An Autobiography

HUNGER OF MEMORY

The Education of Richard Rodriguez

My REFLECTION on this article:

When I read this autobiography by Richard Rodriguez, it made me recall when I first came to America as a nine year old kid not knowing one single word of English. Within a month or so of being in this new WORLD, my sister and I were enrolled in a bilingual classroom at James Otis Elementary School in East Boston, MA., where we lived for several years.

A picture of James Otis Elementary School in East Boston, MA (107 years old). First school I attended in the U.S.

As Richard Rodriguez recalls his childhood experience as a new student in an American Catholic School classroom setting, it wasn't at all pleasant to him. As I understand it, he remembers the experience as unfriendly, belittling, sad and very painful.
Richard was of Latino descent with an extremely minimal English language vocabulary, and now is in a classroom with white classmates, many of whom were the children of doctors, lawyers and business executives.

Richard goes on to recall how the nuns at his school came to his home to meet with his parents in an effort to enforce that the whole family speak only English at home. His parents obliged and from then on  spoke only English, although they themselves spoke very little of it, but felt it was extremely imperative to follow the teachers' advise. Richard, however, felt otherwise, he did want to abandon his traditional familial language of Spanish. It was a language of comfort and warmth to him. One that he took pride in and did not want to forget or neglect. He felt his culture was somehow being dismissed or was less important than that of the American culture.

I, on the other hand, as someone who experienced being introduced into a bilingual classroom at the age of nine, loved it! I, unlike Richard, couldn't wait to learn English. I wanted desperately to be able to communicate with the other children; to learn about their culture; to speak and play freely with no language barrier. I didn't see it as abandoning my heritage, language and culture, but more, as embracing my new one.

Is there such a thing as embracing your new adaptations, such as, culture; language; educational system; and perhaps even religion, without forgoing your own traditional culture, beliefs and
heritage? Can 'balance' ever be achieved to make for a happy and satisfied life?

To learn more about Richard Rodriguez, visit this website

WHITE PRIVILEGE: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsak...By Peggy McIntosh

Upon reading White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack By Peggy McIntosh, I came across several quotes I found to be very profound and immensely captured my attention.


3 QUOTES I chose:

•  "I have often noticed men's unwillingness to grant that they are over privileged, even though they may grant that women are disadvantaged.

This is such a great point she makes. She says men will work to improve women's status, in society, in schools, at the work place, but they can't or won't support the idea of lessening men's. She uses the word "denials", that men's denial of their advantages, which they gain from women's disadvantages, protect male privilege from being fully acknowledged, lessened or ended.

• "I have come to see white privilege as an invisible package of unearned assets which I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was 'meant' to remain oblivious."

In my opinion, the above statement is so powerful! I think she these phrases, such as, 'unearned assets'; 'cashing in'; and "meant" to remain oblivious'; to provocatively get her point across. And for me it did.

• "Whites are taught to think of their lives as morally neutral, normative, and average, and also ideal, so that we work to benefit others, this is seen as work which will allow "them" to be more like "us."

McIntosh writes that she decided to try to work on herself at least by identifying some of the daily effects of white privilege on her life. She compiles a list of 26 realizations of simple things she goes through on a daily basis-simple because she is white, but may be very difficult or impossible for a non-white person.


To learn more about Dr. Peggy McIntosh, read her Biography.