We took a look at one of Chicago's Latino communities and we learned a lot of new things at the National Museum of Mexican Art.
I found out that Pilsen has not always been a Latino community...at one point the Pilsen neighborhood was mainly inhabited by Czechs-western salvic people from Central Europe.
i also learned a cool new fact...the origin of the name Pilsen comes from the Czechs, who named it that when they lived in the area.
We had a little discussion at the beginning of class before we went on our field trip to Pilsen and we talked about the reason why there's still so much segregation in Chicago.
we all agreed that it was because the wealthy did not care about the poor, because there were not enough opportunities for minorities to progress and move up in society.
I think all of this is true...but i feel that there was something that should have been mentioned and we didnt get a chance to cover...i believe that the reason why there's still so much segregation in our city today is because there is still a lot of Ignorance among many people...that same ignorance that has been getting passed on and on for generations that does not let us move ahead.
In the article we had to read last night, i read something that i found incredible...(and not necessarily in a good way)
"In 1996, 175 hate crimes were reported in the city of Chicago & 107 in the suburbs"...i think this shows that many people still have those same ignorant ideas that many people had back in the 1900's...just because your skin color is a little darker or lighter you should not feel that you are any better or any less than anybody else because in the end we are all equal.
Back to the topic of the visit to the museum...i learned some things that i found really amazing...some of the paintings i saw blew my mind completely and made me have much more respect towards Mexican art and its culture.
i took many pictures...here are a few....
Good work Jose! Your observation that part of the reason that racial segregation and prejudice still exist due to ignorance that is passed on from one generation from the next is really thoughtful. It is hard on an individual level to step aside and look at your prejudices when your family and friends may hold the same ones.
ReplyDeleteYou also got a lot of great photos from the National Museum of Mexican Art. I would love to hear more about what you took away from the museum and how it connects to what we were discussing throughout the day. Why did you choose these paintings to document? Was there something that stood out to you personally or something that you identified with a topic we’ve been discussing? Make sure to try to make as many connections to the reading and our discussion as possible. Keep up the great blogging!