the change

by Andy

Two guys call an apartment complex. The first man wanted to rent, but he was Mexican. The company could tell by his "weird" English and by his accent. Another man calls with good English. Which guy gets the apartment? In many cases, it's the second man. There are many groups in our society that do not have equal rights. There are also a lot of people who are racist and who fail to accept those who are different.

Some people don't accept others because of there race. They hate people because they are different skin colors and they have a different culture. They don't let them in their stores or even their states or countries. It depends on how much they hate them. In the old days they use to beat up or even kill the people that they hate. Nowadays, people still get beat up and sometimes killed, but it's less violent. Most of the time, it's things like not getting jobs, not being talked to and being treated differently.

Some of the people who get mistreated are Hispanics or Latinos. They're not even let in our state without papers, even though this land used to belong to them. The government doesn't let them in because they say that Hispanics brought violence into this state. The reality is that many Latinos work in farms and do different jobs to get a better life. You need to have papers to come here and if you don't you are judged. Why do you need a dumb papers that say your name?

African American have also been mistreated for the past years. In our nation's beginning, blacks were slaves and died for their freedom. The stereotyping began there and continued over the years. Some Americans think that Hispanics and African American are just criminals, but they're not. African-Americans aren't the only ones committing crimes.

Many people have tried to change the racism in our world. For example Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. They were both good people, that had great ideas. We even have Martin Luther King Jr. Day too. Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta both tried to get equal rights for Latinos. These people were somewhat successful, but still people are racist.

What if there is a cure for racism? A cure that will change peoples way of feeling or thinking. There won't be racist people any more, and people won't be mistreated badly, like they are nowadays. I believe that Barack Obama will make huge changes in the United States, by showing racist people that an African American is as equal as any other race.

Photo Credit
Flickr Creative Commons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23327394@N05/3160242401/

Are You Kidding?

by Michell

Is it okay to make jokes about another race? Is it okay to use racial slurs to gain a simple laugh? In my opinion, no, it is not okay to make jokes about another race. Just twist it around the other way. Some people might make jokes about your race and you wouldn't like that very much. So it's bad to make jokes about other races.

People are racist against others becuase of their skin color or their ethnic background or where they are from. Yet people are born with their skin color and they have no control over it. People can't control where they were born either and though they try and ditch their culture, it's a part of them as well. Why make a joke out of something no one can control? Whether it's a "blonde joke" or an anti-black joke or a redneck joke, a joke against a race is a joke against something people have no control over.

Some people from other races are nice, while some people from your race are mean. If we're all human then we are all capable of being nice or mean. If that's true, then it is not good to judge someone based upon race. It's not okay to use stereotypes about different people that essentially add up to, "these people are bad" or "these people are mean." However, when we tell racial jokes, we spread the stereotypes.

Telling racist jokes could actually be dangerous for you. If you make racial jokes, people will assume you are racist. Someone could get really mad and hurt you or someone you love. What you consider a simple joke might be an insult to another person. Sometimes fights even break out just because someone said something as a joke. In the end, many people get hurt because of racism.

Consider how your words will make someone feel next time you are thinking of telling a racist joke. Being racist does not bring anything good to your life or to the person you are making fun of. Although you might get a laugh, you'll lose something bigger in the long run: the chance for racial unity.

reflections on being Latina

by Andrea

Being Latina has many great priorities to it. There are many many different Latinos in our world. We have a different culture than others. We come from many Latin roots. It's part of our identity. What is the main priority to being Latin? Do you like being Latina? How does it feel being Latina? Those are questions people ask sometimes. 

What is the main priority to being Latina? From my experience, it includes being a part of a big caring group of people. There may be some rumors or news about Latinos and crimes.  Truth is that not all of us are like that. We really care about one another. Even when we don't have money, we pull together and take care of each other. With our families we're very close together. That's why I think just being part this culture is the number one priority for many of us.  It sets the tone for what we value and how we live.

Do I like being Latin? Of course I do. There are people out there who don't like their culture and I admit that, given some of the negativity of the media, it would be easy to have some self-hatred toward our culture. On the other hand I love my culture. Latinos have a different spice. It's a flavor that is fun and caring and respectful of family. I think we're just different from the other culture, but the other cultures are also good too. Loving my culture doesn't mean I have to hate others. I know I like being Latin and that will not change. You have to be proud of the culture you are and mine is Latino.

How does it feel being Latina? Well it just feels like any other way. In our world today there are many different cultures. Being Latino is just normal. Yeah there are other foods and different ways we dress but we're all together. We share these characteristics as a group. If we like it or not everyone is part of our world, no matter what culture we are.

So is there such thing as a cultural connection? No. The reality is that right now, in our time today our cultures aren't really connected. We have all this hate and racism. You may have thought that we had gotten over racism a long time ago but no, it's still here. People say the solution is to ignore culture.  But I think the solution is to love your own culture without hating the cultures of others.  My guess is that some of the hatred out there is because people are embaressed by their own culture. We have to learn to break the hatred. We have to try and bring ourselves together. One day we will all need each other and we can only begin to do this when we are comfortable in our own culture.

Photo Credits

Flickr Creative Commons

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lekke/89350095/

crossing the racial border

by Mireya

Our culture is filled with racial separation.  We have separate churches that seem okay calling themselves "black" or "white" or "latino."  There are school cafeterias where students sit in different locations based upon race.  While segregation seems normal in America, is it possible for two people to deeply know one another if they are from a different race?

People from two different races can get along with each other. They could can get along with each other because maybe they don't care what color their friends are. Probably they really trust each other so they don't pay attention to what race they or their friends are. Friends are friends no matter what color or race they are. So a person can be close friends with another person that is a different race that they are. 

Another example of people from multiple races getting along are the examples of people who have a mixed racial identity.  A person who was adopted and raised by a person from a different race than his will feel a  kinship with both races. He probably likes his new family like if it were his own family. So he doesn't pay attention to their race. He probably fell in love with his new family and the cultural background connected to it.  Other times, people have parents who are from multiple races.  So, they grow up feeling that both sides are normal.

Some people actually don't care about race or stuff like that. For example, there are some people that are married to people from a different race than theirs. Personally, I know of a Latina who is married to a African American. She doesn't care about what people think about her. She lives happy with her husband. They are content in their love that can cross the boundaries of race and culture.  Even though the world might judge, they have proven that it is possible to not only know someone, but deeply love someone from a different race.
    

So race does not have to be a stone wall we can't cross.  Some people get past it. They are happy with what they have.

Photo Credit

Flickr Creative Commons

http://www.flickr.com/photos/phinaphantasy/1797954963/ 

My Metaphor: The Wall of Racism

A student shares her thoughts about racism and why it is like a wall. To download it in the original form, please visit:

http://www.archive.org/details/MetaphorOfRacism

Or you can listen to it here:

Photo Credit
Flickr Creative Commons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/swapnamaha/2604137519/

Racism In My World

by Sahian

Toys for Sale

by Stephanie

Not long ago, I visited a local store. I counted the dolls to see the ethnic background and guess who won? The Anglo dolls won by a landslide. The data that I have collected was 13 to 6. Only 6 dolls were differ from the 13 other dolls. The six dolls include two Latinos, three African American and one Asian.This data demonstrates how America thinks about race and socialization.

These toys shape our children's minds in America. When children don't see their ethnic background enough, they start to believe they are not important.Then they start to say, "that race is way better than mine."  Sometimes it's more subconcious. They lose their culture and they want to join a new one in a process of assimilation. 

American toy companies should have a broader range of races.They should ask the company to have more variety of ethnic groups out in the store.This way no culture is felt less appreciated. That we have a design of every culture in the world instead of having a single culture be in power. A company could have a policy that would not allow their production to have more of a doll then other races.Kids should be proud of were they roots came from and not be a shame of it. If there is a higher supply of ethnic minority dolls, they might find that the demand would increase as well. 

Photo Credit

Flickr Creative Commons

http://www.flickr.com/photos/scilit/3054715344/

The Ongoing Legacy of Racism

by Melissa A

Most people believe that racism started when slavery was popular. Although this was a significant part of the racism epoch, it isn't what I believe to be the start of racism. In my opinion it really started many years ago when the pilgrims discovered new land. The reason why we live on this land is an example of discrimination between two races.

We all know the story about how the pilgrims and native Americans worked together and shared the first thanksgiving. But after all of the peaceful nature between the two they began to have conflicts. The pilgrims eventually took over the land. They could not live in harmony with the other people on the land so they decided to seize them of their home. I believe they wanted to convince them to believe in their religion and dress like them. Those are very discriminating characteristics to me.

That was a very important part of racial discrimination history but not the only one. During the fifties things were progressing because of the new found leaders such as Martin Luther king Jr and Malcolm x. Although they did help the cause their speeches and points of view caused riots. People took what Malcolm x said to heart and tried to gain rights at any means necessary. There were many people who were hurt during these riots. There were attack dogs set loose on the crowds and there were cops maltreating people.

Even after all those people being hurt in this time it was shocking to see that racism hadn't ended yet. You could go any where around here and see something that is offending a specific type of person. There are subtle little things that can be offending such as commercials only using African American athletes. These advertisements are in a way saying that African Americans are better at sports, which has been a stereo type for years. All of this propaganda reaches certain ages that shouldn't be learning more stereotypes. They just keep fulfilling the cycle.

There are many reasons why racism is alive and well today. Our civilization was built on tearing down different people. We are feared and respected as a whole but only to other nations. In our society there is no respect towards the many races in our nation. And what I mean by that is that people instinctively come together based on characteristics such as race. Race is a large divider here. But when people feel threatened they come together and there are many reasons to do so.

Photo Credit:
Flickr Creative Commons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27719269@N00/79016553/

Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr.

	Malcom X	Martin Luther King Jr.
Can all races get along?	Segregation – All races should be separate and leave one another alone	Integration – All races should live and interact with each other
Faith	Muslim	Christian
Methods	Violence might be necessary when protests are not enough, but also try boycotts and protests and speeches.	Never use violence. Instead, use boycotts, protests, speeches, etc.
National Identity	Be proud of your race and consider yourself a nation of your race instead of your country	Be proud of your American identity and your race at the same time. The goal is for all races to be part of our nation.

What are their similiarties? What are their differences?

Whose approach do you like better? Why?

Racism in Our Neighborhoods

What types of racism exists in our neighborhoods and in our city? Give me specific examples of it.

Racism in Our School

What types of racism exists in our school? Give me specific examples of it.

Racism in Our Neighborhoods

What types of racism exists in our neighborhoods and in our city? Give me specific examples of it.