In a college curriculum, I like to think that the biggest thing to learn is self-worth. While there are other goals such as independence and teamwork, I feel as though the one seen the most in Ronald Takaki’s A Different Mirror. It 's seen at least once in each chapter and in the lives of the minority groups Takaki writes about and discusses. Each minority group in the chapters have been discriminated against in at least one way or another. Even a group of white people had been discriminated against and in today’s society, many people tend to dismiss that part of history. Despite each of these groups being discriminated against I feel as though they all somehow found a way to find their self-worth and fight back against the discrimination being directed towards them. I believe we can still see that in today’s society. While becoming more aware of your own self-worth, I also believe it is important to learn that others also mean something to the world and that they also have worth. In A Different Mirror many of the groups were discriminated against because they weren 't accepted into …show more content…
While the leaders of this movement publicly states that while they are saying that black lives matter they are not saying that other lives don 't. There are the groups in today 's society that, again, are only looking at their worth and not others. The hashtag "#AllLivesMatter" started just a few days after Black Lives Matter started and it was mostly being used by white people. I think that white people started that hashtag and their own movement because they didn 't like seeing that black people were finally realizing they were more than just people with colored skin. I feel as though knowing your own self-worth can cause problems or uneasy feelings to groups that see themselves as
We have been given a multitude of chances to take the lessons of our ancestors in stride and better ourselves from their experiences, but instead we choose to neglect our lessons and relapse into a society fueled by hatred. The act of dehumanization has been an ongoing reoccurrence throughout our tarnished history. It may change, and evolve into new levels of hatred. It has no bias; it will choose its victims between race, sex, social levels and many other faucets that most of us are born into. In short, the historical lessons of this course have taught me that if we wish to provide a better future for not only our generation but also the generations that are to follow us, then we must change the way that we treat others who are different than us. The best way we can achieve this goal is to learn from the lessons that have been so prevalent throughout our
A Different Mirror is the first chapter of the book “A Different Mirror” by Ronald Takaki. The chapter begins with the author, Ronald Takaki, describing an interaction with a cab driver. Takaki, an Asian-American, was asked by his cab driver what country he was from implying that because of his appearance there was little chance that Takaki was originally from America. This sets the tone for chapter indicating that some people do not share physical characteristics that are deemed “American,” but they very much are Americans.
The newly formed, Black Lives Matter movement, campaigns against violence towards black people. BLM regularly organizes protests around the deaths of black people in killings by law enforcement officers, racial profiling, police brutality, and inequality in the U.S. criminal justice system. The movement was the brain child of Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi that sprouted from the hash tag #BlackLivesMatter after the acquittal of George Zimmerman. BLM became nationally known for its street demonstrations following the deaths of two Black Americans: Michael Brown (Ferguson, Missouri) and Eric Garner (NYC, New York). However, unlike the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s, the Black Lives Matter movement is a decentralized network that has no formal structure. In a modern age where news spreads like wild fire, social media is the new base for discussion on racial bias, not only in the legal system, but rather, in society as a whole. Its because of this that the Black Lives Matter movement has been able gain immense support from the younger population and has been able to grow in such a short period of time. (Garcia, 2015.). In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement social media movement, the “All Lives Matter” movement gained headway as well. The Black Lives Matter campaign pertains particularly to
Black lives matter is a social media movement that went of the Ferguson, Gardner cases etc. Also very rapidly it was to show as a opposition to the police and cops. Somehow when saying black lives matter it was like saying all life matter don’t matter. It’s a touchy subject due to why people view things and for most case I can understand. I feel that the person that made black life’s matter didn’t mean for it to be just all about black life but to inform others around the nation that there is a special problem that is only happening in the African American community and we have fix that issue . we as a society has to recognize this that the African American are not making this up this its not something being politicalized its real and there’s a history behind it so we have to seriously.
This is a result of many believing and not simply just African Americans that black lives are being targeted more than any other race. In certain situations this is true according to The Washington Post “unarmed black men are 7 times more likely to die by police gunfire”. This would make a person who’s advocating for Black Lives Matter have a point to get upset about phrases like white lives matter or all lives matter. Race appears to forever become an element once it involves police brutality. When an African American is killed by a white police officer it almost always seems as it gets additional attention then when a Caucasian is killed. “In 2012, 123 African Americans were shot dead by police gunfire” (Brander). There are currently 43 million blacks living in the U.S.A., “O’Reilly said on his
One misconception of this movement is that it is a movement that says Black lives matter more than others. While this is not true, a large amount of people strongly agree with that statement. However, most of the people that disagree with this movement disagree because they are color-blind to the racism in the society. In actuality, according to Blacklivesmatter.com, “#BlackLivesMatter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society. Black Lives Matter is a unique contribution that goes beyond extrajudicial killings of Black people by police and vigilantes.” The BLM movement is not just about the killings of Black people it is about all the injustices all African Americans face. For example, when an African American walks through a parking lot there is an immediate reaction to make sure the car is locked because unconsciously people view African Americans as dangerous and scary. When a white person walks through a parking lot there is not the same reaction as there is for an African American. The BLM movement wants to eradicate the subtle color-blind racism as well as the blatant racism that is being displayed in the media. Another large misconception of the Black Lives Matter is that the people that are a part of the BLM movement do not care or consider black-on-black crime. The people that are a part of the BLM movement realize that there is a crime problem among black people; however, they do not believe that Black people are more violent than other races. The BLM movement says that because African Americans are in poorer communities compared to white people they are more susceptible to be targeted by police and arrested more often than
In Ronald Takaki’s A Different Mirror, it talks about the color line between blacks and whites. On page 49 it stated, “What struck the English most about Africans was their color. “These people are all black, and are called Negros, without any apparell, saving before their privities.” This relates going back to Article Three in Rethinking the Color Line first thing we notice about someone is their race. People get judged by the way they look, for the English mind the color black for them was bad for example, “deeply stained with dirt, “foul,” “dark or deadly” in purpose, “malignant,” “sinister,” “wicked.” In other words being black is a horrible thing as for the color white it signified purity, innocence, and goodness. Blacks and whites could never coexist in America. “The real
In My eyes it would be nice to see the “Black Lives Matter” movement disappear. We do not owe anyone in this country anything. We run on an economic plan called Capitalism. This means that everyone needs to work to earn. If black people want to say only their lives matter and that whites owe them everything then I think that they aren’t as appreciative about freedom than they should be. White people used to be slaves, but we do not say that anybody owes us. Many people would think that this is a “racist” statement, but this is not about just racism I am saying that
1. What is the argument of Ronald Takaki’s A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America? How does Takaki make that argument?
Black Lives Matter protesters are like the colonists, they are fighting for a change, while police officers and other officials that disagree with this movement and think it is absurd, are like the regiments sent from Britain who want the people to calm down, and to stop rebelling. Many people in the Black Lives Matter Movement are holding protests, some of these turning into riots, and other people, the more extreme ones, are doing harm to officers. This is creating havoc in the country. People are either choosing to stay neutral(all lives matter), go with blue lives matter(police lives matter), or the go with Black Lives Matter Movement. This is just like the neutralists vs. Britain/loyalists vs. patriots back in the American Revolution. Some of these protests are actually going on in schools. For example, in Buckeye, Arizona, there was a girl who wore a Black Lives Matter t-shirt and was told to take it off. But another kid, at the same school, wore a confederate t-shirt and wasn’t told anything. Now, the student, along with others, are protesting. People want a change just like how the colonists wanted a change. And some, sadly, want to get what they want, and they don’t care about bloodshed. The Black Lives Matter Movement group has settled down, not a lot of things concerning this group is on the news at this time besides a few protests, but if the
“An array of knowledges, skills, abilities and contacts possessed and used by Communities of Color to survive and resist racism and other forms of oppression” encompasses the main idea of Community Cultural Wealth. It is vital to understand that students will step foot into the classroom with a variety of cultures zipped up in their backpacks, and it is our job as educators to make sure that equality is instilled/taught in our classrooms. The second a student feels a sense of discrimination, whether from ourselves or their fellow classmate(s), is when the safe and comforting environment of the classroom begins to diminish. Here I will discuss just how important it is to see the differences amongst students as an advantage
African-Americans have experienced racism and discrimination throughout the course of history. After the Civil Rights Movement, blacks were finally given the constitutional rights that they deserved; however, social problems still exist today that negatively impact the African-American community. Black Lives Matter is the name of a social movement that was created in 2012 in response to the many unjustifiable actions that have taken place in the past, dealing with discrimination against blacks. This movement seeks to put a spotlight on the racism that still exists within society and affects many black people today.
Whenever you hear about an African American getting killed by the United States police, you never see All Lives Matter supporters protesting. The intentions of the All Lives Matter movement seem to be more spiteful, as opposed to helpful. Every time African Americans yell “Black Lives Matter”, outrage from other racial groups tends to emerge as they yell “All Lives Matter” back. It seems like the All Lives Matter movement is more of a tug a war game with Black Lives Matter, rather than an activist organization designed to bring cognizance to police abuse. If All Lives Matter is based on justice for everyone, supporters of the group would understand that African American people are treated like second class citizens in the judicial system. Therefore, the black community created Black Lives Matter to stop the United States police from murdering them. All Lives Matter was designed to disregard the inequity of African
I believe this is a very relevant topic today since prejudice and discrimination has become the leading issue of violence. The goal of this type of education is to teach the students that they have worth and can learn. It is a very positive subject matter when considering the benefits of implementing this type of education into a school system. This type of education encourages students of a diverse background to have a positive self-identity, pride in their heritage, accept others with diverse backgrounds, and promote social justice against prejudice and discrimination. Teachers can change the conversation in their classrooms by adding spontaneous and relevant content to their curriculum that both promotes multiculturalism and connects with the students. I believe a big part of making a change in our society today is by ‘changing the conversation’ whether that is about discrimination or another important issue. Teachers can step in at a very early age and promote feelings of self-worth and encourage the students to accept each other aside from cultural
Now that we have explored my past, present, and future experiences with diversity, it is time to see how they are present within and effect each other. Firstly, let’s look into how my future is present in my past. The most obvious portion of my future that is in my past is my willingness and efforts to love and include everyone and to spread this world view. It took a fellow classmate of mine to demonstrate to my third grade self that we are all human beings and we all deserve to be treated as such. In my future, I aspire to demonstrate this world view to my students and inspire them to treat each other accordingly. This aspiration directly reflects my world view struggles I went through in third grade, for I want to help my students come to