Experiences with Discrimination: From Deep Within

By Christine J. Dial-Benton

On January 14, 1952 in Demoplis, Alabama, my mother (Ella M. Jones) delivered me into a world where your food was always fried and everyone we knew was Black and a Baptist. I was Lucky number 4 of 9 children, five girls and four boys.

We children didnt know it, but we were not wealthy. The world that my parents built for us was secure as any palace, so filled with warmth and affection.

The four-bedroom dwelling, with a covered front porch was located in the west section of town, about two blocks from St. Peters Baptist Church.

Our Sunday started early. It was a day of rest from work, but not from activity. After one of my mothers unforgettable breakfasts, we would all walk to church for morning services. We were a family who deeply believed that all of our strength comes from the Lord. I feel that it is my religious belief, which has helped to shape my personality as it is today.

My parents instilled in us to trust your instincts, to be patient and to strive for the highest educational goals possible. They continually told us to always put God first and he will lead the way. My structural educational experience began in 1959 when I entered first grade at Faunsdale Elementary School. There were no pre-schools or kindergarten classes. After my first grade year, my parents moved to Uniontown, Alabama where I attended Uniontown Elementary School from second to seventh grade.

I enrolled in Robert C. Hatch High School in the fall of 1966. While attending this school, I was introduced to my first physical education class. The class was well organized and so exciting. The teacher was really innovative and a true motivator. I knew from that experience I wanted to study and teach physical education. I was graduated from high school in May 1971.

In the fall of 1971, I was accepted into Alabama State University. Those years were challenging and rewarding. I majored in Physical Education and Health, with a minor in English. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in June 1974. In August 1974, I began teaching physical education in the Miami-Dade County Public School System. In September 2001, I earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Union Institute University.

I am presently living in Montgomery, Alabama and is in the process of writing books.

Christine J. Dial-Benton, Ph.D.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 27, 2012
• ISBN: 9781479722822

Christine J. Dial-Benton

About The Author On January 14, 1952 in Demoplis, Alabama, my mother (Ella M. Jones) delivered me into a world where your food was always fried and everyone we knew was Black and a Baptist. I was Lucky number “4” of 9 children, five girls and four boys. We children didn’t know it, but we were not wealthy. The world that my parents built for us was secure as any palace, so filled with warmth and affection. The four-bedroom dwelling, with a covered front porch was located in the west section of town, about two blocks from St. Peters Baptist Church. Our Sunday started early. It was a day of rest from work, but not from activity. After one of my mother’s unforgettable breakfasts, we would all walk to church for morning services. We were a family who deeply believed that all of our strength comes from the Lord. I feel that it is my religious belief, which has helped to shape my personality as it is today. My parents instilled in us to trust your instincts, to be patient and to strive for the highest educational goals possible. They continually told us to always put God first and he will lead the way. My structural educational experience began in 1959 when I entered first grade at Faunsdale Elementary School. There were no pre-schools or kindergarten classes. After my first grade year, my parents moved to Uniontown, Alabama where I attended Uniontown Elementary School from second to seventh grade. I enrolled in Robert C. Hatch High School in the fall of 1966. While attending this school, I was introduced to my first physical education class. The class was well organized and so exciting. The teacher was really innovative and a true motivator. I knew from that experience I wanted to study and teach physical education. I was graduated from high school in May 1971. In the fall of 1971, I was accepted into Alabama State University. Those years were challenging and rewarding. I majored in Physical Education and Health, with a minor in English. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in June 1974. In August 1974, I began teaching physical education in the Miami-Dade County Public School System. In September 2001, I earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Union Institute University. I am presently living in Montgomery, Alabama and is in the process of writing books. Christine J. Dial-Benton, Ph.D.

Book preview

Experiences With

Discrimination

10284.jpg

From Deep Within

Christine J. Dial-Benton, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2012 by Christine J. Dial-Benton, Ph.D.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

[e-mail]

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Experiences Of Racism

I Wear The Smile To Hide My Frown

Are First Impressions Inevitable?

Encounters With Racism

The Ebony Magazine

Forbidden Song For Graduation

Hidden Racism

Prejudice Experience

Facing The Intrinsic Of Prejudice

From Unemployment To Teaching

No Promotion (Because Of Race)

Forced To Stare Prejudice In The Face

Personal Experiences Of Racial Discrimination

Negative Perception

The Black History Program

The Parent Conference

The School Bus Trip: Thirty-Two Miles Daily

Prejudice Experience

Afraid To Report To The Job

The Existence Of Prejudice

Tension Between Blacks And Whites

Rejection In My New Country

Male Chauvinism

A Friend’s Prejudice Experience

Racism In The Armed Forces

Systematic Racism

What Is Prejudice And Discrimination?

Unconscious Prejudices

Prejudice: Is It Part Of Your Reality?

Reflections

Communication

Educational Enlightenment

A Summary

Similar Experiences

Happy Thanksgiving Or A Time For Mourning?

To Question Or Not To Question?

Message

INTERNATIONAL RECIPES

Squash Soup

Neckbones

HERITAGE RECIPES

Curry

Chutney

Taco Salad

Taco Salad

Sauerkraut Salad

Shrimp A La Tomato

Polynesian Chicken

Curried Shrimp And Potatoes

Spinach Specialty (Asian Indian)

Cozido A Portuguesa

Bacalhau A Gomessa

Jamaican Rice And Peas

Jamaican Easter Bun

Shrimp Maria

Salmon Au Potato

Hoe Cakes

Okra And Tomatoes

PREFACE

I n April 1998, I attended a seminar on teaching immigrant students. This doctoral program seminar for students at the Union Institute provides participants with an opportunity to explore issues in teaching first-generation immigrant children. Almost all participants were teachers. We shared our presentations on all aspects of the issue for five intensive working days. These experiences made each of us feel like members of the same family.

During the sessions, several participants began to tell about the bad and sad moments they had experienced in life. We learned that injustice and discrimination can really scar someone’s life for a very long time—sometimes forever. Often times, people do not have the occasion to reveal these stories from deep within themselves. We decided that it was time to tell and share our stories about discrimination. In this book are some of those stories.

Despite the circumstances of each story, our outlook remains positive, and our hope is to bring more understanding between people of different backgrounds, races, and beliefs.

Christine J. Dial-Benton, PhD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

M y writing has been greatly influenced by one of my professors who taught at the Union Institute University. I owe much to the excellent scholarship of Charles Phan Hoang, PhD, as well as Yanick Alcindor,

Jacques L. Bonenfant, Luis Conde, George Davis Jr., Verna Elson, Patricia Estridge, April Grant, Nita Maercks, Marlene Felex-Marcelin, Gloria Ramnanan, Henry B. Range Jr., Johnny Roundtree, Dorothy Scally, Sandi Thornton, and Lynda B. Turner—who all helped to make this publication possible.

INTRODUCTION

W E CAME TOGETHER TO STUDY IMMIGRANT CHILDREN AND FOUND out that we were all children of immigrants, or immigrants ourselves. Our group, which convened to attend a seminar on Immigrant Students: How to Teach Them and How They Can Teach Us, under the auspices of The Union Institute University in Miami, Florida, was a microcosm of the world—magnificent in all its diversity, yet united with the strong bond of love and respect for one another’s heritage (i.e., African, Caucasian, Vietnamese, Italian, Bhutto, Irish,

Chinese, Dutch, Japanese, Jamaican, Trinidadian, East Indian, West Indian, Portuguese, English, Jewish, German, Scottish, Native American, Spanish, Arabic, Haitian, Cuban, Mongolian, French, Bahamian, and Canary