Victoria Rader Post 1

1. My own personal racial and ethnic heritage - As far as I know I am Polish and German from my mother's side. I have no idea what I am from my father's side. I don't really identify with either of these except that I love Polish food and using Dyngus day as a way to go out and drink and eat Polish foods. And hit people with pussywillows. Other than that I am a Caucasian American.
2. I first became aware of issues regarding ethnicity and race in the third grade. I went from an all white Catholic school to a Buffalo city public school where many of the students were bussed in from another section of the city. White kids were actually the minority, though that was never something that I was uncomfortable with. Looking back I noticed that the (white) teachers treated the black kids differently, but I don't know if they did this because many of them had behavioral issues, or if they had behavioral issues because the teachers treated them differently. The white kids all lived in the area and walked, while the black kids were bussed in from the East side of Buffalo, which is frequently seen as a bad part of town.
3. I don't recall being told much about ethnicity or race growing up. When I was in the public school we were all friends with each other and it's not something that was paid attention to. Then we moved to the suburbs where everyone was white so the issue was not something that ever really came up.
4. My views have evolved over time simply from paying more attention to the news and reading more about the world around me. Also, taking Women's studies classes has made a huge impact.
5. I have witnessed instances of racism, probably too many to list. Living in and around Buffalo I've grown used to some diversity and I noticed that many people will treat Arab (is this the correct term?) people as less than others. I've seen black men and women followed around in electronic and department stores. My own boss frequently found completely bullshit reasons not to hire non Caucasian folks.