Help with an essay, please

[Drjones]

Hello all.

I am faced with another essay for my Ethnic Studies class. (Read: Whites and Western civilization are the root of all evil)

Here is the prompt we were given:

ETHN 100 Essay #2
Write a 5-page essay (no more, no less) discussing the impact of political, legal, economic, and social obstacles experienced by racial/ethnic groups on their economic class, position, social status, and political power. Discuss similarities and differences among the groups.

Papers are due April 8, 2003

Use 12 point Times New Roman font. Double space, 1 inch margins, headers and footers.

Make sure your essay addresses African Americans, Asian Americans, Chicanos, Native Americans, and European Americans. Present the span of information covered up to this point. Your analysis must be grounded in, backed up by, or explained in terms of, the reading material.

You must demonstrate substantive use of the various readings. You must use at least five essays in race: an anthology in the first person; five chapters in Origins and Destinies, three chapters in Global Sociology, and two chapters in the reserve readings from Since Predator Came.

Make sure to cite specific points taken from the books, even if you are only paraphrasing. Limit use of quotations. Within the paper, cite by including the author’s last name, publication year, and page number. Cite references fully in the bibliography. Lack of citations as requested will result in a 10% loss per item not included.

Although this paper will utilize the ideas in the readings, the analysis should represent your own articulation and synthesis of ideas in the readings.

Your paper will be graded for content, clarity, organization and knowledge (of class material). Content refers both to the facts/ideas used to develop points in the essay and also the number of ideas used in the development of the essay’s points. Clarity refers to the ability to understand your points. Organization has to do with how you set up and develop your points. Knowledge concerns grasp of the course material and readings.

Of course, you will also be graded on all aspects of writing.

*****

Basically, I think what he is looking for is for us to explain to him how because hundreds of years ago blacks were held as slaves, and the indians had their land taken from them, that that somehow explains the fact that more minorities today generally suffer from poverty and other things more than white people.

Because white people are all evil and oppressive, doncha know...

I cannot and will not agree to any extent with such an idea.

I just need some help getting started. (Though I suppose its going to be tricky, since we *have* to use the class reading materials, and that is all socialistic crap. )

Thanks!!!

 

[Trisha]

Absolutely!

Use the "required reading list/resources,' but look at them in a different light: highlight their bias, and note what they don't talk about.

Expand on that with a little follow-up research on other publications by said authors, as well as peer reviews. Evaluate and dissect the conflicts in justification of what plots out to be a geo-political premise inherent (if so found) in the authors - and draw on analogous "predator-prey" relationships in pre-Western civilizations to legitimize your questioning what you systematically evaluate to be self-justification, instead of self-actualization and social empowerment.

Ethnic "victimization," as is frequently justified by the Liberal Socialist curiously coincides with their demographical aquiescense for disarmament and the rise of a police state, as such absolves any twinge of self-reliance to those of kindred ilk.

I hope I've been helpful!

Trisha

 

[jsalcedo]

You could write about minorities being disarmed throughout
history under the guise of public safety

 

[TallPine]

You're just supposed to parrot back all the "socialistic crap" that you've been forced to read.

Any deviation in your conclusions from that of the authors of the bird cage material that you have been reading will result in a poor grade.

Sorry, but that's just the way it is ... (been there, done that)

 

[Don Gwinn]

Can't help ya. Although I think it's clear that individuals each have their own choices to make in life, I find it a little silly to claim that the descendents of slaves (and Jim Crow untermensch) are generally poor, while the descendants of the other guys are generally less poor, more or less by coincidence.

 

[Yohan]

this is gun related.. how?

 

[Drjones]

You could write about minorities being disarmed throughout
history under the guise of public safety

 

[Hkmp5sd]

This sounds about like someone having to defend the 2nd Amendment using only information provided by VPC and HCI.

 

[gudel]

only 5 page? come on now, you don't really need any help.

 

[Pendragon]

Here is my take:

Some of the more "culturally concious" minorities (multiculturalists) go out of their way to embrace their "culture" which often entails rejecting "white" culture.

So, you have different ways of dressing, different ways of talking and different ways of interacting.

Unfortunately for these people, they are out of touch with mainstream culture and this makes it difficult for them to succeed in many areas of our economy.

You can say this without defining their culture as "bad", only "different" and different enough to obstruct communication and make it difficult for them to integrate into the business world.

Look at the people who succeed - they know when not to use slang, and they know how to conform their dress and mannerisms, etc.

Of course whitey is evil for not seeing all of this and knowing how to interface with everyone within their own cultural context - oops, if euros are supposed to do this, then so should other people.

Bottom line is - proper english, mainstream dress and mainstream mannerism are the standard of the business world.

Conform or stay poor.

Same thing as young people getting all body modified and then wondering why they are treated so differently...

Yeah, not a tempest in a teacup, noooo......

 

[sm]

I believe Thomas Sorrels an African American whom writes editorials, and is a fellow with Stanford may be a good source.

My Sociology Prof. , was Africa American, read some of Sorell's works to the class. Lets just say many cultures were surprised of the opinions, sources used and quoted were not those of a Caucausian.

" if one does not want to be stereotyped in the negative light of a culture--don't act, and carry oneself that way".

paraphrased, been awhile. HTH

 

[Bonker]

But don't bring a negative attitude to the table. Try to actually learn something.

While we may totally disagre with political correctness, affirmative action, reparations, etc.. you cannot deny that a terrible wrong was done to blacks (and many other minorities) for hundeds of years. I know we didn't personally do it to them but that's not the point.
Their culture is a product of generations of mistreatment and predjudice.

I am the whitest Irish guy I know but I also find black history to be rich, full, and fascinating. It took years for me to open my eyes and learn to see things from the other side though.

Don't let idiots like Sharpton Jackson turn you off to the opportunity to learn something valuable.

"Write a 5-page essay (no more, no less) discussing the impact of political, legal, economic, and social obstacles experienced by racial/ethnic groups on their economic class, position, social status, and political power. Discuss similarities and differences among the groups."

Find a black guy over 60 years old who isn't a blithering racist and who will talk to you. Bring a tape recorder and I bet he'll tell you all you need to know.

 

[pax]

DrJones,

I wish you all the best in getting your paper written and am glad that you got some good replies before I had to notice that this is really, really, really not gun related.

Suppose if I just kick it over to L&P, the nice moderators there will admit that it isn't too far off topic for that forum?

Let's find out...

pax

A society that puts equality...ahead of freedom will end up with neither equality nor freedom. -- Milton Friedman

 

[ahadams]

Hey Dr. J.! have you considered taking the perspective that the recent court rulings against such things as racial set-asides in higher education clearly point to the inherent bias against european americans in much of the sociological research of the last 20 years or so - you can draw examples from your required reading. Remember if you're *radical* enough both in your writing and in communicating to your prof your clear intent to show bias whereever it may be found (especially if it's aimed at you) the worst he can give you is a C if you're an undergrad, or a B if your a grad student. Otherwise you can challenge him through the university system (with appropriate support via the internet and elsewhere from conservative groups) and while he may win in the U. he'll lose in the U too, at least from the perspective of making them look stupid in the media, which they ALWAYS want to avoid and the faculty WILL blame him for it long after your gone...and if he doesn't know that now - he sure will once his department chair explains it to him.

ah higher education...this is why I'm helping start an extension of a conservative theological seminary here in the midwest, rather than back in DC where the big bucks are.

Arlin

 

[ed dixon]

Doc, this likely won't help in time for the paper, but if you get the chance read some Stanley Crouch, especially a collection of essays called "Notes of a Hanging Judge." He's a black columnist and jazz expert who also happens to be a very smart, independent thinker. He makes no excuses for bigots of any color and discusses the insidious condescension implicit in many liberal rationalizations. You probably won't agree with him on everything, but isn't that to be expected among reasonable people? Hey, even your teacher's probably right sometimes. Ed

 

[Sodbuster]

How did European Americans get thrown in the mixture? Are they the control group? Unless he's speaking of, say, circa 1900 "No Irish Need Apply," it would seem the Europeans are the problem. In the context of your Ethnic Studies class, of course.

 

[skippie]

Native American: Buddy we all fall under that as long as we were born here, Don't we??

 

[Frohickey]

Couldn't you write about how gun control laws started out as laws disarming persecuted minorities in the ex-Slave south?