thebranchesss

[thebranchesss]

Social Classes

Social classes are a division of a society based on social and economic status. There are three main social classes; lower, middle, and upper class. Lower class is the social group that has the lowest status similar to the working class, which are the people employed for wages, especially in manual-labor occupations and industrial work. “In 2005, sociologist William Thompson and Joseph Hickey estimate an income range of roughly 35,000 to 75,000 for the lower middle class and 100,000 or more for the upper middle class. As for the middle class the people in the middle of social hierarchy, basically it's board group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class(lower) and upper class. Few research says the middle class runs from 42,000 to 125,000(before tax). They define middle as a household of three with an income that falls between two-thirds and double the median Nome. Last but not least, upper class. The upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of the wealthiest members of society, who also held the greatest political power. An urban institute paper argued that what they referred to as upper class, or those with three person the majority of Americans below the poverty line are whites. But when is the focus, we overlook the particular obstacles in the paths of blacks, Latino, Asian, and indigenous people. The same systems that brought slavery to the new world also planted the early seeds of unequal social classes we see today. Wealthy landowners and slave owners deliberately set up different rules for poor whites than for African slave and indigenous people. In order to prevent joint rebellions that some choice of whether to take “racial bribe” of white advantages or to bend together with people of color for the common good still faces white american today”. I believe that social classes are just there to bring us done trying to met the requirements to get in a social class but an acceptable one. To solve social classes we should get paid the same amount and should get offered the same job opportunities as others

Rionne, Coffie

[thebranchesss]

Corporal Punishment

Corporal punishment, corporal punishment is a physical punishment, such as caning and flogging. “Punishment under the law that includes imprisonment and death.” In today’s society of schools have corporal punishment. The number of students hit in Florida are 7,185. That's a lot. People have different opinions about punishments in schools. Some may say it actually can be effective for adolescents and others may say it does not help them it just causes them to be more obedient. While 31 states do not allow corporal punishment, there are a couple that does such as Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, and etc.. Corporal punishment connects to racism because it usually occur in black communities. Black children are more likely to be assaulted, seriously injured or killed by a family member than by a police or a neighborhood watchmen. This topic does not involve whites but it involves racism against their on race, Black on Black. “West African societies held children in much higher regard than slave societies in the Atlantic world, which placed emphasis on black bodies as property, not as human being.” says, Apa.

Rionne, Coffie

[thebranchesss]

Owen, Navas

[thebranchesss]

This is your prison system

            This is your prison system; 56 percent of the incarcerated population are represented by just two groups of people; Blacks (African Americans) and Hispanics. This is your prison system; the system that stands for justice to help protect the people and keep balance in society, yet, is used as a tool to keep people oppressed so that they can’t thrive in society. This system isn’t only used to keep people caged as if they were animals but also as a way to make them work for a fraction of the price.

          This is your prison system; a system where people choose whether someone is guilty or innocent, a system where people pick whether you get to live or not. A system that holds your fate. Your life is in the hands of a jury who may judge you by the mother tongue of your parents, or because of your family income and the resources available to you, or lack thereof.

         This is your prison system; where your skin tone determines your probability of going to jail, where the darker you are, the more likely you are of going to end in police custody. This is your prison system; a system that is supposed to protect its citizens but officers are relying on their power to deny citizens their unalienable right to live, as it states in the declaration of independence by Thomas Jefferson.  

         This is your prison system; a system where “Poor people especially those of color, are worth nothing to corporations and contractors if they are free in the streets. However if those people are in prison or jail they can each generate a revenue of 30 to 40 thousands a year” (Chris Hedges). In this system, people are worth more in a cage where they barely see the amount they deserve than when they are free and truly have a chance to see the money they deserve.

        This is your prison system; a system that cages and robs people of their freedom with a high possibility of them experiencing or witnessing of physical and/or sexual assault . According to Mother Jones' “What We Know About the Violence in America's Prison,” 19 percent of all male population in US prisons say they’ve been physically assaulted by other inmates while 21 percent says that they have experienced assault by the prison staff. This article also states that women are 22 percent of the inmate on inmate sexual activity while 33 percent of them are victims of staff on inmate sexual activity.

              This your prison system; a prison system built on a nation that only holds 4 percent of the world's populations but holds a quarter of the total prison population in the world

             This is your prison system. This is America's prison system.

[thebranchesss]

Owen, Navas

[thebranchesss]

The Gap

      Education is the process of going to school to receive systematic instruction. We are told that school is the only way that we will become better versions of ourselves. Additionally, with education we’ll be able to thrive in society. We are told with education we’ll be able to contribute to society, that with education  we’ll be able to stay out the system. We are told the no one can be denied public education. And in some cases this is really the truth some do make it and thrive, but only some why not everyone? This question has quite the simple answer to it and that is the achievement gap. The achievement gap a systematic difference between races when it comes education and testing. The achievement gap happens when there is a difference in success rate between races and their communities.

         This phenomenon happens because of many reasons. The first reason for the manifestation of the achievement gap is the resources of or for the school. In public school the government gives the school the resources to operate while the community can put in some money by themselves that is usually not the case. While private schools get their money from tuition money and even some money from the government. The tuition from private schools only cover some of the expense for the school year. Which means that over all there is more money for private school to operate which leads to being able to buy newer and better tools for the kids to learn. Better tools are equal to better education and easier way to get what they need.

           Another reason for the achievement gap is the background of the students and the life they have lived and experienced. The background of people is very important especially when those kids are young and affected by the things that happen around them. For example, when a child has suffered traumatic situations in their lives like physical abuse or not having both of their parents in their life it is obviously going to affect them this is often the cases in poor communities mostly populated by minorities. While if you look at the population of most private schools you'll see that most of the kids have both parents and very rarely struggle in live because of they good place that their families have put them in.

    The achievement gap can also have an effect on kids even after school that affect being the prison system. When the someone isn't able to succeed because phenomenon they will think that they aren't worth it and they will realize that they are going to need a way to make money so that they can survive. The problem is that without an education it will be very hard for them to find a stable job. So they will result to jobs that aren't the best for anyone which will usually end with police getting involved and a prison sentence.

Owen, Navas

[thebranchesss]

Police Brutality

Background

Trayvon Martin’s tragic death became the saddening upbringing of the national protest, Black Lives Matter. The rate of unarmed blacks shot and killed by the whites and police officers primarily whites has increased. In multiple cases that the African-American that was shot was targeted simply because of their race. In 2015, more than 900 people were killed by police. Police brutality is one of the modern days most common forms of racism following the fact that African and Native Americans are more likely to be approached by a police officer. Police are supposed to protect and serve not shoot and kill. On BlackLivesMatter.com it says “...BLM is a response to the persistent and historical trauma black people have endured at the hands of our at the hands of the State.” Black Lives Matter has been a nation wide fight back against the state police because the states  police because they are doing the total opposite of their jobs all over the United States. The poem Black Lives, written by JiAsia C. states “400 years of crisis Not for America Not for it's prices But for the beautiful Black Angles…” insisting that preaching that black lives matter has not just started it has been going on for centuries.

Black Lives Do Matter

Each shooting involving your  officers and an African-American individual has been the cause of fatal and excessive force. Police Brutality often happens between a white police officer and colored person. Not all white people believe that police brutality is a racial issue, they are anti-protesters that created the counter protests that All Lives Matter. The protesters of All Lives Matter protest not realising that the protest Black Lives Matter is not to say that other lives do not matter it is to say that black lives are and should be treated as equal to every other life much like I stated in a poem saying “ Yes All Lives Matter but I'm focused on the on the blacks because we are the ones being gunned down, wrongfully accused and shot in our backs.” Police brutality shows that even the ones we trust to protect us can not be trusted because the overuse their power  and stretch the truth. Many times the story your police tell after a fatal shooting is a lie then what witness say and is not seen at all in a video recording of the incident.

Police Brutality Reminding People of the KKK

The act of police brutality is racist because it only targets a certain race of people. In my poem I also wrote “KKK still here but their in a disguise, their the ones with the badges taking all our lives.” this was to say that when people think of police brutality they also think of the KKK, the extremist racist group greatly know to the 1900’s, because much like your police they wore outfits that let everyone know who they were. They also were known for committing crimes against African-Americans plus they took up most of the jobs as police officers. Since police remind people of a racist group they must be acting along with the same racist qualities as the KKK. Speeches and threats are both examples of racist acts that people should be punished for but not all people realize it as racist act because of the title of the job that the person acting out has. There should be a price to pay for your police officers who are racist but use their jobs to cover up their schemes because they are dishonesty and taking advantage of their abilities to do good for their community.

Harri-Anna, Derolus

[thebranchesss]

Discrimination

Discrimination is the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age or sex. In this case im talking about racial discrimination which happens everywhere. One common form of racial discrimination is police polictity. Police brutality is a form of racial discrimination because police and their officials let the differences of race and upbringing cause them to take the lives of many innocent people. This social problem ,often happens to people who have had multiple encounters with the police, much like Oscar Grant in 2009. According to the website soapboxie.com Grant had multiple confrontations with the police prior to his death including when “...he was stunned by a taser after a traffic stop…” in 2007 and when he “...served two prison terms for drug dealing.” His involvement of police brutality ending with death. A result of death is one of many  form of police brutality such as abuse, harassment and many more forms that leave families broken. Discrimination denies those who are affected of their unalienable rights and of those are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Police say that those who they kill, hurt or arrest were resisting arrest ,and threatening by appearance because as a police they never know what can happen. The society does not realize that discrimination is a form of torture towards all that it is inflicted on. Discrimination can be from the states highest officials because they do not care who they hurt as long as they keep their jobs. As an African-American I feel punished by the society because I feel like everything I do will be wrong, based on how society has done other people that I look up to. Imagine there are three cars going the same speed on the highway, one car filled with all white people, one with all hispanics and one with all African-Americans. Which one do you think will be stopped first? Trick question it will be the car with all African-Americans they are considered as the most threatening by people all over the world based on single incidents that happened in the past, only because they had to act out to be heard and seen making them look like predators and violent people forever. Racial discrimination happens on the streets, in schools, in professional work offices and even on social media. A discriminatory comment or action can make it hard for successful people to want to continue succeeding. People fail to realize that death rates will continue to rise because people choose to discriminate others everyday.

Discrimination effects jobs

Many times people are not allowed the job they that hey are more than qualified for due to the color of their skin, often times people rather hire a white under qualified person than a colored qualified person because they want to go with the benefit of the doubt. Based on racial riviralys society has decided to hold on to all things that happened in the past between different races and their work opportunities, being that African-Americans were in the lower class they could obtain the jobs that whites could because the bosses of the all white owned companies did not want to deal with reliability issues if something was stolen or broken by the hands of a black person, because they needed to take it home to benefit their family. All of those thoughts are based on the thoughts that blacks are all thieves and need to steal to help protect their families and survive in a workplace successfully.

Harri-Anna, Derolus

[thebranchesss]

Tracy, Joseph

[thebranchesss]

Racism: Colorism  and  Immigration

Background

The idea of racism came to the fruition in the 1800s where many Africans were held hostage under their white overlord’s demand, as a figure of labor and self entertainment. For example; Whites would rape the women for self pleasure and would travel to other places to host shows, where some whites would paint themselves black to mimic and make fun of African-Americans appearance of being uneducated. They also did this as a way for them to show their superiority and the “lower” value of blacks or colored people.  Most blacks were kidnapped from their homes and taken away from their families and were separated into different areas or places in the United States. The idea of slavery created envy between lighter skinned people vs dark skins or whom whites called “darkies”.The vision of colorism was introduced to idea of darker skins working outside while lighter skins worked in the house since they seemed to be closer to whites.

The Effects of Colorism Among Dark Skins vs Light Skins

Nowadays in society there seems to be a competition against Dark Skins vs. Light Skins to see whos better in appearance and is more attractive. Most on either “side” of the colored ethnic group may feel isolated as if they aren’t good enough to be accepted in society due to the lack of acceptance in today's society.According to Colorism And Divisions Among Black Women ‘Colorism may provide socioeconomic, educational, and health benefits to light-skinned women, but it also challenges their identity as black women. Other blacks may perceive them as not “black enough,” assuming that they are more assimilated into white culture and lack awareness of black struggles. Those with lighter skin may feel isolated as members of their ethnic group openly question their authenticity and belonging.’ While others are worried about the next hair appointment there seems to be a lack of awareness towards the difficulties of the African-American identity and a separation between them. Dark skinned women face the burden of having to deal with the acceptance of society believing that they aren’t good enough to fit in with others in the community. They tend to feel insecure about who they are and the importance of their value and their community. According to Colorism Conflicts: Secret Struggles Of Being A Dark Skin Black Women “ It is not usual for dark skinned black women who go through much of their adulthood feeling insecure and insignificant in the bee skin they occupy… When the world messages to the dark girls across the world is that lighter the better, you’re going to be affected by it in some shape or form.” Dark skins face the brutality of others believing that they are a disgrace and the cause of the society being indifferent and separating. Men of color mainly Dark skins tends to be caught into the violence of police brutality due to them seeming to look suspicious to the eye of police; mainly whites or lighter skins. The belief of them increasing the crime rate in today’s society. Most people expect those whom are lighter to behave in a “proper” manner than the ones who are darker and follow the expectation of them to do so. Colorism is an affect/issue of today’s society and needs to be brought to justice. This system that we suppose to look after but just falls apart.

Immigration

A·mer·i·can dream - noun

the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.

In America is seems to be that this ideal of the American Dream is flawed and isn’t truly representing what it symbolizes; this fantasy of more opportunities given , jobs and living the wonderful life like the Americans. Currently while the Trump Era has occurred and is quickly overpowering the laws and policies of immigration. Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Racism Represents an American Tradition notes “President Trump has inspired widespread outrage and disgust with his crude, racist disparagement of Haiti, El Salvador and African nations and the predominantly black and brown immigrants from these places.” The comments and racial slurs that Trump has put out or spoken upon has tremendously spread nation wide or become a trend. As a child of foreign immigrants myself it hurts me to see my parents go through the struggles of being racially different, which makes it difficult for myself to accept who I am due to society  being racially bias. America who most see as this world filled with all the things you wish for, in reality  is a place that takes advantage of its power and its people. In March of 1776 when The Declaration Of Independence was written claims that “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” It seems to me that the moral of this story is flawed.It seems that most individuals of today’s society in America takes advantage of the higher authority they may have against another. For example immigration security might assumes that if a immigrant who comes to America seeking a better future is automatically a criminal. “With the end of the cold war there was the creeping concern that without a focus for hatred and distrust, a sense of national identity would evaporate, that the left side of the hyphen--African-American, Mexican-American, Irish-American--would overwhelm the right. And slow-growing domestic traumas like economic unrest and increasing crime seemed more likely to emphasize division than community.” states A Quilt Of A Country by Anne Quindlen. Although, the idea of having the other side as an American may be exciting for most people hoping to live a new life as an American, others may begin to envy others due to them not having the same superior equality. Discriminating others who immigrated from a foreign country, it begins to separates the communities and stick with the idea of individualism. Your community, your country, you decisions is what creates this issue. The issue of not having each individuals keep the unalienable rights given and not used against their will and not feeling safe and accepted in the overall community of America. The country thats suppose to help build and provide for another and it’s community but seems to fails to do so. “There is that Calvinist undercurrent in the American psyche that loves the difficult, the demanding, that sees mastering the impossible, whether it be prairie or subway, as a test of character, and so glories in the struggle of this fractured coalescing” states A Quilt Of A Country. Happiness and peace seems to be the fantasy of America.

Tracy, Joseph