For my reading response this week, I decided to talk about the stories I heard on the website, TheWays.org. The videos were so powerful and just amazing to watch. The first video I watched was the one called, Waadookodaading, which was about an Ojibwe language school (theways.org). There is such a large problem of these tribes losing their languages because they aren’t being passed down to the next generation. The video discussed how important language is to culture and how language give specific vocabulary to practices in a culture. Language allows us to understand our culture more deeply because of its vocabulary. Then, I watched another video called, Lady Thunderhawks, which was about a girl in high school who plays basketball at her school (theways.org). …show more content…
The girl talked about how it is so easy to get caught up in the world outside of their culture and to lose who you are as a person. I just cannot imagine how the Native Americans who were uprooted in the U.S. felt when their culture was ripped from them with the boarding schools for Indians. Finally, I watched the video called, Powwow Trail, which was probably my most favorite out of all the ones I watched (theways.org). After watching, it was just amazing to see how powerful the powwows are and how important they are to the people who participate in
In Nikky Finney's poem "Red Velvet", Rosa parks, a 42 year old seamstress recalls the time 12 years ago when she was put off of a bus for refusing to give up her seat to a white man. On December 1st, 1955, 12 years after the incident, she boards the same bus that was driven by the driver who put her off before, but this time when asked to move, Rosa parks decides to stay put. She reminisces on her experiences of segregation, discrimination and her daily struggles on and off the bus. Finney uses an extended metaphor as she compares the strength of fabric to the persistence of Rosa Parks. The part that I thought was most important/moved me the most was when Finney claims that the job of a seamstress is tough and that one should never underestimate
Not only does this episode bring attention to many influential African Americans, it provides a lens for a younger audience to see and understand the racism in the past. Using Martin Luther King Jr’s actual words was very
She spoke about her experience of getting raped in college and how she wants to make changes to society so college
I love the fact that she realized that her voice could be a voice for foster children all around the
Shirley Chisholm was a crucial figure in Black politics, and the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. Congress. She defeated civil rights leader James Farmer on November 5, 1968, and served 7 terms in the House of Representatives till 1982. Also, she was the first woman and person of color to run for President. Chisholm is a model of independence and honesty and has championed several issues including civil rights, aid for the poor, and women 's rights.
Language is used to convey a message as well as connect people to a particular culture or ethnicity he or she identifies with. People who share the same language share a bond and pass their history through language. In chapter one of The Skin That We Speak: Thoughts on Language and Culture in the Classroom Joanne Kilgour Dowdy speak about growing up in Trinidad and her mother insisting on her speaking in the colonizer's language rather than her native Trinidadian language. Joanne Kilgour Dowdy felt as if her identity was being pushed to the side when she was forced to speak “Colonized English” when she was at school or around the social elite of her community, and felt ridiculed from her peers for speaking proper as if she was white or of the elite social class. Dowdy major concern was how to have the freedom to go back and forth from home, language to the public language without feeling judged from both sides of her
The Tlingit of today are putting into action talking about their boarding school experiences in the 1800s in order to heal themselves and generations’ still suffering from it. The nonprofit local urban Native Corporation is using the stories to create a curriculum for K-12 about the impacts of colonialism on the Tlingit people. As I discussed in one of my previous blogs, from the late 1800s to the mid-1900s, the federal government split up families and forced the Native children into boarding schools to become civilized. Many were also raised in orphanages.
She shared how she met a five year old girl who was given LSD by her mother which just showed how thing were falling apart. Slouching towards bethlehem was mesmerizing to me because of all the
The video Haudenosaunee’s Legendary Founding is interesting because it demonstrates one way that Native Americans use oral tales to preserve their history and culture. This tale is an origin story about the creation of the Wampum belt. The oral nature of this tale is significant because it captures the moments of emphasis and feeling better than it could if it was simply written in standard prose. Being able to hear it, rather than simply read it, also makes it feel more vibrant and personal. The addition of the animations and the music to the story also makes it feel more alive.
The power of language We all have some form of language limitations, no matter where we come from and what our background is. “Mother tongue” by Amy Tan and “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua both share similar themes in their stories that demonstrate how they both deal with how different forms of the same language are portrayed in society. In both stories they speak about what society declares the right way of speech and having to face prejudgment, the two authors share their personal experiences of how they’ve dealt with it.
One of the main stories that she told was about leaving her mom’s house with her son. By her mom allowing her to leave and having no problems or reservations about it shows that her mom loved her no matter what. She also told the story of how when her mom was about to pass on she loved her and liberated her by telling her it was ok that she passed on. She expressed how it is liberating to be loved and showed that no matter the choices that are made that someone loves you and wants you near them. She used the gift of persuasion throughout her speech.
Wolves, when in groups, are universally threatening and recurrently feared. This being known, they are often portrayed as an evil or opposing force. Although, on occasion, they have also been known to be referred to as “noble creatures who can teach us many things.” (http://www.wolfcountry.net/) But consequently, despite the popular interpretation of wolves and their characteristics, each story presents its own interpretation of their many characteristics.
“Two Languages in Mind, but Just One in the Heart” by Louise Edrich Summary #1 The following article being summarized “Two Languages in Mind, but Just One in the Heart” by Louise Edrich was published in in the New York Times in 2000. This article chronicles the Ojibwe language and the correlation to Edrich’s heart. Edrich’s first language is English as she grew up off reservation and was nowhere near places such as Turtle Mountain in North Dakota, Canada, Minnesota, and Wisconsin where Ojibwe is spoken. Edrich first remembered Ojibwe through memories of her maternal grandfather, Patrick Gourneau who would mainly use them in the families prayers. She then believed that Ojibwe was only used for religious purposes.
In Lera Boroditsky 's "How Does Our Language Shape the Way We Think" the purpose of the essay is apparent from the second paragraph. "Language is a uniquely human gift central to our experience of being human" she explains, so that the reader understands how language affects ones thoughts and day to day lives (2). Boroditsky 's use of empirical evidence, factual information, organizational structure, understanding and construction upon thoughts that disprove her purpose, and light tone all aide in accomplishing her purpose. Each of these methods help convince the audience that, " Language is central to our experience of being human, and the languages we speak profoundly shapes the way we think, the way we see the world, the way we live our lives" (Boroditsky 10).
The topic of culture is highly relevant when it pertains to languages. In fact, one of the topics in the video that