Hispanic Youth in Boston - Personal Statement Example

Modernized Western nations around the globe continue to deal with problems related to racial inequality and racism. As the world continues to grow more diverse and time passes, it seems logical that racial divides will fade away. Nevertheless, racial divides still exist, despite the tremendous progress minorities have made in asserting themselves in predominantly White societies. So, despite the optimism one can have for the future of racial discrimination, one is still troubled by the pessimism of a world bogged down in racial distinctions. The great city of Boston is a particularly good example of where this optimism and pessimism meets: a center of American history and tradition and a liberal heart of tolerance. Social justice and related topics dealing with racial inequality in America are popular because they drive a pessimistic agenda. But, from my own experience, the pessimism of some (particularly people in the academic and nonprofit sectors) just is not true. Personally, I am optimistic about the future of race relations in America, looking simply at my own community in Boston, Massachusetts, where members of different races work and live in a similar area, part of a homogenous working class that has economic troubles, not racial troubles, on their mind. Members of my community look like me—and every other race one would expect in the city of Boston. I am Hispanic, and I live in a working class neighborhood that is the home of other Hispanics, Whites, Asians, Blacks, and so on. The community itself is not defined by any one particular race or creed, but is composed of an integrated sum of many different ones. I do not feel any particular connection to the community because of my appearance, as do other racial and minority groups. I feel like a part of my community because I grew up living in it, and have friends and family in it. Because of the troubling economic state of my community, my city, and my country, the members of my community have been brought closer together, which suggests to me at least that class and income level creates tighter communities than race alone. In terms of how I, and my family, am treated by my community leaders on the basis of my appearance and race, there does not seem to be much of a distinction between Hispanic and White. In my opinion, politicians do not care about any of their constituents apart from their vote on Election Day. The rise of the Hispanic community, and the response from pandering politicians, demonstrates this (Kinetz). If a community leader or politician is racist, or favors one race above another, then there are other community leaders and politicians who are hopefully not racist to cancel that person out. It is the policeman who has explicit or implicit racist beliefs that scares minority members of my community, fearful that they will be targeted on the basis of their appearance, despite their honest life, set in a legitimate working class neighborhood. I am satisfied with the number of Hispanic members of the Boston City Council, which stands at two on my count: Felix G. Arroyo and Robert Consalvo. Given the minority status of Hispanics in Boston, this representation seems appropriate to me at least. I know these City Council members will have my family’s interests in mind. Like community leaders, the members of my community who do not know me treat me like everyone else: a stranger. But among the people I know in my community, I am treated as a Bostonian, regardless of whether that person is White, Asian, Black, or Hispanic. Likewise, I try to treat everyone I know from my community with mutual respect and trust. I know it is a problem for Hispanics in other part of the country in terms of not being associated with the absurd stereotypes that exist revolving around illegal immigrants, drug traffickers, and such. However, at least from my experience, there does not seem to be a difference in how I am treated compared to how my White friends are treated. That may only apply within my specific neighborhood. Regardless, however, in my day-to-day experience, I have almost never had a problem because of my race or appearance. I say “almost never” because there was one incident in which I was upset by racial intolerance in a neighborhood different from my own in Boston. It was a Sunday morning while the debate over illegal immigration was being transposed over news of a weakening economy. Walking with a friend in an Irish-Catholic, White district, I decided to go with him to his church for mass. I met up with his nice family, and we went into the church. When we went inside, I noticed I was getting some dirty looks. I knew it had something to do with my appearance. Finally, I was approached by a member of the congregation, a White man, who asked me to leave the church. My friend wanted to defend me, but his family stopped him, and I left voluntarily. The anger and resentment swelled up inside me. I have not seen or spoke to that friend since that incident, not because I am still mad but probably because he is still embarrassed about doing nothing. Although I said I do not have to deal with racial discrimination and suspicion, I did not say it does not exist. In my community, it is not a problem. I would not consider a group of people who refuse a Hispanic, on the basis of his race alone, admittance to their church to be a community, let alone my community. Similar to the situation in my community, it is doubtful the writers of my texts constructed their writings in such a way to appeal, or to disregard, members of any specific group. As a writer myself, I know it is in a writer’s best interests to make writing accessible, and desirable, to as many readers as possible. Therefore, it seems my texts are written for people like me—and by “people like me”, I mean people who like to read and have an interest in the subject. The local media, like the writers of my texts, probably operate on the same principle. Because people like me, members of my community, are watching and reading their product, their interest in in appealing to them. As a result, it seems portrayals of minority groups, particularly Blacks and Hispanics are improving relative to other racial groups. Even though I do not consider the wider Boston area my community, but only my neighborhood specifically, I still would consider Boston itself a community in that it brings together a broad swathe of people from different educational, socioeconomic, racial, and ideological backgrounds. In broader Boston, it seems Hispanics have trouble translating their education to a well-paying job. This could be either due to the economic climate all races today face in Boston and in the United States in general, or due to racism against Hispanics. Regardless of the cause, many Hispanics face extended periods of unemployment and underemployment (Hispanic Office of Planning and Evaluation). To this end, I wish there was better representation of Hispanics in the public school system, which the report also cites as below average and as a potential cause for concern. Personally, growing up in the public school system, I do not remember having any Hispanic school teachers, which, now that I realize was the case, was rather disheartening. If there inequities in my community of broader Boston, I believe they exist in the area of education. From this report, it seems there are a number of problems affecting minorities in that area, whether in terms of delinquencies, drop-outs, or underachievement after graduation. If education builds the foundation for a productive and happy life, then not having access to a quality education is something that ought to be addressed, especially in favor of Hispanics living in the Boston area. With a recent spike in the number of Civil Rights complaints in Boston area schools (Armario), the root of the problem could be addressed rather directly. Discrimination against troubled youths, who tend to belong to minority groups, is upsetting not only for me personally, but hopefully for the whole of Boston. No child should be discriminated against on the basis of his appearance or race. I believe Hispanics face the same kinds of discrimination as other minority groups, which may account for some racial disparity regarding education. For me, racial disparities and inequalities are not an issue, living in a predominantly working class neighborhood that is homogenous in terms of its socioeconomic background. However, the city of Boston still faces some of the race-tied issues that plague much of the United States, mostly in terms of intolerance of minority groups, which I have experienced personally outside of my neighborhood. In the broader Boston community, conflicts between ideologies and attitudes toward race lend support to my pessimistic view of the future of race relations in America. However, I am more optimistic than not, simply by virtue of the fact that in my quarter, there is very little race distinction. From my personal experience in my neighborhood, I believe race issues are overblown, particularly in the media, the academia, and in nonprofits. However, I do think the community of Boston could make strides toward making an equal society. Works Cited Armario, Christine. Education Department Sees 11% Spike in Civil Rights Complaints. 16 October 2010. 16 October 2010 . Hispanic Office of Planning and Evaluation. Hispanic Youth in Boston: In Search of Opportunities and Accountability. A Report by the Boston Latino Youth Policy Analysis Project. Boston, MA: HOPE, Inc., 1984. Kinetz, Erika. The New Soaring Force in American Ballet: Hispanics. 20 September 2005. 16 October 2010 . Read More