Assume racism is everywhere, every day. Just as economics influences everything we do, just as our gender and gender politics influence everything we do, assume that racism is affecting whatever is going on. We assume this because it's true and because one of the privileges of being white does not have to see or deal with racism all the time. We have to learn to see the effect that racism has. Notice who speaks, what is said, how things are done and described. Notice code words for race, and the implications of the policies, patterns, and comments that are being expressed. It seems people in my community already notice the skin color of everyone they meet and interact with and I notice w ...view middle of the document...
Somewhere between finishing college and entering the nursing world my sister and her husband moved their family to Minneapolis Minnesota. With this experience I have learned that it does not matter who you are inside our society makes their first impression on what we look like on the outside.I would like to change the way my community looks at people who are different and the only way to do this is to voice my opinion. I refuse to let other people push decent, hard working people out of this community just because the leaders and followers can not accept the reality of the outside world. At some point in time they will have to accept cultural diversity and change because it only takes about thirty minutes to drive into a bigger city that has a mix of all different races and these people are working their way into becoming part of this small town community I was born and raised in.Children are not born racist. If the child is not exposed to racism in its environment, there are no reasons for them to become racist. If however, the child has been brought up to look at people as belonging to a group, such as blacks or whites, instead of individuals, they will begin to compare the groups, and draw conclusions depending on the group that they belong to. That is what is happening in my town. Children are not exposed to a variety of different people or cultures. What they know is what they see at school, church and social gatherings.We abolished segregation in our schools systems well over fifty years ago however, this class has made me realize that in public schools, poor and minority students are not recieving equal opportunities as the white students are. It use to be that segregation in public schools were such that black schools had no running water, flushing toilets, or electricity and the white schools had an abundace of needed materials , enough classroom space, and other neccessities needed for their students to achieve their educational goals. Its still here today . Similar incedences like this are happening everywhere in the US and it is amazing to me to see how history really does repeat itself even when we try to prevent the negative from becoming reality.Stereotyping can have negative effects, especially when teachers make fewer attempts to involve those of other cultures because they have been taught not to expect participation. In the classroom, teachers are role models for the children and they should show respect to each student and the classroom as a whole. By treating each student fairly without prejudice this could be said as a "lead by example" type of reinforcement.I know from raising three children and doing child care for the past eight years that when a child feels the positive influences from a person they look up to then they will be more able to come to that person with any problems they might be facing at school or at home. A teacher that can understand a childs fears can h...
