Racial Domination, Racial Progress Paper

The fallacy I choose is, “individualistic fallacy.” I know I am in this category because I was taught this by my peers in an after school program when I first came to America. They described the meaning of prejudice to me, so I know that it is similar to racism problems in this country. This issue appeals to my family and I. We are in the double conscious that you think too much in some situation when you are with the dissimilar group. For example, you over-react the extreme way when the black people approach you strangely. My parents think that African Americans are uneducated, poor, and violent. My parents fear that they will lead me down the wrong path if I befriend them. Furthermore, my mother has an image that black people are aggressive and love to fight with others if they think that person is in their way. They always mention that black people are the poorest in the world because they tell me that all beggars are black people. Somewhat, I am sharing the same view as my parents. They lecture me not to hang out with the black people so much. My parents only want me to befriend Asians, especially the smart ones, and learn from them. They do not like me to learn from white and black people. Once I had a friend name Cindy, I met her in my homeroom of middle school. Although I spent a great amount of time with her, I did not enjoy the time we spent together as much as I did with my Asian friends My family and I unintentional bigoted other ethnicities by their appearance. There was a victim that found guilty of getting in trouble because his face looks weird. Another story that my teacher sent a link to us about the officer are critic on the poor teenager boy with informative clothes, and do not look very bright. He was quickly arrested him and presuppose he was in a crime.

               During my school years, I realize that there are some segregation and bias. People raised in a diverse environment are not always getting together. They are more concentrating their own race and skin. They know that their own population sees eye to eye to what they are shouting like keeping saying the “N and fool” word. The white American think of immigrants are not comfortable and welcome in the previous centuries. The reason is they look at them like they are alien, and the ones who born in U.S abhor to the ones who want to come here. They verbalize the fundable judgment word out to their buddies. As a result, I am having a gap between the citizens who born here. 

The white American political doctrine of color-blindness is an ineffective strategy. It shows how the white people were not acknowledging much of how much black people are suffering. “Color-blindness would be the ideal response to a society unaffected by a racial domination.”(K. Anthony Appiah and Amy Gutman, Color Conscious the Political Morality of Race (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996) Pg 41).However, nowadays there are many racial problems that exist and are affected by color-blindness of minorities. Human tends to ignore the color people. Treating people coldly may be bad. But treating them harshly, and more importantly unfairly, is much worse. Some researchers are ascertaining that white people are not drug addict as much as black people. Their social class status are way opposite to each other like the pure, whiten families are living in the rich fancy house with gate, and the other side of black people are living in broken down houses or apartments. White seem not too interested in getting along with black. Colorblind racism is when you tell other you are not racist, but you are already one of them in that point. Indeed, there is an abstract to explain such a racial matter. People just have standards when it comes to social structure. For example, my standard is I do not do drug, have unsafe sex, and party every night. I asked one of my white male friend who he shares the same view as me. Most people are bias towards others and create large commotions. Discrimination exist in economic, politic, friendship, and cultural. Discrimination would always lead to misunderstanding or offend other. African American, White American, Asian, and Hispanic are both present the wrong idea to the individual and act in various ways to someone. Moreover, colors people think white are in the superior high class status, and the color people are aware and dislike how the white people interact with them. Also “If white people benefit from their skin privilege, people of color are disadvantage by it,” (41). I absolutely agree to this. It is unfair to the color people. They will not have as much privilege as white people. We immediately cannot judge and put up the status that white people get better things than other color-people. However, the reality seems to be that way. We can change to respect other racial groups, but it is not perfect in our society because human are still containing some nasty attitudes to others. Now there are some stories listed of the inequality of ethnic cluster. The girl in my class said that her friend went to a salon to get her hair done. When she saw the black and white hair stylists, she did not hesitate to choose the white lady. Another situation was about the boy named Alex, he is a white man who detests the African American, Ryan. They were talking and eating with their friend. Alex accidentally said the “N” word out for fun in his group, and Ryan got upset and told him that he had no right to use that word. Ryan raised his voice and tells him to shut up, but Alex kept on using the word with his best friend. Ryan knew and started the fight with him. Then they both got into a fight. Alex was complained that it was not fair of the result, and Ryan was portrait as an antagonist. Alex thought he used the casual joke and not offended Ryan. It proves how black people do not have the advantage, fairness. People describe black as low education, dirty in our society. We decide to believe that they are inferior to white people. In the second story, it seems like Alex is conscious and was color-blind to the black people. He thinks he is the best and does not want to give a good attitude toward Ryan. People might not do anything to do with the problem, and some people do not go deep into other culture to learn about their struggle and ideas. These are emphasizing the naturalization and cultural racism. Some people think that it is alright to leave thing as it is and believe there is no racism going on. Some school and media do not spread out this racist conflict and deem that it is fine to treat it like that. Communities are prejudicing how Asian puts their effort in their education first. Hispanic women are putting in favoritism that they are low education and easy find as a single-mother as African American women. In my opinion, not all cultural worlds are going into that category. Therefore, they have been illustrated as selfish and prideful inhabitants.

The term “advance marginality” is ghetto. “There are poor white neighborhoods, Hispanic barrios, and Chinatown aplenty. But a ghetto is not defined exclusively by its poverty, nor as we have already seen, are all kinds of poverty the same,” (230). However, there are some people often using this word as a useful phrase, and sarcastic joke. In my high school year, there are a few black people who describe their own neighborhood as a ghetto because they naturally think they are living in poor condition. My current friend claimed his house is like a ghetto because he thinks that it is old, dirty, and weird shape. They response that their house might live in a bad circumstance as an apartment or house scribbled with the homeboy writing, they have the gangsters walk around. Their family cannot support them, and have a crazy, violent neighbor-hood. Hence, they place it as a metaphor to get others attention. It is nonsense just to provide that as a regular conversation, but people love to apply it for fun. The house is dirty It is not one hundred percent accurate of how others live in that poverty is consider ghetto, but most people are assuming and frame that is the way it is. It is connect to the prejudice side like I preserve over black people because they breathe in the ghetto area. They occasionally dress in baggy pants and do not smell good. I am racist in some way of how the other cultures exist. I do not like the Downtown and East Los Angeles areas where black and Hispanic people live in. It is in worse areas, dirty ground, and a lot of homeless people. Next, In the East Los Angeles, they have so many graffiti writing in the wall by the low life teenagers and teenagers and the houses were all mashed up. I just cannot help but rant how they survive in there. As I examine, the certainty of advanced marginality in the ghettos of the United States is most applicable in its youth. It is the youth who will be the most frustrated at the lack of a future. With a lack of a steady income, an absence of security, a disinterest in imagination, it is easy to understand why anyone would join a criminal organization in hopes of belonging. Anomie in this situation will likely be a compulsive force. This kind of organization fulfills economic security, a sense of personal security, a collective goal, and most importantly, a sense of belonging. This is why organizations that offer sports as an after school program are so successful in changing lives. Such organizations understand that it is children that are the most important target group, because they are the most affected by advanced marginalization. Most importantly, the youth are the force behind change. The collective imagination and memory are established in everyone’s experience. You create a frame that the other might attack you that we can witness it is in race riot . It is ridiculous how racists review people of color in a violent way. They do not step in each other’s shoes and care for them. These people have been alienated so much, that they become blinded by a mob mentality. From a humanistic point of view, advanced marginalization has been contracted by both rich and poor. Negative ideas have penetrated so deep and for so long, that both sides believe the stereotypes they have been told to believe. It is an endless cycle that does not benefit anyone. It is as if these people are degenerating in their minds. When humans first walked on Earth, they were hunters and gatherers. They believed anyone who was not in their tribe to be aliens. The same thing has happened with religion, with state societies, and with nationalities. But now things have degenerated to race, which is nothing more than color. Imagination shrinks to the persons living next to you, who you talk with every day, who become like family. Memories are replaced with mindless routine.

In conclusion, I have committed the individualistic fallacy for most of my life. I have felt it too, from other groups. I see it in my own neighborhood, with my peers, with my parents, even with strangers. This class has helped me see past what my society has told me to just believe.

Identity Paper

Being Chinese-Vietnamese creates the image of who I am today. Before coming to America, I have always wondered if I am more Chinese or Vietnamese. Some of my friends called me Vietnamese since I was born in Vietnam, but both of my parents are of Chinese origin. I really started to think about my racial and ethical identity when I was filling out the registration for my High School. The registration has different categories such as Hispanic, White, African American, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Malaysia, Indian, Hindu, Muslim, and Iranian. I am surprised that there are so many different categories. Moreover, I struggled between Vietnamese and Chinese. Sometimes I called myself Vietnamese Chinese or Chinese Vietnamese. I am used to people calling my by these terms interchangeably. Whenever meet new people, they would automatically ask if I am Chinese, Japanese, or Korean. I notice how they are look at my facial feature. It seems like Americans think that all Asians are short and have almond eyes. I always have to have an inner struggle between Chinese and Vietnamese before answering. Sometimes I am afraid that I will offend my potential new friends by answering an answer that is not part of the choices, I just simply answer Chinese. Before I realize it, I have been labeled as Chinese. Before I completely forget about my Vietnamese self, I started to correct my friends and potential new friends that I am both Chinese and Vietnamese. Now that I am in American, I struggle to keep up with the expectations that my family have for me. This was difficult for me because I was not exposed to any kind of American culture while I was in Vietnam. It makes it even more difficult when most colored people think that I am smart because I am Asian. I also do not have a diverse group of friends due to my parent’s view of other racial groups besides Asian, more specifically Chinese and Vietnamese. American has taught me from being ignorant and obedient to being somebody who can walk her own path with true heart.

There are the things called discrimination in my family. My whole families do not like any interaction with African Americans. My parents think that African Americans are uneducated, poor, and violent. My parents fear that they will lead me down the wrong path if I befriended them. Furthermore, my mother has an image that black people are over-powering and love to fight with others if the black people think that person gets in their way. They always mention that black people are the poorest in the world because they tell me the entire beggar are black people. Somewhat, I am sharing the same view as my parents. They preach to me not to hang out with the black people so much. My parents only want me to befriend Asians, especially the smart ones, and learn from them. They do not like me to learn by white and black people. They want me to show them that I cannot forget about my nationalities as a Chinese and Vietnamese. I have to follow their values because I respect them. Respecting the parents and elders is extremely important in Chinese and Vietnamese culture. If one does not respect the elder, one is consider a bad child. In a way, African Americans act in a way that makes elder Asians think that they are rude and uneducated. I have always been taught that one should speak humbly to elders and never contradict them in anyway. The way that African Americans speak is the very opposite of how a youngster should talk to an elder. The way they speak is in a deep strong voice when they come to us. They give us a bad idea of how they talk to their friend For example; they have a scary look that we never see. Also when they greet on other, they going to yell out “ Yo, what up?” and it makes my family feel not right. It is really a big different of how Chinese culture act; we do not go up and yell out those words instead we give a smile, especially to those that one is unfamiliar with. Because of my upbringing by my parents and personal experiences, I do feel uncomfortable around African Americans.

However, there are some parts of my family that I am not proud of and wish for it to change. I am shameful of how my father is such a prideful man and want to rule his wife and children. He does not care how other think of us. When I step inside the house, I have to listen to him no matter what happens. However, my mother listens to him regardless of how unreasonable he is. I will not submit to any man like how my mother submits to my father. I will try to reason with my father if I was my mother. Reasoning is not a sign of disrespect. I have learned that in school. Some teacher even encourages students to reason why the teacher is wrong. Even if he would not listen my reasoning, at least I tried. Even if my reasoning is right and it makes sense, it is hard for him to accept. This is because it is his generation of how he handles his youngster, and so I will try to give my best to revolutionize the new generation.

Everybody thinks that Asians are smart, especially in math and science. Those stereotypes are not accurate as I see. Whenever others see a C or F, with I get often, they were all surprised and said, “How could you? You are Asian.” In my point view, not all Asians are smart. We might have some talents, but it isn’t how white and black people judge us. For example, I am not clever in math. I am not good at some hard equation math problems. In Vietnam, I need to go for a personal tutor and if I do not do it right, they will going to hit my face or pinch my ear. I am not hard working as others judge me, so I am not a typical Asian who will study my butt off. If I was born here, my accent will slightly smooth away like my cousin. My cousin speaks fluent in English, and sound like a perfect American. When people notice how I communicate with them, they know that I was not born in the U.S. Also, there might be some Chinese with Vietnamese person are study hard, but I am completely mismatched of how the American people look at me. I am a lazy person who does not study hard, procrastinate many times on my assignments. However, I have to work two times harder than an average white person who was born here. For example, when my classmate says, “you’re so cool that you can speak two languages.” I replied to them “Yeah, Thanks.” It might be a good thing, but then I had been made fun of a few black classmates who try to imitate me by saying“ching chong cho” as how the Chinese people say, and then they want me to teach them how to say some word out. That makes me frustrated.

My family is poor compare to the white people. My parents have a low-income job. They do not speak English fluently nor know how to write English, and that is a disadvantage to me because I do not have any brother and sister to practice my English with. We are trying to catch up the white people, but we know that the chance is very low. It is different social status in Vietnam and here. In Vietnam, it is easy to get a job and there is not having much competition in there. In American, it is hard to get a job and there is having a lot of competitions, especially with so many immigrants that do not speak English. Because of this, my parents put all of their hopes in me, hoping that I will be well educated and get a well paying job in the future. It is a well spread belief that people will get in high social class if I am well educated. I admire the white family is in a high social class that live in a mansion, own a dog, and have pets. Moreover, now I realize that my gender is another part of my identity. I am a girl who cannot say any inappropriate word, but some boys are alright to speak that out. I am a girl not allowed to go out to party at night, but the boys can. In Vietnam as a female, I was not approve to expose myself like showing some skin out but the white female and male are free to wear whatever they want. It feels unfair how society treats me in that way, and began to transform myself to be more fitable, stylish, and have a better appurtenance. I am developing the life between American and Vietnam. In my home town, I have not been usually thought as much as I am now. I did not go shopping by myself, was not energetic, and was much overprotected compare to the present time. I started to have a crushes when I start to adapt in this country, and the diverse part in Vietnam was I did not adore boy. Back in Vietnam, girls are not even supposed to think of boys until they are adults. I used to be naïve and trust people easily, but then now I am stronger and gain knowledge of analyzes in American.

To sum it, this variation of my own identity is much unexpected. I learn to believe and remain my own pure Chinese and Vietnamese. Even thought, I try to fit in the new nation, I still wish for preserve my cultures. Nevertheless, I still feel uncomfortable African American. I know that in the future, if I get to know them better, the discomfort will disappear. I can protect myself of not label as a small naïve child. I am gaining experience by people around me. I will attempt to not be shame to my family. In this situation I discover to be more independent and reasonable. I should have my own way on going to my path. I find out that the color blindness is a big deal to the civilizations. Therefore, I am aware of the other cultures.

Lol, YEs that is my paper in my Sociology class. It is kinda hard for me. I am the person who cannot write many many word out in an essay. My brain was like freezing up and stuck up idea. Lucky, I have my friend to help me to make it longer and correct the sentences better. Ah! I am selfish because I want her to help me again on the next one, but I haven't start it yet. XP ~.~ I read a few pages on the book! Hah!

Oh Wow! I ain't get use to this skipping line thing XP OH WEll. What have I done to myself?! -___- I was thinking some useless and pathetic thing toward an older guy. He seem like he does not have a time for me XP. I am so childish! Blah blah.... So stupid, digusts! I have a very young facial , but I constanly thinking about the dirty, slutty ideas on my mind so much !

Sigh! Of course , I will stop.. Sometimes I think writing blog is fun!! XD I just want to talk this out in here...Ah!! I can do it right?! Studying so much of vocab and analysis so much of stuff on my classs.. duh?! It makes me gain more knowledge XD lol?! How come I got a naughy invitation from the guy who broke up witih my ex friend?! YEs , ex friend ..the girl who just left & don't want to be my friend anymore. He is an asshole i think?! He just wants me to have fun with him..doing the freaking sex! I really don't feel alright at all of being open, wild girl. I really desire to meet a guy who is generious without thinking the word " sex". Haha Hard?! I guess.. Blah blah ..I just gotta keep up my school work and entertain myself by watching those good asian dramas lol XP JaeJOong from DongBangSHinKi is so sweet and good looking!! <3>

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