Mascot Debate

When looking at other people's postings, an issue that really caught my attention was the the Mascot debate as to whether native americans should be used as a represenation of a university/school or not. I understand that this post is kind of late compared to when we discussed the issue, but as i continue reading other posts it really made me want to give my two sense as well. Before watching the movie in class or reading The Heart of a Chief I have never put that much thought or emphasis on the matter. After being a part of the discussion it really hit me how big of an issue this can be and how many people it affects. When watching the movie I was completely torn with which end of the spectrum I would be at. I understand where both sides are coming from in the debate of whether to keep a native american mascot or not. Many universities take pride in their "symbol" but are not always portraying them in the correct light. Most of them depict these symbols with stereotypes. As described in the Reese article, "They'd be wearing feathers, They'd havewar paint on," and "They'd be carrying a tomahawk". Nowhere in there is that respecting the culture of the Native Americans. When they have mascots dancing around on the field, it is mocking their form of prayer and spirituality and should not be used as entertainment. The thing that got me so confused with the whole debate is the kind of passion and love the fans had for their mascot. It seemed like they were not trying to make a mockery of their culture, but the reason they didn't want to change mascots is because it is a mascot that they have come to love and is a part of the school's history. It is so hard to take a complete stance as to ban all native american mascots because it is a part of their schools history but I cant say I know what it like to see my culture portrayed in a negative tone like they see on a regular basis.

Insider versus Outsider

While reading the articles, I have discovered that I am not a very good debater because every time an author would make a stand I would find some way to connect with their argument. I kept going back and forth on what I stood for when finally discovering I am able to take away ideas from both sides of the arguments while gaining a perspective on multiculturalism. I agree with Shannon as he describes culture as "ways of acting, believing, and valuing; it's a shared set of ideas, behaviors, discourses, and attitudes which internally and externally define a social group. Culture, then, is not limited to race". I fully agree that culture should not be solely based on race when so many important aspects should be a part of who you are, not just the color of your skin. As for defining multiculturalism, I find myself agreeing more with Cai when he describes multiculturalism not to just focus on race, but it is about exploring outside of the mainstream. As he states, "Multiculturalism is about diversity and inclusion, but what is more important, it is also about power structures and struggles". By reading this article, I have become to understand what it takes to produce a piece of literature outside of the mainstream and how much efforts have to be made for their voice to be heard. As stated in the articles, if multiculturalism included all races/cultures, including mainstream, the term and concept would lose all meaning. It is not about discriminating against mainstream, "it is to call attention to the voices that have been traditionally omitted from the canon ... the part of the picture that needs to be filled in". When referring to multiculturalism, the debate shouldn't be about who or who should not be included in the "list", it should be about what we should be doing about becoming more informed while more accurately informing others about these extraordinary pieces of literature. When reading The Heart of a Chief as a white female I was able to gain a different perspective of what other cultures and living situations are like. I believe the point of multiculturalism is to educate one another about cultures that we are not familiar with. By including white literature in the multicultural "list", there would be no separations thus losing all purpose and meaning.

As for the debate upon who should produce these pieces of literature, I believe it should be all about accuracy. I think that everyone has the ability to produce both accurate as well as inaccurate pieces of literature regardless if you are writing about your own culture or a culture other than your own. I think everyone has the right to write and illustrate diverse pieces of literature if they do so in the correct and most accurate manner. Even though that I am a white female, that does not mean I can create a piece of literature that represents all white females. I am only able to write according to my own life experiences as well as my upbringing. No two people are the same and to say one person has a better picture of what it means to be a white female would be going against what I view as correct or accurate in regards to my life. I believe that no one is able to paint a completely accurate portrayal of any one culture; but they should do so accordingly and to the best of their knowledge especially if portraying a different culture other than your own. I am neither for or against the insider or outsider as to who should be the one producing these pieces of literature because everything is viewed in a different light. As for my perspective I believe that both insiders and outsiders are able to produce extraordinary pieces of diverse literature because it is about how accurate and to what extent they portrayed a certain culture. I understand that my views may seem to be the "easy way out" by not taking a side; but I decided I would rather explain and explore further as to what my views are rather then taking a side that I do not fully agree with. If I find myself leaning towards one way more then the other, I will edit this post accordingly; but until then I plan to keep learning and become more educated on this subject that I have been so naive to as a student and future educator.

About Diverse Literature

I am interested in learning more about diverse literature, especially focusing on Children's literature. The more exposure I have to different and diverse pieces, the better my own classroom library will be; thus fitting the needs of my students as a whole. By taking this course I hope to develop the necessary skills and strategies as to what a good piece of literature looks like. As a future teacher, I do not want to be completely naive and have a library full of one type of writing and reading style. I want to have a diverse and well rounded library to fit all types of students and cultures. By taking this course I hope to obtain the knowledge as to what to look for in literature and what type of books to steer away from. I have high expectations for myself as both a student and a teacher and hope to fulfill these to the best of my knowledge and ability.