The source is about the Ghanaian immigrant youth in the Jane and finch area and it discusses the ways in which these immigrants' experience social and spatial exclusion from their community as well as the police. The author's fundamental contention is that the Ghanaian immigrant youth who live Jane and Finch in encounter challenges constructing a sense of belonging and identity in an area associated with derogatory labels such as ghetto. Mariama Zaami argues that the migrants in Jane and Finch are racially profiled as police use typical stereotypes of black men and associate such neighborhoods with high criminal activity, high drug use. Police attempt to make the area safer through the use of extra surveillance and racial profiling of the black
Chapter 1, “Intimate Apartheid”, introduces one to the group of homeless people living on Edgewater Blvd. It dives into the racialized micro-geography of homeless encampments and how segregation plays a key role within the lumpen. However, the authors do reveal moments where the racial hierarchy is trumped by the “moral economy” of street life.
Alex Kotlowitz’s There Are No Children Here is a documentary exploring life in inner-city Chicago during the late 1980’s. The book follows the lives of two African American youth, Lafeyette and Pharoah Rivers, who live in Chicago’s Horner Homes over the course of two years. It tells of a lifestyle that is a reality for many Americans and forces the reader to acknowledge a broken system that so many turn a blind eye toward. Kotlowitz does not sugarcoat the struggles and hardships that the citizens of the inner-city face every single day. The Rivers’ boys, like all the children of inner-cities, experience situations and know of unimaginable horrors that rob them of their innocence and childhoods. Lafeyette and Pharoah have to face and overcome many forces that can change their lives for the worst, such as: gangs and drugs, the social system, the Chicago Housing Authority, and the battle within them to give into the worst of society. Sociological concepts, including: racism, strain theory, and social stratification can explain some of the exploitation of Lafeyette and Pharoah.
The book “Youth Held At The Border “ by Lisa Patel shows us the story of young immigrant who are come to U.S in different ages, and how they struggle with the difference in cultures. This book is very important to understand the difficult situation of Childhood arrival in the United States. It uses the thought of individual people in various cultures to create the images of challenges of young adult ,who are described as a minor to this country, have to face.
By concentrating on an ethological approach, Dickerson also makes her family disconnect from stereotypes. In first person point of view, she is able to describe her situation through her knowledge and background. For example, Dickerson describes Johnny with a settled and calm tone of voice. She writes, “Johnny speaks little, never cries, never complains, works diligently to become independent” (225). Because he is black, most people would associate Johnny with violence and gangs. In Black Men and Public Space by Brent Staples, a black men strolling down the avenue was assumed to be a criminal. The color of his skin, in correlation to his environment, evoked a sense of danger. However, through an educated voice, Johnny is not that dangerous black kid who got shot. Johnny is a sensitive victim of an unfortunate shooting. It is very easy to label an individual according to racial status. For this reason, Dickerson is required to inform the reader of elements that do not support these stereotypes. The disconnection from stereotypes satisfies her objection, and broadens the perspective of society.
If you take the time to look around and see, you will realize that the life journey of every single person is unique. It is highly unlikely that you will find two people whose life journey is the same. Growing up in this country as a first-generation Nigerian-American allowed me to be knowledgeable about the cultures, problems, and successes of both Nigeria and the United States. Many years ago, my parents took a leap of faith and moved my family to America in pursuits of a better life. They left everything they had and knew to come to a foreign land to ensure that their children and the future generations of our family would have a better education, better health, and an overall better life. This was an ultimate sacrifice on their part
The collection “Coming to America” is comprised of journal entries, biographies, and autobiographies that discuss the social and political transformations that arose from immigration. “Of Plymouth Plantation”, “Balboa”, and “‘Blaxicans’ and Other Reinvented Americans” illustrate how immigrants shape America’s direction. The changes that occurred when settlers migrated seriously impacted the nation they were travelling to. The first of these changes pertains to culture. Immigrants brought their religions and languages to their host country, and that caused a great deal of acculturation, usually to the new religion or language. Government is another principle that was implemented into the “inner workings” of the new country. Lastly, the newcomers
The novel, Open City, by Teju Cole is a story that demonstrates the life of the fundamental character, Julius, who is a Nigerian doctor doing his residency in New York City. In the novel, Julius is seen to be strolling around the city frequently. He does this in order to keep himself from his actual job, which is working with his patients. Julius uses the strolls to clear his mind of individual issues or situations. An example of an issue that he tries to forget about is his separation from his better half, Nadege. From this, we can conclude that he walks around as an attempt to clear his psyche. From his strolls, Julius does see the many different societies and ethnicities in New York City. However, with these different societies and ethnicities, Julius is able to see this “nonexistent” line which isolates one ethnic group from another. As he strolls around the city, he does seem to come across black individuals who appear to socialize with him, perceiving his African roots. A constant theme, that emerges throughout the novel, is one’s struggle to find their own identity, and to assimilate into a culture, while one feels as if they belong to none.
Migration is not a new phenomenon throughout the history of human, but the issue of migration has become more of a problem since the emerging of modern states. The distinction between immigrants and local citizens has become official with the emergence of nation-state authority and the ideas of sovereignty, citizenship and nationality. From the 19th century, the control of passport and visa has made the borders between immigrants and citizens even clearer and more identified. Today, as there are more restrictions on entering a country, states have to deal with regulating policies for immigration to control the influx of people
Racism has repeatedly played a controversial role throughout the course of history. This is a topic fueled by the heated arguments of the parties on both ends of the matter, may it be the cry of the victim or defense of the offender. As described in the works of two members of ethnic minorities coping with the alienation they both faced in what is supposed to be the land of diversity, Firoozeh Dumas’ “The F Word,” and Brent Staples’ “Black Men and Public Space, racism is portrayed as a dark shadow cast upon those who may not seem to conform to the “norms” of western culture to the typical American. Such stereotypes and predispositions should not hold the power to classify and simplify human beings to one
Within essay one, Black Men in Public Spaces by Brent Staples it describes the life and experiences of a young African American man living between Chicago and New York City over about a ten year span. Due to stereotypes on his race, society assumes he compliments them resulting in being viewed as dangerous
“The worst loneliness is to not be comfortable with yourself.” (-Mark Twain) Being a child of immigrant parents who move to American can be hard. There is a lingering feeling of not feeling like a child belongs. They are stuck in the invisible world between where their parents came from, in this specific case, Asia and where the child lives now. It can be difficult to be raised as an Asian American and learning both culture and traditions. Many Asian American kids end up deviating from the Asian culture and embracing the American culture. However, children of immigrants should embrace their own culture in order to keep traditions alive and be proud of who they are.
Question one is what is the African diaspora? (Who should be considered in the African diaspora? How is this like the black Atlantic and how is it different?). Students should use the Colin Palmer piece to answer this question.
In simple terms, the Diaspora as a concept, describes groups of people who currently live or reside outside the original homelands. We will approach the Diaspora from the lenses of migration; that the migration of people through out of the African continent has different points of origin, different patterns and results in different identity formations. Yet, all of these patterns of dispersion and germination/ assimilation represent formations of the Diaspora. My paper will focus on the complexities of the question of whether or not Africans in the Diaspora should return to Africa. This will be focused through the lenses of the different phases in the Diaspora.
Staple’s “Black Men in Public Spaces” and Rae’s “The Struggle” address misperceptions with ethnicity. Staples and Rae share similar circumstances making it easy to understand each viewpoint. Culture settings and gender define the authors’ differences. Both essays give the readers different perceptions of African Americans’ lives.
Similar to the rest of Africa, the colonial system in Senegal was built on a system of oppression and racism. The most blatant example of this system is in Bamako, where the readers are shown the white governor’s residence, and how it compares it to the extremely poor quality houses nearby, where the African people live. The book begins with a description of the city of Bamako, where in the middle of a section of hills, onlookers can see the houses: “At the center of the belt of hills the groups