Miles Corwin's And Still We Rise

Rodriguez's autobiography also portrays the social and economic problems with affirmative action for the "privileged" minority student. He reports, "In the late 1960s nonwhite Americans clamored for access to higher education, and I became a principal beneficiary of the academy's response, its programs of affirmative action" (143). Ironically, the author now regrets having been involved with (or forced into) accepting the "assistance" these programs offered: "For me there is no way to say it with grace. I say it rather with irony sharpened with self-pity. I say it with anger. It is a term that should never have been foisted on me. One I was wrong to accept" (143). Potential students from the lowest socioeconomic groups were not even considered by institutions of higher learning simply because the colleges only looked at the boxes checked on applications, and not the actual student's financial needs. The author explains, "Most blacks simply couldn't afford tuition for higher education. And, because the primary and secondary schooling blacks received was usually poor, few qualified for admission. Many were so culturally alienated that they never thought to apply; they couldn't even imagine themselves going to

In "And Still We Rise," Miles Corwin chronicles the daily struggle of gifted students in 1997’s South Central L.A. Even with abundant street temptations and challenging peer experiences, these students find refuge in a school system that affords them both happiness and hope. Everyday is a challenge, and yet, they continue to strive for success.

Writer Gregory Mantsios in his article “Class in America”, talks about these things, and how wide the gap is between the rich and the poor and also discusses how the rich continue to get richer, while the poor continue to get poorer. Mantsios gives his readers the profiles and backgrounds of three hard-working Americans, two of them are white males, whose family background as well as education played a role in their success, while the other person is a black woman who is just above the poverty line despite her work as a nurse’s aide. Through these profiles, Mantsios article shows exactly how sex, race and shows how your parental and educational background of a person can play a role in the things that you achieve. Mantsios also talks about one’s performance in school and the level of school completed can suggest whether or not class that person may belong in.

The fact that, in most cases, a minority student will get accepted over a white student with the same or almost the same qualifications is causing controversy all over the nation. This is precisely the definition of affirmative action. In an excerpt titled Affirmative Action and the College Admissions Process from the book, 8 Steps to Help Black Families Pay For College, by Thomas and Will LaVeist, it is stated that, “affirmative action is meant to level the playing field and ensure that schools and businesses are not intentionally discriminating against minority groups.” This leveling of the playing field leads to the very broad generalization and misperception that the policy is allowing less-qualified minorities to take the place of the more-qualified whites.

Being admitted into college is a difficult process, one that requires students to be diligent in their studies, engage in a number of extracurricular activities, and overcome the everyday pressures and challenges that high-schoolers face across the country. Admittedly, not everyone in the United States is born with the same opportunities as socioeconomic factors as well as historic injustices have contributed to a society in which some people are far more likely to achieve upward mobility – of which, obtaining a college degree is a necessary part – than others. While there is need to rectify this reality,

Establishing the relationship between achievements and struggles, Francis Bacon once said, “In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.” In this instance, the relationship is revealed through Miles Corwin’s narrative, And Still We Rise, in which he spends an entire school year with twelve high school students, who not only seek an alternative future away from their current lifestyle, but also attempt to break stereotypical labels. The narrative is set in South-Central Los Angeles, known for its constant gang violence and impoverished neighborhood with limited opportunities for the residents. Specifically, Corwin concentrates on the local Crenshaw high school and its gifted student program, which is portrayed as

Affirmative Action. For many Texas high school students, these two words haunt them. Their future, or at least their future at the University of Texas, depends on these words. For Abigail Noel Fisher, a 2008 graduate from Sugar Land, Texas, affirmative action and its race bias policies allegedly ruined her chances of getting into this prestigious state university. Fisher argues that race should not be a factor in college admissions processes, Fisher argues for equality. Equality in respect to race is in our constitution; it surrounds us everyday. In theory, race should be irrelevant in this day and age. Humanity has established that one race is not superior to another, so why should race matter at all in the college admissions process? Why should the University of Texas, or any other university, have that “check your race” box on their applications? Abigail Fisher, and every other person applying to the university, deserves as much opportunity as every other student of any race. When it comes to college, intelligence and character should be key to admission- not the color of the applicant’s skin. The University of Texas’ current affirmative action policy is an unfair college admissions process that the Supreme Court should ban so that admissions are based on intellectual ability in high school, national testing scores, extracurricular activities, and community service; this should be changed so that every person,

How do people perceive others’ limits when they've never had a chance to prove themselves? Miles Corwin, a newspaper reporter from the gang roaming streets of South Central, wrote And Still We Rise to enlighten the lives of the children who, despite the challenges they face around them, are madly driven to finish high school and seek better lives. The author wrote about twelve gifted students at Crenshaw High School, filled with hidden potential, to show that the neighborhood wasn’t just a place full of gang activity, but rather a place filled with students who wanted to grow up and make something of themselves knowing education was key. The targeted audience of the book were individuals who had similar problems to the students; Corwin

In the book And Still We Rise By MIles Corwin, we hear the stories of students childhood and upbringing. We also hear about their aspirations for the future but each of them seem to have extensive barriers that try to stunt their growth. Throughout the book we see how it’s not how someone is brought up that dictates who they are, but it’s that person’s perseverance that makes them who they are.

In his book And Still We Rise, Miles Corwin wrote about how he was researching a homicide in South-Central. During the homicide a boy was shot by gangbangers. The detectives thought he was another gangbanger but they realized he wasn’t. He was a junior at high school and was in the gifted program. After the homicide, Miles Corwin decides to write this book because we wanted to write not only about gangbangers but also about other children who wanted to succeed and had to overcome obstacles in life. He wrote about the problems that occurred in inner-city high schools. He followed a group of seniors that were in a gifted program at Crenshaw high school in Los Angeles. Students who had many problems in life, who were abandoned and abused by

Racial preference has indisputably favored Caucasian males in society. Recently this dynamic has been debated in all aspects of life, including college admission. Racial bias has intruded on the students’ rights to being treated fairly. Admitting students on merit puts the best individuals into the professional environment. A university’s unprejudiced attitude towards race in applicants eliminates biases, empowers universities to harness the full potential of students’ intellect, and gives students an equal chance at admission.

The equal opportunity that affirmative action provides has also increased the amount of minority applicants applying to each school. It has “resulted in doubling or tripling the number of minority applications to colleges or universities, and have made colleges and universities more representative of their surrounding community” (Messerli). Since the playing field has been evened, it has encouraged more of those who are disadvantaged because of their ethnicity to apply for and get admitted into college. However, the quotas cause schools to admit under qualified students of minor races who don’t meet the limit over highly qualified students who’s race has reached the limit.

Bill Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States. Elected in 1992 and again in 1996, Clinton served as President until January of 2001, when George W. Bush became the 43rd President. Ward Connerly is the founder and chairman of the American Civil Rights Institute. He has gained national attention as an outspoken advocate of equal opportunity for all Americans, regardless of race, sex, or ethnic background. In this paper, I will discuss the position of these two politicians from affirmative action, I will highlight how each of them thinks about affirmative action, whether he sees it beneficial or harmful to the American society, and how he argues to

As a testament to the next discussion point of opportunities, especially within the realm of college admission, I have experienced firsthand the opportunities presented by affirmative action. As a low-income, first-generation college student, Virginia Tech had offered me a full scholarship based solely on merit and financial need. As a “minority” according to Virginia Tech, I had an

March 6th, 1961 Affirmative Action policies in higher education were implemented (Infoplease). Affirmative Action was designed to provide equal access to universities for historically underrepresented minorities. The argument of whether Affirmative Action should be decimated is a simple one. Students who have the academic credentials and earn their way into college deserve to be accepted. For no reason should previously excluded minorities gain unfair leverage in an attempt to “right past wrongs”. But with Affirmative Action banned in only eight states, we are left with two questions; how exactly Affirmative Action affects the culture within universities to have it seen as an unjust policy, and can diversity continue to survive without this program.