Honestly, I understand more why people want to come to this country and what makes them want to come here illegally. There are so many opportunities that a lot of people wouldn’t be able to get in the countries from which they came. I also think it’s really shocking what these people are willing to give up in order to come here. They risk not seeing their families and legal consequences. I know how it’s so easy for many Americans that already live here to think that these people are coming here to ruin the country, and how they need to get into the country like how everyone else would get into the country. But the United States is very strict about letting people come into the country and they basically try to keep the people who don’t have money out of the country. Also a lot of people don’t realize that the positives outweigh the negatives and that many of the people who come here illegally come here, work hard, pay taxes, and don’t get benefits. While we can’t just let people into the country whenever we want, I think that the government is wasting a lot of money and time trying to “secure the border”. If people desperately want to come here, they will find a way to come here and I don’t think that enforcing the borders is going to do much against the will of desperate people. I also think that there is a fair amount of racism in this country. They always tell us that they protect the borders so that they can keep people out of the country who don’t belong here. However, there aren’t nearly as many efforts being made against securing our border with Canada. There are efforts being made in Arizona saying that if someone looks like they could potentially be an “illegal immigrant”. But there aren’t any efforts being made in Michigan or Minnesota or New York that encourage the profiling of Canadians. What do Canadians look like? They’re white and, for the most part, you probably wouldn’t even be able to tell the difference between a lot of Canadians and a lot of Americans. I think that it would be extremely unfair if we were going to start profiling against people who “aren’t supposed to be here”. There were a few people in my town that self identified as “illegal immigrants” to people who they knew pretty well. A lot of times when someone starts off a story talking about the girl who says she’s illegal, people automatically assume she’s Mexican or Guatemalan or El Salvadorian. Which is probably why when people meet this self identifying “illegal immigrant”, they’re surprised that she is a blond haired, blue eyed, Canadian.

I think that it’s really sad that we don’t acknowledge the fact that the land that we live on is stolen. A lot of kids learn in school about what happened to the Native Americans, but the schools that we learn that the Native Americans were taken away from their land, but we rarely are taught that the Native Americans were murdered and forcibly removed from their homes. We don’t really learn about how the tribes were split up and their communities were destroyed. Obviously, it’s easy for all of us to sit here and say that what happened to the Native Americans was bad. However, we can’t actually sympathize because none of us really know what it’s like to be removed from land that had been ours for many years.
It’s also quite sad that we barely know about the struggles of Native Americans today. There is a huge amount of hate crimes committed against Native Americans is staggering, but what’s probably worse is that the crimes committed against Native Americans are committed mostly by white people. That just shows how much we haven’t let them assimilate. Native Americans are also the poorest demographic in the country and it’s their land. We are all so ignorant to their problems and we just don’t give proper attention to the problems of Native Americans. They have high rates of alcoholism and drug use and domestic abuse and most people don’t even know it. In class, we voted and saw that most people don’t know a lot about life on the Indian reservations. Which is understandable. I don’t know much about life on the Indian reservations, in fact, I don’t know much about it other than what I read in high school literature and movies I’ve seen with Tonto. I never really grew up with kids who were Native American and the ones that I knew didn’t live on the reservation, so they didn’t know much. I honestly think that we need to be more in tune with how the Native Americans are living. Considering that no one knows anything about life on the reservation, it’s difficult for people to hear about it. We neglect the very people whose land it was before we got here. I think that someone needs to address it because there should be some kind of recognition towards these people because they are suffering and no one really knows about it. I think that it’s honestly terrible that some people still think that Indian reservations are Indians living in teepees with huge headdresses and bows and arrows. It’s time that people today start recognizing the problems of native Americans considering that our country took so much from them.

I can’t imagine possibly figuring out how many innocent people it is “acceptable” to kill before you finally get the bad guy. In an idealistic world, no innocent people should be killed. It makes me wonder why these people are being killed? Are they just in the wrong place at the wrong time? Was it carelessness on the part of our soldiers? Was their identity mistaken for someone else? Or were these people being profiled? Were these people living their everyday lives and providing for their families when all of a sudden, men came barging into their homes believing that they were finally catching the right guy? I’ll probably never know the answer to that. But it also makes me think about the men and women who are fighting this war. Currently I know, very well, two men who are Marines. One just became a Marine while the other one has been in Afghanistan since February of 2010. They have very different view points on the war and clearly have different levels of experience with the war. The one who just became a Marine recently was very excited to go to war. He comes from a military family where his father and both of his older brothers have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. I remember one day at lunch, he said that he was “excited to go to war so he could kill people.” That stuck with me for a very long time. In fact, after he said that, I can’t look at him the same. How is that acceptable? How is it acceptable to have the ideal that you want to go to war, you want to invade a foreign country and “kill people”? I’m not saying that people don’t get killed in wars. Of course they do. I always thought that soldiers went to war to protect and defend their country and its ideals. I never thought of war as having the objective of “killing people”. So I think that through knowing him, I believe that the reason why the 29:1 ratio is so high is because of people like him who carelessly kill people. Then, on the other hand, there’s the other Marine who comes from a military family as well. Except his brother was killed in action in 2009. So his viewpoint is very different. This Marine has been my best friend since I knew what friends were, so I trust him more than I trust most people. So when he told me a few nights before he was deployed that he was nervous that he “would accidently fuck something up”, I knew what that “something” was. He was afraid of accidentally killing someone or killing someone who didn’t need to die. So there are some people in our military that I believe are not trying to go over there just to “kill people” and take pride in their mission. But I think that the military coming out and establishing a 29:1 ratio shows that the people in charge in our military think more like the soldier who just wants to “kill people” than my friend.

I never really feel uncomfortable about people speaking a different language around me. I grew up with a Spanish speaking nanny, so she taught me a lot of words in Spanish, although the one I really remember is the word “Cuidado”. I always heard people speaking in different languages and people speak Patois, which is a Jamaican form of spoken English. I find it really interesting when people speak different languages and I always like to stop and take a listen to what they’re saying because I’m intrigued. I love that there are people out there who can speak another language; I think it’s really awesome. I always love to hear people and learn. I actually want to become fluent in French. So I really respect and admire people who speak another language.
I don’t understand why people are uncomfortable around people speaking a different language or people who have an accent. I think it’s really unfortunate that people think that people who don’t speak English are “uneducated” or “dumb”. That irritates me. I think that if people are fluent in another language, they’re probably even in many ways more intelligent than someone who monolingual. Also, people who are afraid of people or uncomfortable around people who speak another language probably just don’t have the experience with those people. I really think that people who speak a different language have so much to offer and there are many different ways in which we can interact that would be beneficial for both parties involved.
There are some instances when I do get a little frustrated and it can get a little irritating when people are speaking a different language. I find it a little irritating that when you’re at a business (my only experience with this is when I go to the nail salon.) and you almost feel like the ladies who work there are talking about you. So one day, before prom, me and all of my friends went to the nail salon to get our nails done. I have one friend who was born in South Korea and understands and speaks Korean. When we first got there, the lady directed a question at my friend in Korean, but my friend ignored her and pretended not to know what she said. The woman then asked her again in very proficient English, “Do you speak Korean?” My friend shook her head, lying, curious to hear what these women had to say and replied with “No, I’m not Korean, I’m Chinese.” We then went and got manicure and pedicures for prom while the women joked and laughed in their native tongue. After we left, we asked our friends what they said and she said they were basically complaining about how we were a group of ungrateful, spoiled American white kids and how much they hate their jobs.

As someone who is the child of two biracial parents, and the girlfriend of a biracial guy, I don’t see anything wrong with dating outside your race. I think that you should just be with someone who makes you happy regardless of what their race may be. I’ve had lots of encounters with people who think that we should only date people who look like what they look like. To me, that’s just people who haven’t really experienced people of different races. People really have no idea what others have to offer until they get to know them better and making your comparisons based just off of race is superficial.
Also, in talking with others, especially white people who grew up in predominately white neighborhoods and communities, they find that it’s not that they don’t want to date outside of their race or that they dislike people that aren’t white, it’s just that they haven’t had the opportunity to meet them. This is completely different from people who don’t want to date outside their race. I understand that in predominately white areas, the people of color tend to gravitate towards each other, so I could understand how white people could be intimidated. However, in a more diverse setting here at Penn State, I think that people should be more open to the idea of an interracial relationship. A lot of people have ideas that like, “Oh because he’s black she won’t like me because I’m white.” Or, “because she’s Asian she won’t like me because I’m Hispanic”. I think that these are just insecurities within people because they really have no reason to think that these people wouldn’t be interested just because of the color of their skin. I think that if you have good intentions and if you are truly interested in this person, then you should go for it. Worst case scenario is that the person rejects you and if that’s the worst thing that happens to you all day, I’d say you still had a pretty good one.
In my experience of being in an interracial relationship, I think it’s rewarding and fulfilling. Not saying that there aren’t times where you get dirty looks, especially from older people, but overall it’s a good experience. You get to learn about someone who is different from you and you’ll also have a better understanding of what people of that race may face. But you’ll also see that the world isn’t completely tolerant of everything and that there will still be people, perhaps in your own family who will treat you or your significant other differently, so being in an interracial relationship forces you to recognize that there is such a thing as race and that it is prevalent in our everyday lives.

Growing up, I almost always had dolls that looked like me. I had the Christie Barbie doll and the Addie American Girl Doll. Every so often, I would get a doll with light skin, blue eyes, and blonde hair. I was never really offended by this, nor were my parents. When I was younger, I knew that the doll didn’t look like me, but I always thought that was the fun in having dolls. You could dress them up in ways that you didn’t normally dress or style their hair in ways that you normally wouldn’t wear your hair. Having dolls that looked different wasn’t something I was uncomfortable with or anything, in fact, I liked it. Sometimes I would ask for my mom to buy me white dolls and she did. I never thought that dark skinned dolls were “mean” or “ugly” or “evil”. Growing up in a multicultural household and environment, my family always stressed that all people of all colors are beautiful. I had black family, white family, and Latino family members. So seeing people with different skin tones, eye color, and hair textures is common for me.
I understand how kids can think that being dark is “bad”. From a very young age, we’re programmed to see that white represents good and purity while black represents evil and corruption. Also it’s common for people to associate people of color with crimes and that may have some kind of bearing on the thoughts of these children. Yet these kids were very, very young and probably don’t have much experience with the world. They only know what they see and hear others say. This is probably the most logical reason I can think of. Kids just learn by watching others and if their parents and other people that they spend time around are making comments about people of color, or if they see how many white people there are on television or in movies or in magazines, they start to form their own assumptions about people of color and white people.

I understand where this guy is coming from. But quite frankly, he’s irritating. He argues that the scholarship is for people who need money to go to school. He says that the people who would be benefitted the most are people who “don’t have money laying around for college”. Yet this doesn’t only include white males. While, obviously, there are white males who demonstrate financial need, there are scholarships open to all kinds of people who demonstrate financial need, leadership, and a desire to learn. The anchor is making good comments and she knows that the reasons why scholarships are available are to help groups that are typically at a disadvantage. White males do experience advantages that, like we discussed in class, they aren’t even aware of. The American society is so dominated by the white male that it becomes more and more difficult for other groups to gain power. Regardless of what he may think, he is a beneficiary of white privilege. This is why things like scholarships exist.
Also, this man noticed that there was a lack of money for white males, but race and gender aren’t the only factors that contribute to scholarships. If these students qualify for financial assistance, they can get a scholarship. If they demonstrate strong leadership abilities, they can get a scholarship. If they demonstrate great academic ability, they can get a scholarship. Even this man who started this charity after coming back from the war, there would be options for his college education to be paid for and it would have been paid for even if he wasn't a white male. Race and gender are not the only basis for creating scholarships. There are scholarships for people from different religions and scholarships that students can apply for just because their parent works for a certain company.

While I believe that I understand the question, I wouldn't venture so far out as to say that she is selfish. I would say, however, that it's not a smart move. If I was in an unfortunate situation, I wouldn't think it would be the best idea to have many children, but I wouldn't classify that as selfish. Like many have said before me, it's difficult to categorize people's actions as selfish, especially when you don't know the entire situation. Also, I don't think that selfish is the right word because I don't believe that having kids is selfish. When people have kids (when people WANT to have kids) they normally do it so they can be parents and to teach and make their children into responsible, functioning, and productive members of society. While there can be a certain amount of joy gained from having kids, I don't think that's the only reason to reproduce. While every case is different, I don't think that it can be said overall that just because people have a lot of kids and are of a lower socioeconomic status, it doesn't make them selfish. Sometimes it can even mean that they are uneducated about their sexual behaviors or even that they can’t pay for different methods of birth control like the pill or the shot. There are many contributing factors to why people have many kids other than just “they want to have kids. I think also that some people may have a lot of kids so that they would have a similar experience growing up as their parents did. I have a friend whose mom had 12 brothers and sisters. She said that there was always something going on in her house and they were a very close knit family. There was always someone to talk to and she said she always felt loved. Years later, she is the mother of 8 boys and they are living in a small house. She probably didn’t do this because she was selfish, but because she remembered how it was for her growing up and wanted her children to have the same experience.

It’s difficult to say why people are not aware of the things that are happening in the world in regards to slavery. It’s sad that we are as ignorant as we are; yet this isn’t entirely our fault. A large portion of this ignorance can be attributed to the media’s lack of zeal when it comes to covering topics that happen outside of the United States. A large majority of people watch the news to find out what’s going on that could potentially affect them and the way they live their lives. Very few people watch the news to gain international perspective and have a newfound appreciation for the affairs of other countries. It may seem like we’re getting news from other places, like Iraq and Afghanistan, but we’re getting news from there because we are fighting a war there. We heard about Egypt because President Obama encouraged Mubarak to peacefully step down. Many of the world events we hear about, we only hear about because there is some kind of American affiliation in the story. Many Americans are not very keen on seeing the world in through an international scope. Which is why we will never be able to successfully educate the masses of people here in the United States on the topic of modern day slavery, unless, of course, it starts happening everywhere our own backyards. It’s very easy for us to say “Well...that’s happening over there. I’m not over there. So what should I care?” In fact, we do that very often without realizing it. The only way that we will ever be able to make people more aware of the fact that slavery is still going on is if the media begins more thorough coverage of it and yet the only way for the media to give this issue the attention it deserves is if it becomes an issue that Americans are concerned about. It’s sad, but the media plays a very integral role in our beliefs and what we choose to pay attention to or disregard. Unfortunately, the issue of slavery is something that America, as a country, has neglected.

“I think that all the silence is worse than all the violence”. First of all, let me start off by saying that “Words I Never Said” is one of the best songs I’ve heard in a long time. Nonetheless, I think this quote is very much related to another quote I know from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He once said, “In the end, we will not remember the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” I learned this quote at a very young age because it was printed on one of the walls in my 3rd grade classroom. I think these two quotes have the same meaning. I think it means that there is always going to be violence in the world. Violence is inevitable, and no matter what changes we make, whatever laws we implement, it will always be there. However, whenever someone is experiencing violence or an act of hate, there should be no excuse for people that turn their head the other way or decide that this person’s struggle isn’t worth their time. On a small scale, it may seem reasonable. Yet when you have an entire country crying out for help, or any entire group of people who are in trouble, ignoring their pleas is, in a way, worse than whatever is actually happening to them. I think that when you’re in a long term situation where you or your people are being oppressed, all you want is relief and the best way for that relief to come is through the help of others.
One of the reasons why people tend to stay out of situations where they can advocate for others is because they are afraid. One of the lines in the Lupe Fiasco song immediately following “I think that all the silence is worse than all the violence,” is “fear is such a weak emotion, that’s why I despise it.” I think that Lupe is saying that people need to stop being afraid of the potential consequences for doing the right thing. I agree with him. I think that people who are in positions to change situations, should. Otherwise, your power is going to waste. Otherwise, you leave people with the scars of not only having to “bear the words of their enemies, but the silence of their friends.”