A Little Bit About Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday signifies the first day of Lent, which is the 40 day period before Easter. I attended the service at California State University, Monterey Bay in the Student Center to get more of an understanding and the meaning of it. The event was hosted by the Newman Club and Father Manny, a local priest, who conducted the service.  The room was filled with  students along with Monterey locals who came together embracing their religion.

http://concordpastor.blogspot.com/2012/02/where-do-ash-wednesdays-ashes-come-from.html

Songs were sung with lyrics such as, “Be merciful Oh Lord for we have sinned.”  Along with singing there was a part during the service when students were marked with crosses on their foreheads. I was unsure about what the crosses meant so I got some answers. According to the President of the Newman Club Chrissy Depweg, Senior, Mathematics Major said that Father Manny placed ashes in the sign of a cross on the foreheads with ashes that were blessed and mixed with holy water.  The ashes are made from palms that were blessed from the previous year on Palm Sunday.  Depweg went on to say that the ashes signify mortality of life and are asked to renew themselves to repentance.  The saying that Father Manny said as he placed ashes on the foreheads was "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return".  This signifies the symbol of repentance, sorrow, and humility.  The ashes were made in the sign of the cross to signify the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Students throughout the day who attended the service continued to wear the marking of the crosses on their heads proudly.

Fasting is also a part of lent and according to Depweg during Lenten season it is known to also fast and abstain from meat on Fridays. Catholics are also supposed to refrain from a certain necessity during the process of the time. During Father Manny’s preaching he said, “that by fasting we are making ourselves more available to God.”

He continued by saying during lent we must ‘fast’ from certain things and ‘feast’ on others. He emphasized that a lot of people during lent fast from sweets or watching TV and are missing the primary purpose. He said that we should fast from anger and feast on patience, fast on worry and feast onto hope, fast from bitterness and feast forgiveness.  He pointed out that lent does not increase Gods love for us because he already loves us. Lent is for making one more open to God, to become like Christ to one another.

The Newman Club holds a Roman Catholic Mass every Sunday at 6:30 pm in the Meeting House.  Depweg said that Mass is important to their faith because they are able to receive the Eucharist, which is the Body and Blood of Christ.  Eucharist means "thanksgiving" as they are giving thanks to God for dying of our sins.  Everyone is welcome to our Mass, Catholic and Non-Catholic.

Dupweg along with the Newman Club invites everyone to their weekly Sunday mass with Father Manny.  In special news, the Bishop of the Monterey diocese, Bishop Garcia, will be presiding over Mass on April 1st, which is Palm Sunday! The Newman Club will also be hosting an Easter mass on Sunday, April 8 in the Student Center again at 6:30pm.

I feel as though it is important for people who follow a specific religion to learn the methods of others and the reason for it. Understanding multiple religions allows one to gain knowledge that can enhance their certain beliefs and maybe even understand others.

Black History Month

http://blogs.houstonpress.com/artattack/2012/02/top_10_films_to_celebrate_blac.php

     Black History Month, a time where every one takes great recognition towards African American individuals who have led the righteous path that we now walk on today. We listen to Dr. King's famous I have a dream speech, watch re enactments of Rosa's Parks stand against discriminatory behavior, and admire Harriet Tubman  for her courageous strength for creating the road to freedom. These African Americans are  the definition of leaders, but who else made a difference. We tend to take notice of the most well known African American historical figures during Black History Month which is great, but in this post I wanted to devote attention to the not so recognized ones that have made great changes for both me and you.

http://quietlunch.com/tag/shirley-chisholm/

     Shirley Chisholm a woman known for her unfearful personality of challenging the status quo got her self a seat in the New York's State Assembly in 1964. In 1968 she was the first black woman to ever be elected into the U.S House of Representatives Congress. Her goal was to always advertise education for the youth at an early age which was made possible when she later then became a member of the Education and Labor Committees. During her time in this Committee she fought for; women rights, Native Americans, Haitian refugees, migrant farm workers, and the poor. She worked on behalf of African American Colleges, became an early member of the National Organization for Women, Co-founder of the Women's Political Caucus, and founder of the Congressional Black Caucus. A women of success to the fullest devoting her time to help not only her own race but the other minorities as well.
    Chisholm also played a part in ensuring that the MLK day we celebrate today was to become a national holiday. After Dr.King's assassination in 1968, legislation for a national holiday to be celebrated in King's honor was proposed by Michigan Congressman John Conyers but was put on hold. Chisholm joined forces with Conyers to resubmit the idea every legislative session until it was finally passed in 1983. She died in 1991 at the age of 80 and was asked before how she wanted to be remembered and she responded by saying, " I'd like them to say that Sherry Chisholm had guts..." I for sure will remember Miss Sherry Chisholm as just that.

http://www.af.mil/information/heritage/person.asp?dec=&pid=123006470

     Guion Bluford, 'in West Philadelphia born and raised' (had to throw a Fresh Prince shout out in there) born on November 22, 1942 became the first African American astronaut to ever go into Space in 1983. His historic fly was also the first nighttime launch and landing. Bluford was also a Pilot for the Airforce and an aerospace engineer. His education consist of many degrees. Bluford has received a bachelor of science degree in aerospace engineering from Pennsylvania State University in 1964; a master of science degree with distinction in aerospace engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1974; a doctor of philosophy in aerospace engineering with a minor in laser physics from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1978, and a master in business administration from the University of Houston, in 1987. The sky is surely not the limit for Bluford.
     I wanted to bring attention to other African American heroes of both historic and recent times, and I hope this post did just that. Even though Black History Month is almost over I don't think that we should stop celebrating and continue giving recognition to the success of those that have made a difference. Keep on Celebrating!
   


   

Oreo Girl

     A problem with many minorities is what I would like to call 'racism within the own race.' Growing up I was constantly called an Oreo, this is someone who was Black on the outside but according to others acts white on the inside. Other names I was called was 'white washed' or just plain 'acting white.'

http://www.thewritecurldiary.com/2010/06/why-i-love-ravy-sparkles.html

     The saddening thing however is that the people I mainly heard it from were people within my own race. Don't get me wrong my friends of different ethnic backgrounds would also use these terms, however I laughed not realizing that both my friends and the people of my race were viewing me as the stereotypical African American.
     The view that Blacks are all ghetto, neck snapping, lip smackin', gang banging, single parent, under age Moms, high school drop out, unemployed beings. The problem with this is that Black people themselves are saying it when we should be offended.
     We have all gotten the look (being any race of color) when walking into an expensive designer store and the clerk doubts that you can even afford anything or may even follow you around the store suspect that you might try to steal something just because of the pigment of your skin. We have seen the woman clutch onto her purse a little tighter when realizing that there was a person of color crossing her path. The way this needs to stop is with ourselves. We can't be teasing our fellow youth when they choose to read books, study, speak articulate, or advance themselves in any way shape or form because that is not acting white that is acting like a determined well educated being!
     A great example of racism in America was demonstrated on ABC's television show 'What Would You Do' where they hire actors to be put in certain situations where civilians are expected to interfere. On the episode focused on racism they had an actual migrant worker go inside a coffee shop to order a drink using Spanish with an actor who acted as the annoyed cashier who tells him to go back home and when in America to use English. The scenario causes the Migrant worker to be very hurt by how rude and in agreement the civilians were to the fake cashiers views that it brings him to tears.
     Another example of racial profiling stereotypes is addressed in a film called Crash. This movie illustrates very well the stereotypical views that we as people both do bluntly and not so obvious. This film contains scenes of how African Americans are percieved as criminals just based on first glance or how the wealthy rich woman may assume that her Hispanic workers may be thieves just based on appearance.
     Unfortunately in real life we don't get that blunt realization where everyone has the epiphany that we should all just get along. However I do believe it starts with 'we the people' and stopping others when saying racial slurs, jokes, or anything to the nature of demeaning our diverse races. Whether Black, Hispanic, Mexican, Caucasian, Asian, Japanese, Indian, etc. We should not play into the stereotypes that everyone else believes or even our fellow races that have been misguided into believing it, take a stance and stand up against any form of racism.
     For the longest time I was convinced that there was something wrong with me. I thought I was a disgrace to the Black race and I just wanted to be like the other Black girls and boys at my school who 'acted Black.' I used to wish that I had different parents who were more 'Black,' when the truth is there's no specific way of acting Black or any race for that matter. Don't fall into the stereotypical views that America perceives us to be, beat the expected by doing the unexpected.
     If you have a story or example of not so blunt racism like mine or even blunt racism please do share and your reaction towards the situation and whether or not you did something about it and if you were happy with the way you went about the situation. I encourage any race to share their stories, this is how we get the word out.

My Thoughts and Ambitions

     I like honesty, but then again what person doesn't. I express my free speech through poetry and creative writing. I am a proud mixed baby of both Mexican and African American descent. I feel that we the youth need to realize the privileges we do have due to our ancestors sufferings, commitment, and bravery.We must come together in order to continue finishing the path  that our elders have left for us. We need to take advantage of the resources we do have and use them to our best abilities. 
     I love to learn artistically and hope that I am able to do that through my blog. I'm a Human Communications Major with a focus on Journalism and Media Studies. My dream job is to become a news broadcaster and I plan on making that happen with self dedication towards my studies. 
     If anyone were to describe me I think they would say that I have a very happy, go-lucky, care free kind of attitude. I don't like to stress about the little things in life because I know that there is someone out there with even bigger issues on their hands. So I walk around with a smile eager to learn and ready for action.  I'm extremely ecstatic to be doing a blog for this class! I have never done a blog before and I feel that this is a great start and very beneficial towards the line of work that I want to do. 

                              http://amiratulnadiahhasan.wordpress.com/2011/09/15/race/ 
  My goal is to inspire other people (Miss America Pageant answer) I know. However it's the truth, if I can make one boy proud of his multicultural background I would be thrilled. If I can encourage girls to start using their voice, no longer afraid of what others think then I would be even more motivated. As a young adult I feel as though it is our duty to encourage other young adults, teenagers, and kids that we have a voice and should never second guess ourselves whenever wanting to use it. If you have something to say SCREAM IT! It's our right, it's our first amendment, it's our liberty of free speech.