The Illusive Race Question & Class: A Bacteria That Constantly Mutates Rebbekah Sforza

What Race is in America According to Acuna, race in American’s history is seen in black and white. - A person with African or Indian decent was automatically seen as black and therefore did not get the privileges the whites did. -For example slaves that were brought over from the Philippines were called African so that it was legal to have them as slaves. A new race category was not opened. Politicians today are not seen as raciest when they elect people of other races into office. - Politics hurt the poor the most and in American the poor are mostly people of color. This is where you see racism in American being ignored.

Racism as a Bacteria Racism can be compared to a bacteria. Racism, like bacteria takes on many different sizes and shapes. Bacteria can withstand antibiotics. Just when you think a remedy killed a bacteria, you find out that some of it still remained. The remaining racism in America is this bacteria this has remained. It has just taken a new form.

Black Experience in History versus the Latino Experience Acuna argues that the literature on the “Black Experience” is better represented in American history then the Latino experience -He states that, “…the black experience has included more than 200 years of civil rights struggle” (Acuna, 2). By not defining the Latino experience, it creates confusion for defining race in America. It is said that the experience of race in Mexico has been ignored in history because there was not a large black population there.

Privilege of Being Light Skinned In our history there has always been a privilege of having light skinned - Lighter skinned African Americans had to participate in less hard labor during the time of colonization. During Colonial Mexico, Indians who looked white did not have to participate in hard labor either. These nonwhite groups have fought to be white so they can keep their privileges

Race in Brazil Brazil holds a lot of research and literature on race. Socially black and white people are said to get along better in Brazil then in American -There is still racism in Brazil. It is shown in class differences. The poorest people in Brazil are those of the darkest skin. - There has not been laws to separate blacks from whites in Brazil, but social class has separated them. This is a different type of racism, but it is still racism.

Race in Mexico There is less literature on race in Mexico because there was not a larger African population in Mexico. - “The Black Civil Rights experiences has been more dramatic and better documented” (Acuna, 6). Mexico has a history of their being racism towards Indians and Mestizos. -Till this day those who speak an indigenous language live separately from the Mexican population in Mexico.

Being Classified as “White” Throughout American’s history, who was considered white on the U.S. Bureau of the Census has continuously changed. -In 1948 Mexican’s identified as White. In 1950 Mexican could only identify as white if their ancestors were not Indian. In 2000 Latinos were still not considered a race, but an ethnic group. Those who are not white and are identifying themselves as white, is the “Illusive Race” brought up in the title.

Is Race a Factor in Schools “In January 2005, the University of California Los Angeles released the results of a survey among freshmen nationwide that showed a record high percentage of college freshmen believing discrimination was no longer a major problem in the United States” (Acuna, 10). Acuna believes these students were influenced by media and famous Latinos on television. The truth is the majority of Latino students in a 4 year college come from a middle class family of from private or magnet schools.

Stereotype Threat The question of whether or not racism is in our school system can relate to Steele’s book Whistling Vivaldi. Steele introduces the concept Stereotype Threat. This is a threat that a minority feels when trying to succeed in a subject area that they are “known” to perform badly in. College freshmen today may not see the racism that still exists the same way the majority does not see the stereotype threat the minority has to encounter.

Location effects Identification Where a Latino lives in the United States has effected what they call themselves. - Latinos that live amongst other Latinos tend to identify themselves by where they are from. (ex: Cuban, Mexican) - Those who live amongst predominately white people will resort to saying they are Latino/Hispanic.

Felipe Esparza’s Location Felipe Esparza is a Mexican American who won the popular American game show “Last Comic Standing” In an interview on The Nonprofit Network, Felipe talks about what others identify him as. Since Felipe has found success in a predominantly white profession, he has been labeled as the “Latino Comedian Felipe.”

Segregation in Schools There is still a clear segregation in America’s school system today. In Los Angles, California there are schools that are 96% Latino. The schools with the highest Latino population also have the highest population of people that are poor. These schools are not getting all the same services and are showing a proven higher drop out rate.

Conclusion Acuna wants his reader to see the racism still exists, but in a different from. By ignoring Latino’s history we are creating confusion for the Latino’ identity. It is effecting our school system and social classes. This new from of racism is the bacteria that will not leave.

Resources Acuna, Rodolfo. (2005). The illusive race question & class: A bacteria that constantly mutates. Latino Studies Series, 59. 1-20. Steele, C. M. (2011). Whistling Vivaldi: how stereotypes affect us and what we can do. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company http://www.thenonprofitnetwork.org/videopage.php?id=19