Sarah's+Reflections

My Original Thoughts Race and Inequalities Class Struggle and American Dream Americans and Change Education in America

Americans tend to have a difficult time accepting change or even initiating change. We get into this feeling of "just enough" in our society where the notion of change makes us nervous as to what it may bring. If de Tocqueville and I are right, this is because we "feel no natural inclination for revolutions, but [they] are afraid of them" (pg. 636, de Tocqueville). We are capable of making any change happen, but we are not interested in making a change. I know that Americans want to see change happen but the problem that we face is our fear to initiate any modifications because we are scared of what that may bring and scared that it may upset the balance of "just enough."
 * Americans and Change:**

There is no denying the racial tensions America has seen and continues to see. Similarly to American's slow acceptance of change, we are slow to change their prejudices. Inferiority is an idea made up by people and solidified by law. Prejudice is immovable by nature. What struck me in my research for what content to fill this page was a comment on Woody Guthrie's famous song This Land Is Your Land. The comment with the most "likes" was talking about how this song is relatable to every country, not just the US, and yet even in the US "This Land" does not feel like the land of all people.
 * Race and Inequalities:**

Ellis Island is one of the homes to the American dreamer. This Island saw millions of people come through to try and make a new life for themselves and live the American dream. The quote that starts this particular "museum wall" is taken from //The Great Gatsby// by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Gatsby is the ultimate American Dreamer. He erased the line between imagination and reality and spent his life trying to live out his dream. Gatsby transforms himself into an idea that he created for himself, as a "platonic conception of himself" and despite the many setbacks society has faced him with he will go to the worlds end to fulfill his dream. And in a sense isn't Gatsby like every American Dreamer? We forget what a dream is and what a reality is and mix the two worlds that don't belong together. The American Dream is unattainable because no reality can live up to someone's perfect dream- it is always within grasp but not matter how hard you try to attain the dream the American is never satisfied.
 * The American Dream:**

Being at Parker my whole life I know the importance of education-especially a good education. Education is the strongest force and is the foundation to (debatably) everything. While our class has already seen the Trailer to the documentary //Race to Nowhere// I think it was important to have it on this "wall" of my "museum" because it brings to light the issues with our education system. Then, at the end of my "wall" I quoted an article and posted two videos by Joel Klein, the chancellor of New York City's school system. Klein debates that the biggest issues that are halting and causing our education system to fail are politicans, unions, and bad teachers. I know my generation is smart, but what troubles me is the fact that a large population of Americans don't even have access to a good education. I strongly believe that education is our stongest force and I'm sorry to see this system fail because it is letting down the youth and our future. Education needs to be re-prioritized and fixed on a system wide level.
 * Education in America:**