The best part of living in the United States of America is the many different ethnic groups that call it home. It gives this country a unique blend of people whose ancestors originated from all over the world and of people that have recently migrated to it shores an opportunity to add a little of their culture to the mix. Of the different ethnic groups that are present in the U.S., I choose to focus on two groups that I feel have made significant contributions, along with so many others, to the fabric of America, Native Americans and African-Americans. In a lot of ways these two groups have faced overwhelming obstacles to be recognized as full American citizens and valued for their contributions. However, as time has passed, these two groups
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A few of these individuals are: Naomi Lang (Maheetahan meaning Morning Star)-the first Native American Woman to compete in the Winter Olympic Games (2002) in ice skating, John Herrington- from the Chickasaw Nation is a retired NASA astronaut that logged over 330 hours in space according to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Some of the issues still facing Native Americans today in American society according to an article American Indian Quarterly written by Dwanna L. Robertson are the continued “horribly distorted depictions of Natives as mascots, reminiscent of the propaganda used against Black, Irish, and Jewish people in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, that are not confined to hate groups but is visible in everyday discourse and thought the media…indigenous Americans cope daily with overtly racist language, images and behaviors without social …show more content…
One of which is the gap in or lack of quality education and the stereotypes that African American students face when obtaining higher education at predominately Caucasian universities. The Journal of Negro Education published a study that looked at a stereotype that African American students were intellectually inferior to their peers and undeserving of their enrollment in universities. In the study a student made the following comments concerning the stereotype: “I feel like I have to represent to the very best of my ability to show that Black people can learn, Black people are here to study and better themselves, otherwise if I put forth a bad example, they’re all going to judge Black people to be this way.”
Native Americans and African Americans alike have struggled against unfair majority/minority relations, forced assimilation, prejudice, and racism. Each ethnic group has made important and valuable contributions to American history and society. As time progresses these two groups will continue to make amazing accomplishments and continue to rise above direct and indirect forms of prejudice and
A few of these individuals are: Naomi Lang (Maheetahan meaning Morning Star)-the first Native American Woman to compete in the Winter Olympic Games (2002) in ice skating, John Herrington- from the Chickasaw Nation is a retired NASA astronaut that logged over 330 hours in space according to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Some of the issues still facing Native Americans today in American society according to an article American Indian Quarterly written by Dwanna L. Robertson are the continued “horribly distorted depictions of Natives as mascots, reminiscent of the propaganda used against Black, Irish, and Jewish people in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, that are not confined to hate groups but is visible in everyday discourse and thought the media…indigenous Americans cope daily with overtly racist language, images and behaviors without social …show more content…
One of which is the gap in or lack of quality education and the stereotypes that African American students face when obtaining higher education at predominately Caucasian universities. The Journal of Negro Education published a study that looked at a stereotype that African American students were intellectually inferior to their peers and undeserving of their enrollment in universities. In the study a student made the following comments concerning the stereotype: “I feel like I have to represent to the very best of my ability to show that Black people can learn, Black people are here to study and better themselves, otherwise if I put forth a bad example, they’re all going to judge Black people to be this way.”
Native Americans and African Americans alike have struggled against unfair majority/minority relations, forced assimilation, prejudice, and racism. Each ethnic group has made important and valuable contributions to American history and society. As time progresses these two groups will continue to make amazing accomplishments and continue to rise above direct and indirect forms of prejudice and