Responding Post

One out of four children live in poverty. How can America, land of endless opportunities, be a place with such statistics? Easy, America has many ideologies that are used to rationalized any situation. In the case of Gwendolyn Mink's article on welfare, she mentions the stereotypes society hold about poor women on welfare. There are two overarching types of people that comes to mind when people think welfare: 1) the single mother (usually a women of color with numerous children) and 2) the poor rural white women (the "hillbilly" image). Society's negative depiction of women on welfare as "reckless breeders who bear children to avoid work" is reinforced by the notion of the American Dream and meritocracy. In our nation, anyone can success if he/she work hard and have a positive mindset--the idea of "pull yourself up by your bootstraps." These ideologies in addition to society's non-fondness of poor people have allowed society to justify why welfare isn't or shouldn't be provided. However, Mink's totally disagrees and believes that welfare is a fundamental right. Society has often ignored those that really need help and often times policies don't have the best interest of the ones suffering at heart (such as the Personal Responsibility Act).

As I read this article, I couldn't help but to think of the different views we have of American women and women in other countries, in relation to giving money. In America, we don't want to provide single mothers with welfare because women on welfare are seen as lazy and a burden to society and because of their laziness, they deserve to be in poor. On the other hand, in developing countries, if we were to give money we would give it to the woman rather the men. This is because, we believe that the woman would use the money more wisely (to feed the children, ect) whereas the man would probably waste it (to gambling, drinking, etc.). For example, I learned in my environmental studies class that microeconomics programs were starting up in developing countries and these programs give money to women to start business. I am struck by this contradiction. Women, whether in developed or developing countries, are all mother with their children's best interest at heart, so why is it that our society don't trust and want to give money to American women?

Like everyone else who was touched by Rosanna Eang's essay, I was too. However, I was probably touched in a different degree--I related to Eang's story because her story is common among immigrants who come to American. I also grew up in a similar situation. I had parents who worked their butts off so they could provide my sisters and I a better living standard, a better life, and a better future than theirs. My parents' lack of education, lack of ability to understand English (read, write, speak), and their long working hours, left my sisters and I to take care ourselves. My oldest sister probably bore the burden the most. I guess like Eang, growing up in these situations is what pushed and motivated my sisters and I to thrive. Yes, reading Eang's essay is powerful and inspiring, but we must think about all the other people who are also living her story. And to think about, how can we live in a country that allows for the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer. We kinds of stories are we telling ourselves to rationalized our actions?     

Caroline Potoclicchio's Resonding Post

 **Written by Caroline Potoclicchio**

I was also struck by Eang’s “Leading by Example”. This piece shows that you don’t need a man around in order to survive. Rosanna’s mother had to take care of her children while her husband went into hiding. She would hide in the mountainsides with her children and would use a machete to hunt for food to keep them alive. After many years in middle and lower school learning about hunters and gatherers, I know that hunting is usually considered a masculine job that the men would do, while the women would stay home to cook and sew.

Although we have learned that housework is a stereotypical feminine job, and how sometimes it is somewhat degrading, I feel as if Rosanna’s mother is some kind of super woman because in a way she has carried the family on her shoulder’s in all aspects. The fact that she does cooking and cleaning for seventeen people is pretty incredible.

Rosanna’s experience with the Cambodian man is pretty eye opening. She states that she is pretty ashamed that she allowed herself to touch his private parts, but why should she feel ashamed if she is only 3 or 4 years old? I also have respect for Rosanna because she is also a strong woman. She never had the time to be a little kid. Her eyes were opened to reality when she was 3 years old, and she was only 4 years old when she began working full time manual labor. Rosanna really did follow in the footsteps of her mother but in a different way. She grew up in some of the poorest cities, graduated from high school, and went on to college. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in public health. She really paved the way for future generations in her family, but if it wasn’t for her mom’s determination to keep the family together and alive, then she may have not had the passion to do so.

Rosanna's Story

Rosanna Eang's story "Leading by Example" impressed and awed me. I found her story both well written and fascinating. Her family had been through so much, yet they never stopped working and living. I was especially astonished when Rosanna described where her aunt lived when she used to play there as a four year old. Rosanna described drug dealers, hookers, homeless people, and junkies all living in the same building and was exposed to these harsh realities at a very young age. At first I was shocked that her mother would let her into a place like that, but then I realized if they cannot afford to live anywhere else, what was her mother supposed to do?

Rosanna's mother is a truly inspirational force. The amount she worked and sacrificed for her family was breathtaking. Working up to 3 jobs and going to school, while still taking care of her family seems impossible, yet Rosanna's mother did this. To me, she displayed a true force of feminine power and determination that would stop at nothing. It was very interesting however to hear that even though Rosanna's mother was an advocate for proactive, independent women; she still believed in traditions like arranged marriage. I am curious to know what the class or other women would define Rosanna's mothers feminism as. She has a incredibly modern side that contradicts her cultural side, which almost at times seems to contradict her feminism.

Lastly, I found myself feeling very bad for Rosanna because of the amount she had to work as a child. I could almost imagine her standing next to her mother in the factory line barely even reaching the conveyor belt as it went by. I felt bad for Rosanna because I felt like her childhood had been wiped away due to poverty and work. She had to face many obstacles as a child, ruining her naivete. However, because of Rosanna's hardships, one can see how Rosanna rose above the suffering and grew stronger because of it. I admire Rosanna and her perseverance.