UPROOTED David Baraza, “A Place Without Shame” Excerpt from “A Place Without Shame” by David Baraza from From Totems to Hip-Hop: A Multicultural Anthology of Poetry Across the Americas, 1900–2002 edited by Ishmael Reed. Copyright © by David Baraza. Used by permission of the author. David Baraza, “A Place Without Shame”

The United States is stitched together from more cultures than you can count. Additional Information  Immigration to the United States reached its peak as a percentage of total population in the early years of the twentieth century.  The number of new Americans has been rising sharply in the last four decades. In 2007, over one million people entered the U.S. legally, and one in eight Americans was born in a foreign country.  In the early twentieth century, nine in ten immigrants came from Europe. Today nearly half come from Latin America and the Caribbean, three in ten from Asia, and one in ten from Africa.  Immigrants face the challenge of adapting to their new home and balancing their native culture with their adopted culture. A New York Times series examines the ways in which immigrants and American institutions are adapting to each other: http://projects.nytimes.com/immigration

It’s a country of many races … About the Map This map was published by CensusScope. It is based on U.S. Census figures from 2000. You can find the map at www.censusscope.org/us/map_common_race.html Additional Information In 2008, the U.S. population was 304.1 million. The distribution by race and ethnicity was as follows: — White persons: 79.8% — Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin: 15.4%* — Black persons: 12.8% — Asian persons: 4.5% — American Indian and Alaska Native persons: .2% — Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander: 1% — Persons reporting two or more races: 1.7% * Hispanics may be of any race, so also are included in applicable race categories. Source: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html

… and every year, people from around the world make the U. S … and every year, people from around the world make the U.S. their new home. About the Map This map is based on data from Social Explorer, the Minnesota Population Center, and the U.S. Census Bureau. This map shows the countries of origins of immigrants to the U.S. since 1880. You can find it at http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/03/10/us/20090310-immigration- explorer.html

What happens when you migrate from one culture to another?

Cojutepeque, El Salvador Los Angeles, CA Alexis Otoniel Aguirre Cojutepeque, El Salvador Los Angeles, CA “[In the U.S.], I have friends who are Hispanic, Korean, white, black. You can’t just say,‘I will only be friends with Central Americans.’ You have to talk to everyone.” About the Photo When Alexis Otoniel Aguirre was seven, he left El Salvador to join his parents in Los Angeles, California. They had immigrated mainly for economic reasons.  After learning English and making progress in school, Alexis says, “Already I have achieved some of what you would call the American Dream.” Additional Information Salvadoran immigrants living in U.S. (2005): 988,000  Rank: seventh-largest immigrant population  A civil war in El Salvador (1979–1992) created massive unemployment and political instability, prompting hundreds of thousands of people to flee to the United States.

Olga Malykh Ekaterinburg, Russia Detroit, MI “When I came here, I had this huge dream of having many American friends. But that has not happened. Their friends are set already and you can’t blend in. The Russians, they will accept you. You are one of them.” About the Photo  Olga Malykh moved with her family from Russia to Michigan. Her parents, both professionals, immigrated for economic reasons. “My parents wanted us to have a better life,” she says. Additional Information  Number of Russian immigrants living in U.S. (2005): 381,000  Rank: 19th-largest immigrant population  More than three million Russians came to the U.S. between 1881 and 1914. Nearly half of them were Jews who left to escape political repression.

Salah Mohamed Mogadishu, Somalia Minneapolis, MN “I have never dated an American girl. It would be strange, and it would upset my mother. I don’t want to be disrespectful—not to my mother or my religion or my homeland. But American girls are so filled with life.” About the Photo  When Salah Mohamed was ten years old, a civil war destroyed his home city, Mogadishu. His family left after his father was captured and killed by rebel fighters.  Salah’s mother was in the United States for two years before she could send for her kids. “[She] wrote to us every day,” Salah says. Additional Information  Number of Somali immigrants living in U.S. (2005): 59,000  Rank: 72nd-largest immigrant population  The Somali Civil War broke out in 1991 and is still ongoing as of 2010. More than 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

Elaine Zhang Canton, China Oakland, CA “Until I was 13, my name was Shu Ling. But [when we moved], my parents told me I was now Elaine. That was more American, they said. ‘You are in America now. Forget China.’ But I cannot forget China.” About the Photo Elaine Zhang was a teenager when she and her family moved to the United States. “My parents wanted me to choose what I could do with my life,” she says. “In China, girls have fewer choices.” Additional Information Number of Chinese immigrants living in U.S. (2005): 1.2 million  Rank: fourth-largest immigrant population Chinese immigrants first arrived in the U.S. in the mid-nineteenth century to work as merchants, gold prospectors, and contract laborers on railways and in agriculture.  The Chinese Exclusion Act banned all Chinese immigration to the U.S. from 1882 to 1943.

Ahmed Hashem Nasria, Iraq San Francisco, CA “My father thinks I’m a little too American. My friends think I’m a little too Arab. They are all missing the point. I am Iraqi. I am Arab. I am Muslim. And I live in America. I am proud of all that.” About the Photo Ahmed Hashem’s family came to the U.S. after the first Gulf War in 1991. His father learned English by renting movies, he says. Additional Information  Number of Iraqi American immigrants in U.S. (2005): 90,000 Rank: 57th-largest immigrant population  Nearly a third of Iraqi Americans arrived in the U.S. as refugees.  The Iraq War that began in 2003 has created more than two million refugees. Few of them have settled in the United States.

Sierre Monk Mostly white private school, Brooklyn, NY ethnically diverse public school, Maplewood, NJ “[When I first moved, the other black kids] said, ‘You don’t even act like you’re black.’ I guess it was mean, but it helped me. I wanted to behave differently after that.” About the Photo Sierre Monk moved from a mostly white private school in Brooklyn, New York, to a racially mixed high school in Maplewood, New Jersey. Additional Information  Sierre Monk didn’t experience the kind of dislocation common to many immigrants. But when she moved from a mostly white private school to a highly integrated public school, she felt caught between cultures.

It’s more than skin deep. DIVERSITY It’s more than skin deep. 12

What happens to who we are when where we are changes?

What happens to who we are when where we are changes? Where do you feel the most comfortable? • homeland • neighborhood • birthplace • How do you define yourself? • Do you feel like you belong to a group? • african american • white • hispanic • asian • arab • native american • muslim • jewish • christian • atheist • hindu • buddhist • What connects you to the people around you? • What separates you? • race • color • ethnicity • religion • Have you ever had to change countries, neighborhoods, schools? • How did it affect you? • tolerance • prejudice • friendship • acceptance • diversity • Do you have friends from different groups? • tribe • clan • crew • clique • gang • Can you relate to people from different backgrounds? • middle class • upper class • working class • Where do you feel the most comfortable? • homeland • neighborhood • birthplace • How do you define yourself? • Do you feel like you belong to a group? • african american • white • hispanic • asian • arab • native american • muslim • jewish • christian • atheist • hindu • buddhist • What connects you to the people around you? • What separates you? • race • color • ethnicity • religion • Have you ever had to change countries, neighborhoods, schools? • How did it affect you? • tolerance • prejudice • friendship • acceptance • diversity • Do you have friends from different groups? • tribe • clan • crew • clique • gang • Can you relate to people from different backgrounds? • middle class • upper class • working class • Where do you feel the most comfortable? • RAWWRITE put your voice on record What happens to who we are when where we are changes? Photo Credits Images © 2010: CensusScope and the Social Science Data Analysis Network at the University of Michigan: 3; The New York Times Co./Matthew Bloch and Robert Gebeloff: 4; Scholastic Inc./Mary Gow: 6; The Image Works/Jim West: 7; Getty Images/Bruce Kluckhohn: 8; Scholastic Inc./Mary Gow: 9, 10; Redux Pictures/Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times: 11. Raw Write Prompts (as seen in the background of this slide) Where do you feel the most comfortable? • homeland • neighborhood • birthplace • How do you define yourself? • Do you feel like you belong to a group? • african american • white • hispanic • asian • arab • native american • muslim • jewish • christian • atheist • hindu • buddhist • What connects you to the people around you? • What separates you? • race • color • ethnicity • religion • Have you ever had to change countries, neighborhoods, schools? • How did it affect you? • tolerance • prejudice • friendship • acceptance • diversity • Do you have friends from different groups? • tribe • clan • crew • clique • gang • Can you relate to people from different backgrounds? • middle class • upper class • working class