Monday, February 22, 2010
Colleen's Blog
I thought Colleen's blog was one of the better ones that I had seen all day. I thought that the thing that made her blog stand out was the YouTube video at the end that she made because not only did she make it instead of finding it online, it also has a lot of great pictures and information. I thought it was really good that she had a thesis in the beginning of her presentation, this was something that no one else did in their slide show. One of the things that I thought that she could do for improvement was that I felt like some of the slides in her presentation strayed away from her main point. I thought when she focused on minorities, mainly blacks in schools that it was very strong, but when she started to talk about different things it weakened some of the presentation. Overall I thought it was a very good slide show with lots of good infromation, and I thought that the slideshow at the end really brought everything together nicely.
Chris's Blog
Chris's blog was much different than the last blog that i read because it had many more pictures and videos, and was less text based. I thought that he Incorporated a lot of great pictures and his videos fit very well with his topic. Another thing that was interesting about his slide show was that when most people think of the arts they think of theatre and movies, however Chris took it in a different direction by choosing to write about rap and hip-hop. One of the things that I thought that could have been improved would be by adding a little more text and some more of his own opinoins. Most of the text on his slideshow was on the history of rap and the topic of violence, and I think it would have been a stronger if he would have added a slide at the end of his overall opinoins of the topic. Overall I thought it was a good slide show with a lot of great videos, and for improvement it think that he should have added some of his own opinoins.
Lana's Slide Show
I read Lana’s blog about immigration and I thought that it was very well done. I really liked how she made her slide show look like a manual of how immigration is like in America. Each page of her slide show had a very good amount of information that fully covered the history of immigration. Some of the problems that were in her blog was that there were only pictures. I would have been nice to see some videos and quotes because the pictures got a little repetitive. Another problem with the slideshow was that I think that it would have been better if she would have narrowed down her topic to a specific part of immigration. The presentation had a ton of great history of immigration, however I think that she could have made it stronger if she focused on a specific aspect of immigration. Overall I thought it was a good slideshow, with a lot of great information.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Slide Show Bibliography
"...and the Earth did Not Devour Him":
http://salinasstories.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/the_earth_did_not_devour_him1.jpg
Cesar Chavez Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7GCCBIgFaQ
Bread and Roses Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI2lGJJnKM0
Marcy Kaptur Quote:
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/n/nunnallyjo392536.html
Nunnally Johnson Quote:
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/n/nunnallyjo392536.html
Hate Crime Picture:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://mexican-jaguars.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/lynchedbyanglos.jpg&imgrefurl=http://mexican-jaguars.tripod.com/id53.html&usg=__wUtz7gmA6arryhexNBqbBK4jCSQ=&h=218&w=360&sz=15&hl=en&start=3&sig2=__fzrbdkL5qqkuoiassJXQ&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=Lf7HsP_khLqQEM:&tbnh=73&tbnw=121&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmexican%2Bmigrant%2Bworkers%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=jfeBS6jBFYjdnAeZrPiVBw
Rob Paral Article
http://www.unityblueprint.org/_documents/research-and-policy/immigrant-workers/2.AILF-MexImmWorkers&USEcon.pdf
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Analytic Essay: Current Event
One of the biggest things that Americans view as a problem today is immigration, mainly immigration from Mexico to the U.S. One group of Americans believe that it is bad that so many Mexican immigrants are coming to America, and invading their country. They think that immigrants cannot benefit America, and only hurt it. However, others believe that Hispanic immigrants can be beneficial to America because they are good workers, and will be able to adapt to America’s culture.
Most Mexican immigrants are coming into the country with no money or possessions, so it is very hard for them to adjust to the new surroundings in America. One of the biggest problems for Hispanics is that when they arrive in the U.S. it is hard for them to receive a good education because of how important it is for them to work. According to the Dallas Morning News, a study showed the affects of how a poor education can lead to a bad job later in life. “The study’s researchers identified education as the biggest hurdle, noting that Hispanics have higher school dropout rates, lower college enrollment and less job training than the overall populating in an economy ever more reliant on higher-skilled jobs, ”(“Study Details challenges for Hispanics, implications for Labor Force”). The Hispanics are dropping out of high school very early because it is important that they get a job and work to provide for their family. By more and more Hispanics dropping out, it leads to very low paying jobs because they do not have a good education. Many Americans believe that it will be very hard for the Hispanics to assimilate into the middle class because they receive such a poor education. “…the study found that Hispanics as a group are losing economic g round relative to non-Hispanic whites because of a large pool of low-skilled workers, many of whom are illegal immigrants” (“Study Details Challenge Implications for Labor Force”). The immigrants’ goal when coming to America is to live a successful life. It is harder to live a successful life in the lower class, which most of the Hispanics are in because of how bad their jobs are. Another thing that people feel the Hispanic immigrants are doing is hurting America because of how much poverty they bring to America. In the article, “Immigration is Responsible for the Rising Poverty Rate,” it talks about how immigration is the main reason for the increased poverty rate in the past years. “Because so many immigrants are Hispanic and Asian and because so many Hispanic and Asian new mothers are foreign-born, the conclusion is obvious: immigration is driving most of the increase in population and poverty,” (Immigration is Responsible for the Rising Poverty Rate”). Americans think that Hispanics are one of the main causes to the poverty problem in the U.S. because of how many of them work in such low paying jobs. The huge amount of Hispanics coming into the country is causing Americans to feel uneasy because Hispanics are starting to take over the culture. However, there are also people that feel that Hispanics can benefit the country.
Many people in America feel that the U.S. was born off of different cultures from the many different immigrants that came into the country. There are a lot of people out there that believe America should stay that way, and one of the best ways to do that is to accept the Hispanics in American culture. In the article “Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity,” the writer talks about how America is supposed to be a mix of different cultures because that is the American way of life. “The American dream is built upon hard work of immigrants and the fundamental value of equal opportunity…We must not go back to a system where one’s race, class or religion determines one’s fate…” (“Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity”). America’s culture is based off of many different cultures, and that is how it should always be. The only way to achieve that is to continuously be accepting other cultures, and in this case it is the Hispanics. Another big reason for why people think that Hispanics should be accepted is because how much they can benefit America’s agriculture. Most of immigrants that come into America work cheap jobs that most people do not want to do. Even though does not greatly benefit the Hispanics, it can really help America’s agricultural industry. The writer believes that Hispanics are a very hard working group that could do great things for America. Unlike the people who believe that Hispanics could negatively affect America, the writer thinks that Hispanics will be able to fit right in with the American culture. “Everything that is traditionally thought of as ‘America,’ Latinos live out fully. They are family-oriented, religious, hard-working and loyal to the U.S” (“Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity”). The writer strongly believes that if America chooses to accept the Hispanics, then great things can come out of it. This is similar to Booker T. Washington’s address because Washington talked to the whites about accepting the blacks as workers because of how useful they had been in the past. This writer is doing the same thing by saying if America accepts the Hispanics, and “cast their bucket down” to the Hispanics, and then this can result in great things for Hispanics and Americans.
One of the biggest themes for Hispanics in current history is trying to become accepted in America. All of the articles that I read focused on both immigration and how Hispanics coming to America would affect the country. Some believe that Hispanics cause a disruption in American culture and do not benefit America. Others believe that Hispanics, if given a chance, can greatly benefit America and fit right into American culture.
Most Mexican immigrants are coming into the country with no money or possessions, so it is very hard for them to adjust to the new surroundings in America. One of the biggest problems for Hispanics is that when they arrive in the U.S. it is hard for them to receive a good education because of how important it is for them to work. According to the Dallas Morning News, a study showed the affects of how a poor education can lead to a bad job later in life. “The study’s researchers identified education as the biggest hurdle, noting that Hispanics have higher school dropout rates, lower college enrollment and less job training than the overall populating in an economy ever more reliant on higher-skilled jobs, ”(“Study Details challenges for Hispanics, implications for Labor Force”). The Hispanics are dropping out of high school very early because it is important that they get a job and work to provide for their family. By more and more Hispanics dropping out, it leads to very low paying jobs because they do not have a good education. Many Americans believe that it will be very hard for the Hispanics to assimilate into the middle class because they receive such a poor education. “…the study found that Hispanics as a group are losing economic g round relative to non-Hispanic whites because of a large pool of low-skilled workers, many of whom are illegal immigrants” (“Study Details Challenge Implications for Labor Force”). The immigrants’ goal when coming to America is to live a successful life. It is harder to live a successful life in the lower class, which most of the Hispanics are in because of how bad their jobs are. Another thing that people feel the Hispanic immigrants are doing is hurting America because of how much poverty they bring to America. In the article, “Immigration is Responsible for the Rising Poverty Rate,” it talks about how immigration is the main reason for the increased poverty rate in the past years. “Because so many immigrants are Hispanic and Asian and because so many Hispanic and Asian new mothers are foreign-born, the conclusion is obvious: immigration is driving most of the increase in population and poverty,” (Immigration is Responsible for the Rising Poverty Rate”). Americans think that Hispanics are one of the main causes to the poverty problem in the U.S. because of how many of them work in such low paying jobs. The huge amount of Hispanics coming into the country is causing Americans to feel uneasy because Hispanics are starting to take over the culture. However, there are also people that feel that Hispanics can benefit the country.
Many people in America feel that the U.S. was born off of different cultures from the many different immigrants that came into the country. There are a lot of people out there that believe America should stay that way, and one of the best ways to do that is to accept the Hispanics in American culture. In the article “Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity,” the writer talks about how America is supposed to be a mix of different cultures because that is the American way of life. “The American dream is built upon hard work of immigrants and the fundamental value of equal opportunity…We must not go back to a system where one’s race, class or religion determines one’s fate…” (“Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity”). America’s culture is based off of many different cultures, and that is how it should always be. The only way to achieve that is to continuously be accepting other cultures, and in this case it is the Hispanics. Another big reason for why people think that Hispanics should be accepted is because how much they can benefit America’s agriculture. Most of immigrants that come into America work cheap jobs that most people do not want to do. Even though does not greatly benefit the Hispanics, it can really help America’s agricultural industry. The writer believes that Hispanics are a very hard working group that could do great things for America. Unlike the people who believe that Hispanics could negatively affect America, the writer thinks that Hispanics will be able to fit right in with the American culture. “Everything that is traditionally thought of as ‘America,’ Latinos live out fully. They are family-oriented, religious, hard-working and loyal to the U.S” (“Mexican Immigrants Do Not Threaten American Unity”). The writer strongly believes that if America chooses to accept the Hispanics, then great things can come out of it. This is similar to Booker T. Washington’s address because Washington talked to the whites about accepting the blacks as workers because of how useful they had been in the past. This writer is doing the same thing by saying if America accepts the Hispanics, and “cast their bucket down” to the Hispanics, and then this can result in great things for Hispanics and Americans.
One of the biggest themes for Hispanics in current history is trying to become accepted in America. All of the articles that I read focused on both immigration and how Hispanics coming to America would affect the country. Some believe that Hispanics cause a disruption in American culture and do not benefit America. Others believe that Hispanics, if given a chance, can greatly benefit America and fit right into American culture.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Analytic Entry: Short Story
Reading statistics and information on a rough topic only gives one a general jest of what is going on in the topic. In the short story “…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him,” it takes place in Mexican-American family’s home who are trying get past the troubles of being a migrant worker. It is told through the thoughts of a boy whose family are manly migrant workers. “…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him,” gives the reader a full view of the hardships that a migrant worker’s family must go through.
All of the characters in the story, besides the boss of the workers, are Mexican immigrants. Not only are they all Mexican immigrants, but they have all also experienced trouble in their life through working in the farms. The main character, whose entire family were migrant workers, all struggled to get by in America. Early on in the story the reader learns that his aunt and uncle died from sunstroke because they were working in the hot sun for too long. This was one of the first things that struck up surprise. Once believed that it was very uncommon for someone to die from just working in the sun, however it was very different for these migrant workers. It was very common in this story that people would die from working for too long because they worked for so many hours under terrible conditions. If they ever tried to take a break they would be punished by their boss. When the boy’s mother is giving advice about working for so long, she wants to make sure that no matter what he takes a break. “Just drink plenty of water every little while. It don’t matter if the boss gets mad. Just don’t get sick,” (“…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). At that time in his family his aunt and uncle had died from sunstroke and his father was starting to get very sick, so it was very important that he would not get sick by any means necessary. The only way for him to do that was accept his punishment because their bosses did not care how their workers felt, he just cared that all the work be done no matter what the conditions were. The boy who was the main character, felt frustrated with how his life was because of how terribly he was being treated and how he was unable to do anything about it.
Helplessness was a very big theme throughout the short story. These workers had no money, and if they lost their job then their family would not be able to survive. For these families it was either die from working for too long, or not be able to support one’s family because they took a break. The main boy complained to his mother about how bad their situation was, and how they were helpless. “How come we’re like this, like we’re buried alive? Either the germs eat us alive or the sun burns us up. Always some kind of sickness. And every day we work and work. For what?” (““…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). These immigrants were unable to do anything about their situation because in order for them to survive they had to work, and work would often lead to death. This was a vicious cycle that the workers were unable to control because of their situation.
The short story “…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him,” was trying to express to the reader how terribly treated the migrant workers were. What they had to go through was unbearably, family members dying and living in awful conditions, was wrong and unjust. This story was trying to show the frustration of what they had to go through as an immigrant. The inevitable cycle that lead to many problems of either working till you get sick and possibly die, or taking a break from work and possibly getting fired and become unable to support for one’s family.
All of the characters in the story, besides the boss of the workers, are Mexican immigrants. Not only are they all Mexican immigrants, but they have all also experienced trouble in their life through working in the farms. The main character, whose entire family were migrant workers, all struggled to get by in America. Early on in the story the reader learns that his aunt and uncle died from sunstroke because they were working in the hot sun for too long. This was one of the first things that struck up surprise. Once believed that it was very uncommon for someone to die from just working in the sun, however it was very different for these migrant workers. It was very common in this story that people would die from working for too long because they worked for so many hours under terrible conditions. If they ever tried to take a break they would be punished by their boss. When the boy’s mother is giving advice about working for so long, she wants to make sure that no matter what he takes a break. “Just drink plenty of water every little while. It don’t matter if the boss gets mad. Just don’t get sick,” (“…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). At that time in his family his aunt and uncle had died from sunstroke and his father was starting to get very sick, so it was very important that he would not get sick by any means necessary. The only way for him to do that was accept his punishment because their bosses did not care how their workers felt, he just cared that all the work be done no matter what the conditions were. The boy who was the main character, felt frustrated with how his life was because of how terribly he was being treated and how he was unable to do anything about it.
Helplessness was a very big theme throughout the short story. These workers had no money, and if they lost their job then their family would not be able to survive. For these families it was either die from working for too long, or not be able to support one’s family because they took a break. The main boy complained to his mother about how bad their situation was, and how they were helpless. “How come we’re like this, like we’re buried alive? Either the germs eat us alive or the sun burns us up. Always some kind of sickness. And every day we work and work. For what?” (““…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him”). These immigrants were unable to do anything about their situation because in order for them to survive they had to work, and work would often lead to death. This was a vicious cycle that the workers were unable to control because of their situation.
The short story “…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him,” was trying to express to the reader how terribly treated the migrant workers were. What they had to go through was unbearably, family members dying and living in awful conditions, was wrong and unjust. This story was trying to show the frustration of what they had to go through as an immigrant. The inevitable cycle that lead to many problems of either working till you get sick and possibly die, or taking a break from work and possibly getting fired and become unable to support for one’s family.
Analytic Entry: Background
Hispanics in America are almost like a second generation of blacks in America. After slavery was abolished the blacks had to completely start over their lives. This is similar to the Hispanics because after a Hispanic person immigrates to America, they are too completely starting over their lives. Not only are they completely starting over their lives, but like the blacks, in order to become successful in America they must learn to deal with the discrimination towards themselves.
One of the big events for the Hispanics was during World War I because it offered thousands of jobs for Hispanics in America for them to work in the agriculture. After the war the soldiers came back and the Hispanics became jobless and penniless. However, soon after the war Immigration began to skyrocket because of the “Roaring ‘20s.” This beneficial for the Hispanics because at that time America’s industry was booming so it opened up many new jobs for them. This provided a new opportunity for the Hispanics because it was a job and a new life for them. This was also good for America because the Hispanics provided cheap agricultural workers. With so many Hispanic immigrants coming in, it started to worry the Americans that soon they would be jobless. Once the Great Depression started, it convinced the Americans that they needed to kick out the Mexicans so then more jobs would be open. People in the U.S. also kicked them out because they thought that Hispanics were ruining and invading their culture. “…many Americans felt that people of Mexican descent represented a threat to the racial and cultural integrity of the nation, particularly because of the strength of Catholicism among Mexican immigrants” (“Latinos in America”). Because so many Mexicans were coming into the country, the Americans were viewing it as a threat. They thought that with so many immigrants in the country that it could ruin their culture, and did not realize how helpful the Hispanics had been in the past, and how useful they were. Once World War II started, Americans remembered how good of workers the Hispanics had been, and they decided to bring back all the immigrants that they had kicked out before. Most of Americans were fighting in the war so the U.S. knew that they needed workers, and they turned to the Hispanics. These past event show how selfish the U.S., and how much they used the Hispanics as their pawns in agricultural industry. Whenever the U.S. needed workers they would bring in the Hispanics, however when they felt threatened by them and felt that job opportunities were going down, then they just kicked them out.
One of the most important leaders for the Hispanics was Cesar Chavez because he fought for equality for the Hispanic workers. Every group that has been discriminated against always has a leader, and Cesar Chavez acted as that leader for the Hispanics. Cesar Chavez worked as a grape picker in California that believed that he was being mistreated, and thought they he should do something about it. In 1962, he created a farm workers union called the Nation Farm Workers Association. Most migrant worker strikes failed before, “…strikes had always failed for two basic reasons: the workers did not have enough money to outlast the growers, and the growers could easily replace the striking workers with imported Mexican farm workers,” (“Cesar Chavez”). Workers were paid so little that it was very hard for them to organize a successful strike. Also, the demand for jobs was so high that when one Mexican immigrant was fired he could easily be replaced with another hard working Mexican immigrant. It was different with Cesar Chavez because he organized a large enough group to form a strike for higher wages. He also led a five year, non-violent, boycott of al California table grapes. He finally won in 1970, and he formed a three agreement that provided, “a wage increase, provision for health insurance, and regulations prohibiting use of certain pesticides,” (Cesar Chavez). This is just another example of a leader who fought for what they believed was right, to defeat an unjust law, and do it non-violently.
The Hispanics are a race that have been used as migrant workers for many years. They are still trying to find their place in America as a successful race. It is hard for them to do so when the only thing that they can do is take very hard jobs that pay an extremely low amount. They have to take these jobs because they are starting a new life with nothing. They are immigrants looking for a new opportunity in a country that was made to achieve one’s dreams.
One of the big events for the Hispanics was during World War I because it offered thousands of jobs for Hispanics in America for them to work in the agriculture. After the war the soldiers came back and the Hispanics became jobless and penniless. However, soon after the war Immigration began to skyrocket because of the “Roaring ‘20s.” This beneficial for the Hispanics because at that time America’s industry was booming so it opened up many new jobs for them. This provided a new opportunity for the Hispanics because it was a job and a new life for them. This was also good for America because the Hispanics provided cheap agricultural workers. With so many Hispanic immigrants coming in, it started to worry the Americans that soon they would be jobless. Once the Great Depression started, it convinced the Americans that they needed to kick out the Mexicans so then more jobs would be open. People in the U.S. also kicked them out because they thought that Hispanics were ruining and invading their culture. “…many Americans felt that people of Mexican descent represented a threat to the racial and cultural integrity of the nation, particularly because of the strength of Catholicism among Mexican immigrants” (“Latinos in America”). Because so many Mexicans were coming into the country, the Americans were viewing it as a threat. They thought that with so many immigrants in the country that it could ruin their culture, and did not realize how helpful the Hispanics had been in the past, and how useful they were. Once World War II started, Americans remembered how good of workers the Hispanics had been, and they decided to bring back all the immigrants that they had kicked out before. Most of Americans were fighting in the war so the U.S. knew that they needed workers, and they turned to the Hispanics. These past event show how selfish the U.S., and how much they used the Hispanics as their pawns in agricultural industry. Whenever the U.S. needed workers they would bring in the Hispanics, however when they felt threatened by them and felt that job opportunities were going down, then they just kicked them out.
One of the most important leaders for the Hispanics was Cesar Chavez because he fought for equality for the Hispanic workers. Every group that has been discriminated against always has a leader, and Cesar Chavez acted as that leader for the Hispanics. Cesar Chavez worked as a grape picker in California that believed that he was being mistreated, and thought they he should do something about it. In 1962, he created a farm workers union called the Nation Farm Workers Association. Most migrant worker strikes failed before, “…strikes had always failed for two basic reasons: the workers did not have enough money to outlast the growers, and the growers could easily replace the striking workers with imported Mexican farm workers,” (“Cesar Chavez”). Workers were paid so little that it was very hard for them to organize a successful strike. Also, the demand for jobs was so high that when one Mexican immigrant was fired he could easily be replaced with another hard working Mexican immigrant. It was different with Cesar Chavez because he organized a large enough group to form a strike for higher wages. He also led a five year, non-violent, boycott of al California table grapes. He finally won in 1970, and he formed a three agreement that provided, “a wage increase, provision for health insurance, and regulations prohibiting use of certain pesticides,” (Cesar Chavez). This is just another example of a leader who fought for what they believed was right, to defeat an unjust law, and do it non-violently.
The Hispanics are a race that have been used as migrant workers for many years. They are still trying to find their place in America as a successful race. It is hard for them to do so when the only thing that they can do is take very hard jobs that pay an extremely low amount. They have to take these jobs because they are starting a new life with nothing. They are immigrants looking for a new opportunity in a country that was made to achieve one’s dreams.
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