How you see America

Although America had a tough past it still stands for some of the same things. 

America was always a new beginning for people from all around the world. This is why people came to America in the first place for a new beginning where they could start their life over. America has some great things about it but it isn’t all just about new opportunities. Not everyone who lives in this country has the same opportunities as everyone else. Inequality was one of the largest flaws in American history and we still struggle with trying to end it once and for all. America is truly the land of opportunity and inequality.

There are countless stories of people coming to America with nothing and

working hard everyday to raise their social class. One example of that would even be my father, he was the first of his family to come to America for college he didn’t have anything at first. He worked hard everyday and studied hard in college and now he has a family and we live in a nice neighborhood. In the Great Gatsby the whole book is about an underdog who came from nothing and worked for it all. Fitzgerald does a great job of showcasing that anything can happen if you work for it, “Anything can happen now that we’ve slid over this bridge,’ I thought; ‘anything at all. . . .’ Even Gatsby could happen, without any particular wonder” (86). This is the definition of the American Dream where you can come from anywhere and do anything if you work and try hard enough. Here Nick is saying that once they cross the bridge almost anything can happen even Gatsby who is a strange person. Nick is implying that becoming wealthy without any connections to the upper class is only possible in America, which I do partially agree with.

Many people think that everyone starts on an equal playing field of life. This is

clearly not true at all. Usually poverty runs in the family because the parents don’t have enough money to send their children to school to further their education. The wealthy have the most money to send their kids to school so their kids receive the best education and get better jobs and then the process repeats making the family wealthier and wealthier each generation. Fitzgerald does a wonderful job of explaining that not everyone has the same opportunities, “In my younger . . . years my father gave me some advice . . . Whenever you feel like criticizing any one . . . just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had” (63). This is one of my favorite lines in the book, it breaks down America in one sentence. Most people who are rich haven’t done anything to get their most of the time; it's their parents who have gotten them to wherever they are in life. Ta-Nehisi Coates also does a great job of showing inequality in America, in his book Between the World and Me. A lot of the inequality is for the different racial groups such as African Americans, “you have been cast into a race which the wind is always at your face... the difference is that you do not have the privilege of living in ignorance of this essential fact.” (107). Coates compares life to a race and how African Americans always have a disadvantage which he compares to the wind in your face. He also says that his son doesn’t have the luxury of living in ignorance like most of the white children. Earlier in the book Coates basically says that even if an African American child does everything right they can still face inequality and discrimination. “On the outside black people controlled nothing, least of all the fate of their bodies, which could be commandeered by the police; which could be erased by guns which were so profligate which could be raped,  beaten, jailed. (62)

Here Coates describes a lot of America’s past and present, police brutality is a real thing which happens to innocent African Americans all over America. It is still a problem today. Recently there was a video released of a young African American named George Floyd who was strangled to death by police officers. The police officer was kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than 12 minutes, even after he passed out the police officer kept kneeling on his neck. The officers haven’t been charged with murder yet which is unfair to George and his family. 

America is a great country and has many great things about like opportunity, but

that is just the face of the U.S. If you dive deeper you will see countless examples of inequality and discrimination everywhere. America has always been known as the land of opportunity but there has also always been inequality. Something needs to be done to end this inequality once and for all and give everyone the same great opportunities. 

Quarantine Journal #3

18. Name one thing you make sure to do that makes you happy, hopeful, more relaxed.  

Recently I have gotten into running. It keeps me very relaxed. I really enjoy the time just thinking about life. I run around my block and I usually run 1.5 to 2 miles.

19. What impact is technology having on your daily life? Is this different than usual?

I have noticed that I use technology a lot more than I used too. I order food because I can’t go out and eat and I watch a lot more Netflix than I used to because I have more time.

9. What are you reading? Watching? Listening to?

I just started watching the office again and I’m listening to a couple new albums and songs that came out Luke righteous by Juice WRLD.

Quarantine Journal #2

3. How have your thoughts toward school changed?

I never enjoyed school too much but it was still fun to see my friends and socialize with my teachers. Now I realize I won’t be able to do that for a while now. I miss school more than I ever thought I would.

4. How are you feeling about the role of sports in our lives these days?

I am currently not happy with the whole sports situation but at the same time I do agree with what the government/state is doing. They just want everyone to be safe. I just really hope that sports come back soon.

12. How was the recent holiday (if you celebrated a holiday)?

My family and I celebrated Easter again this year but we did not get to go see our extended family which was kind of sad. We still had a family dinner though and got closer as a family.

Quarantine Journal #1

1. What does your neighborhood look like? Are people walking around?

My neighborhood looks more or less the same except for the fact that most people aren’t going outside or to the park to hang out with friends. Few people are still walking around but not nearly as much as there used to be before the Coronavirus. I look outside and see animals and not really anything else. It’s a lot quieter than it usually is.

2. What did the government announce/declare/implement today? Did it make sense? Does it impact your life? Why or why not?

Today the government declared that quarantine will remain until April 30 which does make sense to me because not everyone is staying isolated and they are putting people at risk. This does impact my life due to the fact that I will not be able to go back to school until this time and my track season might be canceled. 

3. What is open in your neighborhood? What is closed?

Most stores and restaurants are still open but very few people are working and people are usually not allowed to go into the store and the employees bring out whatever you ordered. Unless the floor is marked up with tape and everyone moves in a line six feet apart. 

Junior theme summary

Abstract

I wrote my junior theme about why there are so many acts of violence caused by police officers towards african americans. Everyone knows about police brutality but nobody knows how bad it really is in reality. About 1 in 1,000 African American men and boys can expect to die at the hands of a police officer (Khan). The evidence is just captivating and people don’t realize why police brutality in america is so bad. Police Brutality towards African Americans is still very common in our society due to racial discrimination, unequal law enforcement, and lack of publicity. 

Reflection

Most of the research that I did was pretty surprising and I never really realized how bad the statistics were. The most surprising thing that I found was probably “Last year there were 1,099 African Americans killed by police officers due to police brutality” (mapping police violence). I’ve always had a relatively strong opinion towards police brutality and my parents have even talked to me about how to act when I encounter police. After I finished my paper my opinion stayed more or less the same and I still feel very strongly about the issue. My topics plays a large role in society today due to the fact that many african Americans are still dying and getting injured because of racist police officers. Police brutality is widely seen in the news and people protest it every day. I am passionate about all the aspects of my topic but I’m most passionate about the unequal law enforcement, because I have seen it before. Something needs to be done. 

2 Different Worlds

America was built on the idea of equality and everyone starting on an equal playing field all competing for the “Dream.” The typical American dream is that anyone can achieve anything if they try hard enough, but the reality of this situation is that many people start off with an unfair advantage because of their race. In the book Between the World and me Coates shows us that America wasn’t built on the equality that everyone thinks and people today still are not entirely equal. There are many Americans today who are caught up in trying to achieve the “Dream” and the perfect lifestyle that they don’t take a moment to notice that not everyone gets a fair shot at achieving the dream. All people care about nowadays are getting into a good college and majoring in something that make a lot of money so they can graduate, be rich and have a luxurious lifestyle. They think that there is only one set path and this is what you are supposed to do otherwise you are doing something wrong. If someone gets into a better college than someone else of color they might think they are smarter than them or more prepared, but this might not be true at all. We don’t know what's going on in everybody’s life and all the setbacks that they have had. Nobody ever realizes the advantages that they have and all the advantages they have don’t come from themselves. The “American dream” is not entirely fair for everybody and most people don’t even realize it because they are distracted by materialistic items.

Coates constantly talks about segregation and discrimination being the main reason why he is who he is today. All this unfairness he experience simply because of his race allowed him to see the situation in other people's shoes because he knows how it feels to be discriminated against for the color of your skin. In the book Coates explains that “you have been cast into a race which the wind is always at your face... the difference is that you do not have the privilege of living in ignorance of this essential fact.” (107). What he’s trying to say is that everyone is in a race called life but we all start off at different positions therefore it’s not a fair race. Not to long ago a couple people gathered some high schools kids and conducted a social experiment. In the video if the statements the guy was saying were true than you could take 2 steps forward and the prize for winning the race was 100 dollars. When he was done saying all the statements only white people were close to the finish line and most of the African Americans were at the start or really close to it. At the end of the race the coordinator told whoever won to see if they could learn someone’s story and give someone else the money because they need it more. When the race was over people realized how unfair the “race” really is and started empathizing after years of being distracted by materialistic things like money. Coates also talks about how “The people who must believe they are white can never be your measuring stick.” (108). Coates is telling his son that he should compare himself to other people because everyone starts off at a different spot in the race of life. In the video when the actual race started the African American almost came back and won but the deficit was too large to overcome, but they still knew that they were faster they just didn’t have all the advantages of the other people. Which is what Coates is trying to tell his son. 

The book constantly talks about how people are too distracted to actually empathize with people, but it's not that easy. As Coates said to his son “No machinery could close the gap between her world and the world for which I had been summoned to speak.” (5). Coates goes deeper than words with this quote, he is implying that what he experiences is unexplainable to those who haven’t seen it first hand. It is unimaginable to not be in control of what happens to your own body and he just couldn’t explain that to the reporter even if he tried. People are always distracted by something other than actual people and they never see what’s right in front of them. No one ever even tries to empathize and get a glimpse of what life is like as a person of color. 

American Values (Police Brutality)

Everyone wants to believe that in America everyone is treated equally, and nobody gets special treatment. America was founded on the idea of equality and yet we are so far from actually achieving it.

There are plenty of examples in the news of police brutality and how body is doing anything to protect the African Americans. One story that started a whole movement now known as black lives matter is Michael Browns death in Ferguson. Michael Brown was walking from his apartment to his grandmas during the day, he was 18 at the time and then he got stoped by a police officer. The officer tried putting him in a car but Michael ran with his hands up until he was fatally shot by the 28 year old police officer. There was no reason for the officer to shoot Michael which brings me to my next point.

The picture states show that African Americans have a much higher chance of being killed by police than whites do. I don’t understand why Americans always talk about being equal and how everyone should have the same rights ad yet there have been multiple incidents by police which end up killing an African American. Some African Americans live in fear of the police since they don’t treat people of color the same. This is very contradictory to what most Americans believe that everyone should be treated equal. Something needs to be done about this, and everyone can help.