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Chapter 13 Fieldwork: Migration

“We don’t want to do any harm. We just want a better life for ourselves and our kids. We work hard for everything we have. People think just because we’re immigrants we don’t do half of the stuff such as pay taxes we do just as much as any citizen would.” – Maria

During the break, I had the pleasure of hearing the immigration story of my childhood friend Maria. Maria emigrated from Ocumicho, Michoacan Mexico. She was only one and a half years old when she began her journey, and she turned two once she reached the states. Maria and her family were pushed away from their home country due to lack of job opportunities. In a pursuit to provide for his family, her father was pulled to the United States to work for high wages. He arrived in California first and then made his way to Pennsylvania to join his siblings. Once her father began working for the Strathmeyer Company, Maria and her mother came over to America to continue their lives in Pennsylvania. Her father and his siblings already being here allowed for an easy transition for Maria and her mother. In other words, it acted as a bridge that enabled them to migrate; however, even with this bridge, Maria and her mother still faced barriers. The main barrier they faced during their migration was entering the country illegally. This made the journey harder and more dangerous than the journey of her father, who had a visa.

At the time of her migration to the states, her family only consisted of her father and mother. After years of living in America, she gained two sisters. This makes only her siblings American citizens. Maria and her sisters speak two languages and one dialect. The languages they speak are Spanish and English and the dialect they speak is known as Purepecha or Tarasco. Her parents only speak Spanish or pure. Adapting to a new language and environment caused her family to change their way of life in terms of their actions and what they ate. As a result, she would consider her family to be multicultural, as they participate in both American and Mexican customs and traditions.

While Maria has fully adjusted to American culture now, the road to get there was not an easy one. Her challenges first began in school. Since her father only went to school until the age of twelve and her mother did not have an education, Maria was entirely on her own with the help of amazing teachers who were understanding and took the extra time to help her succeed. All her hard work paid off when she graduated high school last June, making her the first high school graduate of her family. Unfortunately, the challenges did not stop after graduation. Since Maria is illegal, she does not have Social Security because she was unable to get DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) before they stopped accepting new applications. Most of the professions that interest Maria require official documentation of citizenship, which makes it difficult for her to pursue her dreams. Despite the delay in her dreams, she has been able to still find a job to make a decent income. Even with all the obstacles she has faced, she still would rather live in America than Mexico. The cartel has infiltrated her hometown, which has increased ransoms, deaths, and other acts of violence. Maria believes all she has faced in America is way better than living her life in constant fear of being attacked.

“Honestly it’s about not having fear about what could be said to you. Don’t listen to any harsh things people could say. Prove to them otherwise and prove to them that you’re capable of so much. That you being an immigrant doesn’t define anything. You are more than an immigrant and you have a lot to offer to this country.” – Maria

Side Note: The name used within the story is a cover name to protect the identity of the storyteller

Team 20's Intro to Anthropology Playlist

Playlist · 7 Songs

Niya Allen: My song selection is “We Are Family” by Sister Sledge. This song relates to the content covered in Chapter 9 entitled “Kinship, Family, and Marriage”. Sister Sledge speaks on the foundation of family and kinship as it is defined in the black community. The song speaks to unity, cooperation, and love shared amongst members that defines the makeup of kinship. Furthermore, this song can be applied to the nuclear family or extended family. Thus, this song is a perfect representation of the concept discussed within Chapter 9.

Adlai’s Valencia: El Apagón by Bad Bunnyrelates to chapter 14 Politics and Power, The artist subliminally speak on the situation in Puerto Rico and how the government is doing the bare minimum for their country and there are always blackouts Due to the inconsistent settlements of Puerto Rico’s Political system.

Mya Mendoza: I chose ABC by the Jackson Five. The alphabet is a set of letters that can be used when writing in language(s), and language is a system of communication that can be represented by sounds and words.

Noah Robinson: I chose The Bigger Picture by Lil Baby for Chapter 5: Race and Racism. This song relates to this chapter because it describes how black people are being targeted and oppressed. Also, it describes how we need to take a stand and fight equality around the world.

Christian: I chose High for Hours by J Cole. I would say that this relates to chapter 10 because he talks about how the people in charge of everything are able to control how everyone moves and thinks and how that if you were to overthrow those people in charge you’ll just repeat the same cycle and become just like them in the end.

Our Team Song: Our group song selection is “Star Spangled Banner” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing”. Both of these songs relate to the concepts of Chapter 6: Ethnicity and Nationalism. The Star Spangled Banner is America’s National Anthem that helps build a sense of American identity. This song is used to represent freedom and is the fight song for American soldiers. Lift Every Voice and Sing is the African American National Anthem. This song represents what it means to be a black American in the United States. The song describes the faith and perseverance of African Americans and helps to form a sense of identity.

Chapter 10 Fieldwork: Class and Inequality

Karl Marx

Workers from Amazon’s East Point warehouse, ATL 6, recently held a protest demanding higher wages and better working conditions.

Karl Marx theory on class examines the extreme inequality between the high elites, the bourgeoisie, and the lower class, the proletariat. I chose this article to represent Marx's theory because it describes the ongoing fight of the proletariat in today’s society. Within this article, amazon workers represent the proletariat while Jeff Bezos represents the bourgeoisie. Amazon workers sell their labor to receive a wage from Jeff Bezos who owns the mean of productions. While working for Amazon, the workers have developed class consciousness. Class consciousness is defined as the proletariats political awareness of their place in society that allows them to unite to change the system. Thus, within the article, amazon workers began to realize the unjust conditions of their working space and the alarming pay gap between them and their CEO Jeff Bezos. After this realization, they rallied together to protest for safer working conditions and fair pay.

Max Weber

She served a two-month sentence as her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, is serving five months and is scheduled to be released 17 April

Max Weber theory on class examines how power, prestige, and property perpetuate class stratification and influence life chances. I chose this article to represent Weber’s theory because it shows how one’s status and influence today can help get certain people ahead or to maintain high class status. For example, this article describes the Lori Loughlin college bribery scandal where she used her money, high status, and influence to cheat her daughter's way into Ivy League institutions. Her efforts show how her prestige and power allowed for better access to a high quality of life by providing more resources for her daughter to succeed. Thus, she proves that power allows for better opportunities for those who possess it, which increases stratification amongst the classes.

Pierre Bourdieu

Interview Diane Reay grew up on a council estate, the eldest of eight, and became a Cambridge professor. Now she wants to talk about inequal

Pierre Bourdieu theory on class examines how education is a main factor in deciding or maintaining one’s class position. I chose this article to represent Bourideu’s theory because it illustrates how the education system in London is designed to continue to keep the working class below the middle class by limiting their resources for success. For example, the working class students receive less qualified teachers and less financial resources from parents to get them more involved in extracurricular activities. As a result, they are less well-rounded as middle class children who receive qualified teachers and access to extracurriculars. Furthermore, this article highlights how education is a main factor in social reproduction. Through education, the rich remain rich while the poor remain poor due to the lack of opportunities and unevenly distributed resources.

Chapter 9: Kinship, Marriage, and Family

This chapter’s main topic centers around the concept of kinship, marriage, and family. For me, I have always placed a high value on family. It is one of the most important aspects of my life. Thus, my family tree tells the story of family value. For example, my mother has two half siblings; however, she does not refer to them as half siblings. To her, they are just her siblings and blood could never determine how close they are. Furthermore, my family tree shows that even though one may not be biologically related to us, we still see them as family. This can be seen with the addition of my brother’s girlfriend and my step-cousin to the family tree. Even though we are not blood related, we are close and spend much time together. This can also be seen with my step-grand father. Although I am not biologically related to him, I was much closer to him than my biological grandfather. In fact, my mother refers to her step-father as just father. This illustrates how family ties rely heavily on relationship and bond than blood relation. On the other hand, there are blood relatives we are extremely close with. For example, I look at my cross cousins on my father’s side as my little sisters, and even though I do not get to see my mother’s side of the family as much as my father’s side, we still remain close. Therefore, while this family tree maps what my family looks like from a biological standpoint, it does not emphasize the strength or weakness of the relationships each relative has built with one another.

Ethnicity and Nationalism

I am Niya Allen, yet I represent four families: Allen, Pope, Adderly, and Thurmond. My father's side are the Allen’s and the Pope’s, while my mother’s side are the Adderly’s and the Thurmond’s. Throughout this tread, I will take you on a journey through my family heritage where ethnicity and nationalism intertwine to create my identity.

First Stop: Allen’s and Pope’s

The Allen’s and the Pope’s have been in America for approximately 400 years. Although they have been in America for about 400 years, they are originally from Africa. Unfortnately, due to slavery, I am unsure where in Africa my ancestry leads back. However, when the Allen’s were shipped to America, they were brought specifically to Virginia. While in Virginia, my family worked on the Allen’s plantation as slaves. Through family research, I found that my great grandfather, my grandfather, and my dad all have the name of our old slave master: Geroge Allen. After slavery, it is suspected that my family moved up North and settled down in Baltimore, as that is where the majority of my family was born and reside today. As for the Pope’s, it is unsure the specific location in the south they are from; however, I do know that they also migrated to Baltimore shortly after slavery.

Second Stop: Adderly’s and Thurmond’s

The Adderly’s are from the Caribbean Islands, most specifically Barbados. While this is true, I believe the true origin of the Adderly’s ancestry is traced back to Africa. This conclusion is made from my knowledge of the Trans-Altantic Slave Trade and how African slaves were imported into the Caribbean Islands. Furthermore, it is suspected that my family were slaves to their Adderly slave master, as my brother and I have did slight research into our family tree in the past. If our conclusions are correct, many of the Adderly’s migrated to Canada to either after slavery or to escape it. From there, it can be concluded they migrated to Philadelphia, as many of my current family members were born there and reside there today. Thus, I am unsure how long this side of my family has been in America.

The Thurmond last name comes from my mother’s step-father who was her father figure. I do not know my biological grandfather’s last name nor ancestry. Instead, I identify myself more with my Pop Pop– “step-grandfather'' –because he was in my life more significantly than my biological grandfather. With that being said, I also do not know much about where his family came from other than they have resided in Philadelphia for a long time.

Third Stop: Has my family embraced American Nationalism?

Due to the loss of our original African and Caribbean identities, my family on both sides have fully adapted and embraced the ethic identity of African-American. We identify ourselves more with the African-American traditions and lifestyles that was crafted by those of African descent during and after slavery. I do not think my family has embraced American Nationalism on a conscious level, as we realize this country was never designed for us to co-exist with European Americans. However, on an unconscious level, I do believe we are completely American in our practices. For example, we celebrate the Fourth of July rather than Juneteenth and celebrate Christmas rather than Kwanzaa. Furthermore, we are primarily Christian and Catholic, which are not the original practices of our African ancestry. For these reasons, I do believe my family has adapted to more American ideals than African or Caribbean ideals. Thus, I believe the ethnic identity of African-American best suits myself and my family.

source:https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/foundations-black-power

Final Stop: Reflection

After reflecting on my own family history in terms of ethnicity and nationalism, I have realized we are more American than we would like to admit. I think the reluctance to claim American nationalism stems from the constant abuse faced by those of African descent within this country. Furthermore, this exercise has taught me that I would love to learn more about my Caribbean heritage and would love to discover which part of Africa my family is from.

Fieldwork Ch.5: How Race is Constructed Around the World

Racism: individuals’ thoughts and actions and institutional patterns and policies that create or reproduce unequal access to power, privilege, resources, and opportunities based on imagined differences among groups

After the tragic death of Mike Brown, many artist came together to musically express their grievances with how racism has continued to murder the lives of many African-Americans within this country. Throughout the song, the artists speak on how racial bias influence those in positions of power to abuse their privilege in order to oppress people of color. Thus, this source of media illustrates how racism has heavily impacted America.

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Phenotype: the way genes are expressed in an organism’s physical form as a result of genotype interaction with environmental factors

The photo above is a collage that depicts different perceived races within our world. This piece of media shows how certain phenotypes are not exclusive to one specific “race”. As a result, this media shows that race does not exist on a biologically level, as different races can share similar physical appearances. Therefore, race is a social construct and not a biological one.

source:

Brazilian fine art photographer Angelica Dass' series Humanae identifies portrait subjects from around the world using the Pantone color sys

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White Supremacy: belief that whites are biologically different from and superior to people of other races

ABC News did a segment on the resurgence of the Klu Klux Klan. The KKK is a hate group rooted in the ideology of white supremacy and preserving whiteness that was founded shortly after the end of slavery. This source of media shows how white supremacy is still alive and well within our current generation and how it is not an event of the past. Furthermore, this video illustrates how the concept of white supremacy continues to feed a social construct centered in race.

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Microaggressions: common, everyday verbal or behavioral indignities and slights that communicate hostile, derogatory, and negative messages about someone’s race, gender, sexual orientation or religion

Microaggressions are a way for an individual to subliminally express their racial bias towards another person. The photo above depicts just one way this can take place within society. In the photo, you can see a white woman questioning if a black woman's hair is real. This type of microaggression is rooted in the idea that black women do not possess the phenotype of long hair. Thus, the use of microaggressions continue to illustrate how powerful race is in shaping one’s perspective about those around them, even though it is biologically nonexistent.

source:

Are you wondering what microaggressions are? Here are some definitions as well as explanations of how to reduce them in society.

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Institutional Racism: patterns by which racial inequality is structured through key institutions, policies, and systems

In 2016, Netflix released a documentary about the 13th Amendment entitled 13th. This documentary dissected the addition of the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution and how this Amendment has led to institutionalized racism within America. Furthermore, it shows that slavery never died, but instead took on a new form. Thus, it shows how influential race and racism is to the foundation of America.

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Intersectionality: an analytic framework for assessing how factors such as race, gender, and class interact to shape individual life chances and societal patterns of stratification

The photo above is of Billy Porter, a queer black man. Porter represents several identities that include the following: being black, being a male, being queer, and being wealthy. These four identities all interact to shape Porter's daily life. For example, since Porter is a balck male, he is already subjected to discrimination; however, adding the layer of his sexuality puts him deeper into the group of marginalized people. While this is true, his life experiences are still different from black, queer men who are not as wealthy as him. Thus, Porter serves as a perfect example on how intersectionality works within American society.

source:

#Youtube

Consumer Culture

This week's fieldwork has allowed me to critically analyze how I indulge in consumer culture. During the course of this fieldwork, I have found that it is common to confuse whether items are truly needed or just wanted. My approach when filling out whether an item was wanted or needed came from what I personally believe impacts and enhances my life on a day to day basis. Thus, I based my wants over things I could live without and needs for things I couldn't. After evaluating my list, I have found that the majority of my spending goes towards wants, which was a bit shocking to discover.

Blanket || $10 || Want || Extra blanket for myself or guest

Globalization: Toothbrushes

According to Anthropology, the first version of a toothbrush was invented in 3500-3000 BC by the Babylonians and Egyptians. This discovery was made when anthropologists began to examine the ancient tombs of these civilizations. Within these buried tombs, they discovered the first version of a toothbrush that was crafted out of frayed twings. In the 1400s, the Chinese began to craft their own version of the toothbrush. Their development contained the first natural bristle that consisted of pigs’ hair along with bones or bamboo for the handle. The Chinese version of the toothbrush became the blueprint for the Eurpoeans. In fact, around 1780, English entrepreneur William Addis took the Chinese version of the toothbrush and adapted it to satisfy Europeans. This meant changing the pig bristles to horse hair or feathers and the handle to cattle bones. After these changes, Addis began the first mass production of toothbrushes. However, it was not until 1938 that modern toothbrushes were invented due to the discovery of nylon bristles. From then, toothbrushes have graced the presence of homes across the nation.

Toothbrushing tools date back to 3500-3000 BC when the Babylonians and the Egyptians made a brush by fraying the end of a twig.

Now that we know the history of toothbrushes, we can begin to dive into where they are currently being manufactured. Many toothbrushes are made overseas and then shipped to the United States for American use. These countries include, but are not limited to, Germany, China and Romania. To be more specific, Colgate – a popular toothbrush and toothpaste company – creates their electric toothbrushes in France and the Philippines, while their regular toothbrushes are made in Sanxiao, China. In fact, China is the largest region of manufacturing oral products in the world, with the Sanxiao Colgate Manufacturing Company being one of its mass producers.

Colgate toothbrushes are manufactured in Sanxiao, China. According to Colgate, the factory in which the toothbrushes are made is the largest

Find out where some of the most common oral healthcare products are made. We compile a list of the major brands and their products.

For me, Colgate toothbrushes have had a significant impact on my life. These toothbrushes are religiously bought and used within my household, and have been since I was young. Thus, Colgate has become a part of my everyday routine. I start and end my day by brushing my teeth and tongue to achieve that Colgate smile! The daily use of a toothbrush has helped me maintain great oral hygiene. By incorporating Colgate into my daily routine, I avoid cavities and a smelly breath. Thus, the toothbrush has had a positive impact on my life. Unfortunately, this statement does not hold true for the one’s directly involved with manufacturing these household items.

During my research, it was nearly impossible to find information on the treatment and lives of Colgate and other toothbrush makers overseas. However, knowing that China is one of the largest countries manufacturing toothbrushes, I decided to take a broader look at the lives of Chinese factory workers as a whole. Through my research, I found that offshoring has had gruesome effects on Chinese manufacturers. For instance, large companies based in China force their workers to work under dangerous conditions for long hours with little pay. As a result, many suffer from work injuries, work-related health problems, and are drowning in poverty. Furthermore, they are still not guaranteed workers’ rights that Americans are entitled to. If they dare speak out against their own abuse, they are subjected to being fired, tortured, or imprisoned. Thus, the treatment described above goes to show how globalization has negatively impacted the lives of overseas workers who continue to be taken advantage of by big corporations.

The Four Factors of Globalization

The photo above represents the idea of time-space compression. Time-space compression describes the rapid increase of communication and transportation. The iPhone depicted within the photo is a prime example of how easier communication has become due to new innovations for communication.

The photo above represents flexible accumulation. Flexible accumulation describes the strategies corporations will use to accumulate profit. An example of that is offshoring, which is depicted specifically in the photo. Offshoring is when companies will base their production in lower cost areas to accumulate larger sum of profit.

The photo above represents increasing migration. Due to globalization, the movement of people between areas have increased due to the mass communication of better opportunities and innovation of quick transportation.

The photo above represents uneven development. Uneven development is defined as unequal distribution of the benefits that come from globalization. As seen in the photo, the above area has accumulated more wealth than the area below it. From this, one can conclude that those who live in the more advanced buildings have benefited from globalization, while those who live in the underdeveloped buildings have been exploited because of it.

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