Theme 5: Identity, Privilege and Inequalities

Work 1: A China man's Chance: Reflections on the American Dream by Eric Liu
1. What is the American Dream and How does it apply to Immigrants?
2. Around 2015
3. This was written for Americans to understand some of the struggles that come from being an
immigrant but also for immigrants so they know that they aren't alone.
4. In the past the idea of the American Dream is what held everyone together and united them.
Now the American Dream is just talking about money. Past has a lot to do with the future. If
your parents lived here for their whole lives and so did their parents you have a head start on
those who immigrated or even those whose parents immigrated. Immigrants work harder than
most Americans and they are treated like less. Like Liu said My conception of the American
Dream does not take progress for granted. But it does demand the opportunity to achieve
progress.. This quote sorta hit me hard. Sometimes, and I am ashamed to admit it, I think that
the reason that majority of immigrants are in poor conditions is because they aren't trying hard
enough. I now realize that this is extremely racist but also majority of them are trying hard
enough. Maybe the problem isn't with them its with us. Are we giving everyone a fair shot to
achieve the American Dream? I think this is something that we should be asking ourselves
before we judge anyone for not trying hard enough. I think we don't give people a fair shot
because sometimes we forget that everyone is unique and its a good thing that we aren't all the
same. The ideas and inventions that have come from people all over is one of the many things
that made America great. We should celebrate out differences not try to hide them and all
conform into one bland group. Our country was built on everyone deserving a fair shot and
that's exactly what we should be doing. I think it is important to read this article and realize
what is going on around us and rethink how we are treating others that are different from us.

Work 2: Black Boy by Richard Wright

1945

3. White Americans in the mid 40's to help them understand the impact they have on Black lives
and what they do with their lives.
4. This article talks about a young boy who was proud of what he had written and so he went to
the local negro newspaper to get his story printed. When he came back the next day they had
decided to print the story and that was already in progress but he wasn't going to be payed for
his hard work. A few days later his classmates asked him if he wrote the story and when he said
that he did they didn't believe him and they thought he stole it our of a book. He thought
writing the book would help him fit in but instead it was cutting him out and making him even
more different. Even though he was smart enough to write a great story and get it published his
family and friends were only discouraging him. In the end he talks about how he was raised to
be discouraged from his dream of becoming a writer but in a world of white people it would be
nearly impossible to be a successful black writer. This article was a hard one to read. To read
about someones dreams being crushed because of their skin color is quite depressing. Especially
when white people are the problem. I am glad that this was in the 40's and not in the 2000's but
that still wasn't that long ago. I am so disappointed in our history and just think how many great
pieces of literature we would have if that wasn't the case. It is also hard for me to believe that
people are still to this day being discouraged from doing whatever they want to because of what
they look like or their gender. I hope that some day everyone can look past all of our differences
and that there will be total equality and everyone can do what they want to do with their life.
Work 3: Graduation written by Maya Angelou
1. What was graduating like for blacks in the 40's?
2. 1969

3.

Everyone who discriminates against blacks.

4.

I learned that only a small amount of the kids in negro schools would graduate. It then later
said that you could be a teacher with only an 8th grade diploma. If at the time they really cared
about the education of the blacks in my opinion they would have required more education to be
a teacher but in order for that tho happen it would have to be easier to get into colleges back
then. When their teachers only have up to an 8th grade education how are they supposed to teach
others? It also talked about how poor the quality of the school grounds were and how much
nicer the white schools were and then when the white man came and spoke at graduation he
talked about how he was so pleased that the quality of the two schools were equal. He was
seeing the best of the best but those kids had to try so much harder than the white kids to
achieve the same thing. During the graduation ceremony it talked about the frustration that they
faced as the speech was given. They had been raised to keep their mouths shut and not fight
back but on the inside they were infuriated. It was awful to be a Negro and have no control
over my life. I never realized school was so hard for African Americans in the 40's. That is
something that isn't usually talked about. They only talk about segregation so this was all new
to me. As depressing and eye opening it was it was also good for me to hear what the schools
were actually like from a witness rather than a white person who didn't know actually know
what it was like. I now have a new respect for blacks who graduated and became successful in
that time period because now I know how had they had to work to get there and how much
harder they had to work than the white kids.

Work 4:Latero Story written by Tato Laviera

People who look down immigrants who have to use welfare .

4. This was a poem written by a Puerto Rican immigrant in the 1970's. He talked about how he

was working as a Latero man. Latero meaning can. What he had to do to make money was
digging through trash to find cans. Opening bags filled with the unthinkable just to make a
couple dollars. He had to dig through the bags without gloves on because if he did then it would
undermine his daily profits. He talked about how hard he was going to work and how seriously
he was going to take this job so he could finally be a real business man and get off of welfare.
The Big Idea of this was sort of similar to the China mans chance because it talked about how
hard immigrants have to work to make it in America. I think that that is an important topic
because we don't truly realize, or at least I don't, how hard immigrants have to work to make it.
I have always viewed welfare in a different light but after reading this poem I am now able to
see it from the view of an immigrant. I think that both of these articles are simply talking about
them and their families just wanting to be accepted as an American and have the same amount
of freedom and opportunities as white people. They aren't being lazy and just living off of the
government. They are trying to make a living on their own we are just making it so dang hard
for them and then we blame them for not being able to support themselves.
Work 5: The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin
1. What was it like to be a housewife or simply a woman in the late 1800's?
2. 1894
3. All of the married and unmarried men in the late 1800's.
4. In this short story there is a woman who finds out that her husband died. She went upstairs and
locked herself in her room to sort out her emotions. She sat there. Not crying but not entirely
rejoicing. She realized that she was now free. Free! Body and soul free she then left her room
and went to her sister. As she went down the stairs she saw her husband standing there. He
hadn't died. She them moments later died of a heart attack. This one was sort of hard for me to
understand but once it was explained to me it was so powerful. In the 1890's it was basically
required to have a husband. That was your main purpose in life. She didn't hate the man that she

was married to but she wasn't entirely in love with him. Once she found out about his death she
realized that she could be so much more. She wasn't tied down to the life of a housewife and
mother that she didn't want. She could be whoever she wanted to and be a widow. Once she
realized this she was so happy and felt as if she was finally free. Once she found out her
husband was alive she died because she was no longer free. At first when I read it I though it
was terrible! Who is happy over the death of a spouse that was good to them. Once I put myself
into her shoes and really realized her circumstances it started to make sense and I was
heartbroken. Especially now that I think about it and this may have actually been something that
happened to many women in that time period. Not literally of course but that they felt trapped
and never truly free because they were a woman and had to do certain things because of it.
Work 6: Americanization is Tough on Macho written by Rose Castillo Guilbault
1. What is the real meaning of Macho and how does our definition effect other cultures?
2.

2013

3. I think that this is directed towards children and teenagers because we are learning new words
every day and we should know the actual meanings of the words we use and not make up our
own.
4. Americans have twisted the word macho into meaning something that it didn't originally mean.
For Hispanics macho means manly. Someone who is responsible, hardworking and in charge.
A man who expresses strength through silence. For Americans it is someone who is a brute,
uncouth, selfish, loud... and sexually promiscuous. America has such a big influence on other
parts of the world it has distorted the way that Hispanics look at it. In one account Guilbault had
a hard time not looking at her father differently because her father according to Americans
wasn't macho enough because he wasn't violent and he didn't like to cause trouble. What the
American view looked over was how hardworking he was and how responsible he was. Which
is the original definition of macho. I actually think that this is a really important article for

people to read . In English we like to steal words from other languages but when we interpret
them differently it can actually be semi-destructive to the place the word originated from. I
know that we have not only done this with macho but we have done this with other words. We
have also turned negative words that are offensive into slang and use them frequently without
knowing what we are really saying. For example when someone says they were gypped it
means that they were stolen from or ripped off but the word originated from Gypsies so that
is in fact racist and not okay but majority of people don't know that. I think that this article is
important because it raises awareness to what we are doing and that we need to stop it. We as a
culture need to know what we are saying before we just start saying it because it is effecting a
larger group of people than we think.
Work 7:Beyond the Cult of Fatherhood written by David Osborne
1. What is it like for the Father to stay at home and take care of the child?
2. 1985
3.

I think this was written for males in their early 20's to late 40's. At this age they may become
parents and it is important for them to have an open mind about who stays home with the child
and not judge other males that they may know that stay home to take care of their children.

4. This article talks about a family where the stereotypical roles are reversed and the father raises
the son while to mom goes out and works. It talks about how the father gained a new respect for
mothers and that it isn't pathetic or anything to raise a child and only that. In fact it is one of the
hardest jobs out there. You are working 24/7 365 days a year. It also talked about how men are
looked down upon and considered a failure if they are the ones who stay at home and take care
of the kids. He said that if he didn't write on the side he wouldn't feel good about himself and
wouldn't be as good of a father. I've grown up with the idea of the male as the provider and the
female as the one who cares for the children. I have no problem with this and I would love to be
a stay at home mom and possibly have a part time job. I have never thought of it the other way

around. My uncle is the one who stays home with the kids and I have always found that to be
quite odd. But why? Does it really matter what parent takes care of the child? Why would it be
okay for the mom to take care of the child but not the dad? After reading this I have definitely
changed my mind about who should stay home and take care of the child. I don't think it matter
who it is as long as they are doing a good job.
Work 8: A Left-Handed Commencement Address written by Ursula K. Le Guin
1. What should women do to achieve overall equality?
2. 1983
3.

I think this was written for women and foreigners of all ages.

4. This was a graduation speech and it is different from what you normally hear. She talks to the
women rather than the men. She also talks about the importance of failure because we are all
human. We all fail and as Americans failure is something that we despise but we should
embrace it. She talked about how as women we have always been foreigners because people are
referred to as man kind and other things that suggest males are superior. I honestly did not
agree with the majority of this speech but then there were other parts where I agreed with it
completely. I personally with the circumstances that I have grown up in have not felt like a
foreigner constantly but I have had times where I have wondered if something is playing out the
way it is simply because I am a woman. What I did agree with entirely was that we should
embrace failure and imperfections. In this screwed up society we place so much emphasis on
physical and every other form of perfection and anything less is frowned upon. We are all
human and we all are going to make mistakes in our life and because of that fact we should
celebrate when we make mistakes and our imperfections. I think that is something that is really
important for Americans to get in their head and once we finally do we will live in a much
better world.

Work 9: Introduction to Identity, Privilege, and Inequalities written by Unknown

Unknown

3.

Everyone. Everyone should look at things from different perspectives.

4. This is the introduction to the unit and it has some great questions in it that I would like to leave
unanswered but highlight. What is it about our differences that makes us think it is okay to treat
other poorly? How are we in the 21st century and we are still having problems with inequalities?
Shouldn't we be past that by now? In this unit's reading there are many extreme accounts of
discrimination and the underprivileged. Thankfully most of us will not encounter such harsh
forms of discrimination but there is a good number of people who do. It is important for us to
know of them. By giving these people a voice we give them an outlet and a place to share their
experiences. The Big Idea of this unit is to show us what it is like for these different groups of
people. The similar idea is to walk in someone else's shoes before you judge them. This is a
really important idea. You honestly have no idea what someone else is going through so you
have no right to judge them and it is important to know what some people went through so you
personally can work of changing history and not letting it repeat itself.
Work 10: On the Subway written by Sharon Olds
1. What thoughts go through a white woman's mind while on the subway?
2.

1989

3.

No one in particular. Shes just sharing what honestly goes through her mind on the subway. If I
had to choose one particular group of people I would say possibly other white women.

4. I honestly don't even know how I feel about this passage. It talks about a woman who is on the
subway and she sees a black kid who looks threatening and she talks about the thoughts that
are going through her mind. Worrying that he is going to take her purse or even her life. She
then talks about how he and others like him absorb the murderous beams of the nations heart.

I think by this she is talking about the stereotypes that come with being black. The unnecessary
fear that is invoked simply by ones skin tone because of the ideas that have been pushed onto us
since we were young. I can't tell what the point of this passage was. If it was to show her point
of view or to show the stereotypes of black men but I think it wasn't the best way to come
across it. I personally sort of found this offensive so I can only imagine how offensive it could
be for any African American to read.
Work 11: So Mexicans are Taking Jobs From Americans written by Jimmy Santiago Baca
1. Are Mexicans Taking Jobs from americans?
2.

2007

3.

Middle aged white people.

4. A common thing that is heard when whites don't want a group to be equal with them because of
the competition is that they will take their jobs or their children's jobs. But are they really taking
you jobs? Are they stealing it as if it were a possession or make you give them your job at gun
point. No. They are working hard and getting jobs just as any other human being would. What
is really being said when someone says that Mexicans are taking jobs from Americans?
According to this poem they are saying let them die and the children too. I think this is an
important argument and fairly logical. If you are doing a good job and trying your best why do
you have to worry about someone taking your job? And if they do take your job is it because
they too are doing their best and it happens to be better than your best? In that case they got the
job fair and square. You have nothing to complain about. Not wanting someone to have a
chance at a better life just so you can be ahead is a terrible thing. I've always just nodded my
head at the argument that they are taking our jobs buy I don't think I have ever really thought
about it. They aren't taking anything, they are getting what they deserve in return for their hard
work.

Work 12: The Melting Pot Dudley Randall

People who try to conform and are afraid to be unique. Teenagers often do this so this would be
a good poem for them to read but overall everyone should read it.

4. America is a giant melting pot. A place where differences are not embraced but rejected.
Everyone is molded into the same person and no originality is gladly accepted. In part of this
poem it references the Native Americans trying to fit in even though they were here first and we
still tossed them out. Then we kick out the blacks because of their darker skin color and after
many attempts to be accepted they finally decide to just be who they are. I think this is an
important poem to read. It talks about Americas hatred towards differences and how they try to
get everyone to fit into the same mold and if they don't they are cast out and rejected. The first
step is admitting that there is a problem. This poem helps address the problem and if enough
people knew about the problem and cared enough to change the way they acted because of it
America would be a better place.