Over time Black and Brown individuals have faced life changing obstacles that impact their choice to improve their educational background. This paper highlights my family’s educational background and how it motivates me to have high expectations with my education and to maintain high career goals. Even though the United States is known to be the land of opportunity, this country fails to provide individuals of color the similar opportunity the white individuals are given. My family is an example of attempting to achieve the American dream. As my grandparents escaped the Civil War in El Salvador to better their lives, they continued to work hard to improve the lives of their children. Money has always played a huge role among the Black and Brown …show more content…
communities when it comes to furthering their education; which is why my mom and her sisters never attended a University. Towards a Brighter a Tomorrow encourages me to do the best of my ability as a college student but also to accomplish it as a proud Latina. My family’s educational background motivates me to be a first generation college graduate.
In the lyrics of Kendrick Lamar, “ Look inside of my soul and you can find gold and maybe get rich, hol' up Trinidad Jame$ in four weeks But now my album platinum and shit, so what Y'all keep the numbers I'm more than another statistic, my nigga This courtesy of Compton” I believe this shows that statistics are nothing but numbers and aren’t accurate in this matter. I would like to prove myself to those who believe Black and Brown individuals can not achieve the same or more than white individuals. My family’s story relates to the course reading “Borderlands”. In “Borderlands” the people of Mexico struggle to go to the U.S. which I believe relates to my family because it was also difficult for my family to come to the land of opportunity to better their lives and especially their education. The people I will discuss my family’s educational history will be with my mom’s, Mercy, side of the …show more content…
family. My family’s education does not exceed a 2-year community college. My grandma, Ana, only went up to a 6th grade education in El Salvador. My grandpa, Antonio, only went up to the the 3rd grade in El Salvador in order to help provide for his younger 3 siblings. Together my grandparents had 3 daughters and brought them to the United States very young. Moreover, this is where their children began their education. Their oldest daughter, my aunt Maritza, was very bright and graduated high school a semester before her graduation date. She continued her education by taking a 6th month course in nursing at a trade school. Their middle daughter, Mercy who is my mom, graduated a year before she should have because she attended school a year early. She was the only one who went the farthest in her education. She went on to continue her education at L.A. Valley Community College for 2 years and got her AA in computer technology. Their youngest daughter, my aunt Delmy, did not graduate high school because she had her first child at the age of 17 but she did receive her GED 10 years later. After receiving her GED she went on to a course at a trade school in massage therapy. For instance, Gandara conducted a study on low income Mexican Americans who achieved the most of their educational goals. Through the struggles, they accomplish so much and it is very important to see how they are proving those who believe Mexicans can’t do amazing things, wrong. Being a part Latina helps me realize how low statistics are for us. As discussed in class, Black and Brown individuals take up the highest percentage of being in the prison system than the increase of scholarly individuals. My family has tried so hard to fight against Hispanic stereotypes, such as being considered thugs because Hispanics are within the highest percentage of individuals in prison, and prove we can also make it. In addition to, my family’s educational story relates to the course discussion about the U.S. Education System. I believe they relate because you can see the difference between the way the education system works in the U.S. and the way education is seen in Central America. In El Salvador, education is not much of a priority as much as how the household should be taken care of. In the U.S. education system it is divided into sections in which a child should follow in order to have a better career in life. Furthermore, the career I wish to pursue is in business.
I would like to have my own business in child care. I have always enjoyed being around children especially when they are young, which lead me to this career. The goal I hope to achieve is being able to be the base of guidance to children in the best way that I can just as Ms. Little and Mama Moultrie try to with their students in the book Rise by Corwin. Just as these teachers guide their students to make the best choices and aim for high education, I would love to be a part of that process with children and encourage nothing but the best. I would enjoy teaching young children that race does not define us as humans. And in comparison to Bell’s description of the space traders, we may seem different and be treated differently but even though it is not only a white country, it should change to benefit all. I was raised to never judged or done anything based on race, which is the example I hope to lead to future generations and help change the way the world
functions. In order to achieve my goal, I wish to attend UC Berkeley in order to get my MBA. I have always wanted to attend UC Berkeley since I was younger. I always knew I wanted to do something with children and as I grew up I knew I wanted to run my own business in child care. I know with my MBA I could run my own business in anything I choose to do if along the way I’d like to explore another option. I hope to be the example in my family to show we can achieve more than is said for us as Latinos. In the same way Pulido expresses how in America both Black and Brown coexist, I wish in the future we can come together and make a change for future generations. Even though Black and Brown are seen as minority groups, we are the highest percentage that make up America. We can work together to stop letting stereotypes bring us down and prove we can do the same, maybe even more, than the white community. To show are strengths and let future children not have to worry about race. Above all, being the first in my family to attend college, I hope to accomplish all my goals to be a good example in my family, to my younger siblings, and younger cousins so they can dream high and recognize that it is possible. My family has always taught me to dream high and I hope to accomplish my goals and give my family the life they deserve, without financial worry. Discrimination can be obstacle I face but is not something that will stop me from making my dream career come true.
In “Why So Many Minority Millennials Can’t Get Ahead” The Atlantic author Mel Jones expresses that white families provide their children with financial assistance to get a head in life, or by inheritance, unlike the minority Hispanics and blacks who have to continually make sacrifices that set them back. To begin the article, Jones starts building her credibility with a personal fact. Then she provides credible sources, she cites convincing facts and statistics, and successfully uses pathos in applying her emotional appeals. On the other hand, when nearing the end of her paper, her biased opinions begin to weaken her credibility.
Although we live in a democratic nation, many job opportunities are offered mostly based on race, nationality, and social class. The Lesson by Toni Cade Bambara illustrates how the society limits lower class citizens, mostly African Americans in New York, from career prosperity. The undemocratic economy system in America positions the values of money and limits career opportunity based on social class difference. Bambara demonstrates the harsh realization of reality for the financially unfortunate kids after they went to “F.A.O. Schwarz”, an expensive toy store in New York. Miss Moore took the children on a field trip to Fifth Avenue to show them the important economic issues many Americans currently faced. Miss Moore’s effort is to teach the children about how much ...
In her book, Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life, Annette Lareau argues out that the influences of social class, as well as, race result in unequal childhoods (Lareau 1). However, one could query the inequality of childhood. To understand this, it is necessary to infer from the book and assess the manner in which race and social class tend to shape the life of a family. As the scholar demonstrates, each race and social class usually has its own unique way of child upbringing based on circumstances. To affirm this, the different examples that the scholar presents in the book could be used. Foremost, citing the case of both the White and the African American families, the scholar advances that the broader economics of racial inequality has continued to hamper the educational advancement and blocks access to high-paying jobs with regard to the Blacks as opposed to the Whites. Other researchers have affirmed this where they indicate that the rate of unemployment among the African Americans is twice that of the White Americans. Research further advances that, in contrast to the Whites, for those African Americans who are employed, there is usually a greater chance that they have been underemployed, receive lower wages, as well as, inconsistent employment. This is how the case of unequal childhood based on race comes about; children from the Black families will continue residing in poverty as opposed to those from the white families.
As previously stated, it appears there are persistant barriers present that hinder enrollment, retention, and rate of graduation for African Americans in higher education. It is imperative that educational concerns for African Americans are addressed at all levels, but it is particularly important at the post secondary stage. Higher levels of education are associated with both lower unemployment rates and a higher income. If...
The American Dream exists in the hearts of all Americans and is a concept that drives many people from all over the world to the borders of a welcoming America. It holds the promises of infinite possibilities in a limited world. Escaping from societies where societies where racism and poverty are often prevalent, immigrants come to America to grasp a part of the infamous American Dream. Nonetheless this dream also exists in the hearts of many Americans already present in America. Perhaps it burns the brightest in the hearts of African Americans, whose past is tainted with execution based on their race. Yet, the American Dream is not applied or only conditionally available for those that seek it the most- minority or immigrant populations. The
African- American males have been underrepresented among college students and degree earners for years, however the reason for this is often misconstrued. The percentages of white high school graduates “In 1998-2000 had jumped to 46. However, only 40 percent of African-Americans and 34 percent of Hispanics in the same age group were attending college” (McGlynn, Angela Proviteira). The question then to pose, is why minority students are not succeeding in college compared to Caucasian students, “Only 47% of Black male students graduated on time
These numbers bring to light how incredibly important education is for wealth building, especially among African Americans. Although the decrease in unemployment corresponding with increases in education levels is a great thing, the story doesn’t necessarily end on a completely positive note. Regardless of education level, black men earn only 74.5% (and black women 69.6%) of white men in the same position (Gilman). So, even African Americans that are raised in poverty, manage to break the cycle, and graduate from college still end up with less potential to build wealth than their white counterparts. The end result of these factors, combined with the fact that lower percentages of African Americans graduate from high school and college, is
First, racism still plays a big factor in today’s society as it did fifty years ago. Some might say that everyone has equal opportunity, but some people in America will never see that blacks and whites are equal. Humans have the tendency to judge what is on the outside before seeing who the person really is. The South is the main area where the darker colors mean there is less opportunity and lighter colors mean that there’s more. In today’s society the ability to attain the American Dream is heavily influenced by race. While it is still p...
As cliché as it sounds, it is true that many African American students come from very harsh and poverty stricken environments. They tend to go to under resourced schools as well that do not provide the proper knowledge for them to further their education. And even worse, these schools tend to be segregated since they are usually in the harsher parts of a neighborhood. Sadly, it’s the segregated schools are one of the main reasons why black students decide not to go on to pursue a higher education. According to "The Way Out of the Black Poverty Cycle", a black student that attends an integrated suburban school is six times more likely to graduate compared to a segregated under resourced school. An African Americans family structure and the opinions of family members affects if their decision to further their education as well. Many African American children grow up un...
The message that many African American males receive throughout their lives is that they are unintelligible, uneducable, and dangerous (hooks 2004; Jackson and Moore 2008). With this message being delivered to them every day it is not hard to understand the disparity of those getting higher education and those who do not compared to their white counterparts. These messages can play a role in how their self-image is formed and defined. Other factors include poverty and incarceration. These are not the only factors that affect African American males but these are some of the common factors that affect the educational attainment of African American males. This is should be a concern because there may be something that can be done to prevent the disparity of educational attainment among African American males and white males.
Ever since I was little I remember playing games where I would fight the bad guy and win the girl in the end. This never seem to affect me or make me wonder what small effect it had on my thought process. In games such as Zelda, call of duty, assassin creed, gears of war, Mario, and even halo you play as a white heterosexual male. The idea of playing this way never seemed to phase me as a young child. As I grew up and became more aware of the difference of people and the need for other as well as myself a need to be able to connect and find one 's self in different place such as games, movies, and TV shows. I became aware of the one sided views that video games seem to have. Then I realized that it was seen as acceptable to only have the one sided displayed due to the lack of speaking out on the need for change.
For decades, low-income families have increasingly found themselves in a position where they have to choose between a college education and remaining at a steady job. However, with the growing demand for college-educated workers, a college education is highly recommended in order to attain a job that is capable of providing the individual and his family a respectable income. Even as more people from low socio-economic status are applying to college, the difference in graduation rates between the top and bottom income groups is predictable. Unfortunately, low-income students often lack the guidance and support they need to persist in their studies. As a result, large gaps remain in educational achievement between students from low-income families and their high-income peers. Fortunately, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) schools have made it possible for under-represented minorities and low-income families to continue their education. To help more students afford and graduate from college, Bowie State University, for example, has taken steps to address these chal...
The United States was founded upon the idea of an American Dream, or the idea that everyone should have the chance to reach success and happiness through hard work, determination, and initiative. However, many factors, such as race, age, intelligence, and gender play a role on how well one achieves their dream. Two well known stories based on the American Dream are Fences, a fictional story of an African American family in the 1950s, and The Pursuit of Happyness, a nonfiction story of an African American father struggling to make ends meet in the 1980s. Both have many similarities, but the most obvious is the hardships that the characters’ have to face because of their races. It is no secret that people of color have always had the lower hand in society, therefore creating a more difficult atmosphere for them to obtain their dreams. Overall, the obstacle
Life is a ceaseless battlefield where people are born to adapt and to strive in their daily work. Even though most people agree that work is an essential element of their lives, they tend to have a variety of motivations for their different careers. Some people work because it is required for food and shelter. For example, in many poor families, their uneducated members do all types of laborious jobs to financially support their families. Another group of people works because they want to make contributions to their society. In Carl T. Rowan’s essay “Unforgettable Miss Bessie,” he describes his memorable high school teacher Miss Bessie, an interesting and dedicated teacher who guides many poor students to find their potential and to achieve in their careers. Miss Bessie’s consistent effort successfully encourages her students to fight for their dreams through education. In Richard Rodriguez’s essay “Workers,” he claims that his skin color does not have any effect on his career path because his long education prepares him to fight for his personal rights. Through an experience of doing menial jobs in the summer, Rodriguez meets some Mexican workers who remain quietly with their unfair treatments. However, he also knows that he is different from them even though they share the same skin color. All in all, many people strive in their careers for different reasons such as a responsibility to support their families, a desire to benefit the society, and an eagerness to follow their dreams.
While there are many things standing in my way, my experiences have prepared me. My mother’s kidney disease shows me the importance of being financially prepared for the unexpected. My dad’s hard work and sacrifice has shown me how to be a hard-working woman and to put others before myself. And most importantly, I have learned that no matter a person’s race, gender, or class, you never truly know a person’s