Talking Points # 1
Jonathan Kozol: Amazing Grace
This article was extremely easy to read. I read it with no problem, understanding all of the concepts that the author was trying to portray. It was an article that really went along the lines in the environment that I grew up around. We do not have to go all the way to New York to see that poverty and see the poor. Growing up in Providence I saw first hand the life of those living in poverty. I know what it is like growing up in a house that does not have enough money for heat in the winter or an air conditioner on sticky summer days. I can only speak from my own experience. I can relate to the author when she speaks about kids receiving free lunches. My mother left my Father when I was about 4 years old, because my father was an alcoholic, drug addict and a drug dealer. My Mother was a strong woman and still remains strong and healthy thanks to God. She took my 3 sisters and me under her own wings, it was a hard childhood but it really was a humbling experience because we do not take anything for granted now. For example, we could not afford new beds so what we did on trash day we would go around and see if there were things that we could take out of the trash and put them to some kind of use. My bed was made out of wood that we found in the garbage, some of our toys we found in the trash. It was nothing we could do about our circumstance, and coming from an immigrant mother made things even harder because state help did not come so easy. It was hard reading this article because it crazy how we can let such things happen in our own country, its like if were just ignoring them so they can just die. It seems that everybody things that these people are in these positions because they want to, but to think like that is really closed minded. The kids being born that already have contracted AIDS/HIV did not ask to be born into those circumstances. As a society we tend to give less importance to those who the medical help. We rather make sure that a person fighting a common cold gets a bed than a person that is fighting cancer does. It feels like if all were doing is alienating and pushing all of the people living in poverty off until they all die. It’s already growing up in poverty, let alone feel like everybody in the world is against you because you do not see a person sticking out a hand to help. The only hands open are those of the drug dealers on the corners. I grew up right down the street from Chad Brown projects in Providence. I would sometimes have to pass threw there in order to get home and I would always be asked the same question like in the article “what do you want?”. I was to young to understand what they meant but when I would tell my mom she would explain to me that what they were offering we was nothing good. As I grew older I was able to see first hand the drug exchanges go down, even witnessed some of my childhood friend get into drugs and lose them to addictions and overdoses. Like I said earlier, growing in poverty is not something I feel good talking about and expressing but showing others that there is an exception. That you can be another success story, in which a kid that made it out of the “ghetto” and overcame all obstacles, went on and became someone in this society not fit for him/her.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Naming the Trouble We' re In
1.) "Human Nature (Chapter 1; page 3)"
This quote by Johnson to me is trying to tell us that we as humans are looked at differently no matter what the case is. That it's not just a race thing between blacks and whites but people have to meet some kind of standard in order to separate themselves from the rest or make them self something of value. It shouldn't matter your race, or your gender or what you look like in order for you to fit in. Have you ever asked yourself why job applications have a place where you put your gender? Why does that matter men and women our both capable of the something. How come a guy's are more likely to get a job before women? It's simply because our society puts men on some higher pedestal then women. How come the handicap are looked down like if they cannot do things? Are society has made us all thing those ways, if we could change the way we think our actions would be different. We wouldn’t have to worry about somebody always being on top and us trying to do all meet their standards and not stay true to our standards and what we cannot change in our day to day lives.
2.) “The trouble around diversity is not just that people differ from one another. The trouble is produced by a world organized in way that encourage people to use difference to include or exclude, reward or punish credit or discredit, elevate or oppress, value or devalue, leave alone or harass. (Chapter 3; page 19)”
This quote to me illustrates to me that the world and society that we live in does judge simply on appearance on major things we cannot change. That just because I might me an African American male, gay, with Christians beliefs, in a wheel chair that I may get looked at differently and not have the same chance to get my dream job because of those reasons. To me this is important because the author points out that this if you do not meet certain standard you got to fight so people can see that being judge mental on those things you cannot change makes this a harder world to live for everyone. That we should not give privilege or include someone just based on some what they know or how much education they had. We should not have to reward those who have not struggled and do not know what giving is. We should not punish those who have come from immigrant households whose parents have fought for a better life for their families, but give them more opportunities to succeed. We should not have to put someone down in order to elevate the ideal prospect, we should not have ideals. We should not value one person more than another because in the long run that person that was devalued might become the biggest success story. We should leave everybody alone do not assume or make judgments, do not harass me because I am black and did not have the same upbringing as you. I cannot change who I am, but I can better myself and become someone if I have a chance. Trust me I am making the best out of my chance.
3.) “Unearned Entitlements” (Chapter 3; page 25)
This quote caught my eyes because to me it was the easiest thing to understand because it was so simple and straight to the point. That we all have privilege that we do not need to earn from nobody, it should just be their like respect for everybody. That a person with disability should not be afraid to go out in public and live a normal life. They should not have to go out and have people look at them in a weird way, make jokes about them, or shy away from them because they might b a little weird. Where all weird in our own ways, for instance I like my milk with ice many people say I am weird for that but that is how I like my milk. What judgment of me can you make just by that? Little to none, without really getting to know me you cannot judge me. I should not have to worry about people treating me differently at work because I have not had the proper education or fully trained. I can speak from experience, were I have been treated like unequal because I have not been at my job for so long. I should not have gone through that because I have worked hard to be where I am at and did all the necessary, but just because I did not have the proper education. I know how to do my job and I do it well that’s why I went about my own way and managed to prove to my boss that she made a mistake when she cut my hours and gave it to one of her favorites. She did not realize how much I could contribute; she did not give me a chance. My boss found out the great worker I am from everybody else, other telling her that she let a great worker go, but appreciate because I serve them a major purpose at their stores.
This quote by Johnson to me is trying to tell us that we as humans are looked at differently no matter what the case is. That it's not just a race thing between blacks and whites but people have to meet some kind of standard in order to separate themselves from the rest or make them self something of value. It shouldn't matter your race, or your gender or what you look like in order for you to fit in. Have you ever asked yourself why job applications have a place where you put your gender? Why does that matter men and women our both capable of the something. How come a guy's are more likely to get a job before women? It's simply because our society puts men on some higher pedestal then women. How come the handicap are looked down like if they cannot do things? Are society has made us all thing those ways, if we could change the way we think our actions would be different. We wouldn’t have to worry about somebody always being on top and us trying to do all meet their standards and not stay true to our standards and what we cannot change in our day to day lives.
2.) “The trouble around diversity is not just that people differ from one another. The trouble is produced by a world organized in way that encourage people to use difference to include or exclude, reward or punish credit or discredit, elevate or oppress, value or devalue, leave alone or harass. (Chapter 3; page 19)”
This quote to me illustrates to me that the world and society that we live in does judge simply on appearance on major things we cannot change. That just because I might me an African American male, gay, with Christians beliefs, in a wheel chair that I may get looked at differently and not have the same chance to get my dream job because of those reasons. To me this is important because the author points out that this if you do not meet certain standard you got to fight so people can see that being judge mental on those things you cannot change makes this a harder world to live for everyone. That we should not give privilege or include someone just based on some what they know or how much education they had. We should not have to reward those who have not struggled and do not know what giving is. We should not punish those who have come from immigrant households whose parents have fought for a better life for their families, but give them more opportunities to succeed. We should not have to put someone down in order to elevate the ideal prospect, we should not have ideals. We should not value one person more than another because in the long run that person that was devalued might become the biggest success story. We should leave everybody alone do not assume or make judgments, do not harass me because I am black and did not have the same upbringing as you. I cannot change who I am, but I can better myself and become someone if I have a chance. Trust me I am making the best out of my chance.
3.) “Unearned Entitlements” (Chapter 3; page 25)
This quote caught my eyes because to me it was the easiest thing to understand because it was so simple and straight to the point. That we all have privilege that we do not need to earn from nobody, it should just be their like respect for everybody. That a person with disability should not be afraid to go out in public and live a normal life. They should not have to go out and have people look at them in a weird way, make jokes about them, or shy away from them because they might b a little weird. Where all weird in our own ways, for instance I like my milk with ice many people say I am weird for that but that is how I like my milk. What judgment of me can you make just by that? Little to none, without really getting to know me you cannot judge me. I should not have to worry about people treating me differently at work because I have not had the proper education or fully trained. I can speak from experience, were I have been treated like unequal because I have not been at my job for so long. I should not have gone through that because I have worked hard to be where I am at and did all the necessary, but just because I did not have the proper education. I know how to do my job and I do it well that’s why I went about my own way and managed to prove to my boss that she made a mistake when she cut my hours and gave it to one of her favorites. She did not realize how much I could contribute; she did not give me a chance. My boss found out the great worker I am from everybody else, other telling her that she let a great worker go, but appreciate because I serve them a major purpose at their stores.
Miguelz intro.
Allow me to introduce myself!! My name is Miguel Sagastume, I am 20 years old and a junior. I reside in Silverlake in Providence. This semester is getting busier as the days go by. I have for classes this semester all seem to be very challenging and full of work. Now I know this would not be if their was no work, but all my other teacher hit me with a ton of work my first week. Not as nice as Dr. Bogad which I really appreciate. I have a crazy work schedule so when im not at work I am either doing school work or playing soccer. I played for RIC but decided to not play anymore because my grades were suffering and i really want to take advantage of having the chance to go to college and make something out of myself. I'm a real out going person, I like meeting new people, so dont be scared to come up to me and start amd conversation if you see me out of class. I never thought I would be blogging, but it was really easy and I'm pretty excited about using this method for this class.
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