The Hispanic group consists of several categories of people and although they have some similarities, there are a few unique traits that make each group different. This paper is going to look at these individual groups with regard to different aspects of their lives. These groups are the Mexican Americans, Cubans, Guatemalans and the Puerto Ricans.
Discussion
Most of the Mexican Americans are Roman Catholics with a few practicing Protestantism. Their main language is Spanish although English is used in educational institutions. There are high levels of poverty among the Mexican Americans since most of them do not have American citizenship. They therefore take up low paying jobs as illegal workers.
Social status is determined by the kind of employment one is able to obtain. Initially, women stayed at home and performed household chores but due to the low income, they were forced to look for some source of income. The main political issue relates to the Mexican American borders and the reduction of illegal immigrants (Denton, & Emory, 2002).
The other group of Hispanics is the Puerto Ricans. In this group, there are high numbers of Protestants although their traditional religion was the Roman Catholic. Like the Mexican Americans, they also speak Spanish. There are two political groups in Puerto Rica: the nationalists and the statists.
The statists believe that Puerto Rica should be governed by its own constitution while the nationalists believe that they should be governed by the American government. These people are able to obtain high paying jobs so their social status is generally higher than that of the Mexican Americans. They have a high level of attachment to their homes and gender roles are inculcated in children as they grow up (Parrillo, 2009).
The other group is the Cuban Americans. Their poverty levels are much lower than those of the other Hispanic groups. There hold strong family relations which pull extended families to live together. These relations are however questionable due to the high divorce rates. The family relations are mainly matriarchal.
The main economic activities revolve around market places. Although they are Catholics, a very low proportion is devoted to religion. Santeria is also a practiced religion. There are many Independents and Republicans from this group (Yang, 2000).
The final group in this paper is the Guatemalan Americans whose main languages are Spanish and the Mayan language. A small proportion of the Guatemalans practice some Mayan religious ceremonies with the majority being Roman Catholics. There is only a very small percentage of this group residing in America so not many of them take part in American politics. They are well educated and are therefore able to get good jobs making their social status to be high. Family ties are also very strong (Ochoa, & Smith, 2008).
Conclusion
The main similarities among the four groups discussed above are the use of Spanish as the main language and the religious affiliation. The dominating religion for all of the Hispanics is Roman Catholic. However, there are a few differences in the way words are pronounced. Their word choice also varies.
All the groups have altered the role of women in society over time with men also taking up domestic chores. They also come from different geographical and cultural backgrounds. People from the four groups are not exposed to the same level of education therefore creating a difference in the kind of jobs they can attain. Social classes are therefore differentiated by the career opportunities available.
Reference List
Denton, N. & Emory, S. (2002). American diversity: a demographic challenge for the twenty-first century. Albany: State University of New York Press. Ochoa, G. & Smith, C. (2008). Atlas of Hispanic-American history. New York: Facts on File.
Parrillo, V. (2009). Diversity in America. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Pine Forge Press.
Yang, P. (2000). Ethnic studies: issues and approaches. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Nigeria has more than 250 various ethical groups on its territory, which is why people identify themselves very differently. In addition to recognizing himself as an African, a Nigerian can also say that he belongs to the Hausa, Fulani, Yoruba, Kanuri, Igbo, or another ethical group. (Falola, 2001, p. 5).
Considering the variety of ethnicities, Nigerians have a very diverse culture and are proud of it. People, who have never been to this country, have a lot of stereotypes regarding the way people live here. For example, many foreigners believe that Nigerians practice black magic, which even has its own name here – “juju” (Falola, 2001, p. 37). This stereotype can probably be explained by Nigerian movies where black magic rituals are very common. In reality, it is much harder to find a man who has a hand in juju. On the contrary, Nigerian population is deeply religious: the majority of people there are either Muslims or Christians (Falola, 2001, p. 40).
In addition, Nigerians are believed to speak their own Nigerian pidgin, which is not true since the official language of the country is English, and many people speak it fluently (Falola, 2001, p. 7). Also, there is a popular belief that Nigerians are uneducated. In fact, even though schools in this country are not the best, parents always insist on their children’s education. The stereotype that all Nigerians look alike is unfounded as well. All Africans look alike no more than all Chinese or Asians do.
In general, Nigerians are modest, hard-working people, who are very smart, if educated. They are passionate and enjoy their life, and that is similar to my own cultural group, which is African-American. The majority of African-Americans are very religious too. Apart from this, I do not see many similarities between Nigerian and African-American people.
Caribbean (St. Croix)
People from the Caribbean in general and St. Croix in particular, usually self-identify themselves as West Indians while individuals of other cultural groups and nationalities can call dark-skinned people from the Caribbean African-Americans and white-skinned people from the Caribbean Canadians, Europeans, or even Asians. As Organista, Marin, and Chun (2010) state, dark-skinned individuals from the Caribbean would rather prefer to be called black than African-Americans since they are not African-Americans, in fact. So, that is the first stereotype people have about those from the Caribbean.
Another one is that many people associate the Caribbean with Jamaica. Evidently, that is not right since Jamaica is only one of the Caribbean countries, and it does not even have the largest population. Also, Rihanna and Bob Marley are not the only great people who are from the Caribbean, and Rihanna’s songs hardly represent her home country at all. Additionally, even though many people picture West Indians listening to reggae and smoking marijuana all the time, reggae is only one of art forms the Caribbean has to offer, and marijuana is still illegal everywhere, except Jamaica.
In general, people from the Caribbean are open-minded, tend to stick together and value their own culture, even though it is diverse and greatly inspired by European ones (for example, there is the “quadrille” dance in St. Croix) (St. Croix, n.d., par. 2). As for my own culture, we also tend to stick together and value shared beliefs, traditions and customs, just as people from the Caribbean do.
Hispanic
Self-identification of Hispanic people is an unclear issue since an individual the government identifies as Hispanic actually may state he is Latino or Spanish. According to the study described in the article by Taylor, Lopez, Martinez, and Velasco (2012), more than the half of Hispanics would prefer to identify themselves in accordance with their countries of origin.
One of the most popular stereotypes people have about Hispanic is that they are loud, crazy, and passionate. While it is true about some of them, there are still a lot of Hispanic people who are modest, calm and shy. Another controversial issue is that of gender identity. Hispanic women are believed to be sexy. Considering that the world sees such women as Rita Hayworth, Eva Longoria and Raquel Welch in films and on the television, such a belief is not surprising since those women indeed have sexy bodies. However, not every Hispanic woman is like that. Men of this cultural group, in its turn, are wrongly stereotyped as drug dealers or users, which is probably because of Mexico, the top drug producing country.
Similarly to Hispanic gender identity, male African-Americans are stereotyped to be negative characters as well. As Organista et al. (2010) state, “historically, African-American men have been stereotyped as being deviant, irresponsible, and neglectful in their family and social lives” (p. 165).
Pakistan
The majority of people in Pakistan recognize themselves as Pakistani. However, those who want to refer themselves to other cultural groups are deprived of that opportunity. As Chaudhry (2015) writes in his article, the country denies “its five million Ahmedi Muslims this basic right to self-identity” (par. 4).
When it comes to associations with Pakistani and stereotypes about them, a lot of people immediately begin to think about terrorism. A common reason for that is the tragedy happened on September 11, 2011. Surely, there is no excuse for people who are responsible for it, but that is only thirty persons out of almost 200 million people. Individuals who conclude that every Pakistani must be a terrorist is wrong, and this tendency has to stop. The same is about the religion Pakistani have. It is not connected to terrorism in any way: terrorism comes from understanding religion wrongly, not from religion itself.
In his book, Harry (2012) writes about Pakistani as they really are. According to him, they are simple and honest people, who are tolerant and want do no harm. They value family and friendship, like thankfulness and laughter. The same qualities can describe people of my own cultural group as well.
European (The Netherlands)
People in the Netherlands recognize themselves as Europeans and Dutch. Immigrants or refugees, who live in the Netherlands, may identify themselves in accordance with their countries of origin.
As for the stereotypes, Dutch people are believed to smoke marijuana and be stoned all the time. Still, that is not true. Legalization of marijuana in this country turns out to help the government to lower the number of addicts. Besides, the majority of people who buy soft drugs are tourists. The same is about the prostitution. Also, not so many people in the Netherlands are gay, as the world tends to believe. The country is very tolerant in this regard, but that does not mean that everyone is gay there.
People in the Netherlands are very direct and honest, they “speak their mind freely”, which is why someone may say that they are rude (Besamusca & Verheul, 2010, p. 267). However, that is not rudeness. The Dutch just say whatever they think directly and personally; they never gossip. Also, they are not greedy, as many people believe. They do keep a tight watch on their money and try to save, but they can be really generous when it is needed. As for my own cultural group, I think that directness and honesty are the common qualities we have with the Dutch.
Conclusions: The Chart
African (Nigeria)
Caribbean (St. Croix)
Hispanic
Pakistan
European (The Netherlands)
Self-identifying
Africans. May identify themselves as the Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, etc.
People from the Caribbean (West Indians).
May identify themselves as Hispanic or Latino or in accordance with their countries of origin.
Pakistani. People are deprived of the opportunity to self-identify.
Europeans, the Dutch.
Stereotypes
Nigerians are believed to practice black magic, speak Nigerian pidgin, be uneducated.
The Caribbean is associated with Jamaica, Rihanna and Bob Marley, reggae and marijuana.
Women are considered to be sexy; men are believed to be drug dealers or drug users.
Pakistani are associated with terrorism and ‘dangerous’ religion.
The Dutch are associated with marijuana, prostitution, and gays. The Dutch people are believed to be rude and greedy.
Things in common with my own cultural group (African-American)
Modest, hard-working, and passionate people, who are usually also very religious.
People, who stick together and value their culture.
African-Americans are also stereotyped to be ‘negative characters’.
Simple, honest and tolerant people, who value family and friendship.
African-Americans are usually also direct and honest.
References
Besamusca, E., & Verheul, J. (2010). Discovering the Dutch: On Culture and Society of the Netherlands. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press. Web.
Hispanic are the individuals that live in a country regardless of their race. The individuals have the right to belong in and taking all the activities just like the real citizens. With regard to religion, these people had the Roman Catholic as the first tradition, and it continued to be the most common faith for countries at that time, but there is a small number of these Hispanics than are Protestants. Not all Hispanics were from these countries.
This is because there are some who are Jews and migrated from the European countries as they came to settle in America and other countries where they migrated. Most of the communities’ that were catholic celebrated their homeland patron saint by dedicating a specific day for that purpose where festivals and religious practices were performed. These people were strong in their belief, and thus all that they did was seen to be sacred to all. (Joseph, 2004)
The religion that is most accepted by these people is Catholicism makes these people have different beliefs from others. This is because there are some who are Jews, and thus what they believe in is not the same as the protestants and have different African rituals and beliefs. In these countries, these beliefs and rituals can be popular with Americans and combine the African beliefs in the form of the Roman Catholic saints and rituals, and other beliefs include spiritism and curanderismo.
According to the analysis in these countries majority of these people are catholic, that is 70 %, the Protestants are 23%, and 6% have no affiliation. This shows that in the United States, most of these Hispanics have their beliefs in catholic teachings. A minority in these roman catholic that is about one in five, have proved to be charismatic, and in the protestants, a high percentage that is about 85% are real Christians who believe the bible and follow its teachings, and they mostly belong to t6he Pentecostal churches were by the believers do not do anything that is contrary to the word as they know there are rewards for being a believer that is the rejoice with the lord after the time is over, and the punishment is the burning with fire for the wrongdoers.
The Jews and the Muslims cover a small percentage that is about 4%, and most of these Muslims are new converts from the Protestants or the catholic groups. (Rich, 2006)
The significance of linguistics to such people is not of importance. This is due to the fact that they are divided according to their races, and thus they are not valued in any field. This gap between the real citizens and the Hispanics creates discrimination were by these people are forced to learn some languages so that they can be able to fit in the area where thirty stays this is because most of the citizens use their language without minding the rest. Even in schools, the teachers teach using the local languages.
Therefore, these people are forced to learn it. In these countries, racism has affected the people. This is because, on a political basis, there is discrimination whereby the people who are not citizens of such country have to face the mistreatment of lack of jobs, and if they get one, it is not of the person’s standard. Politically these people lack an individual to fight for their rights this is because the government is only composed of the citizens meaning that the rest who are not from the country are out of the law, so in case one wants to know his or her rights due to a mistreatment that has been done then such a person will not have one to work out the problem for him or her.
Most countries lack justice for people who have no citizenship; thus, these people have to know how to stay in such a country. The country government is only concerned with the affairs of its members without having the regard of other people who move to that country due to lack of basic needs, war problems and also in search for better lives like the educated move in countries with the hope of getting a better job and thus raise their living standards.
Such countries provide state in that they make sure people who are not citizens have to face things like been raped for the case of ladies, working in poor environments like taking care of the old, also there is no insurance cover for whatever work they do the reason is that they have no representative in the government to ensure that they are cover by the law.
Even the educated who live in such countries until they get citizenship rights the gap remains that they are not allowed to campaign or vie for any post in the country this is because the people think that if they offer the rights to these people, they will carry their resources to their home countries. Most of the developed countries do not like to give rights to foreigners because they claim that if one person is given the rights of being a full member of that country, then there will be profit repatriation meaning the country will lose as the people will not be concerned with the development of the country, but they will be ready to make their home countries to be richer through the resources that they get from these developed countries. (Joe, 2000)
Economically the country does not provide jobs to these people as they first provide the best jobs to its citizens, and thus the remaining jobs are given to these people meaning that even in the workplace, there is discrimination of races.
The economy of the country is based on the citizens, but the government faces the negative implications of these people in terms of basic needs like food this is because they are not given the opportunity to work, and thus they have to find their own means of survival the country economy is affected to some extent as the dependency level increases as the number of these immigrants increase and thus giving the country a hard task of providing whatever they require for survival. Social groups are in distinct categories of races whereby one belonging to a certain race has to belong to such a social group. If a country has got differentiation in terms of races, then it means that in all the fields’ people will have to be divided according to their races.
In social terms, people only socialize with those from the same race, and thus in all, what they have to undertake should be based on racial terms. This means that children of the following generations face the problem of interaction as they are only allowed to interact with people from their races. Such discrimination is extended to schools where the children group themselves according to their race.
People who move from their countries to others have to agree with the set rules, and they have to be careful in their activities this is because such people are given a certain place to live if the government cares for them, but still, the gap exists as you find there will be schools for Hispanics and those for the real citizens and the standard of teaching is not the same as these people will be given the unqualified people for training, and thus at the end of it they will not come up with the best. There is a need for the government to give these people their rights so that they can carry out their activities without fear. Therefore rights like to be protected from racial discrimination, hatred, and violence. (George, 1987)
his will ensure that people have to report any hatred from others and the right measures are taken, but if people have no rights at all, then it means that they have to face things like been discriminated from the workplace and thus one has nowhere to report the case or one is not paid his or her due. Such countries have to ensure the rights of individuals are taken to be important and each is allowed to carry out work without fear of been affected in the process. This will make the country develop economically and in all fields as people will be ready to work.
Hispanics face challenges in these countries even though they live in them in terms of been discriminated as they are from different races. These people are not allowed to work in the best fields like working in offices but they are given the jobs that are of low levels. Most of these people have faith in Roman Catholic although some are Protestants, Jews and Muslims but the highest percentage is catholic.
They are not politically active due to the racial discrimination that is available in such countries thus there is no law that covers them as citizens.
Reference
George, N (1987). Government’s contribution elimination of racial discrimination. Government publishers. Pp. 87.
Joe, F (2000). Roots of racism in the American state. New York: Oxford University.
Joseph, G (2004). The Hispanics and their contribution in United States. Oxford press.
Rich, G (2006). The myth of race in developed nations. Readers’ publishers.
Hispanic Americans, also known as Latino Americans are a group of people with diverse characteristics but linked up with a heritage of a universal language. The population of Spanish America stood at 35.5 million as per the 2000 United States consensus with a potential population growth of 60% every year.
Mexican started migrating to the United States in considerable numbers as early as 1850 following the discovery of Gold in Sierra Nevada of California and continued doing so as the economy of the United States continued to improve in the 1920s. As of 2000 US consensus, there was a total of 15 million Mexican Americans residing in the United States with the highest population living in California, Texas, Arizona, Illinois, and New Mexico. Most Mexican Americans mix the Spanish language with the English language through code-switching and the resultant language is referred to as Spanglish. Approximately 76% of Mexican Americans practice the Roman Catholic Faith with the rest embracing the Protestant and Pentecostal religions.
Economically, Mexican Americans have invested in farming business especially in Texas and California. Those who are in employment form the biggest source of cheap labor in factories and as domestic workers. Mexican Americans’ participation in US politics has been very limited as a result of discrimination as they have been considered as “outsiders” or “foreigners” in the United States politics. To protect their interests, Mexicans have formed protective organizations, the most notable pioneer was mutualistic, meaning Mutual aid society, where members pooled their resources together and provided insurances and other grants to each other. Orden Hijos de America interpreted in English as Order of the sons of America was an organization established in 1921 limiting membership to American citizens of Mexico origin to cater to Mexican interests in the United States. Other organizations include the League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC) aimed at uniting and advocating for the rights of the Spanish Americas.
Most Cuban Americans migrated to the United States for political reasons mostly triggered by the leadership of Fidel Castro, long-serving Cuban president. Recent migrations have been triggered by declining economic conditions in Cuba. 63% of totals Cuban Americans reside in Dade County, Miami, Florida with the rest spread in California, New Jersey, and New York. Cuban Americans speak Spanish as well as fluent English. 75% of Cuban American belongs to Roman Catholic religion and the rest are either protestant or adhere to no religion. The recent past has seen a major conflict between the Cuban Americans and African Americans over control of interests in states where Cuban and African Americans have settled.
Because of the population size of Cuban Americans, they have significant influence in United States politics. 80 % of Cuban Americans are registered voters and are reputed to be conservative, voting for Republican Party in almost all elections. Financially, Cuban Americans are better off than any other Hispanic American group. They are a successful migrant group and very dedicated and excellent in entrepreneurship building reputable industries in the United States. Those who have been employed works in technical, administrative, or sales positions. There are over 3,000 Cuban Americans Medical Doctors in Miami. Cuban American National Foundation (CANF) is a reputable organization with membership limited to Cuban Americans. The organization was formed to safeguard Cuban Interests in Cuba and in the United States.
The Columbian Americans migrated to the United States driven by the economic recession in Columbia. Initially, most settled in New York where those who could afford bought the property in Jackson Heights, Corona, and Rego Park. Currently, there is a sizeable number of Columbians settled in Miami attracted by traditional tolerance offered by other Spanish-speaking Americans like Cubans and the favorable climate for business. Columbian Americans have maintained a distinctive culture choosing to limit their socialization and engagement with the Spanish community only. Most consider their stay in America as temporary as such they are not keen to assimilate to the American culture. Colombians living in America consider themselves are the pioneer of the most elegant Spanish spoken in South America. Most preserve the pure form of Spanish known as Castilian. Most Columbian Americans are Roman Catholics with a small number considering themselves Protestants.
Economically, Colombians have opened up small business catering for Latin Americas in the United States with majority pursuing professional careers as other engage in employment as domestic servants and factory workers. The fact that Columbians do not consider the United States as their permanent home has made Columbians not engage in active politics choosing to take a back seat. A small number participate in lower-level politics like in mayoral election where they back other Spanish Americans in sponsoring and electing candidates of their choice. Columbian have not managed to have a strong organization to take care of their interests in America and those organizations that have attempted to come up have quickly failed.
A closer relationship between the United States and Puerto Rico contributed largely to the migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States. Many have settled in the New York States especially in East Harlem establishing the Spanish Harlem. Chicago, Texas, New Jersey, and Florida are other States where Puerto Rican has settled. The majority practice Roman Catholic faith, with Pure Castilian Spanish as their main Language which they use interchangeably with English. Puerto Ricans enjoy a cordial relationship with Americans of Spanish, Asian, and African origin. Most of them work in service industries with men working in restaurants, auto assembly, and shipping companies.
Politically, Puerto Rican contributes very little to United States politics with very few Puerto Ricans registered as voters. They are no major organizations pushing for the rights and interests of Puerto Ricans in the United States largely because Puerto Rico is considered part of the United States.
Of the four Spanish Groups in American, Cuban Americans stand out as the most dominants groups participating actively in politics and economics. They have managed to consolidate their power in Miami, unlike other groups who don’t have a strong political or economical hold in the United States. The other three groups heavily depend on employment, unlike Cubans who have established a strong industrial base in Florida and other parts of the United States.
Religion and language seem to be the most dominant uniting factors for the four groups. The majority of the people from the four groups practice Roman Catholics and all speak the Spanish language although with varied dialects.
Reference
Donna R.Gabaccia. 2002. Immigration and American Diversity: A Social and Cultural History, United States, Blackwell Publishers.
Nancy A. Denton and Stewan Emory Tolnay. 2000. American Diversity: A Demographic Challenge for the Twenty-First Century, United States, Sunny Publishers.
Nicholas Kanellos, Francisco A. Lomeli and Esteva Fabregat.1993. Handbook of Hispanic Cultures in the United States, New York, Arte Publico Publishers.
One of the most complicated and at the same time the most essential problems of the modern world, the racial segregation, and the racial hegemony is to be considered because of the growing number of issues arising due to the racial prejudice.
No matter how far the advocates of racial equity could have gone, there is still no doubt that the modern world still has a strong hierarchy based on certain racial issues. The Hispanic Project, the picture shot by one of the most prominent artists of the century, Nikki, is strong proof to the idea that “long-standing patterns of racial hierarchy still hold” (Winant 127).
Considering the picture closer, one can see the elements that point to Hispanics’ inferior state quite distinctly. To start with, it is evident that the background chosen for the picture serves to outline the basic sphere of Hispanics’ life.
Sitting in an obviously fashionable yet quite gaudy car, the crowd of Hispanic people seems to take the position that can be defined as the mock-elite of the Latin American world, which practically means that the people in the picture are rather a laughing stock for the ones who take really strong and solid positions in the U. S. world.
To be more precise, the people in the picture are shown from the viewpoint of a “taken-for-granted, commonsense (Gramsci) feature of everyday life and global social structure” (Winant 129). Taking a closer look at the background of the picture, one can see the police motorcycle in the distance, which serves as a reminder of the problems with police that the Hispanic population is said to have in the U. S.
It can be concluded that the environment depicted in the photo fits the common prejudice about the Hispanic people described by Torres: “At the first meeting I was turned off by the lack of awareness of the cultural diversity. Offensive terms and phrases were used, such as: “Those people, they do drugs; illegals,” and a lot of blaming came out (109).
Hence, it is obvious that the most unappealing elements of prejudices connected with the life of the Hispanics are brought to the audience – perhaps, unintentionally, yet rather graphically. To be more particular, in the given case, the elements of the picture “mirror the North-South patterns that colonial rule developed and the Pax Americana has continued” (Winant 130).
Moreover, the rest of the elements, namely, the front images of the picture, also contribute a lot to Winant’s viewpoint concerning the hegemony of the racial prejudices.
It is essential that the Hispanic people in Nikki’s photo are pictured in the middle of the motion – it is completely clear that each of the characters in the shot is pierced through with the typical partying light-minded and even somewhat “tipsy” mood, which adds to the general idea of the Hispanics’ lifestyle. Creating the impression of “socially dangerous” types, the people in the picture shows clearly that the racial domination of the white population and the unacceptance of the other races continue even in modern society.
Steering clear of the multi-layer culture that the Hispanics have created during the years of living next to the American population (Torres 16), the photo in question depicts the most explicit and, therefore, the most superficial features of the Hispanic lifestyle, therefore, distorting the latter completely. The most specific elements that chain the audience’s attention immediately, the gestures of the people in the picture are also an element of the prejudice concerning the Hispanic population.
Earlier believed to be fashionable and “meaningful,” these gestures are nowadays an obtrusive part and parcel of the Hispanic image in the modern world. The gesticulation mentioned above, like an accent or even less noticeable thing, remains “the thing that determines someone’s place on the social ladder, more than race or class” (Laferriere 53).
Another proof that the Hispanics are rather a secluded group that is far from becoming a superior one, the elements of the social prejudice depicted in the photo make it clear that the mentality of the white race is still the one that governs the world tendencies.
Another important element of the picture that enhances the traditional set of prejudices against the Hispanic culture is the air of cheap glamour about the people in the picture. The promotion of modern tendencies is achieved at the expense of the image of the Hispanics in the given photo.
Creating the idea of tastelessly dressed young people wearing cheap decorations to make the effect even stronger, the picture enhances one of the strongest prejudices of the Hispanic people, namely, their specific culture, with the elements alien to the American people (Torres 212), thus, blocking the Hispanics’ way to the top of the world’s hegemony pyramid for good.
The last, but not the least feature of the photo that points to the inferiority of the Hispanic race is the specific attitudes the people in the picture try to strike. Analyzing the way the people in the picture sit to the camera, one can conclude that the people in the picture are considerably too loose and relaxed, which makes them look somewhat vulgar. Perhaps, trying to create an atmosphere of ease and close relationships, the people in the picture look rather pretentiously and create not the desirable air of looseness, but a vulgar sight.
Another element that adds to the overall misconception of the Hispanic culture, the atmosphere created in the photo confuses the people who know little about the Hispanic culture the most. As Laferriere put it, “You don’t just meet a girl, I’ve come to see, you meet a culture. And you don’t’ leave that culture easily” (150).
Therefore, one can see distinctly that the problem of the racial segregation has not been vanquished, but has given a profound basis for the structure of the modern world. In response to Shen Wu, who asked mournfully, “Will race ever be transcended? Will the world ever “get beyond” race?” (136), one can say that the humankind is highly unlikely to ever stop the traditional treatment of the people of the “inferior” races.
Triggering various unfavorable consequences for the representatives of the nationalities that used to be considered inferior to the white people, the prejudices described above, without any doubt, lie in the fundament of modern society. Hence, even though the change of the social ideas and principles seems hardly probable, one still has to take all possible measures that presumably can help the society take a new, unbiased approach to the representatives of the other cultures.
Works Cited
Laferriere, Dany. I Am a Japanese Writer. Vancouver, CA: Douglas & McIntyre, 2011. Print.
Shen Wu, Jean Yu-wen, and Thomas C. Chen. Asian American Studies Now: A Critical Reader. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2010. Print.
Torres, Jose B., and Felix G. Rivera. Latino/Hispanic Liaisons and Visions for Human Behavior in the Social Environment. New York, NY: Routledge, 2002. Print.