American Conversation - Part 1: Economy, Jobs, Drugs, Education

True Story: I had lunch with a couple of old insurance agent acquaintances of mine yesterday. I generally don't talk about politics, immigration or religion with acquaintances, but since they were so concerned about the economy, I decided to make an exception.

They were both long time insurance agents, selling Life, Health and Property & Casualty insurance. They both had their own agencies making very comfortable livings until the economy dropped through the floor a couple of years ago. Their agencies went bankrupt. Now they are struggling to find some sort of income. They never thought they would be in this dire financial situation in their sixties.

A couple of weeks ago, they both found jobs at a call center to sell Health insurance to senior citizens. In good economic times, these gentlemen would never have taken a job in a call center. However, these are very dire, economic times. Even so, they still dress very professionally, in business suits and ties and are very grateful to be employed. (They reminded me of my Dad when he found a job trucking up Latino employees to Michigan to pick crops during the Depression. These guys are heroes!)

I decided to share this conversation with my readers on my blog. In the spirit of anonymity, I'm showing their names as: Independent Stan and TeaParty Jack
After they caught me up on their job status, our conversation went something like this:

Teaparty Jack: I don't think the government has a clue about what is happening to the middle class in this economy. We have a domino effect going on. Unemployment is high. Let me give you an example. The general public is not buying cars. The car dealers aren't selling cars. Therefore people don't need new car insurance so insurance agents are out of work. This economy is KILLING the Middle Class.
Independent Stan: (nods) It certainly looks that way. And there is so much screw up in government departments. Look what's happening with unemployment. They don't know anything about the insurance industry. They don't know anything about takebacks. I've been working for no salary for months and now they are disputing my eligibility for unemployment. I had to take this job to pay the mortgage and feed my family, yet at the same time they said I shouldn't be applying for a call center job considering my previous salary. They said I shouldn't be looking for jobs paying less than $33 an hour.
TeaParty Jack: I don't have any use for any of them..for either party. I think we need to kick them all out of office.
Dee: President Obama is trying to fix the economy but the Republicans are blocking him every step of the way.
Independent Stan: I don't like either side, but you are right about the Republicans.
Dee: Bush sent us off the cliff and we could have been in a deep depression if not for the bailouts and the stimulus programs.
Teaparty Jack: Socialism. We can't let the government control us.
Dee: Control us? Are you talking about regulation? During Bush's regime, they deregulated everything. Now look what's happening with BP and Eggs/Poultry and Beef.
Teaparty Jack: Hah! You can't keep blaming Bush for everything.
Independent Stan: Wait a minute. How long did it take us to get out of the Great Depression? 15 years?
Dee: Yep. That's about right. We didn't' get out 'til about 1945. We need to give them a little time to allow the Stimulus and Jobs programs to work.
Independent Stan: (the older of the two, chuckling to himself) You know these were exactly the same conditions before Hitler came into power.
Dee: Oh yes, I know and he was a great orator too (eyes roll).
Teaparty Jack: I still say Kick the bums out! All of them! Both Sides. Let's get people in there that listen to We The People.
Dee: Oh yeah, kick them all out and then we're stuck with the wacko Tea Party candidates.
Teaparty Jack: Wackos? They're not wackos. Like who?
Dee: Well, Sharron Angle for one. The teaparty candidate in Nevada.
Teaparty Jack: (silence. shrug. almost nod.)
Independent Stan: (Nod, Nod, Nod)
Dee: And what about Christine McConnell in Delaware.
Teaparty Jack: I don't see anything wrong with her.
Independent Stan: Come on! She falsified her educational documents and there were problems with her PAC funds...
Dee: (nod, nod, nod)
Teaparty Jack: (shrug -- giving up)
Dee: I agree. But let's get back to the real issue. We do need a Jobs Program. The problem nobody talks about is outsourcing. Big business is outsourcing the jobs the Middle Incomers want offshore. We need to bring those jobs back to America, at least a percentage of them. And for the companies that do bring them back, give them the tax breaks their begging for. It would cost our country NOTHING.
Independent Stan: (nods) Yeah but do you feel like paying $1500 for a flat screen TV that costs you a hundred and fifty bucks today?
Teaparty Jack: Yeah. That's cuz overseas, they only pay a buck an hour.
Dee: A day....I know, but those are the jobs that Americans want. Look at all the IT companies and Telecoms. They outsource most of their jobs offshore. The other thing, we are not doing a good enough job educating our children.
Independent Stan: Yes. They'd rather sit around and do Meth. Did you see that special the other day?
Dee: (Nod) I see what you are saying. The U.S. is the number one abuser of illegal drugs in the world. Other countries start early with their focus on education. I've heard that many countries in the Middle East, India for example, started focusing on education for their pre-schoolers in the 80's and 90's in preparation for the IT jobs of today. We need that kind of focus for our kids. Education is the great equalizer.
Independent Stan: I know what you mean but we do have freedom of choice. Unfortunately the choice our young people seem to be taking is Meth and other similar drugs. They'd rather sit around, smoke pot, do meth and play video games. They want the old manufacturing jobs, but those jobs have been outsourced overseas and they are never coming back.
Tea Party Jack: We can't let the government run our schools like the do in the Middle East. More Socialism.
Dee, Independent Stan: (shrug, shake head)
Indepent Stan: I bet you believe the President is not an American.
Tea Party Jack: I've never seen his Birth Certificate.
Independent Jack: (laughing) I've seen his Birth Certificate and they had a birth announcement the week after he was born. Come on. They've shown the same kind we all have. And he's not a Muslim anyway. It wouldn't even matter if he was one. Freedom of religion. Remember? That argument is silly.
Tea Party Jack: (Shrugs)
Dee: Drugs. We are the number one abuser of illegal drugs in the world and the cartels are falling all over themselves to supply us. And, on the other hand, we are the number one supplier of Guns to the Drug Cartels.
Tea Party Jack: We need to wall up the border.
Independent Stan: (Nods)
Dee: (head turns sideways) Jack! You do not want to have this conversation with me. (they do not know I have a blog) You will lose this discussion. You cannot tell me you want to build a 2000 mile wall on our Southern Border.
Independent Stan and Tea Party Jack: (both sit up straight, Stan stares at Jack, waiting for his response)
Tea Party Jack: (Backing up a bit) Well, maybe not 2000 miles, but we do have to secure the border. Don't you agree?
Independent Stan: (switching his stare back to me) You do agree to a secure border, don't you Dee?
(See: American Conversation - Part 2: Immigration)

Students' Success comes through Adequately Funding Inner City Schools and Unity of All Races/Ethnicities

A commenter asked me to blog about a recent article that discussed the Racial Violence incident that occurred at South Philadelphia High School. The article was about a group of Asian students returning to school. Apparently the previous December, some Asian students were harassed by other students (mostly Black) who they said were antagonizing them. The word was the mostly Black student body felt the Asian students were receiving preferential treatment so they hazed the Asian students. The article details how the Asian students felt they had enough and they started picketing the school letting the powers that be know they had enough. Afterwards the hazing stopped. Now, ten months later, this article detailed the struggles of the Asian students that are returning to school.

What I found most interesting were the comments. Most were from Anglo commenters complaining that "This story confirms what many Americans already know about Phili. Phili, like Detroit, has a demographic that is predominately African American as a result of white-flight, brown-flight, and anyone-who-could flight.While African Americans have successfully portrayed themselves as victims of racism, their perpetrating racism is also part of the African American experience. "Get the Whitee" has been expressed in more ways than just a verbal altercation."

I read this same story in numerous news outlets and the rhetoric in the comment sections were the same.

I decided to go back to earlier articles about the incident at SPHS. It turns out the December, 2009 incident wasn't the first incident. It seems like similar bullying incidents have been happening for some time. The Black Students, not content with the limited services they were receiving, were angry that the Asian Immigrants and Latino students were receiving additional counseling/coaching in ESL type classes and other services.

I started thinking about these incidents, my own high school experience and about poverty stricken neighborhoods. When I was in high school, there was always a hierarchy. At the top of the heap were the Jocks and the Cheerleaders. Next came the Brains and kids with money. Then the regular students. Then the minorities and the nerds. The Jocks, Cheerleaders and Brains/Rich Kids were the stars of the show and people, including teachers, catered to them. By the time my children came along, I learned that in order to help them succeed, I had to move to the suburbs and make sure they were enrolled in team sports and I made sure they studied. Even so, the hierarchy remained basically the same.

The biggest difference was my flight to the suburbs. The inner city schools did not have the services to help me or my children learn, as in South Philadelphia. I could see from the articles, the struggle on both sides.

In the recent SPHS (South Philly High School) articles, I was glad to see the Asian students stood up for themselves and marched to make sure their voices were heard. New Immigrants have even more obstacles to surpass than the traditional school hierarchy. I also felt sad for the young Black students who must be challenged even more, in the poverty stricken inner city schools, with limited services in a very poor environment. The real answer is for our school systems, especially in the inner city, to provide adequate educational services for all students.

Now is the time for Unity, not for divisiveness. We all need to overcome the bullying of the past. We also need to unify to ensure our students, especially the inner city students receive all the tools they need to succeed. After all, Education is the Great Equalizer! Let's not create lines or divisions. Let's unify so all students can succeed.

From Migrant Worker to Heroic Astronaut, Mexican American Jose Hernandez Supports Immigration Reform

José Moreno Hernández was born on August 7, 1962, in California. He is an American engineer of Mexican descent and a NASA astronaut. Hernandez grew up picking cucumbers and tomatoes in the fields of California's San Joaquin Valley. His parents, Salvador and Julia, had migrated from Mexico to Northern California in the 1950s in search of work. They eventually became U.S. citizens and raised four children, including Jose, the youngest.
As a child, Hernandez continued to visit his parents' home state of Michoacan and lived what he has called the typical life of a migrant worker, moving constantly with his family to follow the crops. In an August 25, 2009 conversation with President Felipe Calderón of Mexico, Hernández stated that as a child, he lived half the year in La Piedad and half in the United States. As a child, Hernández worked alongside his family throughout the fields of California, harvesting crops and moving from one town to another. He attended many schools and didn't learn to speak English until he was 12.

It was a second-grade teacher who persuaded Hernandez's parents to set down roots near Stockton to give their children a better education and more stable life. Young Jose excelled in math and today traces his dream of becoming an astronaut to the Apollo spacewalks he watched on TV. After earning bachelor's and master's degrees in engineering, Hernandez applied every year for 12 years to enter the space program, finally being chosen in 2004. Hernandez, a father of five, cited two crucial factors: a good education and parents who forced him to study, who checked his homework and stayed involved in his schooling. It is clear that Education is the great equalizer and together with strong family support, persistence and resilience created the recipe for success for Hernandez. "What I always say to Latino parents, is that we shouldn't spend so much time going out with friends drinking beer and watching telenovelas, and should spend more time with our families and kids . . . challenging our kids to pursue dreams that may seem unreachable," he said.
At NASA, Hernandez worked various technical assignments until his selection on July 15, 2008, as a mission specialist of the STS-128 mission, which launched on August 28, 2009. While in orbit, Hernandez became the first person to use the Spanish language in space on Twitter. STS-128 mission ended its 14 days journey on September 11, 2009 at Edwards Air Force Base, California at 5:53 pm PST. Hernandez is a full-fledged media star in Mexico and in Mexican-American neighborhoods. Fans followed his every floating, gravity-free move during his two-week journey in space as he Twittered from the shuttle Discovery and gave live interviews to local TV programs.

After the shuttle returned, Hernandez told Spanish television that he thought the U.S. should pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform and allow the millions of undocumented immigrants living here to become legalized so that they can work openly because they are important to the American economy.
Hernandez is currently assigned to the crew of Space Shuttle mission STS-128. Hernandez also served as chief of the Materials and Processes branch of Johnson Space Center. He previously developed equipment for full-field digital mammography at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Hernandez is married and has five children, ages 6 to 14. His wife, Adela, runs a Mexican restaurant just outside the Johnson Space Center gates, called Tierra Luna Grill, Spanish for Earth Moon Grill. In September 2009, Hernandez began speaking out to support a legalization path for immigrants: "Having 12 million undocumented people here means there's something wrong with the system, and the system needs to be fixed.
Awards and Honors:
NASA Service Awards (2002, 2003), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory “Outstanding Engineer Award” (2001), Upward Bound National TRIO Achiever Award (2001), U.S. Department of Energy “Outstanding Performance Commendation” (2000), Society of Mexican American Engineers and Scientists (MAES) “Medalla de Oro” recipient for professional and community contributions (1999), Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Award, “Outstanding Technical Contribution” (1995), Graduate Engineering Minority Fellow (GEM) (1985), Eta Kappa Nu Electrical Engineering Honor Society member and awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from University of California-Santa Barbara.

Judge Sotomayor and my Lesson from Eighth Grade

When I was in Junior High School I had an experience I do not like to dwell upon. I am reminded of that experience today, through the Sotomayor hearings. Some Republicans and Right wing Shock Jocks have attempted to label Judge Sotomayor a reverse racist. In reality, she is not. Instead, she is a strict advocate of the law. Her enemies, for various political reasons, are mischaracterizing her actions.
Additionally, some right wingers seem to suggest racism against minorities does not exist in our country and all things are equal. These right wingers are wrong.

My Junior High School experience helped me learn a very important lesson in life. As many of my long time readers know, I grew up in Michigan. Since my Dad worked in an auto factory, we were one of the very few Latino families that lived in Michigan all year long. Growing up, most of my friends were white. There were very few Latinos or Blacks living in Lansing at the time. In eighth grade, my friend Allie and I walked home from school. We often took short cuts because we lived miles away from school.

When Allie and I walked home, we cut across some railroad tracks. On one particular day, we saw a purse on the tracks. Allie picked it up. She looked inside and saw a wallet. It had the name of a student with our school ID in it. We both decided she would take it to the principal's office the next day so the owner could pick it up.

The next afternoon, just before the end of the school day, I was called into the vice principal's office. She started badgering me with numerous questions. "Did you take it?" "Why did you take it?" I was startled by her attack. I explained that Allie and I found the purse and we both agreed she would bring it into the office. The Vice Principal kept badgering me. Being only 12 years old, I finally started crying. The Vice Principal said my tears proved I was lying and I may as well admit I stole it. I said no. I did not. I asked her to bring Allie in the room. She said No. She was not going to do that to her. She told me to go home and think about it and come back with a confession the next day.

Since it was after the school day ended, I walked home alone, crying the whole way. My mom and dad were waiting for me when I arrived. I was late. They saw me crying. They wanted to know what was wrong.

I explained what happened.

Mom and Dad were both quiet. They both sat beside me and let me cry. I said, "Why would they think that? Why? I have always been a good student. Why would they think that?"

They hugged me. Then Dad said, "This is your first experience with true racism. This is not the last time this will happen. Expect it to happen many more times. In situations like this, some people will just assume you are guilty simply because you are Mexican."

"But why Dad? Why? I am a good girl."
He nodded. "Yes mija. I know you are a good girl. But we Mexicans are always suspect in some people's eyes. We have to know the rules and abide by them. We have to work twice as hard just to be considered equal. You will see others bend the rules or break them, but you can never do so. And the crimes of one Mexican are layed on the shoulders of all of us."

I blinked back my tears and listened to every word he was saying. "But Dad. Is that fair?"

"It doesn't matter if it is fair or not. It is just the way it is."
I started to cry again. "Dad. I don't want to go back to school if that is how it is going to be."

"No mijita. No. You must go back to school. If you do not go back to school you will do exactly what they want you to do. They want you to give up. You cannot do that. You are an American. This is our country too. You were born here. I was born here. My Dad was born here. This is our country just as much as it is their country. We are ALL Americans. You must go back. You must complete your education. You must achieve your dreams."

I stopped crying and I nodded.

He added, "Tomorrow, I want you to go back to your friend and ask her what she told the principal. If she is your friend and she is honest, she will tell you the truth. Then the both of you can go back to the principal and tell the truth."

I nodded. My parents both hugged me.

Though I didn't want to go back the next day, I did as my father suggested. I went back to Allie and asked her what she said to the principal. She told me she went to the Vice Principal, turned in the purse and told her we found it. I told her what the Vice Principal said. It was Allie's turn to become angry. We both went back to the Vice Principal's office. Allie repeated the truth about what happened and asked the Vice Principal why she made accusations against me. The VP became quiet and shrugged. She said "Fine" and guided us to leave her office. Though she looked embarrassed, she never apologized to me, but at least she left me alone.

I thought about my eighth grade experience as I heard Republican Senators rehash over and over again Judge Sotomayor's out of context comments or their misinterpretation of the Ricci case. I admire Judge Sotomayor's civility and poise throughout the hearing and as she proved her diligence to the Constitution and the Rule of Law her entire career. She believed in hard work and Education in order to achieve the American Dream, just like my Dad coached me.