Read the essay and view the attached photo essay in Mother Jones Magazine. Then write a paragraph response in which you connect issues discussed in this article to many of the issues of racial boundaries that we read about and discussed in class in the past few weeks. Write about your own thoughts in response to the information and images you see.
You many want to write about A Raisin in the Sun, Our America, or any of the articles, stories, and poems we have read. You might also consider the images we discussed such as The Great Migration series from Jacob Lawrence or the photographs in 12 Million Black Voices.
As always, please remember tp sign your post with your first name and class period.
3 comments:
The essay, “Dreams from my father,” talks about an African American kid who moved into a white neighborhood with his family, in 1971. They are the second black family on the block. This kid hears his father’s dreams about a day when “whites would not respond to blacks with fear and distrust,” and all African American people have to do it wait and be patient. As this kid grows up in this neighborhood, he begins to realize that his father was wrong. It’s really sad, in my opinion, that white people left the neighborhood, and that neighborhood became a ghetto in a “swift and dramatic” way. It’s sad that a nice neighborhood can plummet into a cruddy, not so nice, neighborhood just because a few families left and closed their businesses. It’s also sad that the white people hate the black people so much, that they are willing to leave their homes and create a nasty environment for the African American families who were living in that neighborhood. The kid in this essay explains how he came when he was seven, and then when he was older he ended up joining a gang. Is it possible that this kid could have done something really good with his life and an education, and live away from all of the anger and pain that he feels, if only the white people hadn’t moved away? If some white people dislike African American people because the whites think that the African Americans are not smart, or are dangerous, or anything like that… Well, it’s the white people that are driving these African American people into those descriptions. By not allowing African Americans to have a better education and keeping their neighborhoods nice, the white people are making the African American people into what the white people disliked the most, whether they knew it or not. It all just makes me angry. It’s awful that people are forced to become “bad” because other people don’t want to live near them. The white people should give the African Americans the chance that some of the African Americans are giving them. This essay and the book, “Our America,” talk about what it’s like for African American people in a “ghetto” neighborhood. It’s really scary to me how so many people have given up hope and are giving away their lives. It’s people like LeAlan and Lloyd in “Our America” that haven’t given up hope and really inspire you. They are inspiring, and you can learn a lot from them. Not only is it really scary that they are exposed to such violence and such and live in it daily, but they also haven’t given up hope, which really says something. It’s awful for those white people in this essay to judge African Americans the way they do because the African American people in those situations had/have it harder than the white people do, and yet, some of them still are pushing through and trying to make it. It makes it truly inspirational when you learn that one of those African American families made it.
- Alex Nekrosius 34
The photo attached essay "Dreams From My Father" in "Mother Jones Magazine" portrays low and high points of living in the south side of Chicago. The low points had a lot to do with poverty. The high points had a lot to do with social events. One of the problems people had poverty were that they were being kicked out of their houses with out a place to go. Another problem people are having with poverty is that they are under the poverty line. There are also people who are single parents who are not only taking maybe two or tree extra shifts but also don't Have anybody to help them with their kids. Other things such as the Bud Biliken Parade and Picnic are high points because it's a parade honoring a fictional character that supposedly represents pride happiness and hope for black people and be the guardian of the young. Also another high point for blacks living on the south side of Chicago is just playing basketball or something. Over all I think that based on this essay the south side is a place where poverty is present and the little bits of happiness can make people light up with joy. In Raisin in the Sun the Younger family is in poverty but in the end the family pulls together. Even though they don't really have any more money they are happy because they are still accomplishing something by moving out of the kitchenette building in to a house in a "white" neighborhood which as a black family was a big accomplishment in the late fifties early sixties. In Our America LeAlan and Lloyd talk about both life and death in parts one and two. That goes to show that there are happy things. Even though there are not always as many happy things as there are sad things.
Mutiat Nekrosius 8-9
"Dreams from my father" is about a kid who is African American who moves to a white neighborhood in 1971. When they move in they are the second black family to move in to the neighborhood. The kid always heres his dad talking about a day when whites would not respond to blacks with fear and distrust. When the kid starts to grow up he joins gangs and does bad stuff. Perhaps if the whites had not moved out and if the stories where not made into places where basically drunks and drug addicts go then maybe the neighborhood could have turned out a lot better. I can not believe that the fact that whites left the neighborhood could cause such a down fall in it.
DanteNekrosius 3/4
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