Response to Jill's blog

I chose to read Jill's blog and final project - "The Art of Expression" - because I knew close to nothing about this topic. Music is a very important part of life for a lot of people; a lot of my friends freak out if they lose their iPod or if it runs out of battery. Not me. Music is nice and everything, but I'm not obsessed with it. So I thought it might be interesting to learn about some different music genres and how they affect the American culture and psyche. I never listen to rap - it is my least favorite music genre next to classical music. I usually listen to country or pop. However, my brother listens to rap a lot, and I can never understand what he likes about it - from what is blaring out of his headphones, I gather that they are basically yelling abut violence and cussing a lot. But hey, each to his own, right? I ask my brother what he likes about it, and we usually get into an argument about our music choices (he hates country), but I was suprised to learn that genres like gansta rap have actually divided our country. I like how Jill put in a slide with quote defending or against gansta rap, but I feel like the quotes in defense of it did not make a lot of sense. Also, for her page connecting music to what it means to be an american, I feel like she only talks about the connection in her last sentence, and it should have been longer and more ind-depth. Lastly, I was confused about the page concerning "Sonny's Blue's". What is this? I'm guessing it is a book, but this page could have been explained more thoroughly. Overall, I really liked Jill's project because it gave me new information and another perspective.

Response to Allie's immigration project

Reading Allie's project, "Immigration: Racism Throughout the Years," was very interesting. I knew some general information about immigration from talking about it in different classes over the years, but I did not know a lot. For example, I knew that a lot of people in America do not like immigrants, but I never knew why. I just thought it was because they looked or spoke differently. By reading Allie's blog, I found out that those opposed to immigration wanted Americans to fit a certain mold. This Anglo-Saxon image they wanted excluded those with a different skin color, and polygamists and anarchists. I also found out that another excuse, or fear, that they used was that they were afraid that immigrants would not understand democracy. This might be true, if they are coming from somewhere like Russia, but they can learn. One thing that angered me was the Gentleman's Agreement. This agreement between Japan and the United States said that only people with relatives already living in America could emmigrate. This is definitely not a very gentlemanly thing to do, because doing this just keeps more people out, and makes it harder for them to achieve the "American Dream", and have a better life. I really liked her use of videos, especially the first one about how immigrants felt when first coming into the United States after getting passed through Ellis Island. I was kind of confused by the second video. What is FAIR's objective? I can tell that news reports and radio shows use them as a source, so are they just that - a non-biased source? I was also angry when I found out that immigrants are being deported for no reason. I was shocked when I read that "immigrants have sought the assistance of the police, however they end up being arrested." I liked that Allie asked a question in her project - Who should decide who is qualified to immigrate? I don't know. The President? The head of the immigration office? Both?

current events analytical

Bilingual education has come a long way since Hispanic immigrants came to America in the 1940s to work as braceros. Back then, families were paid little, given a horrible place to live, and the children were not provided schooling. Now, Hispanic children are allowed to go to school, but they still have problems. Many of the children’s parents understand little about our language or our customs. The article “Bridging the language gap; Bilingual school liaisons ease transition for immigrant parents,” explains the necessity of having a liaison at a school with a large number of non-English speakers. Liaisons explain to parents the rules and customs of the school and community. A bilingual liaison in Chicago “understands that many of the parents grew up poor with few years of formal education so he starts the school year explaining some basics, such as calling the school whenever one’s child is sick”. Also, the customs are different here than they are elsewhere. Another liaison says that, “Back home, it was disrespectful for the parents to come and question authority…I have to tell them in America, if you don’t come, it will be translated into carelessness”. As of 2006, Chicago had 60,000 English-language learners in its schools, but only 17 bilingual parent advocates in all of the elementary and high schools combined. The parents have much to learn so they can help their children, but that can only get them so far. If the school does not provide them help in learning English by offering an ESL class, the students will lose courage, and probably drop out eventually. Advocates of bilingual education helped in the passing of the Bilingual Education Act in 1968, but schools have not obeyed it. Many schools with English-language learners do not have ESL classes for them. On February 2, 2009, a Texas court delayed a “court-ordered deadline for state education officials to draft a new learning program for the estimated 140,000 secondary school students in Texas with limited English skills”. This means that Texas may not have to come up with a new language program, effectively guaranteeing their dropout rate to increase. The shortage of liaisons could easily be remedied. College students could fix this problem by adding Spanish or another language as their minor, as thus be certified to be a liaison. Also, advocates of bilingual education need to push harder for the implementation of bilingual education programs where they do not already exist.

Background: Analytical

America is often referred to as a melting pot. There are many different races, religions, and personalities that make up our nation. Latinos are quickly growing to become the majority of the minority groups in the United States. However, most of our school systems are not meeting their needs by providing bilingual education or ESL, which is English as a Second Language, classes. In 1917, Congress approved a law requiring immigrants 16 years or older to pass a literacy test. This is not fair to the immigrants because most of them probably cannot speak English very well, let alone read it. Hispanics, and immigrants in general, have long been discriminated against. However, there are those people who are willing to fight for their rights and equality. In 1968, the Bilingual Education Act was passed to “help schools establish educational programs for students with limited English-speaking ability” (“Immigration in America: Timeline”). However, some schools ignored this and did not create such programs. Some towns, or even states, went so far as to declare English as their official language. In 2006, Arizona passed Proposition 103, which declared Arizona’s official language to be English. Also, in 2007, Culpepper County, Virginia unanimously approved a resolution declaring its official language as English. These measures only make it harder for Hispanics and other minorities to learn English. As a result of not having language help, the Hispanic dropout rate is 30%. This is three times what it is for whites, and twice for black students. According to the article “The hispanic dropout mystery,” hispanics say that their schools are marginalizing them, “disrespecting their culture, neglecting their language problems, and setting standards so low that kids can’t help but reduce expectations”. Bilingual Education needs to be paid more attention, especially by those in power so we can change its current status, and give non-English speakers a better chance of succeeding.

Works Cited

Works Cited
Bilingual Now. N.d. The University of Michigan. Bilingual Education. Web. 18 February 2010. <http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://sitemaker.umich.edu/370blinged/files/bilingual_education_project.jpg&imgrefurl=http://sitemaker.umich.edu/370blinged/legislation&usg=__nenVNjQzfLxlawFqR6IU84BFH-Q=&h=1200&w=1600&sz=423&hl=en&start=1&itbs=1&tbnid=Wjl01v692TYIZM:&tbnh=113&tbnw=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbilingual%2Beducation%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dstrict%26sa%3DX%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1>.

· English Spanish. N.d. Web. 17 February 2010. <http://www.mtholyoke.edu/offices/comm/csj/032202/images/cartoon.jpg>.

· Peace, love, bilingual education. N.d. Web. 17 February 2010. <http://rlv.zcache.com/peace_love_bilingual_education_photosculpture-p1539446563796574753s98_400.jpg>.

· Bilingual education poster. N.d. Web. 18 February 2010. <http://content.cdlib.org/dynaxml/data/13030/7r/hb6q2nb67r/files/hb6q2nb67r-FID3.jpg >.

· Children around the world. N.d. Web. 18 February 2010. <http://www.childrensbookblogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/bilingual-education.jpg >.

· Mexican flag. N.d. Web. 18 February 2010. <http://www.flag-zone.com/img/mexico/flag.gif>.

· Margaret Alic. “Bilingualism/Bilingual Education.” The Gale Encyclopedia of Children’s Health: Infancy through Adolescence. 2006. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 15 February 2010. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=DA-SORT&inPS=true&prodId=GVRL&userGroupName=deer63488&tabID=T003&searchId=R1&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&contentSegment=&searchType=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=99&contentSet=GALE%7CCX3447200083&&docId=GALECX3447200083&docType=GALE&role=>

· "Latinos in U.S. society." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 28 Jan. 2010. <http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com/ >.

"Alianza Hispano-Americana." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 18 Feb. 2010. <http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com >.

Children of Mexican migrant workers at FSA camp. 1940s. ABC-CLIO: American History. Web. 29 January 2010.

"League of United Latin American Citizens." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 21 Feb. 2010. <http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com>.

Headden, Susan. "The Hispanic dropout mystery: a staggering 30 percent leave school, far more than blacks or whites. Why?." U.S. News & World Report. v123. n15 (Oct 20, 1997): p64(2). Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 21 Feb. 2010 <http://find.galegroup.com/ovrc/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=OVRC&docId=A19860455&source=gale&srcprod=OVRC&userGroupName=deer63488&version=1.0>.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juz3bQyMqBw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tIppleeIjk

Mary Ann Fergus. “Bridging the language gap; Bilingual school liaisons ease transitions for immigrant parents.” The Chicago Tribune. 2006: page 1. ProQuest Newspapers. Web. 10 February 2010. < http://www.proquest.umi.com > .

“Immigration in America: Timeline.” Issues: Understanding Controversy and Society. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 10 Feb. 2010. <http://www.issues.abc-clio.com >.

Chavez, Linda. “Bilingual Education Is a Failure.” Opposing Viewpoints: Education. Ed. Mar E. Williams. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2000. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 8 February 2010. <http://find.galegroup.com >.

Stutz, Terrence. “”Court delays deadline for new bilingual education program in Texas.” The Dallas Morning News. 2009. Opposing Viewpoints Recourse Center. Web. 10 February 2010. <http://find.galegroup.com >.

Rivera, Tomás. And the Earth Did Not Devour Him. Print.

Literature: Analytical

There are many subtopics under the broad range of the topic of Hispanics. Tomás Rivera uses his short story “And the Earth Did Not Devour Him” to tell of the struggle of the migrant workers. These families came from Mexico to work in the fields under the instruction of their white bosses who did not care at all for them and were very harsh in their rules. They often wouldn’t let their workers rest, or take a drink of water. In the story, the main character says, “Just drink plenty of water every little while. It doesn’t matter if the boss gets mad” (“And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). Even the young children were not granted a reprieve; children as young as five years old were forced to work in the hot sun all day, and many people, including the main character’s aunt and uncle died of sunstroke. The character says of his father, “...barely five years old and already helping his father plant corn” (“And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). This is wrong; no one should have to suffer the way these families did, but especially not children. However, these families needed everyone to work so they could survive, or else they would starve if they got fired.
Helplessness and anger were two central themes in this story. The main character was very mad at God for taking away his family members, but felt helpless because he did not know what to do to change it. He is so angered that he curses God. After doing so, he is shocked, and waits for the ground to swallow him for misusing God’s name. However, this does not happen, and by morning his sunstruck father and younger brother were miraculously feeling better. The main character felt better because he had gotten his anger out in the open and off his chest, and was not as angry as he had been before. When he went to work out in the fields, he, “looked down at the earth and kicked it hard and said, ‘Not yet, you can’t swallow me up yet’” (“And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). These feelings of helplessness and anger were widespread among many migrant workers because they knew that they did not deserve what they were going through, but did not know how to change or make better their circumstances.

Bilingual Education is Beneficial

Bilingual education has been a controversial issue for many years. The question of whether or not to provide lessons in a student’s native language while they learn English is an issue that many have taken an interest in. The article “Bilingual Education Is Beneficial” by Ofelia Garcia points out many reasons to keep these programs. She says that, “well-planned bilingual education programs that emphasize fluency in both English and Spanish enable Hispanic immigrants to excel academically.” Moreover, she says that bilingual education for all students would benefit our society because we would be “enhancing communication and understanding among different ethnicities and language groups.” One of the main points the opposition brings up is that Hispanics have the highest high school dropout rate among every other race group. They point to bilingual education as one of the reasons, and say that because the students learn primarily in their native language, they do not learn English fast enough, and therefore do not excel in school. However, maybe the problem is not that they are learning in their primary language, it is what they are learning. Many immigrants, especially those from poorer and less-educated countries, do not have sufficient reading and writing skills in their native language. As a result of this, they have to first improve their basic language skills in their native tongue before they can begin to learn a whole new language.

Sorry, this is all I have so far. I still have more work to do on it.

"And the Earth Did Not Devour Him" by Tomas Rivera

This short story focuses on a migrant boy whose family works in the fields. His father gets sunstroke, and the family worries that he will die. The boy, who remains unnamed throughout the story, became angry because he “was unable to do anything against anyone” (71). I don’t understand this. Why would he want to do something against someone? Shouldn’t he be made because he isn’t able to do something for anyone? His anger at God steadily boils, and when his nine-year-old brother also gets sick, he snaps and curses God. His parents had instilled a fear in him of talking badly of God, and the boy feared that the Earth would open up and swallow him, but it did not. By the morning, his father and brother were doing better, on the road to recovery. The part of this story that had the most impact on me was when the boy was talking to his mother about their lives and being poor, and his mother said, “Only death brings us rest” (74). I think that this phrase most accurately describes the lives of the migrants and Mexican Americans living or working in America during the 1940s and 1950s. Between working all day, taking care of their families, and constantly being ridiculed by Americans, it seems true that only once they passed into the next life would they finally be in absolute peace and rest.

Where I'm at right now

My topic is Hispanics, and I've done articles from the ABC Cleo and The American Reader. I don't really know what I want to narrow my search into. Even though I haven't, I want to read an article about Cesar Chavez and do a response about him because he sounds like an interesting topic, and an important part of Hispanic history.

"Stupid America" by Abelardo Delgado

This poem, written by Abelardo Delgado, is from his first collection of poetry entitled Chicano: 25 Pieces of a Chicano Mind, published in 1969. The first thought that came to my mind after I finished reading this was wow. This poem was very powerful; it made me see things in a different light, and I want to read more of his work. His poem brings to the forefront all that Americans use as examples to label Hispanics as bad, stupid, or dangerous. In one part of the poem, he says "hear that chicano/shouting curses on the street/ he is a poet/ without paper and pencil/ and since he cannot write/ he will explode." I had heard this view before, of rap being considered poetry, so this did not suprise me. However, when I read the line "he cannot write," I asked myself why can't he? Is it because he does not physically posess a pencil and paper? Is it because even if he wrote poetry, no one would publish it? Or is it that, because of racial prejudices, he was not able to attend school, and was therefor literally unable to write? This thought angers and saddens me because everyone should be allowed free public schooling, especially in elementary school. Not allowing children in on the basis of race or color of skin is simply disgusting. The most impactful part of the poem for me was at the end. It goes, "stupid america, remember that chicanito/ flunking math and english/ he is the picasso/ of your western states/ but he will die/ with one thousand masterpieces/ hanging only from his mind." How sad it is to realize that so many wonderful people - painters, poets, and so many others - will not be offered the opportunities that present themselves to us, but will get turned down time and time again solely because of their ethnic background. How unfortunate it is that we may never get to enjoy what they have to offer because of our silly misconceptions.