It's not all about winning...

article:

Palestinian women have been trying to fight for equality for women since the early 1920s; however, still after almost ninety years, “women are often considered secondary and their work without economic value” (el-Raifi). Since there are constant political problems with neighboring country, Israel, finding equality for women in Palestine seems like one of their last problems. Sexism in this extremely male dominated society is practically normal. Women are frustrated with these circumstances.

However, yesterday, Palestinian women definitely caught the world’s attention. For the first time ever, Palestinian women played an international soccer game, outside against Jordanian women. In the west bank, there were 10,000 screaming fans, men and women alike, cheering for a women’s soccer team. Women ran around the soccer field and ended up tying the game 2-2. Their coach, Rukayya Takrori said, “in our culture, Palestinian women work side by side with men in the fields and factories. They fight together, demonstrate together.” She then exclaimed, “Palestinian women can do everything--even football” (Kershner).

After I read this inspirational article, I started thinking that if a predominately, male-oriented society would allow and support women’s soccer, then how is it possible that still today in America, women are not treated completely as equals to men.American women play sports, vote, have successful jobs, take care of their children, and can even support themselves; yet, there are still subtle inequalities in our society. America too is still a highly patriarchal society.

For example, many people still believe that women should not study math or science. In schools, little girls are usually discouraged to study math and science, and are encouraged to study language arts. Although there are many female doctors in America, these women had to go against the norm throughout their schooling to get where they are today.

Sexism is also extremely common in the workplace. Women are still paid less than men in our society: “white females earn 73 cents for every dollar earned by a white male, according to a study released last month by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research in Washington, D.C” (Lewis 1). Also, women often have to deal with hearing sexist comments from fellow coworkers.

Women also are expected today to partake in homemaker activities and raising the children as their main priority, while these tasks are only somewhat important to men. Women are innately given these maternal attributes, while men are only seen as the money providers in the family. Mothers and fathers should play an equal role in their child's life. It is their child.

America is a progressive country, however to have such inequalities in our country still is very shocking. Americans should look to this story of the Palestinian women’s soccer team as inspiration and believe in what their coach said, women can do anything. Yes, in America we say we believe in this; yet, women must overcome the social norms in order to achieve what ever they want to. If Palestinian women can stand up for themselves and end this hierarchy of gender, the women of America can as well.




Palestinian Women

The inequality in the workplace
fromgaza

Critical Opinion #1

Article: Same-sex marriage battle moves to Maine By Emily Sherman, CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/25/maine.same.sex/index.html

Next week voters in Maine will vote whether or not they are in favor of the legislation signed by the current governor of Maine, John Baldacci, allowing same sex couples to get married. If this legislation is overturned, gay couples in Maine who as of now can get married and legally share the same rights as heterosexual couples will no longer be able to. Governor Baldacci states that this legislation “comes down to a fundamental understanding of equal protection and constitutional responsibility.” I agree with the governor and am in favor of same sex marriages. Without the recognition of a legal marriage, gay couples cannot enjoy the rights given to heterosexual married couples such as Social Security benefits, family insurance coverage, visiting rights to a spouse in the hospital, making medical decisions for their spouse, and many others. Why shouldn’t a gay couple deserve the same rights as any other couple? How will their marriage, and the concerns and problems that will arise in their marriage be any different from that of a heterosexual couple? What really irritates me is that voters have gone out of their way to create the option of overturning this legislation. “On September 2, opposition groups delivered the 55,087 signatures necessary to put the legislation to a vote on the November 3 ballot.” Were these 55,000 people personally attacked by gay couples and now want to take revenge? I don’t understand why any one would vote against this. How will they be affected? The only people who will either suffer or benefit from this are gay couples, not heterosexual couples. Allowing gay couples to get married will not take away from any special part or beauty of a wedding.

Another issue addressed in this article is the clarity of the question on the ballot. It will read, "Do you want to reject the new law that lets same-sex couples marry and allows individuals and religious groups to refuse to perform these marriages?" Because of the double question, voters may not realize what they are saying yes or no to. Both supporting and opposing groups are concerned about this. Hopefully however, this will work in favor of the current legislation, as it has been predicted, and same sex marriages will be permanently practiced in Maine. This way we will be one state and one step closer to getting rid of this disgusting discrimination.

Related articles:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/08/massachusetts.marriage.lawsuit/index.html#cnnSTCText

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/11/obama.gay.rights.reax/index.html#cnnSTCText

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/10/12/california.samesex.marriage/index.html#cnnSTCText

Video:

Pulitzer-winning playwright Tony Kushner talks to CNN's Chris Welch about gay marriage, politics and President Obama.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/showbiz/2009/06/15/kushner.intv.politics.cnn

Unintentional Racism, Institutional Racism, and the Achievement Gap

Nastasha Pollard

Critical Opinion #1:

Article: http://www.miller-mccune.com/culture_society/racism-in-schools-unintentional-1075

Within our education system, racism is still very prevalent today and continues to have a huge impact on the educational achievement gap between white students and students of color. The article I read titled, “Racism in School: Unintentional But No Less Damaging” by Rob Kuznia, discusses this topic specifically speaking about the subtle racism that takes place within school and how this affects student of color. Teachers and other professionals within our society’s’ school systems need to be taught about unintentional racism so they can be aware of what may take place unconsciously, but is prominent to those being oppressed: students of color. Once these educators recognize this subtle racism, then elimination of the continuing achievement gap can begin to close. In addition, society as a whole, must address the discrimination that poor, urban schools with a majority of students of color, receive. With a lack of funding and opportunities, students of color are facing barriers that hinder their ability to achieve in the classroom.

Currently, unintentional racism is just contributing to widening the achievement gap between white students and students of color. Already certain policies and procedures perpetuate racial inequities within schools. According to the article, “minority students feel unintelligent, despised, or marginalized” within this oppression. Racism that is taking place is called unintentional because a lack of blatant, intense hate is recognized. Unconscious thoughts that take place by educators are directed through certain behavior towards students of color, due to deeply rooted stereotypes and prejudices. With in these subtle racist thoughts, educators have fewer expectations for students of color. They believe false ideas such as; students of color are not committed to achieving academically, when in fact students of color are just as motivated as Caucasian students. They believe ideas like students of color are more likely to misbehave in the classroom, not understand complex material, not go to a four-year college, and are not as smart as their white counterparts. Inadvertent thoughts like such follow through into the behavior and oppression towards students of color. Due to these thoughts, minority students are not placed or given the chance to be in honors or advanced placement classes even when they qualify. They are only called on for the easy questions in class. White teachers expect them to misbehave or be the distraction with in the classroom. They expect less academic achievement from these students. I’ve been subjected to unintentional racism myself, whether it was being continuously reminded that their was after school extra help if needed when I wasn’t struggling in the class, or when I was barely ever called on in the class when my hand was continuously up. With in the article, they give an example of a Mexican immigrant student who was “dissuaded by her school counselor to go to a four-year college” just because of her race, although she was more than qualified. Just a small incident like that of unintentional racism can have a huge impact on the student. She stated the experience filled her with self-doubt, so she ended up attending a community college. As a result of this discrimination, the achievement gap widens when systemic inequity is being practiced within school. Students of color are insulted, forced to expect less of themselves, and have a less of self-efficacy. Check this video out for more insight on the achievement gap: object width="425" height="344">

When this discrimination takes place, minority students who are neglected and undergo this subtle racism that is obvious to them, withdraw from their schoolwork, become frustrated, fall behind in achieving academically, and cut themselves short of opportunities.

Less on an individual basis, institutional racism is directed toward schools, with the majority population being students of color, that are usually located in poor, urban communities. This is essential in contributing to the achievement gap between white students and students of color. Schools filled with the majority of underrepresented students face an enormous amount of inequities in terms of opportunities available to them. First, they receive lack of funding. Lack of funding contributes to a lot of other problems like: lack of course offerings, poor quality of teachers, lack of resources, poor school discipline, adequate preparation for standardized tests, and higher education. In my opinion, it is hard to see how this institutional racism becomes unintentional or becomes unrecognized discrimination. If this has been a perpetuating problem with the education system, why are schools that have a majority of students of color, still undergoing these inequities? Why hasn’t there been much improvement? Why are predominantly white schools consistently funded? The article gives an example of a school in California that filed a lawsuit in 2000 due to complete neglect and lack of funding. “Textbooks were so scarce, students could not take them home” and “certain times during the school day their were no bathrooms” so students urinated on themselves. The state wasn’t providing “the basic necessities for a decent education,” which had a huge impact on the academic achievement of these students that their white counterparts in funded schools don’t have to face. When you have a multitude of schools that are challenged with this institutionalized racism and lack of funding, how can you then question why there is an educational achievement gap? These issues of racism were heavily prevalent back in history when schools were segregated, and people of color fought for equities with in school. This issue of institutional racism directed towards schools with the larger population being students of color, should not still presently be a huge problem in our education system.

As a solution to this problem of institutional racism, whether unintentional or not, whites must first take responsibility for recognizing the racism and discrimination that exist. They must step outside their comfort zone and discuss what’s not usually talked about. They must learn to be fully committed to equity within the classroom, so students of color do not have to experience discrimination that inhibits them to do well and feel positive about their abilities. Their quality of education should be just the same as their fellow white students, and the color of their skin should not be a reason they have to face oppression. The article discusses an organization called Just Communities that is “dedicated to teaching educators about unintentional racism, which is the key contributor to the persistent achievement gap.” The organization wants to work towards addressing the racism that unconsciously takes place within white educators so they understand the “architecture”, or framework of oppression and can battle to eliminate it. The organization has made progress by informing white educators who must be willing to believe and listen to the subtle discrimination that goes on, so they can address it. They monitored the students of color’s progress within the schools that educators had attended workshops, and results such as reading test scores of students of color went up 20%. When white educators are aware of this racism and states as a whole can work to put an end towards this institutional racism, then the “atmosphere of inequity” as the article states, will gradually diminish. When students of color are given the same opportunities and are not marginalized due to their skin color, they can achieve too without facing barriers to get there.

Research Center: Achievement Gap
Rethinking Schools
Unconscious bias and unintentional racism

A not-so-subtle way to establish Whiteness

Larry Whitten, a hotel owner from Texas, recently made headlines by imposing some pretty strict demands on employees at his most recently acquired hotel in Taos, NM. The two demands that drew the most ire:

1. Employees are not allowed to speak Spanish in Whitten's presence.
2. Employees with Spanish names were ordered to Anglicize or change them while at work.

Click here to read the full text of an article that describes Whitten's rationale, the community reactions, and how former and current employees feel about his management edicts.

This story screams of Whiteness, specifically the supposition that White is right, context does not matter, and those viewed as the Other must always adapt to the dominant group - history, culture, and values be damned. Perhaps this small quote from Whitten sums it up best:

I came into this landmine of Anglos versus Spanish versus Mexicans versus Indians versus everybody up here. I'm just doing what I've always done.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/26/larry-whitten-hotel-owner_n_333817.html

Allies in the struggle? Not so fast

Skipping right over rap/hip-hop, uninvolved and irresponsible parents, and video games, the usual scapegoats blamed for all social evils, US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently placed much of the blame on the declining quality of US schools and education at the feet of the nation's schools, colleges, and departments of Education.

In a speech last Thursday at Columbia University's Teachers College, the nation's oldest and largest School of Education, Sec Duncan described what he sees as the role that the majority of teacher preparation programs play in producing mediocre teachers who then produce mediocre students.

Though he did note that there were exceptions, Sec Duncan's speech was an evisceration of higher education programs that seek to train future teachers. If you closed your eyes and tried hard enough you might have thought you were listening to the group who wrote A Nation at Risk in 1983.

It's good to know that as much as things may change, some things remain forever constant - always blame those in lower positions than you.

The Dept of Education press release describing the speech may be found here, and the full text of Sec Duncan's speech may be viewed here. You may also download a video of the speech here. The video is free, but you do need itunes. Time magazine ran an article on the Secretary's speech and the current administration's views on education.

Power and the danger of the single story

To quote from her website:

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born on 15 September 1977 in Enugu, Nigeria, the fifth of six children to Igbo parents, Grace Ifeoma and James Nwoye Adichie. While the family's ancestral hometown is Abba in Anambra State, Chimamanda grew up in Nsukka, in the house formerly occupied by Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe. Chimamanda's father, who is now retired, worked at the University of Nigeria, located in Nsukka. He was Nigeria's first professor of statistics, and later became Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University. Her mother was the first female registrar at the same institution.

Chimamanda completed her secondary education at the University's school, receiving several academic prizes. She went on to study medicine and pharmacy at the University of Nigeria for a year and a half. During this period, she edited The Compass, a magazine run by the University's Catholic medical students.

At the age of nineteen, Chimamanda left for the United States. She gained a scholarship to study communication at Drexel University in Philadelphia for two years, and she went on to pursue a degree in communication and political science at Eastern Connecticut State University. While in Connecticut, she stayed with her sister Ijeoma, who runs a medical practice close to the university.

Chimamanda graduated summa cum laude from Eastern in 2001, and then completed a master's degree in creative writing at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore.

It is during her senior year at Eastern that she started working on her first novel, Purple Hibiscus, which was released in October 2003. The book has received wide critical acclaim: it was shortlisted for the Orange Fiction Prize (2004) and was awarded the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book (2005).

Her second novel, Half of a Yellow Sun (also the title of one of her short stories), is set before and during the Biafran War. It was published in August 2006 in the United Kingdom and in September 2006 in the United States. Like Purple Hibiscus, it has also been released in Nigeria.

Chimamanda was a Hodder fellow at Princeton University during the 2005-2006 academic year, and earned an MA in African Studies from Yale University in 2008. At the moment, she divides her time between Nigeria and the United States.

Her collection of short stories, The Thing around Your Neck, was published in the United Kingdom a few months ago and has just been published in the United States. Chimamanda says her next major literary project will focus on the Nigerian immigrant experience in the United States.

The speech below relates well to the class discussions we've been having about race, racism, power, voice, and how a/the dominant group in a society defines the identities and accompanying stories of marginalized, oppressed groups within that same society. Please watch this powerful speech and post your third reflection papers below.

Reflecting on A Nation At Risk 25 years Later

A Nation At Risk - April 1983
Letter of Transmittal
April 26, 1983

Honorable T. H. Bell
Secretary of Education
U.S. Department of Education
Washington, D.C. 20202

Dear Mr. Secretary:

On August 26, 1981, you created the National Commission on Excellence in Education and directed it to present a report on the quality of education in America to you and to the American people by April of 1983.

It has been my privilege to chair this endeavor and on behalf of the members of the Commission it is my pleasure to transmit this report, A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform.

Our purpose has been to help define the problems afflicting American education and to provide solutions, not search for scapegoats. We addressed the main issues as we saw them, but have not attempted to treat the subordinate matters in any detail. We were forthright in our discussions and have been candid in our report regarding both the strengths and weaknesses of American education.

The Commission deeply believes that the problems we have discerned in American education can be both understood and corrected if the people of our country, together with those who have public responsibility in the matter, care enough and are courageous enough to do what is required.

Each member of the Commission appreciates your leadership in having asked this diverse group of persons to examine one of the central issues which will define our Nation's future. We especially welcomed your confidence throughout the course of our deliberations and your anticipation of a report free of political partisanship.

It is our collective and earnest hope that you will continue to provide leadership in this effort by assuring wide dissemination and full discussion of this report, and by encouraging appropriate action throughout the country. We believe that materials compiled by the Commission in the course of its work constitute a major resource for all persons interested in American education.

The other Commissioners and I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to have served our country as members of the National Commission on Excellence in Education, and on their behalf I remain,

Respectfully,

David Pierpont Gardner
Chairman

Please reflect on how you believe the recommendations and findings from Nation At Risk impacted your schooling experience. In other words, what from this report resonates with your own schooling experiences? Do you feel these were positive or negative impacts? Explain.