CR #1

What? What do Lorena (Sabrina Needs Her Identity Back), Myles Horton (Islands of Decency), and Calderon (Perspective-Taking) believe their jobs are as human beings? (remember to use and reference quotes from the texts to support your interpretation). Does anything here inspire, resonate, or bring up more questions for you about how your job as a human being?

Lorena, Horton and Calderon all believe that their jobs as human beings is that everybody must engage themselves with others for the betterment of society at large. They all have similar ways of going about this.

Lorena spent an internship in North Carolina during her college years exposed to the plight of both undocumented and documented farm workers. They lived in appalling conditions, with the bare minimum in human decency only being provided by the farmowners. Lorena states that her experience opened her eyes to a lot of injustice she did not want to know about before (“Sabrina…” 193). In this way, Lorena saw commonality herself and her family in the farmworkers. She experienced something profound by seeing others so close to her, even if it took some time.

Horton has an early postmodern perspective, one that is slightly idealistic view of education as a sole tool for change. He believes it is the job of the people to draw on the shared experiences, whether they be in elation or in suffering. He focuses on empowerment through education — and not education in the traditional, bigwig sense. He wants a real education, one dynamically reciprocal, where all voices are engaged, not just of that of the teacher, professor or educator in front of the classroom. Horton states that people have to take responsibility, not via lecture but by action (“Islands of Decency” 135). With this in mind, Horton sees the potential that all humans have to be masters of their own reality.

Calderon has a view of perspective taking that is necessary to what Horton wants to accomplish. Even Lorena herself experienced this in her life — first as a recipient as student who struggled to speak English and secondly as the benefactor during her time in North Carolina. Calderon draws on the power of perspective taking as a tool to charge the passion and motivation of one to feel the experiences of another. He draws upon the time in 2004 when Obama challenged community organizers to place themselves in others’ worlds (“Perspective Taking” 1). This is a very important aspect to the process of education Horton wishes to embody — Horton bases his plan of action around this very idea, even if it came after his lifetime.

So what? What are the social issues that these Lorena, Horton, and Calderon are engaged with? How are they motivated by their own life experiences and those of marginalized people to struggle for what they believe is ethical, just, and democratic? (reference quotes/specific points in the text)

Lorena is very passionate the treatment of farmworkers, both documented and undocumented. She is motivated by her family history; her mother and stepfather both did the same work in the fields during their early years in the United States. She witnessed and experienced that struggle firsthand. It motivates her dream to become a doctor — she wishes to eventually have a mobile clinic so she can help safeguard the health of farmworkers (“Sabrina…” 202).

Horton was born 1905, meaning he lived through a lot of changes in his life leading up to the foundation of Highlander and the writing of “The Long Haul”. Horton was very involved in the labor movement and the Civil Rights Movement as well. He is motivated in the same way as Lorena; both his parents were laborers and teachers. He believes people learn how to make decisions by making decisions — the entire Highlander premise was based on this (“Islands of Decency” 142).

Calderon is very involved with farmworkers and laborers as well. He is motivated by his life and that of the others he looks to — people such as Obama, Gandhi and even Horton. Calderon wishes to value and respect the perspectives of all others. And his methodology is rather holistic and all encompassing. He wants to help foster a better world; one that is engrained on personal and social responsibility (“Perspective Taking” 3).

Now What? Horton is explicit about the problem with claiming neutrality. Calderon also illustrates how power can be used to oppress or liberate and writes that, “Ultimately, perspective-taking cannot occur without addressing questions of power” (3). He describes the vital relationship between education and democracy. All three (Lorena, Horton, Calderon) see education as crucial to their lives and the lives of others. What are some of the strategies, concepts, or tools that they use to make education meaningful, democratic, empowering? (You can pick one of the three texts to focus on). Which most interests you about their views and stories? Have you experienced anything similar in your education thus far or what interests you in relation to this class? (reference quotes/specific points in the text to support your ideas).

Education is very important to the process of self-realization. A person cannot understand their place in the world without the proper knowledge of the world. Being well-versed in subjects such as history can help you understand why things are the way they are. Having an education that emphasizes the use of skills such as problem solving and critical thinking can only make a person better equipped to challenge the social issues of the world. But it is impossible to control people and the things they are passionate about. I disagree with Horton’s view of neutrality. To my understanding, his view on it is probably coming from a place that compartmentalizes neutrality to apathy and complacency, or even the fear of choosing a side. I view neutrality as the potential for growth Horton speaks of in “Islands of Decency”, as long as it is temporary. Someone can be neutral because they do not understand the scope of the issues at large, or the impact such choices can have. Calderon states that having an open mind and open heart is necessary for perspective-taking. What is one supposed to do if they are neutral? Should they feign passion and joy? Should they find hate to give? “I don’t know” is just as valid of a view as any other; it just means a person has more to know. Ideally a person will eventually know and will find where they stand at as a position. But even then, the world is getting much more complex than it was back then and there is always more to know before choosing a position. Neutrality can be a limbo, a moral purgatory, if one stays in it too long; of this I have no question. But there is much power to be seized there as well, because humans are naturally curious and do not like when there are questions unanswered. I think there is still much more to be understood about this, because a lot of people defer to neutrality.