The Silenced Dialogue by Lisa Delpit

    After reading "The Silenced Dialogue" by Lisa Delpit, I can see how her ideas relate directly to the ideas we’ve been talking about in class and our future as teachers. An example of how important it is to "bridge the gap" is when a student speaks another language at home and ends up feeling isolated when they’re at school because their culture isn’t represented. Delpit's book encourages teachers to acknowledge and appreciate diversity in their classrooms, but also to help their students explore other cultures without losing their own identity. 

    One of the quotes I liked is actually one of Delpit's five aspects of power, which is "The culture of power is a reflection of the rules of the culture that has the power," (p.24) because it explains how educators have to recognize these unspoken rules that they might already be used to and explicitly teach them to students who aren't part of the dominant culture without minimizing their cultural identities

    When I was researching Delpit, I found another quote that I think is important from further ahead in the book, "If we are to successfully educate all of our children, we must work to remove the blinders built of stereotypes, monocultural instructional methodologies, ignorance, social distance, and bias" (p.182). This is a real call to action for educators to start using more inclusive teaching practices that respect and welcome the diverse experiences of their students. 

    I think the most important part of all of this is that all students have a place where they feel they are able to learn and be themselves. One step teachers can take is to incorporate materials and examples during lessons that reflect other cultures, which will help their students feel represented and valued in the classroom. They should also actively listen to the students and their families to build trust and help them better understand their students' needs and goals.

~Angel

Privilege, Power, and Difference by Alan Johnson

Alan Johnson is the author of the book Privilege, Power, and Difference. In this post, I plan to share some topics from this book that had an impact on my thoughts about privilege.

The first quote I want to share is from chapter 1 of Johnson's book where he said, "we are not prisoners to some natural order that pits us hopelessly and endlessly against one another" (4). This stood out to me because it made me realize that most people who are privileged never went out of their way to achieve it. These people were simply born into a more desirable social/economic class, race, or sex. A white man born into a rich family is inherently more privileged than a woman of color that was born to a middle class single parent household. The problem comes in when the privileged person does not acknowledge or push back against inequalities that they see others facing. This also includes the harrassment and objectification that men aim towards women, as well as the traditional gender roles they try to uphold. If the man chooses to act against his privileges and instead work to find a solution, the discrepancies in power among classes could be minimized. 

The Diversity Wheel
Retrieved from: https://blogs.lanecc.edu/engaging-diversity/wp-content/uploads/sites/76/2015/02/Privilege-Oppression-and-Difference.pdf

As I mentioned before, acknowledging your privilege is a key part of finding a solution. Johnson mentioned that a lot of men deny being priviledged because they don't believe that you can be privileged if you're miserable. The two are not mutally exclusive, privileged people are just as susceptable to emotional hardship as non-privileged people. The difference is perspective, while someone can be sad or upset that their parents bought them the "wrong" car for their birthday, another person could be feeling the same emotions because they don't know if they'll be able to eat dinner that night. 

S.C.W.A.A.M.P is a framework designed to bring to light which traits our society deems valuable. It stands for Straightness, Christianity, White-ness, American-ness, Able-bodieness, Maleness, and Property ownership. The focus isn't necessarily on individuals that fall under these categories, but on the systemic privilege and the ideology itself. These "values" are maintained regardless of the individuals that have attempted to bridge the gaps.

Johnson included many examples of race priviledge towards the end of chapter 3. This is a great way to help some people who may not be able to conceptualize the impact that it can have if they aren't directly affected. One of these examples was, "Whites don't have to deal with an endless and exhausting stream of attention to their race" (29). While appreciating different cultures and perspectives is a positive act, race shouldn't be the only thing that you notice or comment on when you interact with someone. As a multiracial woman, it's like a breth of fresh air when someone doesn't start a 25-minute-long debate with me on why I'm "definitely" spanish (I am not) and isn't trying to touch my hair or tell me it looks better straightened. I'm pretty white-passing, so even I can't imagine how much attention is brought to those who look darker or have kinkier hair must feel. 

On reflection, I wonder how many people are unaware of (or just ignorant to) their privileges. Do you think if a privileged white person were to visit a place where the societal norms are different, i.e. white people were the minority, they would be able to understand their privileges in America? Or do you think their ego/ignorance/entitlement would shield them from being cognizant of their advantages?

An important thing to remember is that anger and hostility doesn't get us very far, it only adds fuel to the fire. Work towards a solution instead of becoming part of the problem. Kill 'em with kindness!

~Angel

Introducing Me!

Hi Readers!

I'm Angel and I'm an early childhood education major. I'm 22 years old and it's my second semester as a student at RIC. I went to CCRI for a few years because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I had already been working as a TA in multiple daycares while I was in school and I loved my work, so it was kind of a no-brainer. I love most forms of creative art, especially painting and journaling. I'm also an avid reader and spend a lot of time curled up with a book or my kindle in my own little world. I also have a chronic illness, which makes life a little more difficult, but I do my best to persevere! I'm excited to learn more about social justice and get to know you guys over this semester. Good luck!

My favorite place ever, B. F. Clyde's Cider Mill in CT!

This is Grayson, he says hi!