Laws Offer Little Protection for Afghan Women

Women in Afghanistan are barely under the protection of laws, making them vulnerable to rape and assault by strangers and their relatives. Laws to protect women from forced marriages and rape are still not being enforced and while this issue has gained attention from the media, nothing is being done to stop it. While many women in jail are victims of rape and assault, a lot of them are imprisoned for refusing to marry, running away from their husbands, and for “adultery” when they are raped. Many Afghanistan women are blamed for committing a crime when it wasn’t their fault, often times taken advantage of by their perpetrator. Their rights have been violated and yet they are still being punished as criminals.

These women are running out of time to get their voices to be heard as the “international presence in Afghanistan draws down in the coming years”. The United Nations is pushing to make Afghanistan’s government enforce laws on violence against women, but the future for this looks bleak. Afghan laws are often prevented by traditional Afghan justice, which doesn't protect women and often lets perpetrators walk free. While movies are trying to be made to get more attention about the issue, countries don’t want to endanger the lives of the women who would be interviewed. This is an ongoing problem that unfortunately doesn’t look promising for Afghanistan women.

Question: Would an international women’s organization (i.e Women for Women) make effective change for women’s rights in Afghanistan? Would change be better served from a political body, like the United Nations? Or should a religious organization (i. e Islamic Relief) try to effect change for women’s rights?

Link to source: Here

current event

Monday, the senate of Iran announced that two bills were unanimously passed regarding women called the Anti-Women Practices Bill and the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill. Senator Nilofar Bakhtiar led the charge for such rights and finally had the two bills passed. He stated that the reason for these bills was that “several practices and customs in vogue in the country which were not only against human dignity but also volatile to human rights”.

In these new bills, one main issue that the bill regarded was that women are now not forced into marriage or have to marry the Quran. The women also if forced to marry, than the perpetrator will would be punished with imprisonment of up to seven years but not less than three years. The perpetrator would also, on top of jail time, be fined for their actions.

Another main reason that was mentioned in these bills was that women now were also in Iran allowed to receive their rightful share in inheritance and giving. Section 498A of the bill states that “woman inheriting any movable or immovable property at the time of opening of succession” and whoever by deceitful or illegal needs deprives such, will also be punished and put in jail that may reach up to 10 years and no less than 5. The perpetrator in this case would also be fined twice as much as the last offense would be.

Nilofar Bakhtiar believes in these two laws and states that currently, Such customary norms, which are contrary to Islamic injunctions, should be done away forthwith and the persons continuing such practices be dealt with severely by providing penal and financial liabilities and furthermore believes that these two bills that were recently passed can fix that.

Essential Question: Do you agree with what Nilofar Bakhtiar is saying and with the new laws that were passed? Why or why not?

Sources: http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=10937&Cat=13

http://www.dawn.com/2011/12/13/senate-passes-two-women-bills.html

Three Waves of Feminism Reading

Click here and enjoy!

Derek Scafid: "The Heartbeat Bill"

Background:

Roe v. Wade:

This was a major Supreme Court ruling on the controversial topic of Abortion. Based on the fourteenth amendment which states:

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

The outcome of this case was that the court decided a right to privacy by due process under the 14^th amendment, making abortions legal in the early months of pregnancy.

After this case, abortions will become illegal after the fourth month of pregnancy.

The new Ohio Bill, “the Heartbeat Bill”, with the nation’s most strict abortion limit, with make it illegal for a women to have an abortion if and when the fetus has a heartbeat, which is seen and heard over an ultrasound. This heartbeat is often heard after only 6 weeks of being pregnant. Ohio Prolife Action, which is a group that’s goal is to support the pro life movement in the state of Ohio, has been airing anti abortion ads and also advertise the state senators’ phone numbers, in effort to build more support to the heartbeat bill. In Early June the much republican Ohio House passed the bill with a 55-44 vote. At the House hearing, Ultrasounds were done, so that legislators could see and hear the fetal heart beats. A group called Ohio Right to Life has no current thoughts on the Bill. They only think that if legislation takes too long, and the bill is fought in court, the justices will shoot it down. Some people of Ohio have a strong feeling that the state should not be so concerned with abortion, and should not “waste” money on the matter. Instead, the state should be working on the 9% unemployment. Talks in the Senate began today, and are still ongoing.

Question to classmates: What are your feelings towards this state bill? Do you agree or disagree with the Bill? Why? What do you think will happen to this Bill in the Senate? If the Senate passes it, do you think it will be challenged in court and why do you think the outcome with be? Why?

sources:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/12/07/ohio_senators_hear_heartbeat_abortion_bill/

Iron Jawed Angels - Mindmap

Create a mindmap of the events depicted in the film, Iron Jawed Angels.  We imagine this will be a timeline of sorts, but feel free to get creative.  Begin with the creation of NAWSA as discussed in our tableau lecture and end with the passage of the 19th Amendment. You should document all of the important events, concepts, and themes illustrated.  Include details (words, images, phrases) that you took from the film.  For example, each mindmap should include a section that examines the role of black women in the movement.  You can find a synopsis of the film here if you need a refresher.  This can be constructed on 8 1/2 x 11 paper.

Steinem's Wall Street Occupied as Women Still Earn Less Than Men

Recent movements such as the Occupy Wall Street movement have brought the subject of unequal wages to the attention of many. In 2010 college graduates owed an average of $25,250 after completing college. Due to women getting paid less than men (about 81 cents for every dollar a man makes) it makes paying off this debt a lot harder. Lower wages and an unemployment rate of 9.1% for college graduates age 20-24 in 2010 combine to make paying off these debts almost impossible.
The people who are fighting for this equality call themselves the 99% which is a reference to Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz's study showing that the richest 1% controls 40% of the U.S wealth.

Question: Why do you think women are getting paid an average of 81 cents for every dollar a man makes? Also what do you think about Stiglitz's study; does it surprise you that the richest 1% of population owns 40% of the U.S wealth?




Link to Article: Click Here

Women Abuse in the Military

There are over 210,000 women that are active in the US military today, with around 60,000 women troops that were deployed support the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Even though women recruits are now common in the US military, there is a high percentage of women that have reported being sexually abused by men during their service. A 2004 survey registered by the Pentagon recorded that one out of seven woman soldiers in active duty have reported being sexually abused by male soldiers, and only an estimated one-third of the incidents were reported. Another survey conducted by the national phone services reported that nearly half of the Vietnam women veterans were susceptible to sexual abuse with 35% admitting victims to physical abuse, and 30% declared they were victims of rape.

Women abuse in the military have been continues for the past few recent decades. In the 1991 Talihook scandal, over 100 navy officers were accused of sexually assaulting and harassing multiple women, which had been approved by a Navy brass official for years. No officer were charged for their crimes and were let off without convictions. A similar case occurred at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland where drill instructors were accused of sexually assaulting several women during their training. Among the different military services the Army has shown the highest rates of sexual abuse against women followed by the Marines, Navy, and Air Force.

Though women victimization of sexual assault are common in the military most of the incidences go unreported and unnoticed by the military officials. Women who were victims of sexual assault have admitted that they fear confessing their perpetrators due to a lack of privacy, confidentiality, and limited victim services. Many who do announce their victimization later get harassed, intimidated, and further abused by other soldiers. Perpetrators of the crime hardly receive any convictions or harsh punishment, and are usually sent to other base camps or required to take marriage counseling or anger-management classes. Nearly 5000 soldiers who have been accused of sexual assault in 1992 where given no prosecution or any sort of punishment. Those that serviced between 1988-1993, 80% received honorable discharges when retired, and 54% were promoted to higher ranks. Since the past years twice as many sex offenders that were charged for sexual assault received administrative punishment rather than court rulings.

Only recently has the United States began to form policies and laws that would terminate sexual abuse in the military. The Department of Defense have been conducting frequent reviews on their policies toward sexual assaults, programs to help those that were victims. Findings of the Department of Defense showed that they had poorly organized data systems documenting reports of sexual assault in the military as well as many missing cases. The DOD have concluded that they not been enforcing their policies and programs towards sexual assault, and that they require greater help and awareness for those that were victimized. The DOD have declared that the Secretary of Defense needs to take action in developing and administering new policies that would reconstruct the various programs that have failed to end sexual harassment in the military. New policies have been recommend to Congress and Secretaries, but many have been ignored and failed to be acknowledge by the government.

Why are women recruits so susceptible to sexual assault during their service in America? What can be done to change further crimes against women in service and end sexist ideologies that would unify our military?

Source: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/512380

"Personhood" Campaign

In Mississippi, a state constitutional amendment was proposed that would limit

women’s reproductive rights. This amendment stated that a fertilized human egg be

considered a person, legally. If this had been put into place, it would mean that abortion

and some birth control would become illegal. Women would not be allowed to use the

‘morning- after pill’ or similar contraceptives, since it would be considered killing an

actual person. This leaves the state with partial control of the reproductive rights of

women. The campaign behind this proposal is called Personhood USA, which is a group

spreading throughout the United States.

The proposal was put on a ballot but recently voted down. Although it was voted

down in Mississippi, supporters of Personhood USA say that several other states intend to

get this on the ballots within the next few years. Many anti-abortion activists are jumping

onto this campaign, even though it includes much more than just abortions, like birth

control and women’s rights. As the director of the Bioethics and Health Law Center at the

Mississippi College of Law, Jonathan F. Will said, “My first thought, literally, was

people aren't going to understand what this means ... what implications it has beyond

abortions”. In many situations, it takes away women’s choice to decide, which has often

been the case throughout history.

Women have had limited rights over their own pregnancy in the past and today

around the world. Religion and culture has often restricted abortions and birth controls.

Historically, societies have been mostly male-dominated. In these societies, women did

not have a say in, for example, how many children they were to have. While we no longer live in a male-dominated society, limiting birth control rights go along these lines since

they take away from women’s choice.

Question: Do you think we need laws to outline when life begins, or should people be allowed to have their own opinion about it and make decisions based on that?Why?

Let the Women Die Act Passed

Last week a bill passed through the House of Representatives, HR 358 or the let the women die act. The act states that medical facilities can refuse to provide, pay for, and provide coverage for abortions. They can even let a women die in order to prevent an abortion. This new act ties hand and hand with the urban victim of violence act, which was passed in 2004. The law states that a fetus is a person and has rights separate from its mother. Both acts are very pro life and prevent women from having abortions.

Question: Do you think it was right for the house to pass this bill? Should women be left to die rather than given an abortion that could save their life?

Source: http://action.now.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=4870

Women's Rights: A Call of Action

Follow this link to the American Studies Website to VIEW your primary source documents. They are grouped by theme, so you might need to scroll through to find yours.  Remember, you should click "view" and not "download".

Josh's Current Event

Deportations Under New US Policy Aren’t Consistent
This weekend I was researching about immigration and I came across two articles about deportation. In the articles, it talked about how the Obama Administration’s policy of deportation was putting forth their efforts on only deporting those illegal immigrants who are criminals. It states in an article from The New York Times that when the policy was put in action it confused many lawyers and officials because I guess it was spread out unevenly across the United States, so not everyone knew all the details about it but they heard about it. So the Obama Administration didn’t tell the public in a successful way. The policy was put into action in June of this year and the point of it is to deport criminal immigrants as high priority rather than every illegal immigrant coming in contact with officials. According to The New York Times, in the last three years, 400,000 immigrants were deported from this country; however, many of them were not criminals. So now, because they are finding that a lot of them were innocent, criminally, even though they came here illegally, the Obama Administration’s new policy is enacted to deport those immigrants who are criminals.

Another article that just came out yesterday, Monday, November 14, 2011, talked about the policy again being “applied unevenly.” A case that the article talked about where the Administration’s policy was not applied to, stated that Matias Ramos, a UCLA graduate and student activist found himself wearing an “electronic shackle” in September, was then deported to his home country, Argentina. He was given “temporary” social media reprieve and even though he had a clean record and therefore was not a criminal, he was deported even though the Obama Administration’s policy towards immigrant criminal deportation states that he could have remained in the country, he was still deported. There were a couple of other cases like this one that also happened recently, and that said the immigration policy needs to flourish through the states soon and efficiently so these cases stop and people don’t get deported when they don’t need to be.

The historical significance of this would be that before the policy the racial profiling was going on in the past, whether it was Arizona’s state policy where it was granted to the state officials to demand immigrants for their papers, or the Muslims being denied entry into the country.

Do you agree with the Obama Administration's decision in prioritizing deportation to the criminal illegal immigrants? Why? Also do you think that the activist Matias Ramos deserved deportation under the administration's new rule? Why/Why not? Do you think that the Obama Administration needs to spread the word better so people like Matias doesn't get deported when they are not the top priority?

SOURCES:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/13/us/politics/president-obamas-policy-on-deportation-is-unevenly-applied.html
http://multiamerican.scpr.org/2011/11/obamas-new-deportation-policy-still-being-applied-unevenly/
http://www.truth-out.org/mia-obamas-new-common-sense-immigration-policy/1317131066

Women's Studies Essential Question

Choose one of the questions we developed in our brainstorming activity today to pursue over the course of this unit.  Choose wisely, for it will become your final assessment.  Feel free to borrow a question from the work of previous American Studies students (see below).

HERE IS SOME OF OUR CONVERSATION:

Woman are at a disadvantage politically
Marriage rates are declining
The role of the media
Women having no economic rights once married
Women accept their roles
de Jure (by law) v. de Facto (as a matter of fact) discrimination
The legal acceptance of domestic violence

How does the historical era in which a woman lives affect her rights?
Who has historically had the power to make the rules?
Has real progress been made looking at the present day state of women?
What is the changing role of marriage?
Why are laws not keeping up with the cultural advantages of women?
What role does the media play?
Why does sex sell?
What role do/have women played in perpetuating the problem?

OTHER ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

1. How does one accomplish change in society?
2. How can a disadvantaged group advocate for change?
3. What motivates groups to advocate for social change?
4. What methods can activists use to create social change?
5. What are the obstacles that groups face in their struggle to achieve social change?
6. What has been the changing role of women throughout American history?
7. Must groups achieve social, political, and economic rights in order to achieve equality? 
8. Should groups work within the system to create change or work from outside in order to force a desired change?
9. What effect does the law have on the way people act?
10. What has changed the way we perceive gender roles? What has not changed?
11. Why have we historically restricted reproductive rights?
12. How has our society’s power structure affected gender relations?
13. What role do the media play in perpetuating gender roles and stereotypes?
14. What’s the relationship between body image and violence against women?
15. Why is it important to study women’s history?
16. How has the role of women in politics changed over time? Or, not changed?
17. How is women’s involvement in politics limited by gender/societal expectations?
18. In what ways have women been affected by the law?
19. How have social activists created change?
20. What’s the connection between expected societal roles for women and the level of respect/power they’re issued?
21. How have American women impacted social and political issues globally?
22. In what way were/are expected gender roles for women different from expected gender roles worldwide?
23. How has clothing and appearance of women changed over time? Is there a relationship between the change and their political roles?
24. How have women’s professional roles developed over time?
25. What role has marriage played in the lives of women over time?
26. Has marriage become more or less of a societal norm for women, and why?
27. How do gender roles impact a woman’s professional life?

Tims Current Event

Why do women earn less then men for doing the exact same job? Even if they have the same background and experience women earn less then men. This has been an ongoing problem in the workplace for a long as people have been working. The federal government has confirmed that the workplace earnings gap between men and women still persists today. The earnings gap between men and women has narrowed, but a new White House report shows that on average women still only make about 75% as much as their male counterparts. Despite a sense of continued progress toward wage equality, inequality still exists.

It all started in WWII when women had to start working in the workforce doing jobs that men had traditionally done. They went into the factories and businesses because the men were all at war. The people who owned the factories discriminated against the women not paying them the same wages they paid the men and that same attitude has prevailed even up to today. The JFK Equal Pay Right law was passed in 1963 but since the law was passed women's wages have improved very little, going up a half a penny each year. At this rate it will be 2109 before they are paid the same as men.

President Barack Obama agrees in equality of pay towards women, but some Senators are still wary of passing more laws for women because of the affect it will have on small businesses fighting the legal battles.

Do you agree with Barack Obama in putting more laws in place for equal pay for women or do you agree with the Senators who think that more laws will create more problems and create more job losses for small businesses which will further affect the economy?

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-01/politics/female.income.gap_1_fewer-women-show-women-men-and-women?_s=PM:POLITICS

http://usgovinfo.about.com/cs/censusstatistic/a/womenspay.htm

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/aug/31/cmi-equal-pay-report

http://bangordailynews.com/2010/09/19/politics/paycheck-fairness-act-on-thin-ice/?ref=relatedBox

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/equalpayact1.html

Women in America

FIRST - Your homework DUE THURSDAY is to complete the media log in your possession.

SECOND - Comment here regarding your initial thoughts about today's introduction to our Women's Studies unit.  What did it make you wonder/think/ponder?

Kirsten's Current Event

Article: DU: NO WATER OR POWER FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

http://decaturdaily.com/stories/DU-No-water-or-power-for-illegal-immigrants,87348

Topic: Alabama Immigration Law

Historical Significance:

-14^th Amendment passed in 1868: protects all born citizens in the United States- however by taking these rights away from the children that are born here and living with their illegal immigrant parents, they are not being protected.

-Immigration is a federal policy and it is being taken under the states belt-unconstitutional?

Decatur Utilities is a service providing over 30,000 people in the Decatur, Alabama area with water and power. It is run by the city of Decatur. As of Sunday 11/6/11, Decatur Utilities prohibited illegal immigrants from having access to electricity, gas, water or sewer service. Prior to this, residents who were obtaining services from the DU were required to provide identification and their immigration status was irrelevant at the time. Because of the new immigration law in Alabama, DU officials are now going through all of their client’s immigration status to ensure they are only providing services to those who are legal and documented. The US Department of Justice claimed that denying illegal immigrant’s service is valid under section 30 of the law, so this justified what the DU is doing as constitutional. Section 30 declares “it a felony for illegal immigrants to transact business with the state of subdivisions.” State Attorney General Luther Strange argues that this utility is not qualified as a subdivision. Stephen Pirkle the business manager and chief financial officer of DU stated that this has been imposed in the past few weeks but hasn’t begun to take away privileges of those who are illegal. Pirkle also explained how any person already receiving services will not be shut off and that this is only applying to the new people applying for services and turn out to be illegal. “Section 30 of the Beason-Hammon Alabama Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act requires the state and its political subdivisions to confirm that individuals conducting “business transactions” — which the law defines to mean “any transaction” — are legally present in the United States.” By denying new illegal citizens they are simply following the law. State Rep. Micky Hammon, R-Decatur, the House sponsor of the law, applauded DU for taking the step. “Our goal was to prevent any business transactions with any governments. It’s just an extension of the goal of the entire bill — to prevent illegal immigrants from coming to Alabama and to discourage those that are here from putting down roots,” Hammon said. People favoring the DU’s decision to deny water and power to illegal immigrants they hope that this will fear people to come to Alabama illegally and if they are already here to self-deport. A conspiracy Clause was also added in which is convicting a person with a felony is they are to help an illegal immigrant seek service without being documented. Federal District judge Sharon Blackburn “concluded that Section 30 applied to commercial contracts and licenses at the very least,” in a September decision blocking enforcement of some portions of the law, and she hadn’t mentioned weather section 3 applied to utilities. Barney Lovelace a Decatur lawyer later confirmed that their utilities required documentation. The article also described how Huntsville Utilities in Huntsville Alabama set the same policy Decatur did.

Fear of this policy described how health ramifications would eventually impact the children, who in the majority of the time are US citizens; of the immigrants because they are not getting the appropriate services they need to stay healthy. This was defined as a policy “to make like more difficult by destroying households and families, and that’s just what it is doing.

Probing Question: Do you agree with what Decatur Utilities is prompting to do? Do you think the utilities that the DU provides are fundamental rights that should be protected by the fourteenth amendment and therefore granted to all U.S. residents?

Anthony's Current Event

After the terrorist attacks during September 11, 2001, immigration policies have been viewed as a matter of national security. Since all 19 terrorists were foreign immigrants who had entered the country legally, detecting terrorist activity became one of the top priorities of the government. in doing this the government increased immigration policies and racism was at an all time high for Muslim immigrants.

Tareq Abu Fayad was a 24 year-old Palestinan who came to the United States on a valid immigrant visa. Although Fayad had come here legally, he was not allowed into the country because police officials said he was a "possible terrorist threat". When asked why they thought this, their evidence was that he had an education in computer science and had a clear criminal record. Although this sounds more like a reason to let him into the country, officials said that he would be a perfect recruit for a terrorist group because nobody would ever suspect him as a terrorist. It is also rumored that airport security are sometimes willing to "look the other way" when it comes to racial profiling. Muslims or people who are perceived to be Muslims have also been detained for no reason other than suspicion.

This loop-hole puts people who oppose immigration an advantage against immigrants. By using the "possible terrorist" reason. Officials are able to detain immigrants with no other real reason than racial profiling. Immigrants are put at a disadvantage because, as in Abu Fayads case, they can only lose. If they have a clean record such as Fayad did, with no criminal record and a good education, then they will be labeled as a perfect recruit for a terrorist group. But if they do have a criminal record or a bad education, then they will be seen as not fit to enter our country.

On the other hand, National security is a very big issue as well as the war on terror. Although these accusations may seen hurtful and racist, it may be what has to be done to keep the country safe. By being harsh with these immigrants, although they may be deporting many non-guilty immigrants, they may also be deporting some guilty immigrants, who did come to the country on behalf of a terrorist group.

So what I ask you is...
Is it right to profile these immigrants they way these police officials have been?
And if it is not right, what can we do to stop racial profiling but still keep the country safe?

Links...

http://www.migrationinformation.org/USfocus/display.cfm?ID=852

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sameer-ahmed/abusing-immigration-law-t_b_863494.html

President Obama's Immigration Policy

Watch this video and then complete your analysis of our American Immigration unit theme, "Ideal v. Reality".

Immigration Story Reflection

First of all, great job today everyone!  What a great experience it was to hear all of your family histories.  Comment here on the following:

Describe the complexity of the American immigrant experience.  What were some of the commonalities that emerged?  What were some of the things that surprised you?

Sam's Current Event

In the United States and other countries such as Britain and Australia, the use of private security companies has turned the detention of unwanted immigrants into a multinational industry. Governments are looking for private companies so that they can expand detention centers. This movement will show voters that they are enforcing stronger and tougher immigration laws. Some companies support this idea and say that they are meeting demands faster. But the production of privatized detention has been joined by other inspection reports, lawsuits, and documents that said this act was an act of abuse and neglect. Some human rights groups say that the detention centers has neither worked as a deterrent or sped up deportation rates. Now, private companies control nearly half of the detention centers in the United States. No country has completely outsourced these immigration detention centers that have been running since 1998.

Do you think it is ethically right that these illegal immigrants are being held in the detention centers?

Ariana's Current Event 11/3/11

            In the whole country, it is believed there are over 11 million illegal immigrants. In just Alabama, there are about 120 illegal immigrants. Because of this outrageous number, the state decided to create their own policy about immigration. This anti-immigration law became effective in September, as the strictest immigration law of any state. Alabama’s goal for the state was to make jobs and taxpayer-funded resources go strictly to just legal residents. The newly composed policy will aim to protect those rights and contribute to solving these issues of overpopulation of illegal immigrants. This law made it necessary for the need of paperwork to prove United States citizenship when enrolling in school, signing a lease, or interacting with the government.

This law is said to be the largest experiment yet for “attrition through enforcement,” which means they are driving away the illegal immigrants. To do this, they need to make life much harder for the illegal immigrants by enforcing panic and fear, and therefore producing suffering. In doing so, the unauthorized immigrants will want to leave on their own. Since most illegal immigrants in Alabama are Hispanic, unintended harassment has affected the legal Hispanic immigrants as well. The Hispanic children in Alabama are being bullied and discriminated against because they are said to be “different.” Some examples of these students being bullied would be when they win a sports game against American boys and the Americans respond with discriminating comments, such as “You shouldn’t be winning. You should go back to Mexico” This quote is from The Blaze website, said by parents trying to protect their children. Bullying to these students has always been a problem, but ever since this law came into effect, the bullying is much worse.

            The law has only been valid for a month and already there is the gaining of unpleasant fears for the people of Alabama. Most Hispanic houses are emptying, businesses are shutting down, and employers are questioning where their workers have gone. Parents are also keeping their children out of school because their parents are so frightened of what could happen. However, Alabama residents are concerned because they need immigration labor for farming. Native-born citizens of the United States lack what is needed to work on the fields. Even if they are unemployed, Americans are not willing to do this work. Americans do not have the stamina or the skill, so the need for Hispanic immigrants is high.

            One of the main reasons why Alabama wants to put this law into effect is because the population of the United States is said to double within the next 75 years with just legal immigrants. However, when adding in the illegal immigrant population, the population will double in about 40 years.

Do you think this policy is going to be effective or will it harm to state? Also, is it okay or is it an invasion of privacy for residents to be required to carry proof of being a legal immigrant? Lastly, what should they do about the bullying in schools? It’s not the child’s fault their parent is an illegal immigrant. Therefore, what do you do when an illegal immigrant has a child born in the United States, do you deport them both back to their country or just the parent?

Sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/opinion/its-what-they-asked-for.html?ref=illegalimmigrants

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/are-hispanic-kids-being-bullied-in-alabama-because-of-immigration-law-parents-say-yes/

Immigration Narrative Resources

Destination American: Why did they come?

Destination America: When did they come?

Destination America: Personal Stories

Immigration Overview

Library of Congress

Immigrant Housing

The History Channel - Ellis Island

Ellis Island Website

Crossing the BLVD

Migration

The New Americans

Other Immigration Websites

ASSIGNMENT DUE THURSDAY 11/3/11: Frank McCourt's "Tis"

Frank McCourt, pictured here in his classroom)

So we had a chance to read part of Frank McCourt's immigration story tonight. We learned that he had a lot of mixed emotions about coming to the States--on one hand he was excited to come, but on the other hand, we learned that he was going to miss aspects of his life in Limerick. Your job is to consider his story as an example for your own writing project. Here's your question: Respond as a comment to this post.



What was one aspect of Frank McCourt's story that you might consider using for your own immigration narrative? Think about how he starts the story (his reasons for leaving), how he gets the money to travel, how he prepares to leave, how he describes the journey, and how he encounters the new world in which he arrives. Which part did you find most interesting, and how could you adapt that part of the story structure to your own story?

My Current Event was about the United States giving out H-1B work visas to immigrants from India so they can work in the States legally because they can provide specialized skills. Most of the jobs that they come to work for are architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, biotechnology, medicine, health, education, law, accounting, business specialties, theology, arts and more. This is year there has been a 24% increase on the number of H-1B visas given out then last year. Last year only 54.111 visas were given to India. Currently there has been 65,000 h-1B visas given out and 20,000 additional visas to people who have Masters Degrees from other countries.

An H-1B visa is a non-immigrant work visa that allows United States employers to hire foreign workers who have a bachelors degree or higher to come work in the US according to the Immigration and Nationality Act section 101(a). They only work in highly specialized jobs. Their visa is only good for three years but after it is up the applicants can reapply or they can be given another visa good for another three years. They are payed just like the other workers in the company except if they choose they can pay money to get coverage so they do not go through fraud or anything bad.

United States has given out so many visas to India because they benefit us the most while they do their jobs. India has given more than twice as many H-1B as the four next highest countries combined. India also remains the leader in L-1 visas also. In 2011 more than 25,000 L1 visas were given out making it 37% of the issuance's worldwide. L1 visas are also good up to three years like H-1B but if the person becomes part of the management level they are able to stay up to seven years. They are assigned to work for people both in the Us and their home country. If they do become managers they are able to apply for a green card. India's Us consulates in Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata have expanded their staff to process the increase of applicants for a green card.

Untied States citizens are not to happy about so many H-1B visas getting handed out because they do not hold safe positions in their jobs. Any Indian can come to the States and take their job from them even if they have been working there for longer and are more qualified. The immigrant workers can move up and get promotions even if they have been there for a shorter time it is all about who is working harder and who seems to be the better person to have a job with more responsibility. Certain job advertisements are tailored to work well with immigrants too. The people giving out the jobs make their advertisements seem well fitting to the immigrants so they will think about trying to take the job.

The US is paying an extra $2000 dollars to get all the immigrants to our country which is affecting the companies here because they are spending their money to pay for the H-1B and L1 visas when they could be spending their money on their businesses. A bill was issued that could raise they price of the visas so there will not be so many of then and long trips will only be encouraged they cannot do trips for only one or three months anymore. This bill is currently in process and the visas are only a part of it so it will take a while to get approved or denied.

Question: Do you think the visas should be a higher price so there is not as many immigrant in our country? Why or why not?

Tyler's Current Event: Alabama immigration law is working, Rep. Mo Brooks says

The article I read was about a Representative of Alabama talking about the new law that was put into affect there. The new law was passed on September 28 and has been called the toughest immigration law in the country. It was largely based on the Arizona State immigration law that was passed on the 23 of April. There is a lot of controversy surrounding these two laws by people who see both sides of the issue. On one side you have people who wanted everyone to be equal and to have the same rights. While the other side sees illegal immigrants poorly because they cheated the system and are reaping all of our benefits that could be going to someone who is legal. After the Alabama law was passed into law people brought it to the district courts for being unconstitutional among other reasons. A United States District Judge Sharon Blackburn ruled on the law and cut certain points out of it. What is left is as follows, Schools must check every student’s and parent’s immigration status and report it to the state, police officers must ask anyone who they believe is undocumented to prove they are legal, it is now a state crime to be illegal and undocumented, contracts entered into with an illegal immigrant are now null and void, and illegal immigrants can be detained for as long as necessary.

People are making a big deal about these laws because of how long our country has had an issue with immigrants. We can see from the packet that our teachers gave us that all the way back to 1790, when the first law was passed about immigration there have been people with different opinions about this issue. There have been periods when people welcomed immigrants in because the economy was strong and during periods when they didn’t, they had exclusion acts that shut certain races out. Currently everybody is starting to realize that the more illegal immigrants coming into the country and taking legal American’s jobs the more people cannot make a living. The main reason why this law is significant is because people are unhappy with people coming illegally to the country at this time.

There are two deeply divided sides of this issue. One consists of the people who brought the law to court and believe it should be removed. Here are some of the reasons why people believe the law should not exist. The children with illegal parents will not go to school for fear of never seeing their parents again. Parents will be afraid to go to work. Bad cops who like harassing people will stop potential people just for the fun of it. There is a fear that the cops will be seen more as immigration agents then as police officers. Also they believe people will start talking about ethnic cleansing going on in the state.

The other side consists of people who believe that it will help out the states with jobs and money. Representative Mo Brookes of Alabama is on this side. This is his response to the critics of this new law. “Those are the intended consequences of Alabama’s legislation with respect to illegal aliens,” Brooks said. “We don’t have the money in America to keep paying for the education of everybody else’s children from around the world. We simply don’t have the financial resources to do that. Second, with respect to illegal aliens who are now leaving jobs in Alabama, that’s exactly what we want.” The fact that the law is doing what it was designed to do means that it is working. This is the overall message of all the supporters of this new law. After it was passed thousands of kids did not show up for school and thousands of parents did not show up to work. When the illegal immigrants do not show up to school or work it opens up resources that would otherwise be used up. People also believe that this will deter illegal immigrants from coming into Alabama.

Links: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65351.html

http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2011/10/alabama_law_quotes.html/#r1

If you had to take a side on this issue and state your case on why this was the right choice, which side would it be and what are your reasons for choosing it?

The Promise of America

Using the three primary sources shared over the last two days (Crevecouer, Lazarus, and Obama), explain what the promise of America to immigrants has historically been.  Be sure you use SPA format pulling your proof from at least one of the sources discussed.

Melissa's Current Event- American Indian Fund Elouise Cobell

On Sunday October 16, 2011, Blackfeet Native American Elouise Cobell had died. Elouise Cobell was an important woman in our countries history for representing a 16-year battle with the United States government for Indian Funds. Elouise was one Native American woman who spoke out when she heard that the United States government was not fulfilling its promise to allowing equal opportunities for education to Native Americans. One thing that caught her attention was when she saw that the Interior Department had failed to account for billions of dollars that they were supposed to collect on behalf of more than 300,000 of her fellow Native Americans. Because she did so, President Barak Obama was able to sign into law a piece of legislation that provided a measure of justice to those who were affected. The law, The American Indian College Fund creates a scholarship fund that gives Native Americans access to higher education and gives tribes more control over their own lands. Elouise was an important woman because she helped strengthen the government to government relationship with Indian Country and our nation’s promise of justice and opportunity for all.

As we have been learning in class about Native Americans and their history in our country, we know that education was a main issue that needed to be acknowledged and solved by our government. Throughout our country in the past 100 years, Native Americans have not had it very easy. The government came in and tried to change the ways of the Native Americans to better our country. In doing so they tried an issue called assimilation, which was proposed to take Native American children and force them into boarding schools which would result in civilizing them and removing the Indian. When they first thought of this idea they believed that it would be very successful and the Native American children would become well educated civilized Americans, but what actually happened was that they were destroying their culture and the education standards were not meeting up to their full potential. In later years, the United States government tried self-determination which allowed much more freedom for the Native Americans and gave them schools on the reservations; the only problem was that since they had their own communities on the reservations, they were now on their own. Even though the government was supposed to be funding for these schools and making sure they met the standards, this was not the case. This is what Elouise Cobell had noticed.

Cobell was an amzing woman in our history and by many she is kown as an inspiring leader. Larry Echo Hawk, Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs stated, “She was tireless in her efforts to reach a respectable resolution to the long-standing Cobell litigation. The Claims Resolution Act of 2010, signed into law by President Obama, will forever remain a testament to her colossal feat. Through her legacy, individual Indians will have more control over their lands and many American Indian and Alaska Natives will be able to pursue higher education through the scholarship component of the settlement.” This shows us how dedicated and how strongly Elouise committed her life to strengthening Indian country. Because of her efforts for this issue she also was responsible for the start of the American Indian College Fund that transforms Indians higher education by funding and creating awareness of the unique, community-based accredited Tribal Colleges and Universities, offering students access to knowledge, skills, and cultural values which enhance their communities and the country as a whole. The Fund disburses approximately 6,000 scholarships annually for American Indian students seeking to better their lives through higher education. This was such a big deal and is greatly appreciated by the American government and especially by Cobell’s Blackfeet Native American tribe in Montana, because it finally gives Native Americans the opportunity for a better education so they can succeed in life. Elouise Cobell is noticed and honored by many in our country today for being a Native American woman who had a voice and used it to say what was on her mind when she knew no one else would speak up. Many are truly upset about the loss, but know that what she had fought for over the years was well worth it because of such the impact she has had on society and everything she has done for her Native American people in bettering their lives. President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, Richard B. Williams was one person who was especially sadden by the passing of Elouise Cobell and believed she was a warrior that embodied the Indian value of decision-making that considered seven generations into the future. He states that “The American Indian College Fund will be honoring Ms.Cobell this Thursday at the American Indian College Fund’s Flame of Hope Gala in Denver, Colorado, for ensuring that $60 million of the class action settlement she led be set aside for Native students to attend college and vocational school, bringing hope through education to American Indian people.” The work that Cobell had done was well known throughout the United States and was such a great accomplishment and really brought together the relationship between the government and the Indian country. What she had done has solved many of the problems this country has had over many years with Native Americans, but now they can be proud and thankful to finally be granted the same opportunities as everyone else and will have a better education. Elouise’s work will never be forgotten and she will always be known to our government as a hero; the woman who spoke up.

Question: Do you think that becuase of what Elouise Cobell has done, and by starting the American Indain College Fund, that Native Americans will now have all the opportunities they deserve? Will all Native Americans use this to their advantage and work for a better education?

My current event focuses on the conflict between the Navajo National Government and a popular clothing store known as Urban Outfitters. The Navajo tribe is recognized as the largest Native American tribe that resides in North America. This tribe consists of over 140,000 residents. Urban Outfitters has received allegations from the tribe, which states, the store has disrespected and violated the Navajo Nation by making Navajo branded clothing and accessories. Native American prints have been showing up on runways for years but the Navajo government says that the issue with Urban Outfitters is that they use “Navajos” as the brand name for the clothing line. The tribes Department of Justice sent the store a detailed letter back in June demanding the store remove their tribe name from the clothing line, the tribe has yet to hear a response. The Navajo tribe believes that this store using their tribes name as a brand for their new clothing line is sending off a signal to customers that the Navajo tribe is the real designers of this product, but yet the Navajo tribe is receiving no profit. Other tribe members believe the store is disrespecting their culture, most of the cloths go against the tribes spiritual beliefs of modesty that has been in their culture for centuries, like the “Navajo Print Fabric Wrapped Flask”,Dwayne Clauschee, a designer from the Navajo town of Chinle in Arizona says “A “Navajo” flask is“extremely offensive” considering the history of alcohol abuse among native tribes, many of which ban the sale and consumption of alcohol on their reservations.” Alcoholism is a stereotype that is put on many Native Americans; Alcohol was introduced to the Native Americans during the early contact between them and European Settlers. And it is said that European traders gained the upper hand in the deal by introducing alcohol because of the effects it had on Native thoughts and reasoning. Thus, sending the Native American in a downward spiral and Native Americans were from then on out considered alcoholics. Some Native Americans are alcoholics, but it is estimated that 17.6 million people are alcoholics in the U.S, there are only 2 million Native Americans in this country. And alcohol has been banned from some reservations, like the Navajo tribe, which is the largest reservation in the U.S, so not all Native Americans are alcoholics. So the fact the Urban Outfitters is offending the Native Americans past by using a liquor flask on some of the clothes under the name of“Navajos’ is extremely offensive. However, Urban Outfitters is not alone by using the “Navajo” name to represent one of their products, Fermin Navar and his business partner, Phil Brader, signed a 75-year licensing agreement with the Navajo Nation in 2007 that allows them to sell skin care products and clothing under the Navajo name in exchange for a share of the profits. But the difference here is that Urban Outfitters’ asked for no approval from the Navajo government and they are not receiving any profits from the store. The tribe appeals to most clothing stores because they are one of the most well known tribes in North America, and with their assistance in WW11, in WW11 the Navajo’s help to develop a secret code that baffled the Japanese and help lead the U.S to victory; also with their cultural beliefs of beauty and harmony. "The design doesn't matter; it's the use of the name Navajo," said Navar of Austin, Texas. "They can say it looks like this, but if it has the name Navajo — it's being branded and sold as Navajo — it's a violation." If the tribe does not hear any news from Urban Outfitters and sees no signs of Urban Outfitters removing the “Navajos” name from the clothing line then the Navajo National Government will consider taking legal action.


Question: Do you think Urban Outfitters should remove the Navajo name from their clothing line? Why/why not?