Agent Orange is a mixture of dangerous chemicals used in the Vietnam War to clear the forest and destroy plantlife for American soldiers to maneuver around the foreign land. However, the consequences of dropping the toxic fumes still affect many lives today. Not only did it affect many Vietnam soldiers after they breathed in the toxins, but it also affected their future children and their wives. Birth defects and deformities are common in those exposed to Agent Orange and are passed onto future generations. The soil that is used to grow crops and the water they use to drink/bathe is directly affected by the poison and the United States is not taking responsibility for it.

Agent Orange is not taught in American schools. No one really knows that it happened. I came across this video a year ago and was saddened after seeing the tragic after-effects; I didn’t know about Agent Orange before until I came across this documentary. The children affected by Agent Orange are heavily displaced in society because of their deformities and nothing major is being done to assist them. In the video, ‘The Peace Village’ is the place they are dropped off in and stay for the rest of their lives. Many of these children have life-threatening deformities and have different needs that have to be accommodated for, in order for them to survive. There are still places that are contaminated by Agent Orange; however, there is nothing being done to prevent the spread to future generations. Victims are not receiving the proper attention and help that they need.

 

 

As I mentioned on Wednesday, we will be holding Monday’s class in the English Department’s Computer Lab, room 7-205 in the VC. Please remember to bring a hard copy of your Research Proposal with you to class.

See you then!!!
Professor Sylvor

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cODE4N6VRFI

 

This clip is taken from the hit series “Breaking Bad”. In this Scene the main character Walter White finds out that he has lung cancer. This overwhelming scene shows his displacement as an individual as well as a father. He has to think about his life and about how he will support his family if he is to die. In the scene we see the different emotions that are going through his head as he is given the devastating news.

This clip is from the Kids TV show Kim possible. In this clip, Ron is reminiscing about their pre school years. He realizes Kim was bullied as a young girl which untimely led her to where she is now. This is an example of displacement because the bullying led her to feel out of place and as a result became this sort of super hero that fights the bad guys, but even then she is still displaced as a teen because she must keep this a secret.

This a clip from the sequel of the Disney movie, Pocahontas. Pocahontas travels to London to represent her tribe to advocate against the war. This video relates to displacement because Pocahontas is a stranger in London. She doesn’t understand the culture and social norms of a foreign country. Their differences keep clashing, but she tries to adapt to her new environment. This is similar to the video of Fresh Prince of Bel Air because the conflict is the same.

 

This movie is one of my favorite movies ever and highly recommend if you are interested and have not seen it to watch it. until recently I did not really thought about it as being connected to the idea of displacement until I rewatched it. It is about how a mom tells her daughter that if she goes outside she will die due to a rare sickness she has.  throughout the movie, it is seen how the mom does everything in her power to keep her daughter isolated from the world. This relates to displacement because she feels displaced in her own home. Not being able to go outside and enjoy a normal teenage life makes her feel isolated, alone and like she is not really living. This relates to the power that displacement can have in a person to the point where they don’t feel that they belong and in her situation, she does not know anything about the outside world or how to fit into society.

 

by : Perla Sanchez

Here is a list that I created of possible broad subjects that are related to displacement and could be a starting point for developing a research paper topic.  This is not an exhaustive list – just some random ideas that I generated quickly.  Hopefully, it will be helpful in stimulating your own ideas!

 

Anything related to immigration:

Trump’s immigration policy

Immigration from a particular place at a particular time

A particular aspect of the immigrant experience – immigration during childhood, for example.

Immigrant labor

Experience of being an illegal immigrant

Immigrant neighborhoods in NYC

Anything related to topic of refugees:

Experience of Jewish refugees in WWII

Life in contemporary refugee camps

America’s role in current refugee crisis

Refugees adjusting to life in Europe

Moral/ethical dilemmas raised by issue

Adoption

Experiences of moving that aren’t related to immigration – what does it mean to start somewhere new?

Migrant workers

Gender and Displacement – Is being transgender a form of displacement?

Language and Displacement – bilingualism, language and education

Nursing Homes (the elderly and displacement)

Amish practice of Rumschpringen

Space exploration

Experience of field anthropologists

School integration

Eviction

Convents, Monasteries, and other forms of escaping the secular world

Siblings and psychological displacement

Adjustment to the armed forces

Homelessness

Gentrification

 

In this short clip from Jessie, a Disney Channel show, we can see physical displacement. The real Jessie is an adult girl with dreams of being an actor has to move to NYC to be a nanny. Here we can see that Jessie and the little girl Zuri magically switched bodies; an accident that worked out into the actual Zuri’s favor. The real Jessie, who is now displaced and in Zuri’s body, loses her power. She is not used to being in Zuri’s small body and can’t drag around Zuri like she would usually be able to. She loses her authoritative figure and can’t get Zuri to bed.

In this clip of Everybody Hates Chris, Chris accuses Caruso, his bully across the series, for bullying him because he was black. In this episode in particular, the new principle sees Chris getting beat up by Caruso and does not do anything. In fact, the new principle even shakes his hand and walks away. Throughout the series, Chris describes his experience as the only black student in his school. The show demonstrates his hardships in school and as an eldest child in his family. Both, being the only black student, and being the oldest child, are examples of displacement and are the major themes of the show.

 

In this clip taken from The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift,  the main character, Sean,  is in a position where he must get comfortable to a new environment. Sean is an American who moved to Tokyo to live with his father and very quickly, on his first day, Sean faces a language barrier with his teacher. Also, Sean seemed to be unfamiliar with Japanese customs such as wearing rubber shoes in the classroom, and bowing to the teacher.