"Asians are terrible drivers because ..."

In many ways, Asian Americans are still the targets of much prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination. Asian Americans are also increasingly becoming the targets of hate crimes. In fact, research shows that Asian Americans are the fastest growing victims of hate crimes in the U.S. Asian Americans still face the same types of racism, social inequality, and institutional discrimination that other ethnic groups face. Since 2006, hate crimes against Asian Americans have risen 17%.
Numbers do not lie, nor should they be ignored. If you compare the 5 major ethnic groups (Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and Asians), Asian Americans have the highest college degree attainment, highest rate of an advanced degree, median family income, % of working in the labor force, rate of working in "high skill" occupations, and median SEI score that measures job prestige. Overall, Asian Americans outperform whites. So much so that reputable magazines like Newsweek and shows like 60 minutes have described Asians as the "model minority". Does our society really treat Asian Americans that way?
Success may only be skin deep. Another telling statistic is how much more money a person earns with each additional year of schooling completed, or what sociologists call "returns on education." A white with a college degree can expect an increase of $2088 per year in salary. Whereas an Asian American with an additional year can expect only a $300 increase in yearly salary. What this means is that basically, a typical Asian American has to get more years of education just to make the same amount of money that a typical White makes with less education. Asian Americans still earn less money than Whites with virtually equal qualifications. Once again, for each statistic that suggests everything is picture-perfect for Asian Americans, there is another that proves otherwise.
Another example is that of many Asian immigrants who come to the U.S. with very high levels of education. But for various reasons (i.e., not being fluent in English), many are not able to get decent jobs that pay well. Therefore, they are forced to to work as janitors, waiters, busboys, or open their own businesses to survive. The only reason why many Asian small business owners are able to make a small profit is that they have to work over 20 hours a day.
Asian Americans have had to fight and overcome constant discrimination to take their piece of the American dream. It is time that America recognizes the contributions and successes of Asians in our communities. President Obama made history, not only as the first African-American president, but when he appointed 3 Asian Americans to his cabinet. It is about time, a long time waiting.

"Forget about the dog, beware of teacher."

Dozens of female teachers have been caught with underage male students in recent years. It is become alarmingly common on our airwaves to see a white-female teacher inappropriate relationship with a student. This list continues to grow...Kathy White, Pamela Turner, Debra Lafave, Sarah Salorio, Rebecca Boicelli, Mary Kay Letourneau and most recently, Heather Zeo are just a few of the white teachers who have been convicted of having sex with a student who's underage. Many of them are married with children.
From 2001 to 2005, there have been well over 2,500 sex cases between a teacher and a student. The numbers still favor male offenders at 80%, but the 20% of female offenders are growing rapidly. The majority of these women teachers are white. Women teachers seem to be let off the hook with just a slap on the wrist. Nancy Grace of CNN complains, "Why is it when a man rapes a little girl, he goes to jail, but when a women rapes a boy, she had a breakdown?".
These women teachers are gloried in the public. Many of these teachers are described as young and beautiful. Are you kidding me? I didn't know that was a requirement of being a teacher. If that was the case, I am surprised I was hired. Older women having affairs with younger men is nothing new. It has been going on for years and years. It only becomes news when it involves a female teacher and a student. These female predators say they are attracted and are in love with these boys. Its more like an obsession and the need for power. These women have such low self-esteem that they feel only young boys can satisfy their thirst for acceptance. They will never be accepted, only ridiculed. Our society needs to pay attention to this growing enemy. Our schools need to do a better job with its hiring practices. Remember, looks can be deceiving. It will only be a matter of time, when we will have to send our kids to school with bodyguards.

"What's in this dip anyway?"

No, this is not a blog about how to make some recipe like artichoke and spinach dip. So if your mind is set on discovering the next great recipe move on. Although deep down inside, I would like to know how to make this dip. I am referring to the time my girlfriend and I were having lunch at an Olive Garden. See, we were having what I thought was an intriguing conversation about the direction of our youth, when I asked her, "What are you thinking right now?" She just blurted out, "I wonder what they put in this dip." I couldn't believe she was not more interested in what I had to say, but it certainly got me thinking.
This story is about a young man and the direction he has taken. His name is Jason and he happens to be my girlfriend's nephew. All week long my girlfriend had tried to persuade me to go to dinner with her family to celebrated Jason's recent graduation. I was extremely hesitant and afraid. I had Jason as a student a couple of years ago and that was the same time he had been expelled from school. As I get older, forgetfulness seems to overwhelm me at times. The only thing I remember is that Jason was a student full of anger and hatred. I had a difficult time getting along with him. We are two different people. I had to talk to his guidance counselor to get information about who this kid is in my classroom. He had told me that he has serious anger issues and don't ever point him out in front of the class. "Jason loves guns and he is a bit of a sharp shooter", he said. Great, I thought. A student who loves guns and has an anger problem. I thought to myself this is the perfect recipe for disaster. All I can remember from Jason is that I had kicked him out for an altercation he had with a female student and next thing you know I would never see him again until now.
Yes, my girlfriend was able to drag me to this dinner. The whole time, in the car, I am thinking to myself, what the "hell" is he going to say to me? Is he going to hate me for kicking him out and getting him expelled? All these negative thoughts surrounded my mind. Well, here we are. I walked in behind my girlfriend and right away I see Jason. I could hardly even recognize him except for his smile. He was clean cut, smiled from ear to ear, very polite and had an "aura" that I thought I would never see in him. There was a peace in him that could literally brighten the room. We would end up talking all throughout dinner.
My curiosity got the best of me and I asked him what exactly happened that day. He told me he had gotten into an argument with a black student. She accused him of a racist remark. I did step in between them, but the accusations continued. I ended up throwing him out of class. Security would then pick him up and escort him to the main office. Authorities were then called in and he was charged with assault.
Jason would assure me that he harbored no ill-feelings toward me or anybody else involved. With the continual support of family and his girlfriend, he has learned from his mistakes and is able to control his emotions much better than before. It was then that I would think to myself, I wish we can all learn from our mistakes. Jason has forgotten about the past and looks forward to the future. He will continue his education in Maine, where he hopes to become a park ranger. As we walked out together, I would whisper to him, "I am so proud of you and what you have overcome."
So it is true. People can change. It does not matter what mistake you make or how many you have made. We can change and we can learn and grow from them. Sometimes our recipes don't always come out right, but sometimes they do. As educators or parents, we worry too much about the direction of our youth. Heck, I am more worried about the direction of our adults.

Racism. What would people do without it?

"Gook, chink, sand-nigger, rice-eater, wetback and spic" are just a few names that have resounded throughout my 40+ years. I have grown used to these words as the primary vocabulary of the ignorant and the uneducated. Unfortunately, our society and our world is littered with them. I have heard these slanderous words directed not only towards me but my family as well and I certainly expect it said to my 2 1/2 year old son.
His name is Frederick Acker and he is a supervisor for the SPCA. Now SPCA stands for the Society for the Prevention of the Cruelty of Animals. Does this include people? Recently my girlfriend lost her best friend of 10 years due to cancer. She had found him on the streets and took him in. He was truly loved and cared for. They spent every moment together. He is certainly now in a better place. This past weekend there was a pet adoption held in North Haven, CT. The event was to be held from Friday-Sunday 10 am to 6 pm. Against her hesitance, I was able to convince her to come down with me on Sunday to see if there is any dog for us. We arrived at approximately 4:45. To our disappointed they had closed the tents down and where not taking any more families. I asked a volunteer if I could speak to the supervisor and get an explanation of why they are closing early. When Mr. Acker came over he just blurred out "we are closed!". He wanted no part of questions. He looked at me and said, "You wouldn't get a pet anyway, because you don't fit the part." I was shocked. I returned with, "What do you mean? I am a teacher and my girlfriend recently lost her dog." He so confidently said, "Oh, you are a spic and a child molester." Of all the racist comments I have heard in my life, I couldn't believe it was coming out of this man's mouth. It took every ounce of my soul not to reach over the table, punch this man in the neck and pull his rotten heart out of his throat. Thank God, my girlfriend was there to calm me down. I didn't want to leave until I got this man's name. I was totally surprised when his volunteers would not help. One volunteer, an older white haired lady, came over and said "You would be shot, if you were down south." I had to laugh. "Do you mean people down south are racist and ignorant?" She replied, "Yes, we are rednecks and rednecks rule down south." For some reason, I had to laugh. It didn't surprise me. I am so used to the racism and ignorance from people. Since I didn't leave and I posed a threat to him, Mr. Acker called the police. In his description to the police, he describes me as a "spic" and my girlfriend as "white trash". I couldn't lower myself to his level. With the help of my girlfriend I decided to leave. I have to be the best role-model I can be to my students and especially my son. How would it look if I killed this guy at a pet adoption event? Nobody would believe my story. They would only say that I am playing the race card.
I couldn't sleep that night. I had to find out who this guy was. A person full of racism, hatred and ignorance has to slip up somewhere along the line. I found out his name through the SPCA in CT. I left complaints about him through emails to the SPCA and through Channel 8 News in New Haven, CT. I also did an Internet search and found numerous complaints about this particular bigot. Here is a short list of them...
1. convicted felon of over 80 accounts of animal cruelty.
2. convicted of assaulting a woman, who worked for him. When the police arrived, they saw Mr. Acker with his pants down to his ankles. Was this possible rape? He claimed he was trying to stop her from driving because she was drunk. Wow, I didn't know having your pants down could be so helpful. We should all try that out.
3. The email address and phone number to the SPCA in Monroe, CT does not return any complaints. One client emailed the SPCA in Monroe about how he is looking to adopt a dog to help him with his anxiety disorder. He received an email back saying he is a loser and needs therapy instead of a dog. I wonder if these email were written by Mr. Acker.
4. Another couple made a claim against him for his disrespect and lack of professionalism. Mr. Acker was supposed to do a home inspection to see if the couple was eligible to adopt. He was late. His breath smelled of alcohol. He denied the couple, saying they did not fit the bill.
5. There are numerous claims that Fred Acker is selling only puppies and only for his profit. He recently lost a court case for overpopulating his kennel in Monroe, CT. There where complaints about the conditions of the kennel and the excessive barking from his dogs.

Although the SPCA is a non-profit organization, on his website they do take donations. I wonder where these donations actually go towards. This man continues to work for the SPCA. I do believe in this organization. I am sure the majority of volunteers really care for the animals and the families. This is one man that doesn't. He is only one of many ignorant, uneducated and racist people that walk amongst us. One of many racists that have authority.
Unfortunately, this is our reality show. Stories that are behind the scenes that you never hear about and get swept under society's rugs. As we all know racism plays a big part in all humans, whether we like it or not. We can ignore it all we want but it will always exist. God has blessed us with the ability of sight and color. Is hatred and racism how we return the favor?

Can we really ignore these numbers?

I am a person of color that has been teaching in inner-city schools for almost 20 years now. Like every other adult out there, I am deeply concerned and have been for awhile about the direction of America's culture through it's economy, schools, educational institutions, families and more important it's youth. As a math teacher, I am always looking for patterns and numbers. Numbers tell a scary observation.

1. Abortion rate: This is from Fox news ... Abortion rates among black women far exceed the rates of other groups.

2. High-Risk Population: In the article, "Respect your mind, protect your body", the author states The African-American rate of HIV/AIDS infection is five times higher than that for Caucasians; 38 percent AIDS cases reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been African-American.

• Reported primary and secondary syphilis rates among 15 - 19 year old males and females are higher for African Americans than for other racial and ethnic groups.
• Among all racial, ethnic and age categories, gonorrhea rates were highest in 1999 for African Americans ages 15 - 24 years.

The African-American teen birth rate remains at 85.3 births per 1,000 women, almost double the rate for Caucasian teens of 45.4 births per 1,000 women.

3. Child Molesters: from http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/press/rsorp94pr.htm

"Of the 9,700 sex offenders, 67 percent were white males and 32 percent were black males."
Blacks are 15% of the country and commit 32% of molestations. So the average black man is more likely to be a child molester than a white man based on race. Also keep in mind the 67% white includes Hispanics, who are counted as white.

4. Crime Rates:

* Blacks are seven times more likely than people of other races to commit murder, and eight times more likely to commit robbery.
* When blacks commit crimes of violence, they are nearly three times more likely than non-blacks to use a gun, and more than twice as likely to use a knife.

5. Prisons: Blacks make up the majority of our prisons. This is from the NY Times (2003) ...
Prison rates among blacks reach an all-time peak.

6. Infidelity: Black men are more likely to cheat on partners than any other race (32%). Whites are second at 20%. See the Steve McNair story. Here are two answers to this question from yahoo.com:

"I'm currently dating a black man, and not only has he cheated on me, but he also lies to me more than any of the other men I've dated."

"Out of all the boyfriends I've ever had, it was the black ones that cheated. even my friends who have or have had black boyfriends/husbands, most of them have cheated."

7. Standardized/Intelligence Scores: Blacks, along with Hispanics, score the lowest on these tests than any other race. Although critics may argue that the standardized tests are culturally biased, these tests are still required to be taken in our schools.

Blacks have made contributions to our society through music, dance and sports, but do they outweigh the erosion they have caused in our society. Who is at fault in the destruction of our families, schools, communities and our economy?

Role Reversal

I am in my 40's and have been teaching for almost 20 years now. I remember when I was a first or second year teacher sitting in a workshop that talked about gang violence in the area. The police officers talked about the recent gang-related crimes, home burglaries and drug-related crimes that have increased in the area (Pittsburgh) and the schools. I remember like it was yesterday how they put up on the board the percentages of those crimes being committed by black or Hispanic males. The officers would inform the teachers what to look out for...the color of clothes the person wore, the gang signs students may use or write on the walls or desks and of course, the color of their skin. Our country has racially profiled for a long time now, way before 9/11 occurred. But we need to be aware that times are changing and "roles" are being reversed. More than a decade or more ago our society viewed black, Hispanics or any person of color as one that was uneducated, unskilled and a serious problem to the fabric of lives.
In the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, the author explains clearly how 72% of child molestation crimes are committed by white males or females. You can't watch Headline News without seeing a crime against children involving a white criminal (example: Casey Anthony case). There is a recent case on the news of an 11-yr old girl being abducted in the state of Washington. What are the chances of her abductor being white? Numbers do not lie, people do.
If you look at the number of serial killers, www.deathreference.com, they are typically white. In fact, 73% of them are white. It is extremely rare to have a serial killer that is black, Hispanic or Asian.
Although domestic violence crimes have been reported to decrease or stay steady, the partner related crimes for white males have increased from 0.5 to 1.1 but that is per1000 males over the age of 12. I look for this trend to continue given the state of our economy. Stress has seemed to increase among partners especially when it comes to finances (See the Steve McNair story) and infidelity.
Was Darwin right in that animals change over time and adapt to their environment? Well, if he is, then our society and its people have truly changed and roles have certainly been reversed. People struggle to adapt to an environment that is constantly changing and changing fast. Where is our society, our children, our schools headed? Only time can tell, but if this trend continues then hatred will rule our lives.
Is there any hope for a brighter today and a peaceful tomorrow? Maybe we should invest in the themes in the Bible. It may serve as a guide to live life to the fullest. It is a storehouse of wonderful stories of triumph for children and adults. It is a source book for everyday living. It is a treasury of insight. Most importantly it is a refuge in trouble. People in pain, in suffering, in mourning and in prison have turned to it in desperate hours for strength and hope. I am not pushing religion or belief in the bible by any means, but maybe our society needs to take a different path than the one we are heading down.
I leave you with a quote from Albert Schweitzer...

Ethics, too, are nothing but reverence for life. This is what gives me the fundamental principle of morality, namely, that good consists in maintaining, promoting, and enhancing life, and that destroying, injuring, and limiting life are evil.

When America opened its doors, was this what they expected?

Imagine an immigrant, who supports a wife and 3 kids, coming into this country. He finds a job working in a Pittsburgh factory which hired illegals for jobs that required few special skills. The arrangement suited both sides until an injury on the job sent him to the local emergency room. He suffered permanent disability and now remains in the U.S. to claim compensation. This story is one of many we have heard that represents the faults in our nation's current argument on immigration.
Advocates of open immigration argue that our economy needs immigrants. Who else would do these low-wage jobs? Supporters say immigrants bring skills and capital that expand our economy. I have to disagree with these claims. America does not have a vast labor shortage that requires tidal waves of low-wage immigrants to alleviate. Unemployment all over this country is high. Immigrants, some of them illegal, are forcing out native workers. Some of these immigrants are uneducated and unskilled forcing businesses to crumble. They are taking jobs away from families that have lived here all their lives. Is this the American dream or the American nightmare?
These workers add little to our economy and come at a great cost. Immigration can only pay off if America reshapes it's policies and hires workers that they truly need. This country needs to exclude the ones that cost more than they contribute. The flood of immigrants, both legal and illegal, has caused a mismatch between uneducated populations and American economy. U.S. sentiment has risen to an all-time high to slow and even stop completely the overflow of our borders. Mexican immigrants can earn seven to ten times more in the United States as at home. Nearly two-thirds of them are high school dropouts. We have our own dropouts that need to find low-skilled and low-pay work. They are pushing our native workers out of jobs and into the unemployment lines. They are even pushing American products off the grocery shelves. Many grocery stores are now stocking up entire aisles of Mexican food products. What's next? Will Americans all be required to speak Spanish to gain employment?
Consequently, the waves of immigration continue, the overflow of those competing for low-skilled labor will continue to make the progress of our economy impossible. In fact, as Mexican immigrants flood our country, many of their children follow in their parent's footsteps in that 60% dropout of high school and then perform low-wage work. Immigration has certainly damaged the fabric of our economy and our schools. America has opened its doors. Was this the result the expected? It is my hope and dream, that we will someday wake up from this recurring nightmare.