Webquest Response!

All week the class had been working on webquests. I chose a webquest discussing the plight of Asian Americans. My task was a three paragraph post on my opinion about how Asian Americans are treated. It was eye-opening.


Racism in America is a disturbing phenomenon affecting all minority groups. But when people think of racism only a few groups come to mind: Jews, African-Americans, and Muslims. But what about Asians? Asian Americans have a long laundry list of stereotypes that are constantly used against them. Asians can’t drive. Asians can’t see. Asians try to be smarter and better than everyone else. Yet, who pays attention? From what Mike Hong says, no one cares. “However, calling an Asian a "chink" and calling someone who is African American a "nigger" is of the same nature and yet when an outside party hears both, one is clearly seen as more offensive and more racist than the other. In the same sense, "chink" is deemed the result of adolescent behavior and not punished as racism.” (Hong) Not caring about racism is racist in itself, as if a group of people doesn’t matter enough to take action against being discriminatory towards them.

“No, it would not surprise Sergeant Maples to hear that Kabuo Miyamoto had killed a man with a fishing gaff.” (Guterson) The quote from the book Snow Falling on Cedars is a prime example of the racism and stereotypes against Asian Americans. Not only does it illustrate racism by citizens, it illustrates racism by those meant to protect: the police. This links to my opinion that no, racism against Asian Americans is not being successfully dealt with.

Racism against Asian Americans is just tangled in a mesh of xenophobic tendencies against any foreigners. We fear Mexicans entering the country, we fear Arabs on plans in general, and we try to keep Cubans out. It’s a constant stream of fear. “Anti-black racism, which has been the paradigm for thinking about U.S. racism, can be, and has been, theorized apart from xenophobia.” (Sundstrom 2008) The article housing the previous quote goes on to say most major racism in the country is not associated with xenophobia. It is rather based on superiority. Calling an Asian American “dragon-lady” or commenting on the hypomasculinity of Asian American males could be passed off by the government as xenophobia or, as depicted, ignored by already racist authority figures. So no, I don’t think the racism against Asian Americans is being dealt with.

Being Saxon (Or the Lesson Plan That Isn't)

Mexicans are commonplace in the US. They are lazy, job-stealing, heartless, thieving, evil people bent on sucking the economy dry and feeding off tax-payer money. Right? No. In fact, Mexicans are only singled out because of the amount of unwarranted bigotry prevalent in our “great” nation. The novel the Tortilla Curtain examines how the rich are the real enemies of the Mexicans. The middle-class and below, the people who wake up at 6 AM to catch a bus or make coffee, many of them realize just how hard the Mexicans work.

Now your task, if you choose to accept it (no choice) is to, not only answer are the questions posed to you dealing with the sources, but to also write a 1 to 2 page paper in any style you want (be it essay, reflection, satire, etc.) utilizing the new information you now have and citing at least two quotes from the sources provided. Keep in mind this question in particular:

“Does everyone deserve the American Dream?”

Part I: On a Wagon to Mexico

So let’s start from the beginning. Go onto itunes, type in “Mexican Immigration” and click on the podcast by Dr. Erasmo Gamboa (check out his ears).

After watching this podcast hit this link:
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4040291/10922648

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/whitestripes/ickythump.html and read the lyrics paying specific attention to the bridge beginning with “White American”


1. Analyze the song and explain the underlying message. Tie the song in with the information you learned in the podcast. Explain the hypocrisy exposed in the song and furthered by facts about Mexican settlers in the podcast. How does this impact your view on immigration and the influx of Mexicans? Think about the influx of American settlers in the 1700s. Is it right that we consider Mexicans as immigrants?


Part II: Pulling the Curtains Closed

“ One coyote, who makes his living on the fringes of my community… has learned to simply chew his way through the plastic irrigation pipes whenever he wants a drink.” (Boyle 212)

Delaney Mossbacher wrote the above quote in a column. This column compared Mexicans and coyotes. It went so far as to say coyotes should be trapped and euthanized, a stab at immigrants through the inoffensive disguise of a pesky animal.

1. How does Delaney’s coyote relate to Mexicans and the negative attitudes towards them.
2. Create your own metaphor depicting your positive or negative opinion towards immigration.

“…and it was people like this Mexican or whatever he was who were responsible, thoughtless people, stupid people, people who wanted to turn the whole world into a garbage dump, a little Tijuana…” (Boyle 11)

Some background for this quote, is that Delaney was musing to himself about the problems caused by Mexicans. Delaney starts big, beginning with the chances of a forest fire caused by Candido (the main immigrant character) living in the ravine, moving down to the build-up of garbage on Mountain Trails, which Delaney feels is undoubtedly caused by Mexicans.

http://borderexplorer.blogspot.com/2009/02/illegal-immigration-is-not-problem-in.html

Read the blog post and answer the following questions pertaining to the quote and the blog:

1. Why are Mexicans not only used as scapegoats for financial problems but for every problem America seems to be facing…right down to littering?
2. If Mexicans are, in fact, helping the economy by feeding social security and doing the dirty jobs, why do we attempt to keep them out along with the aforementioned blame laid on the ones already in?

“He said something then in a foreign language, a gargle and rattle in the throat, and Delaney didn’t know what to do.” And “The United States didn’t share a two-thousand mile border with France.” (Boyle 8)

Not only do other random people have opinions about Mexicans but so can people you know. Like Jason. Check out his blog: http://jasonfunhouse.blogspot.com/ The newest post discusses Laws against Mexican immigrants. More like hidden racism in the form of regulations and tests to become a citizen.

Some Americans have dialects in which their English is comparable to gibberish.


1. Are you a Pennington or a Soto? Why? If Mexicans are “law-abiding citizens” then why so much hate? If some Americans are less literate than Mexicans then why not do something about the leeching Americans; aren’t they dead weight too?

Part III: The Voices of the Media (Not All Lies)

Lets get a little delicious. http://delicious.com/Schwarry

In an attempt to shed light on the negative side of immigration, three of the sources are much more conservative (FOX News is one of them)

1. Write a few sentences giving an opinion on each article. What are some of the pros and cons of each plan? You learned about the life of two immigrants, so compare that to some of the “facts” about immigrants given in the articles about plans.


Part IV: Immigrants on Immigrants

Not all immigrants are created equal. Are they? (rhetorical)

“Now he had to worry about this stinking crack-toothed pendejo nosing around down in the canyon, as if he didn’t have enough problems already.” (Boyle 90)

Go to Cory’s blog: http://csquaredc.blogspot.com/ Wonderful, huh? (Don’t answer this question…)

Read his post about Mexican drug cartels.

Candido said the above quote about another Mexican named Jose who would steal and vandalize.

1. What does this mean? Are there different types of immigrants or are they all created equal and as rapists to America as the media would like us to believe? Do the Mexican immigrants in the Cartel Wars, in your opinion, have ANYTHING to do with the majority of the other immigrants in the country? Is it fleeing for safety or fleeing for the “American Dream”?


So if you haven’t started yet, get writing. Enjoy…