· Choose
an article from a newspaper or magazine that deals with injustice. Write about
why you consider this to be an example of injustice and what it makes you think
about in your own life.
Article: Racial Injustice in North Carolina
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
Published: June 7, 2013
The North Carolina Legislature repealed the state’s Racial Justice Act this
week, and the Republican governor, Pat McCrory, is expected to sign the bill.
But the state cannot erase the detailed and irrefutable proof of ugly racial
bias that led a state trial judge to resentence four death row inmates to life
without parole because of this statute.
Passed in 2009, the law made North Carolina the first state
in the country to give death row inmates the chance to have their sentences
changed if they proved that state prosecutors significantly discriminated on
the basis of race — for example, in selecting jurors. Judge Gregory Weeks tried
one case on its own and three others together; in 2012, he found the bias of
prosecutors intentional in all four cases.
In the first trial, he found “highly reliable” a
statistical study by the Michigan State University College of Law that showed
racial bias in removing blacks from juries in death penalty cases in all but 4
of the state’s 100 counties and that prosecutors were more than twice as likely
to strike qualified blacks from a jury as members of other races in the 20-year
period from 1990 to 2010.
In the second trial, the judge found that words and deeds of
the prosecutors showed racial bias in jury selection. Prosecutors in at least
one case used a cheat sheet with pretexts for striking black jurors
without mentioning race. A prospective black juror with no criminal record was
struck because she was said to live in a “bad area,” whereas a white juror who
had been a marijuana dealer was picked in part because he was a “fine guy.”
Despite the repeal of the Racial Justice Act, there are
still about 150 other cases pending under the act. It is unclear whether these
cases must be allowed to go forward under the State Constitution.
The number of death sentences issued in the state declined
from 33 in 1993 to 1 so far this year, and North Carolina has executed no one
since 2006 indicates that there is no need for this option to be part of the
criminal justice system. The persistence of racial bias in death penalty
prosecutions makes abolishing capital punishment even more urgent.
I consider this article to be one of racial injustice
because where it says; “racial bias in removing blacks from juries in death
penalty cases”. This shows that in court, if a black man was being tried for a
crime, the prosecutors would try to remove black men from the jury in the
interest of not having a jury of peers for the suspect on trial. The
thought being that a black man on the jury would be more likely to not convict
another black man. This is unfair and racist. Courts may not remove a
potential juror based on their race or gender. Bias opinions shouldn’t
determine who is on the jury. I can relate this to my own life, because I
recently saw in the news that in Ferguson, Missouri, Michael Brown; an unarmed
black teenager, was accused of robbing a store, then shot and killed by Darren
Wilson, a white police officer. The grand jury said that Darren Wilson was
innocent. Now, what is a bigger crime? Murder, or thievery? It wasn’t
even proven that Michael Brown had stole anything, yet he was gunned down
without being given a fair trial. Many believe that he was killed just
because of his color. I think that this is a huge example of racial bias.
· Observe
your school or neighborhood. Write a list of all the scenes or situations you
come across on a daily basis that you think are unfair to your (or someone
else’s) human rights. Pick one idea from your list and write a longer entry
about it.
List
-Elderly being forced out of senior residential homes
because the rent was too high.
-Gangs in the local park.
-How news focuses on minor issues, such as what celebrities
wore on their wedding.
-The large number of homeless people.
-How good housing is reserved for people with money.
I’m going to write about both the large number of homeless
in my neighborhood as well as the lack of affordable housing since I think
these topics are somewhat related. In my neighborhood there are many less
fortunate people, drifting about, collecting plastic bottles and cans to sell
for a couple of cents. I feel that these people deserve other opportunities to
earn wages so they can afford their own homes The prices of houses around my
neighborhood can cost millions of dollars, depending on the size of the house.
Rents can be several thousand per month. We have built too much housing that
poor people can’t afford causing so many homeless people to wander the streets
looking for a warm place to sleep at night. I think that change needs to be
made so that homeless and poor people with little money can live in decent,
affordable apartments, and be given opportunities to improve their lives.
· Interview
someone you know. Ask them about their opinion about what they believe is good
about our world and what is unfair about our world. Record your conversation
and write an entry discussing your thoughts about what they had to say.
For this task I will be interviewing my mother.
Interview
M: Me
C: Cindy (my mom)
M: So what do you feel about the current issue in Ferguson,
MO?
C: I think that it was an injustice that Michael Brown was
killed. I feel it has to do with police brutality and racism. I
also feel that the current fallout of the trial’s verdict caused an unjust
reaction from the community. It doesn’t seem fair that innocent shopkeepers had
their businesses burned and looted because people were upset by the outcome of
the jury.
M: And based off of that, what do you feel is bad, or unfair
about the world?
C: I believe that there is still the issue of racism all
around the world and unfortunately still in many parts of this country.
M: What do you think is good in the world?
C: I think that there are a number of people who want to
solve the issues of racial equality and ensure that all people are treated
equally. That people can work together to solve the world’s problems
peacefully.
M: What issue do you want to help fix?
C: The large disparity between the haves and the haves-not.
There is a large divide between the people who need to work to keep food on the
table, and those who have so much money, that they have no idea what to do with
it. For example, a NYC restaurant offered a very expensive Thanksgiving meal
for the price of 35,000 dollars. I think that the money could have been spent
helping thousands of those who couldn’t afford to eat at all on Thanksgiving.
My mother said; the good in the world is the people solving
the bad in the world. So even though there is crime, murder, hate, war, and
racism in the world, what good resources can we rely on to right these wrongs?
Most people would say the police. But take the case in Ferguson, Missouri.
Sometimes the officials everyone puts their faith in cannot be relied on. Are
police solving war? If anything, they are adding to it. We should take matters
like war, racism, equality, and hate into our own hands. Someone needs to stand
up to start a revolution. The police cannot always help in serious categories,
so I say, let the people take a stand to act peacefully. “Unless someone like
you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not.” ― , Dr. Suess
· Watch
the news. Respond to something you see in the news by putting yourself in
the shoes of someone the newscaster is reporting about. What would it be
like to be in that situation?
WC News: Volunteers Continue Tradition of
Serving
I watched a news story about how people served thousands of
needy city residents on Thanksgiving Day. One person said; “ I appreciate what
the Bowery Mission is doing for me, ‘cause I need it.” I would be very sad if I
had been someone who had nowhere else to go for a meal on Thanksgiving and was
desperate because I had no money to buy food and other necessities. This
organization would be my savior. I’m sure that these people who went to the
Bowery Mission for a meal were enormously appreciative of this organization.
Many probably suffered through a night without food, or a warm bed. This small
act by a willing group of people has helped so many people and warmed so many
hearts.
· Find a
true story about someone you know who changes the world everyday (even in a
small way). Interview and write about that person.
I will be interviewing my grandfather
Interview
G: Grandfather
M: Me
M: How do you change the world everyday?
G: I donate to World Vision by helping Fantu Yehualashet,
She is in the 4th grade and lives in Ethiopia, Africa.
We helped by donating $360 a year, which she uses to pay for her inoculation,
school, books, and food and water. She sends us letters regularly about how
happy and well she is doing.
M: What does Fantu Yehualashet do?
G: She likes to play soccer. Her favorite color is yellow,
and her favorite animal is a cow. She is alive and healthy. She helps her
family by babysitting.
My grandfather is a cheerful, delightful man. He has always
wanted to help anyone with a problem whenever he can. Unlike many people, he
has taken a stand in helping a child in Africa. This may be a small change in
the world, but it is worthy enough to be shared. By helping this one girl, he
has inspired others to help as well. He has already made a better future for
that girl, her family, and her future children. So, just by donating about $400
every year, he has saved a lot more than one life in Africa. He saved Fantu
Yehualashet’s children, and their children, and their children. He saved a
couple of generations! Just by donating some money to help a child have a
better life in Africa, he saved her life. Maybe one day she’ll grow up to help
someone else.
· Collect
a poem or lyric that expresses a significant issue about social issues. Write
an interpretation and analysis.
Tableau
by Countee Cullen
1928
Locked arm in arm they cross the way,
the black boy and the
white.
The golden splendor of the day.
The sable pride of night.
From lowered blinds the dark folk stare. And here the fair
folk talk,
Indignant that these two should dare
in unison to walk.
Oblivious to look and word
they pass, and see no wonder
that
lightning brilliant as a sword
should blaze the path of thunder.
This poem is about how in the 1900’s, when men, women, and
children were fighting for black rights. Racism still existed, and it was taking
over how people lived their everyday lives. Shops, buses, schools, and
restaurants were segregated. This poem is about how two boys broke
expectations, and walked together. They didn’t care what the white and black
folk thought of the two of them; they just liked hanging out with each other. I
think that this poem was supposed to be a form of symbolic protest, in that the
boys stood on equal ground; that they were equal. This poem might have the
opinion of a person who wanted there to be equal rights between humans.
· Watch
one or more movies or TV shows. Think about how people your age are portrayed
by Hollywood. What are ‘normal’ teens supposed to look like? What race are they
(generally)? Where do they live? How much money do they have? What is their
family like? Write about what these images of teens make you think, know, and
feel. Are there stereotypes being perpetuated?
I watched 20 painstaking minutes of the utterly horrible and
unrealistic Disney show, “Jessie”.
I noticed:
In this Disney show, “Jessie”, they have different
characters.
-There is the smart character (Indian boy, the white people
aren’t the smart ones)
-The main character who tries to fulfill her dreams (white
young woman)
-The stupid comic relief, which they make dumb on purpose
(white teen boy)
-The snobby character (white teen girl)
-The little sibling who is kind of mischievous (black girl)
-The dopey (villain) or bad person who occurs in some
episodes (rich, old, white lady)
In the show “Jesse”, Jesse is the nanny of four kids that
have rich movie star parents. The black girl and Indian boy were adopted.
Everyone else in the TV show is white. They live in a big, expensive apartment
in New York City. They have a chef/butler and a komodo dragon in their
apartment. They also have a jungle gym and movie theater in their apartment.
Their mom and dad (no divorces, so again, this is unrealistic) both work in
Hollywood and never see the kids. These images of kids make me think that the
Disney Channel is trying to attract more white teen viewers because maybe they
think white kids have a higher household income. I know the shows that Disney
makes are meant to be entertaining and funny for young kids, but as you get
older, you realize how cheesy and unrealistic they are. I feel that Disney is
stereotyping kids. In the show, the blond girl is dumb; which is a totally
unfair stereotype. I know lots of smart blonds. The blond girl is also rich and
therefore stuck up and snobbish – another stereotype. In the show, the
Indian boy is smart, and they also make him lonely with no friends, because he
is awkward and nerdy. Another stereotype that smart, nerdy kids have no
friends. I think this is Disney’s weakness. Disney shouldn’t
perpetuate these stereotypes of kids but portray teens and other kids in
realistic situations so that real kids can relate to them and maybe see some of
themselves in the characters.