This photo shows a charred cross that was burned on the lawn of a couple in Hardwick Township, N.J.. The couple had placed a banner congratulating President-elect Barack Obama on his election victory in their yard and found the banner wrapped around the charred cross on Nov. 6.
Incidents like this are a reminder that, even though the election of Barack Obama was a historic, landmark event, racial prejudice and racism are still part of the American landscape. In fact, according to this article, race-related bias crimes have been on the increase since Obama's election November 4.
Where do you see our country in terms of race relations? How far have we come? And what can we do as teachers to teach against racism?
10 comments:
It is disappointing to see that our country is still in this turmoil. I can't seem to understand how some people can hate someone due to the color of their skin. From what I see, our country has made progress in terms of race relations, however, there is still a long way to go. This country has a problem with having a label on everyone, whether it has to do race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. I don't understand how or why people can think that these situations or actions will change people. America has chosen that we need change, and the individual to do so we have come to a unanimous decision that Obama would be the best candidate.
As future educators, I believe that we need to address the origin generalizations, stereotypes and history of particular groups that have been heavily targeted through history. Then from that we can educate our students through different perspectives of accounts during that particular time. Using that as a foundation could help students choose what to believe.
I was really sad to see the picture. Before I started to read it I really wondered what it would possibly be about. I agree with Kelly when she talks about how our country has a problem still with labeling. I think the lesson plans we all did were quite amazing. It was great to see our peers the future educators work an amazing lesson into their students' lives. I am not sure how I feel about everything going on. I know it is a great time for us as a country but I just think some people are just not willing to change. I know there are a lot of people out there that may not understand Obama and that is sad they have to go ruin other people's lawns. I think as a soon to be teacher teaching stereotypes and racism is very important. Especially today where are classrooms are becoming more and more diverse and we are strongly on having bilingual classrooms. I believe it is important for children to become aware or racism while they are young. That doesn't mean we have to teach them all of the harsh things that can happen especially if they are young. We just need to make sure our students understand diversity.
As I looked at that image of the cross and read the comment, all I did was shake my head. I am saddened that such hate exists in this world. I know its unrealistic to think that all people should be better than that, but the reality of the matter is that there are hateful people out in this world. It's truly scary. I think about how far this country has gotten just by electing a president who is African American and when I'm feeling great about that, something like this happens. It wasn't until a few weeks ago that I heard something that has crossed my mind frequently since I heard it. I was talking to my mom about Obama possibly becoming the next president and all that could be accomplished in his term in office, and my mom told me that people speculate that he is going to be assassinated throughout his run. I don't know why, but Barack Obama gives me the feeling of hope and change, and I am frightened that this could be taken away through an act of hate. Has anyone else heard this about Obama? This country has come a long way, but I still think we have a long journey ahead into showing the world that it's not about the color of your skin, the clothes you wear, the job you have, the friends you have, but what really counts is who you are on the inside. As Kelly and I taught in our diversity lesson, if we all take off our skin, we are the same. I hope as future educators we can teach our students to not ignore race, but to look past it in making judgments.
It was really shocking to read the article, even though it doesn't surprise me, unfortunately. I think there will always be racism in America and it is really sad. When I read the article/post words can't even describe how I felt as a 'white' person. I could not imagine how it would feel to someone who is black to have the hope and excitement of a (half) African American being elected and then seeing such hate and violence towards someone of the race as them. I had heard other disgusting stories of people's actions towards the Obama campaign.
Even though racism still exists, you can not deny the power this election has had so far. Also, people do not realize the reactions President George W. had when he was reelected and he is white. My friend who lives near the White House told me that it is tradition for the new President to make a mile march to the White House on their first day or something like that. Our current President could not take part when he was reelected due to 'safety reasons'. People were throwing things at him, screaming, protesting and such.
Racist people may be mad at the current situation, but we are taking steps forward and after this happens, then hopefully racism will shrink more and more. Think about the reaction and amounts of violence that occurred during the Civil Rights movement, and look where that got us. I feel/hope this may be the same with the current situation.
When I think about this issue of racism after the election, I am floored. I do realize that racism exists, but I don’t understand how people can be racist to the man with the most power in the country. Obvious Obama has proven to everyone that he is intelligent and knows what he is doing, considering he won the election.
I am really shocked at the examples of hatred the article showed. I have not physically seen any racism or hatred towards Obama, other than the jokes of him getting assassin. I can not believe how different it is from the north to the south even today. I think the worst part of the whole thing, is that children are being affected and feeling this hatred. When the article spoke of “A black teenager in New York City said he was attacked with a bat on election night by four white men who shouted 'Obama.'”, I was so angry that someone who is not only ignorant for being racism, and violent towards a human being, but even worse towards a child.
You would think that given it is 2008, this hatred would have been over with, and everyone would realize that a human being is a human being, regardless of their skin color or beliefs. I find it appalling that there are individuals that are so ignorant and taking a step backwards in the progression for equality. It still boggles my mind how one person can feel superior to another, because of their race.
When the article said, "It seems the election brought the racist rats out of the woodwork", I don’t really agree. I think that racist individuals have always been around, and that the election allows them to have a larger voice to share their ideas. I think that these individuals were racist before the election, however it was not widely publicized, due to the fact that it was not towards a person of such power as Obama.
I wonder how long it will be until this country can really open everyone’s eyes to equality, and that the fact of the matter is that no matter what race you are, you are an American. I do fear that because of all the racism and threats that Obama can be hurt. I know that there is extra security planned and even enforced from day one, but this fear still has not left my mind. I don’t think that the fear will ever leave my mind, until that day that I can fully say that everyone in this country truly is not racist.
I think that it is our responsibility as future educators to really focus on this issue of racism. This is something that really is not talked much about, which is a shame, because it is still a huge issue today.
The part in the article where 2nd graders are chanting, "Assasinate Obama" really hit me hard. What are parents teaching their kids? They are embedding in these innocent minds the concept of racism. It is shocking and very scary that America, the land of freedom, to be at a state like this. I guess I can understand that some people are uncomfortable with change, however, hate should not even be a choice. Where has humanity gone? We are all people in the end. Does skin color really matter?
I think we should ask this question to ourselves as a person as well as a teacher. Do skin color matter? Should it? If we hear 2nd graders chanting such hateful words, we start to wonder what we are unconsciously teaching our own students. We need to be careful and need to be open to everything.
I almost took this post down after I initially put it up, because I don't want to feed into the negativity and hatred that is brewing in some corners of the U.S. surrounding Obama's victory. The casual talk about a possible assassination,is, to me, unsettling, and I don't want to further it in any way. I do think it's important, though, to acknowledge that the election of a biracial President doesn't heal all racial wounds. Still, I agree with Carli that we can't allow incidents like these to overshadow the power and possibility of this moment. I was also heartened by an article today which reported on the public response of the mayor of the Idaho town where the second and third graders had chanted "Assassinate Obama":
BOISE, Idaho (AP) _ The mayor of an eastern Idaho town where second- and third-grade students on a school bus chanted "assassinate Obama!" after the Nov. 4 election has publicly apologized, saying there's no excuse for such behavior.
Rexburg Mayor Shawn Larsen wrote in a guest editorial sent Tuesday to local newspapers that he was saddened by the notoriety his community had received over the incident, both across the United States and abroad.
Larsen told The Associated Press that a formal response to the incident in his city was sorely needed.
"When people don't stand up and say, 'That's not appropriate, that's wrong, and those are hateful remarks,' it's almost like they are saying that it's an OK thing to do. And it's not," he said. "The mayor doesn't have any authority over the school system, but I do think it reflects upon the community."
The mayor could've said nothing about the incident publicly, and in his state, where McCain got 85% of the vote, that might've been the easier road to take. But instead he set an example of what we all need to do: Stand up and speak out when something is wrong. And that's just what we should be teaching our students, too.
I am truly in disbelief looking at the picture of the charred cross. I know in the back of my head that racism still exists, but my naïve self honestly believed that it was not that bad. I did not think the type of racism that exists today could result with a burning cross that reminds me of the days of the Klu Klux Klan. Prior to the days of the election, my friend’s mom and I were talking and she mentioned that we will realize how racist our country is if Barack Obama wins the election. And sure enough, the win has confirmed the amount of racism that exists. I could not believe that since the election, the number of race related crimes has increased. Truthfully, I have not heard any of these racist stories that resulted from the election. And it made me very sad to hear about the young boys who were chanting, “Assassinate Obama.” I cannot believe that a parent would seep their racist beliefs into their young children. As a teacher, I think it is extremely necessary to educate our students about racism. I absolutely loved the diversity lessons that we all taught last week. It was obvious that students do not have a chance to talk about these issues as much as they ought to be. They were all engaged and had something insightful to share. I think that teachers should spend more time talking about these issues. All we can do as educators is to create knowledge in our students to at least attempt to remove racism from our world.
It really is sad that our country is still this discriminatory. Unfortunately, I do not think that the world will ever really be free of racism, but I think as teachers, we need to see both sides of the spectrum. I think we need to understand where some people are coming from to be better able to handle situations dealing with racism and discrimination. Teachers should be the last to judge. Just from what we are taught in school, that there is so much diversity now, we, as teachers, need to be extremely sensitive to every individual's background. Being aware of diversity as a teacher is necessary to make all children feel welcomed in the classroom and learn to their fullest potential.
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