In this reading from Rothenberg, Karen Brodkin suggests that Jewish success was not a product of hard work or education. At this time, the segregation of blacks really affected the Jews’ place in society. Being “white” ended up as an advantage point for them. They used it to their advantage to become less oppressed in society. This was a big deal because blacks were still discriminated against while the Jews were using their whiteness to rise above.
“Part of my ethnic heritage was the belief that Jews ere smart and that our success was due to our own efforts and abilities, reinforced by a culture that valued sticking together, hard work, education, and deferred gratification (38). Brodkin continued to say, “I affirm all of those abilities and ideals and their contribution to Jews’ upward mobility, but I also argue that they were still far from sufficient to account for Jewish success (38-39). Blacks, Jews and immigrants were all oppressed groups. In this reading it confirms that Jews were the first of the Euro-immigrants to enter into colleges in significant numbers. Although it was a good thing they were able to even get into colleges, they were still discriminated against. Many Jews believed that their success was due to their hard work and the fact that they highly valued education. Brodkin said that they didn’t see race.
“In time and with hard work, every ethnic group would get a piece of the pie, and the United States would be a nation with equal opportunity for all its people to become part of a prosperous middle-class majority” (43). This was a huge step for race during this time. After the war, affirmative action stepped as a tool to make things equal. Earning a degree was very important; it pretty much meant you were upper-class in society. Soldiers coming home had nothing so a bill was created to help them out. Job training, employment, housing and education were all included in the GI bill. By using their whiteness to their advantage, Jews were included in this, but blacks were not. After the war, blacks were highly discriminated against when it came to the well-paid jobs and housing. Blacks were always the first to be fired, as well as white women. Redlining occurred, but the maps were kept in secret. How does the idea of redlining look in today’s society as opposed to years ago when it first began?
This selection by Brodkin really shows a connection from the past to the present. Although this supposedly isn’t an affirmative action piece, it shows that it’s always been an issue in society.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Takaki CH. 6 Emigrants from Erin
In Chapter 6 of Takaki, we read about much more than just differences between races. Differences within race become an issue of discussion. The Irish’s migration was described as a “massive infux” (139). This was ironic because many of these immigrants didn’t want to even leave their homeland; Ireland. The Irish were oppressed.
Takaki states that between 1815 and 1920, five and a half million Irish came to America. The Irish didn’t treat their migration as something they wanted. It was more like a necessity. They felt like they were being driven from their homeland by the British and they weren’t wanting to leave. To make more profit, the British wanted to transform the Irish economy into a “cattle civilization” (141). The British were trying to add Ireland into their market. Takaki describes the Irish living conditions. “The typical single-room cabin of an Irish family consisted of four walls of dried mud with a straw roof and a hold cut in the roof for the chimney” (142). It was described as a “wretched hovel,” which seems unlivable. They opted to migrate to “the Land of Promise” rather than feel like slaves in their on land. Upon arrivial, they began work, with very little earnings. Potatoes were a main source of food for them because they worked where they were grown. These crops soon became infected and lead to the threat of hunger. It was a deadly disease spreading everywhere and lead people to die from both sickness and hunger. Many were unable to pay rent and were then evicted. “For many landlords, the famine offered an opportunity to convert more land into fields for grazing” (143). These landlords definitely saw opportunity. For the Irish, times were hard in America. They weren’t treated well by the colonists because the colonists considered them more of savages, not white. Although this was an issue, the Irish weren’t completely looked down upon because the African Americans were even lower than the Irish.
In what ways were the Irish looked at as “different” than the whites upon first viewing of them? I feel that what was done to the Irish was wrong. I don’t believe that there should have been such harsh feelings and actions put toward them. It was hard to see that they didn’t even want to come to America in the first place because they loved Ireland so much. In other cases, immigrants don’t feel as much love for their homelands as the Irish so it was hard to put this whole thing into perspective.
Takaki states that between 1815 and 1920, five and a half million Irish came to America. The Irish didn’t treat their migration as something they wanted. It was more like a necessity. They felt like they were being driven from their homeland by the British and they weren’t wanting to leave. To make more profit, the British wanted to transform the Irish economy into a “cattle civilization” (141). The British were trying to add Ireland into their market. Takaki describes the Irish living conditions. “The typical single-room cabin of an Irish family consisted of four walls of dried mud with a straw roof and a hold cut in the roof for the chimney” (142). It was described as a “wretched hovel,” which seems unlivable. They opted to migrate to “the Land of Promise” rather than feel like slaves in their on land. Upon arrivial, they began work, with very little earnings. Potatoes were a main source of food for them because they worked where they were grown. These crops soon became infected and lead to the threat of hunger. It was a deadly disease spreading everywhere and lead people to die from both sickness and hunger. Many were unable to pay rent and were then evicted. “For many landlords, the famine offered an opportunity to convert more land into fields for grazing” (143). These landlords definitely saw opportunity. For the Irish, times were hard in America. They weren’t treated well by the colonists because the colonists considered them more of savages, not white. Although this was an issue, the Irish weren’t completely looked down upon because the African Americans were even lower than the Irish.
In what ways were the Irish looked at as “different” than the whites upon first viewing of them? I feel that what was done to the Irish was wrong. I don’t believe that there should have been such harsh feelings and actions put toward them. It was hard to see that they didn’t even want to come to America in the first place because they loved Ireland so much. In other cases, immigrants don’t feel as much love for their homelands as the Irish so it was hard to put this whole thing into perspective.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
“A Challenge to Democracy” clip
In the clip called, “A Challenge to Democracy,” the Japanese-Americans in America were basically told what to do without exception. The idea was to “Americanize” them by shipping the off to centers around the United States to form their own communities. This was during the time of the war. The living conditions of these Japanese-Americans were described as having community bathrooms, kitchens and small bedrooms. These were situations that these people were forced to adjust to. Farming was pretty much their only choice of jobs and it didn’t pay well either. These were the circumstances unless professional skills had previously been developed. In this case, under supervision, they were allowed to hold other jobs. Classes could be taken to enable them to get better jobs within the American economy. This was all done in hopes of benefiting the country.
How did this sudden change in these Japanese-Americans’ lives ultimately alter their perception of the U.S. as well as their own lives? This clip was very hard to watch because I felt as though all of this happened to these people solely because of the way they looked; Japanese. Nevermind the American part, but what was looked at was the Japanese part.
How did this sudden change in these Japanese-Americans’ lives ultimately alter their perception of the U.S. as well as their own lives? This clip was very hard to watch because I felt as though all of this happened to these people solely because of the way they looked; Japanese. Nevermind the American part, but what was looked at was the Japanese part.
Takaki CH. 10: Pacific Crossings
Chapter 10 of Takaki discusses the migration of the Japanese to America. “The distress among the agricultureal class has reached a point never before attained” (the Japan Weekly Mail, Takaki pg. 246). Many couldn’t afford to pay their taxed and ended up having to sell their land. Migrating to the United States seemed like the way to go for many Japanese citizens. The were seeking better jobs with better pay as well as land. At first, the majority of the immigrants were men, but this eventually was altered due to the large number of women that came to the United States. The Japanese believed that “money grew on trees” in America. This was their outlook on the situation.
To the Japanese, marriage was not just an individual concern, it was a family matter. “Picture brides” was a kind of system which consisted of arranged marriages. This was very common. Takaki talks a lot about the differences between Japanese women and Chinese women. The Japanese women were more receptive to traveling overseas. Also, the picture brides were more eager to see the new world over seeing their husbands. The way it worked was, the number of women that migrated partially depended on the countries they were migrating to. If these countries were not in need to these women, then they weren’t able to come. “Planters viewed Japanese women as workers and assigned 72 percent of them to field labor (250). If planters needed workers, their main source was Japan. Korean migrants also came and wanted work, but there needed to be equality between the nationalities. There were many feuds and eventually the Koreans labor supply was cut off. “To strengthen their authority over their ethnically diverse work force, planters stratified occupations according to race: whites occupied the skilled and supervisory positions, while Asian immigrants were the unskilled field laborers” (253). This really separated races in the work force.
Because the Japanese strived so hard to come to the United States and become successful, it highlights the fact that other nationalities did not. Why is there such a dividing line between these nationalities? Why is there such a large difference between countries? This article really put the Japanese into perspective for me. I never really acknowledged them for what they accomplished here in America before. They really took pride in where they came from, but on top of that, they knew that to survive, they needed to migrate and that’s what they did.
To the Japanese, marriage was not just an individual concern, it was a family matter. “Picture brides” was a kind of system which consisted of arranged marriages. This was very common. Takaki talks a lot about the differences between Japanese women and Chinese women. The Japanese women were more receptive to traveling overseas. Also, the picture brides were more eager to see the new world over seeing their husbands. The way it worked was, the number of women that migrated partially depended on the countries they were migrating to. If these countries were not in need to these women, then they weren’t able to come. “Planters viewed Japanese women as workers and assigned 72 percent of them to field labor (250). If planters needed workers, their main source was Japan. Korean migrants also came and wanted work, but there needed to be equality between the nationalities. There were many feuds and eventually the Koreans labor supply was cut off. “To strengthen their authority over their ethnically diverse work force, planters stratified occupations according to race: whites occupied the skilled and supervisory positions, while Asian immigrants were the unskilled field laborers” (253). This really separated races in the work force.
Because the Japanese strived so hard to come to the United States and become successful, it highlights the fact that other nationalities did not. Why is there such a dividing line between these nationalities? Why is there such a large difference between countries? This article really put the Japanese into perspective for me. I never really acknowledged them for what they accomplished here in America before. They really took pride in where they came from, but on top of that, they knew that to survive, they needed to migrate and that’s what they did.
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