Would you say that majority of the American population believe that people who grew up and were raised in a less than desirable setting are less educated and least likely to succeed in life? Or would you say that these same people are more likely to succeed in life because of there ability to adapt and utilize not only their educational background but also their mental routine. To often has society posed to be bias and has delivered judgment without truly knowing the true definition of the word intelligence. Growing up in the town of Quitman, La. population 500 and middle child to 13 brothers and sisters my mother, Linda Lowe, possessed only a high school education and a kind smile that warmed the heart of anyone she meet. Many people assumed that my mother and her siblings were “a bunch of …show more content…
Still she never let that stop her (Rose 243). She embraced every opportunity given to her that would better the life of her three children and husband of 25 years. When she worked at Jackson Parish nursing home I could not believe the tolerance, determination and love for others that she possessed as she tended to the patients there for 12 years. But learning the skills required to operate a 20K diesel engine forklift, T750 Loader or a 140G Grader made her one of the most valuable supervisors that worked the night shift at the boiler room for Willamette Industries. Needing only a high school education, this was a common place for work in my small community as my father, James Lowe, also worked there for 28 years. Much like my mother he too came from a large family of 18 brothers and sister. So you can just imagine how independent and resourceful he was.
It is quite evident that a combination of life experiences and heredity determine who one eventually becomes. Some people are blessed by having a good childhood and coming from a loving and nurturing home, which allows them to flourish in society; yet there are others who come from similar backgrounds are unable of functioning in society. Then there are the people who are born into a dysfunctional family or go through a traumatic experience and are simply incapable of adapting to social norms because of what they have experienced. Despite knowing that a combination of the two shape who one becomes, it is unclear whether one of them has more influence than the other.
Nellie was born in Missouri in 1876. “She was the sixth child and the first daughter of James and ‘Lizzie’ Tayloe” (Scheer, 2). Nellie was very private about her childhood and little is known about the family from which she came. The only story of her childhood that she ever shared was of her home being destroyed by a fire (Scheer, 1). In 1902, she became Nellie Tayloe Ross after marrying a successful lawyer and future governor of Wyoming, William Bradford Ross. Nellie was a stay at home mother with their four sons; twins George and James Ambrose, Alfred, who died at the age of ten months, and William Bradford II (Mackey, 26).
The families living conditions were horrible. They lived in a very small apartment which at times had more than ten people living in it. Since LaJoe was a very friendly and considerate person, she brought many kids and adults "under her wing" and took care of them when in need. Some kids in the neighborhood even called her "mom." LaJoe did not have the heart to turn her back on anyone that appeared at her door.
The older adult interviewed for the purpose of this assignment was Alice Margaret Cox, the interviewers grandmother. Alice was born on February 17th, 1932 in Brown County, Minnesota. Alice was the daughter of Rose Veldman and had three brothers and three sisters. In 1942, Hikel Veldman, after marrying Rose, legally adopted Alice and her six siblings. He brought four children of his own, making a family of 13. After the family was adopted, the majority of their childhood to early adult life was spent living in Hollandale, Minnesota. Alice spent the majority of her life farming and now helps out part time at a family owned thrift store. Alice currently resides in Lake City Minnesota, in her home of twenty plus years. Only four of the eleven
Ms. Compton reported that she and her mother have always been close. She reported her mother is like her best friend. She described her mother as outgoing, loving, strong and ambitious. Ms. Compton stated that her mother’s education background was some college and she worked as a cosmetologist. Ms. Compton described her mother as structured, focused and goal oriented. Ms. Compton would not change anything about her mother. Ms. Compton speaks and sees her mother daily. She reported that her mother visits her home daily to assist with Comelia.
Dennis and her family moved to Arkansas. During the early 1900’s opportunities for better work. They had little choice but to attempt to achieve group advancement through economic initiatives and pursuit of better work. Dennis’s mom had become a nurse. This job was very common to have during this time. Instead of going to school she worked. Things were a lot different in the early 1900’s than it was in the 1930’s and 1940’s. Dennis more of a church going person. Church was very important to the family. They relied heavily on their churches. It made them retain their faith in God and found refuge in their churches even when it was
Margaret Sanger was born on September 14, 1879, in Corning, New York. She was the daughter of two Irish Catholic parents who had eleven children in total. She witnessed the struggles that having a large family brought upon all aspects of her childhood, specifically her mother’s neverending stress. Sanger later attributed her mother’s death at the ripe age of 50 from tuberculosis to the strain of having eleven children and s...
Gembrowski, Susan. "A Portrait of Families Today." Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 1992 : 3.
My mother was a very well-tempered woman, who kept to herself. Like Suzette, I didn’t know much about my mother’s background, or a lot of the pain and hardship she went through until I was older. This is when I realized why my mother conducted herself the way she did, because of all the pain she had built up inside of her from her past. For example; it was very hard to get my mother to talk during emotional situations, she was always quiet and would just mostly stare at you in silence. My mother was born in Philadelphia on October 3rd, 1966. Diane was the oldest of her four siblings, and if it’s as common as I think older siblings tend to have it harder than the others because they have to set examples, their looked up to as the protectors, and are just assigned a lot of responsibility at a young age.
Essentially, Americans would have equal opportunity to prosper through education and hard work. However, in a study published by the National Center for Education Statistics, Americans were shown to have less equal opportunity than any other country elsewhere in the West (Krugman 567). Ultimately, the results of the study revealed that, “it would be closer to the truth, though not the whole truth, to say that in modern America, class—inherited class—usually trumps talent” (Krugman 566). Consequently, the effects of low upward social mobility, or the ability for individuals to move upward in social status, can be detrimental. Specifically, American children born to low-income families are more likely to have health problems that derail their life chances due to lack of insurance (Krugman
Insite is the first legalized drug injection site in North American, it is located in Vancouver, Canada. Insite offers a safe place to inject or smoke illegal drugs, primarily heroin. Insite does not provide the drugs but they do offer medical help to anyone needing it. In 2009, 276,178 visits were recoded, and 484 overdoses occurred with no deaths, (Wikipedia, n. d).
Family : My Grandmother Mildred truly defined the word family as I have come to learn and live it. Holidays and family gatherings were the celebrations they were because they were surrounded by Grandma’s love. I watched family such as my late uncle Reginald become the amazing family man he was because of traditions instilled by his mother. I have also seen her daughter - my aunt Milinda – raise three beautiful children by the love and traditions passed down from Grandma. I, of course, owe most of who I am from Grandma’s love passed down through my own mother Rayetta and her husband George, whom Grandma so highly regarded.
Dill, B. T. (1986). Our mothers' grief: racial ethnic women and the maintenance of families. Memphis, Tenn.: Center for Research on Women, Memphis State University.
This had influenced so much that statistics showed that 53 percent of people in America agree that blacks and Latinos are less intelligent than whites, and a majority believed that blacks are lazy, violent, welfare-dependent and unpatriotic. Hence, this stereotype among the people was due to the lack of censorship. Williams, 502 -.... ... middle of paper ... ...
“The children have been a wonderful gift to me, and I’m thankful to have once again seen our world through their eyes. They restore my faith in the family’s future” (Anderson, 176). Her children were her world; everything she did was for them. She tried her best to be the perfect mother.