...The African American Literature unit shares the stories of many peoples lives through novels, poetry, essays, articles, and films. Many of these people were put in a rough situation because of of how they started out in life. many of them come from poverty which can restrict the opportunities they have in life. Economics play a key role in the African American literature as it effects the lives of many people. This was found in pieces of literature such as the article "How Poverty and Racism Persist in Mississippi", the novel The Water is Wide, and the poem "Note on Commercial Theater". First, the article "How Poverty and Racism Persists in Mississippi" shares the story of the author and his life as a child growing up in poverty. He tells about the struggles he went through such as only eating beans for days on end and constantly being hungry. As a child that just seemed ordinary to him as he didn't know anything else. As he is now grown up and a writer for The Atlantic, he knows different and is able to recognize the position of what he was in. Not only did he live that life, but many others did as well. Thirty two percent of African Americans in Mississippi live in poverty which is much higher than the national average....
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...Essay 1 Our nation pursues the ideal that what we look like or where we come from should not determine the benefits or burdens that we bear in our society. Unfortunately, for African Americans, one of the largest minority groups within the United States, this is not a reality. In fact, life has been altered from the moment their lives began as an individual of color. Today, many people tend to remember the victories of African Americans that include abolition of slavery, desegregation, the civil rights movement, and the right to vote before women. People tend to forget the centuries of ugly racism, oppression and violence. The times of slavery, Jim Crow laws, lynching and segregation along with the hardship of having no political voice. Many disregard that for every social policy throughout history with what appeared to be an open door, just became another obstacle for Blacks and step up for Whites. Social policies and government programs have neglected and shortchanged African Americans for decades. Today, African Americans continue to face economic, social and health disparities within society when compared to its white counterparts. African Americans are struggling with unemployment and poverty. According to Fletcher (2013) in 2012, the black unemployment rate was 14.0 percent, 2.1 times the white unemployment rate (6.6 percent). This rate is higher than the average national unemployment rate of 13.1 percent. For those African Americans who are employed, many are unable...
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...Definition Essay: Final Draft Kristopher Kirkpatrick September 19, 2011 English 002 Kris Kirkpatrick Definition Essay Where would the African-American community be today if they were all still living in the south? America would not be the country that it is today if people did not immigrate here from their respective countries, or migrate here from their respective areas. Due to immigration and migration, the culture in heavily populated cities, such as Harlem, Cleveland, Chicago, and Philadelphia, has given African-Americans, and European-Americans an identity and sense of belonging in the United States. Immigration is defined as the action to come to a country of which one is not a native, usually for permanent residency. Migration is defined as the action to move from a country, place, or locality to another. Why do Economist and Politicians seem to define blacks moving from the south to the north immigration? Certain groups of people still called the action of blacks moving from one part of the country to another immigration, instead of migration, because they didn’t see African-Americans as United States citizens. Economist believes migration has turned out to be a great strategy for the poor to make their lives a little better. African-Americans have migrated to the North for better opportunities, and the economy has boomed because of them. Economist can view the Great Migration and say that it resembles immigration in many ways. When foreigners immigrated...
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...Baldwin’s essay entitled “Fifth Avenue, Uptown” focuses on the physical and mental state of poverty, displayed in the Harlem neighborhood in which he grew up. Is it possible to be poor mentally as well as physically? It is indeed possible to be in a “poor state of mind” in addition to living poorly. Baldwin mentioned there were are in his old neighborhood that had been “rehabilitated”. However, there were areas that appeared the same as when he grew up there in the early 1900’s. There were also people; such as the neighborhood shoe repairmen, who were still there sadly going about the same daily routine that he’s witnessed since childhood. These are a couple of reasons why I feel that Baldwin’s main idea is the physical and mental state of poverty on Fifth Avenue, Uptown Harlem. The intended audience for this writing would be a general audience, particularly ones unfamiliar with what it is like being an African American growing up in a poverty stricken ghetto. His descriptions are so profound and detailed, that it seems as if he is painting a picture for people who may not have ever witnessed such things. This is why I feel the intended audience is those who can be enlightened by his...
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...create chocolate. 2) In your view is the kind of child slavery discussed in this case absolutely wrong no matter what or is it only relatively wrong i.e. if one happens to live in a society like ours that disapproves of Slavery. I believe that Slavery is wrong. Kidnapping is wrong. Forced labor for children is wrong. I would like to believe Slavery is absolutely wrong but this is coming from a Western perspective where we hold personal freedom as a right. We also don’t see the populations of poverty that some third world countries face. In countries where there is a high infant/child death rate due to poverty, and starvation, living as a slave could be seen as a preferable option compared to death. 3) Who shares in the moral responsibility for the slavery occurring in the Chocolate industry: African Farmers, African Government, American Chocolate Companies, Distributors, and Consumers? I believe that all of the above (African Farmers, African Government, American Chocolate Companies, Distributors, and Consumers) share a moral responsibility for the...
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...Revealed2 In the essay “What the Waters Revealed” written by Jim Wallis, Jim Wallis uses all three classical principals, ethos, pathos, and logos in his argument about Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was a natural disaster that everyone in the United States will always remember. During the Hurricane there was so much water that was produced that the levees around New Orleans could not withstand the pressure and the levees broke. Was it Hurricane Katrina that caused all the damage in New Orleans or was it the fact that the levees could not hold all the water, thus making the levees brake. Jim Wallis shed light to the truth that most Americans were not aware, and the media did not cover. Hurricane Katrina did not only destroy homes, businesses it also destroyed lives of thousands of people who lived in New Orleans. The essay reflects on our society's reluctance to admit how poverty and race correlates to our American society. (Lamm & Everett, 2007) Jim Wallis reveals the ethos argument by using his background as a veteran of the Civil War rights antiwar movements of 1960s and his years of experience in fighting for social justice..He uses his knowledge as a civil rights supporter to make several points about poverty in the United States. He gains the respect of his audience by expressing the importance of poverty in the United States and his passion for wanting to help the millions stricken by poverty in the United States. The way he approaches the topic of poverty with all the...
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...II Complete the following using the MySocLab Social Explorer Map: Income Inequality by Race located on your student website: · Select 1 racial group from the list below: o African American o Asian American o Arab American o Hispanic American/Latino o White/Caucasian · Write a 250- to 350-word summary of the economic, social, and political standings of that group. Use additional resources if necessary, from the University Library or your textbooks. Even though all Americans have experiences hardship since the economic slowdown, African Americans have suffered greatly from this situation. The average income of African Americans has declined by 1.3 percent since 2000. Along with the decrease in income, the unemployment rate of African Americans has increased. African Americans also have higher rates of poverty and slower growing rates of employment than other minority groups. The political standing of African Americans is very interesting. This minority group tends to support the Democratic Party and its candidates. African Americans have held various political positions for the past 50 years. More recently, the first African American president was elected in 2008. This definitely shows that African Americans are making strides in their political status. There are 43 African American Mayors of cities with populations of 50,000....
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...In ground and bottom, it does not matter if someone is white or black, American or Hispanic, we are all the same. Is it right to judge people by the color of their skin? Is treating people equally regardless of race somehow a paragon of inequality? Unfortunately, in today’s society we are judging people by the color of their skin, and not from their country of origin, ethnicity or biological. The American dream is based on the idea that; America where no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter where you come from, no matter what your last name is, no matter who you love, you can make it here if you try. While the United States was built on this idea, it is becoming harder and harder for people to move up in social status...
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...Running head: Essay #2 Essay #2 Darius McPherson Post University Essay #2 The Harlem Renaissance literature was a spark to African American which created many opportunity for black people to be inspirer to speak out. This allows poets to express them feeling against racism and that equality should be given to the black community. The literature of the Harlem Renaissance gave black people a chance to allow themselves to be heard. This gave hope to the black people an idea to use the (“cultural uniqueness through literature and art”). The Harlem Renaissance wanted the concentration to be on the literature which was used with creativity by the black people to portray black people life. The Renaissance made African American in a way that got them to a higher level to use music, and art to form the start of their own literature which created the new Negro movement. Everything was progressing for the black community as African American started using the visual of art which led them to the creation of jazz music and the approach of literature that shook the cultural into new ideas. With the Renaissance getting the recognition, Langston Hughes was a upcoming writer who would seem to become one of the best writer, poets of his time. Mr. Hughes was an inspire writer in which he wanted African Americans to feel good about themselves. Langston Hughes career as a writer, he talks about the “hardship, poverty, inequality”...
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...managed to complete ESL classes, which many people doubted. I feel that through my experience of this English course, I have gained the knowledge and confidence it takes to step out into the real world. My writing strength is the ability to use rhetorical strategies in a narrative essay to develop an academic prompt, but I still need to polish on how to demonstrate the facilities like improve my tone, how to persuade my reader, and how to organize...
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...1) The ‘real Africa’ is presumed to be filthy and miserable (Wainaina, 2005). Discuss. Representations of Africa in a global context have been largely negative, often presumed to be one country the continent is stigmatised as backwards, disease ridden, violent and in need of Western assistance. Although some positive imagery does emerge from Africa including that associated with Comic Relief, corporate campaigns such as Guinness’s stylish philosophy and in music videos like ‘Am I wrong’ by Nico and Vinz, Africa is subject to the use and re-use of negative imagery resulting in prominent stereotypes shaping our geographical imaginations of the continent. This is a similar concept to that of orientalism explored by Edward Said (1987). This essay will argue that presumptions of the ‘real Africa’ are largely negative, discussing how ‘Africanism’ and stereotypes of the continent are heavily influenced by colonial representations of people and place arguing that these assumptions are highly compatible with Western domination and power rooted in imperial attitudes. Jan Pieterse (1992:75) recognises that Africa has been depicted as the ‘Dark Continent’ plagued by stereotypes ‘which colonialism would build on and elaborate’. Imaginaries of childlike, savage, inhumane distant others who are dependent upon Western help dominate the way in which Africa is perceived. Campbell and Power (2010) suggest that a dominant scopic regime shapes our perception of Africa through the repetitive use...
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...African Americans have a dream If people want to learn about the real African-American life during the 1920s, undoubtedly, a good way is to read Langston Hughes’s works. Hughes writes lots of poetry about pursuing an American Spirit which realizes no discrimination, freedom and equality in the entire American society. Hughes hopes all African American can be respected by entire society. African Americans have relatively equal chances to compete with white people and have similar living condition as whites’ families which at least have a house and a car. The two poems of Hughes’ “I, Too” and “Theme for English B” describe Hughes’ desired American Spirit. In these two poems “ I, Too” and Theme for English B”, Hughes shares his experience as African American who lives under basic living condition, in hopes of encouraging more blacks to fight for equal rights. From the poem “I, too”, Hughes writes “I, too, sing America” (ln.1). As a common American people who learn American history and love American culture, although Hughes ’ancestry is African, he was born and grew up in the Unites States. Hughes also writes “I, too, am America” (ln.18). Although white people and black people have different skin color and background in the United States, they are all American. People can learn some idea about equality from Hughes. Hughes says when guests come to their home, white person can eat at the table but darker brother only can eat in the kitchen in the poem “I...
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...Principles of Argumentation In the essay “Reminders of Poverty, Soon Forgotten” the author Alexander Keyssar uses classical principles of argumentation. He uses ethos, which is the character of the speaker; he uses logos, which is an appeal based on logic or reason; and he uses pathos, which is an appeal based on emotions. His piece is over poverty and what came from Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath for the people. He also discusses what other events in history have contributed to poverty, and how nothing is being done about it by the government. He begins in part 1 using pathos, “ There they were on our television screens, the storm’s most desperate victims- disproportionately poor and black, wading through muddy water, carrying children and plastic bags containing a few meager possessions.” This was his view of the people that were left in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. In part 6 of his work, “But there is no crescendo of national public opinion about the presence of millions of poor people in our midst, and President Bush has not announced the creation of a national task force to combat poverty.” This part to me shows that he is not happy with what President Bush has not done for the people that are battling poverty. Part 9, “Poverty, however, is not a technical issue, but a deep, structural problem that implicates our values, our economic institutions, and our conception of the proper role of the state.” This shows his views on what poverty is. This author uses logos...
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...English 9H A Raisin in the sun Critical Lens Essay Damon Chen May 14, 2015 “For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else.” This is a quote from Helen Keller, the famous American lecturer and writer who was blind and deaf from the age of 19 months. I personally agree with this quote, and I see some similar points on Beneatha, one of the main character in “A Raisin in the sun”. in the story, Beneatha faces two choices, and neither of them is perfect but she must choose one of them. Beneatha Younger is Mama’s daughter and Walter’s sister. Beneatha is an intellectual, Twenty years old African-American woman who attends college and is better educated than the rest of the Younger family. Some of her personal beliefs and views have distanced her from conservative Mama. She dreams of being a doctor and struggles to determine her identity as a well-educated black woman. In the book, she faces two problems: marry a wealthy but arrogant African-American man George Murchison or marry a poor but idealistic Nigerian student Joseph Asagai to follow her dream. George Murchison is a wealthy, African-American man who loves Beneatha. The Youngers approve George, but Beneatha dislikes him, because of his willingness to submit to white culture and forget his African heritage. “Let’s face it baby, your heritage is nothing but a bunch of raggedy-assed spirituals and some grass huts.” He challenges the thoughts and feelings of...
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...Gap in Health Disparities of African Americans Rosie Vasser Grand Canyon University Closing the Gap in Health Disparities of African Americans Historically speaking African Americans have had harder access to healthcare due to a number of socioeconomic reasons. Many are unable to even get to a facility. When thinking about poverty in America one must associate African Americans with poorer health, less access to medical care and higher risk factors than others. Stressors alone within this group places them at higher risk for hypertension, smoking, diabetes, etc. Lower income limits the availability to healthier food and quality healthcare. AA persistent struggle to achieve the American dreams translates to their persistent struggles with health. The dominate society generational connection to wealth, affords them the ability to access the best in healthcare. AA has very limited access to quality healthcare. According to Eileen M. Crimmins, Mark D. Hayward, and Teresa E. Seeman (2004), “People who are poorer and who have less education are more likely to suffer from diseases, to experience loss of functioning, to be cognitively and physically impaired, and to experience higher mortality rates” (2004), This essay will compare and contrast the health status of the African American minority group and compare to the national average. We will discuss the current health status of this minority group, how health promotion is defined by African Americans, and what health disparities...
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