In the beginning of this chapter I thought that in sight of all the racial tensions brewing with the current Civil Rights movements taking place , media played a major role in the fight against discrimination. With segregation and discrimination being broadcast on radio and television it helped incite participation of both Blacks who wanted to join the fight against discrimination and Whites who wanted to join the fight or keep things the way they were. Another interesting thing I recognized was the emergence of the Asian as the docile, obedient group who were able to achieve the American dream on their own without piggy-backing in a sense off of the “old discrimination” act. I found this new interpretation of the “Asian” very shocking as they too faced discrimination when they first came.
The issue that I found the most interesting was the discussion of the coloring of textbooks. As simple an issue it may seem in comparison to the media discussion we had in class, textbooks in my opinion as stated in the text do have the ability to shape your mind. Most textbooks of that time completely canceled out slavery and depicted African Americans well actually they did not depict African Americans at all which was the problem. This issue is very important because a while ago in the news, there was a controversy going on over history textbooks that were being re-written in the US that canceled out any type of history showing America in a “bad light.” Many were outraged and the argument became for those supporting the re-written history texts that,those parts of history already occurred and were not necessary presently with all the progress that had been made in the country. On a broader scale we could in my opinion be taking steps backward if the younger generation is not given the truth about the history of this country and the “colors” that created it, are we trying to move back into the strict Anglo-Protestant common school theme of America the perfect. Though textbooks were and are integrated it still behooves the government to make sure education is actually accurate. Concepts of women’s rights and equal opportunity alongside school integration were touched on in this chapter and still are relevant today. Though we have come a long way there are still instances where women are treated insignificantly in comparison to men and women still have to make their mark especially in education where some of the earliest fights started. Integration is an issue that affects every “minority” race in America and if it weren’t for certain statutes even our Baruch community would not be as it is with different cultures, religions and races.
In terms of education, which had a stonger impact on contemporary education, coloring textbooks/ the integration of schools or the media and describe the implications it/they have had on the creation of a national identity? Considering our current president and the constant changing definition of what it means to be an “American” where and how has the Civil Rights Movement and its beliefs fell short (if any) to tackle to growing racial tensions in current society?
