Make Your Home Among Strangers is a fictionalized novel (but based on the author's experiences) about a young Cuban-American girl in college who is struggling to discover who she wants to identify ethnically. She is constantly caught between pressures of her own family saying "You act too much like a white college girl" (generalized) and her college friends saying "You act too much like a Cuban" (generalized). She struggles with trying to 'choose' who she wants to be.
Topic 3:
I believe Liz's family is not enthusiastic about her going to college because it is not exactly the "norm" in Cuba to obtain higher education. After mandatory school, many enter the work force to support their families. College is an interesting concept because you pay a lot, (a lot more for a prestigious college) to attend the university in hopes that you can graduate with a degree that will cover the total cost as well as earn a higher standard of living with your degree. Her parents do not see how college can benefit Liz and are unable to accept her decision. In my family, college is practically required. My parents want me to have high standards and to get a good degree so that I earn a more-than-sustainable wage. In short, they want me to succeed and be happy and not have to worry about money more than necessary. I am currently struggling in chemistry (that's a whole separate conversation) and I have sought out daily study sessions to try and understand all of the material that is covered in class and in online homework. A degree is the short-term goal, but being financially fit is the long-term goal.
So, I want to touch on the events that occurred here at GSU a few days ago when the author came to give a speech about diversity to the freshman body. I believe her speech was well-intended, but (what I believe to be) a miscommunication occurred during the Q&A. A student asked "What gives you the credibility to generalize that all white people are privileged?" This question was interpreted as "why do you assume all white people are economically privileged" where as the author was talking about social privilege. What further escalated the conversation, was the unprofessional responses of both the student body and the author herself. I feel like the author dismissed the question hastily rather than trying to understand why the student asked this question or try to work it out. The second issue was the book burning. First of all, save the planet and if you really hate it, RECYCLE! Secondly, all throughout history, book-burning is a symbol of ignorance and restricts the assimilation of ideas. In the late 1930's, the German government burned many Jewish books and stores as an act of intolerance and antisemitism. I believe the book-burning was extreme and the students behind it were blind to the ideals that a book-burning stands for.
Finally, I would like to conclude with my regrettable opinion that the diversity talk did not help relations among ethnic groups at GSU. Quite the opposite occurred actually. The incident was blown out of proportion and caused an even bigger divide among our campus and it inhabitants. I hope in the future Georgia Southern can overcome these temporary barriers and succeed in bringing new ideals into light in order to support diversity all across the Georgia Southern universities.
Side note: I do not think the reports give a super-accurate story of what happened because all of the reports are from first-hand accounts and GSU officials. If the reporters were there, I wonder if the story might have been a little different.
Sources:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/author-jennine-cap-crucet-responds-white-college-students/story?id=66214623
https://www.ajc.com/news/local-education/reports-georgia-southern-students-burn-speaker-book-after-lecture/PGT1gBndPgXf5e9XUsE2UI/
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/book-burning
Topic 3:
I believe Liz's family is not enthusiastic about her going to college because it is not exactly the "norm" in Cuba to obtain higher education. After mandatory school, many enter the work force to support their families. College is an interesting concept because you pay a lot, (a lot more for a prestigious college) to attend the university in hopes that you can graduate with a degree that will cover the total cost as well as earn a higher standard of living with your degree. Her parents do not see how college can benefit Liz and are unable to accept her decision. In my family, college is practically required. My parents want me to have high standards and to get a good degree so that I earn a more-than-sustainable wage. In short, they want me to succeed and be happy and not have to worry about money more than necessary. I am currently struggling in chemistry (that's a whole separate conversation) and I have sought out daily study sessions to try and understand all of the material that is covered in class and in online homework. A degree is the short-term goal, but being financially fit is the long-term goal.
So, I want to touch on the events that occurred here at GSU a few days ago when the author came to give a speech about diversity to the freshman body. I believe her speech was well-intended, but (what I believe to be) a miscommunication occurred during the Q&A. A student asked "What gives you the credibility to generalize that all white people are privileged?" This question was interpreted as "why do you assume all white people are economically privileged" where as the author was talking about social privilege. What further escalated the conversation, was the unprofessional responses of both the student body and the author herself. I feel like the author dismissed the question hastily rather than trying to understand why the student asked this question or try to work it out. The second issue was the book burning. First of all, save the planet and if you really hate it, RECYCLE! Secondly, all throughout history, book-burning is a symbol of ignorance and restricts the assimilation of ideas. In the late 1930's, the German government burned many Jewish books and stores as an act of intolerance and antisemitism. I believe the book-burning was extreme and the students behind it were blind to the ideals that a book-burning stands for.
Finally, I would like to conclude with my regrettable opinion that the diversity talk did not help relations among ethnic groups at GSU. Quite the opposite occurred actually. The incident was blown out of proportion and caused an even bigger divide among our campus and it inhabitants. I hope in the future Georgia Southern can overcome these temporary barriers and succeed in bringing new ideals into light in order to support diversity all across the Georgia Southern universities.
Side note: I do not think the reports give a super-accurate story of what happened because all of the reports are from first-hand accounts and GSU officials. If the reporters were there, I wonder if the story might have been a little different.
Sources:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/author-jennine-cap-crucet-responds-white-college-students/story?id=66214623
https://www.ajc.com/news/local-education/reports-georgia-southern-students-burn-speaker-book-after-lecture/PGT1gBndPgXf5e9XUsE2UI/
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/book-burning
Will, I find it very interesting that you mentioned the difference between social privilege and economic privilege - I have not been thinking of them separately. Thanks for sharing, and I am excited to discuss in class this week!
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