DRAFT#2

Kymberly Gurdon

English 103

Professor Kitana

11/29/2017

Draft#2

 

 

You believe all the struggles and hardships faced by Jamaican immigrants would be resolve when they come to America, however, that’s wrong they are faced with many barriers even when they are here. Some barriers they are faced with are, securing a job, raising their children who are born in America, securing a place to live and accessing health services.

Securing a job is a huge problem for Jamaican immigrants because, jobs in the United States have certain requirements that you must have. For example different educations levels for a specific field, a certain certificate to show that you have experience and knowing to speak fluent English. Although a majority of the Jamaican immigrants already completed some type of education back in their county sometimes jobs here require a higher level of education. Jamaicans who are educated find it frustrating that they can’t get the same or even better opportunities of having a strong job like they did back in their country. The main problem is that majority of the employers in the United States prefer work experience within the U.S and the immigrant’s certificates and credits doesn’t usually transfer over.

In addition, immigrants in the workplace are a target of discriminating causing them financial and emotional hardships. Many employers discriminate against them and work them with low wages, long hours and poor working conditions. BLS data shows that foreign born workers tend to earn less per week than native born workers. The median usual weekly earning of foreign native born full time wage/salary by 2012 annual average was about $1,000 more than a foreigner even though they are performing the same task at work. (BLS.gov).

Another barrier that is faced by Jamaican immigrants is raising their children that were born here. The United States culture isn’t familiar to them. The culture in Jamaican is slightly different even in education. Could you imagine trying to help your child succeed in school but don’t have the right education to do so? This is a huge problem they struggle with. This problem causes depression to the parents knowing their child struggling and can’t help. Not only is it hard for parents but the children of the Jamaican immigrants often gets bullied by others because of the cultural difference. Growing up with parents from Jamaica they are going to eventually adapt to that culture and the way they speak. This cause a problem at school because they are looked at differently. Rates of bullying among immigrants have risen over the years this because of language difference and just them adapting from what they see and learn at home. Although children tend to pick up English much faster than their parents it still causes a problem. This throws off the parent-child dynamic and you know that kids especially teens are going to use this to their advantage (Nunez). This means that since the child knows more English tan the parent they might use it in a way to have the upper hand and be disrespectful and start belittling there parent since they don’t know much English.

 

 

 

 

 

The United States housing market is notoriously more expensive than other countries so not being able to afford to live somewhere comfortably was one of the Jamaican immigrant’s barriers. Imagine trying to obtain a safe secure place to live but with a low paying job. They struggles to pay for rent even landowners barely wanted to rent out there space to the immigrant because they didn’t have enough income for a place. Additionally, some immigrants lived in bad conditions, broken abandon apartment with children, this was a bad environment but they couldn’t afford a comfortable space. While traveling to America most immigrants just come with no money and not being able to establish where they can live until they’re actually in America so they will have to depend on others until they get on their feet. Here in the United States it’s hard to find affordable housing and having a child with you may cost you way more.

 

 

 

Accessing health services is very hard for immigrants especially after just establishing residence in the United States, being new to a job and getting settles into your apartment health insurance may not be a priority. Unless your job is providing health care, finding a provider that will cover you and your family for a major health issues for a reasonable roc could be challenging. Additionally, many public insurances include a copay to see a doctor so on top of paying out of pocket you still have to pay even more money. Accessing mental health issues is especially problematic. Many times, refugees and immigrants have been exposed to violence, rape, even torture- but they may not know how to seek help (Nunez). That could really mess up there mental it’s really hard going through these things and not being able to seek help because a primary doctor won’t accept you because you don’t have to right requirement to access health services. Many of the immigrants are scared to reach out to health services since they are considered illegal and do not want to get deported. Even those who get to see the doctor don’t always have good services sometimes they are treated differently from someone that was actually born here. For those who are able to successfully obtain the services they need, the experience is usually negative/ bad. ( Nunez).

 

 

Could you imagine coming into the Unites States unable to speak English, secure work, and help your children succeeding school, securing a place to live and accessing health services?  Jamaican immigrants faced all those hardships here in America. Many people might think that coming here will be better and having easier life, however that’s wrong coming to the United States could be challenging to find uplifting opportunities that could help you to survive without the right educations and requirements that jobs in the United States offer then you won’t really be living the life you want. This is why the Jamaican immigrants have so many hardships and barriers when they are here in the U.S.

research paper draft 2

ENG 103

La Guardia Community College

Prof. Kitana Ananda

Jeffrey Granda

 

 

People are daily persuaded through thousands of advertisement that has impacted our society views and thoughts. The effectiveness of an advertisement campaign has an enormous influence on the consumer. As Democratic and Capitalist use such method to get their public attention, for instance their publicities are everywhere, whether it be a billboard, a TV commercial, a train station or a simple wall. The techniques used in the advertisement industry focus only in persuading their audience and not only getting a positive response from them but a good profit. According to scientist, publicities are carefully build to appeal to the customer as 60 to 80 % of the decisions are influenced by dormant emotions in the subconscious. Through the creative constructions of ad campaigns consumer’s purchases are highly positive. Moreover, political advertising have become important to campaigns strategy since they have the potential to transmit valid source of information about the participant’s candidates during a political debate. As studies points out that voters shown to political advertisement either on radio commercials or television possess information about candidates, such as their names, achievements, image attributes and daily life. However, publicities have a dark side that are afraid to expose to their public in as much as how truth is the information that they provide to their voters. In this paper I will explain the differences between political advertisements and the negative information that seems to be truth and how it’s used to grab the attention of its target audience and the use of hidden messages that has a tremendous impact in viewers.

 

In 1964, the Republican senator from Arizona, Barry Goldwater challenged his enterprise Lyndon Johnson by publishing an ad of a little girl pulling the petals of a daisy and counting each of the falling petals. As the camera zooms in, the little girl is replaced by a nuclear explosion, and a surprising voice said “These are the stakes, to make a world in which all of God’s children can live or go into the dark. We must love each other or we must die” and then an unknown man’s voice stated, vote for president Johnson on November 3, the stakes are too high for you to stay at home. In this advertisement, public can address the purpose from the sponsor, this ad expresses a negative persuasion for the public because we can see how the tape started  with an angelic and innocent girl and finished promoting the dark side of this propaganda. Even though the advertisement promotes violence, it had a positive effect during Goldwater campaign, because Daisy Girl is effective because it plays off commonly held fears about the use of nuclear weapons.

Moreover, in 2012, Obama speech “always” had a tremendous impact in elections, the democratic sponsor defeated Romney by the way he persuades his audience. Obama states “I’m Barack Obama, and I approve this message because I believe we are all in this together. “In Obama’s speech we can see how trustful each of his words are he positively persuades his audience because he makes them feel that their voice count and they are not alone in the road. Also, Obama makes a connection with his public by stating that they are who has make America successful with their efforts and hard work in building jobs. Obama’s publicity impact the sponsors because he started very brief and peaceful and that’s what people wants for their nation.

Another publicity is the advertisement of 2008 “Education, McCain. “In McCain speech and an unknown speaker points the next about Barack Obama.” Education week says Obama hasn’t made a significant mark on education, learning about sex before learning how to read? Barack Obama. Wrong on education. Wrong for your family” and then after the male speech, said “I’m John McCain and I approved this message.”  This publicity is completely irrelevant, first, how a candidate can talk about another candidate like this, secondly, someone else speaks for McCain and he just said “I’m John McCain and I approved this message,”  he just approved the message but in order to persuade the public he must talk and deliver the message for himself.

In connection, the medium in which an ad appears has a lot to do with its success. Television ads can exploit the power of visuals with sound and persuades its sponsor. Barry Goldwater advertisement, has a negative impact during the 1964 as the war was occurring it was a bad choice for the republican senator to promote this publicity because he persuades fear and intimidates his audience with Daisy ad. The explicit message that delivers Daisy ad is positive towards the audience but in a negative way because he spread fear instead of peace. Despite this ad, Obama’s publicity had a positive impact because he delivered truthful information and make it possible with events and not words. Obama portrays a positive attitude besides his economic status and the income for his campaign. The tone of voice is average and clear. He speaks in a positive tone than McCain. Obama stands for what he had said and made truth. McCain advertisement is just irrelevant due to the fact that he doesn’t talk about the positive impact that he will make to the country, in the other hand McCain made a negative statement about Obama’s campaign. McCain publicity was unsuccessful to defeat Obama’s image because what McCain said has nothing to do with the Country’s economic and issues. He just focus in what other candidate said. McCain’s publicity was a total fail because he just didn’t waste time but money that leads to lose the opportunity to win and make something better for the country.

Works Cited

  • “The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Peace Little Girl (Daisy).” The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Peace Little Girl (Daisy). N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.
  • “The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 2008 – Education.” The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 2008 – Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.
  • “The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 2012 – Always.” The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 2012 – Always. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.

Research paper draft 1

 

ENG 103

La Guardia Community College

Prof. Kitana Ananda

Jeffrey Granda

 

Draft 1

 

People are daily persuaded through thousands of advertisement that has impacted our society views and thoughts. The effectiveness of an advertisement campaign has an enormous influence on the consumer. As Democratic and Capitalist use such method to get their public attention, for instance their publicity are everywhere, whether it be a billboard, a TV commercial, a train station or a simple wall. The techniques used in the advertisement industry focus only in persuading their audience and not only getting a positive response from them but a good profit. According to scientist, publicity are carefully build to appeal to the customer as 60 to 80 % of the decisions are influenced by dormant emotions in the subconscious. Through the creative constructions of ad campaigns consumer’s purchases are highly positive. Moreover, political advertising have become important to campaigns strategy since they have the potential to transmit valid source of information about the participants candidates during a political debate. As studies points out that voters shown to political advertisement either on radio commercials or television possess information about candidates, such as their names, achievements, image attributes and daily life. However, publicity have a dark side that are afraid to expose to their public in as much as how truth is the information that they provide to their voters. In this paper I will explain the differences between political advertisements and the negative information that seems to be truth and how it’s used to grab the attention of its target audience and the use of hidden messages that has a tremendous impact in viewers.

 

In 1964, the Republican senator from Arizona, Barry Goldwater challenged his enterprise Lyndon Johnson by publishing an ad of a little girl pulling the petals of a daisy and counting each of the falling petals. As the camera zooms in, the little girl is replaced by a nuclear explosion, and a surprising voice said “These are the stakes, to make a world in which all of God’s children can live or go into the dark. We must love each other or we must die” and then an unknown man’s voice stated, vote for president Johnson on November 3, the stakes are too high for you to stay at home. In this advertisement, public can address the purpose from the sponsor, this ad expresses a negative persuasion for the public because we can see how the tape started  with an angelic and innocent girl and finished promoting the dark side of this propaganda. Even though the advertisement promotes violence, it had a positive effect during Goldwater campaign, because Daisy Girl is effective because it plays off commonly held fears about the use of nuclear weapons.

Works Cited

  • “The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Peace Little Girl (Daisy).” The Living Room Candidate – Commercials – 1964 – Peace Little Girl (Daisy). N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.

Alejandro Canelas – Extra Credit Response

Alejandro Canelas

Eng 103

Professor Kitana Ananda

11/27/17

Extra Credit Assignment

 

Extra Credit: United Nations Sustainable Fashion Event

 

Attending the Fashion and sustainability: look Good, Feel Good, Do Good using fashion as a vehicle for change event at the United Nations was an opportunity that I am ever so grateful for. I have never been to the United Nations before and as an International Studies major at LAGCC this was right up my alley. Upon entering the United Nations I was met with many cultures and languages and it was quite exciting seeing all the signs in French. It was also quite surprising to see the UN officers speak in Mandarin Chinese and they clearly were not of Asian descent. The focus of this event was for us to see how the fashion industry is trying to bring awareness towards sustainable practices when they are one of the leading industries of environmental pollution.

There were various panelists throughout the discussion on sustainable Fashion. The panelist I was most drawn to was Professor Andrea Reyes who is a fair trade advocate, a small business owner, and teaches at many colleges which include LIM, Pace University, Berkeley College, and Baruch College. She frequently organizes fair trade trips to Uganda, where she teaches students about how the Ugandan people use recycled materials to create home goods, accessories and other apparel. She brought up various small solutions that we as New Yorkers should be engaged with in order to make a difference. She suggested that we attend clothing swaps, which is a great place to not only mingle, but get some new clothing in exchange.  

Another point that Professor Reyes made was for us to find an organization we are passionate about, and make our presence be known because that is how she ultimately obtained her position as the Chair of the NYC Fair Trade Commission. Throughout her presentation I was just shocked on the amount of work this one individual does and how she finds time to participate in all these organizations in addition to teaching a various colleges. Home ec classes is another point of discussion she brought up. I was unaware of the existence of these courses, but everyone in the room who was born in the 80’s most certainly knew about its existence. Reyes believes these courses were a way to teach us simple things like sewing a button which could prevent us from having to buy a new article of clothing. One point that she brought up that I do not agree with is for us not to use straws when drinking beverages. In an ideal world these straws would be made from sustainable materials and companies should definitely invest in creating a replacement. However, I do not foresee myself going out of my way not using disposable straws. Oftentimes when dining out the servers automatically bring them to your table, and I would not want to inconvenience them.

Another panelist by the name of Lilian Lu, showcased what is going on in the world in terms of climate change.  Lilian manages partnerships and UN relations at the United Nations Global compact which is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative. Lilian presented us with various statistics one of which was that 1 in 5 people in the world is employed by the fashion industry. In addition, it is a sector where most women gain employment. This sector is responsible for employing so many people worldwide and strategies have to be implemented to curtail environmental impact. During her discussion I was informed about how throughout the clothing making process, dyes make their ways into rivers and harm the local water supply. Companies need to come up with innovative ways to use sustainable dyes that do not harm local water supplies. Lilian also mentioned how sustainability needs to become more accessible to the everyday person because at its current stage sustainable clothing has an inaccessible price tag. For example, it was mentioned that she saw one sustainable plain white t-shirt being sold for 300 dollars. One can agree how ridiculous that price tag is.

Overall, I learned a lot attending the  Fashion and sustainability: look Good, Feel Good, Do Good using fashion as a vehicle for change event. I learned how the fashion industry tends to sustainably shame those companies deemed not to be doing enough for the problem. The issue of climate change is complex, and has various components, and no amount of positive decisions, no matter how small, should be subject to the shame. Attending this event was quite a highlight for me as a student due to the international culture of the United Nations. It was quite exciting for someone like me who is quite fascinated with all things global. I look forward to see what changes will be implemented by the fashion industry in concerns to sustainability in the future.

Research Paper Draft # 2

The Jonestown Massacre: Page 1

 

Kavita Singh

English 103-0905

Professor: Kitana Ananda

November 22nd 2017

 

“The Jonestown Massacre”

 

“Take our life from us. We laid it down. We got tired. We didn’t commit suicide. We committed an act of revolutionary suicide protesting the conditions of an inhumane world.” – Jim Jones last words on Death Tape FBI No. 0042 (18 November 1978). How does one preach the complete opposite of Protection of Rights to Life, Liberty, and Property (Amendment 5 of the United States Constitution). How can one be so naive to believe in someone who wants others to commit suicide to save themselves?. Here is the story of the Jonestown Massacre created by one of the evilest men of the 1970’s; Jim Jones.

Jim Jones was the creator of “The People’s Temple”, which was created to be free from oppression and violence. According to his son, Stephan Jones his preaches were about socialist ideas and Christian Redemption. Many individuals were fooled by Jim Jones and believed that “The People’s Temple” was a way to seek help and also to serve humanity. Many were fooled that he had special powers to heal the sick and dying. Throughout his services at the Temple healings were staged for the people to believe in his lies.

“The People’s Temple” was first built in San Francisco, California where Jones became more popular by preaching  more about Social Activism and started to call himself “a profit, a savior that would guide, protect and watch over his followers”. (Jonestown: Paradise Lost  –

 

                                The Jonestown Massacre: Page 2

2006 movie/ documentary). Followers began to refer to him as their “Father” and many of them signed over their paychecks, possessions and even their homes to him. But there were a few followers that left while they can after rumours spreading that he was a physical and sexual abuser and a mind controller.

In 1977 Jim Jones and supporters left San Francisco, California and set out to South America, Guyana to build a new community. “The Peoples Temple”was created one hundred and fifty miles away from the capital of Guyana which was Georgetown,  was then the  establishment of Jonestown. Vernon Gosney, a survivor of the massacre joined “The People’s Temple” from 1974-1978 and lived in Jonestown for eight months. He currently is a Police Officer living in Hawaii. He explains that an emergency code “White Night” was created for extreme emergencies. For example, to create fear and desperation amongst his followers and also to rehearse for Mass Suicide which he considered to be a “Test of Faith.

November 14th 1978, the United States Congressman Jay Ryan and agent Jackie Spheir flew to Guyana to investigate allegations of abuse within the temple. Congressman Ryan decided that he would create a delegation which consisted of relatives who were determined to see that their loved ones were free to come and go as they pleased but Jones considered the group as a direct threat. Fourteen members that spoke out against Jones accompanied Congressman Ryan on his trip to Guyana. Members of the United States Media covered the trip including Dawn Harris from NBC and American Television Network, and also Tim Reiterman which was a reporter on assignment for the San Francisco Examiner.

 

The Jonestown Massacre: Page 3

Jim Jones controlled the members of “The People’s Temple” through disciplinary beatings and forcing them to turn over their property and custody of their children. When some

of the individuals decided that they did not want to be apart of this lifestyle anymore Jones threatened them with death if they left the organization. Sherwin Harris was one of the members that bordered Congressman Ryan’s plane. He was attempting to visit his daughter Lynn who was living in Jonestown. In 1978 Lyann was just twenty one years of age when she was brought into “The People’s Temple” by her mother who was one of the members.

Jones created an isolation of the people from the outside world. There were no telephones, televisions, or commuting with anyone outside of Jonestown. Jones made people sign a petition stating that they didn’t want to see their loved ones. Being a leader how could u isolate people from their families? Jones wife, Marceline Jones had a passion for helping children so she had schools, nurseries, and clinics built for them. Even though Jones mid was so corrupted his wife seemed to actually care about people.

It took a few days for Jones to let Congressman Ryan and other family members to enter Jonestown. When Congressman Ryan finally entered Jones made sure to show that nothing funny and unusual was going on. But during the night Vernon decided to pass a note to who he thought was the Congressman which said “Please get me out”. Luckily it was one of the men that came with the Congressman and delivered the message. Vernon was pulled aside and was told that they were going to get him out. Jones made Vernon sign a note stating that he was leaving his son in Jonestown. After it was time for Congressman Ryan and the other visitors to go Jones ordered their plane to be shot down and the pilot to be killed.

The Jonestown Massacre: Page 4

After ordering the plane to be shot down Jim Jones decided that it was time to die. Jones made it seem as if “The People’s Temple” was under attack. The children were the first to die by

the poison including Vernon’s son. “If we can’t live in peace, then let us die in peace”. (Jonestown: Paradise Lost  – 2006 movie/ documentary). To Jones, the people did not commit suicide, they committed an act of revolutionary suicide protesting the conditions of the inhumane world. Lastly, many people were killed in this horrific tragedy. For instance, Congressman Ryan was assassinated, Dohn Harris of NBC, Ray Robinson the photographer, Rob Brown of NBC, Patricia Parks which was one of the defectors. There were eleven other people which were wounded but did survive.

In “The People’s Temple” Sharon and Lyann both slit their throats and killed the children. After all the children were killed Jones wife took the poison herself and Jones ordered someone to shoot him in the head. He couldn’t even go the same way he ordered others to die. This was not a mass massacre it was a mass murder according to Jim Jones son Stepan. 908 members of “The Peoples Temple” committed suicide or were poisoned against their will by being forced to drink the poison or being injected with it. Almost 300 of them were children with no idea what was going on.In the end, the gunman Larry Layton was jailed for eighteen years and released in April 2002. Tim Reiterman is now a Journalist for the Los Angeles Times and Co – Author of “Raven”, a book written about “The Peoples Temple”. Vernon Gosney is a Police Officer living in Hawaii, Sherwin Harris is a businessman and has two children, and finally Stephan Jones is married with three daughters.

 

The Jonestown Massacre: Page 5

What was the reason for Jim Jones to create such a horrific moment of history?. To Jones this was a way being powerful, being a leader to people that needed to find faith; to find answers. So they confounded in him as a leader. Jones took what people hated and decided to turn it into

his preachings. He was referred to as a priest which spoke about segregation and the “abuses, disgraces, and contradictions of American capitalism” The people that decided to follow the people’s temple took this as a positive movement which lead them to follow his teachings.

Jim Jones was a pathological liar which created this Physiological Massacre. There were innocent lives in his hands which trusted him to do the right thing for them but he turned it upside down. What they thought the People’s Temple should be was actually a easy way to manipulating people into an easy way of death. This was a man which didn’t care about anyone else but his publicity and his psychotic ways.

To conclude, no person can control minds the way Jim Jones did. Jim Jones was a monster full of rage, hatred, and lies. He made the people believe in his lies, he abused their freedom and will power. Why commit such a crime? What could possibly be going through his

mind? Jim Jones created such a horrific history that some may not be able to bare the truth of it. Throughout my essay i decided to tell the story of Jim Jones; the creator of Jonestown to specify on the importance of having your own mind and expressing your freedom. He was called a religious leader but also a psycho. Innocent people put there whole life in a murders hand and now they are all our history.

Christopher Alfaro

Professor Kitana Ananda

ENG103

November 24, 2017

 

 

Al Capone.

 

When talking about dark years in the history of the United States it is almost impossible to skip the era of the “Roaring 20s”. It is undeniable that the American culture changed in many different aspects especially in different cities across the country. The City of Chicago was no exception to this. The population was increasing as much as the skyscrapers being built. Immigrants from all over were coming to this city searching for jobs and opportunities. The United States was always a door with “hope” and “prosperity”, but Chicago had something special. It was a city for strong people who weren’t afraid of being out there.This is what infamous criminal mastermind Al Capone was known for and this is why the city was his. He was made for those streets like Bonnie was made for Clyde. Capone’s acts of violence indeed shifted the life of many others and his operations proved the authorities were still a step behind the organized crime groups. Surprisingly people admired the man in the extravagant suits. The citizens of Chicago were in a moment in history ruled by Capone’s organized crime that led to many changes in society. What made Capone so different?

 

Al Capone was born in Brooklyn, to immigrant parents. He had a big family, as he was just one out of nine kids. Life as an Italian immigrant couldn’t be easy. Now being poor had just made everything much harder. Think about it, these are families that had found their way to an unknown country in search of a better life. Not only did these families come to new country, but they also had a new language to learn and also a new culture to familiarize itself with. Tobegin painting a picture:

At the turn of the century more than half of the population of New York City, and most immigrants, lived in tenement houses, narrow, low rise apartment buildings that were usually overcrowded by their land-lords.” (loc.gov).

 

The Italian Americans that came here, often came in big families and lived in very small spaces. Sadly, for many families that were just beginning, this was the most that they could do. Now, this wasn’t the situation for every family and eventually this was seen less and less as the years went on, but it was very common at the start of the period of Italian immigration to the U.S. When it is said that the apartments were tiny and overcrowded, it actually means that. No exaggerations. The conditions many of these people were living in were absolutely insane.

 

The labor was absolutely terrible, for both men and women. Women were actually limited to only working in sweatshops or factories, and some didn’t even work at all! kids worked the streets selling newspapers for an incredibly low salary, if we can even call it that. Like in everyday lives, there are two possible scenarios for a situation. Scenario one: Everything is fine and life is great. Scenario two: Life isn’t as great or at its absolute worst.

 

“Some Italians seized upon entrepreneurial opportunities in their new home.In turn-of-the-century San Francisco, a Neapolitan American named A.P. Giannini began offering small loans to his fellow Italians, going door to door to collect interest. Eventually, Giannini’s operation grew until he was forced to rent an office in the North Beach neighborhood, then to buy a building. Today, Giannini’s Banca D’Italia has become one of the world’s largest financial institutions, the Bank of America” (loc.gov)

 

Does that name ring a bell? That’s something you STILL see today, multiple years later. Of course this is more like Scenario One, where everything ends up working out. He wasn’t the only person to take advantage of what he had in front of him. Unfortunately this wasn’t the reality for many Italian immigrants.

 

“Many Italian immigrants, however, found themselves toiling for low pay in unhealthy work conditions. At the turn of the 20th century, southern Italian immigrants were among the lowest-paid workers in the United States” (loc.gov).

 

Italians spent their days working in factories, delivering things, at docks, or even in mines. Most of the responded to a “Patron” who actually exploited the workers. This probably wasn’t as bad as things can get but it was definitely on its way. The salary was barely enough for their monthly expenses, and unfortunately this led to families kicked out of tenements. The second scenario was the reality of many during this period of time. Maybe Al Capone saw this future ahead of him and it had an effect in the decisions he made later on in his life. As he got older he responded to no Patron, and he was the boss himself.

 

Capone dropped out of school in the sixth grade. At a very young age he tried doing anything he could and started getting involved in street gangs and getting his name out there. Fast forward to Chicago, 1920. Al Capone had arrived to begin leaving his mark of infamy. At the time he arrived at the second largest city in the nation following New York City, after its reconstruction of course. Capone had arrived to this city to work for childhood friend Johnny Torrio. In “Get Capone”, the timing was perfect.

 

“…Things began to turn during the years of World War I. A wave of temperance swept the country. Americans we expected to sober up and sacrifice for their nation. Even Chicago cleaned itself up a little. Saloons were raided. Licenses were revoked. The high-end whores and drug dealers, fearing arrest, quit working in bordellos and dance halls and moved to hotel lobbies, where they could be more discreet” (Eig, 7).

 

Shortly after the occurrences listed above, The Prohibition law was in effect. Capone had arrived just in time to go against everything that the law said, and since the streets were a bit cleaner he was ready to take action. With the levels of alcohol consumption dropping to an all time low because of this law, Capone’s eyes lit up like he had everything solved. His first crime, and the one that started it all: Bootlegging.

 

Capone’s plan to make money was genius. He was determined to give people what they wanted and he was determined to make his fortune off going against the law enforcement. Is this is correct? Absolutely not. He did what he thought he could do best. He used his tools and experience in bars, brothels, and gang activities to his advantage. According to “Get Capone”, the more the city expanded, the more its crimes did. “By 1910, a special commission reported that five thousand full time prostitutes and ten thousand part-timers worked the city, and that, combined, they were responsible for more than 27 million sex acts a year” (Eig, 5). The amount of money made in these illegal activities was unreal. Bad things always seem the most searched for and they are were what sold the most. Chicago was a city that as its streets got emptied, it starved for the crime it once had. Al Capone started his story by feeding it by bits.

 

The story of Al Capone has two sides. One known by all which is filled with hits, attacks, illegal alcohol, etc. The other side of events gave Capone a lot of respect and admiration from the community. In the year 1929 the United States lived its worst times due to the great depression. The country suffered immensely, and the citizens pleaded to the government for help. This caused many people to be out in the streets. There was no money or jobs. The country was inhabitable, because of course the rich stayed rich while the poor and middle class suffered. Al Capone had a soft spot for this. Although he was a wealthy man, he helped out some people who needed it. During these very difficult years, there were many people out in the streets, with no shelter and no food. Al Capone opened some of the first soup kitchens to feed those who needed to be fed. He handed out clothes during the long winters to those who lacked it. Why bother help those who are in the streets? Perhaps this menace had a heart after all. Maybe he knew what it was like being poor, and although it isn’t much, it’s something.

 

A small act like this is very much needed in troubled times like those. To see it come from a man like Al Capone really says something. It shows to society that people can still help if they actually wanted to. How many people got the message? I wouldn’t be able to give you the answer to that but it sure does send a message. He wasn’t your average criminal who constantly had to hide from the authorities. No, Capone was a celebrity.  Just as any other celebrity he was constantly in the public eye.

 

Was he treated any differently BECAUSE he was “different”? Sure there were many other mafia families and gangs, which means there were many other mobsters roaming the cities. They might have committed many of the crimes Al Capone did, but why was he such an exception in the eye of the law? Surely other criminals did time for homicides and robberies, but Capone avoiding these charges made him almost untouchable. The ironic thing is that hewas actually charged for something so simple.

 

But his crimes were not easily proven in court. So federal prosecutors charged Capone not with running illegal breweries or selling whiskey or even slaughtering rival mobsters, but with failure to pay his income taxes” (Columbia Law Review).

 

It seems almost hard to believe, this is what the man FINALLY did time for. It was so difficult to prove Capone guilty for things the whole world knew he was in charge of, the police could never bring out the truth and along with the FBI charged him with this. Like I said in one of the previous paragraphs, the Police department was always a step behind the organized crime groups. Many things would’ve been avoided if they had just found the proper evidence, or charged him of anything they were really sure of. It was Al Capone’s way with words and actions that stopped this from happening. Yes, a lot of things could’ve been stopped with Capone being locked up earlier. The difference between him and the other mobsters was that he made sure to commit the perfect crime.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited:

 

 

  • Eig, Jonathan. “Get Capone: the Secret Plot That Captured America’s Most Wanted Gangster”.

Simon & Schuster, 2011.

Columbia Law Review, vol. 150, no. 2. Mar. 2005, pp. 583-639

First Draft

Christopher Alfaro
Professor Kitana Ananda
ENG103
November 16, 2017

Two Sides of Capone.

When talking about dark years in the history of the United States it is almost
impossible to skip the era of the “Roaring 20’s”. It is undeniable that the American culture changed in many different aspects, especially in different cities across the country. The City of Chicago was no exception to this. The population was increasing as much as the skyscrapers being built. Immigrants from all over were coming to this city searching for jobs and opportunities. The United States was always a door with “hope” and “prosperity”, but Chicago
had something special. It was a city for strong people who weren’t afraid of being out there. This is what infamous criminal mastermind Al Capone was known for, and this is why the city was his. He was made for those streets like Bonnie was made for Clyde. Capone’s acts of violence indeed shifted the life of many others and his operations proved the authorities were still a step behind the organized crime group, but people admired the man in the extravagant suits. The citizens of Chicago were in a moment in history ruled by Capone’s organized crime that led to many changes in society, and despite contrary belief not all were bad.

Al Capone was born in Brooklyn, to immigrant parents. He had a big family, as he was just one out of nine kids. Life as an Italian immigrant couldn’t be easy. Now being poor just made everything much harder, which led to Capone dropping out of school in the sixth grade. At a very young age he tried doing anything he could, and started getting involved in street gangs and getting his name out there. Fast forward to Chicago, 1920. Al Capone had arrived to begin leaving his mark of infamy. At the time, he arrived at the second largest city in the nation following New York City, after its reconstruction of course. Capone had arrived to this city to work for a childhood friend, Johnny Torrio. In “Get Capone”, the timing was perfect.

“…Things began to turn during the years of World War I. A wave of temperance swept the country. Americans we expected to sober up and sacrifice for their nation. Even Chicago cleaned itself up a little. Saloons were raided. Licenses were revoked. The high-end whores and drug dealers, fearing arrest, quit working in bordellos and dance halls and moved to hotel lobbies, where they could be more discreet” (Eig, 7).

Shortly after the occurrences listed above, The Prohibition law was in effect.
Capone had arrived just in time to go against everything that law said, and since the streets were a bit cleaner, he was ready to take action. With the levels of alcohol consumption dropping to an all time low because of this law, Capone’s eyes lit up like he had everything solved. His first crime, Bootlegging.

Capone’s plan to make money was genius. He was determined to give people
what they wanted, and he was determined to make his fortune off going against the law enforcement. Is this is correct? Absolutely not. He did what he thought he could do best. He used his tools and experience in bars, brothels, and gang activities to his advantage. According to “Get Capone”, the more the city expanded, the more its crimes did. “By 1910, a special commission reported that five thousand full time prostitutes and ten thousand part-timers
worked the city, and that, combined, they were responsible for more than 27 million sex acts a year” (Eig, 5). The amount of money made in these illegal activities was unreal. Bad things always seem the most searched for, and they are what sells the most. Chicago was a city that as its streets got emptied, it starved for the crime it once had. Al Capone started his story by feeding it by bits.

The story of Al Capone has two sides. One known by all, which is filled with
hits, attacks, illegal alcohol, etc. The other side of events, gave Capone a lot of respect and admiration from the community. In the year 1929 the United States lived its worst times due to the great depression. The country suffered immensely, and the citizens pleaded to the government for help. This caused many people to be out in the streets. There was no money, no jobs. The country was inhabitable, because of course the rich stayed rich and the poor and middle class suffered. Al Capone had a soft spot for this. Although he was a wealthy man, he helped out some people who needed it. During these very difficult years, there were many people out in the streets, with no homes and no food. Al Capone opened some of the first soup kitchens to feed those who needed to be fed. He handed out clothes during the long winters to those who lacked it. Why bother help those who are in the streets? Perhaps this menace had a heart after all. Maybe he knew what it was like being poor, and although it isn’t much, it’s something.

A small act like this is very much needed in troubled times like those. To see
it come from a man like Al Capone really says something. It shows to society that people can still help if they actually wanted to. How many people got the message? I wouldn’t be able to give you the answer to that… But it sure does send a message.

Second Draft of Your Research Paper

Draft #2  is a full draft of your research paper (of approximately 1800 words), and is due this Monday, November 20, in class. 

With Draft #2, you want to make sure that you have written a draft of your paper from start to finish that includes the following:

  • A working title for your paper
  • An introduction and a clear statement of your thesis
  • The effective use of at least two scholarly sources (as defined in class, and in the slideshow on “Engaging Sources” in Google Drive)
  • Parenthetical citations in the MLA format to cite your sources
  • A complete Works Cited list on the last page

Remember: This is a draft. Do as much as you can, and bring whatever you have. 

In class, you will review and respond to two other students’ drafts in class using the questions that guided our last peer review. We will also work on a “reverse outline” of your paper to guide the revision process.

Here’s why you should bring any stage of your draft, even if you feel like it’s not “ready” to submit:

  • If you bring a draft to class, you’ll receive feedback from your peers the same day
  • You’ll be able to complete the “reverse outline” and get a jumpstart on revising your draft
  • You will receive feedback from me within one week of the assignment’s due date, or by Monday, November 27, and will have enough time to address that feedback

As you work on your draft:

Basic info on formatting your assignment:

  • Your assignment (in Google Docs, and when printed) should include your name, our course number (ENG 103.0905) your professor’s name (Professor Kitana Ananda), and the date submitted. (You do not need to include this information in your blog post.) Use 1” margins, double-spacing, and an 11 or 12 point font. I encourage you to print on both sides.

To submit your assignment:

  1. Save your draft as a Google Doc in your writing portfolio (your Drive folder)
  2. Print and bring two copies of your paper for class
  3. Come prepared to read and do a peer review for two other students

Questions to Guide Your Peer Review

Exchange drafts with another student. Read the paper from start to finish. Jot down any initial impressions or ideas.

Now answer a couple of questions. In providing feedback, we want to start our comments with notes on what worked about the paper. Make positive comments first, then make constructive comments to help the writer develop their ideas and organization to improve their paper.

  1. What did you appreciate about this paper? Note where the writer grabbed your interest, any interesting phrases or insights, strong introductions, etc
  2. Is there anything you did not understand while reading this paper? Use lines or arrows to indicate which section, and note what you found confusing

Read the paper again to answer the following questions—and write down your responses on a separate sheet of paper. You will hand this back to your partner, so be generous in your reading, and thorough.

  1. What is the main argument of this paper?
  2.  Does the paper make any other claims?
  3.  What evidence does the paper use to support its claims?
  4.  Did you find the evidence used convincing? Why or why not?
  5.  What did you learn or take away from reading this paper?