in IMS we had to use uniform and this is how the students from SES could identify us. In “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” the kid had to get back to his house because of the attacks that the white kids made on him “Having no fortifications we retreated to the brick pillars of our homes. During the retreat a broken milk bottle caught me behind the ear, opening deep gash which bled profusely.” (10) The same way he was chased we too were chased by the SES students. Just because they thought that we were immigrants they attacked us. As you can see society has been too corrupted up to a level that they hold hate and racism towards immigrants.
As you can see under some people eyes people were not created equal. Just because people come from different countries doesn’t make them any lesser than anyone else. It actually makes them a person of valor because the way they had to leave their culture behind and had to pick up a new one. They should be given equal rights that would protect them from ICE. Green cards should be given to all immigrants this will give them a right to live in this country legally and not be considered as “illegal aliens.” One last thing that you should do for them is give them support in anything they need. At times immigrants are considered as people who are considered as the unknown. I am appalled at this. After taking jobs that no other person might take this country still treats them as garbage. By giving them more rights you are opening their doors, doors that they seek. Although people think that immigrants do not contribute to their society they do. They pay taxes, respect the law, and most of all they break their backs under the searing sun, doing manual labor with a low wage. Nobody, nobody should be discriminated like this. Just imagine all of us living in harmony. This would stop the persecution, this would stop any hate crimes, and most importantly this would bring peace. Mr. President violent deaths have occurred from the hate crimes that people have done on immigrants. We’re not living during those times that racist people killed others just by the way they looked but it sure feels like it. Immigrants actually fear walking on some parts of a town or city because of that feeling of being persecuted. Why should immigrants walk with fear if we are the country of liberty and freedom? It all lies on your hands Mr. President.
Dear Mr. President
There have been many differences throughout history that have affected the great people of America. These differences have destroyed the fibers that hold society together. By destroying these fundamental fibers we as a society have drifted apart. Only you can stop the demoralization of our great country. By our people being prejudice to each other we have influenced the next generation of our children. They too have absorbed our evil ways. Influencing the teens we are now ruining their futures, corrupting them to an extent that cannot be fixed. Students from my junior high school persecuted us because of the way the school was international and so they thought we were all immigrants. You should stand up for immigrants because just like in the Constitution all men were created equal. Although we have gone through radical changes such as the Civil Rights Movement people still hold grudges against people who have differences. We are in the 21st century for God sakes there should be some changes and fast.
Before the Civil War people from Africa were taken hostage and brought to this country and for what? They were made into slaves with no rights to protect them. Working for their masters they were tortured with grueling manual work that could break anyone’s endurance. Finally few years later they were made free from their horrible masters because of the Civil War. This freedom came with great restrictions, restrictions such as the Jim Crow Law. This is where the differences began to appear. As written on “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” it showed how African Americans were freed but still had to face the effects of the Jim Crow laws, “Here my Jim Crow education assumed quite a different form. It was no longer brutally cruel, but subtly cruel.” (Wright, 27). Years later after lynching over unworthy causes African Americans gained more rights but also with a cause. Separate but equal was the motive. Now African Americans no longer faced the brutality of the Jim Crow laws but the prejudice that racists had for them. With segregation of cultures powerful figures began to rise from the darkness of the past. Figures such as Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr began making movements. These movements made a great change for many people of different races. It changed the American history forever. African Americans finally had rights that they deserved. There was no more segregation but more rights were applied to them.
Although it might not be known there is still some kind of cultural conflicts with immigrants. This is still affecting America, prejudice towards immigrants. You might think that this is absurd but it’s not. Just like the people that faced the hardship of segregation this also applies to immigrants. During the Movements of Martin Luther King J.r. and Rosa Parks they were fighting for a cause, a change if you will. A change so that African Americans could have rights. This does not apply towards immigrants now. Right now immigrants are considered as a burden to this country. You know well enough that this is not true but to a lot of people they don’t think the same way as you do. This is why people who care for the rights of immigrants are defending the rights of immigrants. They too are trying to make movements. Movements that can help many immigrants escape that prejudice that they always face. Although the immigrants are being defended there have been no great movements because of intimidation of being persecuted. All they need is support from you and there could be a great difference.
I have witnessed a lot of racism during my life but not personally until I was in middle school. During middle school I went to Ditmas IS62 in Brooklyn. The school was broken up into four different institutes, IMS, LCS, SES and APVA. IMS represented International Middle School, SES represented Studies for Environmental Science, LCS represented the school of Law and Community Service, and APVA represented the school of Academic Performance and Visual Arts. Nobody messed with APVA because of their “talents.” They were considered immaculate. LCS was highly respectable because of their studies of Law. SES was considered as the outlaws of the school because whenever trouble appeared so did the students from SES. IMS was considered as the “goodie two shoes.” There was an only problem. The problem was that IMS was a school just for students who arrived from another country. SES was fast to assume and began to call us immigrants. This is where problems started to arise. The students from IMS were not all immigrants some got offended. This was the start off for the many brawls but what really got to me was that it was cultural differences that separated us.
Just like the times from the Jim Crow era we too were persecuted. During the time I was in IMS we had to use uniform and this is how the students from SES could identify us. In “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” the kid had to get back to his house because of the attacks that the white kids made on him “Having no fortifications we retreated to the brick pillars of our homes. During the retreat a broken milk bottle caught me behind the ear, opening deep gash which bled profusely.” (10) The same way he was chased we too were chased by the SES students. Just because they thought that we were immigrants they attacked us. As you can see society has been too corrupted up to a level that they hold hate and racism towards immigrants.
As you can see under some people eyes people were not created equal. Just because people come from different countries doesn’t make them any lesser than anyone else. It actually makes them a person of valor because the way they had to leave their culture behind and had to pick up a new one. They should be given equal rights that would protect them from ICE. Green cards should be given to all immigrants this will give them a right to live in this country legally and not be considered as “illegal aliens.” One last thing that you should do for them is give them support in anything they need. At times immigrants are considered as people who are considered as the unknown. I am appalled at this. After taking jobs that no other person might take this country still treats them as garbage. By giving them more rights you are opening their doors, doors that they seek. Although people think that immigrants do not contribute to their society they do. They pay taxes, respect the law, and most of all they break their backs under the searing sun, doing manual labor with a low wage. Nobody, nobody should be discriminated like this. Just imagine all of us living in harmony. This would stop the persecution, this would stop any hate crimes, and most importantly this would bring peace. Mr. President violent deaths have occurred from the hate crimes that people have done on immigrants. We’re not living during those times that racist people killed others just by the way they looked but it sure feels like it. Immigrants actually fear walking on some parts of a town or city because of that feeling of being persecuted. Why should immigrants walk with fear if we are the country of liberty and freedom? It all lies on your hands Mr. President.
Love Hate or Maybe Just War (Final)
Ray Rodriguez
Blog: Love Hate or maybe just war
Dear Mr. Barrack Obama
Mr. President Obama I was aware of the problem in my neighborhood when I saw a group of kids run from one side to the other and I was stuck in the middle trying to cross the street. I ran behind a door from a restaurant worried I was going to get clobbered by the enraged kids coming out from school.
Oh no, not another gang fight! I say in a mumble.
As I moved back, a bottle whizzed over my head, I quickly ducked as it hit the floor, but then another was thrown hitting the side of the building next to the restaurant. I was considered one of them; a cold heated platano even though I wasn’t a part of their problem or gangs. The Dominican gang Trinitarios was next to the bridge on South fourth and Havemeyer Street a block away from my house, my only destination after school. Yells of “Patria” was all I heard the gang slur of the Trini’s and on the other side of the bridge was the infamous P.B.G. (Pretty Boy Goons) which is mostly consisted of Puerto Ricans. The hate started all because of territory and pride of my beloved Southside in Williamsburg Brooklyn, New York. Cars passing by are getting empty Snapple bottles found in trash cans crushed on the side of the cars glass all over the floor. They eventually get closer as they start to hit each other with bats and other weapons. A siren is heard approaching and the children scurry like roaches caught in the light. As they leave to their sides of the bridge, I can safely cross the street and run home before they come back for more. I felt relief when I got home but my mom was worried
Are you okay? She says.
Yes I quickly say.
As the good student I am, I quickly started my homework. This is how I experienced the troubles of this gang violence in my community by watching it just so I can pass through in order to get home.
I ask you to please visit my neighborhood. Mr. President, the children in my neighborhood drain the amount of respect it gets every day. Why, because gangs are starting to appear recently as well as white people in the Northside of Williamsburg Brooklyn. The whites are showing fear and animosity towards the people they just view as Latinos. The incoming whites, who are moving into this community, have never been around many feral children who fight almost every day due to gang violence. Dominicans and Puerto Ricans fight over differences which develop into bigger dichotomies of race and ethnicities. Stated in The Ethics of Living Jim Crow, “I never fully realized the ... environment till one day the gang to which I belonged found itself engaged in a war with the white boys who lived beyond the tracks” (Wright X), shows the relationship in my neighborhood but there are no tracks instead there is a bridge. Also “they replied with a steady bombardment of broken bottles” (Wright X) as they did in my neighborhood. The Sky is Grey by Ernest J. Gaines “We should question and question and question—question everything” (The college student 95). They eventually do question why do they hate each other but the pain does not help and makes them seek revenge toward one another.
By visiting my neighborhood, children will be aware they are affecting their own neighborhood, endangering the lives of many, and limiting the amount of recourses they receive in schools. Many actions like fighting cause consequences to many. Recently the life of a Dominican male Lil Rich was cut short at the age of 21 or 22 and injuries have increased creating an increase of the white man’s fear, murders, and the limiting of resources they will receive for their much needed education. In the Brown v. Board of Education, the schools for Black students were not receiving the fair amount of recourses like the children in my community, while the whites get the better and myriad amount of resources in their schools. The fact we are not being noticed as a community in need of knowledge and resources the amount of recourses given is not enough to aid the enduring stay of children in school causing drop-out rates to increase every year because the school cannot afford to pay for programs and items to help children learn. So please visit my neighborhood, the example you set does have an effect in the inspirations of the children’s lives. You are our image of example and as an image you wouldn’t want to set a bad example but embody and give a good memory to the students of my community. Help us regain respect and dignity in order to be competitors as a good well-rounded community. Struggles are constant and they will cause confusions and need for retaliation that is why children look for the only way out which is not school but gangs and the life of a thug or a criminal in order to become someone in their eyes. Let’s defeat the dichotomy of Dominicans and Puerto Ricans in order to create a better Southside in Brooklyn, New York.
Thank you for your time and I hope you do think of accepting the plead I offer. The future and success of this neighborhood depends on your visit and your words to improve the lives and thoughts of many kids who are sick of mind and need knowledge.
Sincerely,
Ray Rodriguez
Blog: Love Hate or maybe just war
Dear Mr. Barrack Obama
Mr. President Obama I was aware of the problem in my neighborhood when I saw a group of kids run from one side to the other and I was stuck in the middle trying to cross the street. I ran behind a door from a restaurant worried I was going to get clobbered by the enraged kids coming out from school.
Oh no, not another gang fight! I say in a mumble.
As I moved back, a bottle whizzed over my head, I quickly ducked as it hit the floor, but then another was thrown hitting the side of the building next to the restaurant. I was considered one of them; a cold heated platano even though I wasn’t a part of their problem or gangs. The Dominican gang Trinitarios was next to the bridge on South fourth and Havemeyer Street a block away from my house, my only destination after school. Yells of “Patria” was all I heard the gang slur of the Trini’s and on the other side of the bridge was the infamous P.B.G. (Pretty Boy Goons) which is mostly consisted of Puerto Ricans. The hate started all because of territory and pride of my beloved Southside in Williamsburg Brooklyn, New York. Cars passing by are getting empty Snapple bottles found in trash cans crushed on the side of the cars glass all over the floor. They eventually get closer as they start to hit each other with bats and other weapons. A siren is heard approaching and the children scurry like roaches caught in the light. As they leave to their sides of the bridge, I can safely cross the street and run home before they come back for more. I felt relief when I got home but my mom was worried
Are you okay? She says.
Yes I quickly say.
As the good student I am, I quickly started my homework. This is how I experienced the troubles of this gang violence in my community by watching it just so I can pass through in order to get home.
I ask you to please visit my neighborhood. Mr. President, the children in my neighborhood drain the amount of respect it gets every day. Why, because gangs are starting to appear recently as well as white people in the Northside of Williamsburg Brooklyn. The whites are showing fear and animosity towards the people they just view as Latinos. The incoming whites, who are moving into this community, have never been around many feral children who fight almost every day due to gang violence. Dominicans and Puerto Ricans fight over differences which develop into bigger dichotomies of race and ethnicities. Stated in The Ethics of Living Jim Crow, “I never fully realized the ... environment till one day the gang to which I belonged found itself engaged in a war with the white boys who lived beyond the tracks” (Wright X), shows the relationship in my neighborhood but there are no tracks instead there is a bridge. Also “they replied with a steady bombardment of broken bottles” (Wright X) as they did in my neighborhood. The Sky is Grey by Ernest J. Gaines “We should question and question and question—question everything” (The college student 95). They eventually do question why do they hate each other but the pain does not help and makes them seek revenge toward one another.
By visiting my neighborhood, children will be aware they are affecting their own neighborhood, endangering the lives of many, and limiting the amount of recourses they receive in schools. Many actions like fighting cause consequences to many. Recently the life of a Dominican male Lil Rich was cut short at the age of 21 or 22 and injuries have increased creating an increase of the white man’s fear, murders, and the limiting of resources they will receive for their much needed education. In the Brown v. Board of Education, the schools for Black students were not receiving the fair amount of recourses like the children in my community, while the whites get the better and myriad amount of resources in their schools. The fact we are not being noticed as a community in need of knowledge and resources the amount of recourses given is not enough to aid the enduring stay of children in school causing drop-out rates to increase every year because the school cannot afford to pay for programs and items to help children learn. So please visit my neighborhood, the example you set does have an effect in the inspirations of the children’s lives. You are our image of example and as an image you wouldn’t want to set a bad example but embody and give a good memory to the students of my community. Help us regain respect and dignity in order to be competitors as a good well-rounded community. Struggles are constant and they will cause confusions and need for retaliation that is why children look for the only way out which is not school but gangs and the life of a thug or a criminal in order to become someone in their eyes. Let’s defeat the dichotomy of Dominicans and Puerto Ricans in order to create a better Southside in Brooklyn, New York.
Thank you for your time and I hope you do think of accepting the plead I offer. The future and success of this neighborhood depends on your visit and your words to improve the lives and thoughts of many kids who are sick of mind and need knowledge.
Sincerely,
Ray Rodriguez
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