I'll Take My Stand in Dixie-Net

Tara McPherson concludes in “I’ll Take My Stand in Dixie-Net” that although the Internet is often seen as a place where race doesn’t exist, it is present in disguise.

McPherson begins the chapter by explaining how she came across the Confederate Embassy in Washington D.C. on the Internet one day. For the remainder of the chapter she discusses “Dixie-net” and “neo-Confederates” on the web. This virtual Dixie as it is referred to is a name for neo-Confederate web sites that attempt to preserve Southern Heritage. These web sites claim not to be racist and only want to preserve the history of the South. However, theses web sites are indeed racist even though they don’t come out and directly state it. The sites contain images of the southern states separated from the rest of the United States and display graphs of the South’s economic power. The sites address the “you” as white males and therefore separate themselves from the rest of the population. However, they avoid the term of race or racism in order to avoid public attention. Finally, McPherson offers suggestions such as alternative websites that show southern heritage in progressive ways and that do not privilege race in any way as a possible solution to this problem.

In what ways are sites like these racist and how do they offend or hurt some people? The sites such as those explained by McPherson are very offensive to some due to the nature of the Civil War. The war, though some disagree, was fought over slavery. It wasn’t a war of “states rights” as many from the South continue to argue. The Confederate flag alone is very offensive to many African-Americans as it represents a movement to fight for the continuation of slavery. The sites are also racist due to the fact that they separate white and black into privileged and unprivileged categories.

I found the reading to be somewhat difficult to understand and I’m not sure if I came away with the correct meaning. I have read Confederates in the Attic for a history class last semester, so I was familiar with the neo-Confederate movement. As the book explains, there are still many die-hard re enactors who have no life other than preserving the Confederacy. I feel as if this is ridiculous and a bit childish. It is also very hurtful to African-Americans, and people are still dying in the South over this argument. In fact, many radicals in the South feel as if the “war between the states” is still going on to this day. Overall, I feel as it is very disrespectful to our country and to those who reside within it.

Cybertypes

Lisa Nakamura concludes in “Cybertypes: Race, Ethnicity, and Identity on the Internet” that communication networks have intentionally marked different ethnic and racial groups as “others” in order to maintain privilege for the white Western society.

Nakamura first introduces a commercial from “Anthem” which states that on the Internet, there isn’t gender, race, or age, but only minds. For the remainder of the chapter, Nakamura explains how computer networks advertise in order to maintain the idea of different races and ethnicities so that whites in America still feel like they are part of a privileged class. Nakamura gives numerous examples of ads that picture particular ethnic groups in stereotypical ways. The ads show that although these people may possess computer knowledge that they are still very different from white Americans. These companies feel a need to do this so that their primary target audience, white Westerners, will still view themselves as part of a privileged group. This as Nakamura states also alleviates their fears of “[making] the world smaller in undesirable ways” (95). These ads also assure Americans that there will always be groups of untouched native peoples that remain unchanged and won’t be able to access privilege available to white Westerners. The chapter concludes by stating that the message of cybertechnology is that users will be striped down to just minds. However, this in not favorable for those in privileged groups and those who belong to them won’t allow this to happen.

What do white Westerners have to gain by portraying foreigners as “others”? As stated in the chapter, white Westerners hold on to privilege by distinguishing between themselves and other ethnic groups. If the groups are no longer distinguishable on the Internet, whites will loose the privilege that they possess. This is not beneficial to them and they don’t want to see that happen. Therefore, they intentionally depict foreigners as “others” in order to maintain the privileges that they benefit from.

I found the reading to be somewhat different from what we have read previously in class. Although there was still the issue of privilege based on race, it was of a different sort. I don’t believe that I have ever viewed the ads that the reading mentions, or if I have I don’t remember them. Even if I had viewed the ads, I probably wouldn’t have noticed the intended meaning of them. It does make sense, however, that whites would want to hold on to this difference which they gain privilege from.

Why I Hate Abercrombie and Fitch

Dwight McBride concludes in “Why I Hate Abercrombie and Fitch” that he, in fact, hates Abercrombie and Fitch due to the company’s discriminatory hiring and advertisement practices.

McBride begins the chapter by stating how he noticed that the most frequent wearers of Abercrombie are white males. He also adds that he noticed this while at the gay spots that he visited frequently. He then attempts to explain the causes of this trend for the remainder of the chapter. He explains that Abercrombie began as an outdoor clothing store for the upper class and concludes that it now promotes its product to upper middle class white college students. He concludes that Abercrombie is selling more of a lifestyle than clothing. They do this in part through the use of their “Look Book.” This book explains the way in which their employees must appear in order to be hired and stay hired. The book doesn’t allow for many of the popular hairstyles for African Americans and discriminates against non-whites according to McBride. Abercrombie also releases the A&F Quarterly to advertise their clothing. According the McBride, however, the magazine is full of whiteness and doesn’t fairly represent those of color. He also states how employees of color were forced to work in the stockroom rather than in the store in one situation. There are many other practices that are mentioned that promote a white image. Managers are even required to send pictures of their employees to headquarters and to give their employees grades based on how good-looking they are. McBride states that other clothing companies have taken big steps to sell their clothing equally to everyone while Abercrombie has not. McBride concludes by stating that Abercrombie thrives on the racist society we have today and states a lot about race relations in the United States.

Does McBride’s position affect the argument he poses in any way? I am not sure of this, but it seems as if Dwight McBride is a black gay man. I say this due to the fact that he mentions that he frequently visits gay bars and the tone of his writing. If, in fact, McBride is black, his argument may be slightly biased due to the fact that he belongs to the group being discriminated against in this situation. However, this does not change the facts that McBride has presented. It seems like Abercrombie certainly does promote whiteness through the use of the publication of A&F Quarterly. I am only stating that there may be another side to the argument that we haven’t been exposed to.

I was very interested in the reading and was quite surprised by some of the hiring practices of Abercrombie. I couldn’t believe some of the rules that were written in the “Look Book.” It seems wrong that one can hire based on the way someone looks or an employee may get fired for not “looking Abercrombie.” To me this is ridiculous and it made me think of Abercrombie in a different way. Not that I thought too much of them in the first place.

Takaki-Chapter 12

Takaki concludes in “El Norte: The Borderland of Chicano America” that Mexicans came to America to escape starvation and the Revolution only to be exploited by American landowners and to be paid less for doing the same jobs as whites.

Takaki begins by stating that to Mexican immigrants, America was “El Norte” as America was “The Promise Land” to the Jews. Mexicans came to America in order to escape starvation and the revolutions that were taking place in Mexico at the time. Many Mexicans were losing their lands to private land speculators and the country just wasn’t safe with the Revolution taking place in Mexico. Takaki explains that Mexicans could enter and leave the country without passports unlike Asian and European immigrants (312). These Mexicans immigrants, however, intended to return to Mexico when the civil war was over as most believed it would be in a few months. Takaki states the railroads accelerated the movement of Mexicans into America. The trains carried thousands and thousands of Mexicans into America where most worked as agricultural field labor. Mexicans also worked on railroads and in factories. Takaki states that “the Mexican population in the Southwest grew form and estimated 375,000 to 1,160,000” between 1900 and 1930 (317). Most of these immigrants were between the ages of fifteen and forty-four. The Mexicans became the primary manual work force in the United States comprising 75% of all construction workers. However, white labor unions withheld skilled jobs for whites by denying Mexicans union membership. Mexicans were forced to work the worse jobs for the lowest wages, and were often paid less than whites for doing the same jobs. Landowners exploited these Mexican laborers and used debt to keep them on their plantations. They also discouraged the schooling of Mexican children. Takaki also explains how Mexican laborers were semi-successful at striking to increase wages. Takaki then explains how during the Great Depression many immigrants were deported back to Mexico in order to free up the jobs for whites. Americans began to fear that Mexicans were disrupting the genetic makeup of the country and thought there were too many to assimilate into the American culture. Takaki finally discusses the Mexican barrios within the U.S. at the end of the chapter. These were little communities of Mexican culture north of the border where the people held on to their Mexican culture.

Do we still see the effects of what Takaki describes throughout this chapter in our world today? Yes, the effects are very noticeable in everyday life. In fact, what we, as a country, are experiencing today is very similar. There are still huge numbers of immigrants coming into the country from Mexico. Most of these immigrants are illegal and come in order to perform the same kind of work which Takaki describes. They work in agriculture doing the hardest, lowest paid jobs our country has to offer. These workers are being exploited by the landowners just as they were 100 years ago.

I wasn’t all too surprised by the reading of “El Norte.” I have learned this material in the past and much of it is still going on today. The illegal immigrant population in our country is treated poorly and this is very sad. I am currently doing a research paper on illegal immigration and have come across very similar information in my research process. It is very unfortunate that humans are being treated this way, but they are and will continue to be until our country makes drastic changes to its immigration policy.

"Race: The Power of an Illusion"-Episode 3

The main point of episode three of “Race: The Power of an Illusion” is that race is not biologically real, but socially constructed by those in power for their own benefit. This socially constructed idea of race then led to privilege based on one’s whiteness in areas such as housing and job positions.

This episode begins by stating that race is all around us and is one of the first things we notice in one another. People first notice ones eyes, skin and hair, and then think that they can tell more about an individual based on those characteristics. The film explains that there is not a sub-species of humans and that race is not real, but socially constructed. Racial markers do not mean anything unless they are given a meaning by society. The 23 million immigrants from southern and eastern Europe that immigrated to the United States between 1880 and 1920 were considered non-white. These immigrants worked alongside Mexicans and blacks performing the most dangerous and lowest paid jobs America had to offer. These groups were often stereotyped as being lazy and stupid. The film then focuses on how the Supreme Court had no real definition of who was white and who wasn’t. Whiteness was what the common man defined it to be. Through this rationale, citizenship was denied to Japanese and Indians on the grounds of them being non-white. Lands were taken from the Japanese because they weren’t citizens, and the government even banned immigration from Japan in 1924. The film then goes on to discuss the Federal Housing Administration and how blacks were denied the opportunity to live in these cheap neighborhoods. The FHA made it possible for the average American to own a home due to low down payments and longer periods to pay off loans. An example of such a neighborhood is Levit Town. Finally the film discusses how black communities were given a red rating while whites were given a green rating. This caused the property value in black communities to fall and also caused whites to flee the community when blacks began to move in. White neighborhoods even built walls between their community and the black community in an attempt to maintain the value of their property.

What consequences does the film’s conclusion have on our world today? The film has major consequences for our world today. The fact that immigrants from southern and eastern Europe were accepted as white after WWII caused them to gain privilege associated with whiteness in the past and continues to do so today. The opposite is true for blacks. They were denied opportunities that were given to whites and are still suffering the consequences today. As the film mentioned, the average black family has only 1/8 the net worth of the average white family. This started with blacks being denied the rights to housing during the time period following WWII and has never really stopped. Although we have tried to combat this with affirmative action programs, the problem still persists.

While watching the film, I found it very similar to “How Jews Became White Folk” which we had already read for class. The film discussed much of the same information that I had learned from the previous reading. However, I didn’t know much of the information before reading “How Jews became White Folk,” so I found another presentation of the material to be helpful. It is sad that blacks were denied opportunities that should have been granted to everyone. I can definitely see how the actions taken by our nation in the past caused the white privilege that is still being dealt with today.

Takaki-Chapter 7

Takaki concludes in “Foreigners In Their Native Land” that with the American conquest of California and Texas, Mexicans became strangers and foreigners on land that was once their own. With the changing border, many Mexicans lost their lands and were surrounded by foreign people and a new language.

Takaki begins by giving his readers an example of a successful Mexican rancher. Takaki describes Dona Francisca Vallejo, a man who was very well educated, owned much land, and was extremely well mannered. As Takaki explains, Vallejo was a member of the landed elite and owned 175,000 acres. Takaki then explains that California’s society was stratified. It was composed of the people of reason, the laboring class and Indians, with the people of reason being the highest and the Indians being the lowest in society. Takaki then moves on to his main point, which is the American conquest of Mexican territory. He explains how the Mexicans initially welcomed Americans into their territories, but became hesitant when they no longer wished to assimilate into their society. Yankess began to view Mexicans as lazy and began to take over their lands. Takaki states that “By 1846, there were several hundred American foreigners in this Mexican territory” (172). This same year, Commander Sloat declared California a possession of the United States. However, Takaki explains that the Mexican-American War actually began in Texas when the Mexican government outlawed the institution of slavery and prohibited American immigration into Texas. Americans in Texas objected to this and began an insurrection in San Antonio. Takaki discussed the Battle of the Alamo and explains that the United States annexed Texas. This caused a dispute over the Mexican-American border that was eventually resolved to be the Rio Grande. Eventually, through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the United States acquired California, New Mexico, Nevada, and parts of Colorado, Arizona, and Utah. For the remainder of the chapter, Takaki focuses on how the Mexicans were treated in the new country which they resided in. They were allowed to stay on their lands, and were supposed to receive citizenship, but this was not quite the case. Mexicans were denied suffrage and their land grants were not confirmed because the Mexicans found it hard to prove the legitimacy of their land titles. Therefore, most of their land was either lost in court, taken by squatters, or was sold in an attempt to remain out of debt. Mexican ranchers were not as able to convert their lands from grazing to agriculture and had less access than whites to bank credit. Mexicans were forced to sell their lands and provide cheap and dangerous labor in the fields and in mining industries. Here they were often paid far less than their white co-workers.

What consequences do we face today as a result of what Takaki presents in this chapter? We face many consequences as a result of what was presented in this chapter. The most obvious is our country’s border. If the United States had not taken Mexican land, present day Texas and California would not be within our nation’s boundaries. There are also descendants of theses Mexican ranchers who would have had land if it was not denied to their ancestors many years ago. Also, the fact that many Mexicans were forced to work as field laborers may be a potential reason as to why so many of the field labor today is provided by Mexicans.

As I read “Foreigners In Their Native Land,” I felt sorry for the Mexicans that occupied California and Texas. They were conquered by America and were suddenly told that they now resided in a different country. A different culture and a new language then surrounded them. Their land was taken away from them, and there was nothing that they could really do about it. It seems that our country has done a terrible thing to these Mexican residents, something that seems to go against the very principles that our country stands for.

Brodkin-How Jews Became White

Karen Brodkin concludes in “How Jews Became White Folks and What That Says about Race in America” that Jews were able to advance in society due to affirmative action government projects such as the GI Bill which were denied to blacks.

Brodkin begins the chapter by stating how Jews were not considered as white at one point in our country. In fact, all immigrants from southern and eastern Europe were considered to be non-white. These people were considered white at one time, but were no longer when too many began to immigrate to America after 1800. This idea that southern and eastern Europeans were not white was held most deeply by the wealthy. The upper class was the Nordic race while all others, such as the Alpines, Mediterraneans, and Jews, were considered inferior. These inferior groups were even considered to be dirty and such views were very mainstream. Brodkin goes on to state how anti-Semitism was very high in higher education and professional occupations. Brodkin then goes on to explain how the more inclusive view of whiteness and America’s economic prosperity were responsible for Jews becoming white and advancing in society. The GI Bill of Rights helped veterans get education, training, and jobs. It was supposed to be available to all veterans, but women and blacks were denied their rights. This bill helped many Jews to become educated, get good jobs, and join the middle class. The Federal Housing Administration also helped many Jews and veterans to obtain housing and move to suburban neighborhoods. African Americans were discriminated in this area as well.

What consequences does the information presented in this chapter have on our world today? The information presented in this chapter affects our world today greatly. This chapter shows how Jews and other European groups were viewed differently and accepted as white while blacks continued to be discriminated against. Blacks were entitled to the GI Bill, but never received their fair share of the benefits. We see this in our world today. Blacks are still being discriminated against, and one must wonder if it is due to the way in which they were deprived of their rights in the past.

I learned a great deal while reading this chapter. I previously had no idea that some whites were viewed as non-whites in our nation’s past. It took me by surprise that a Jew was considered not to be white. I also learned more about the GI Bill and other government programs of the past. I can see how the privilege whites receive and blacks are denied can be traced back to programs in the past such as the GI Bill.

Takaki-Chapter 6

Like most of Takaki’s chapters, chapter six is mostly an informational chapter. Takaki focuses on all aspects of Irish immigrants to America and makes a special effort to point out how quick the Irish were to accept white supremacy.

Takaki begins the chapter by stating that most of the Irish came to America out of necessity, not because they wanted to. Between 1815 and 1920, five and a half million Irish immigrated to America (Takaki 140). The Irish were being oppressed by the English, and the English landlords were converting much of the farmland into pasture in order to export livestock. This caused much of the Irish population to fall into poverty and starvation. By 1855 around one million had died of hunger and sickness (143). Rather than stay and starve many immigrated to America. Takaki also discuses the Great Famine. During this potato famine the entire potato crop was ruined for several years in a row. After coming to America, the Irish provided the work for many projects such as railways, canals, and roads. Although they provided this essential work, they were treated as dogs. They were thought to be drunks and unreliable workers and were treated on the same level as blacks during this time period. The Irish themselves became racists towards African-Americans. The condemned abolition and were unsupportive of the Civil War. Takaki then discussed the lives of women once in America. Most worked as either maids or in dangerous factories such as textiles. The daughters of these women were less likely to follow the same path because they usually learned to read and write unlike their mothers. Takaki concludes by explaining why the Irish were able to assimilated into American society so easily. He explains that the major reasons are because the Irish are white, Christian, could already speak English and were allowed to vote.

Do we still see consequences as a result of how the Irish were treated in the past in our country today? Yes, there is no denying that there are major consequences as a result of how the Irish were treated and stereotyped in the past. I don’t think that it is very common everyday, but there is one day a year when the stereotype returns in full force. This day is St. Patrick’s Day. On this day the Irish stereotype of being drunks and eating potatoes returns. There are silly redheaded, drunk leper cons running all around. This is a direct result of the stereotypes that were formed in the past. These stereotypes are false, and are very hurtful to the Irish in our society.

I was a bit surprised by the reading. I had already known that the Irish were thought to be lazy drunks that ate only potatoes, but I wasn’t aware that they were treated as bad as the blacks were. In fact, Takaki shows that in some cases they were treated worse. The Irish were given jobs that were too dangerous for the even the slaves to do. I learned a lot from the reading and now have a better understanding of our nation’s past.