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Jasmine Medina
Professor Malvin
English 114B
17 May 2016
Demanding Change in Equality
Living in a country where an individual does not know the primary language must be like
a fish out of water. There is no way to express themselves or understand others leading to
complete lack of communication. Individuals from foreign countries may encounter struggles
such as not being able to understand others much less a street sign. In the mid 1800s thousands
of Mexicans migrated to the United States for job opportunities. States like Texas, New Mexico,
and California became multiracial. Most Mexicans have struggled adjusting to living in a foreign
country because they did not fit in. People were not very welcoming to individuals of color.
Cities, schools, parks were separated according to ethnicity or color. Discrimination was a big
and growing part of society during this time. Individuals of all nationalities were affected
drastically because they did not have a sense of belonging due to racism. Discrimination and
racism has made a significant impact in youths education, their economical stage and the danger
they experience in life. Racism individuals face in their in education system leads to lack of
economical opportunities.
The English Only Movement is an attempt to pass constitutional amendments at both
national and state level to make English the official language of the United States. This
movement would change society as a whole. Policy would be enforced and change the total
environment in a classroom. Children who do not excel in the English language would
potentially not be welcomed or helped and will be left behind. Testing and comprehension

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will make it very hard for bilingual students, therefore will prohibit them from seeking higher
education. Although many might believe the English only movement will unite the nation, it will
only create a bigger gap between ethnicities. After many historical events like the Mexican
American War the United States been a multilingual society because of the diverse nationalities
living in the country.. Having all nationalities come together and accept one another to form a
melting pots, the essential way to form peace between one another and make equal opportunity.
Having this English Only Movement will only backtrack the country from sharing equality and
eliminating discrimination.
Many foreign children are often not motivated to seek further education, and is not as
enforced as it is for a Caucasian child to go to school. Being foreign to the country is enough
stress to deal with and not having a form to communicate greatens the anxiety. In the book
Always Running: Mi Vida Loca, gang day in L.A., Luis Rodriguez states the schools were not
supportive to children who did not know the English language. Already that is a form of
discrimination, because individuals are treated less than because they did not have the same
opportunity in learning the language most people are familiar will. This does not determine an
individuals intelligence, Rodrigues states, In those days there was no way to integrate the non
English speaking students. So they just made it a crime to speak anything but English. If a
Spanish word sneaked out in the playground, kids were often sent to the office to get swatted or
to get detention. (26 ). Since when is speaking a different language a crime? There is no reason
why a child should get punished for speaking a different language. Because he/she is being
discriminated, children are growing up with a mentality that there is something wrong with the
country they originated from. Language is something that should be embraced not hidden in fear

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of being judged. Already this is decreasing the self-confidence of the children to seek a better
education. Luiss brother Rano was placed in classes with disabled children and held back a year
because of his lack of English language. Educational opportunities were taken away because of
this issue. Language is not a disability and because he was placed with mentally challenged
children he was not able to reach his full potential in a learning environment. Fear of being
judged and no motivation have lead many Latinos to drop out of school. According to National
Center of Education Statistics, Latinos school dropout rates are higher than black white and
other race with being a little over 30 percent. In a sample of more than 500 high school students
more than half the Indigenous and Asian students reported experiencing racism. Results suggest
that greater experiences of racism are significantly associated with increased levels of
hopelessness across all groups and lower level math and English ratings. (Brice). These are very
significant numbers of people who encountered racism. Racism has also lead individuals to have
lower academic levels. Another example is the support system that is given to students of white
wealthy communities compared to people of color in less wealthy communities. Before applying
to college each individual is required to take a test called Scholastic Aptitude Test, the score of
this test is a huge factor of determining whether the individual is admitted into the college or not.
In wealthier communities, there are many SAT prep classes, tutoring and extra help to enforce
the students to get better scores. In lower income minority communities the school districts are
not able to fund programs to help students achieve higher scores. Therefore, the education
system a child is apart of greatly influences where they will continue to proceed in life. Racism
has a great impact on children education.

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Many cities until this day are divided by economical stage. Wealthy people often live by
the beaches or up in the hills near Calabasas while the less fortunate are living in inner cities
such as Compton and Watts. Many people who are foreign to America are not given the same
educational opportunities as others, therefore they are not able to obtain a higher education.
Without a higher education people are unable to seek a career that will pay well enough to be at a
good economical level. According to Los Angeles Times the yearly median income in Watts is
$25,161 this is due to the lack of higher education. Another racist factor that affect individuals
economical stage is that people of color are not taken as serious as white people. White people in
America are more dominant and hold superiority. In the book Always Running, Rodriguez
mentions his father being a principle in his native country. His mother was a secretary, two jobs
that had a decent pay roll. Although Rodriguez was an educated man he did not have the
credential to teach at a school in the United States. Once his father finally obtained a job he was
son fired. Rodriguez expresses Apparently the white kids couldnt understand him because of
his accent. ( 31 ) Rodriguez was being discriminated because he did not speak fluently. Because
he was not able to keep a job due to racism, Rodriguez and his family struggled in poverty.

Racism can be expressed in many ways, it can be verbally, cyberally and most dangerous,
physically. Racism and discrimination are very violent in both ends of a situation. The impact
racism has had in individuals lives is very extreme and has lead to many horrible historical
events. The Los Angeles riots are a very significant event that not only destroyed building and
cars but also ended the lives of many individuals. The riots were a way of people to voice back
and fight for discrimination and injustice. Judith Tur states, This is sicko. This is like being in a

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war zone (96). War is often perceived as a horrible bloody deadly situation. In the book, Tur is
comparing the riots to a war zone. All the lost lives were all due to the controlling idea of racism
and discrimination. Just like the the damage racism caused during the L.A. riots many other
situations have lead others to be physically hurt. In the book Always Running, Luis explains the
division between ethnicities throughout the cities. Once while attempting to buy groceries in one
of the forbidden cities he and his brother were beaten up. Rodriguez expresses I watched the
others take turns on my brother, this terror of a brother, and he doubled over, had blood and spew
on his shirt, and tears down his face (24). They were being beaten because of their ethnicity.
Because they where not white they encountered danger crossing to another city while not taking
any negative actions. The security of these children where at stake because of discrimination and
racism. It is also known that people of color are more prone to danger and police brutality.
Although some black individuals are unarmed during police encounters, some police officials
will take violent action upon them because of their racist beliefs. John Swain, Oliver Laughland
and Jamiles Lartey state, An analysis of public records, local news reports and Guardian
reporting found that 32% of black people killed by police in 2015 were unarmed, as were 25% of
Hispanic and Latino people, compared with 15% of white people killed (The Guardian). White
people are not as likely to get shot in an encounter with the police. Even today people
automatically profile individuals because of their skin tone.

Racism is a great factor in society and although some individuals might not see it many
people are being discriminated everyday based off of ethnicity, culture gender. Being
discriminated can result in many consequences such as emotional mental and physical issues.

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Many do not see it because it is something that people have made a norm from. Racism indeed
has a great impact to peoples education economical stage and well being. Education is a great
factor in a persons successes. In the United States, even a high school diploma is necessary in
order to get a minimum wage paying job. A minimum-paying job that will not provide the
sufficient amount of money to fulfill a family needs. In order to be considered middle class in
individuals yearly salaries has to be over 67,000. A job that will pay over that amount will need
higher education and a degree of some kind. Without educational opportunities, many people do
not reach conferrable economical stages. People are often left without education and job
opportunities and are not able to seek a better future. The individuals well-being is also at sake
as many take racism to a greater level of violence.

Work Cited
Brice, Pricilla. "Racism Disrupts Students Education." All Together Now. N.p., 8 Oct. 2014.
Web. 8 Oct. 2014.
Smith, Amma Deavere. Guide to Twilight Los Angeles: Conceived, Written and Performee by
Anna Deavere Smith ; Directed by Marc Levin. Brookline, MA: Facing History and
Ourselves National Foundation, 2001. Print.
Swaine, Jon, Oliver Laughland, and Jamiles Lartey. "Black Americans Killed by Police Twice .
Likely to Be Unarmed as White People." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 01
June 2015. Web. 05 May 2016
Rodriguez, Luis J. Always Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A.
Curbstone, 1993. Print.

Evaluation Letter

Willimantic, CT:

This final essay was maybe the easiest, maybe not the easiest to write but the easiest to
relate to. I wrote about the discrimination within different ethnicities and how the educational
system can effect our economical opportunities. I did have a lot of trouble starting off and getting
my writing together because when the class went over peer review my peers were not able to
identify my thesis. This setback my confidence because I wasnt sure if I was on the right topic.
After I met with you I was able to focus on one controlling idea which I hoped helped my essay
grow stronger. I wrote this essay in third person but I do wish I would be able to add some of my
personal experience relating to the essay, but figured that would confuse my readers if I went
from third person to first. I mentioned SAT, in my second paragraph and relating to my high
school experience, my school do not provide that extra help , they did not emphasize on how
important this test was. It was probably mentioned to me once before I took it. I blame that on
the education system that poor communities have. In wealthier communities tutoring is offered,
classes after school, students are being prepped for these test since middle school. This topic
really stood out to me because the discrimination between social classes and ethnicities really
does have a great impact on individuals success. Im glad I was able to write about an issue I
can relate to.

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