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Jonathan Kozol's Amazing Grace is a book about the trials
and tribulations of everyday life for a
group of children who live in the poorest congressional
district of the United States, the South Bronx. Their lives
may seem extraordinary to us, but to them, they are just as
normal as everyone else. What is normal? For the children
of the South Bronx, living with the pollution, the sickness, the
drugs, and the violence is the only way of life many of them
have ever known.
In this book, the children speak openly and honestly about
feeling 'abandoned', 'hidden' or 'forgotten' by our nation, one
that is blind to their problems. Studying the people
themselves would only get us so far in understanding what
their community is really like and why they feel this way.
Jonathan Kozol really got to know the people individually.
We can take his knowledge and stories to try for a better
understanding of the environment in which they live. By
doing this, we can explore the many reasons why the people
have problems, what some levels of intervention could be,
and possibly find some
solutions to making the South Bronx a healthier and safer
place for these children and others to live.
Problem Identification
The environment in which we study these people can only
be defined by first taking a look at possible reasons why the
people have problems. Some of the problems discussed in
Amazing Grace have festered throughout the United States
for some time now. The high numbers of drug users in the
community, the high amounts of gang-related violence, and
the numerous cases of people who have contracted the
AIDS virus are just some of the problems that have arisen in
this ghetto. There are many differences between this
community and others in the United States, one of which is
that the government has grouped these people all together
and made a ghetto of the lowest income families. This has
ostracized them from the rest of the nation. It has given
them many abandonment issues to deal with, while also
telling them they are not worthy of living among the wealthier
population.
Environmental factors are involved in the problems arising in
the South Bronx. Pollution, for
example, could be the biggest source of the high number of
children in the community who have asthma.
Asthma is a condition in which one has trouble breathing.
Without clean ...
... middle of paper ...
...s for
the people in
these neighborhoods have gotten to be that of violence and
drugs. These are not healthy norms. To
change them, the communities could use more education on
social issues in the schools and communities to
help the people learn to live healthier lifestyles, to get the
word out that violence and disruptance are
not all right, and to help the people obtain some community
unity. Getting some of the well known
community members involved in politics is another way they
could get their voices heard and let the
government know their needs and desires. Support groups
held for people with AIDS, for people who have lost loved
ones, and also for people who just need a place to talk
about
their emotions and get their frustrations out, would help the
community as a whole and get more people
involved in the healing process of that community. If the
people in the South Bronx would act as a
community bound together to help themselves and each
other, there would be less tolerance for deviant
behavior among it's members. Then the ones who act
defiantly could be out-numbered, and the good
citizens of the South Bronx could reclaim their homes and
their lives.
In his book, Ordinary Resurrections: Children in the Years of Hope, Jonathan Kozol pulls back the veil and provides readers with a glimpse of the harsh conditions and unrelenting hope that exists in a community located in the South Bronx called Mott Haven. Mr. Kozol provides his own socially conscious and very informative view of the issues facing the children and educators in this poverty ravaged neighborhood. Just his commentary would paint a very bleak picture of the future. It is the words of the children that give this book optimism and meaning. The courage and care exhibited by the volunteers of St. Ann's after school program and the creativity of the teachers at P.S. 30 are utterly inspiring. They work long hours and go beyond the call of duty to protect the innocence and cultivate the hope that resides in the hearts of Mott Haven's youngest residents.
Amazing Grace, allows the world outside of South Bronx, to grasp a small understanding of what it is like to live a destitute life. The inequality issues, healthcare problems, and educational shortcomings of the district are a few of Kozol's problems concerning the treatment of the lower class society today. The presence of drugs, the acts of prostitution, and the side items that come with living in the ghetto, are not things that should be present in a child's everyday life. Kozol's examination of the lives of the people living in these slums, clearly shows that these people deserve the same freedoms and comforts that others in privileged classes take for granted.
This novel is a story of a Chicano family. Sofi, her husband Domingo together with their four daughters – Esperanza, Fe, Caridad, and Loca live in the little town of Tome, New Mexico. The story focuses on the struggles of Sofi, the death of her daughters and the problems of their town. Sofi endures all the hardships and problems that come her way. Her marriage is deteriorating; her daughters are dying one by one. But, she endures it all and comes out stronger and more enlightened than ever. Sofi is a woman that never gives up no matter how poorly life treats her. The author- Ana Castillo mixes religion, super natural occurrences, sex, laughter and heartbreak in this novel. The novel is tragic, with no happy ending but at the same time funny and inspiring. It is full of the victory of the human spirit. The names of Sofi’s first three daughters denote the three major Christian ideals (Hope, Faith and Charity).
The Grace That Keeps This World, by Tom Bailey, is an enthralling novel about the Hazen family who have lived in Lost Lake their whole lives. In this novel Kevin Hazen, a young man of 19, is searching for where he belongs in the world and in his own family. He wants more for his life than the life of survival that his parents have lived their whole lives. The story of the Hazen family is centered around the first day of deer season. For the Hazens, this hunt is more than just a sport. They use the meat of every deer they shoot to help them survive through the winter.
Hunger is in America, the world’s wealthiest nation. 14.5 percent of U.S. households—nearly 49 million Americans, including 15.9 million children— struggle every day to put food on the table. In the United States, hunger is not caused by a scarcity of food, but rather the continued prevalence of poverty. We as a nation must come together to confront hunger and poverty in the United States. Therefore let no man object to my plan by proposing to provide Good Jobs for many Americans, the U.S. labor market no longer works as a reliable way to build a stable career and support their families, Work Support Programs that help to expand access to affordable health care and child care, and strengthen tax credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, which help working families, and Child Nutrition Programs which are critical to ending childhood hunger. When children receive the nutrition they need, they are more likely to move out of poverty as adults. (Bread for the World)
"Building Partnerships to Revitalize America's Neighborhoods." HBCU Central (Winter 2002): 1-6. Winter 2002. Web. 2 May 2012.
Instead of loving and caring for her baby, and forgetting about Danny, she became worse than him. Rodriguez presents many aspects of the minority class that live in the United States, specifically the South Bronx. Even though the cases presented in Rodriguez’s short stories are difficult to mellow with, they are a reality that is constant in many lives. Everyday someone goes through life suffering, due to lack of responsibility, lack of knowledge, submission to another entity or just lack of wanting to have a better life. People that go through these situations are people who have not finished studying, so they have fewer opportunities in life.
To many the trail of tears has no meaning or relevance in their life, but for some the Trail of Tears has great meaning since many of the native ancestors endured the hardships of this time. In the 1830s, Native Americans occupied many acres of land in Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida. The main reason for the Trail of Tears was because the Americans wanted the Indians’ land for themselves so they could raise their cattle, and because of the good soil so they could grow and harvest crops. Their ancestors had lived on and cultivated this land for generations, and by the end of that generation very few Native Americans remained anywhere in the Southeastern United States. Many think that The Trail of Tears was just the “Five Civilized Tribes”, but there were many other smaller tribes involved too. Some tribes agreed to sign, and others were forced into it, but either way it went they all had to leave. Many Native Americans suffered from exposure, disease, and starvation on their way to their destinations, making The Trail of Tears one of the greatest hardships in Native American history.
Everyone has an American dream, a belief that represents anyone can carry out a higher quality life through hard labor, and finding happiness at the end. These people work their lives to fulfill a dream that seems impossible, but in the end they either succeed or fail. Despite the odds, people still dive into this idea not knowing how it will end. By taking risks in life, they have a higher chance of achieving this dream of theirs. It ultimately shapes their character and spirit. Stopping at no extent, they make sacrifices to meet their main goal. This dream is put to the test in Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men, which takes place during the Great Depression causing George and Lennie, mentally disabled friend, to have a hopeless American dream. Their dream ultimately shapes their character and spirit, inspiring them to achieving this dream, but others dreams are crushed due to the Great Depression; similarly Steinbeck suggests that the American dream is unattainable due to the time setting, Great Depression.
The Trail of Tears is a historical title given to an event that happened in 1838.In this event, the Cherokee community of Native Americans was forced by the USA government to move from their native home in the Southern part of the contemporary America to what is known as the Indian territories of Oklahoma. While some travelled by water, most of them travelled by land. The Cherokees took 6 months to complete an 800 miles distance to their destination.
During the late nineteenth century, there were as many as one hundred thousand Native Americans moved westward. The Native Americans from five different tribes were removed when Andrew Jackson signed into law The Indian Removal Act of 1830. The Cherokee tribe was the most devastated by this law. This removal of the Cherokee people is considered one of the most horrific acts in our nation’s history. It was called Nunna daul Tsung (Trail Where They Cried) or Trail of Tears.
A writer, George Monbiot, once said, “If wealth was the inevitable result of hard work and enterprise, every woman in Africa would be a millionaire”. John Steinbeck’s views on the American Dream in his novella Of Mice and Men agrees with Monbiot because Steinbeck expresses the American Dream as obtainable, but not for everyone. In his novella, the characters George Milton and Lennie Small acquire a job at a ranch in the Salinas Valley during the Great Depression. These men have their own American Dream that they work towards, yet don’t achieve. Through these characters, Curley’s wife, and Crooks, Steinbeck illustrates that even through hard work and the drive to succeed, people may not always achieve their own American Dream.
John Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ is a social commentary on the reality of life in the 1930s. During the Great Depression many people were left unemployed and homeless. Due to this, the concept of the American Dream became even more idealized. Steinbeck uses characters and events that take place in the novella to display his views not only towards the American Dream but also the social ills of the era.
Starbucks is currently the industry leader in specialty coffee. They purchased more high quality coffee beans than anyone else in the world and keep in good standings with the producers to ensure they get the best beans. Getting the best beans is only the first part, Starbucks also has a “closed loop system” that protects the beans from oxygen immediately after roasting to the time of packaging. They did this through their invention of a one-way valve which let the natural gasses escape but keeping oxygen out. This gave them the unique ability to ensure freshness and extended the shelf life to 26 weeks. Starbucks isn’t only about the coffee, it’s also about a place where people can escape to enjoy music, reflect, read, or just chat. It is a total coffee experience. The retail outlet has been responsible for much of Starbucks growth and has contributed substantially to their brand equity.
Starbucks has grown so fast in 40 years it is easy to see the things that they are doing right. One of the strengths that Starbucks has is they have built strong customer connections through value-added services. Looking deeper into this, starbucks prides themselves on retaining their current customers and how they are able to attract new ones. They sell world-renowned coffee in so many flavors that meet many peoples demands. They have been a company that has focused on meeting their customers demands while offering other services other than coffee. (Marketline, 2016).