The small church pictured above is
St.Ann’s Church, a small
episcopal church in the South Bronx where poor families go for a meal or just
for plain comfort. This is also the start of
Jonathon Kozol’s journey of
exploring the inner city and getting to know some of the people that reside
there, in which he shares this journey in is his book,
"Amazing Grace." The people he meets are the poorest of the poor, living in some of the
most horrific conditions. Though these people and children are surrounded by so
much disease, poverty and violence, they are some of the most generous,
forgiving and resilient people. I would have to say that Cliffie, the seven
year old boy who acts as a tour guide to Kozol is one of the most generous
little boys I have come across. The city in which he lives in is not doing
anything to help the situation he and all other residents have to deal with; rather they are only making it worse as a woman Kozol meets at the
church explains,
“3,000
homeless families have been relocated by the city in this neighborhood during
the past few years, and she asks a question I will hear from many other people
here during the months ahead. ‘Why do you want to put so many people with small
children in a place with so much sickness? This is the last place in New York
that they should put poor children. Clumping so many people, all with the same
symptoms and same problems, in one crowded place with nothin' they can grow on?
Our children start to mourn themselves before their time.’ ” I found this quote
to be interesting because despite little Cliffie's life, he is so giving and so
cheerful. Even though the city is not helping him out at all, he is always
willing to give and help others. The first example of this occurs through a
simple yet telling gesture as Kozol and Cliffie are walking the streets
of South Bronx, “[Cliffie] then looks up at me and asks politely, ‘Would you
like a chocolate chip cookie?” (Kozol, p6) he later asks again by saying, “you
sure you don’t want a cookie?” (Kozol, p9). As I first started reading through
this cookie conversation, I really did not think much of it and wondered why
Kozol even included it in the book. As I went on and read more of Cliffie’s
generosity I knew exactly why he had included it. The next quote was the one
that really made me understand why Kozol had included the cookie conversation
and just exactly what it meant. While
they are walking, Cliffie tells Kozol the time he went to get pizza, “ ‘three
slices, one for my mom, one for my dad, and one for me’ – he says he saw a
homeless man who told him he was hungry. ‘But he was too cold to move his
mouth! He couldn’t talk!’
‘How did you know that he was hungry if he couldn’t talk?’
‘He pointed to my pizza.’
‘What did you do?’
‘I gave him some!’
‘Were your parents mad at you?’
He looks surprised by this. ‘Why would they be mad?’ he
asks. “God told us, ‘Share!’ “ (Kozol p8). Just as the cookie conversation,
this story shows just how generous and giving Cliffie is. My first quote
reveals how people just expect the children of the South Bronx to succumb to
their living situation and become part of the negative they are so often afraid
of. However, my second and my third quote show Cliffie doing the exact
opposite. Despite all the hardships this boy faces, he still recognizes that
there are those who are less fortunate than him, and he undoubtedly without
question or hesitation is willing to give something up that is considered a
rare treat for him. In our society most people don’t even give up the spare
change floating around in their pockets to homeless people on the street, so it
was incredible to see such a young boy who has it harder than most people out
there be so generous and giving.
One thing that stood out to me most that I would like to point out in class is the comment made by
Lawrence Mead. Mead believes that, "if poor people behaved rationally, they would seldom be poor for long in the first place" (Kozol p21). I absolutely disagree with this statement. As Kozol pointed out, people like Alice did not choose how their life played out. She worked multiple jobs, but divorce and cancer ultimately got the best of her. She acted rationally and did whatever she could for her family, but it wasn't enough. Of course I believe there are some poor people out there who are not working as hard as they could be to get to a point where they could live somewhat comfortably, but as Kozol points out, for many it is not a choice it is just the way life happens.
What I believe Rodriguez
is arguing here is that in order to fit into society, you must change
yourself to fit the perfect mold that society has set. The biggest
characteristic of this mold is to be english speaking. For Rodriguez and
his family, that ultimately meant losing their native language.
Their household became so strict with only speaking English in
the house, that living their became almost uncomfortable for the
family. I found it extremely unfortunate that this once close-knit family
became so distant because they felt pressured by the culture of power. This
shows just how present the culture of power is, even in the classroom. I
believe Rodriguez's excerpt is the perfect example of when Lisa Delpit says
"teachers are in an ideal position to play this role, to attempt to get
all of the issues on the table in order to initiate true dialogue"
(Delpit, p.47). The nuns in Rodriguez's piece had the power to change the way
his household operates and turned out to produce a negative result. I believe
teachers can use opportunities like this and produce great results.
As a teacher, I would have used this as a chance to teach the students about
the Spanish culture. In almost every single classroom in the United States,
children learn about the history of America, and not much about any other culture,
which is a huge reason why there is still a culture of power. I would have absolutely used that as a chance to introduce the “melting-pot” that
America has become. Rather than trying to whitewash the more diverse and culturally different students in the classroom, I would want to make them feel comfortable all while improving skills that will be beneficial for them in society in the future. 
