Enviromental Discrimination

On Wednesday 10/20/10 we had three speakers come talk to us about environmental issues. I arrived when the talk was already about an hour in but for the little time I was there, there were some key things that I got out of it. Some issues they touched on that I found interesting were the whole aspect of going green, and environmental injustice. One of the speakers said something that most of us probably never thought about. He said that “the earth is like a human and we have to be conscious about how we treat her.” How would you feel if people dumb oil on you,? do things that mess you up? Etc. And also they advised us to always try and view the bigger picture. We  need to connect people with the disparity of the issue, because people are not seeing their faith, people cannot see what they are putting themselves into. Also speak up, like the example that was given about mosevile am not sure if I spelled that right, but the fact was that people knew what was going on but no one actually took the responsibility of speaking up. These people pay their taxes like everyone else but still live in horrible conditions. Lastly they encouraged us to use the tools we have to impact the world. For example the blogs we have we can use them to do something positive in our community.  With that being said this session help me realize that there is injustice to the earth and we  need to start speaking up about it.

Dr. Ben Carson Opening Convocation Speech

World renown brain surgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson delivered the opening convocation speech at Howard University on September 24, 2010. I personally was not able to attend this spectacular event but I later got a chance to listen to this on the Howard website. Dr. Carson started off by telling us about his own history, he told us that he was not the most smart person. So much so that they used to call him "dummy". Dr. Carson said "we should not forget opportunities given to us to excel our self". One important thing i got out of this was that we should learn to speak up for what we believe, and by going to the university we can expand our minds and not let it be contained. This was very inspiring to me because if someone like Dr. Carson who can come up from nothing to something, and if he can do so i can do so. Because no one is smarter than me. Another thing he said was "what is success? cars, tittles, accounts?" no success was taking the talent that God has given you to elevate others. So we should never let any one or anything stand in our way on our road to success.

Self Assessment

I. Blogging
This was my first time doing this whole blogging stuff. When i first heard of it i got excited because i like trying new things. The first blog was to be about Obama's speech "A more perfect union." basically it was just a recap.
After this it became more personal/free. The topics i choose to write about were not related to each other; I just wrote about what was interesting at the time in the media or at school. I think i will continue this way because it makes it more interesting and diverse. When i went back and read over my work, some things didn't make sense  that did when i was writing. This shows that i have to proofread my work more before publishing it. The weekly blogging gives me the opportunity to know what is going on in the world, what is making people talk the most. The blogs have made me to be more interested in the news. And i think as time goes on i will touch on some very important topics.

II. Expository Writing
Writing research essays in this class have been somewhat interesting but at the same time challenging. The first essay we got to write about Obama. I don't think i really did as well as i could on this paper, mainly because the things i was trying to incorporate in my essay could not be done so in the amount of time i was given. I need to learn how to utilize my time more. The writing center is heaven sent. I mean the help they give you on your essay is amazing, they don't necessarily change anything on your paper, but they critique it in such a way that you feel the need to change it and make it better. Also we had to use lots of technology in this class, from blogging to discussion boards etc. This help broaden my view of learning, its not necessarily all about learning in class, go green. I now try to incorporate other races in my writing rather than focus on how it only affects the black community. So far i think the concept thought in this semester have been descent and i am comfortable with what i have learned so far hoping to add on to it.

Black or Boriqua?

Have you ever tried finding out your origins or past? If you are black, it is easy. If you are white it is also easy. But what if you are mixed? What if just like Obama, you are half white and half black? Or in the case of Roberto Santiago half black and half Puerto Rican? I am pretty sure that you will be confused on where to begin, which side of the family you should start with. You can only imagine what people like these gentlemen felt. Going day to day having doubts about your identity, being teased, confused on what to be or what not to be. At the end of the day it all depends on how you feel about yourself. What do you want to be?  That is why God gave us the ability to be able to choose and make decisions on our own. "My life has been shaped by my black and Latino heritages, and despite other people's confusion, I don't feel I have to choose one or the other. To do so would be to deny a part of myself." (Santiago 183). Roberto Santiago is making it clear that he doesn't mind being biracial because both races helped mold his life and make him the person he is. We don't know whether or not if Obama was just white or just black he would have come as far as he did. We do not know if Roberto Santiago would have been able to accomplish all what he accomplished in his life if he wasn't biracial. To some being biracial could be a problem, but to others they can use it to their advantage to do and become whatever they want.

                                                                    Works Cited
 "Black and Latino" by Roberto Santiago, from Revelations

I Can't Believe You Thought About That.

So recently there have been talks going on in the news about the pastor from Florida who wants to burn the Koran. This guy did not just want to burn a Koran, he wanted to do so on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the U.S. This is not just wrong, it is also disrespectful. When we as humans burn things; we tend to be saying that they are of no value to us anymore. So why would that be different for a Koran?  He also tried making this day an "International burn a Koran day." Now that is just bizarre. This guy must really have something against the Islamic religion because that is taking extreme to another level. I am pretty sure that because this guy is a pastor he is also a Christian. Just because you dislike or don't support something does not mean that you have to dishonor it. There is a saying that goes "One man's poison is another man's medicine." In other words what does not work for you can do miracles for another person. How would Terry Jones(the pastor) feel if some Muslims decide they wanted to burn up the Holy Bible? I am pretty sure that he would not comply with this. I think its save to say that it was for the good of every one that this pastor decided to end this nonsense. Well he had to be convinced not to burn the Korans, but at least the main point is that he is not going ahead with this outrageous plan of his.

Almost Perfect Nation

Barack Obama's " A more perfect union" reiterates the concept of all Americans working together to perfect an imperfect. The only thing holding us(union) down is the fact that we(African-Americans) believe that because of events from the past it will be difficult for us to move on to the future. There are certain things that Afro-Americans can do to improve race relations in this country; first of all, we need to forget about all the events from the past, and stop being oblivious to the ones at hand. We need to accept the fact that we were discriminated against, but also should not forget that we were  not the only race discriminated against in the past. We and all the other races that were not treated fairly should come together as one people searching for the same equalities. Obama states in his speech that " These people are a part of me. And they are part of America." The people he is referring to are his parents, grandparents and family who come from different parts of the world. If they could put their differences aside and raise a black man who now leads this country, what more of us who are still complaining. Race relations in America is far from perfect.But if we put our heads together we can drag it closer to perfection.

Obama, Barack. "A More Perfect Union." National Constitution Center, Philadelphia. 18 March 2008. Speech.