My stance in the "insider/outsider" debate

Before I state my stance I would like to comment on each of the individual articles assigned for the week. As stated in the articles, multicultural children's literature is a complex and controversial subject and therefore my stance on the "insider/outsider" issue naturally follows suit. To begin, I disliked and disagreed with Shannon's article the most. Like Harris, I found it unnecessary that Shannon stated his ethnicity, gender, religion, etc. and questioned his motives for doing so. I was surprised at Shannon talking about his class being unable to connect to certain multicultural texts that focused on race and ethnicity. In my opinion, as well as Cai's, it is the teacher's, as well as the students', responsibility to recognize the relevance of different cultures in their own lives. Cai states that if "discussion stops at seeking out the experiences that the readers has in common with the characters and does not examine closely the social inequality and injustice caused by racism..it misses the point of reading about the Other" (322). I think it is ludicrous to assume that the only way students can learn about different cultures is to portray those cultures in a way that relates to the students. That in itself is reducing those cultures and changing them for the dominant culture's purposes as they have done for centuries before this time. 

Another issue I wanted to address was the issue of considering all literature as multicultural literature and how it reduces the name and as Mingshui Cai states, "loses its meaning" (313). I disagree with the reasoning but understand the need for a separate category for multicultural literature. However, I do not necessarily feel that all literature that portrays the dominant culture must be omitted. I feel that multicultural literature by definition means "many cultures" in literature. The dominant culture should be considered one of these many cultures. I feel that multicultural literature should be considered anything that addresses any one or multiple cultures in an accurate, authentic, and diverse way that builds understanding of major issues and characteristics involved with each of the cultural groups. 

I would next like to address certain issues in Harris's article. To begin I disagreed with her when she stated that Shannon could choose to join in the multicultural struggles while she had no choice. In my opinion everyone is affected in some way by the multicultural struggle and the issues surrounding it are unavoidable even for the dominant culture. Reaching equality and appreciation will require the work of both minorities and members of the dominant culture. For once can't people on both sides of this argument recognize that minorities and the dominant cultures must become WE and work together to become US. On the other hand, I did agree with Harris when she stated that she disagreed with "burdening children's books with the responsibility of reforming society" (12). I appreciated the fact that she recognized that children's literature had other purposes for reading besides politics and social analysis. 

Lastly, I especially enjoyed Cai's discussion of the necessity of adopting an "issue-driven approach" through "thought-provoking books that challenge children to think about issues that they may face" (319). I think giving purpose to all forms of literature is vital in helping students to recognize the application of multiculturalism and respect  for others in may different aspects of their lives. 

So in conclusion my stance on the "insider/outsider" issue is a complicated one. Like most of the authors of the articles I feel that a well researched and informed "outsider" who has a wide variety of "insider" sources is perfectly capable of writing a quality, thought-provoking piece of multicultural literature. It can even be considered that perhaps an "outsider" has different perspectives on the culture through their research that provide a wide variety of knowledge that may be unknown to an individual "insider" of a group. I feel that just because someone is a member of an "inside" group, it doesn't necessarily automatically qualify them to speak on the behalf of the entire group. This issue is a complicated and controversial one and I expect to not only learn more about it in this class but also through teaching multicultural literature myself one day. 

The Heart of a Chief

I really enjoyed reading The Heart of a Chief both for pleasure and also for building my awareness of Native Americans. This book addresses many different issues that would be appropriate to address in a classroom. Not only does this book portray Native Americans in a positive and authentic way, but the story also includes good messages about staying true to yourself, standing up for what you believe in, and kids can make a difference. When I finished the story I was really pleased with how the story wrapped up. Everything really seemed to fall in to place perfectly. Chris was looking out for the benefit of his people by saving the heart of their land and also by providing a place where they can make some money. However, when we came to class and had discussions many people felt that the story ended too optimistically and a little too perfect. This caused me to think that maybe it was just a little too easy. When the head coach and the star of the team are on your side then things couldn't be too hard for requesting a mascot change. However, I am one who believes that it is important for children's literature to be uplifting and encouraging hope. Children learn through life about hardships and downfalls. I think that it is important and beneficial for students to read about people their age making a difference and overcoming obstacles. 

Another reason why I feel that this book would be a great addition to a classroom library is because I think it has the potential to change misconceptions held by some students about Native Americans. Because the story takes place in current times students are made aware that Native Americans are not just something of the past. They are real people with a culture all of their own that it is important to learn about and respect. Overall, I really enjoyed this book. 

Chief Illiniwek

After watching the video on Chief Illiniwek I had a lot to think about. On one hand I completely empathized with the Native Americans. The chief was supposed to represent a certain Indian tribe and instead was a mix of different tribes and of elements not relating to Native Americans at all. I can only imagine what it would feel like to see your culture mocked publicly like that. The thing that I kept considering as I watched in order to empathize was being in another country and going to an event where they do a performance mocking Americans as a bunch of fat, selfish, cowboys running around. I would have found that very offensive and I'm sure that is how many Native Americans felt when they watched the performance of Chief Illiniwek. 

However, I also empathized with the students, alumni, and fans of The University of Illinois. I kept considering how I would feel if all of a sudden a group of Greeks started marching against our use of the mascot Sparty. I feel a strong connection to Sparty and am proud that he represents my school. Sporting events would just not be the same without him. I would be angry too if people were making us get rid of him. I understand why Chief Illiniwek was offensive but I wondered if maybe a compromise could have been made. I feel like Native Americans could have used the fan base and the respect that the fans had for Chief Illiniwek to spread awareness about Native Americans in general. I think a good compromise would have been to collect a board of Native Americans from the Illiniwek tribe who could help the university to make their mascot more culturally accurate. He could also make appearances and talk about cultural sensitivity, American Indian issues, and spread awareness. The school does not mean to mock Native Americans but rather they respect their mascot very much. It is the ignorance and unawareness that makes the mascot so offensive. I feel that if Native Americans helped to make the mascot more authentic, the fans and the Native Americans could have helped one another. Maybe this is too optimistic or unrealistic but I just was able to understand the feelings of both sides and wanted to look for a compromise. 

Allow me to introduce myself...

My name is Daryl Bean. I am a senior at Michigan State University and I am an elementary education major with a focus in language arts. Along with being a student I babysit a family of two boys ages four and three. I am also a student-athlete tutor for student-athletes at Michigan State University. The past four summers I have worked at a daycare through Walled Lake Consolidated Schools called Prime Time Summer Care. 

I am interested in diverse literature for children because I enjoy broadening my perspective. It is very interesting to me to learn about people and cultures other than my own. I also recognize the benefits authentic, quality diverse literature can provide to students. Lastly, I am interested in learning how to incorporate and discuss different forms of diverse literature in a classroom in an authentic, genuine, enriching, and inoffensive way.