Identity.

My identity is key.  Without it I am not unique.  There are many aspects of my being that make up my persona.  I am an artist, a hippie, a snowboarder, a student, a surfer, and a worker.  But all of these characteristics that make me who I am today were developed over time by life lessons, practice, and hard-work.  Although I love everyone of these unique qualities I possess, I was able to create them for myself.  My heritage though, was created for me.  The heritage that you are born with is uncontrollable and it can not be created or changed.  Before you can build up a "persona" for yourself, you must become comfortable with your heritage; it is a part of self-acceptance.  

Throughout my life I was always proud of each of my different ethnic-backgrounds.  I am a mut.  An Irish, Italian, German, Scottish, and English mut.  And that is what makes me who I am.  I get many of my physical and character traits from being born to and brought up by people of these ethnicities.  I had always found each country that I derive from interesting and unique in different ways.  I love the italian language and the art that inhabits the beautiful country.  I think that the Irish landscape is breathtaking and that the people are wonderful.  Scottish music is fantastic and German steins are unique and interesting.  The English seem to have a great sense of "cleanliness" and give us so many sensational musical artists.  Each country has something to offer to me and I take pride in each one of them.  And although I have yet to travel to any of these places I know them from learning the Italian language, having Irish friends, and studying these countries throughout my years in school.  I am proud to call myself a mut because it means that I have qualities that derive from different places in the world.  And what makes us different makes us who we are and those unique qualities are what makes us all beautiful and gives us a specific IDENTITY. 

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LETS MAKE IT A LESSON!

This past month a group of my fellow classmates and I were assigned to read the book, Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson.  The book touches on a lot of racial issues regarding Japanese-Americans during WWII and post-war.  It takes you through a series of lives that are affected by racism, whites and Japanese.  So the topic of this lesson is Racism after WWII: How the Japanese-Americans were treated.  

Part One: Background research on the novel

- Give a brief plot summary 

- How did the book illustrate the racism during and after WWII against Japanese-Americans?

Part Two: Japanese Internment Camps 

- A big part of the racism factor in the United States against Japanese-Americans during WWII was the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  Shortly after the tragic event there was an outburst of fear and racism towards Japanese people living in America at the time.  These people were eventually evicted from their homes and moved to Internment Camps.  Do some research about these camps and the racism factor that went along with them.

Follow these guidelines:

- Introduce the book and how it relates to racism against Japanese-Americans during and after WWII (include information about the Japanese Internment Camps)

- Give examples of the racism in America at that time

- Research the photographic documentaries of the Japanese Internment Camp Manzanar done by artists such as Dorothea Lange and Ansel Adams (look at the pictures on my powerpoint)--> when you get to the page click on "start presentation" in the upper right hand corner 

- how did their depiction of the camps affect people's opinions about Manzanar during and after that time period

- research motives behind their desire to photograph inside the camp

Part Three: Be Creative=)

Create your own documentary! Exercise the creative side of your brain and follow in the path of the great Ansel Adams.  Make a documentary via camera or video-camera about a political issue today.  The documentary does not have to be about racism, but anything that has been having a greater affect on people today.  The documentary does not have to be about racism, but anything that has been having a greater affect on people today.  Focus on displaying this issue how you want people to perceive it.  After creating the documentary write a brief explanation and reasoning behind the creation.

Sources to use for research are tagged on my delcious

For the itunes podcast which include information about Japanese Internment Camps 

- go to search itunes store

- search: Misuse of Land: Japanese Internment Camps (the author is George Brimhall)

- just subscribe (its FREE)

Also check out Ali's blog post about racism during WWII (the link is under "friend's blogs")

Also check out this blog about racism

Quotes from Snow Falling on Cedars 

"Everything else is ambiguous. Everything else is emotions and hunches.  At least the facts you can cling to; the emotions just float away."

"When they looked out into the whiteness of the world the wind flung it sharply at their narrowed eyes and foreshortened their view of everything."

"There are things in this universe that we cannot control, and then there are things we can...let fate, coincidence, and accident conspire; human beings must act on reason."

"Here was the Jap with the bloody gun ..."