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Immigrant Interview

My name is Alexandro Pedro Mendes. I am of spanish and african descent. I was asked to do an interview by Mercedez Mitchell on my migration to the United States from Spain. I came to the United States in 1997 as a result of my father’s passing. He wanted me to go the “states” to have a better life than he did. Although, Spain is rich in many aspects it lacked diversity and opportunity of expansion.

Coming to the states in 1997, I was able to find employment at Eddies of Roland Park market in 2007. The ten year gap consisted of me being a Guest worker. A guest worker is when you are temporarily in the United States working in order to eventually receive a permanent visa. Some say ten years is long for a guest worker to obtain a permanent visa, but I was having family troubles in the wake of my dad’s passing. All is resolved now.

Mercedez Mitchell shared with me many definitions regarding immigration. She emphasized the definitions of terms such as pushes and pulls and bridges and barriers, and gave definitions of each. Push incorporates factors that influence the migration to another country which may consist of conflict and famine. Pulls incorporates factors that attract one a country and as result leaves home. Factors may include but are not limited to; opportunity consisting of employment and education.

The push in my situation is my father’s death. The pull in my situation is the desire to have a better life and access to diversity. Bridges and barriers are factors that allow migration to be successful such as learning a new language and adjusting to the culture in the new country. The bridges and barriers in my situation closely relates to learning english and learning the history of the United States. I had to learn the language in order to communicate with others in the country and was vital to starting a life there. I had to learn the history of the United States in order to obtain my permanent visa.

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Hershey Bar

My favorite chocolate treat is a delicious Hershey bar. The living conditions of the people who produce the cocoa for my chocolate treat are harsh and inhumane. The people that make this product are not paid sufficient for their time and effort. In most jobs in the United States, benefits are offered to employee as compensation. The people that produce such product do not have this luxury.

The physical work conditions of the workers are specifically inhumane. In that, they are exposed to pesticides without protective gear, work with dangerous tools, and have excessive work hours. They are often discriminated against on the basis of gender and ethnicity. The communities that they are housed lack high quality of education, safe drinking water, and safety. Unfortunately, children are used in the process of making this candy bar.

In order to decrease pay that is issued to the workers, children are recruited and forced to work in abusive and hazardous conditions. The process of making a hershey bar is complex. The process consist of: roasting the cocoa pod, separation of the nib and the shell, fresh milk is added to the unsweetened chocolate, adding sugar, mixing the ingredients, and then molded into a bar. The top three producers of cocoa are Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Ghana. Once the product is made, it is then shipped to the markets in order to make a profit.

Prices are determined by the demand of the brand the cocoa is being used in. The higher the demand the higher the prices. I bought my hershey bar from nearby stores such as Giant, Eddies, or Family Dollar. There are definitely hidden cost that are not factored in the price that I pay for a Hershey bar. Since, the workers that are responsible of producing the product are not paid sufficiently contributes to hidden cost. Also, the workers are not supplied with benefits such as healthcare which is another contributing factor to hidden cost.

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Bill Gates: Weber’s theory of social class

Weber’s theory of social class specifies that class is not only associated with owning property but with power, prestige, and wealth. Bill Gates life is a perfect example of Weber’s theory of social class. Gates social class is determined by his innovations that ultimately led to power, prestige, and wealth. The innovation that lead to his uprising of class is the founding of Microsoft. He did not necessarily own property to become wealthy but he simply created a solution to a well known need of computer software.

The exact definition of class is “...a system of power based on wealth, income, and status that creates an unequal distribution of society’s resources” (Guest, 388). Although Gates is the second wealthiest man in the world, he gives a large percentage of his income to people in need. He does this in order to attempt to equal the distribution of society’s resources. This act is specifically called redistribution of wealth. According to Weber, Bill Gates holds a high prestige because his occupation incorporates innovation and technology in which makes the lives of all easier.

Due to his high prestige, Gates has access to social networks and people of wealth and power. Since class position determines quality resources, Gates possesses life chances. Life chances is one’s opportunities to improve their quality of life and achieve life goals. Due to power, wealth, and prestige that Gates has, he is more than able to attain a high quality life for himself and others.

https://www.forbes.com/profile/bill-gates/#39a83b1e689f

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Gender Skit

Girl One: I love you.

Girl Two: I love you too.

Girl One: I am in love with you more than a friend.

Girl Two: What do you mean by that statement?

Girl One: Just that. I love you more than a friend.

Girl Two: In what way do you love me?

Girl One: I love you in a way that I cannot explain.

Girl Two: Elaborate please.

Girl One: The feelings I have for you is breathtaking to the point that I cannot bring myself to describe them to you.

Girl Two: Elaborate more please.

Girl One: When I am with you I feel safe.

Girl Two: I would hope you would. We have been friends for five years.

Girl One: (Pauses) You are focusing on the wrong part of my statement. Focus please.

Girl Two: You are being so mysterious right now.  

Girl One: I love you in the way that my dad loves my mom.

Girl Two: (SILENCE)

Girl One: You do not have to feel the same way. I understand. It is not the norm. It is okay if you do not feel the same way. I am sorry.

Girl Two: Actually, I feel the same way..

Girl One: Really?

Girl Two: Yes really.

Girl One: We should be together then.

Girl Two: I do not think my parents will approve.

Girl One: We can talk to them about it together. Do not be afraid. It is 2018. Times have changed. They will understand and if not that is okay too. I wont love you any less.

Girl Two: I love you.

Girl One: I love you too.

Reflection

The skit reflects the gender of homosexuality specifically lesbianism. Homesexuality is the attraction of two people of the same sex. Lesbianism is the attraction of two females. Sex is broken down into two categories; female and male. Gender is the cultural construction of gender on the basis of behavior and expectations placed on each sex. Homosexuality alters the construct of both sexes varying from culture to culture. Homosexuality is being accepted more and more everyday, but at one period of time it was not accepted and as a result looked down upon.

Girl One desired Girl Two in an intimate way rather than a friendship. It was hard for Girl One to be open with the her emotions toward her friend because the cultural construction of gender restricted their relationship. The cultural construction of gender of two females is that they are friends and nothing more. Girl Two actually liked Girl One in the same way. Both girls did not come out to their family. The girls view of sexuality is different from their family’s view of sexuality. Till this day, there is an ongoing fight on what the “right” sexuality is in society. It varies from culture to culture and ultimately is up to the individual.

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Thinking Through Ethnicity

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Thinking Through Ethnicity

Olumide Popoola

The exhibit on the first floor of the Morgan State University: Behavioral Social Sciences Center is filled with many heroic figures that paved the way in many fields. One of the heroic figures that captured my attention is Olumide Popoola. Her race is black. Her ethnicity and nationalities are nigerian and german. Popoola’s profession consist of but not limited to; writer, public speaker, and performer. She states, “The process of embarking on that journey and being able to deal with different continents, different cultures, and different people was an important experience”. She describes her journey of finding a place to live after realizing the absence of multiculturalism in Germany and Nigeria. She created a diaspora when traveling to other places as she continued to cultivate ties to her countries even when away. Popoola has frequently mentioned that her love for writing is infinite in that it captures her creativity in the best light. Although she loves writing, she earned a bachelor’s degree in Complementary Health Science with a focus on immunology, lifestyle, and stress management from an university in London. She has a masters and PhD in creative writing. In 2004, she received May Ayim Award in poetry. Popoola is still active in her art till this day. She has citizenship in London and resides there currently.

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Above is a picture of a family that has a black mother and a white father. They have three children that are half black and half white. In the days of when the Jim Crow laws were enforced they would be deemed hypodescent. Simply meaning less than other races because they are mixed with black. 

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Jim crow laws was developed to create laws in order to enforce slavery after the civil war. This include segregated school systems, public restrooms, and more. Below is an image that was widely used in this era to depict black people as inferior to whites.

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The blue vein society was developed to determine whiteness in that if one can not see the blue vein located in wrists region that person was not white. The term originated in Virginia and is still used. 

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The KKK was developed based on the belief system that whites were superior to all races and as a result took to violence against other groups of people to convey that belief. This is white supremacy at its peak. 

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The case of Loving vs. Virginia is a prime example of miscegenation. In that they were both of two different races, fell in love, and married despite racism surrounding them.  

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England set out to conquer land that benefited them. The benefits ranged from cheap labor, exotic food, raw materials, and gold and silver. Since they were seen as superior, countries were taken under their rule. 

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Human Family Tree

How does the information presented in the film challenge our system of racial classification? In your opinion, does the film challenge or reinforce stereotypes of Africa and Africans?

Our system of racial classification is based off of one’s skin color. Skin color is a physical trait of a human being. Racial classifications were put into place to keep people in power. An example may include but not limited to is people of lighter pigmentation oppressing people of darker pigmentation. The people of darker pigmentation were oppressed by the means of slavery, segregation, withholding opportunities, and many other methods.

The film, “National Geographic Naked Science the Human Family Tree”, challenges our system of racial classification. The film discusses that skin color among humans are an one percent difference. Which means that 99 percent of our DNA make up is the same. Humans view race as a major difference among each other and that the lighter one is the better they are in society. The film refutes our system by saying that it is not a major difference and in fact the difference is insignificant.

The film challenges the stereotypes of Africa and Africans. The film challenges the concept of Africa by making the fact known that our specie derived from this continent and then migrated across the world. Many believed that our specie did not come from Africa and thus were evolved in the continents of Europe and Asia. The film challenges the concept of Africans by stating that everyone originated from the people of Africa. As the film discussed, among humans there is only an one percent difference. This one percent difference contains the migration pattern of one’s ancestors out of Africa. Africa continues to live up to its name as indeed the “motherland”.   

Citation:

Youtube. (2014, May 30). “National Geographic Naked Science the Human Family Tree

[Video file]”. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2518&v=zfHDNFx69uY

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Fieldwork Assignment #3: My Peaceful Place

I chose the location of Morgan View courtyard. I chose this location because I sit in the courtyard before I walk to my 8AM. This is where I feel most peaceful outdoors. Before my 8AM there is hardly no one outside, so It gives me time to reflect on my day and focus on my breathing in order to decrease my anxiety. I observed the sun peeking behind through the clouds. The wind is warm but cool in such a contradictory way. The buildings are tall and pronounced. I can see people getting ready in their apartments preparing for the day. I see maintenance people starting on their duties bright and early. I hear traffic on the nearby streets. A few early risers walking slowly to class. I never noticed how peaceful Morgan View could be. I feel this way because usually at later times of the day, it is filled with people going to and from. Loud music playing at all times. I expected to find more people going about their day since there is a large population of Morgan View staff and Morgan State University students. I also was expected to see more animals and insects outside since there are a lot of trees on the property. I visited the property the same day but at night. My observations vary in that the scenery was dark but with lights coming from the buildings. Peace appeared to be not evident since there were a bunch of people going to and from main campus. The wind appeared to be more brisk in that it was much cooler compared to the early morning. I can hear animals in the bushes and insect noises coming from the grass. This was the main difference that I observed since I did not see much animals or insects in the morning. Lastly, it was evident that traffic on the road was much more quieter in that rush hour must have passed and everyone was at their desired location. I prefer the courtyard in the morning than at night because I feel more in tuned with my surroundings and more at peace.