Artist Statement.

All of my life, all I have ever know are expectations. They come full force no matter from who or for what. The reality of expectations is the possibility of being disappointed and even when it’s unfortunate for someone else, there is no way that one person can please themselves as well as everyone else. The most pressure comes from Faith, family, love and religion. Faith and religion are separated because even with someone considering themselves to be a specific “religion” it is quite common that they lean and have their own faith. Furthermore, what someone can perceive as someone else’s religion can be different than where their faith stands. In the midst of both of these regarding a higher power, there are always things that are expected of you, but there is always a gap between those expectations and reality. And that is the point of my graffiti poster. All these things that are depicted in such ways, really aren’t all that they seem to be. Love is written in purple for loyalty, family in pink for perfection, reality in yellow for transparency, faith in blue for the correspondence of the blue sky and heaven, doubt in green for the sake of insecurities and looking down, last but not least, expectations is in black. I wrote that word in black so that it would stand out the most and cause the most attention because expectations are seen as the mountain to every valley, but it is often hidden that there will be times in reality that will not be as expected because some people have to climb up that mountain and hit some rough patches. In less words, my statement is that there is a huge gap between expectations and reality, no matter what is being expected, and who is expecting it.

“Introduction” (11-27) & “Salvation” (65-75) Reflections/ Response:

I enjoyed reading through the Introduction because it pretty much gave a summary of each story and explained the key points. It gave me a sense of security. When I go to read the short stories for myself, there is a chance that I will need to reference the introduction for context or understanding. I noticed an overall theme of subversion, irony and humor. It seemed to come up in almost every, if not all of the story summaries. If it was not the protagonist, then it was another character that would choose to assimilate to the new culture of where they immigrated. And even when it was self-deprecating, humor made it’s way into the literature. There seemed to be a lot of mockery and imitation of integration as well as the paradox of identity and what it means to be defined by what you once were and who may be trying to become. Pages 25 and 26 were my favorite because they concluded it well, reminding us, the readers of the goal and purpose of these narratives. In the first paragraph on page 25, there is a quote that says, “Man is the lord of the word he stores in his belly, but he is slave to the words that he lets out of his mouth WHAT AM I? I am a heap of words that speaks and always keeps some truth in silence.” This makes me think of the control that we have over our abilities and ourselves. One can only go as far as they want and allow themselves to go. Even with telling the truth and saying what needs to be said, sometimes maturing and knowing what you want and how to get it means to know what to say, when to say and when to be silent. There is so much power in that quote alone. Then throughout the last two paragraphs of the Introduction it says what this anthology is and how it is about how “new writers confront the issues of otherness, difference, marginality and integration.” Then it furthers to say whom it is for and how it is “an invitation for scholars of Italian and migration studies to explore the complex shifts occurring in contemporary Italy. This anthology highlights the testimonies that migrants make visible and therefore they add their voices to the political sphere that devotes so much space to debates on who and what migrants are.” Though we have spoken in class or even individually about what this book can do for us and what we will find in it, the fact that it is laid out clearly in the introduction means a lot to me and I appreciate how well written and thoughtful the Introduction was. 

            The short story “Salvation” was really interesting to me because though he mentioned his salvation, I looked at him as the savior. People were counting on him to be able to make it to their dreams, and up until the end, he had the heart to do so. He helped his cousin for an amount of time until he was deported and in a way, that was “salvation” for his cousin because he was rescued of whatever circumstances he left in his host country. I suspect that he is from India because I know that he is Muslim, but I do not recall a specific reference to a place in the text. However he did not assimilate himself completely to Italian culture. He mentioned not knowing how to make a certain ethnic food but that doesn’t necessarily mean that he had intentionally forgotten or didn’t care to know. I found it interesting that he was against cell phones and the new time of depending on technology. That was enough proof to me that he has not forgotten where has come from, because even with something as prevalent as technology, he has his own opinions on them. The story was a nice and easy read overall.

Writing Assignment #5

Not only with Naples, but with any new city I have an uncomfortable feeling. Even with the prep of the readings, you still don’t know what to fully expect. New places give me a sense of risk. I feel as though I am literally risking all that I have because I don’t know exactly what I’m getting myself into. Some can say that everyday living is that way, even places that you don’t know, anything can happen. But it’s a comfort issue. I give “the cold shoulder” to new places in general. It’s my way of having my guard up. My biggest fear was the thought of now being sure of what would happen, the possibilities of anything, but being in a new city. I had the same uncomfortable feeling when initially coming to Rome.  Not to mention not knowing anyone, it was never anything personal, I just question my surroundings a lot for the sake of feeling like I’m keeping myself safe. Another thing that made me nervous was the fact that he trip was with everyone. We have all made a few trips here and there but they were always in our divided “cliques” and I thought that when we would be forced to be together that there would be some tension. Fortunately, we all managed to get along and the trip actually made a lot of us more comfortable with one another. Before the trip we seemed to always be divided by houses and mixing up the rooms in Naples really did make a difference in the relationships we came back to in Rome.

            If anything my fear of Naples has done nothing but increased. Before it was a defense mechanism and now because of Jenny being mugged, I just don’t know how to feel about the place, personally. I understand that it can happen anywhere and I won’t say that I will never go again, but that entire situation freaked me out. Also, Alex blatantly talked to us about how often robbery happens and no one around you does anything about it. I know that this is not America but I feel like people in America would at least try to help. I’ve never been in that type of situation before, or even that close to being with someone who has experienced it so the thought alone makes me nervous. Don’t get me wrong, the program should continue to go to Naples and have Alex’s tour, just with more structure and warning. Though I feel as though I have seen a lot of Naples, I wasn’t there quite long enough to get that comfort of “home” or anything. It took me a couple of weeks to feel that way with Rome so I’m actually not surprised that Naples is just another city to me. The people seem different than the ones in Rome. Romans are a bit more up tight, or uppity for lack of a better word. If Italy was California, Naples would be Los Angeles and Rome would be Hollywood. Where we live in Rome is very elegant and charming, and the people of Rome know that to be true. Naples is just not up to the par of Rome. Though they both have great museums and nice places to visit, Naples needs to be cleaned up. That can go as far as the crime to the garbage on the streets; they both are ridiculous if you ask me. But as I said before, I know that it can happen anywhere and not every city cleans as often as Rome does. It must cost some money for the garbage men to come through everyday with their trucks and truck-brooms, but they make it happen and Rome looks ten times better than Naples.

            Aside from all of that, I love that we traveled there; I love to see new things and learn new things. Being in a different city always begins as refreshing; it just didn’t end as refreshing as it started. And life is not always what it is expected to be, it’s often about what and how you make it. So in spite of our situations, we made the best out of Naples that could have possibly become of it.

Assignment #4

Assignment #4

Open doors are like opportunities. The difference is that an opportunity is “a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something” so often times an opportunity can be controlled, while the doors open to immigrants are out of their hands and they can only take what is given to them. Though a question on the prompt mentions that their also might be doors that are open but not recognized or acknowledged by those who don’t know how to access them, I would take that as though the doors do not exist in their life. Not taking away from what they have or will ever have, but some people are too pitiful to become motivated to actually find those doors. It takes knowing or getting to know the right people in order to get to where you need to go. It was said in a lecture that many immigrants go to their new country with other people and often times have some kind of network set up; for those who start completely from scratch will struggle a lot more than others because they won’t have a network.

Education, while to some is considered to be a privilege, I would say that it is a right. No one should ever be in a position where they are prohibited to learn either by their own means or within a facility. Schooling in America has not always been what I would call fair but after Brown versus The Board of Education, both Blacks and Whites are now able to learn equally. Before, not only were they separated, but also even the quality of their books and teachers differed. Now in America, it is required that children go to school. If they do not, parents are held accountable and possibly convicted for their absence. Though everyone has the option to go to school, there are special circumstances in some people’s lives that cause them to struggle more than others. Too often, socioeconomic status keeps those at the bottom of the totem pole discouraged and unable to really apply themselves because of the lack of knowledge and resources. These ‘doors” that exist to better and higher education are often invisible or simply down a hallway that does not exist in one’s present life.  Opportunity is a set of possibilities formed by a circumstance, but when they are unfamiliar or even depicted in a way that is unappealing, it can be difficult for one to take advantage of them. I’ve heard many people say that going onto higher education is pointless because no one is guaranteed a job in their expected field. Well if there was someone for everyone who needed encouragement about going to school or even simply applying themselves to something greater, no one would be left behind. As great as education in America is depicted to be, there are so many children, so many adults who have been left by the waste side. These “doors” that allow people to be smart, and innovative are placed in certain areas of every city and it’s almost like you’re checked for a name tag or badge when trying to even approach a hallway. In other words, it’s set up to where people usually finsish they way that they started. The school system has been set up to where certain people are at the bottom because of what they learned previously, making it harder for them to get anywhere further than where they came from. Don’t get me wrong, people make it out sometimes, but it’s true when they say that it’s not always what you know, but whom you know. But then the question is how do you get to know someone who has the knowledge to get you somewhere you’ve never been or where no one in your family has been. In my case, I am a first generation student, which means that I am the first in my family to go to college. If I did not have the determination I did to branch out, take risks, build a network and make something more of myself, then I would have been perpetuating a cycle of uncomfortable contentment. Although that can be seen as an oxymoron because they contradict each other, it’s true. Though my family has gotten by and is content with where we are, what we have and where we have come from, financially and mentally it is uncomfortable to know that we could be and do better. Unfortunately, everyone does not have that drive, everyone does not have those resources, and if they are put in a position where they do not have them, where do they find them? In actuality, they probably don’t find them. I’ve watched teachers and mentors literally pick kids that need the help, just based off of what is seen and if they did not take the initiative, not much would have come of their future. America has so much to offer with its education but it is so limited and it is not teaching on one accord. Coasts have different curriculums and children are learning faster in certain areas and if they happen to go to college or even transfer before then, there is a chance that they will either be behind or too advanced. Either way this creates a divide in education and may even be helping some opportunities impossible for some people.

            In Italy, the school system seems to be a bit more effective, for their country. I know that some people come from other countries and are unable to be recognized for their degrees but Italy has a smooth transition of schooling within the country. Kids are in primary school for five years, middle school for three and high school for five. After high school they then take a test based off of their interest and then go to a college that is based off what they took the test on. Since they are subject driven and go where they know they are best, this makes school more effective in general. With the cost of education being expensive, there are many dropouts, not many people can afford to put themselves or children through college. Then there are immigrants who don’t put their children in school because they don’t find it beneficial or they have some other adversities that don’t allow them to do so. The average time to move out of their parent’s house is 35. When it comes to immigrants, they are at a complete disadvantage. They are integrated into schools that are taught in Italian and when they go home they speak their native language. Eventually some learn to speak Italian and they may do well later, but they could be missing something, simply through a barrier of language. In 1994 the Con Viserra   was a law passed that all children, no matter the ethnicity or language or documentation, held the right to be in school. And in 1998 the immigration law was that their language and culture be protected. As great as that is, why not go the extra mile and make sure that the children are able to learn. I intern at Iqbal Masih, and while there are children who are observant and can watch body language and pick up on different things, there are also the ones who can’t. A little girl who is of the Roma community is in one of my classes and she stares in silence for most of the day and is often yelled at because she doesn’t understand. I know that, that isn’t anyone’s fault and no one knows what language she speaks at home, but there has to be a way around that. Immigrants in Italy have these “doors” to education but who leads them to those doors? They say they are available but what happens to the Roma community who is being placed outside of all the neighborhoods with the schools in them? As it is in America, it’s about whom you know and what they know, not always about what you know yourself. But even then, a lot of immigrants don’t always have a network to go to and build resources to get where they want.  Not to mention the discrimination in general, for even coming from another country. Italy seems quite biased against people from other countries, or even those who are not “Italian.” Then we go into “What is Italian?” “What does it look like?” And often times those questions are answered with questions, what does it mean to be an Italian? When talking about his friend, Amedeo, Amara Lakhous said, “He’s like a poem by Omar Khayyam: you need a lifetime to understand its meaning, and only then will your heart open to the world and tears warm your cheeks,” and the same thing can be said about the school system and identity of Italians. It may take lifetime to understand or to establish what it means to be Italian, and it won’t be until then that a surface is scratched.

As far apart as Italy is from America, they both have pros and cons to their education systems and these “doors” of opportunities only get slimmer by the lack of advocacy. No one seems to listen or realize the real problem, which is that the people, who are progressing, leave those who aren’t. And the progression will end all together if people don’t take the time to give back.

Assignment 3

Perine, Sha

Writing Assignment #3

The exercise in the Piazza Vittorio was very uncomfortable. The language barrier made everything more difficult then what it had been if we were in America. Though the interviews were nerve racking, it was a rewarding feeling after each to feel accomplished in having a conversation with someone from a different country and who didn’t speak good English. The hardest part was approaching the people. We never wanted to make the interviewee feel uncomfortable by walking up to them or by anything we asked. It also was quite difficult to find an Italian. There didn’t seem to be many in the neighborhood and the people that we did see walking around didn’t have a sign on their neck that said “Hey I’m Italian.” So it took some courage to just walk up to someone who appeared to be Italian. Then asking personal questions like “Are you Italian?” “Do you live in this neighborhood?” “How long have you lived in this neighborhood?” “How comfortable are you with the immigrants in this neighborhood?” to strangers, there’s always a chance that someone could react in an unmanageable way.  Anyhow, we got over our fears and hesitations and managed to pull off four different interviews with 7 immigrants, three of the interviews had two people in each and the last immigrant interview had one immigrant. Then we interviewed an older Italian man. He appeared to be in his mid 50’s. Some were more helpful than others but overall it was an enlightening experience.

Three out of our four immigrant interviews were with men from Bangladesh, and all together there were six men. One of the men have been in Italy for eight years and brought his family with him. He said that the money brought him here and that it is a lot better then money in Bangladesh. Unfortunately his children don’t go to school and though his face turned down a little, he didn’t seem too upset or disappointed by that. His friend didn’t say much other than that he liked Italy, he put his thumb up indicating that he thinks highly of it. The next two sets of men from Bangladesh seemed a bit redundant; they also were brought here for the money and with their families. Only, their English wasn’t as good as the first one.

Robby, a man from India was our most helpful immigrant interviewee. His English was outstanding and he even told us about his free health care that he is provided. He was going to show us the health card they are given but he didn’t have it on him. He added Laura on facebook and said that he would help her with anything that he could. He’s 24 and moved to Italy when he was 10 and learned English in school. He was a pilot but after September 11^th he wasn’t able to keep it. He owns many of his own shops now instead. Right across from the market is where we found him, selling clothes from a few booths. His family moved from India when his father was “shifted” from Germany because of a transfer in his job.

While walking down the street we often struggled choosing whom to pick to interview and were very hesitant to approach just anyone. We walked around the neighborhood for maybe fifteen minutes, taking note of the many stores and stands that were owned by immigrants. We then began to get discouraged because every time we thought we would come across an Italian, the store would be run by an Asian or and African. Finally as we were coming close to our starting point, the mouth of the park, we seen an older man that we were pretty confident in being Italian and Laura with the brave soul that she is gave him our introduction. “Ciao! Parli inglese?” He responded with an uncertain nod and she went forth. Well, we are American students studying education and immigration in Rome. Are you okay with answering a few questions?” As the man agreed, we finally being able to find an Italian relieved me. We asked him questions like “Are you Italian?” “Do you live in this neighborhood” “How do you feel about the immigrants living in this neighborhood?” Well he does live in the area and feels that the immigration has increased over the course of the last decade. He doesn’t like immigrants because they come from the countries, which are primarily China, and Bangladesh, to name a couple, with a lot of money and buys out shops and settles in. He also shared that he thinks that they get the money from the Chinese mob. Which was interesting because in the movie about the Piazza Vitorrio Orchestra, someone mentioned a rumor of some immigrants getting money from the Chinese mob. After while he was repeating himself and making it clear that he is against the immigrants settling in and that they are making everything worse for Italians.

Though we found some pretty good information and made friends with Robby, if we had been a little less timid to begin with, there is chance that we could have made even more progress. After all of our interviews, we sat on a bench in the park. On the bench next to us was a man without teeth and little hair, enjoying himself and looked like chewing tobacco. There were three little boys who looked like they ranged from eight to ten kicking a soccer ball around. And over to the far left of us were a lot of different people, congregated and engaging in many different conversations. In spite of initially feeling overwhelmed and discouraged by the experience, I am glad that I at least took the time to look at my surroundings and take it all in. This neighborhood is a lot different than the Campo and it felt a little refreshing to see something different.

Assignment 2

Perine, Sha

Writing Assignment #2

Identity is difficult to define. It is a noun that is based off of perceptions and feelings, which are both drawn from opinions. No matter what numbers and stereotypes tell us, the person can only truly define one’s identity himself or herself.  Though stereotypes are built off of a piece of truth, but looked down upon when used to identify someone, they are often all that anyone initially has to explain and describe someone else. Even after learning so much information about Romans and Italians, interpretation will differ within people no matter the intentions of the teacher of whichever lesson. As the essay “To hell with Intentions” made me realize, someone can intend something and the outcome of their intentions can be completely in vain because it was not received in the way of which they meant it to. So while my purpose and goal of this assignment is to share what I have learned and show what I have taken away from the experience, I hope that it is not offensive to anyone.

As every race, culture and ethnicity has myths and stereotypes connected to it, Romans and Italians do as well. Before coming to Rome, I thought of Italians as hustlers. Al Pacino gave me the idea that any and every Italian has ulterior motives and possibly apart of the Italian Mob, also that they aren’t well educated. I never thought more into Italians past their great food and interesting accents. As far as “Romans” go, I automatically think of the bible days, the way that it says they would dress and “Roman Catholics.” Then I would think of Gladiator the movie and the fighting, but I never knew much about them as a people. Romans are the people of Rome but they are not easy to spot with the naked eye, as far as I have been able to see, they fit in as other native Italians. Then the question “what is a native Italian” is raised. Well I would say that a native Italian is one that has a lineage of Italian roots and was born in Italy. Then someone else might say that they don’t have to have lineage in a country to be a native. Identity is ultimately left up for interpretation.

The Italian government seems to make it quite difficult for many people in Italy to identify them as an Italian. In America, when a child is born on American soil, they are American. Well in Italy, even after being born there, their citizenship is not given to them as a right. As Ezekiel from Second Generation told us, in Italy citizenship is not a right and is not given to everyone; each person applies for citizenship at the age of eighteen and can either be granted or denied. This causes a potential issue for native Italians and immigrants. This furthers the issue of their possibly not even being an explicit Italian identity because things like citizenship cause there to be a perpetual divide. 

            Even for the people who immigrate to Italy, whether it is forced or willingly, they fall between the cracks. Then their children are left to identify with what they adopt. Some choose to identify with where they come from and others pick up the new culture. Alpha, the Senegalese man who works with Ezekiel, was born and raised in Italy and feels as though he is Italian. He’s comfortable here and has made it home.  Since he is “Black” and his parents are not from Italy, he is often not recognized as Italian.

Today, Brittany was telling our group about a man who told her that culture was based off of language. Further saying that she can no longer consider herself to be Italian because she speaks more English. This idea fascinated me because it reminds me of the Roma. Many people who don’t understand their culture think that they are underdeveloped and don’t want to be helped because of the conditions that they are put in and it may be that they are holding on to their culture. It is possible that some of them don’t want to go to school and learn another language and assimilate, they just wanted to change their location.

Until there is a clear and improved system built around citizenship in Italy and where immigrants and ineligible natives fall, identity will continue to be a struggle. There are too many dysfunctional aspects of the process and understanding to distinctly depict the true image and identity of an Italian. As of right now, I believe Italian identity to be what each individual considers it to be. Those who belong, feel like they belong and if they do not, then they will eventually emigrate out of Italy as some form of discomfort brought them to Italy.

           

Assignment #1 - Observation of Italian Youth

Since we have only been in a little under a week, I have yet to have an actual experience with an Italian youth, but I have made some observations. They may be a little bias, or accidentally discriminatory, but I really do not mean any harm.

Well a few nights ago when we were walking around becoming familiar with our neighborhood and some of the history, a saw a few people gathered together by some of the shops. It shocked me because a boy that looked pretty young, maybe 13 was smoking a cigarette. It looked like he was waiting on some of his friends and to pass the time he smoked. I found this interesting because in America there wouldn't a "pre-teen" as some call them, smoking a cigarette in public and it be found acceptable.

 I find it quite interesting, the many differences that are found just in something as simple as smoking a cigarette. Or 19 year olds casually drinking beer in bars or throughout the streets at night.

Last night, when walking home, we saw our first young person with baggy clothes. It was almost relieving because in Seattle I see it so much, it gave me a sense home.

I'm excited to further the experience with actually meeting a young person and having some substance behind my thoughts.

More to come!!!