Mirror Sites:
CSUDH - Habermas - UWP

California State University, Dominguez Hills
University of Wisconsin, Parkside
Soka University Japan - Transcend Art and Peace
Created: November 26, 2001
Latest Update: November 26, 2001
Faculty:
jeannecurran@habermas.org
Olivier at tapcourse@yahoo.com
takata@uwp.edu

What Do THEY Want, Anyway?
Their Identity Back!

Copyright: Jeanne Curran and Susan R. Takata, and Individual Authors: October 2001.
"Fair use" encouraged.

On Monday, Sptember 10, 2001, Maria Santiago wrote:

Subject: Dr. Pepper in Fresno!!
Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2001 21:55:02 -0700

Hi Jeanne!, First of all let me introduce myself, my name is Maria Santiago, and I am in your graduate theory seminar. This is my first year as a graduate student. Last Thursday., I dropped by your office to say hello to you and Pat and to comment on your story about Dr. Pepper. Then you told me to put it up on the Web, so that is exactly what I'm doing!

I just wanted to comment a little more on what you said about Dr. Pepper and his unbelievable ignorance on ethnicity. (it's amazing how these people can hold such important positions). Anyway, I very much related to this because as a first generation Mexican-American college student, I know what my own parents went through when they came to the U.S as immigrants. Also, based on your story (and the rest of your discussion, of course) I was able to "kind of" understand and define colonization and please let me know if I have the wrong idea!. I define this term as one that describes the violation and invasion of someone's unique identity.

jeanne's comments:

Well, yes. Colonization does involve violence, though not always physical violence. And it does affect the identity. It is generally used to define an assault on an entire group of people, who are colonized or dominated by a supreior military force. The colonized don't have any choice in the matter. The colonizers have the power to enforce the colonization. And a piece of the colonization is an exploitation of the production of the colonized. Part of the overall mindset is that the colonizers are somehow more successful or more powerful, and that for that reason it is meet and right that those they have colonized should provide them with the benefits of their production. Edward Said describes the process in commenting on Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. Although Austen would not approve of slavery, she saw no reason why Mansfield Park should not be supported by the work of indigenous people on islands subjugated by the British. She failed to translate the profit gained from the colonized labor as a privilege inherent in colonization.

Jeanne, I am a Children's Social Worker for L.A County, and many children are "in the system" because they were disciplined "the wrong way". To some point I understand that children are not to be beaten, but I truly find that a lot of what goes on within these families may just be based on cultural practices and beliefs. Yes, we do get three months of intensive training on identifying abuse and what not, but I do believe that it takes more than that to truly appreciate someone's culture. Well, Jeanne, I don't want to overwhelm you with my first entry but I would like your feed back on this. Thanks!

jeanne's comments:

Good point. Many children are in the system for the wrong reasons, and it does take an understanding of the culture of others to prevent that. Physical, sexual, and emotional abuse are harmful. We don't want to permit them. But to the extent that they reflect cultural differences, we need re-interpretation and re-education, certainly before we disrupt the family. The problem is that we have little access to training and re-eucation and so we resort to removing the children as the fastest and simplest solution to protecting them.

There are many new therapeutic techniques being investigated to deal with such issues. For example, community and family groups that supervise behavior through the extended family are sometimes very effective at curtailing physical punishment that borders on the abusive. Such an arrangement relocates power in the family and in the community and avoids incarceration and family disruption.

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