Prison has become modern day slavery.

Lately I've been working on this project for Ms. Hegeman class which is social action of our choice. The social action that I really wanted to do was has prison is modern day slavery. I wanted to do this social action because while I was reading Beloved and Heart of Darkness they were talking about how prisoners were treated badly and were being used for cheap work. Reading these two books made me think about the system we have today and how they are setting up our youth for failure. The video that I made was showing how nothing really change within the criminal system and how in many ways it is still slavery. The video contains images showing how the bunks beds in prison looks similar to slave ships, how the both prisoners and slaves were chains around their ankles, wrist. and neck, and many more. (I don't want to give to much away because I want you guys to see it). Also the video contains statics such as how schools leads minorities to prison, and how the United States have more people in prison than any other country. The video is really inspiring because you really get to see how history really repeats itself. I was very surprised on how similar slavery and prison really is. Its sad to say that we live in a world where the people who are suppose to help and protect us are the main one's breaking African Americans and Latinos down. Our young males  today have been affected by this. They don't really see a care in the world anymore because this whole country is against them. School is becoming another thing to avoid because the school systems teach us how to depend on other people and work for someone else instead of teaching about our real history and motivating us to do better and why we should do better because the world we living is really a whites man. I really want people to sit down and actually see this video because this is an issue that keeps getting worser  by the day. To see the video go to my instagram and click the link in my bio or go to YouTube and type in kamali social action project.

Free write

So this morning started out a little rough. I had attitude because I was tired and I didn't feel like doing work. I tried falling asleep in class but Ms. Hegeman kept waking me up so I caught an attitude with her. I felt bad because Ms. Hegeman is nice to me so I went to apologize to her. Later on in the day things started to go well especially around 6 period because I found out that I got the Carlotii scholarship. I really wanted this scholarship because it comes with a Mac book and money for books..  This scholarship  will be helpful for me because I can use the money for my gap that I have and also go towards the loans that I need to take out. Besides that my day went well afterwards. I just couldn't believe that I really got it because whenever I went to go ask Mr. Lin about it he will always tell me that the man is still deciding because the essays were all good. After I had that I was like damn and started looking for other scholarships. I guess good things comes to those who wait because I was waiting patiently to hear back and things were able to work in my favor.

Other than the scholarship I am counting down the days for prom because it is coming right around the corner. I been waiting for prom since forever and it is finally coming.

Class Related Response

Right now in Ms. Hegeman class we are reading this book called Beloved, which is a little different from the other books we have read. Beloved is a book about slavery and how it had an impact on the life of a mother. Today we had a Socratic seminar and one of the questions that I found interesting was, was Sethe justified for killing Beloved. So basically in the book Sethe was mother who killed her daughter Beloved because she felt like it was the best thing to for her daughter's life. Some people felt as if Sethe was wrong because she didn't have to kill her instead do something else. I think for Sethe that was the only option for her because as a slave she really didn't have family because they were mostly separated. She believed that she would rather have a child died then being raped like she was. Sethe went through this traumatic experience of slavery and she would have felt guilty if she was to  put her daughter through the same experience as her knowing what was coming for her.

Some people felt like Sethe was wrong for killing Beloved a I do too as well. I agree with why she decide to kill her child, but I also feel like she could have did something differently then killing a little child. In the book, you get see how Beloved the daughter holds some kind of grudge against her mom because in one of the chapters she started choking her mom. This shows that Beloved is still holding on to some kind of revenge.

Personal Finance

In Ms. Tomlin class we are talking  about personal finance and what would we do if we won $10 million dollars. Personally I already know that I would go crazy and try to buy the things that I like or always wanted. I know some people would say " oh I'm still going to be the same person" and I don't think that is really true because I really believe the money could change. We read this article about a woman who won the lottery in Canada and it was $10 million dollars. She went crazy with the money she was paying people bails, rents, going on exotic trips, buying a lot of cars, and going on shopping sprees. She didn't even notice how crazy she was spending her money til she found herself riding the bus again and sleeping in an apartment that she didn't even own. If I ever won $10 million dollars i would go crazy too, but not to the point where I would go broke again. I will first buy the things that I need like a house for me and my sisters, a car for me and my mom. Put money in the bank and pay for my college education because I am still going to go to college. I will stretch my money because it's easy to spend money rather than saving it. I will make sure that I build up from that money. I kind of bad for that women cause I know she like damn. she is probably regretting all the bails and rent she paid for people and I bet those people don't even talk to her no more. She don't even have her cars no more not even one so now she has to ride the bus. This type of thing makes me want to save money because if I'm going to have a lot of money and then throw it all away on material things then wants the point of having money in the first place. 

Rnadom Blog

Okay so things are starting to wire down and all I can think about is what am I going to do with myself.  I am glad that I'm graduating high school soon, but at the same time I feel like nothing is happening. This seniorities is really hitting me and I'm starting to get lazy especially with the college process. Some of ya may know that I really want to go to New Paltz and I haven't heard form them back yet and I'm starting to lose hope. Is like I'm trying not to think about it too much and kind of go with the flow but it just on my mind a lot. I am trying my hardest to stay positive but Im nervous. Also i just received my finiacial aid package to Cazenovia and it was the worst package. I mean this think that im going to pay 10.000 dollars out my pocket they bugging out. That school is not even all that to be paying that much money. I just hope that whatever school i  go to they give a good ass finicail aid package because i'm trying to pay as little as possible. Besides all the thinking and over stressing I am still excited about prom and graduation. I just can't wait to be done even tho the work never stops because right when i'm finished with school I have to back to school but its going to be way different.  

Anyways I guess thats all I have to talk about right now and I see ya later

So in Mr. Washington class we are watching  a movie called Higher Learning, and it deals with a lot of different things such as racism, security on campus, and rape on a college campus. The movie is really interesting because the main character Malik starts to realize that the world is ruled by white people and that the system is designed to keep black people down. One scene that was really sad was one one of the freshmen girl I forgot her name her name got raped. She was at some party with her friends and she was drinking, so there was this boy and they want to some room and started kissing and whatever. Then they were about to have sex and the girl was telling the boy to go get a condom and the boy didn't  want to. So the boy got on top of her and started riding her and she was screaming and crying for him to get off but he kept going. Another part that was interesting was when a group of white girls were walking to a party and they were talking about their roommates and one of the girls said that her roommate was Mexican and she probably got into the school through a scholarship. The movies shows the reality that happens on a college campus. There will be racism it might not always be directly in your face but it does happen in college. Also day rape is another issue in college because some colleges don't really handle the situation good and leave most girls feeling like they did something wrong. All in all the movie is good and everyone should watch it.

Pride and Prejudice

In Ms. Hegeman class we are reading a book called Pride & Prejudice, and it is surrounded by several themes such as family, wealth, inheritance, love and marriage. One thing that stood out to me about this book or the time period of the book was that if a wealthy man had all daughters and no son when he dies his wealth or money does not get passed down to his girls, rather it will go to his nephew if he has any or any boy/male figure in his family. In the book marrying a rich man was a must for some females . Mrs. Bennet wanted her daughter Elizabeth to marry Mr. Collins who was rich and was going to have her fathers house when he dies. Elizabeth refused to marry him and her mother was not happy at all. She got so upset that she decided not to talk to Elizabeth and called her ungrateful. This to me is just crazy because as a mom she shouldn't teach her daughter that money comes before love in a marriage. The fact that she doesn't want to speak to her daughter shows that wealth is too important. I respect Elizabeth decision for rejected the marriage because whats the point of marrying someone if ya barely know each let alone love each other. I understand that Mrs. Bennet want the best for her daughters and want them to be well taken care of, but that is just stupid to turn on your daughter just because she doesn't want to marry. So far the book is good tho, you get to see the different perspectives on marriage, and you also see which characters value marriage and which one just want to marry based on money and wealth. 

School response

like for real I am so tired right now of waking up so early in the morning and coming to school. Nah let me stop playing, I really like school but I am tired of the work and teachers giving us quizzes, tests, essay and other stuff. Like sometimes I just I wish  was in kindergarden where we had to trace and draw for homework. Like lately my mind has been wondering and I haven't been on top of  my things like a should be, but I know i just get distracted easy but im going to stop I think. Anyways though, I just I hope I ended the sesmster well. Hopefully I paseed Ms. Tomlin test I think I did good  but there was a few questions where i was like "what the Hell' but i think i got like a 80 something. Okay well thats all I have on my mind right now so im just going to stop now.

Pasion

I have a lot of passions but I think I will talk about my passion of being something in life. Life to me can sometimes be hard, fun, stressful, happy, sad, and whole bunch of other things, but one thing about life is that it teaches you a lot. Everything you do is a reason weather its good or bad. I know I can't control what happens in my life, but I can set myself up to be in the best situations in life. I have a goal not a dream, but a goal to have a better lifestyle in the future. I want to have the things that my didn't have when I was growing up. I also want to give her those things. Looking at how wealthy people live I want to one day finally say " yeah i own that house" or " I own something". I don't envy them, but instead I get inspired to do what I have to do so that I can get the things that I want in life. Now I'm not saying that all I want is expensive things like shoes, clothes, or anything like that, Im saying that I want to do things and buy things on my own with the money I work hard for. I have a passion for going after what i want in my life. I want to have a good career, a happy stress free life, travel around the world, and help my family. I know that i can fix my families situation and thats what motivates me to go to college and remain focus because if i want to live large and give back to my mom there's commitment and hard work that goes into it to make sure that that happens. BEING successful is not just about the money, but about the accomplishments you achieved to get to the point. i WILL BE HAPPY ONE DAY WHEN i FINALLY REACH THAT POINT AND i can sit back on an island and enjoy my hard work, but for now my journey is only beginning.

Whatever Kamali Want to write about.

It is so crazy how Im really about to graduate high school and go off to college. I waited a long time to actually go off to college and now that I might be leaving kind of saddens me because I won't be around my mom as much, or even some of my friends. High school was something Im not even going lie, there was some friendships that I thought was going to last but it didn't but I gained a few other friendships that I really value and appreciate. One thing that I can say about myself is that I feel like I was myself throughout this journey, and the only changed I made was to better myself. I NEVER really try to fit in with nobody, I will always find a way to be happy even if times was stressful, and I did the things that I really wanted to like play squash, be a part of AP Literature/ Medicine, and have fun with my senior class. It still does not hit ME yet that Im becoming a adult because I'm so little and people still mistake me for a middle schooler LoL. I guess I have to be ready for that change and accept it. OMGGGG life is about to start for me, like once i walk out of high school everything is on me no more mommy around or Brandy its all on Kamali now. Everything for me right now is going good and i hope it continues to be like that for me, I just want to be something in life and give back to my mom for always being there and telling me how it is. She is my number one supporter and i will do anything just to make her smile. She pushed me so hard to do something with my life and to always love myself before any one else. My strength and confidence came from her because no matter what obstacles she faced she was always positive and strong. I am glad that i have my mom because she really directed me into a positive lifestyle. Sometimes I try to do the same with others but no everyone wants to do the right things, I don't even care how lame or childish I might seem to others because i GOT OTHER things to worry about and focus on. This right now is just the beginning and I can't wait to see what life has in store for me. 

My ID Post!!!

So right now in Ms. Tomlin class we are learning about the different types of court their is, which is Federal and State, and there is two type of cases civil and criminal. Before we learned this I thought that there was only one type of court and that was the U.S Supreme Court. No Really, I just thought it was only that one and I thought that they dealt with every single case. OMG thank God for Ms. Tomlin class because I would have sound dumb. Anyways going back so we are learning basically what kind of cases get sent where, so the Federal Court deals with cases that involves laws and the Civil Court deals with cases the violates the State laws. If I ever was to become a lawyer I think I would work in the Federal court just because it seems more interesting. In Federal Court you receive cases dealing with guns, murders, kidnapping, and Drugs.

Learning about this is really interesting because now we have this project that we have to pick a case and basically look at what happened. Meaning who was the plaintiff, defendant, who wanted what, what happened before the case reached the Supreme Court ( if it has) , and what was the outcome of the case. Doing this project and learning about the court system makes me feel like a little lawyer and I really enjoy it. Well I guess that is all i HAVE so I'm done.

Dear White People ( SSR)

Okay, so this blog is suppose to be about reacting to something that you read, saw, or talked about in class. Well I have a reaction about something and it is towards the movie Dear White People. Calm down people, I'm not going to tell you a single thing about it because I want you guys to see it, but it was not what I quite expected. I thought the movie was going to be something like a drama, and fill of a  lot of crazy racist things but it really wasn't. The movie was comedy so they exaggerated a lot of things, but the movie was really racist. It really got me thinking about college and if I will personally come across racism, I wonder if I will be able to handle it right because I never really dealt with anything like that before in my life. Going back to the film, you see how racism is portrayed in this college that is suppose to be the best and how it starts to affect the campus life. Many students were upset about what was going on and wanted to put a stop to it. One thing that got my mind running about the movie was how students who were black or mixed did not want to accept their true identity. To me I don't care if I'm black, spanish, white, fat or skinny I am going to be proud of who I am no matter what. I think some people are afraid of being judged or talked about that they so hard to be perfect and ends up losing the real them. This movie made me think about how in reality you don't have to react to how people think or feel about you, you know yourself better than anyone else so you know what you like or dislike. Like you hear it all the time people are entitle to their own opinions and you just have to accept that and move on. Once you accept who you are you don't pay attention to what others feel or say. You are your own worst enemy, so once you judge yourself and put yourself down that is how society will treat you, like nothing and useless. One thing that I got from this movie was that be proud of who you are and never let people or society doubt your true identity. I know it can be hard to let people say whatever they want, but when you give them a reaction you are feeding into their ignorance.
 All in all accept yourself for who you really are and never change unless its for the better, like J cole once stated " We ain't picture perfect but we worth the picture still".

Greek Tragedy

So today in Ms. Hegeman class we were discussing Greek tragedy. Personally I don't like writings that were used in the early years because sometimes it's hard for me to understand it and, it can be boring and dramatic. I learned that the chorus was a major part in the plays during the early years, they kind of set the mood for the audience and tell them what to do like clap and etc. We also discussed how will entertainment be like in 500 years from now. 500 years from now is a long time but I think that entertainment will not be broken down into categories; what I mean by this is today we have different genres like drama, tragedy, and comedy. 500 years from now I don't think we would have that. Entertainment would kind of be extra because know its already extra so I can already imagine it later on in life. Going back to Greek tragedy the reason why I say that its dramatic is because the protagonist (main character) do things that is uncalled for. An example of this is shown in the play Othello when Romeo killed himself because the messenger forgot to tell him that Desdemona took a sleeping drink and she was sound asleep. To me that was unnecessary because even though he loved her a lot, killing yourself for love is a little crazy.

 

For some reason Greek Tragedy has that main concept where the main character of a tragedy commits a terrible crime without realizing how foolish and arrogant they were being. Also the character's flaw must result from something that is also a central virtue ( good quality). One thing that I dislike about Greek tragedy is that women were not allow to participate in anything so men were empower in everything.

What is Kamali Passionate about?

When I think about the things that I am passionate about the first thing that comes to my little mind is people and helping them out. I have always been that type of person who is willing to help others no matter what it is. I have an open, friendly, and nice personality which makes it easy for me to get along with others. I truly discovered my passion when I went to Guatemala this summer for a community service trip. I was building a wall and doing a reading workshop with the kids who were members of the library. I felt very happy and motivated to know that the little things that I was doing for them made the kids excited and thankful.
School to them was very important and they loved being in that environment, so it meant a lot to them that I was fixing their school. During the reading workshop the kids were interested in the readings, and my favorite part was doing the puzzle with them. Although some of the kids didn't speak Spanish or English we were able to communicate through our smiles. Being in Guatemala made me think about having a career working with children or adolescents.

When I get older I want to become a child psychologist. I know I know I have my whole life to plan what I want to be and I also know that things might change, but one thing that I know won't change is my passion for helping people. I enjoy working with kids/ adolescents and I want to help them overcome whatever challenges they are facing in their life. People tell me that being a psychologist is a hard job to do because some of the things that I may hear might be too much for me, but I am willing to go through that. I am willing to make a difference in someone else's life and I want to show them that there is always a light in a dark room - you just have to be  willing to find that light. Whatever hardships they are facing in life I want them to look inside of themselves and find that hope that will push them to become better individuals for the future. The passion that I have for working with people helps me find the goodness in myself. I admire the fact that  I am willing to be that hope that changes somebody's life. The feeling of making someone smile feels good when you know that you were the reason why. I got this feeling when I was in Guatemala and it made me feel great. I didn't give them a lot but the kids were still satisfied with the little that I did for them.

all about

Hi everyone I'm Kamali, I would like to start of by introducing myself a little more to you guys. Well my favorite type of movies are drama, comedy, and love. One of my favorite movies of all times is Love & Basketball. I like to listen to music, and my favorite genre is hip hop. I don't really listen to jazz or anything else, maybe pop and sometimes Spanish music. As some of you know I have two sisters Brandy and Emily; Brandy just currently went off to college, and Emily is in the Navy and been there for 6 years now I  also live with just my mom. I love food and can eat all day, but my favorite kind of food is Spanish. Nothing is better than chicken, rice, beans, fried plantains, and salad.  I just love love Spanish food, and one thing that I enjoy eating,is a Cuban sandwich. My mom side of the family is from Cuba so they eat that all the time and that is how I started eating Cuban sandwiches.  A Cuban sandwich has pork, pickle, melted Swiss cheese, this special sauce, and it comes on this flat grilled bread. Some of you may know that I love playing sports, and I currently play squash, Squash is a racket sport that is similar to tennis or handball. I have been playing Squash for 6 years, and I am number 1 for the girls ladder. I also enjoy talking, writing ( sometimes), and I love love love lip gloss.  I guess that is all for now, I don;t really know what else to talk about so as of right now, TTYL