Month: March 2019

“Race”, “race” has been an ongoing issue for years, I feel like this is the root of all of our problems as a human race. “Race” has taken over the way we work as a society, it has diminished opportunities on a societal and personal standpoint, If you pretend to say that the idea of “race” is not real and is not alive and well than this may not be your favorite piece of writing. In this essay I will be trying to explain, portray, and dissect the ideas of “race” and the negative aspects of it. I will be trying to explain how people in modern day society use words, phrases, ideas, images, beliefs and patterns of thought to talk about how race relates to reality. Finally, you will hear my standpoint on where I stand in the idea of thinking of a way where there could be an end to racism.  

Here’s a simple way to make you realize that “race” is alive and well. What is the first thing you see when you see someone in a distance whether it is at a bar, park or football game? Most of today’s society will say that they see the color of one’s skin, in which I am not surprised about. All of these consecutive years of the simple label of black and white manipulated the human mind to the point where the color of someone’s skin is the first thing you see when you lay your eyes on them. It all started with the simple label of black, white, tan, purple, pink all these labels were the start of something big. I know some people wish they didn’t see like this and I know some people wish that they didn’t have this habit. I am a product of this, no I am not racist what so ever, but I usually see the color of someone’s skin before anything. This just shows that there is a problem and it has been passed down.  

Not only did we label people by the color of their skin, but we gave a definition and stereotype to the color. Whites are usually the wealthier and proper group, compared to blacks where they are defined as the poorer and unproper and ghetto group. In one of the articles in the transcripts Suzanne states, “So, by 1691, we have a definition of white and we have constructed race in what becomes the United States. It’s important that we see this creation was for the upliftment of white people, primarily to support the white people at the top. Poor and working-class whites will get little. They will get just as much as is needed to ensure their allegiance.” – Suzanne. This quote clearly represents my point of the labels and definitions we give.  

What is even worse about this topic of conversation is that I know some people who use these labels and definitions against other people, or they use it for their own sake, instead of trying to get out of the habit of these labels and definitions. For example, while watching the videos of whiteness I stumbled upon two very clear and good examples of two men using their labels and definitions to their advantage, “When I got my job for example, I walked in there, and I just looked like a clean cut white person, and they hired me pretty much because of that reason, it’s just the small things that no one really notices, but life’s a little bit easier being white.”- Nicholas. Secondly “There have been plenty of times where I had consciously taken advantage of the fact that I am white and umm you know I always kind of knew that if I got in trouble I could just get a lawyer, suit up, show up and itll just be a slap on the wrist” for example “I’ve been arrested at least 20 times and the only thing that I have on my record is public intoxication”– Connor  

1. I feel as if it is so hard to answer accurately who is exactly a Native Hawaiian because not just in Hawaii but in the whole world, there is so many mixed people, mixed DNA and mixed genes in this world that it is hard to even determine who is 100% one specific race. The only way that I can see in my why’s about why this even matters is from a scientific stand point because why should it matter anyway what someone is mixed with or if someone is 100% something.  Maybe in Hawaii it would be cool to them to try and understand who is really 100% Native Hawaiian because it may contribute greatly to their society and their beliefs which is something they can take up upon themselves. But in my yes I don’t see any reason why this should matter to me.
2. Hawaiian’s integration and their neighborhood integration has pushed Hawaii to be a model for the description of what ethnic and racial harmony is. There are two main materials to think with while reading this are “why ethnic harmony exists in Hawaii?” and “what principles of ethnic harmony to the mainland and the world”

1. Some of the implications of “ethnic thinking” and and on going research with the aim of trying to prove that all groups of people are mixed previous groups of people. History is a very simple but big implication that can be easily explained with the goal of proving that point. Another is genetic testing, and physical structures, even though it is very stereotypical to judge someones race and background off of their build and physical stature. It may still be used as an implication in trying to prove that point.
2. Two central beliefs that portray the relationship among race, biology and culture. One of those beliefs is the history behind all of this, with the European people traveling to Hawaii and performing intermarriage with the Hawaiian people easily shows that these DNA strands and genetics can be traced from that time to modern day. Another is the judgement on physical stature and the way someone looks, this isn’t politically correct but speaking on these terms it can be used in that way.

“Race”, no not the one were you told ride your car around in circles as fast as you can, not the horses and not even in feet. Race is when a person has a different belief compared to others , and sadly race is color. White, black, tan, race is body type, race is hair texture. Race is a bunch of different things that you are categorized by. Not every black person is the same not white person is the same. I believe there will never be an end to racisms because of the fact that there are still people these days that are racist and they will always be racist until they leave.

My solution to a lot of my problems is simple, I just need to focus up and get what I need to do done. It is as simple as that. I am not blaming my hard ships and rough start on the fact that these past couple months have been the hardest months of my life. Which may had a chain effect or a trickle down effect on how I act in the classroom or while doing homework. I will not go in to what I have been trying to cope with but its not cool or fun at all.

One thing that really needs to improve is my reading process, first things first, I need to start printing out the damn papers I am assigned to annotate, then I need to read the given set amount of pages and annotate like my teacher asks for. This will also be a huge help when trying to do my writing and also it will help critiquing my own work as long as with others as well.

I already know I have exactly what it takes to ace this course because I did well last semester with the same professor. I just have to get my priorities straight and attack them.

Identity, there are many different kinds of identity, all in which shape each other and mold one another into being different, just shifting the way these identities are. Speaking of identity, you of-course have the kind of identity that is controlled and modified between your ears, this kind of identity is your personal identity. It is the identity that you only see and feel, it is the identity you can either choose to show to the public eye or you can keep all of your personal identity locked up inside. Which is totally up to you though. On the other hand, there is your social identity, the piece of identity that you are observed by, the kind of identity that other people see you as. Therefore, it describes the type of person you are and it is what people will describe you as when asked who you are. All in all, this is the type of identity you need to make sure you pay close attention to because this social identity can alter the way you think about your personal identity as well.

These two types of identities both alter, shift and change the way your mind thinks about yourself or about other people, which in the long run may affect the type of relationships you develop, which can also alter your life and your life goals. You see how this is like a trickle down effect? Reasonably, that is why it is so important to make sure all of your identities are healthy, whether they are just thought or if they are the real you that people see. If I am not mistaken, everyone wants to live the American Dream with the big happy family, steady job with a nice paycheck, nice neighborhood for your kids to build lifelong friendships, and everything is all peaches and cream everyday. Sadly, some kids, some mothers, some fathers and some people just are not able to live those kinds of lives. Whether it is the specific environment they grew up in, the relationships they have with their parents, work, fear/violence, etc. Accepting that reality, these people may not ever become the person they personally want to be, these people may have both of their identities diminished to the point later down the road where they don’t know who they are anymore. 

All of these things that people go through in their lifetime can really alter a person’s life, it can happen fast or it can slowly escalate over time. Consequently, after a while of having to reassure or check your social identity and your personal identity it starts to diminish your mindset and outlook on a lot of things in your life. In response, some people change their physical appearance, some people confuse their true self compared to their false self and they may expose their false self to the public, which is bad for both parties. For instance, Yoshino dealt with a lot of racism and people deteriorating his race and all of that, so Yoshino went to “covering” which is, “To tone down a disfavored identity to fit into the mainstream,” (Yoshino 479). In more broader terms, covering is the act of hiding your true self from the modern day society because you feel as if you will just be bashed for what you believe in or what you look like. This is bad not just because it is unethical as a human to have to hide who you truly are because you are tired of being verbally, physically and mentally assaulted because of your beliefs. But this is a bad thing because after a while of “covering’ you may get your true self and your false self mixed up and you will personally diminish your personal identity along with your social identity.

These kind of people use things like athletics, school, or work. Maybe, even a hobby that someone is truly passionate about. People use these things to crawl their way out of the troubling times they are dealing with, whether its racism, rough neighborhood, or a troubling experience from the past. These people end up having remarkable stories because of the simple fact that the racist people, the people who do bad things, or just the neighborhood they come from gave them a whole lot of motivation to make a move and make their way out of the situation they are in. “Some people who managed to write their way out of the working class describe the classroom as an oasis of possibility. It became their intellectual playground, their competitive arena. Given the richness of my memories of this, its funny how scant my recollections are of school”.

All these different problems that these normal people with different beliefs go through can really psych someone out. Which I think is a huge problem especially in the US, simply because there is so much racial tension no matter where you go, I personally come from a rough place and it completely changes the man I wanted to become because of the simple fact that i’ve seen and done things that most men never see in their lives. So it’s kind of like im scared by the things I have seen and I personally can’t be the person I want to be because I feel like I can’t show emotion in front of people because they can use it against me to hurt me, I can’t sit in public restaurants with my back open because I like to see what is in front of me, I am not the same. I share some problems with these people and something else I noticed is that it completely alternated my idea of the “American Dream”.

At the end of the day this wide variety of issues that people like myself have to deal with in a regular day basis are things that mess with our minds, identity and our lives. The only change that could make this better than it already is, is the people have to change it because there is no law that can be made that will change people’s feelings towards another race, color, or beliefs. This paper is just a small portion of the problem at hand, and there is so many more ways this can be avoided or just stopped but it starts with us as the people. I wish I had the power to at least try and enforce a law, or bring the problem at hand to more people’s knowledge.