Gayness, Multicultural Education, and Community by Dennis Carlson

1. "Within normalizing communities, some individuals and subject positions get privileged and represented as "normal" while other individuals and subject positions are disempowered and represented as deviant, sick, neurotic, criminal, lazy, lacking in intelligence, and in other ways "abnormal." (p233 Carlson)

When I read this quote I thought of Johnson and the culture of power as well as his topic of privilege. I found this quote to be important because it talks of all the positions that are under-privileged. This quote seems to come right out of Johnson's article. Carlson seems to be very similar to Johnson. Carlson seems to be troubled by the word "normal" and he seems not to like to use it.

2. "To the extent that gayness is recognized in the curriculum, it is likely to be in the health curriculum, where it is associated with disease. For example, one of the most popular health texts on the high school market is Health: A Guide to Wellness, which mentions homosexuals or homosexuality once in acknowledging that "the first group in the United States diagnosed with AIDS were male homosexuals." (p.237 Carlson)

This quote was shocking to me but then when I thought about it, the quote was so very true. Being a freshman, its only been a few years since I've had health. I do not remember ever talking about homosexuality besides AIDS. The quote is unfortunately true. If students were educated more about this topic then maybe it would be more accepted if it was taught effectively.

3. "It is now estimated that up to one-third of all adolescent suicide victims are gay, approximately one-quarter of all homeless youth in the United States are gay, and dropout and drug abuse rates among gay youth are likewise high." (p.239 Carlson)

This quote is important to the text because it shows the damage that oppression does to homosexuals. These statistics are shocking to me and when I read them I could not believe that the numbers were that drastic. Carlson also puts quotes into his texts that are from high schools showing how students are tormented. These quotes were sad and I could not believe that kids have put up with hearing those words.

Carlson's article difficult to read because the ignorance that people have in the United States towards the gay population. To those people the word "gay" means different and not normal. I do not like this and this article makes me watch my words as well as friends words. The word "gay" has become a word meaning bad. I never understood why people used it but it became part of most everyones vocabulary. I'll admit that I was a user of the word "gay". I never thought it was a big deal because I was not against the homosexual orientation. With this article I found that anything like that is wrong and should not be said or done. Reading this article was hard because it was not the narrative that I like to read. Kozol and Rodriguez were narratives and I liked their work better. But, in the end I liked Carlson's article because he talked about things that people do not like to talk about and was not afraid to make his opinion known.

Aria, Richard Rodriguez

1. "So they do not realize that while one suffers a diminished sense of private individuality by becoming assimilated into public society, such assimilation makes possible the achievement of public individuality." (p.39 Rodriguez)

Rodriguez here is explaining his whole piece in one sentence. He talks of how bilingualists do not like assimilation but he does because he sees this as a way to become individualized. The quote explains how a person might become less of an individual by being assimilated but that assimilation makes a person more of an individual in public.

2. "Is it possible for you and your husband to encourage your children to practice their English when they are home?" (p.35 Rodriguez)

The nuns are speaking to Richard's parents about trying to help him speak English at home. I found this quote important because they are asking Spanish speaking parents to help their child speak English. It's crazy that the teachers can not help the child more, instead they go right to the parents for help. I do not know how the nuns thought the parents were going to help the children successfully.

3. "On official business, it was she, not my father, one would usually hear on the phone or in stores, talking to strangers." (p.37 Rodriguez)

The quote explains how the father, who never really took to the English language, becomes silent because he does not understand what people are saying. He no longer can take control of family or household business. He also does not talk to his children much because they are speaking English and have forgotten much of their Spanish. They also refer to their parents in English instead of papa and mama.

I found this piece to be an easy read that kept me interested. I like how it was a narrative about Rodriguez's life as a child and how he had to learn English. I think he is taking learning English as a great thing for his life. He finds assimilation to be good for an individual even though their individuality may become less noticed. His Spanish language was part of his individuality and he liked that when he was a child but when he learns English he finds out how much that helps him in public and school. Although Rodriguez does explain his hard times at home after he and his siblings learned English. His mother and father never had to learn English but their children had to because of school and their future. To me, Rodriguez has a change of heart in this piece about learning English and becoming Americanized. I really liked this story and his rational of the positives of assimilation.

Jonathan Kozol's "Amazing Grace"

Johnathan Kozol's "Amazing Grace" was a really astounding piece. The story was about children's lives in some of the most dangerous and poor streets of New York City. I found it crazy that a person could go from the seventh richest district in the nation to the poorest in nine stops on the train. It only takes 18 minutes to get between these two districts. The stories of families and people of St. Ann's Avenue are crushing to me and I just can't imagine people living that way. Unfortunatly, these people are never in the minds of most people in the US. Hardly any national news comes from those parts that people don't even know they exist.

1. "Were your parents mad at you?" He looked surprised by this. "Why would they be mad?" he asks. "God told us, 'Share!' " (p.8 Kozol)

This quote comes from a conversation between Kozol and a child named Cliffie. His family is very poor and his parents ask him to go out and get pizza. A poor man on the side of the road does not even ask him for the pizza but Cliffie knows that is what he wants. He shares the pizza because he has a very strong religious belief. Eventhough he knows how poor he is and how much he and his family needs those slices of pizza, he sees a man that is worse off that he is and helps him because God said to share. I found this quote inspiring knowing that a child so poor puts his needs aside to help a total stranger.

2. "Most of the addicts and prostitutes are black. Some are Hispanic. But they're all people of color. It made me feel frightened for my race." (p. 23 Kozol)

This quotation I found to be central in the text. The boy, Cliffie, is talking about his block and the demographic of the users and prostitutes. He says that he is worried for his race and I find this fascinating that such a young boy and realize the big picture. He knows wrong from right and many people group these races together labeling them as troubled. For this boy to understand that these people have a problem and that he needs to stay away from them is very positive and bright for his future.

3. Wiping a cloth across her throat, she says, "It was 93 degrees today. The air was so sticky you could hardly breathe. Hotter inside-but I'm afraid to open up the windows." (p. 19 Kozol)

This quote is from Mrs. Washington who is struggling with a sickness and is getting no relief with the heat. She is afraid to open the windows because she could be robbed or shot through them. I found this sad because she had to stay inside where it is hotter rather than get fresh air.

This reading was very easy and was very gripping. I found that I could not put the piece down and I was waiting for the next story. Although the stories many times were depressing, I found each of them to be a great insight into a world that not many of us think about on a daily basis.

By the end of the piece I found myself asking questions. What is next for these people? Who is going to help them? Why are we as fellow Americans not trying to help these people more? How come these people are not on the forefront of our help within the government?

ABOUT ME

My name is Kyle Harper and I am 19 years old. I am in the second semester of my Freshman year here at Rhode Island College. I am a Phys. Ed and Health Ed major looking to teach in a high school setting. My semester is going very well so far even though there is a ton to do. I enjoy the outdoors when I am not in the classroom. Winter is not a fun time for me because I dislike the cold weather. I play golf here at RIC as well as all throughout the summer. Golf is pretty much my life and I enjoy it with my family and friends. I am looking forward to a great class and a great future at RIC.