Pre-Reading Week 5: Racism Still Unchangeable

• I think racism still occurs because of the inequality of different race when it comes to having the power. As we've discussed in class the definition of racism, racism=power and prejudice. Other racial groups can be bigots but they can't be racist because they don't have the power to be one. While whites are considered racist because they have the power even though they didn't want to consider themselves as racist. 
• The commentators thought that after an African American was elected to become the president of the United States 'racism is dead'. I think they thought that because it's the first African American president that racism would stop and because individuals are not used to people of color like Obama being in a power. As we defined racism being power+prejudice, people think that it violated the real meaning if racism. As oppose to commentators saying 'racism is dead', Dr. Apollon argued that it's not literally dead just because an African American is in power in the United States it doesn't mean that racism is dead. With the ongoing issues of inequality and opportunities given to different race and immigrants different from the whites, then racism is still ongoing in our society. 
• I believe that being racist is not about individual meanness but with the group and the power of the whites have. It's basically about the color of an individual or the race of an individual. The whites are the only ones that can be racist because they are the only ones that have the power. Any race can be bigots about other race but they can't be racist because again racism contains power and prejudice without the power a person or a group can't be racist. I would probably say that to the person that said 'Oh, I don't see color, I just see people individually' that it is the color of the individual. If you're white then you are considered as racist because of the power that they have. I'm not pin-pointing that all whites are racist but based on the discussions in class then whites are considered racist. 
• Diversity is basically about different race and ethnicity living in a community like in San Francisco there can be Whites, African Americans, Asians, Indian Americans, and many more different race. Structural privilege is like an unearned privilege given to whites or males in the community. They are the first pick in opportunities like education, jobs, and resources. The doors are open for them easily while other diverse cultures are set on the 'difficulty level' of the game. 
• I think the parents' idea about the undocumented students should get a 'free lunch' is fair because even though they're undocumented they should get the same opportunity like the documented students. Parents might tell their kids to ignore the issue to be tolerant about the problem. Social justice in this country is tolerated because if the law accept students to have a 'free lunch' then their making action about the inequality but because the parents argues and talks about it then I think the government or the people in power are tolerant. 
• When the people described diversity it almost tied up with the racial differences and the structural privileges. For me diverse is different but I guess in this reading it refers to a non-white race. 

 Word Count:  428

Post Reading Week 4: Privilege

Section 1
This week we discussed about having the privilege especially male and white privilege and with the activity that we did in class this Wednesday I felt like in some categories I don't belong and felt lost, thinking about if I should step forward or backward with some of the questions in the activity. Some of the topics about privileges are class/income, gender issues, cis gender, race/ethnicity, religion, and age. For class/income, if your ancestors or parents own more than 50 books growing up then they have the white privilege. The same issue with cis gender, females can't peacefully walk alone at night because they feel inferior to other gender especially males while males can freely walk by themselves at night. In the McIntosh P. White reading it was listed that the standard band aid color would be the color of the flesh (flesh=white flesh). Concerning with the race and ethnicity ancestors were forced to move around and with the public utilities people of color are always the last on to use them or sometimes they are separated with the whites. I think the band aid standard was ridiculous because the band aid is suppose to cover the wound unnoticeable but the standard color is "white flesh" how can the people of color use the band aid when it's not the same complexion as their skin. I find the male privilege interesting because I didn't notice that women tend to pass by an open space and feel inferior while males tend to not care where to pass by or walk at night. Sexual Orientation is also one of the points that I didn't notice until we talked about it in class. People with same sex orientation doesn't have the right to marry. So overall, I think white privilege and male privilege are still accountable today even though to some individuals they're unnoticeable.

Section 2
Meritocracy is a simple simile for the "American Dream". The structural privilege is basically unearned privilege that can move a person or an individual into better circumstance like doors opening to them giving them opportunities. Meritocracy is believed to be achievable for everyone  but it's not because only whites and males can access the promised freedom, privilege, and opportunities. The structural privilege challenged the notion of meritocracy because it's not true to all of the people living in America.

Section 3
Jon Scalzi's "Game of Life" refers to privileges of different race and ethnicity. White people can choose the lowest level or the easiest level possible in the game, making their way to the highest level set in a game, while other race like people of color are automatically set to the difficulty level and not given the opportunity to start in the same level as whites do which then reflects to the structural or systematic privilege in the society. The McIntosh piece lists all the privileges a white male or whites can get without worrying about what other people think because they can be racist, having the power plus the privilege. In contrast to the whites, people of color and/or other minorities can't be racist because they don't have the power that whites possess.

Word Count: 530

Pre-Reading Week 4: Privilege

• Privilege for me is when you get to do something while some other people can't in your society and your community. For example, someone that has a VIP pass in a concert can get to visit the artist backstage whereas people that didn't purchase a VIP pass can't. Some examples in the society is when you're free to do your own will like practicing your own culture or beliefs or owning and managing your own business freely.
• White privilege means whites always comes first and they all have the access to anything while other people of color goes last on the hierarchy. It's like being white has its own disadvantage without earning them unlike people of color they had to work hard to earn what they can or they can't do. It also construct racial inequalities between white and people of color. Structural inequality I think refers to the white privilege; how the societal racial inequalities were in the past. Whites get all the privilege while the other race doesn't get most of the privilege like the white privilege. Structural inequality can also mean unequal opportunities and jobs in the society, where white gets to own their own business while people of color struggles to work in the farms owned by white rich people. The Advantage of having the white privilege is they are free to do whatever they want in their own country. Also, the whites can get to vote, have an education, and to own business while people of color and other race other than white only can work for the whites and can't contain educational background. The disadvantages of white privilege for the white is nothing I guess? but for the people of color all the disadvantages lies on their back. 
• Racism for me is about people of different races wanting a separation form different races and inequality amongst people of color. I think racism ties with the white privilege because of the social construct that white are on the highest level of hierarchy while blacks/people with color are on the bottom of the social hierarchy. Racism can be linked to the definition of privilege because by separation of race and the inequality of opportunities and roles between the white and the people of color. 
• I'm not sure about people of color being racist because I've never encountered that question before so I think they can be racist because they are their own race like the white people. They can be separated with the whites also if they wanted to be separated with them. 
• Whites have some advantages in the U.S. because they thought that they have been here before other racial groups and they controlled the U.S. before so because of that they are free to do whatever they wish and have an advantage than other minorities living and migrating in the U.S.
• Racism is not stable or permanent like race and it changes over time with the influences of the society as a whole. In Colonial America, separation and racism is a big issue with white being able to control and have the power while minorities doesn't. At the beginning of the 20th century, people started to become more equal as we approach democracy. 

Word Count:  539

Latino as a Race and Ethnicity

• Hattman stated that because of the barrier between the race and ethnicity, people confuses themselves into what ethnicity and race should they be in and sometimes forcing them to be in a race that they don't define theirselves into. Race is bioligical and immutable while ethnicity is defined as fluid and malleable. The difference between the two is given in Hattman's dicussion about the directive 15; how the census counts people numerically and socially based on their status in America. Hattman argues that we should remove the barrier that differentiates ethnicity to race but being aware of the drastic change and the complex ways of the change itself. I agree to Hattman because it's unfair how the "Latinos" are not considered a race just because they didn't come from one race and they have shared views of the world. In class, I notice that one of the student when we did the census check the "Other Race". It doesn't really show what his race is while others confidently check their race because they know they belong in that type of race.
• The Census started to take place in 1790 when whites were the superior group of people (with their three different choices like Males of Sixteen years and upwards, Males under sixteen, and Females including heads of families). Free white rich men can count as one vote and when slavery is common. The census needed the slaves count because they're counted as 3/5 of the vote. Then in 1930 census Immigration in Southern and Eastern Europe became common like Irish, British, Romanian and etc. The 1930 census asks for "color of the race", "place of birth", and "mother tongue" because the real whites wanted to be separated with the immigrants from Europe who considered themselves as racially white. In the 2000 census, it became more complex because of the Hispanic, Spanish, or Latino ethnicity and race. At first an individual is asked about if are you Hispanic, Spanish, or Latino in ethnicity and if so what's your race and Latino is not included with the choices. 
• Probably I will suggest to check their ethnicity first then tell them to check other race because I don't want to force them in checking a race that they don't feel comfortable about or they don't want to belong with in that certain race. I'm probably going to say to check the 'Some Other Race' box so that they won't feel the force of checking white or indian or african american. 
• The three approaches of Flores about in understanding the Latino community are demographic, analytic, and imaginary. Demographic is about the the numerical count of each Latino individual and also the census is under the demographic approach. In analytical approach Flores argues about immigration and labor market of the Latino community. And in the Imaginary approach he argues about the Latinos' personal identification; of what race they identify themselves in. It is important that we look at these three approach to show how the Latinos can be considered as a race that can be marked in the census as a race and not an ethnicity only.
• Hispanic came from Spain while Latino is considered as mestizo, which a mix of Spanish, American Indian, and African American. As a society as a whole Hispanics and Latino are the same with their culture and beliefs and it's not because of white racism but because they clasify themselves as Latinos and not Hispanics. 
• The census reflects on the racial categories in the United States including non-whites and of mix color by naming mostly of the race that are found here in America except for Latino and because they classify Latino as an ethnicity and not race. I think the census right now doesn't clearly make racial categories here.

Word Count: 631

Post Reading Week 2

• Race involves people with the same physical characteristics, a social construction, and can't be changed unlike ethnicity. Race is determined in physical characteristics and is defined as an identity of a person. Ethnicity on the other hand is group of people that share the same history and culture within the population. Also, ethnicity is changeable, meaning if a person choses to stop believing in atheist then they can change into being a catholic or any religion possible and now one is going to judge that person. Ethnicity is a feeling of "being in a certain group that believes in one point or another."
• Yes my beliefs changed since I watched the video and discussed in class. I thought race was biologically real but it's not because people assume that they are in the same genetic code of a person that has the same race as them but they thought wrong because they have an interracial blood from other parts of the world they thought they wouldn't have. For example, mitochondrial test of DNA can prove that people can be part chinese even though they didn't have any characteristics of a chinese person. In addition to, I thought people in the past didn't practice eugenics but in the video and class discussion, it's one of the biggest point that white supremacy has taken place before. Also, I thought Latino/a is a race but it's not classified as race. 
• Race and Ethnicity can have similarities and differences but mostly they can be interchangeable and I think thats why people can be confused of what is race and ethnicity. Some individuals gets confused because they don't know that meaning and the differences between race and ethnicity.
• I think race affects people because of the power the society influences. Whites are in the higher hierarchy of the class level while Blacks on the other hand is in the lower level of an American hierarchy. Furthermore, whites get to identify and define people because they're always thought of being powerful and potent. Immigrants or other racial identities thought that being white can get them more benefits than being an inferior minority. I think everyone has the right to identify themselves because it's a free country, it's their own identity, and people are the ones who know what race and ethnicity they are qualified in. 
• The society sometimes tend to pin-point the race of a person without asking a person what race do they identify themselves as, basing on the physical structure or the skin color of the person and their capabilities of being superior in actions (like Blacks tend to win over the Whites in a run race because they are genetically fit for the sport) which tends to lead in racism and/or oppression. Also, whites get to identify race because of the power that they posses in the level of hierarchy. 
• Racism is a belief that a person of certain race can be superior in a certain activity or thing. For example, Asians tend to excel in Math, Blacks tend to be superior in running etc., while ethnocentrism is somewhat the same as racism except the people are comparing the superiority between the culture, behavior, and religion. 
• Asians tend to be smarter in Math and Science than other race. Indians tend to work more on computers like information technology in Silicon Valley. Whites tend to lose over blacks in a race. Whites are better in swimming than any other race.
• My race would be Asian or Pacific Islander (I'm not actually sure about this). My ethnicity would be Filipino. My nationality would be Immigrant. Yes I think that these categories match what I identify myself in because all of them are true and these categories I think of myself as. 
• In Abdulrahim, I classify the article as racial identification as linked to power and oppression because the Arab American that classifies himself as "white" believes that he would contract power and benefits for declaring his race as "white". In Strum's article, race as a social construct made by the society to identify how Cherokee a person is by their practice of religion, language, and social behavior. Also, an Indian American can be classified as a Cherokee on how he looks which people believed in on how to classify a person as a Cherokee. 

Word Count: 626

Pre-reading Week 2

• I define race is based on color of an individual. It's more like a classification of individuals in a certain place. Also human beings can be define based on their color, physical characteristics (e.g. short, tall, hair color, skin complexion, etc.)
• African-Americans (people that originated from Africa or their background history is from Africa). Asian-Americans like Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Thailand, Malaysian, etc. (minorities migrated from the Pacific Ocean and Middle Eastern part of the globe). Latino-Americans (group of individuals that came from the southern part of America). Chicanos are also preferred as U.S. citizens of Mexican decent. White (I see this every time I fill out an application and it's always the first choice in the given choices of ethnicity or race; Whites that are from north east part of the the globe).
• Certain individuals can also be in a race if they share the same skin color, hair color, physical features, and characteristics. Some people can  be in two different culture or can speak two different language. A person can be half-half in their race, meaning the person's mother can be Filipino and his/her dad can be White.
• I think categorizations vary from society to society, it might depend on their beliefs about the race or the culture of group of individuals. I originally grew up in the Philippines and migrated to United States when I was 14 years old and for me it seems that the classification system is the same. 
• Ethnicity of a certain individual can be based on their share of common culture, beliefs, religion, language (mother tongue). 
• I'm not sure about the difference between the race and ethnicity but i strongly suggest that race is about physical characteristics like hair color, skin color, height or other characteristics that can define a person in a certain group. In contrast to, ethnicity is about cultural characteristics and their beliefs.
• For my race as a Filipino decent, I have black hair, tan skin color (sometimes other people categorizes Asians that have yellow skin, but not because they have Hep A or B it's just in their genes to have yellowish skin tone). As for my ethnicity as a Filipino, we strongly believe in religion and Christ/Jesus as holy figure, the one that we worship. 
• Sometimes people do tend to think that I'm half Chinese and half Filipino because I don't have a tan skin tone. In some occasion they identify me as Filipino which is the correct race or ethnicity. People that identified me correctly as a Filipino probably new how the Filipinos look like and have an understanding or an overview of the culture and beliefs of Filipinos.

Word count:441

Post-Reading 1

• By reading the essay about the strike at San Francisco State University, it gave me a clearer point of view of the importance of Ethnic Studies in our lives. Not only the minorities but whites as a whole. 
• Yes. With the Arizona state, House Bill 2281, government are trying to ban books that promotes the overthrow of U.S. government because the 'whites' or Americans didn't want minorities or other ethnicities to think that they're the bad people. In some case like history books, there are some part about the minorities but mostly about 'whites and their good deeds'.  As I can see today there are some similarities of what the students faced in 1968 and today. With the students' stand on criticism about the studies on their own race and color, they mostly achieved the freedom to study history on their own culture and to cultivate their race but not all. 
• Ethnic studies is basically the study of variety of one's culture and history. It wants to articulate the respect that we and other race are suppose to implement on minorities. Ethnic studies course is also a way to understand minorities coming in this country, not only by their culture but also by their values as a human being. As the government criticizes higher lever of education, minorities are not given the chance to study or have a better education and as people with their own culture steps into the middle class level they took a stand for their own freedom to teach and learn their own culture. 
• Legislators of House Bill 2281: Okay we'll give you your freedom to study and teach your values except you have to follow these rules: Do not use teachings that overthrows the U.S. government, Do not implement resentment of your own race, Only minorities of that culture can learn in class, and Do not advocate ethnic solidarity. 
• 1986 student on strike: That's still unfair for minorities. 
• My past history classes were about the U.S. government or the good deeds of the the United States itself. Rule number 3 would be violated in a traditional history class in high school or in college because if only people who are white can learn the in the class then why does the government or school facility allows minorities to learn U.S. history, which is a pre-requisite or general education in order to graduate. For rule number 1 it is appropriate because it doesn't implement the overthrow of the United States government. For rule number 2, it doesn't promote a resentment toward a race or class of people. Also, for rule number 3, a history class is not an example of ethnic solidarity and students's are treated as individuals.
• Horne is opposed to teaching ethnic studies at Tucson Unified School District because it separates minorities within their own ethnic group because of rule number 3 in the House Bill 2281, which also creates outraged and anger by other race. Also, he wants students to learn diverse culture and race.
• Dyson's argument is about how Ethnic Studies constitutes White-American history. Horne only targeted Chicano studies and not other race. Also, Dyson argues that White-Americans benefit from ethnic studies of other culture (E.g. Civil War). 
• Some of the benefits in taking ethnic studies course are to know other's culture and history of struggles in order to give some respect to why people do what they do in their culture. By ethnic studies, student's can also learn more about the struggles to fight for democracy, minorities right and freedom (e.g. Martin Luther King Jr. Cesar Chaves, etc.)
• My take on the controversy is there's nothing wrong about taking Ethnic Studies class. It's a way for me and for other students with diverse culture to learn about the social injustices that was present in the past and I would like to learn about who and how we got democracy in this country that we and other minorities benefit from. 

Word count: 658

Pre-reading 1 Re-do

• Ethnic Studies based on the name itself is a study of racial profile and ethnicity of diverse people with different kinds of culture. Ethnic Studies can be similar to sociology and anthropology because it relates to the study of discipline amongst individuals with different culture and traditions. 
• Ethnic Studies was developed as a discipline to illustrate the struggles, stories, and success of people with their own color. It's unique because students get to know how racial profiling can affect people's lives. Also, Ethnic Studies illustrates the history of people with color, like Martin Luther King Jr. I'm interested in tackling other racial discrimination about Asian-Americans and Latino-Americans.
• I think everyone benefits from an Ethnic Study course because after taking this course, students have a better knowledge of the triumph and the sacrifices for civil rights and freedom for African-Americans, Latino-Americans, Asian-Americans and for all immigrants. Also, with the students better understanding of Ethnic studies, they learn how to respect each culture in a diverse country. 
• Arizona and other states are considering banning Ethnic studies because the government feels that it promotes the overthrow of the U.S. government and it also promotes resentment to a specific race. 
• It helps Mexican-American decent or other ethnicity prove their self-esteem in the class. Also, Ethnic studies provides knowledge of an individual's own culture and their heritage. While others believe that it made students that doesn't belong to the culture uncomfortable. Students who weren't Mexican-American decent are uncomfortable discussing ethnic studies because they might feel 'out-of-place' or they're race might be the reason of racial discrimination that happened a long time ago. 
• Probably Americans or other race may be resistant to teaching Ethnic Studies because it doesn't enhance their own culture but it teaches other cultures. The groups that may be in favor of ethnic studies are groups that have different race like African-American, Latino-American, Filipino-American, Asian-American and other ethnicities because this studies is also a way to know more about oneself's culture and also to gain knowledge about other cultures as well. This question I'm not sure about and I'll be able to find this answer at my Ethnic Studies class. 
• The benefit of learning history through ethnic studies is understanding more of the different cultures around us. A diverse country like us should be more aware of some cultures that we can interact with and socialize with. The drawbacks of this studies might be if students learn about other race's culture, they might take advantage and make an issue or discrimination big. 

Word Count:419