Sometimes it takes us human beings to experience our lows before we appreciate our highs in life. For Mona Ruiz, this became true when she had accomplished her dream of becoming a police officer for the Santa Ana Police Department. She had gone through many struggles such as with education, physical abuse, racism, and gang affiliation. Nevertheless she prevailed and outdid her peers, regardless of what they thought of her. She has recently written an astonishing autobiography, Two Badges: The Lives of Mona Ruiz with co-author Geoff Boucher. It describes her dramatic life living in the barrio and how although she might have associated herself with the wrong crowd, she set aside the ridicule and went to pursue a career most of her friends would
Kody Scott was born into the gang life weither he liked it or not. Born on 1963 in South Central Los Angeles Kody?s life would be affected by the growing number of gangs inevitably. Kody knew he had a choice to be made, be a gang member or be a pedestrian. He viewed pedestrians as spineless nerds who were always victims of someone?s ridicule or physical violence, who never responded to an affront of any type. He himself had a taste of pedestrian life in grade school were he was picked on and had his lunch money taken from him. ?Early on I saw and felt both sides of the game being played where I lived. It was during my time in elementary school that I chose to never be a victim again, if I could help it?(Shakur 100). Being in a gang gave Kody a feeling of security in a city of violence. ?I felt very different, older, more attached than any of...
The Influences of Sor Juana and Julia de Burgos Most every human being has encountered a time in their life when he or she has felt suppressed. However, not every person has stood up against the people and forces that have kept them oppressed. It takes a truly extraordinary person to stand up for themselves and to take a stand for the greater good of others. According to Clare Booth Luce: “courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount.” The Mexican writer, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz and the Puerto Rican writer, Julia de Burgos, acknowledged the fact that they were suppressed by the male gender.
Family History I chose to do my interview with my aunt Rosa Emilia Molina. I chose my aunt because she is someone that I always talk to and look up to. I had never really heard of her past or how it was when she grew up. My aunt was born in Choluteca, Honduras, on June 8, 1949. Although my aunt is not from Europe or the United States, there was still plenty going on in Honduras.
Chapter one focuses mainly on the patterns of punishment expressed on Black and Hispanic boys. He begins the chapter by describing a young Hispanic boy’s negative experiences on the streets of his neighborhood with the police as something that occurs
Growing up in a more privileged environment things may come easier to one. But one should not be surprised of those that are in a less fortunate situation that are not able to reach certain heights, compared to someone from a more privileged back ground. Even if one is not in the best environment, they are able to make a choice to keep fighting for a better life. In the podcast “Three Miles” that is exactly the attitude described from a girl name Raquel, on the other hand Melanie froze her life doing what she thought she deserved. Though Raquel and Melanie had similar backgrounds in that they were raised in the same poor neighborhood and attended the same indigent high school, in the end Raquel was able to succeed in her life after getting denied a Posse scholarship, whereas Melanie worked in a supermarket for ten years, feeling that was as good as it was going to get.
Bianca Mendoza was a teen that was trafficked. She first met the man whose name is Ariel Guizar on social media, they got in touch and she soon ran away to him thinking that they were gonna have a relationship. But, he started abusing her and sooner forced her to prostitute. He wouldn't let her leave and told her he would shoot anyone that tried to pick her up. During the second year she was prostituting for over 20 guys a day. After a total of 2 years she escaped and Ariel Guizar was arrested.
Anna Ramirez is a mother of two sons and is divorced. She is the youngest out of seven siblings and only her and two others are alive today. Both her parents passed away from natural diseases. Anna left home young, graduated high school early and has a degree in accounting. Her hobbies include, reading, cleaning, garden work, listening to music, smoking and drinking with friends. Music is a big part of her life, it's how she copes with the day’s issues. There was never a day that music did not play in her house. From MC Magic to Miley Cyrus, she loved it all. Anna has three tattoos, one being a cross symbolizing her divorce and the other two are her son's names. Only being 5’1, you would think she is weak but Anna is stronger than most and
The causes of the Progressive Era can be good and can be bad.The causes of the Progressive Era is the Bribery and corruption in politics and political machines. It resulted to very poor working conditions and poor living conditions. They had discrimination against women.They also had a rise of crime in the cities during the urbanization in America, and child labor and the need for improved education.
How was Selena so successful in her music career? Known as "Queen of Tejano Music," Selena was a beloved Tejano music recording artist. Born on April 16, 1971 in Lake Jackson, Texas, Selena Quintanilla started making her music and the band in the '80s. Selena was a lead singer for her family's band, Selena Y Los Dinos, around the age of 10. Going on to become an award-winning recording artist in the Latin music. She was also referred to as the "Mexican Madonna" for her sexy outfits and dance moves.
Maria Izquierdo was born in 1902. She was born in in San Juan de los Lagos, Jalisco, however, she spent her childhood in Torreon, Coahuila. She got married in 1916 at age 14 but shortly divorced in 1927 eleven years later. She went to school at the San Carlos Academy of Mexico city, where she was taught by Manuel Toussaint and Rufino Tamayo in 1928. After this, she enrolled in the National College of Visual Arts, but she was still also being taught by Manuel Toussaint and Rufino Tamayo until 1933. "Information about María Izquierdo, Great Mexican Painter." Explorando México. Explorando Mexico, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
In Judith Ortiz Cofer’s, The Myth of the Latin Woman, I believe she is reliable and that she is not fabricating or over-exaggerating her experiences in her memoir because she is writer, autobiographer, poet, and etc. This will give people the counter claim that because she is a writer she is going to fabricate a story, however, I do not agree with that. My first reason why I don’t agree with that is because everything she spoke happens to many races and women either people are to ignorant to realize that this happens to minorities in the US or have never experienced for themselves. Her story shines a vast light on the stereotypes Latin women and women in general have experienced.
My life, it has been one filled with many accomplishments, and yet it is also one that is tinged with hard times and struggles. Hence this has shaped who I am today and why I think I can succeed in the Leon S. Peters Honors program; because I believe our struggles shape our character, and who we will become. It leads us to our epiphany, our self-discovery of what we want to accomplish in life, and why we want to change the world for the better; this is the building block of what makes us human.
Growing up in a country where girls are constantly advised to be doctors, nurses, educators, and any other profession except law enforcement motivated me even further in accomplishing just that. Even as a little girl I simply could not ignore the violence, corruption, and inequality that affected my country; I wanted to fight the violence that brought misery to many, and bring justice to those who desperately deserved it. My goals of pursuing a career in criminal justice were constantly struck down and criticized throughout the years. However, once an impossible dream became a reality when I immigrated to the United States, the land of opportunity. Though my hope was restored, living and adapting to an unfamiliar environment with no family or support proved to be yet another obstacle. Witnessing my parents struggle to adapt, feeling helpless, and confused to provide us a better life has been an immense source of inspiration that drives me to seize every opportunity as it were my last.
Novels like The Chosen Place, The Timeless People' and 'Praisesong for the Widow, have one thing in common and that is the lead character is a African American woman. When we think of racism we think of the whole population, but we see a majority of males; therefore we neglect the female perspective. In these novels, it shows racial oppression in colonial invasion and going back to their roots. In the novels it is either connect with your past or be destroyed their location on Carriacou, off Grenada which is East of the Caribbean and closest to Africa. Which among these places have “long painful histories of slavery and colonialism, manifest both physical and temporal characteristics which seem to demand a kind of settling accounts” (The Chosen
Liz Murray is one person, who has demonstrated overcoming obstacles in her life. Liz didn’t always have a great life. When she was just a child, her parents were addicted to drugs. There would be days where her parents, took the money for food and bought drugs instead. By age 15, Liz decided that she had had enough. She realized that the only way out, was to break the cycle in her life." I was re-creating a cycle, and something had to change.” So she left. After Liz moved out, she enrolled in an alternative high school. This step was a changing point in her life.