United Farm Workers and Mexican Americans Essay Example for Free

United Farm Workers and Mexican Americans Essay The 1960s was a turbulent decade in the American history, filled with conflict over issues brought up by many different minority groups to form the various Civil Rights Movements. In this decade, the Chicano Movement started to gain a mass following and became a dynamic force of social change. Similar to blacks, Mexican Americans were plagued by police brutality, poverty, and inequality. In the pursuit of tackling these problems, the history of Chicanos in California consisted of the convergence of multiple movements: A youth movement represented in the struggle against discrimination in schools; the farm workers movement; and the movement for political empowerment, most notably in the formation of La Raza Unida Party1. The organizing efforts and achievements in California had major impact on the fate of Mexican Americans. Improvements in barrios, farm-labor camps, school districts and politic representation, led other states to sought reform. Education has long been a primary target of Mexican American activists and reformers. The Mexican American community had the highest high school dropout rate and lowest college attendance amongst all ethnic groups. As a result of the constant underestimation of students as well as the failure to upkeep facilities, a hostile learning environment was manifested. Their goals included bilingual, bicultural education, Latino teachers and administrators, smaller class sizes, better facilities and the revision of the text books to incorporate Mexican American history. In turn, Chicano students and activists decided to make their struggle public in order to pressure school boards into compliance of their demands for education reforms. In March of 1968, thousands of students walked out of their high school in L. A. protesting racial inequality among their school district. Their effects were not wasted, as the school board recognized their efforts by recruiting and hiring more Chicano teachers and administrators2. Ultimately, this inspired high school protest across the nation. College campuses also formed groups, like the United Mexican American Students, with the purposes to enforce for more Chicano study programs, financial aid, and Mexican faculty. Activists fought for bilingual educational programs and in schools and won in 1976, their hard work created more than 50 Chicano studies program in colleges. 3 Changes were not immediately apparent in high schools; however a significant change occurred in the college recruitment of Latinos and educational programs. Though most of the demands were not met, the walkouts unified and empowered the Chicano community, which in the process became a political force. Another focus of the Chicanos had been politics. Their goals encompassed the increase of Chicano candidates in the political arena, convincing non-Chicano candidates to commit themselves to the need of Mexican American community, conducting broad-scale voter registration and community organization drives, and for more Chicanos in government offices. 4 Rather than representation within the two major political parties—democrat and republic—activists established an organization dedicated to their empowerment, the El Partido de la Raza Unida. Found in 1970 by Jose Angel Gutierrez and Mario Compean, the party became active in community organizing and electoral politics statewide, campaigned for better housing, work, and educational opportunities5. The changes they fought for was made possible by combining mass action: firing of racist teachers, protecting high school student rights, and taking advantage of federal government monies they were entitled to, but was not utilized by the previous city government. Police polices were modified as well to benefit Chicano communities. The La Raza Unida Party leaders also worked to raise the wages of school and city workers to encourage unionization6. Though La Raza Unida is no longer a registered political party in the United States, its legacy is still very much alive, affecting the lives of Mexican Americans today. One aspect of the Chicano movement highlighted the rights of the workers in the fields of California. In order to fight against harsh working conditions, low wages and discrimination of Mexican farm workers, the United Farmworkers Union Organizing Committee was established. Led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, the UFWOC accomplished its greatest victory when their strikes, boycotts, convinced the largest table grape grower, John Guimara Sr. , to only hire workers represented by the union. Despite their victory, union leaders struggled to create a union to represent all agricultural workers; As a result a three-month strike by grape workers in California began. Due to the efforts of Chavez and his union in 1975, California passed the Agricultural Labor Relations Act; which guaranteed farm workers’ rights to organize. 71 Although seen as an accomplishment, more restrictions were placed on the actions of unions. Today, agricultural workers in California are still being exploited, working in poor conditions with little pay and limited representation. Chicanos in California have played no small role in the social, economic, and political development of California. Not only is California home to majority of the Mexican Americans population in the United States, but also it is the scene of Chicano cultural Renaissance and has contributed to Hispanic cultural renaissance in the United States. California has also been the home of Chicano publication—including magazines, newspapers, and scholarly journals. 7 Although much of the problems faced by Chicanos in the 20th century had been resolved through reforms during the Civil Rights Era, many Mexican Americans are still being marked by oppression and exploitation. Not only in the field, but industries as well. They are often found working at wage jobs and poor conditions. Over the next few decades, other social reforms for Mexican Americans can be expected. Almost six decades after it began, the Chicano Movement still holds a visible impact on California. As a result of activism in politics, education, and farm work, much of the hardship faced by Chicanos in the early history of California have been resolved. The most prominent outcome of the Chicano Movement are still within academia, with the formation of numerous student centers at college campuses across the nation that aims to students of color as well as the establishment of Chicano Studies Departments and so on. The Literary and art movements of the 1970s also left an enduring mark on the Chicano community. The impact of Chicanos in California gave rise to countless Chicano communities where none existed before. Although activists today are still working on the struggles faced by Chicanos today in various fields, such as farm work, their movement in the 1960s has surely impacted California social, economic and political standing.

Russel Edsons Counting Sheep :: Edson Counting Sheep Essays

Russel Edson's Counting Sheep After British scientists had cloned a sheep called Dolly, people were asking them why they had done it and they said because they could do it. Last week it was anounced that the human genome had been decrypted. Although everybody agrees that this is a blessing for mankind, many people are worried about what scientists might do with their new toy, again, just because they are able to do it. Long before anybody even thought about cloning sheep, Russel Edson had them shrinked. His poem "Counting Sheep" is a subtle approach to the question of use and misuse of science. The ability to shrink matter certainly stands for a technically very advanced culture, in which scientists must have almost god-like powers. But after shrinking the sheep, this scientist "wonders what he should do with them." In a way, he resembles a child and the innocent atmosphere of the poem contributes to this impression. He falls asleep counting sheep. Like in Goethe's "The Magician's Apprentice", the creation overcomes its creator. However, when the scientist thinks of possible uses for his invention, he thinks about "a substitute for rice, a sort of wooly rice", but never about shrinking hostile armies and crushing them with the tip of a finger. Edson makes him look so naive, that we almost forget that we are dealing with a very serious issue. Even when the scientist rubs the sheep "to a red paste between his fingers," he doesn't do it on purpose but seems more like a bull in a china shop. What if it were not sheep but apes or even humans? He definately has the po wer to do that. We are reminded of the scientists who discovered nuclear power. It had never occured to them that someone might use it to build the worst doomsday weapon ever. By describing the minimum credible accident, Edson makes us think about the maximum credible accident. Like "The Death of an Angel", "Darwin Descending" and "The Automobile", "Counting Sheep" is partly a parody on our modern society's attitude towards science and technical advancement, which has almost assumed religious features. Edson comments on the way we treat our scientists like half-gods and on our blind believe in their seemingly unlimited powers.

How has IT affected Society? Essay

The term information technology (IT) refers to anything related to computing technology, such as networking, hardware, software, the Internet, or the people that work with these technologies. IT evolved in the 1970’s and has become a part of our everyday lives. †¢Globalization: The creation of one interdependent system helps us to share information and end linguistic barriers across the continents. The technology has not only made communication cheaper, but also possible much quicker and round the clock. The wonders of text messages, email and auto-response, backed by computer security applications, has opened up scope for direct communication. †¢Creation of New Jobs: Things that were once done manually or by hand have now become easier and faster due to the advent of a computing technology. A whole new field of opportunities for skilled persons has opened up such as web designers, computer programmers, system analyst etc. †¢Cost effective: Information technology has helped to computerize the business process to make them extremely cost effective money making machines. This in turn increases productivity which ultimately gives rise to profits that means better pay and less strenuous working conditions. †¢Privacy: Though information technology may have made communication quicker, easier and more convenient, it has also bought along privacy issues. From cell phone signal interceptions to email hacking, people are now worried about their once private information becoming public knowledge. †¢Dominant culture: While information technology may have made the world a global village, it has also contributed to one culture dominating another weaker one †¢Loss of personal touch: emails and instant messaging have replaced the old tradition of handwriting letters. †¢Theft of personal information †¢Pornography †¢Unemployment †¢Lac of job security IT use in Mexico has changed since the implementation of NAFTA. Specifically, it appears that the indirect effects of NAFTA have increased investment and foreign firm activity in Mexico, which has ultimately increased IT use. However, the uniform proliferation of IT throughout Mexico, especially among domestic firms and within the more rural areas, appears to be weak. NAFTA, though helpful, could have been more effective in stimulating IT adoption if it were aided by further government interventions and if more focus was directed at building up a more conducive IT infrastructure. Cuba is the Caribbean’s largest and least commercialized island and one of the world’s last bastions of communism. The island’s relative political isolation has prevented it from being overrun by tourists, and locals are sincerely friendly to those who do visit. Cuba’s international telecommunication infrastructure is in better condition and better able to meet current and future demand than their internal infrastructure, although that is also improving. Demand for telecommunication is rising in spite of the economic effects of the loss of Eastern Europe and the embargo. Key industries which generate hard currency (tourism and biotechnology) require communication, and their requirements are being slowly funded. And article covering the effect of technology on the society of Nigeria While students may hunger and yearn for computers they do not have the earning power to buy PC â€Å"While students may hunger and yearn for computers they do not have the earning power – so while the demand will be catalyzed by students it will be actualized by willing parents, wards, guardians, mentors and other well meaning Nigerians who are willing to invest as little as N3, 500 a month in the future of the country†, Omobola Johnson, Minister of Communication Technology says summing up the launch of the Student PC Ownership Programme to equip Nigerian students with computers. Cost effectiveness on Businesses Quicker Communication Theft of personal information The Information Technology Society deals with all aspects of information technology in industry, administration, teaching, research and science. Its primary aim is to promote the scientific and technical development of information technology and its practical application. The ongoing computing and communications revolution has numerous economic and social impacts on modern society and requires serious social science investigation in order to manage its risks and dangers. Each technology has its users and developers. They determine the importance and influence of technology on the consumer. To determine and group the users and developers of the information technology, special properties have to be taken into account.

Analysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved Essay - 1634 Words

Beloved is one of the best and most well-known books of writing in the African-American society published in 1987. The novel, for the most part, discusses the black community that is unwilling to incite their past and in this way, irritated by its incarnation (Abdullah 25). Toni Morrison does not dissent suppression. Rather, she is pained by its effect on the souls of the black individuals. Nevertheless, the novel approves Toni Morrison s ability in creating the free awareness of various individuals who bear the horrible weight of a slavers unrevealed wrongdoings. (Balon 149). However, the issue of captivity was killed in Ohio for around ten years. This is the setting where the author puts the characters in the persuasive writing. This novel (Wall) suggests that a black lady, Sethe, is the heroine. It is because he can keep his youngsters from being subjugated (Cunningham 45). The writing further, includes anger, and race as the main sources of social issues. Therefore, one of the s ocial difficulties in the African-American culture, as indicated by Toni Morrison s book is Slavery. A great part of the novel accentuates on the group of ex-slaves and how they figure out how to defeat the issue to return to typical life. In that capacity, the book addresses the distinction amongst man and creature because of extraordinary subjugation forced among the African-American individuals (Middleton 30). In its important outline of the Negro Community, complete with their trusts andShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Morrison s Beloved, By Toni Morrison Essay941 Words   |  4 PagesMorrison and Twain each present freed slave mothers as self-sacrificing. Each woman s traumatic experiences as slaves create a deep fear of her children s enslavement. In Morrison s Beloved, Sethe is so distressed by her past; she murders her child to save her from slavery. Morrison uses Sethe s drastic sacrifice to comment on slavery s psychological effects. Meanwhile, Twain s Pudd n Head Wilson portrays Roxy as a sacrificial mother to create sympathy for black people. From a culturalRead MoreAnal ysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1458 Words   |  6 Pagesinequality between races, classes, and genders. Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved is a story that truly shows how oppressive slavery was during the setting of the book. Similarly to the inequality faced during the time of slavery, while Morrison was writing the her novel the issue of women’s equality was present, and being fought for. Morrison, through Beloved, is able to show the world her views on inequality, and how it is still present in life today. Morrison is African American, she was born into a familyRead MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1615 Words   |  7 PagesIn her novel Beloved, Toni Morrison utilizes a circular narrative to emphasize the similarities, or lack thereof, between her characters. In Philip Page’s article, â€Å"Circularity in Toni Morrison’s Beloved,† he writes, â€Å"The plot is developed through repetition and variation of one or more core-images in overlapping waves... And it is developed through... the spiraling reiteration of larger, mythical acts such as birth, death, rebirth, quest-journeys, and the formation and disintegration of families†Read MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1200 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å"We’ve all got both light and dark inside of us. What matters is the part we choose to act on (Sirius Black) †. Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved dedicates her novel to the 60 million and more exposed to the darkness within the people set out to hurt them. The novel depicts how cruelty leads ex-slaves to make irrational decisions and shape the people they are at the end . The cruelty inflicted on one including but not limited to slavery causes a chain reaction of hatred, pain and suffering and theRead MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved943 Words   |  4 Pages It is within human nature to fear that which we do not understand. In Toni Morrison’s Beloved, this idea is explored through the lens of racial discrimination. In this passage, Morrison uses animal imagery as a means to criticize the whites’ dehumanization and subsequent fear of the blacks. With a focus on this inherent, primal fear, this section stresses the novel’s theme of the â€Å"Other† and reinforces the existence of racial prejudice. While this piece of the narrative emphasizes that this â€Å"othering†Read MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1547 Words   |  7 PagesToni Morrison’s Beloved extends beyond a description of individuals held captive by their past through the exploration of human responses to slavery. The manipulation of language and its controlled absence reinforces the mental enslavement that persists after individuals are freed from physical bondage. It is when language is amplified into song that an individual or community may free themselves from the constraints of mental enslavement, therefore enabling their ability to claim ownership of themselvesRead MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1323 Words   |  6 PagesToni Morrison’s Beloved is a masterwork of fiction that allows the reader to have many different experiences based on the novels that you pair the book with. When you read Beloved in a modernist light you get a story with slightly different themes then if you read it through a feminist lens. It is a credit to Morrison that her thoughtfully crafted piece of art is able to stand on it own in so many varying ideas. One of the lens that doesn’t get discussed enough is the lens of African AmericanRead MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved1200 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"We’ve all got both light and dark inside of us. What matters is the part we choose to act on (Sirius Black) †. Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved dedicates her novel to the 60 million and more exposed to the darkness within the people set out to hurt the m. The novel depicts how cruelty leads ex-slaves to make irrational decisions and shape the people they are at the end . The cruelty inflicted on one including but not limited to slavery causes a chain reaction of hatred, pain and suffering and the cycleRead MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved871 Words   |  4 Pagesvery important motif in both Morrison and Faulkner’s stories. In Beloved, the reader is presented with a sad and depressed portrait of Sethe. Her life seems dark and bleak. However, once Beloved enters into her life, the reader sees an apparent shift in Sethe as a character. She begins to see color again, and it is Beloved who brings about this sudden transformation (Beloved, 65). And in the end, after Beloved has left, Sethe states, â€Å"She was my best thing† (321). Beloved was her redeeming quality,Read MoreAnalysis Of Toni Morrison s Beloved 702 Words   |  3 PagesWilliams 2 period Book by: Toni Morrison Book Titled: Beloved Beloved is about a lady they call Sethe who lives in Bluestone with her daughter Denver and her mother in law Baby Suggs. Fifteen years before the story starts, Sethe kills her baby because she was trying to keep her kids from being brought into slavery. The community knew about her killing her baby and judges her. Her sons Buglar and Howard left fifth teen years before the book started. After Baby Sugg s died, Denver and Sethe are alone