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Alghazali Yasmin
Prof.Choi
English 1101(D348)
Open Letter
Dear Congress,
How would you feel if you had to keep something inside of you for so long that you felt like it was eating you alive and you couldnât tell anyone because it would backfire in your face? Well, that feeling is what hundreds of women go through in their everyday lives. Out of every 100 women that get sexually assaulted, only 27% actually come out and report it to the police and thatâs because women are taught to self blame and keep everything to themselves. The recent election of Donald Trump to the US Presidency triggered the fears and suffering of many sexual assault victims. Since then, women have felt empowered to share their stories in the face of a society that to this day remains largely neglectful and accusatory of these victims. We have heard over and over the saying âBoys will be boysâ as if it isnât the menâs fault for their actions but rather itâs the woman’s fault that a man sexually assaults her. This is unacceptable; men must be held responsible for their actions and womenâs voices should be heard.
Women who have been sexually assaulted have had to live the rest of their lives to the saying of âBoys will be boysâ. In the article âThe Kavanaugh Uproar and Womenâs Voicesâ by Miriam Pickett, she discusses how she never was able to talk to anyone about her experience with sexual assault until now at the age of 72 years old, where she finally had the courage to bring up her traumatizing past and tell society her story. Pickett states â You believed the old saying âboys will be boysâ and that somehow you bore the whole responsibility of what had happened to you.(Paragraph 2)â By saying this Pickett shows the kind of mentality society had when women were sexually assaulted. Pickett discusses how her and other victims of sexual assault were brainwashed to thinking it was their faults and as a woman one had to suck it up and move on with her life acting as if nothing ever happened; as if she did something wrong to draw his attention whether it be the way she dressed or something she might have said. By this Pickett addresses her final message in which she talks about the election and the emotions that were going through women all over America she states âThe guilt humiliation and pain that has been safely tucked away never to be thought about consciously since being attacked came flooding back.(Paragraph 3)â Thus showing how because Trump who is someone that openly stated he sexually abuses women, the fears of many victims that theyâve tucked away to try and forget are rising back to the surface and scaring them all over again.
People such as Donald Trump who openly states that he sexually assaulted women should not be in power. By having him as our President it just comes to show the kind of government and society we live in. In the article âTrump recorded having extremely lewd conversation about women in 2005â by David A. Fahrenthold that was posted on The Washington Post, Farenthold managed to obtain a video of a discussion recorded in a locker room between Donald Trump and Billy Bush when they were on their way to the set of âDays Of Our Livesâ. In this recording Trump was disturbingly talking to Bush about how he tried having sex with a woman 2005 and it was a failed attempt. Trump had told Bush âWhen youâre a star they let you do it(Paragraph 1)â, by saying this itâs like Trump saying Iâm able to do whatever I want to women and itâs ok because I am the President. This just comes to prove what a disturbing President we have, but not only is it bad enough that he says this but Trump also had the audacity to tell Bush âIâve got to use some Tic Tacs, just in case I start kissing herâ, You know Iâm automatically attracted to beautiful- I just start kissing them. Itâs like a magnet. Just kiss. I donât even wait.(Paragraph 16)â This is not only unacceptable but unappropriate how can we even have a president who has this kind of mindset. Do we really want this kind of a person to be in power and make actions for America?. See the thing is we can easily fix this issue by actually electing the right people to power not someone who is like President Trump or Judge Kavanaugh who sexually assault women and get away with it. Not just electing the right people to authority but also holding men accountable for their actions taken, they need to understand they canât just do what they want to women and not be penalized.
But it isnât only the people that have faced sexually abuse that have to stay quiet but also people around them that have the courage to come forward and defend those who were victims of sexual assault survivors. In âHarvard Accused Of Retailing Against Professor Who Defended Sexual Assault Survivorsâ by Tyler Kingkade he talks about one of the professors who had defended a victim of sexual abuse and is now being threatened to get fired and had her pay lowered than her fellow male coworkers. Kingkade states that Professor Theidon told The Huffington Post âI was never willing to check my conscience when I walked through the gates of Harvard.(Paragraph 3)â Professor Theidon explains what she means by this and says that she never would have thought that she would ever debate whether she should have to do the right thing and defend the victim or stay quiet and save her career. The victim that she had defended told Kingkade that she had regretted ever opening her mouth about the incident and wished that she had stayed quiet and never spoke about it to Professor Theidon and gotten her into any trouble. This is just another reason on the list of why victims donât tell anyone what happened to them because itâs either they get blamed for it and discriminated or the ones that stand up for them do. I believe womenâs voices should be heard and I think the only way to truly fix this problem is to show support to the victims, make sure they know their not alone, it isnât their fault, and the men who hurt them will be held responsible and be punished.
Therefore to conclude victims of sexual assault are really impacted by the actions taken by many inconsiderate men take. âBoys will be boysâ is not an excuse for any manâs action and things need to really change. Womenâs voices should be heard and they shouldn’t be penalized or discriminated for talking out. Women need to know that it is not their fault for the what happened to them and they shouldnât blamed for it.
Catiouceca Jean-Louis
Prof Choi
English 1101(D348)
Open Letter
Dear Americans,
Did you know that over half a million people are homeless? Did you ever wonder why someone becomes homeless one day wandering in the streets? How would you feel if you or someone you know become a homeless one day? According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) there are 600 000 homeless people in the US, most of them are spending the night either in homeless shelters or on the cold ground of the dirty streets. The existence of homeless people in our society is noticeable. Everywhere you look around our cities, parks and streets, it is likely that you will witness a homeless person struggling to survive. It is undeniably a social justice issue because every American deserves a secure and comfortable place to stay, not left on the streets to perish miserably.
âA Dunkinâ Donuts employee was fired after he was filmed pouring a pitcher of water on a homeless man who appeared to be sleeping in a store in Syracuse.â(NYT par 2) A New York Times article describes in more details the event that happened between a worker at a fast food chain restaurant and a homeless individual, mostly on how the pitiful man has been wrongfully mistreated by the employee without any excuses from him. Homeless people face an intense struggle to stay alive despite the fact that society turns its head from the numerous problems they are faced to and still choose to ignore it. The mistreatment of homeless people is a problem that is often ignored in our communities.
Jean-Louis 2
When we see these people in the streets we tend to react negatively and critic on the way they live. We would rather turn our head and ignore them slightly than offer them our help. We even become frightened and avoid to start a conversation with them because we often find their existence as an error. Homeless people are subjected to alienation, mistreatment and discrimination coming from us everyday, everywhere. But why would we specifically target this group to miserably attack them physically, psychologically and socially? What did they ever do wrong to us to be subject of our wrongful actions caused by our lack of education and understanding on their way of living?
Violation of human rights and discrimination should not be tolerated at oneâs convenience no matter what the situation might be. Once you violate someoneâs basic rights you fail to bring change into society, you overstep on the individual dignity and itâs an absolutely non-humane behavior to treat any individuals harshly.
This homeless man have been subject of discrimination and has been wrongly disrespected in front of a Dunkin Donuts store at Syracuse because he was taking a nap. He was insolently disregard when an employee from Dunkin donuts poured water on his head and his phone while he was asleep.Without excusing himself, the worker continued to humiliate the poor man as he kept laughing,with one of his friends at the poor condition the individual was in. Without even knowing who the homeless was, why he was there and taking into consideration his feelings the worker made a very disappointing action towards all hopeless endangered human beings and will forever damage the companyâs network.
Jean-Louis 3
Rather than looking at these penniless individuals pitifully and not taking their person and feelings into consideration why canât we give them the respect they deserve and take into consideration that they are themselves human beings just like any of us. Itâs not the first time these people in need has been subject to these critical discriminatory situations and often times they remain as unheard victims to our vulgar activities. Over the past years, many articles and online sources such as The New York Post, The New York Times, Cincinnati Enquirer, Huffpost, personal blogs etc⊠have been debating on the treatments they are receiving inside of edifices and properties everytime they are seen seating somewhere they are not supposed to but no changes have been brought to make the lives of these threatened people better.
It is important to take on the urgent need these individuals are faced to into consideration because too many of them are suffering everyday from the same cause and itâs problematic for the future of our country. We as individuals should take a step forward and help stop discrimination based on social status towards these bullied souls, they need our support and a change coming from us and our actions, the unjust world and biased society towards them today. Discrimination against wrongfully harmed individuals should end once for all and tolerance free is a NO because too many persons are affected by the wrongful actions of societies and canât get the justice they deserve.
Jean-Louis 4
Homeless people are at risk both on a local and global level. They are neglected, rejected, denied and often violated just because they donât fit in the perfect environment we are trying to build. A change has to be made and it has to start from our communities, by helping a person incapable to sustain himself to find a shelter or provide them some help, some advice, help them financially with anything we have and bring all stereotypes against them down. We can all prove them wrong and show them that these people are like any others, they are a part of the society and play an important role into it, they deserve to be treated respectfully.
The more you help, the less these people will feel insecure, the less they will be face to discrimination and stereotypes. Another solution will be to inform, train and educate all workers of all the disadvantages they might bring to a homeless every time they violate their human rights and exclude them from society. Learn them how to live better with these excluded individuals, show them how they could support them without having to get into their personal feelings and miserably disrespect them because they are also humans just like everyone is and doing warm to this endangered population could lead to many psychological, mental, social pain and trauma.
Khaskhali Waleed
Prof. Choi
English 1101 D348
Open Letter Essay
Believe it or not video games are actually good for you. Many parents go around spreading rumors that video games are bad for their kids, and should limit or completely take time away from their games. Parents out there believe that video games are harming their children, they come up with theories such as, since their kids are playing games all day they get inspired by what they see on their screens, they also have no social life, and get no physical activities. Parents then come up with the conclusion that this causes their kids to get health problems such as obesity, bad eyesight,etc. However all of this is false. To all parents who believe this, I’m here to prove that video games have benefits to them. Video games have many benefits such as for your visualization skills, it benefits the cognitive brain and helps social skills.
Video games have proven to be good for kids. Many studies have shown that video games can help improve your kids visualization skills. For example Griffiths Mark states that âresearch has shown that spatial visualization ability, such as mentally rotating and manipulating two- and three-dimensional objects, improves with video game playing.â(par. 3)
Mark is saying that since kids play a lot of video games this can positively affect the way they visualize things. This proves many statements made by parents such as that it messes with their visual skills wrong, because it actually does the opposite. In many situations video games also improves hand eye coordination or coordination skills in general. Markman Art states â Playing these games requires reacting quickly and accurately to events that happen on the screen. This practice improves coordination in other tasks as well.â(par. 8) These rapid paced games ultimately increases a person’s reaction time, so they have to be faster and accurate working better at the same time, resulting in improvements in coordination. Video games also have other benefits to them.
Video games have been proven to help kids with their cognitive side of the brain after playing games. Such as their memory skills. Jacinta Bowler states that âThey found that all video games, both action and non-action games, improved cognitive function in the participants â measured by tests such as short term memory tasks.â(par. 18). This study has proved that kids showed better signs of a good memory. Good memory is crucial to a kids mental development. Memory helps people remember the important stuff taught in life, and we carry this information all throughout our lives,and becomes useful in different environments such as a classroom. Video games has a huge effect on the cognitive brain meaning it impacts many parts of a kids development like their attention, reasoning, and problem solving. In Bowlers article it states that âThe researchers think that the fast pace in these games helped the kids increase their attention spans.â(par. 12) Bowlers says that video games help kids focus better, and more effectively. These fast paced games can be challenging causing the player to be more focused and attached to the game, helping them learn and build a more beneficial skill. Attention span can help kids focus on their reading, lessons in class, and conversations with others.
Video games can impact your kids social skills. As many parents say that their kids play video games all day long and dont socialize with anyone. However, the parents dont know that these kids are most likely socializing with others on the game they are playing, players from the community gather up to play with each other. Wilber Jennifer states âVideo games can improve leadership skills, pro-social behaviors, and communication skills in childrenâ(par. 10)Many kids tend to play video games with friends from the real world, or the gaming world. They build their conversation skills with these people. Also in many video games kids learn leadership skills, from carrying a team in Fortnite to building an empire in Minecraft, people need to cooperate with each other and kids understand they need to stand up and be the leader at times.
So to all parents out there, reconsider how much time you let your kids play for. After All these video games are more beneficial and important to your kids development. These fast paced games increases attention span and coordination skills, because a lot is going on at once so they need to really focus on what their doing in order to win. How is this important you ask? Well, in school these kids use the same skills in the classroom, which helps them really focus on in class tasks. Video games have also proved to increase social skills, because whether or not you knew, but kids interact with people online. They build their conversation skills and transfer them over to real life situations. Now overall kids get more benefits than parents realize, and without kids knowing, the benefits. Do you want your kid to lack these skills?
Mikayla, Alexis, Ever, Yelitza
Prof. Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Cinco de Mayo Open Letter
Dear Americans,
As diverse as America is, itâs culture is mainly made up of the appropriation of other cultures. It deprives other countries of their lifestyles and traditions to create holidays that are celebrated for the wrong reasons, with no knowledge of the countries theyâre appropriating. This can be seen in Americaâs way of celebrating the Mexican holiday: Cinco de Mayo, where Americans use the incorrect date as an excuse to consume large amounts of Hispanic-themed food and alcohol, all while creating a negative image of Mexican heritage.
One of the many problems surrounding this American turned holiday is that it’s not celebrated on the right day. The day is supposed to be honoring Mexico for gaining its independence from Spain. However, that didnât happen until September 16th, 1810. Cinco de Mayo, or âfifth of Mayâ is the date of a battle that took place that helped achieve independence. It was on May 27th, 1862 that La Voz de Mexico, a Spanish newspaper, wrote about Spainâs victory in defeating the French. This publication led to âan impromptu celebration of gunshots, speeches, and singing bu Mexican miners in the gold-country town of Columbia, Californiaâ according to Bill Esparza in his article titled âCinco de Mayo Is as American as Apple Pieâ. Celebrating this holiday became a big hit in America along with many other holidays that originated in other countries. This opened doors for Americans to change it around and find different ways to go about celebrating the event.
Cinco de Mayo is one of the top five drinking holidays in America. But apart from using this day as an excuse to show off their favorite “Mexico” alcoholic beverages, most Americans don’t know what they are actually celebrating. The way of celebrating Cinco de Mayo in the United States and Mexico is different. In the 1960s, Mexico saw Cinco de Mayo as a way of respecting their culture; the celebration is more focused on the military win. The history behind Cinco de Mayo is not the happiest, which makes the celebrations in the United States seem inaccessible because many Americans give themselves an excuse to drunk in the name of âCelebrating Mexican Cultureâ. This form of cultural appropriation because most Americans don’t know what they are celebrating, what they do was host large-scale festivals, and people of all backgrounds celebrate the festival through parades, parties and traditional Mexican music, dance, and food. They donât understand the background history of Cinco de Mayo. This will mislead many people into thinking that Mexico also celebrates Cinco de Mayo like America.
For Americans Cinco de Mayo seems to be a holiday to celebrate Mexicoâs drinks, eat traditional food, and wear costumes to work. Otherwise for Mexicans Cinco de Mayo is to celebrate their victory over France at the Battle of Puebla. However, Americans have stereotyped this holiday by going to parties wearing traditional costumes, drinking Tequila and Coronas, and eating traditional food, disrespecting the actual meaning of Cinco de Mayo. There is nothing wrong celebrating Cinco de Mayo, but those who do should be informed on the education regarding the holiday. Important facts such as where it originated and how it came about are part of the reason the day exists. Know the history behind the holiday, and why is celebrated. Letâs ditch the sombreros, fake accents, and fake mustache and celebrate honoring Mexicoâs heritage.
Americans usage of other cultures through appropriation gives off a negative image of that culture. Americans donât know the history of Cinco de Mayo so they mold the culture into their own. Americans believe that Cinco de Mayo is a day that Mexicans gaining its independence. They also believe that Cinco de Mayo is a day that Mexicans drink alcohol and get drunk. Americans than believe that it is fine for them to drink and eat Mexican food, trying to show appreciation not knowing the history of Cinco de Mayo but they came up with a stereotype that Mexicans do these things on Cinco de Mayo. There are numerous ways Americans can show their appreciation for the culture without disrespecting the creators of it. One way is to do some research on the holiday. Another way is to see how the people of the culture celebrate the holiday and compare to how we celebrate it. Lastly, avoid disrespecting the culture by wearing costumes and trying to act like them not only is it a disrespect to them but your making fun up of the culture altogether.
Yelitza Fernanda Cen Xie
Prof.Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Open letter
Dear Parents,
A child is bullied every seven minutes. (McCann pra.1) Bullying has a negative impact on everyone involved: the victims, the bully, and the bystanders. The long-term psychological impact on victims is directly due to the short-term effects of being bullied during childhood. It is difficult for victims to trust people, which affects their career opportunities in the future, even if they are adults, they tend to be alone. The impact on bullies is significant because it created isolation and negative thoughts. The impact on the bystanders is they might feel powerless and guilty for not acting to stop the bullying and reluctant to attend school. I think bullying has become a serious issue across the country. It causes many children to suffer from depression and anxiety. Victims of bullying are more likely to have suicidal thoughts. (Victims of Bullying Have Higher Risk of Suicidal Thoughts. Pra.14) According to the study of Yale University, bully victims are two to nine times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people, resulting in about 4,400 deaths per year. (Bullying and Suicide statistics.) Bullying needs to stop because it creates fear and physical effect on a child, it damages them emotionally, and socially; it also it can cause children to have suicidal thoughts.
Bullying creates fear and physical effect on a child. They often feel anxious when they go to school. Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying. (Fact about Bullying.) This number will still increase because the school cannot provide a good and safe place for children. Whether a child is bullied or teased in any form, they are more likely to continue their lives on this path, negatively, full of hatred, unconscious of love and acceptance. Bullying can also lead to a physical effect on a child. Besides the impact of collisions and bruises that occur in physical bullying, there is additional damage on a childâs body. For example, a bullied child often feels depressed and anxious. It will cause a child has health problems, including frequent illnesses or complain of stomach pains and headaches. The bullying they experience may exacerbate other pre-existing illnesses.
Bullying can impact a child emotionally and socially. Children who are often attacked by bullies affect them emotionally and socially. Not only are they difficult to make friends, but they also strive to maintain a healthy friendship. When children are constantly being teased as “fat” or “loser”, they begin to believe that these things are true. Bullying victims also tend to experience a variety of emotions. They may feel angry, painful, fragile, helpless, depressed, lonely, and isolated from their peers. Therefore, they may not go to class and indulge in drugs and alcohol to paralyze their pain. If we don’t do any intervention or provide them with help, it will eventually lead the children to stop trying, and they will get worse because of depression. They will feel desperate and believe that no one can help them out of this predicament. When bullied children grow into adults, they may continue to struggle with self-esteem, develop and maintain relationships, and avoid social interaction. They may also have difficulty trusting people, which may affect their personal relationships and their working relationships.
Bullying can cause children to have suicidal thought. Recently I read an article from The New York Times about a 9-year old boy named Jamel Myles who committed suicide in his bedroom. Jamel committed suicide because he is often bullied in school for up to a year. Finally, he wouldnât endure it and decided to end his life. (Turkewitz pra.1) When a person is struggling with depression and anxiety for a long time, it will affect their daily life. They do not know how to control their depression and stress which causes them to have nightmares or flashbacks. They ultimately choose to commit suicide to end their long-term stress and bad mood.
In the article âHow to Stop Bullying in Schoolsâ, Ulrich Boser explained that a few years ago, a team at the University of Virginia led by Catherine Bradshaw decided to help teachers understand how to help students develop better social and emotional skills to solve bullying problems. In the article, the author mentioned that bullying may have a very negative impact. For example, a teenager was beaten and killed by another teenager in a school last year because of bullying. Therefore, the UVA team established a school-wide prevention framework called âfull school positive behavior intervention and supportâ to improve the school atmosphere and students’ behavior. Victims and bullies can get into a group or individual counseling to develop stronger social and emotional skills and foster a more compassionate feeling. School should establish an anti-bullying program to prevent bullying from happening and create a safe environment for children. (Ulrich pra.5) Parents also play an important role in bullying prevention. Parents should teach a kid how to handle being bullied such as discussing ways to deal with bullying at home because adults and teachers are not always there to prevent children from being bullied. At home, show children how to ignore bullying behavior and teach them how to be more confident. Always pay attention to your child’s daily behavior. Some children may not tell bullying behavior to their parents or other adults. Potential signs of bullying may include increased or decreased appetite, nightmares, and depression. If you find signs of bullying, don’t blame the child that he can’t protect himself. Let them know that you are there to support them and seek professional help when appropriate.
Bullying is an issue that has been affecting many in the world today. Bullying in schools also has become very common and it has led to some very serious consequences. It has led to physical violence in forms of fight and in some extreme cases deaths by suicides. If you find that your friend or family feels desperate, helpless and suicidal. You can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline online or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255). These centers provide 24-hour crisis counseling and mental health referrals. If we do not prevent this issue to happen more children will become a victim and will lead more children to suicide.
Ever E. Guzman
Prof. Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear America,
Did everyone forget about the school shooting that had happened in Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018? I know I did and Iâm ashamed that I did, the only way that I remember was because I was playing a game with my friends and we were running away from a killer in a school. There is barely any news about gun control and what the government is going to do about it. People have always been in arguments about the 2nd Amendment and if we should have the right to bear arms. The first thing people bring up about gun control is school shootings and why we need stricter gun control. I agree that we need stricter gun control because people are able to easily get access to any type of guns legally or illegally, I believe that we have the right to bear arms but to certain kind of guns, and we also need to improve on our background check.
The 2nd Amendment was created so states could protect itself from insurrection because at the time the government didn’t have an official army (Nelson and Adam, par.2&3 ). At the time the 2nd Amendment made sense of why it was created, it was so that people could defend themselves because the government didnât have an army at the time. Now we have an army but people are still able to buy guns. When people buy guns they say it is their right. Other say it for them to feel safe and to protect their family and belongs. At that time it made sense why people had guns, it was to protect themselves from invasion now people have guns just to have them and people can buy whatever type of guns they want and Iâm not joking people can buy assault rifle, shotguns, SMG and so much more. There’s just one restriction on what type of guns you can buy or own, which is that you have to be 21 to be able to buy a handgun but you can buy an AR at the age of 18. (Lois Beckett, par.1). I believe that people shouldnât be able to buy whatever gun they want because what is the point of waiting to be 21 when you can buy and own an assault rifle when you turn 18. What happens if you have kids or if one of your kid is or is going to turn 18; which brings me to my next point.
If you are a gun owner or plan to be a gun owner make sure your kids donât know where you put your guns or ammunition. There have been so many cases where a child took their parents guns and killed a person or groups of people with it. One well-known example was the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Adam Lanza a 20-year-old man killed his own mother and 26 other people mostly children. He obtained his guns from his mother. His mother was a gun enthusiast and had a larger collection of guns. (Larry, Josh, Richard, & Daniel, par.13). Parents who own the guns need to be careful of where they store it and make sure their kids donât know where it is. One thing parents should do is make sure there guns are unloaded and put away in a lockbox and the ammunition in another lock box.
In some states, you just have to be a certain age to be able to get your gun just like in the case of Nikolas Cruz the shooter of the Parkland school shooting. Cruz was 19 and was able to buy both of his firearms one which was an AR-15 and the other firearm a sniper rifle. Cruz killed 17 people at the school. (Sarah, Rebecca, Anjali, & Karen, par.1&2) . Cruz was able to buy both of his gun because he was 19 at the time and he had passed the background check. The background checked should have check if had been expelled or had been in detention in school. I know background checks are meant to see if the person has a criminal record or has a mental problem. We have to make stricter gun control because it looks like anyone can buy a gun and get a hold of a gun really easily. I think there should be a wait time of one week when the background check is completed that way there is a wait time for the person to get their gun.
I donât hate the 2nd Amendment I just donât like the fact that people can just buy whatever gun that they like. I agree that we need stricter gun control mostly because I donât want to see another school shooting on the news. There are many ways that we can improve our gun control one way is to be careful of where you put your gun and ammunition. There shouldnât be anymore cases where a child took their parents guns and killed a person or groups of people with it. Make sure kids or strangers donât know where your gun is, what I said before put your guns in a lockbox and the ammunition in another lock box that way no one has easy access to your gun. Another way to improve our gun control is to increase the wait time to get access to a gun. Background checks are meant to see if a person has a criminal record or has a mental problem which could be done in minutes. How we could improve on this is when someone is trying to get a gun and they are doing their background check there should be a week waiting time to get access to the gun. The last way we could improve on our gun control is to have stricter rules on what type of guns you can buy and own. From what I know you can buy any type of gun; I say we should minimize that list so that it doesnât include assault rifle, SMG, and sniper rifle. I know people will be wondering why I put sniper rifle and not a shotgun, that because I know some shop owner own shotgun and they use it to intimidate intruders. Sniper rifles is used for long range combat and what point in your life are you going to use a sniper rifle, hunting rifle are fine but sniper rifle are not. Parkland, Sandy Hook, Las Vegas donât forget about the people who were killed from the shootings.
Sincerely,
Ever Guzman
Late
Nimra Naz
Prof. Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear Bullies,
Why are people judged by their appearance? The older I got, the more I realize that our society is very judgmental. Iâm not saying that everyone is, but majority are. Thatâs the harsh truth, most of the time what we wear is what we get judged by. Ladies and gentlemen, Iâm here to tell you only one thing: It Shouldnât matter? Throughout our life we shouldnât be worried about what somebody wears and just because somebody dresses a certain way doesnât mean thatâs how they are. People are dressed up based on their personal choices and many other reasons. People are being bullied all over the world on their looks. But there is so much more to a person than what they wear. We should judge on how they act not how they look. Being in school, I noticed that when people dressed up too much everyone start saying âWhy are they so dressed up for classâ and when someone is not dressed up they start saying that âWhy are they not dressed up?â If you dressed nice, they judge. And when they are not dressed up nice, they judge. So you can never win. People will talk either way you dress and It shouldnât be that way anymore.
First off, Just because somebody dresses a certain way doesnât mean thatâs how they are. People dress up based on their choices. For example, if someone is wearing designer clothes it doesnât necessarily mean they have a lot of money, or they come from a rich background. It could have been a gift from someone, or he/she saved up for it. Some people who are from middle class family dress up like they are from a very rich family. Most of the time thatâs not the case. If someone is wearing old clothes, that doesnât make them poor because they could totally have money, but they just donât want to spend it on clothes. First of all it shouldnât even matter if you come from a rich background or poor. In the article it says âBullies will pick out peers that aren’t wearing the best brands of clothing and criticize themâ(1st paragraph). Not everyone can afford branded clothes even though if they can then it means that they have something else to buy that is more important to them than clothes. And not only they canât afford but maybe they might not like branded clothes because they might think wearing branded clothes is just waste of money. They can get much better clothes for a cheap price. People have their own choices. Criticizing and bullying people isn’t necessary because everyone has the right to dress however they want to. People shouldnât find an excuse to judge you based on the way you dress.
Not only do people get judged on their choices but also on their style and fashion. Not everyone is the same. People have different tastes and style. Everyone can dress however they want to, they have the right to express themselves. Some people express themselves best when they dress up and some do not. Somebody may have a style completely different from yours but that doesnât make them any less of a person than you are or makes them a better person. People like to dress up for themselves, not for society. When you see someone wearing something and you are not a fan of what they are wearing, just look away. They donât need your opinion. Like the saying âif you canât say something nice then donât say anything at allâ because people have feelings and you never know when your words could deeply hurt them. You might not like their style but they do because apparently they are wearing it. They like it and that’s their style. Donât go and judge them, you might not agree but you donât have to comment.
One comment can take a personâs life! Now you might be wondering how so. For example some people canât afford designer clothes even though their parents work hard for necessities. âAll the kids have designer names and we haven’t, We stick out and we’re picked on. Look at these crap runners I’m wearing. My ma can’t afford to get me the right ones. So I was the one that got picked on. I would rather commit suicide than go back to that schoolâ (Haughey,3rd paragraph). This shows how people find irrelevant excuses to bully people which may not seem like a big deal to them. However this is not a joke and it should be taken very seriously because it can end someone life. Some people are already dealing with a lot of stress and your comment might be the breaking point for them which can lead them into committing suicide. So think twice before you make a comment.
Lastly we rate people by their appearance rather than choosing people on behalf of their great qualities. We need to focus on their personalities rather than accessories. Their is so much more to a person than what they wear. Appearances doesnât make them who they are as a person. You never know they might be so much delightful to you,but the way they dress up might not be to your liking. Instead of judging from outside by their look. Try to look inside, how their heart is. Outfit doesnât make person good, but their personality might.You may not like their dressing style but you could love their personality. As a society in general, we need to look more good in a person, not bad. Easier said than done. But it doesnât hurt to try!
My point here is that we live in a world that is very judgmental and where judging becomes a nasty cough which people canât seem to get rid of. If we stop judging people and leave them as they are, not only will the world will get so much better, but also it will save so many people committing suicide. We shouldnât judge because life is too short for it. Instead of bringing people down and bullying them. We should lift them up. Letâs smile instead of glare. Letâs always remember the saying they taught us when we were little: Donât judge a book by its cover.
Late
Zarin daina
Prof. Choi
English 1101
Open letter
Dear non white peoples,
Does it a right that we talk about racism and at the same time we shows hate to white people? Itâs might sounds creepy but thatâs a true fact that some of brown and blacks claims they donât like white people because of they are white. Yes! Itâs sounds exactly like to those white peoples underestimate people by skin . In USA, most of the people are usually from different countries and considered as real american. Itâs a stereotype because technically they are not. But most of the white people claim themselves as a real american and being racist who are dark or brown skin. And this is what is happening since Columbus discover America. Back to time, peoples were really racist but now time changes people’s mind and way of thinking. We can say people developing their mind. But while white people changing their mind about not being racism, others who are not white are started hating white people by calling them racist and hating them. Because they think white people donât like them as like Trump, our current president, who known for real racist. Also some other states in USA known for racism because majority of people who live there are white and other claims all are racist. As well you can say, people New York are less racist than other states like Virginia, Texas because in New York majority of people are immigrant which is not true. People in new york are still racist in some case for that they are still believe in racism and neglect other who are brown and black. But thatâs not a true fact because place doesnât define a personâs judgement as well Itâs wrong if we say New York is less racist than other states because itâs comes from personâs choice not their background and place and by doing that we the brown and black skin people being racist with white people
Majority of people in US says, racism still exist but what is they mean by that? I am saying it because if i come to comparison between before and now, we can catch a huge difference and people become less racist. Before they black or brown skin people canât even sit together and now they work together even they get married and live together. Itâs shows times flaws can change everything. And people said this change notified only some states where majority people are immigrant than white people. New York is best example because majority are immigrants. And most of them think if they move to other states, living there would be hard because of people who are white and they could be casteism for them. But which is not true. If you sitting next to a white man and if he doesnât look at you it doesnât mean he is recist. Maybe he is busy with his things. Most of brown and black skin people underisment white people for that and hate them back. As i mentioned people can be racist but place didnât define anyone behavior. Itâs showing our wrong perspective to hate to white people. We know everywhere, we see two types of peoples. Good people and bad people so like to white people. US government and US constitution is believe in equality and for that reason we see all people treating based on their qualification not by skin colour in every place. But still if you seeing someone white who is racist, you can not say all others are same. âRobin DiAngelo examines how a large chunk of white America got to a place where it is constantly feeling besieged and victimized, and why she thinks even white progressives are so unwillingâor unableâto acknowledge their own racismâ, this article by Brian Boyd shows our thinking about white people because of what happen with brown and black skin people and we still didnât get over it. But now situation changed and we can see it everywhere in our school, work place, media. But some people still kept in their mind about white people and what they did in past and criticize white people .When a furore broke online over her appointment, Jeong released a public statement saying that as an Asian female she had frequently been the recipient of sexist and racist abuse on social media. Her tweets about white people should be seen as âcounter-trollingâ and âsatireâ, by Yascha Mounk. In the article, âAmericans Strongly Dislike PC Cultureâ, shows, how people is being mean in social media about white people without any reason. That asian female tweets about white people and insult them in public which is a bad things. Our negative thinking about white people turn hate for them which we can say itâs racism . So we can say we are racist too in case of white people. Many people argue that some states like Texas, Virginia are racist and they donât like brown and black people and they said it because in last election, trump won those states. Because before the election in 2016, live election shows, âTrump will be the fifth person in U.S. history to become president despite losing the nationwide popular vote. He will be the first president without any prior experience in public service, while Clinton was the first woman to be the presidential nominee of a major American partyâ. Based on the result of election, People claim that because before election trump was against to immigrant and illegal people but that doesn’t mean people who vote trump are hate people who are not white and citizen or living in United states legally. Maybe they like trump because he have huge power and they believe that it can be a beneficial for America’s economy. âWhile Clinton received about 2.9 million more votes nationwide, a margin of 2.1% of the total cast, Trump won a victory in the Electoral College, winning 30 states with 306 pledged electors out of 538â by David g. Savage. This source shows trump won the election in elector vote. But in âNY timeâ, shows trump got 65,853,625 votes (48.0%) and clinton 62,985,106 votes (45.9%). Itâs shows Clinton got more vote than trump . so we canât say trump won the election though he is racist. Some people feel uncomfortable to wear their culture dress in front of white because they feel like people going to judge them. âIf you look at what Americans have to say on issues such as immigration, the extent of white privilege, and the prevalence of sexual harassment, the authors argue, seven distinct clusters emerge: progressive activists, traditional liberals, passive liberals, the politically disengaged, moderates, traditional conservatives, and devoted conservativesâ by Emily Bazelon, âTheir Own Whitenessâ article in New York Times. This quote shows how immigrant fear being disrespected or harresest. But some of cases this information might be sound wrong. They do like people from another culture. âMuch of the sharpest examination comes, as it always has, from people of color, who have spent centuries acutely aware of how the force of whiteness operates. But these days, white people are also observing one anotherâs whiteness with unfamiliar intensityâ by Isaac Chotiner and this quote explains how white people changing their mind and started observing colour and new things that helps them see something new and we can say a huge change because white people are attracting to different culture and thatâs seems a ending of racism .
Therefore in conclusion, we canât remove racism overnight but we the people need to change our mind before expecting change from other. Everything takes time to change and we canât expect it overnight as like racism. I am not saying white people are not racist, so they are but as not like they was before. We canât remove racism but by treating all white people in a wrong perspective is the another way to do racism. If we really want to change something we have to put some effort on our thinking and stop judging all white people because of the past of racism is started from them.
Late
Aylin Ortega
Prof. Choi
ENG 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear nation,
If you’re into cosmetology then Iâm sure youâve heard of the brands such as AVON, Benefit Inc, Clinique, Make up Forever, Maybelline, MAC etc. These brands make millions of dollars on beauty and face products but how did they become these big labeled brands? There is a process to achieving one single product but to achieve this, cosmetics scientists have to test it several times to make sure it won’t harm a humans flesh. During this process some brands use animals to test out their products before they are released out to the public. The process is not pretty at all and according to Humane Society International Society itâs extremely painful for the animals: âTypically, animal tests for cosmetics include skin and eye irritation tests where chemicals are rubbed onto the shaved skin or dripped into the eyes of rabbits; repeated oral force-feeding studies lasting weeks or months to look for signs of general illness or specific health hazards, such as cancer or birth defects; and even widely condemned âlethal doseâ tests-â (Humane Society International). These tests lead up to death, blindness, swollen eyes, internal bleeding etc. Makeup brands argue that these crucial procedures need to be done because products have to be safe and it’s the responsibility of the manufacturer to ensure that they undergo scientific safety assessments.
Animals don’t get the same diseases as humans explaining why animal testing for cosmetic products is ineffective. Animals don’t get many types of cancer, HIV, Parkinson’s disease, or schizophrenia (a disease that affects a person’s ability to think, feel and behave clearly). These tests have a scientific limitation because different species can respond differently when exposed to the same chemicals. Some statistics are that out of 93 dangerous drug side effects, only 10% of them could have been predicted by animal tests and a recent study found that using mice and rats to test the safety of drugs in humans is only accurate 43% of the time (Cruelty Free International). Moreover an analysis of over 100 mouse cell types found that only 50% of the DNA responsible for regulating genes in mice could be matched with DNA (Cruelty Free International). Humane International Society states that âResults from animal tests can be quite variable and difficult to interpret. Unreliable and non-predictive animal tests mean consumer safety cannot be guaranteed.â Thus explaining that these experiments that are being done are unreliable. Most of these animal tests are not working sufficiently well in humans. Also besides animals being used for cosmetic purposes they are also used for drug related experiments and since many of the illnesses are not found in animals, these sickness are artificially induced in animals in laboratories in an attempt to mimic the human disease.
Cosmetic organizations and companies have found different ways to use while creating new products in a non animal testing ways. In the past three decades scientists have developed many advanced alternatives to animal testingâmethods that use human blood, cell lines, artificial skin or computer models to test the safety of products (Scientific American). A lab in Massachusetts called MatTek scientists work on alternative ways to make sure a shampoo won’t irritate your eyes or a night cream that doesnât give you hives. A new way that technology has given a chance for scientist to create new cruelty free procedures is when they isolate human cells that are usually left over from cosmetic procedures like tummy tucks and make a 3D models of skin. Technology has gotten so advanced in the 21st century that they even create models that are alike to eyes and even lungs (Allure). Michael Bachelor a cellular biologist, senior scientist, and product manager at MatTek states that the models have become âSo much more sophisticated since their commencement in the 1970âsâ. That they now create a model from human skin cells and produce normal skin or even a model that mimics skin disease like psoriasis. (Allure). The goal of the MatTek Corporation is to replicate the entire organ system in vitro models which would be a step toward replacing animal testing, even for medical research. Another way that technology has replaced animal testing has been with vitro testing. Vitro testing is when the animals are replaced, either by methods that don’t involve animals at all (mannequins, computer simulations, etc.) or by in vitro (literally, ‘in glass’) techniques, where the studies are done with cells or tissues in culture. And NCBI states that âSome evidence exists that in-vitro studies are capable or potentially capable of providing more rapid, precise, and relevant information than do some animal studiesâ, thus explaining these tests are more quick and accurate.
In the United States the first two big companies that induced in animal testing were Revlon and Avon however animal testing has been around from a very long time when early greek physician-scientist, Aristotle performed experiments on living animals for early biology experiments. Nonetheless over time new laws emerged and banning animal testing became a new strive for certain countries. In 1938 the United States Food Drug and Cosmetic Act signed into law to requiring evidence of safe products, leading to the use of animals. Over time tests became very cruel and countries started to ban these procedures. Starting with the UK in 1998 banning any type of animal testing for cosmetics products and ingredients. Followed by this in 2000; âInteragency Coordination Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM) Authorization Act is signed. This law established a coordinated effort by United States agencies to evaluate and adopt alternative test methodsâ ( The Humane Society by United States). California became the first state to pass a law to use alternatives validated by ICCVAM. Word got out ot the world and soon came Brazil, India, Canada, New Zealand etc. An interesting fact is that Guatemala is the first country in the Americas to ban cosmetic animal testing (HSUS).
In conclusion animal testing has been an ongoing concept and has been historically debated. And some argue that its necessary and vital for cosmetic improvements and advancements others argue that there have been other technological ways to replace animal testing. However statistics show that animal testing has been less and less reliable over the years. New ways suchs as methods that use human blood, cell lines, artificial skin or computer models to test the safety of products and isolating human cells that are usually left over from cosmetic procedures like tummy tucks and make a 3D models of skin. And it leaves the world to wonder if animal testing will ever stop.
Jaudae Coombs
Prof. Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear, U.S citizens
The president is someone we trust to make the best and most rational decisions for problems within our country, but president Trump hasnât been fulfilling his job. One of these problems includes immigrants illegally crossing the border. Many immigrants were fleeing and illegally entering the United States to get away from the ongoing violence in their countries causing the number of immigrants illegally crossing the border to increase. The government needed a plan to put a stop to this, so Trump created the âZero Toleranceâ policy as a solution to this problem. Trumpâs intentions were to make the consequences of those caught illegally crossing the border more harsh but the consequences were too harsh. Under this policy, adults were prosecuted through the criminal justice system while their kids were processed through the Office of Refugee Resettlement, separating the kids from their families. Trump received major backlash because many people were outraged, and thought this policy needed to be put to an end. I oppose Trumpâs response to this issue because children were held in dangerous conditions, and they couldnât be reunited with their families, a possible solution to this is helping to fix the problems in the countries they are fleeing to stop them from leaving.
I donât agree with Trump’s solution to this immigration issue. Though these immigrants arenât citizens of the United States and donât possess the same rights that we do, they should still be treated as the humans they are. After separating these children, Trump put them in holding facilities. They were supposed to be held in these facilities for a maximum of 72 hours but the majority of the kids were kept beyond this time. These holding facilities didnât have proper beddings, or materials needed to keep these children for a long period of time and this can be very dangerous for the kids. In an NBCnews article Greg Chen, director of government relations for the American Immigration Lawyers Association said, â It would be highly inappropriate and even unsafe to hold children for extended periods in these short-term border facilities because they often lack the adequate medical and nutritional resources for these young people.” Without the proper tools these children can become ill and the authorities in charge of these facilities will have no resources that can help to cure these children or keep them healthy.
After Trump was forced to end his policy, the agencies in charge were ordered to reunite the families but this wasnât possible. In a Washington Post article, U.S. District Judge Dana M. Sabraw said âWhat was lost in the process was the family. The parents didnât know where the children were, and the children didnât know where the parents were. And the government didnât know either.â Trump created and executed a policy irresponsibly without thinking about ways to reunite these children incase this policy backfired. They denied the parents information on where they were taking their kids, the kids were too young to understand what was going on, and the government had no documents linking these kids to their proper families, so it took months to find out the legal parents of a single child. This type of irresponsible behavior is unacceptable because there are now hundreds of young children who cannot be returned to their families, so they are forced to stay in those holding facilities for weeks at a time.
The best solution to fixing this problem could be helping to fix the problems that are causing these immigrants to flee. Most of these immigrants are leaving to get away from the internal problems within their countries. A USA TODAY article written by Christal Hayes says, âMany of those crossing the border traveled from Central American countries rife with corruption, crime and poverty. These root problems have been a driving force for years for immigrants to make the journey to the USA.â Knowing this to be a major cause for them illegally crossing the border the US government can take an initiative to fix these problems. They can help the economy grow, and put an end to crime and corruption. This has proven to be successful because Kevin Breuninger wrote in a CNBC article, âhe pointed to Mexico as an example of a country whose rates of U.S. migration declined as its economy grewâ if the government can find ways to better improve the environment of these countries the immigrants will have less of a reason to leave. This will help their country grow and help the numbers of immigrants crossing the border to decline. Some may say that this is isnât something the U.S should be concerned with because it isnât our problem, but in fact it is. .
In conclusion, the zero tolerance policy was a policy that made the separation of kids and their families acceptable due to the increase number of immigrants crossing the border. Solutions to this problem can be processing the families together, helping out the countries these immigrants are coming from, or simply finding a leader who will make rational and appropriate decisions. We must be aware of the people we elect to be in power because one day in the future they may make a decision that is harmful to us all.
Emeli Perez Ceballos
Prof. Choi
ENG 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear Anti-immigration believers,
To those who believe that immigrants should not come to America due to their beliefs. Their beliefs are that immigrants are not needed in America because they think the immigrants are not Americans which they call them âaliensâ. However, I do not believe what these people think because of how disgraceful America has treated immigrants recently. I think America should fix this broken immigration system and welcome immigrants with open arms rather than treating them like their nothing. To support my counter argument I will use some sources that will greatly disprove you Anti-immigration believers. First, the article âThe Immigrant Children: A Clash of Viewsâ, The Authors Lynn Johnson and Ann Marie Walsh share expresses the issues about immigration. First, in Johnsonâs letter, she focuses on the issue that Congress needs to address America’s broken immigration system. Johnson elaborates by her examples such as âwhen insufficient background checks for sponsors who receive unaccompanied immigrant children led to human trafficking and other horrible situations, the previous administration was rightly criticizedâ (Walsh/Johnson 15-17). This means when people come to pick up the unaccompanied children there’s not enough background checks and can lead to the danger of the children. Then, Johnson gives her opinion to solve these issues going on by stating, âThe only solution is for Congress to address our broken immigration systemâ (Walsh/Johnson 20). Johnson means the only way for these problems to be fixed is to have the higher government officials to address them. Next, in Walshâs letter, she talks about the issues on immigration as well. One example Walsh uses is âAs it takes unaccompanied immigrant children away from federal shelters in the middle of the night to a tent city in Texas that resembles an internment camp, there is apparently no plan to ensure that the children can maintain contact with their immigration lawyersâ (Walsh/Johnson 30-33). This example explains the issue of the holding camps of how the workers deal with the children unfairly. Then Walsh supports this with another example, âThey face an increasingly hostile and labyrinthine immigration court system, many while still coping with trauma from the persecution that forced them to flee home in the first placeâ (Walsh/Johnson 36-38). This supports Walshâs idea of how terrible the workers treat the children by stating the fact the children develop trauma over their journey to America and will increase because of the treatment they endure. Next, in âMigrant Children Moved Under Cover of Darkness to a Texas Tent Cityâ the author Caitlin Dickerson also talks about how America is treating the Immigrant children. Dickerson uses examples to convey the conditions of where the Immigrants are held in a tent city in Texas. One example is âas the federal government struggles to find room for more than 13,000 detained migrant children â the largest population ever â whose numbers have increased more than fivefold since last year (Dickerson 13-15)â. What the author means as more and more Immigrants migrate to America this holding facility is being overflowed with more than they can handle in the camp. Then Dickerson brings up another example about how even the workers are afraid to talk publicly about anything that goes on in these camps. One worker anonymously talked about how they have to inform the children they will be moved within a hour out of the fear the children would try to escape. These articles discuss very similar ideas about Immigration which will help me with my open letter. The articles will prove my opinion of approval about Immigration and how its impactful to today’s society.
To add on, a recent article âMigrant Caravan to America: Why thousands of Asylum Seekers are Heading to the USâ by Georgia Chambers. This article mainly talks about the more than 5,000 immigrants coming from Central America to seek asylum. However this big movement has led to government officials such as Donald Trump to disagree with their seeking of asylum. One way Donald Trump tried to stop them is by ordering the authorities to tear gas by the immigrants trying to defend for themselves. This is stated in the article âTensions between migrants and Mexican authorities reached breaking point earlier this week as they unleashed tear gas on to migrants on the bridge between Mexico and Guatemala.â(Chambers 8-10). This March started because of where the immigrants come from and how dangerous it is now. One example Chambers uses the situation of Hondurans are seeking refuge to America because of the crime and violence flowing through their country. Also the â War taxâ which is the money the Hondurans have to pay to the criminals live in their own houses but will get killed if they won’t pay it. This issue happens in many poor countries and can result to a lot of deaths for the criminals taking advantage of the poor people. These conditions in their home country are unbearable and ultimately lead to many deaths by the people that cannot afford to pay these payments to just be living in their own home. I think you should consider that immigrants are only coming to escape and start a new safer life.
In my experience, I personally agree with immigration because I myself have family members that came to America to seek a new opportunity. My family members came to America to work and to achieve the American dream. This âAmerican dreamâ is working hard enough to live a great life with the opportunity of being in America. I disagree with the anti-immigrant believers on how they treat the incoming people for just finding a way to feel safe in a different country. The sources that I have provided have supported my take on immigration by Johnson and Walsh’s article on how America’s immigration system is broken and the treatment of the immigrant children in camps. Also, , Dickerson’s take on the same topic on the immigrant camp situation and how the workers are afraid to talk about the conditions in there. Finally, Chambers explanation on why immigrants are coming to America and the recent immigrant March to America as well the mistreatment they are receiving on their way. We need to fix these issues between the two opinions about immigration the only way is to fix America’s immigration system which is greatly flawed.
In conclusion, for those who believe in Anti-immigrant belief should think differently because immigrants are not criminals coming to terrorize our country. If you anti- immigration believer treated immigrant nicely then America wouldn’t have this big discuss if rather to let them in or not. They are humans not âaliensâ as America classifies them and you should think about how we are all immigrants to our own country. The reason behind this is how the American Indians were living here first not the people who you think discovered it. America treats the immigrants as non human and just a foreign object. As they enter this country they risk their lives by traveling dangerous paths to find this âAmerican dreamâ. I hope this will change your mind about immigrants and the reason behind why they come to America. I believe we are all humans and should be treated as equals no matter what.
Albert Koroma
Prof. Choi
ENG 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear Fast food Consumers,
The fresh Lettuce, Grilled onions, fried chicken etc⊠yea it may sound so mouthwatering but, do you know that most of these ingredients included in a burger are harmful to our health.? It has come to our attention that a report gives most burger chains in the united states a failing grade when it comes to their use of beef produced with antibiotics. Antibiotic overuse in livestock production is a massive public health problem because it can lead to the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antibiotic-resistant infections in people from contaminated meat. Antibiotics have been added to cattle feed and water to speed growth, prevent disease, and treat infections. The consumption of fast food is harmful because it can increase the risk of health problems such as high blood pressure, heart problems, and obesity.
To begin with, Fast foods are unhealthy as they deplete the body of minerals and vitamins.
In many cases, fast food is highly processed and contains large amounts of carbohydrates, added sugar, unhealthy fats and sodium. These foods are almost always high in calories while offering little in the way of nutrition. And when fast food frequently replaces nutritious whole foods in your diet, it can lead to all sorts of bad health outcomes. Derailing your weight loss goals is just one. Excessive consumption of fast food is one of the main problems of modern society. Children, adolescents and adults are likely to consume these unhealthy foods that are high risk. Obese children may suffer from hypertension, and high cholesterol from childhood or puberty, and continue with high risks in adulthood. In males, the risk of stroke, diabetes, and cancer. Women, however, are likely to suffer increased blood pressure in pregnancy and hip fractures.
Large fast food companies have been targeting children by exposing their products through the help of many social networking sites and public media. As our connection to media is expanding daily, fast food companies such as Mcdonalds are targeting their audience through exposing name brands, new products on television, marketing through public billboards and now even through schools. So, we ought to think twice before grabbing a Happy Meal, especially when we are buying it for our children. Kids are always tempted by the additionally provided small toy. The McDonaldâs policy allows us to purchase it separately. Thus, we can make the child happy and save his health at the same time.
There is a quote âOne should eat to live, not live to eatâ. So, it means that we do not have to pay so much attention to the food anyway. And even more, there are a lot of people who eat junk food, drink alcohol, smoke and are full of health and strength. And there are people, who take care of themselves, lead a healthy life, get regular check-ups and die early. No one can become immune to death regardless of how much he or she tries. But if you have time to watch what you are eating, it is better to use this opportunity and not to push the luck blaming the restaurants for tempting you with yummy snacks.
Eating fast food too much can have many effects on a personâs health. According to âHoang, without a healthy dietâ, a person can develop poor focus, less energy, and a poor quality of living. The human body requires many assortments of foods that fast food does not have. A person should eat three servings of dairy, which includes milk and cheese. A person should eat whole grains and lean protein. A person should also eat at least five fruit and vegetable servings per day. The American College Health Association did a National College Health Assessment. According to this assessment, only 7.8 percent of students that were surveyed actually eat five servings of fruits and vegetables per day and 75 percent of the student skip meals. The sodium in the preservatives that fast food restaurants use causes weight gain and loss of energy. Hoang also states that the brain capacity is capped whenever the body is not receiving proper nutrients. The brain is not working to its full potential. She stated that âafter a person eats fast food, he or she turns sluggish and tiredâ. (Valle).
Eating fast food results in diabetes (Al-saad,2016). Fast food has become an alternative for numerous busy people seeking a fast as well as an inexpensive alternative to making food at home. even though they might develop diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, often is caused by inappropriate lifestyle choices, for instance being overweight and being physically inactive. One side effect of consuming fast food on a regular basis is obesity which may trigger the development of diabetes. In 2004 a research, published in the Lancet, researchers discovered that frequent consuming fast foods doubles one’s chance of having insulin resistance that amplifies the risk of having type two diabetes (Machowski 2015). Since 1980, the number of persons internationally having diabetes has greatly doubled from 150 million to around 360 million in 2011 (Ogden,2014).
In addition, consuming fats food can attract diseases such as cardiovascular disease. Greater densities of fast food are linked with a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases. Studies have found that areas having numerous fast food cafe are prone to having higher levels of hospitalization because of coronary conditions. Additionally, fast food is often packed with sources having excessive sugar as well as saturated fats, for instance, cheese, mayonnaise, and soda. Whereas this means additional calories and weight gain, also it may become a risk factor for coronary illness. Increased cholesterol levels and triglyceride are signs of cardiovascular illness and are linked with elevated risks of stroke and heart attack (Machowsky, 2015).
In conclusion, we have to be mindful that, although fast food tastes good and eating it once in a while is fine, eating fast food too frequently may result in health problems such as obesity or diabetes. The problems caused by it are mainly in the high sugar, salt, and fat content.
Yasmin Zeidyyeh
Prof. Choi
English 1101 (D348)
Open Letter
Dear Media,
There is a current obsession in mainstream media that is pertaining to Islam and the West. This current obsession is depicting Muslims generally as violent, fanatical, bigoted, or as extremists and terrorists. As a Muslim woman living in a western country, I face discrimination often due to the negative portrayal of Islam and Muslims. We as Muslims do know the fact that living life as a practicing and religious Muslim is not easy in the west. Media portrayal of the Islamic religion often focuses on terrorist groups or violence. Those who claim Islam is an inherently violent religion ignore the fact that there are more than 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide and 3.45 million in the United Statesâ who live peacefully. We are living in a climate of hostility, our faith being distorted by violent extremists on one end and an anti-Muslim movement on the other. Islam teaches that it is through the doing of good deeds and seeking the pleasure of God that souls find true happiness and peace. This misconception of Islam can be resolved by having the media tabloids be open minded and further understand Islam as way of life.
The media is designed to tell the public what to think about world issues and stories that affect a significant portion of society. This open letter primarily focuses on the Muslims living in the West. The population now tend to believe that all the information written online are true since media is widely used all around the world. Media and social media outlets create international ignorance about many topics because we fail to look any further and find the truth about these topics. Islamophobia is the dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims. Islamophobia in the media refers to the occurrence or perception that media outlets tend to cover Muslims or Islam-related topics in a negative light. For the past decades, two major magazines; Newsweek and Time have been covering relations between the U.S. and Afghanistan over the last decades. Furthermore, Fox News has also had to retract false claims about Muslims, this television news channel is only a small component of the Islamophobia on U.S media components. Muslims tend to be negatively framed in the media and their religion they follow because Islam is dominantly portrayed as a violent religion. According to Elizabeth Poole in the Encyclopedia of Race and Ethnic Studies, both of the magazines listed earlier distributed twenty leading articles that depicted about 57% of negative coverage in regards to current events in Afghanistan, while only around 6% was positive information. This negative content would often consist of excessive mentioning of Al-Qaida and the Taliban, mistreatment of women, the recruitment of terrorists, etc. In addition to the false reports by the magazines, a new research from the University of Alabama came out and states that Terrorist attacks committed by Muslim extremists receive 357% more US press coverage than those committed by non-Muslims. (Chalabi: 3) Terrorist attacks committed by non-Muslims (or where the religion was unknown) received an average of 15 headlines, while those committed by Muslim extremists received 105 headlines. Reports of a significant increase in Islamophobic discourses and abuse online, indicating a growing trend of hardening attitudes towards Muslims, including me.
Discriminations against my religion are an obstacle I have to face daily, especially since it’s evident Iâm a Muslim due to my headscarf. For example, one morning on my way to school I was on the bus with an Islamophobic woman who was speaking about ISIS and our supposed association with the organization. In addition to my experience, more similar incidents occur to Muslims in the west and it includes having been treated with suspicion by many officials, called offensive names, singled out by airport security or other law enforcement, or physically threatened or attacked. In November, four passengers of Middle Eastern descent were removed from a Spirit Airlines flight for âsuspicious activityââââa claim that revolved around one of the passengers viewing a news report on his phone. Later that month, two Palestinian-Americans were barred from boarding a plane in Philadelphia when a fellow passenger complained the pair made her uncomfortable because they were conversing in Arabic (Jenkins:19). Being falsely accused is one of the many challenges that Muslims have to face and many Muslim Americans feel it has become harder to be Muslim in the U.S.
Since the last decade or so, there has been an explosive growth in the use of social media and social networking sites and they are progressively becoming both an important platform for social interaction, as well as an increasingly important source for receiving and producing daily news. Having Islam constantly being looked down upon and being bashed, subconsciously individuals would have hatred feelings towards the religion and their followers, Muslims. Media portrayals of Muslims in the United States are often simplistic, inaccurate, and focused on violence. To reduce negative stereotypes of Muslims in the media, one solution can be having Muslims being represented in the media when discussing policies that affect Muslims directly. In early months of 2017 President Donald Trump has approved of the Executive Order 13769 which would ban immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. Journalists at Media Matters compiled a list of guests that were invited onto US cable news shows including Fox News to discuss this controversial issue. They found that of the 176 guests that were invited to discuss the issue, less than 8% were Muslim. Muslims working in the media could help reduce negative stereotypes, as could more relationships between Muslims and non-Muslims. If there was more balanced news coverage of Muslims in the United States, we would observe a reduction in negative attitudes and behaviors towards Muslims. (Ballentine:28) Considering the majority of Americans rely on media as their primary source of information about Muslims, this solution can be in favor of Muslims in the west.
Social media influences the publicâs view of Muslims. When a Muslim is involved in a terrorist act, the media tends to give it much more coverage than such incidents involving non-Muslims. The content within social media is an issue and the solution should also involve something that will fix how the media portrays Muslims which is more representation of Muslims in the media and the way they really live and go by life. The public then replicates this thinking in their daily lives, which lead unity in society and less discrimination against Muslims.
Mikayla Carter-Coleman
Prof. Choi
English 1101(D348)
Open Letter
Dear Anti-BLM supporters,
â17 year old undisciplined punk thug, drug dealing, thief and wannabe gangstaâ is how an online article described Trayvon Martin, a young teenage boy who was shot to death by a man who believed he was suspicious looking and felt the need to chase and shoot him down, even after being advised not to follow him by police dispatchers. Within the same year, Rodney King was battered and abused by law enforcement officers who beat him, took a cigarette break, and went back to brutally beating him. Tamir Rice lost his life at 12 years old in 2014 when police shot him after mistaking his toy gun for a real one. Sandra Bland, who was pulled over by officers for a traffic stop, was held in a cell for three days before her dying suddenly in the presence of police officers, her mysterious death was labeled a suicide. With negative media portrayal, the injustice of these deaths, and many more relating to police shooting, public outrage helped create the Black Lives Matter movement- a social activist group who speak out against police brutality and wrongful killings of African American lives, not a terrorist group seeking violence.
The BLM movement has been known to protest in large numbers across the United States, being met with opposing ideas from not only police officers, but white nationalist as well, who have tried to justify the shootings by trying to mention how some of the people who were shot were âresisting arrestâ or âhad drugs and alcohol in their systemâ. In an attempt to bring attention to their ideas on white supremacy, white nationalists invaded a âUnited the Rightâ rally, which was meant to protest the removal of Confederate monuments in response to the Charleston church shooting in 2015, an event in which nine African-Americans were shot to death by a white supremacists weilding a confederate flag, who was taken out to eat by officers before going to jail. Lighted tiki torches in hand, the nationalists chanted supremacists slogans and ideas filled with hate.
The hate continues when white nationalists show up to Black Lives Matter protests and begin inciting violence. In one incident, when violence occurred at a Baton Rouge protest, the blame was instantly blamed on the BLM movement. This led to an officer trying to sue the social group for injuries sustained during the protest, and the FBI terrorism unit going as far as to label the people involved as a violent security threat: Black Identity Extremists. This, along with media portrayal of activists and lack of information has created a negative image of the BLM movement, leading people to identify us as a terrorist group.
Author Angie Thomas, mirrors this type of depiction in her young adult novel, âThe Hate U Giveâ, where main character Starr Carter, is the only witness to the unjust death of her friend, Khalil, by a police officer who shot Khalil after he reached for a brush. While being interviewed about the situation, Starr becomes furious when she realizes that the news reporter is not only changing her words around, but purposely mentioning Khalilâs drug-dealing past and gang affiliation as a way to dehumanize him. Although Starr tries to get the point across that he was only supporting his sick grandmother, it goes unheard. âA hairbrush is not a gun!â (Thomas 408) she chants along with protestors at a riot in attempt to get those who support the officer to understand the wrong in his actions. Their attempts fail, however, when the interview along with many other factors are what lead to a jury saying the officerâs actions were justified and let him go without indictment. This is similar to the way the media degraded Tamir Rice in efforts to take negativity off the officers that killed him, when instead of putting out how young and joyful he was, brought up how is family was receiving government assistance and was even homeless at one point. Publicizing old jail records and choosing what images of victims are released are part of the reason why justice is barely made. Although these details about the victims usually have no relation to the case, they play a role in shaping the victims to be made out into this horrible person which they are not.
Itâs reasons like this that help shape the idea that Black Lives Matter is a terrorist organization. BLM co-founder Patrisse Khan-Cullors addresses this in her memoir âWhen They Call You A Terroristâ where she speaks on her experience growing up in an urban neighborhood with hostile officers harassing her since a young age. She talks about police-involving incidents in her life such as her home being raided by cops for the first time, or the time when her and her brothers were stopped in an alley by police and were thrown and rolled around while being searched for drugs and weapons they did not have. Khan-Cullors acknowledges the prejudice BLM receives and how she didnât realize it existed until she was twelve years old in her predominantly white school that âlaw enforcement had nothing to do with protecting and serving, but controlling and containing the movement of children who had been labeled super-predators simply by the virtue of who they were born to and where they were born, not because they were actually doing anything predatoryâ (Khan-Cullors 26). Between the destructive media portrayal, biased opinions, and a lack of trust from both sides of law enforcement and people of color, the movement is constantly degraded and made out to be something itâs not.
Black Lives Matter is a slogan used to make people aware of the mistreatment of not only African-Americans, but everyone of color, by racists white people, particularly those who hold power-wielding titles over us such as law enforcement. We do not support violence in any way. We are always hurt when we see our people lose their lives to officers or other whites who are sent on paid leave or taken out for dinner in return, almost as if their being praised for their actions. Supporters of the movement do not hold any hate in their heart for police officers, but want to make police officers less of a threat to our communities and get them to understand that our skin color isnât a threat at all. We do not believe that all white people are racists, but we have no tolerance for the ones who stay silent and look the other way when they see the events occuring. Black Lives Matter is meant to combat the belief held by some people that our existence is tolerated rather than respected. That our lives are just as important as anyone elseâs and should be treated as such.
To defeat the rumors made about us, we ask those who believe we are a terrorist organization to look into the things we do. Educate yourselves on what we stand for and why we feel the way we do. Changing the way the media portrays us into a positive light can alter the idea that we are a violent group who only thinks of themselves. Seeking justice for those who lost their lives from police brutality. As mentioned in the article â11 Major Misconceptions About the Black Lives Matter Movementâ by Brittney Cooper, itâs a âleaderfullâ movement that focuses on many other issues in communities as well. The BLM movement is much more and greater than what is being said.
Allen Lin
Prof. Choi
English 1101(D348)
Open letter essay
Dear Adults,
Our society is in a crisis with people bringing bringing in frivolous lawsuits with the lack of proof to gain money. Unfortunately this caused the public to lose trust on the legal system. Many assumptions are made that led to people trying to scam the legal system. However, there are lawsuits of great merit that deserved to be heard. The Stella Liebeckâs case, in which she spills coffee on herself and suing Mcdonaldâs for $2.9 million has caused an uproar. But the real facts were distorted from the media’s and were completely ignored which led to people creating baseless lawsuits for the financial reward it may give such as the Case of Selena Edwards, and the Case of Angelica Kellers.
For the record, Stella Liebeck suing Mcdonaldâs just because she got burned by a coffee isnât the whole true story. According to the article âThe True Story of The Woman Who Sued Mcdonaldâs Over Hot Coffee and Won $2.9 Millionâ by Erin Mosbaugh, there was more to the story. This all started when a 79-year-old Stella Liebeck ordered coffee at McDonaldâs drive through and accidentally spilled the coffee she had ordered on her lap. (Erin Mosbaugh, paragraph 1-3) Over 16% of her body was covered in third degree burns. Stella started writing a letter to Mcdonaldâs, asking them to cover her medical bill. Mcdonaldâs only gave her $800 so Liebeck had no choice other than to sue Mcdonaldâs. Many people who heard the news only thought of how Stella has âwon the lottery.â After Stella won the lawsuit, the New York Times put out a mini documentary and most of the real story was cut out of the media, which led people to think she had won $2.9 million just for spilling coffee on herself. There have been many misunderstandings to the Liebeckâs case, as many didnât know the true story and thought she was just being greedy for money. During the time Stella was in the hospital, the burns were severe. âIt was one of the most severe medical casesâ said Adam Ruins. There are lawsuits that deserved to be heard Stellaâs case is a great example of a well fought case.(Consumer Attorney of California, paragraph 7-9)
Selena Edwards, 38 year old woman was charged is charged with 21 felony counts of insurance and workerâs compensation fraud when she tried to sue Mcdonaldâs for $10,000.(Vives, Ruben, paragraph 3) But later regretted her decision after the court found a lead to photos she had posted online. The photos depicted that some of Selenaâs photos were from a hospital websites. When the officials called her doctor they found that Selena had not gotten any treatment after getting burned. Comparing Liebeckâs case to Edwardâs case, Liebeck has actually suffered third-degree burns over 16% of her body while in contrast to Edwardâs case Selena Edwards suffered from no injuries.
Another incident was on December 28, 2011, Angelica Keller was a 43 year old women who was a construction worker from the Smyrna got second degree burns by hot water on the airplane. This all began when she ordered a cup of tea. Keller was sitting on the front row where there were no drop-down tables included. Before she could place her tea bag into the cup of water with no lid she spilled water into her own lap. Rob Anderson, Kellerâs attorney, filed a $800,000 lawsuit against the Southwest. This case was very much related to the case of Stella Liebeck which was the lawsuit against Mcdonaldâs in 1992. The Stella Liebeckâs case many people and medias deemed it as a act of greed or abuse of the legal system cutting out the facts and the outcome of the case. Ever since the misleading rumor spread it has traveled its way to Tennessee in 2011. Tennessee created a barrier that is intended to stop lawsuits that were filed in a abused way such as harassing, annoying, or disturbing. Many have tried to mirror the Stellaâs lawsuit but only a few come as close as Kellerâs. âItâs natural for people who think they know the facts of one case to hear another and draw a correlation,â said the local attorney John Day âBut the hot coffee case is often invoked to make people have doubts about the civil justice system.â(Allyn, Bobby, paragraph 10) $300,000 out of the 800,000 is what Keller seeks including the pains and suffering she has gotten from the injury.(Allyn, Bobby, paragraph 14)
The rumors around Stella Liebeckâs case and the subsequent actions of a few greedy opportunists threatened the integrity of the sixth and seventh amendments, which stipulate the right to a fair trial and trial by jury, by using the court of law to fulfill selfish ends. Furthermore, people to fake injuries risk being fined for millions of dollars and left with serious burns, resulting in more medical bills. If rumors like this one arenât addressed there will be more people trying to fake Stellaâs case and the sixth and seventh amendments will slowly break down, affecting the people who need to use the court of law for real problems. Although Stellaâs case is fair many threw assumptions and doubts on the legal system when the media distorted important facts about the case. The case was so famously known that many frivolous lawsuits have arised.
The false rumors around Stella Liebeck need to stop as they are creating more and more chaos. One way to solve this is by helping people gain a better understanding of Stellaâs case. We must help them know and feel how painful and difficult it was for Stella and why suing Mcdonaldâs was her only option. That is why I am writing this open letter: to dispel and prevent others from developing any wrong ideas about the true nature of Stellaâs case.
Harun Thadhani
Prof. Choi
ENG 1101(D348)
Open Letter Final
Dear Society,
Todayâs youth has serious violence in schools. Kids are getting beat, stabbed and killed in schools. This is something that should never happen. A school is a place to learn and grow your mind and skills. School should not be a scary place kids shouldnât even get bullied at all. The fact that people want to come inside schools and shoot kids for absolutely no reason makes no sense. Then on top of that the shooter shoots himself in the head. This is a problem that not only the Board of Education needs to solve but parents, teachers, principals, even the president of the United States need to help and solve this issue.
The sunshine state Florida is where recently violence in schools have been happening. Overall though violence in schools happen all over the United States as well as worldwide. Just a few days ago Oct 26th, 2018 at Bartow Middle School in Florida something devastating had occured. A CNN article states âTwo girls at a middle school in Central Florida were waiting in a bathroom, planning to overpower at least 15 smaller students, kill them with knives and drink their blood, authorities said Wednesdayâ. These two girls did not kill anyone and they got caught. The two girls were 11 and 12 years old. It is so sad because they were so young and the article also states âthey were Satan worshippers and were going to drink the blood and eat the flesh of the students they killed. The girls then planned to kill themselves, they saidâ. Why? That is my only question. Why would you ever think to do something like that, what goes on in your mind to think that what you are about to do is okay. Things like this just has to end, it is getting out of control.
I feel that parents need to get in some control and talk to their children/kids. If the parent can find out what the child is going through or feeling then we can help them. But having a thought of killing somebody or hurting someone else isnât the right thing to do at all. Matter of fact is that if we can help out that is more of a chance that we can save and protect our children. The youth of this generation has been impacting kids minds and the way they think and function. All these drugs and new rappers that be influencing kids to do has been hurting them. They see what other kids do and wants to copy and be like them. It’s not only about these two girls it’s also other school shooting that happens. Like you are harming innocent kids, why? Why are you doing this? At the end either you will shoot yourself or you will go to prison and rot in hell and then die. What do these harmful people get out of it? The people who do these kinds of antics are sick in the mind and have problems and disorders. If that is you then get some medical help or some psych help ASAP.
A solution to this problem would be to increase high security at schools. Hire secret agents with guns on them to protect the children and kids in an education environment. Make sure to keep the parents involved in their children lives keep an eye on them all the time. At the schools hire advisors for kids to talk to so that however they feel they can get some help and feedback on their situation. Make sure that the energy in all schools is positive donât have nothing that’s negative. Something that is negative will have an impact on the child and can lead them to a very narrow and negative mind which we donât want. To keep the school environment healthy and with lots of passion. The goal is for there to be less school violence in the United States as well as WorldWide. Sometimes we think school violence is just in the United States buy generally is also worldwide. School Violence is a huge problem everywhere and I believe that children and kids come first. The youth is the most important, they have a whole life to live. Why should they give it up and die when they can be and become something huge in life. Make their parents proud. The President of the United States Donald Trump also needs to stop worrying about building a stupid wall and focus on the youth of our generation. The youth is the key to our future. Everybody just likes to talk, nobody takes any action. Until itâs your child godforbid that’s when youâll take action.
Sincerely,
Harun Thadhani