Blog post #1 - due Tuesday, July 19
Dear students,
Welcome to our class blog! For your first assignment, listen again to "Reflections on Race" from "This I Believe" website www.npr.org/series/4538138/this-i-believe (11:26).
Answer the following questions:
1. What did you know about race relations in the U.S.? What did you learn from these interviews?
2. Which of the speakers had you heard of? Any of them?
3. Whose comments did you like or appreciate the most?
4. How are race relations in your country?
Please react briefly to at least one of your classmates' comments.
Happy blogging!
Diana
I will post the first comment.
ReplyDeleteI will post the first comment.
ReplyDelete1a.i heard about racism in the U.S
ReplyDelete1b.and what i learnt from this interview is about the white partiality,discriminatory and abusive behaviour towards members of the black race.
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ReplyDelete2.) i have heard about president Harry S.Truman who was born in Lamar, Missouri and spent most of his child days on his family's farm, he was the 33rd President of the United States (1945–53), an American politician of the Democratic Party.who served as a United States Senator from Missouri (1935–45) and also as Vice President before he became the president on April 12,1945 upon the death of the former president Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was president during the final months of World War II, making the decision to drop the atomic bomb on japan in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
ReplyDelete3). the comment i think i like the most is that of president Harry S.Truman who made mention of in quote " I believe that we should remove the last barriers which stand between millions of our people and their birthright. There can be no justifiable reason for discrimination because of ancestry, or religion, or race or color. I believe that to inspire the people of the world whose freedom is in jeopardy, and to restore hope to those who have already lost their civil liberties, we must correct the remaining imperfections in our own democracy. We know the way — we only need the will."
ReplyDelete4. race relation in my country nigeria is about the ethnic group conflicts who are the yorubas, igbos, hausas,which are of three ethnic group.however over 90 different languages are spoken in the country,which ethnic and language seems to divide them,apart from that religious also seems to divide where we have the hausa(muslim) while the yoruba and igbos are christian..some years back hundred of people have killed by ethnic clashes, but fortunately it stopped and there was what we called unity in diversity..
ReplyDeleteJulius, you have answered these questions very thoroughly and thoughtfully. You set a great example. Thank you!
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ReplyDelete1. Racial discrimination in America is an actual question still today. From 19th century to 1965 lows allowed segregation in public places, in schools, in public transportation and etc. America has its hero Martin Luther King who fought a lot against the segregation, for human and laborer rights. Even he was killed in his activity's apogee, a contribution of M. L. King in the fight against racial discrimination in America is certain.
ReplyDeleteFrom this interviews I knew that even very famous people were suffered a very crucial discrimination in America.
3. For me, Harry McAlpin's witness is very touching. He was a famous man in those days, an attorney in Louisville and first African-American journalist to attend a White House press conference during the Franklin Roosevelt administration, but after Jim Crow's era for Harry McAlpin „to ride on the public buses without segregation, to rent a private room to myself in a hotel ...“ was something new. It was a new life.
4. In Lithuania we have Poland, around 6,6%, Russians 5,8%, of total population of Lithuania. Also there live Belorussian, Ukrainian, and other small ethnic groups. But In my country we don't have a racial discrimination.
Agne
Oh, Good idea about racial problem!
DeleteAgne, I am glad you mentioned Martin Luther King, Jr. He was such an important figure in the Civil Rights Movement.
DeleteWhen i heard people talking about the racism in USA,i remember very quickly Malcolm X (1925-1965), i mean his famous movement against the racial segregation between black and white.
ReplyDeleteHe was a freedom fighter but it would be very interesting to emphasize that his fight was basically for the harmony and the peace between different colors.
"I don't care what color you are" he said.
Regarding my point of view, he tried in this sentence to let people know that his real dream was to see one day black and white sharing the same food on the same table, a couple of black and white walking the hand in hand. And this dream is realized because nowadays there are many relationship between these two type of races...
The dream you mention was also M.L. King's dream, and that of the poet Langston Hughes. I will try to fit it into class. It is short and powerful.
DeleteRace discrimition in USA has always been controversial , has been a matter of struggle, faith and believe in the future that one day things may change . when I heard the interview can see the different views and one caught my attention was from Amy Vanderbilt when he said one day bus her son saw someone black guy and started playing with him, that means that kids do not distinguish color or race, that is learned and there is when the racial discrimination start. I 've heard about Jackie robinson and how much it cost him be accepted in the baseball team cause the discrimination .
ReplyDeleteIn Panama we have racial discrimination but is not controversial as here , for example in May we celebrate the black ethnicity week, we also have many ethnic restaurant in the country very delicious .
Amy Vanderbilt's story reminds me of a song in the musical "South Pacific" that goes,"You've got to be taught to hate and fear." It's also about children not knowing about prejudice until it is taught to them.
DeleteI think the racial problem is not a problem now, because racial discrimination is illegal. So I can see the white man has a good relationship with the black man, even maybe they are couple. But the media always enlarge the fact about the racial problem. Like the recently the shooting case, a white police shooting a black man, is just an isolated problem, but the media always enlarge the fact and judge it. I think to reduce the conflict about the races, we must have a kind attitude about other races, and sometimes knowing how to be silent especially the media.
ReplyDeleteI’m sorry to say that I have no idea about the speakers, because I don’t know about them. But I appreciate Billy Eckstine’s speech, he is justice and kind.
In our country, we have a harmonious relationship about races, and we have 56 races. we love peace, and chasing pease like chasing our dreams. So I’m so proud of my country. But I must to say that our political party, Chinese Communist Party, have made many policy to keep peace. Like although the rare races have a lower grade, they also can go to the good university. I appreciate this policies, because of them we can have a good relationship with the rare races. And in recently years, the economy of the places that many rare races have lived has developed. So just Cheers!
By "rare races" I think you mean minorities, right?
DeleteYou may be right that the media blows up everything. Nonetheless, I think there are some very deep and real problems between the police and the public in American society relating to race.
There are very less do I know about race relations in U.S., I'm now not very familiar with here. But this make me a good observer. Since I came to New York, I keep observing people around me who are on the street or subway. To my surprise, I really think there is no many differences to the racial. I think the racial may have some things invisible influence that makes people won't easily become friends to their differs. But to my observation, there is no racial differ when people need help, no matter what race you are or what color is it, people do help.
ReplyDeleteI like the speaker who call Amy Vanderbilt in her statement, "Children s uncouched in prejudice and class -consciousness enjoy people for what they are". It's really inspired me a lot, I think racial problems is not necessary to exist because basically we are all the same. We don't have to divide people in their color or races.
In my country, we are mostly very kind to variety people in races, there's actually not a big problem to us.
I hope that your optimism is justified!
Delete1) what I know about the history of racism in the United States is that in the past there was segregation and many problems and fights. Now, many people have hanged their minds and are more open minded and accepting or each other. people no longer care about where youre from or who you are. mostly, people have adopted a new way of thinking and get along. from these interviews I learned about the history of these problems and how they've slowly changed. people have tried to forget about these problems and tried to fix the problems of the past.
ReplyDelete2) I've heard of Jackie Robinson. I know he was an American baseball player
3) I liked Amy Vanderbilt's story about the young boy and the grandma who smiled at each other on the bus. the mother recognized that her son was not raised to be racist or see people differently.
4) In my country there are no race relations. There are no racial tensions based on color.
I agree that there has been some progress since the days of segregation. Obama's election seems to show that. However, many racial problems still remain in our society. We can only hope for more progress.
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