I was born on a balmy March day, in my native land of Mexico, a place today I only reminisce from pictures and whatever I happen to eavesdrop from mi familia. Mexico was always denoted as a place of broken dreams and corruption, experiences that Mamá wanted to assure Hermana and I never had to encounter. When I was only three, Mamá felt the need to give us a better future, one free of a drunken machismo father and the constant reminder of our poverty-stricken lives. She came to a conclusion that we would immigrate to el país de los sueños, the United States. Little did I know that one day, before my eyes, I would be on a one-way flight from the only place I had fraternized with. Naïve of the future, the fears and challenges I would face based on my unique identities, my intersectionality would ultimately lead me to going beyond the confined lines of being labeled as an undocumented burden. My remarkable struggles would point me in a justifiable direction of opting into a college education.
Intersectionality Limitations
As I grew older, I noticed how being a
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At 14, it was strange to find out that I couldn’t travel out of the country like my cousins; and at 15 was the first time I heard someone refer to me as an illegal alien. Illegal alien. I repeat those words in my head, over and over again. As I look at my reflection in the mirror, the only pigment I see is brown; brown hair, brown eyes, brown skin. A person of color. I felt “inferior in a white world, alien and ashamed, I longed for another place to live, outside of society" (Baca 2001, pg.4). It was probably the first time I hated being myself and became negligent of my mother’s struggles. Shame washed over me as I cried because my skin was not white, because in a land of free I felt imprisoned with fear, because I was me, a brown skinned
Johnson concludes his introduction by letting his readers know that the book will tell a story of both Mexico and the United States histories and of the journey of becoming an American. This book is broken down into eight chapters, each chapter discusses main points that in the end lead to legacies and citizenship into America. Johnson gives a good insight as to what it took for Mexicans to become citizens of America. Throughout the book the author describes different battles, killings, and tragic stories.
In Black Like Me, there were the blacks and the whites. A man named John Howard Griffin was one of many to want to experience the life of blacks (in the 1950's). Griffin received the courage to "climb into his skin and walk around in it". Now, there were many instances where he was treated differently just because his skin was black. For example, he couldn't use the same bathroom as whites; they had separate faculties.
By understanding and appreciating varied experiences and viewpoints, intersectionality promotes inclusivity. It recognizes that various people confront different issues due to their intersecting identities and ensures that their perspectives are heard and reflected in social justice and policy discussions. Intersectionality has strengthened social justice initiatives by encouraging solidarity among diverse marginalized groups. Recognizing everyday struggles and goals among diverse populations improves collective efforts to address systemic inequities and create a more fair society. Intersectionality aids in identifying core causes of social issues by exploring how intersecting forms of oppression intersect and reinforce one another.
By all means; the Imperfect Mexican-American When I was younger, I couldn't fathom what my parents meant when they said ‘‘Cruce la frontera para que tengan una mejor vida,’’ In other words, I crossed the border for my children to have the future they longed for; their American dream. I understood the troubles and sacrifices they went through and felt the pain they carried for leaving their motherland, yet I didn't understand what life they were looking for me and my sisters. Years later, one afternoon, my sister greets us with the news that she got accepted to college, I thought this is it, the better life my parents wished for us, the sacrifices they made are paying off, yet to my surprise what was suppose to be proudness turned out to be
I realized there is no where I can go that won’t make me feel this way. Not only was I darkskin but I was an oreo because of the way I talked now. I was an angry black girl because no one thought I was beautiful or that I deserved respect or that I should be treated just the same as the light skin girl with long curly hair.
In this section, I asked several children of immigrants what they perceived to be their identity and if they felt that their status as undocumented or their heritage played a major role in who they saw themselves as. According to Kevin, an undocumented immigrant whose family moved here from Mexico when he was just 6 years old, he considers himself more American than Mexican as he has lived the vast majority of his life
Being a child of immigrant parents makes you appreciate life so much because everyday it’s an opportunity to be the best you can be to make everyone around you proud. My parents can’t got back to school and get an education so being able to see me succeed is worth their hard work. My parents have taught me to never give up. I know that some doors may be closed on me but that doesn’t mean other doors won’t open. I want to be someone who represents the Hispanic community.
“Are you guys all American Citizens”, I watched as my friend Randy and my French girlfriend Charlotte and I all lied and said yes. This is the story of how I crossed the border illegally with a guy I just meet and my girlfriend. The year is 1987 and I’m 30 years old, Im writing this journal so in 30 years these stories can be pasted down to my children the their kids. I’m leaving my home town to travel the world, I don’t know where I’m going or how I’m going to get their but I guess that’s what will make it an excursion.
Midterm Intersectionality: As a human being you are not bound nor placed into one single group or category. You yourself do not identify solely by gender or race. There are multiple aspects to you that make you who you are; it consists on how you see yourself and how the world perceives you. Intersectionality is the interwoven identities that make up who you are: race, class, gender, religion, sexual orientation, nationality, etc. They are interdependent and can be shaped by one’s own personal experiences.
Cohen’s fourth thesis talks about the differences among groups of people in areas of race, gender, etc. and how those differences can create monsters in society. Unauthorized immigrants often get placed into a “different” or “unwanted” group and that causes them to face unfairness in society. “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” correlates to Cohen’s thesis because unauthorized immigrants can be made into monsters due to differences in race and legal status. The group of unauthorized immigrants can become alienated in society, and the people themselves are sometimes referred to as “illegal aliens.”
All three authors characterize the prejudice they are met with as minorities during their times. This demonstration of brutalities and injustices experienced defines being an “other” as experiencing the affliction caused by the inherent injustices within society. Each author describes being an “other” as feeling isolated in society due to their racial identity. Either physically or psychologically, each author described the notion of loneliness due to the segregation in their environment and how they are perceived. Coates emphasizes this isolation by contrasting the “raft of second chances” for Whites in opposition to the “twenty-three-hour days” that he and those who identify as black must endure (Coates 91).
3. Why is intersectionality important to human rights? The notion of intersectionality essentially refers to the ways in which all elements of culture/society are connected or holistic (Module 3 Gender). Aspects such as race, sexuality, gender, religion, and class to name a few all intersect with each other.
Ten years ago, I immigrated to the United States and ever since I have been an undocumented immigrant. Due to my legal status in the United States, I felt like I was restricted from certain situations and possessions and would never be able to succeed. I was not living the normal life of a seven-year-old. Instead, I had to learn to cope and adapt to a whole new culture. Even though the drastic change at such a young age was a challenge, it has shaped who I am today.
As I ponder over my life, each memory seems identical to the other, and I find myself drifting through a reality of similar events that generate the same memories and emotions. Looking back further into my childhood includes memories of my homeland. I remember entering a new world at the age of five, where all of my later memories would be formed. This was when my family moved to the United States from Peru, my native country in the South. The complete change in culture and values truly impacted me when I first moved to Florida, and I reflect over the significant effect it has had on my character during the last thirteen years of my life.
Something that I’ve learned from this course was the term “intersectionality” and how that plays into equity. While isolating an issue does help in understanding its roots, the next step we should be taking is to understand the interconnecting nature of social identities. This many help us to become a more equitable society. For example, when Chelsea facilitated the workshop where we touched upon intersectionality in the pay gap, we learned how both gender and racial identity can affect an individual’s wage. While white women earn $0.74 to a white man’s dollar, black women only make $0.64.