Week 10: Is 2 cultures better than 1?

I found the “Becoming Black” article to be the most interesting this week.  This article raised numerous interesting thoughts and questions.  I have always been intrigued by the contrasting views of “black culture” by African Americans.  On one side of the spectrum, some black people are insulted by being labeled as having a separate culture from white people and other ethnic groups.  They do not want to stand out from other groups it appears.  In contrast, it seems to me that there is a large group of black people that love having a distinct and separate “black culture”.  This culture is not violent or rebellious but simply different from the general popular culture (one usually dictated by white people).  However, this distinct culture has also led to further stereotyping from whites and other majority groups.  For example, some white people may assume that all black people follow and belong to this unique “black/hip-hop culture”.  This assumption is part of a social imaginary which is described on page 353 as “a discursive space or a representation in which they are already constructed, imagined, and positioned and thus are treated by the hegemonic discourses and dominant groups, respectively, as Blacks.”  The problem with social imaginary is that it leads to black people once again being treated differently than white people.  History has certainly taught us that this is not a good thing.  Another interesting point was raised on page 366 about the potential use of rap in the classroom.   Hip-hop is an undeniably important part to the “black culture”, so shouldn’t it be included in the culture of the classroom?  Although I personally love the rap/hip-hop genre of music, I feel that many of the popular modern songs are inappropriate for use in a school setting.  Many of the song lyrics focus on drugs, drinking, and the extreme importance of money.  Aren’t these the exact same things that most teachers and administrators spend so much time turning their kids away from?  However, I do agree with the statement on page 367 that teachers should keep up with popular culture.  How can teachers connect on a personal level with their students if they’re living in the past?  

            The other two articles were more similar in nature and dealt with the issue of race in education.   In my eyes, the most important take-away of the Kubota & Lin article was the emphasis that “race” is a social construct and not a scientific identifier.  In raw terms, “race” is just a way of grouping people that look similar together.  For example, the majority of Americans and Western European citizens with lighter skin are often simply referred to as “white”.  People in this group of “whites” come from different origins, speak different languages, and have different cultures.  In many cases the only similarity is the color of their skin, which is essentially a meaningless characteristic.  I loved the quote on page 2 that emphasized that 99.9% of human genes are shared.  This is an awesome fact that I will repeat to my students often and hope that they keep in mind.  However, I am not advocating that teachers and students behave like they are color blind.  On page 16, the authors articulate why not recognizing differences is a bad idea.  Teachers need to be sensitive, not color blind.  Differences should be accepted and respected, but they shouldn’t be used to separate students. 

            The final article dealt with the treatment of Arab exchange students in the United Kingdom.  At the beginning of the article, many of the participants believed that citizens of the United Kingdom viewed them as foreign exchange students or simply as foreign.  At the end of the experience, however, multiple participants gave accounts of how they were seen distinctly as Arab or Middle-Eastern.  This often led to racial discrimination and racial profiling.  Although the previous article proved that “race” has no scientific value, this article demonstrated that concept of “race” is still very important in society and can have serious negative consequences (616).  The fear of Middle Eastern people that has resulted from the aftermath of 9/11 has been labeled as Islamophobia (617).  Although people from the Middle East have always faced discrimination, the harassment and discrimination that they faced surged after the tragedy of September 11^th.  This intense racism has made Muslims much more aware of their own identities (621).  Unfortunately, since 9/11, people from the Middle East have been othered arguably more than any other group.