Bargain Town

For decades, Mexican migrant farm workers have come to toil in the fields of southern Miami-Dade County. Many settled in the area, creating a community as distinctive in its own way as Little Havana and Little Haiti in Miami. More than 17,000 Mexicans now dwell within the Homestead city limits, and thousands more live in unincorporated areas outside the city.

The hot and humid core of Bargain Town, located 22 miles south of Miami in Princeton, is a former tomato packing plant that later was used to manufacture windows. Now it houses merchants’ stalls. It encompasses a flea market, a pet shop, a plant shop, a produce barn, and a food court.

“This place is a bargainer’s paradise,” said Claudia Ramos, a local shopper. “It’s huge but definitely cramped with all sorts of tiny shops and stuff.”

Upon entering the shopper will be greeted by friendly smiles and Spanish phrases. Although many of the merchants do not speak the language, they speak enough to explain their products and negotiate prices.

The flea market can offer shopper a wide array of different consumer goods. From fresh Mexican and Central American food to adult and children’s clothing, cooking implements, appliances, CDs and DVDs, musical instruments, tools.


“Many of the vendors sell merchandise from Mexico and Latin America. I have strived to build a good relationship with them. This is their home and mine,” said Rene F. Infante, who grew up watching his father develop and run Bargain Town.

Bargain Town arose from the ruins left by Hurricane Andrew on August 24, 1992.
After Hurricane Andrew destroyed ReneInfante’s father flea market, he inquired about using the window plant, which had been abandoned.

“The Infante family has operated markets for generations. My great-grandfather, Don Carlos Nuñez, had a market in Holguin, Cuba,” says Rene F. Infante.

Many locals continue to make their way to Bargain Town in search of new deals, food, and fun.

From Flea Market to a Family Affair

For over 15 years, Bargain Town, a local Homestead flea market serves as a social gathering place for many legal and illegal immigrants in Homestead.

Shoppers arrive with varying agendas but families like the Zepedo family
opt for Sunday afternoon of “family fun day” with pony rides, eating chimichangas, and chatting with other parents about their homeland.

"For a while now, they started having these mini carnivals for the kids and families. Its great because my girls really enjoy it and its cost efficient,” said Carla. "It really gives us an opportunity to take our kids out and meet other families."

The flea market, is a former tomato packing plant that later was used to manufacture windows, today it houses vendors of both new and old merchandise, open air fruit market, many eateries with typical Hispanic dishes in particular Mexican and a mini carnival area.

Bargain Town’s developer and owner, Rene F. Infante, said the flea market contains a family ambiance. Through out the years he has witnessed people form close ties. Families have fun together while also investing on staple deals for groceries and toiletry items.

“It's not really a money-maker; it's more to get people out," she said. "A lot of people here can't get to Ottawa for all those events," Infante said.

More than 150 people join in on the weekend’s merriment at the flea market. Many families race to Bargain Town in the morning to complete their shopping early. Ponies, a few carnival rides, and occasionally a clown await the families. For a few dollars kids can enjoy a an afternoon of activities.

“Its difficult adapting to a new culture, language and country. Here we can forget the troubles that we face during the week and be Mexican,” Luis Zepedo said.

For many immigrant families it is almost financially impossible to benefit from fairs, venues targeted for children because their salaries just don’t allow it. Different mothers explained that having the option to rejoice with their husbands and kids is what keeps them coming back.

On Saturdays and Sundays, the merchants set up their stalls about 7 AM in the produce barn, a large building open on all four sides with dozens of stalls. Shoppers arrive about the same time as the sellers, and continue to come until the market gates close around 6 PM.

Most of the activities take place on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. For those looking to purchase fresh produce, farmers bring their goods Wednesday through Sunday, and the pet and plant shops are open daily.
Bargain Town’s main building is difficult to miss, located on 24420 S. Dixie Highway, the packing house building can be seen from many blocks away.

The Most Dangerous Man in America

Last night a surge of patriotism and pride surged through my veins as I watched a documentary on Daniel Ellsberg, a former United States military analyst who triggered a political controversy. He also hosted a forum via Skype with students from the School of Journalism and Mass Communications.

The documentary, The Most Dangerous Man in Americas, explained Ellsberg's release a top secret government study known as the Pentagon Papers in 1971. He secretly made several sets of copies with the assistance of his former  colleague Anthony Russo. The papers showed the government had lied to Congress and the public about the war in Vietnam. Ellsberg gave his first set of copies to the New York Times. The Times published the first of nine excerpts on the 7,000 page study.

Shortly after, the Nixon administration prevented publication of the Times and the excerpts through a court order. The confidential document was leaked to the Washington Post, which after a few days was also ordered to stop publication. Since the presidency of Lincoln during the Civil War, this was first time the federal government restrained publication of a major newspaper . Ellsberg The right of the press to publish the papers was upheld in  New York Times Co. v. United States.

The forum provided students with historical anecdotes and facts of which they were not aware of before. The film was far from boring...using old footage, pictures, interviews and audio the producers were able to bring the story to life. For many of us who were not alive during that time, it is important that a film provide a well rounded story. After the documentary was over, if any students were puzzled about something that occurred during that time they were given the opportunity to ask Ellsberg himself to clarify or provide further information.

It was a learning experience for me. I knew about the Pentagon Papers but not in detail. I realized how crucial freedom of speech and the press can be. Luckily, after the New York Times Co. v. United States, newspapers and other media retained the ability to publish without government censorship. Countries around the world can not enjoy the freedoms like the ones that were bestowed upon us by our forefathers. I was born in Venezuela and my parents are Cuban. Having the ability to speak out against government is a right that I do not take for granted. Journalists in Cuba face severe government oppression if they publish a piece that contradicts the Castros regime. In Venezuela, the media has been yet to be hit with an intense censorship belt from Chavez's government but it is occurring slowly through out different television channels and newspapers.

Daniel Ellsberg was a hero in his time and a role model for many journalists. Today, Wikileaks protects men and women like Ellsberg who have a claim to make but fear for their safety.

Right or Wrong? Just something random I came across.

The Internet is a world of its own containing an array of unmeasurable possibilities. If anyone ever wants to search for a specific item, information on a person, apply for a job, entertain themselves, book vacations, catch up on a show, watch the news and practically anything at all the world wide web is the definitely the place to do it. On that same note, there are also an infinite amount of uncredible material, fraudulent schemes, distasteful videos and lousy websites. A few days ago I ran into a hilarious video on YouTube.com, a news package by a reporter for WAFF 48 from Alabama. I watched the video practically 5 times consecutively and every single time it was just as funny as the first. Then I watched it 5 more times and suddenly I began to find it quite offensive, lacking tact and even making the victims look like fools.

The report was about a young black woman who was attacked by a rapist in her bedroom while she was asleep one night. During the package, she says a few words about her experience and then the interview is turned over to her brother, Antoine Dodson, who pushed the attacker off of her. Although Dodson and his sister were victims and the situation was unfortunate, anyone watching the video will focus less on the actual purpose of the news package and more on the comical aspect. The way this piece was put together it is safe to say it ridicules the family. The sound bites the reporter decided to use seemed more like she wanted to bring attention to her work and report and not to the Dodson family. One wonders if perhaps she could have continued to ask different questions until she got better quotes. There are other videos on YouTube that show more footage of the interview; however, not as attention grabbing and way more serious. I was guilty too of watching this video just too laugh but I also think it depicts the family in a negative light. Why did her producer decide to run this story? Who knows...

 Several weeks later, the same reporter goes back interviews Antoine Dodson about how it felt to become an over night Facebook sensation. The story about his sister having and intruder in her bedroom is briefly touched upon. One ting is for sure, Antoine Dodson lucked out and was able to move out of the projects after all the hits he got on youtube.com.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgRKz25fR7U&feature=fvst

"You have to make your own luck!"

The distinct smell of a Latin meal emerged from the food truck parked in a lot inside Bargain Town, the sun was shining and different families were making their way toward the entrance of the flea market. I geared myself with confidence and a reporter’s tools: a camera, notepad, pen, and tape recorder then walked toward the back of the fruit market where the bakery was. Gaby, the same girl I spoke to last time recognized me and we began to talk. She was working with Lupe Santana, a 25 year old Mexican girl. They assured me today was a good day to take a stroll around Bargain town and meet other vendors. Lupe volunteered to give me a tour and introduce me to the different owners of the tiny shops.

As I waited for her to finish with some customers I sat on the picnic tables by the truck. I still noticed the piercing stares of some of the other people sitting at the tables; obviously, I was still an unidentified walking object. The burritos the others around me were eating looked delicious, and the smell was appetizing. In an attempt to break the ice, I asked the couple next to me what they were eating. Chimichangas, replied Enrique and Marisol Cruz. They were a Nicaraguan family with 4 children ages, 13, 11, 8, and 6 Marisol explained they arrived from Nicaragua just one year ago. It’s been tough for them, she said, and money has been scarce. Like the Cruz’s, many families of illegal status in Homestead, visit Bargain Town as the cheap alternative to spend a fun filled family day.

Marisol invited me to walk over to meet Enriquito, Barbara, Alejandra and Jose Gabriel, her children. They were riding a small carnival ride rollercoaster also in Bargain Town. Marisol continued to explain her situation at home. Back in Nicaragua, Enrique worked as a bricklayer barely making the sufficient amount of money to provide for his wife and four kids. Marisol was a stay at home mom and sold homemade baked goods to bring extra money to the home. Tired of living in a neighborhood where crime lurked at every street corner, the Cruz’s decided to leave it all behind and move to the United States.

Through a coyote, a guide who is paid to smuggle immigrants from country to country, Enrique, Marisol, and their children traveled on foot and bus across Central America until reaching Mexico. Marisol described the countless sleepless nights were they didn’t bathe or eat because it was the safest time to travel the longest distance. Sometimes the fear was so intense I would burst into tears imagining what would happen if we were caught, other times the kids cried because they were cold and didn’t want to walk under the rain. Enrique recalls arriving on bus to a remote dessert location where they then traveled through underground tunnels. For this family, crossing the Mexican border into the United States was the most difficult of them all. “Looking for a better future was important to us, but Enriquito, Barbara, Alejandra and Jose Gabriel are our priority,” said Marisol, “in order to continue the trip we all had to get across a rushing river, when I first saw it my heart sank.”

Enrique and Marisol explained for the kids it was more of an adventure to get across the river. After entering the United Sates, they lived in El Paso, Texas for two years until they saved enough to move to Homestead, Florida. It’s been a year since they left Texas and haven’t looked back since.
I spent the rest of my time there getting to know the family a little better. Luckily everything worked out, it was rush hour for Lupe all afternoon and she wasn’t able to tend to me. Over all it was a really interesting day, like Arnold Markowitz said “You have to make your own luck.”

What lies ahead

Graduation is a very anticipated milestone for many of my peers, for me not so much. This isn't anything new to me, in high school while everyone was celebrating because we were finally off to college I was dreading the thought of what a drastic change that was going to be. Obviously, that is happening again. The thought of resumes, cover letters, networking, emailing, putting together a portfolio, and marketing myself automatically makes a knot in my stomach and my hands clammy. Corporate America is a very scary world and soon I too will become a part of it. In a sense, what I fear is the unknown. Today in class my anxiety was
lessened at least for the time I was there.

Every now and then our class sidetracks and we end up discussing things that aren't very relevant to ethnic reporting but they are relevant to our journalism careers. Our professor gave the class resume tips and explained what a good cover letter entails. It's tough because we have to make both those things stand out from the rest of the crowd. Employers have endless stacks of papers on their desks and we have to make it so we can grab their attention and get them to turn the page and read our resumes. Just thinking about that gives me a headache but its something I HAVE TO CONFRONT if I want a job. We all experience it, its part of growing up and getting a life.

I was a little confused when Professor Reisner was explaining something about how to register on a website that can help us manage what comes up when someone runs our name through a search engine. I didn't understand how to do that but it is on my to do list before I leave FIU. This was a very insightful class because no one really tells us how to go about making ourselves look appealing on paper or how to have career etiquette. Although we have the Career Services office available to us, they are very general. It's very refreshing to have someone from withing our field tell us what to expect and how to compile the necessary materials to make us marketable to employers.

MOST RASCIST COMMERICAL EVER

The most racist commercial ever

Getting rid of racism in the world is a near impossible feat.  It took the United States over 100 years to end slavery, segregation and give women the right to vote. Imagine trying to accomplish the same for different races in every country…I don’t see that happening any time soon. Even today, in modern day society there are still many ignorant stereotypical ideologies displayed across multiple media platforms. The commercial we watched in class today is a perfect example of it. A herbal tooth paste company in Thailand advertised their new toothpaste and attempted to convey the message of ending discrimination and failed miserably in doing so.

The commercial begins by showing an Asian little girl crying and pointing up at her yellow balloon that has flown up in an electrical tower. A black man walks into the scene and wants to help the little girl retrieve her balloon. He wraps his arms and legs around the pole, climbs to the top, grabs the balloon, and brings it to the child. Just as he approaches the Asian girl to give her the balloon her mother grabs her and scolds at the black man.  The black man then looks down in sorrow and walks home with the balloon. When he arrives to his house, he lies down in bed and suddenly with the use of digital effects he is morphed into the herbal toothpaste on the toothbrush. The herbal toothpaste is also a very dark color. After watching the herbal toothpaste commercial, I am assuming the company’s intended message was “don’t discriminate based on the color of something. Just as the herbal toothpaste is good for you even though it is a dark brown or black color, people who are black shouldn’t automatically be type casted as bad.

I understand this ad is playing against racist stereotypes and paralleling it with general misconceptions but I found this video a little upsetting especially on the black man. To me it’s the same as selling a cotton ad and having a black man picking it in the video. I mean did any one notice that the man is climbing up a pole just as monkeys climb up trees…and what’s worse is that the balloon is yellow!  HELLO?! I definitely think they could have done a better job of putting out a commercial with a meaningful message.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua2EE6Uil40

Plastic Surgery According to Culture

Cosmetic surgery is no longer just about fitting into your adopted culture. It's about fitting into your ethnic group without regard for what mainstream America might think is attractive. According to the New York Times, while "everyone wants a flat stomach and a smooth forehead," the similarities among various immigrant groups seeking plastic surgery end there.

Doctor observations show there is a split between two goals among self-improvement-seeking immigrants. Some seek procedures to obscure ethnic physical traits and other surgeries serve to emphasize features that retain cultural capital.

In, New York, Chinese women have been undergoing eyelid surgery to obtain an almond shaped eye and nose jobs to flip down their upturned noses. Koreans have also seen surgeons to have their jaw lines slimmed.  Other women wish to enhance the physical features that their cultures praise the most. Hispanic women who wish to accentuate their curves. To more specific Dominican women have requested butt lifts to enhance their voluptuous bodies.

The piece notably lacked any observations about the preferences of African immigrants, but in a 2010 study by the American Academy of Plastic Surgeons, the most commonly requested surgical procedure among African Americans was nose reshaping, followed by breast reduction and liposuction.

Today almost nothing is far from the ordinary but we still have difficulty accepting this stigmatized topic, plastic surgery. There exist various arguments for plastic surgery that exist within a woman’s world. For some women these surgical procedures serve as a correction tool over a physical trait they cannot control.

Opposing views see plastic surgery as self mutilation to quench society’s thirst for beauty and vanity.

Unfortunately an array of male and female celebrities have abused plastic surgery looking like shriveled up rag dolls. It is multimillion dollar disasters like Joan Rivers, Michael Jackson, Jocelyn Wildenstein and Donatella Versace among many others that we tend to associate with plastic surgery and no wonder why people fear surgery aside from unlicensed surgeons.

Often some people say things like "then what?" If you are willing to do that to yourself, than what else are you willing to do? What's next? Well sometimes I forget I got plastic surgery. I don't look like someone who did it. It's easy not to think about it. I don't feel like a Joan Rivers or Michael Jackson. I guess I too am a victim to America’s calling for perfection, or so some would say. Instead, I can identify myself with the Dominican woman from the article who said “We Latinas define ourselves with our bodies. We always have curves.” The decision to obtain surgery was based on obtaining a proportional balance.

Truth is people are going to have standards to what signifies beauty. Whether its what America deems as beautiful or what our own cultures deem as beautiful a standard will always exist. The issue arises when an unhealthy relationship with a scalpel develops.

Barber Shop

The movie Barbershop takes place in Chicago's South Side, a predominantly Black community, where an all-black clientele take their chances with an uneven assortment of barbers. This movie features a variety of black archetypes who deal with each other on a daily basis. For example, there is "the hottie with an attitude" Terri Jones  who must decide whether to get rid of her two-timing boy friend once and for all. Then there is the "the ex convict who wants to turn his life around," Rick risks being framed for a theft to serve a life sentence as a 3-time loser. Of course the "wannabe,"Isaac, the shop's white barber who feels an affinity with the rest of the group because he has a black girl friend. Dinka is a Nigerian who appears clueless and asks advice on how to make it with the women. There is also the stereotypical black who is white on the inside, Jimmy is using his earnings as a barber to work his way through college and, as the most educated of the group is looked upon as patronizing.Cedric the Entertainer plays the wise Eddie who is the eldest worker at the barbershop.

Barbershop could be looked upon as a story about the tensions created within the place by people whose opinions run the gamut on different subjects such as, conventional politics, relationships with the opposite sex and the way real men think they should talk about women. For the community in which the main characters live in, the "barbershop" is the central gathering place where men could be men, as Cedric the Entertainer says during the movie.

Although the movie does not reveal anything I haven't already seen in other movies that focus on a minority group, it is interesting to see that every racial group has that one person that fits a certain stereotype. For example Eddie, would be the Sensai if it were an Asian film. Barbershop does a good job of capturing the essential character traits each of these stereotypes possess. The Barbershop itself depicts that common place that the people of a community go to find out the latest news or to just hangout. What we have discussed in class so far is extremely true, every social group has the same stereotypical character archetype. Little details vary here and there from culture to culture.

Valentine's Day at Bargain Town

Love was in the air even at Bargain Town Flea market. Floral arrangements and heart shaped balloons in pinks, reds, and white adorned the entrance of the fruit market. The apparent festive mood were actually different set of vendors selling Valentine’s Day gifts at a lower cost than the market chains. The different arrangements varied, some had teddy bears, others included chocolates and the “deluxe” packages contained an assortment of everything. The gift bags were delicately together and some contained great detail.

For a hopeless romantic on a budget looking for a “get more for less” kind of gift should definitely visit Bargain Town. This weekend it seemed as though the flea market was in love. Many of the different shops were selling some sort of Valentine’s Day item. From your most basic gift to the gift of your fantasies (no pun intended).

Walking around through the long paths, I realized many immigrants adapt to new traditions and customs in order to survive. At first I wondered if many of the people selling Valentine’s Day gifts had even celebrated it before or if they even knew it existed prior to arriving to the United States.

The first person I asked was a man on a wheelchair, Francisco Perales, who sets up his shop on daily basis with a little help from one of his employees. Perales explained that in Cuba there is no such thing. The Cuban people are so caught up trying to provide a meal for the day to feed their families that romantic gifts is the last thing on their minds. He left Cuba 5 years ago through lottery system that offers Cubans to opportunity to leave the country, El Bon Bo.

Perales said it is difficult to get hired when you are handicapped and don’t speak English. His son who attends Homestead Senior High, assists him with the shop. They sell women’s clothing, shoes, and handbags. Today, they were a dozen selling baskets containing a heart shaped chocolate box, massage oil, a teddy bear holding a heart, artificial roses, and a balloon on a stick which read “I love you.” Perales told me his wife stayed up almost all night putting these together. They bought the necessary materials at BI’s and Walmart and “VOILA!” He explained it’s a lot of hard work but it pays the bills.

Another family I spoke to had a large table outside the fruit market, they were selling floral arrangements. Mercedes Suarez, and her two daughters had been working on them for the past two weeks. “We put these together because they sell. Last year we arranged floral arrangements too and they were easy to sell and cheap to put together,“ she said. Suarez was very brief and did not want to say much. Suarez said in Mexico there are many holidays they are adopting and Valentine’s Day is one of them. Although it isn’t as popular as it is here, couples often find a way to celebrate their love outside from their anniversaries.

My visit today wasn’t long, I walked around for about two hours before having to go to work. I did see familiar faces and the awkward feeling is starting to wear down. I learned that many of us see these vendors on the streets selling random stuff and don't realize how hard they worked nights before to be able to go to the streets to sell.

Welcome to BARGAIN TOWN

 Bargain Town is my designated post for the Community Insight Project. This Homestead based flea market, sells everything from fruits, meat, fish, to clothes, shoes, accessories for the car, jewelry and many other things. Three huge flags of Mexico, Nicaragua, and Guatemala decorate the entrance to the flea market. One of the first shops any customer will encounter will be its open air fruit market.  Different Central and South American snacks and pastries are also on display at the mom and pop bakery in the fruit market. There were the rustling and bustling sounds of the employees unloading the shipment of fruits and vegetables from trucks to then be placed in crates and carried across to market to be distributed.

The majority of the people working at Bargain Town are Hispanic and particularly Mexican, said Gaby, one of the women running the bakery. She also mentioned that many Cubans have a vending space there too. Unfortunately, many of the shops were closed during my visit because it was still too early. Gaby suggested I return on their peak day, Sunday between 11a.m. and 4p.m.  I noticed the shops where located sides by side with barely any breathing space down a long walk way which looked more like an alley.

The distinct smell of a home cooked meal emerged from a food truck selling tacos, chimichangas, burritos among other things. Picnic tables were set up under a large tent right beside the food truck. It had a restaurant feel to it, sort of.

Throughout the time I was there I felt out of place and a little awkward. My attempt to dress casual failed, I still received many stares. It was the kind of looks where people are wondering “who is that and why is she here.”  After giving it some thought, I know I feel uncomfortable because I didn’t want them to think I was a United States Immigration official. When I first approached Gaby, I noticed she gave me a look of distrust. I did my best to talk to her about the flea market to make her feel comfortable. I can’t say I establish a friendship but I did become an acquaintance. She offered to me my guide the next time I return. Although I took my picture came, the pictures I wanted to take will have to wait till my next visit. It wouldn’t have been smart on my part to start taking pictures when the people around me were iffy about me, my note pad, and pencil.

Over all it was a good first experience. I am hesitant after all but it is challenge I am willing to take and a feeling I am willing to overcome. Sunday will be my next visit and I hope to talk to more people.

Implicit Association Test

Some of the articles I read prior to taking the Implicit Association Test reported that the test was made in a way where anyone who took it would present a bias toward a particular group. It is said that some people get offended after taking the Implicit Association Test or they just don't agree with their results. Before taking this test, I expected the results to be extreme. The results I obtained actually surprised me. The different tests I took were: Gender-Career, Race, and Weight. My results for the test associated with males/females and how identify each gender with career and family was pretty accurate.

The IAT demonstrated I had a moderate association of Male with Career and Female with Family. Although I don't strongly believe men are made to work and women to raise children, I was brought up in a household where my mom stayed home until my brother and I were 10 and 8 years old. Throughout that time, the breadwinner in my house was my father. While I was growing up in a home where my dad was the one working, I was also taught that women need to have careers too and be self sufficient. It's obvious to me why I was considered "moderate" on this topic.

Of the three IAT's, the one that measured our bias toward Race was the one that surprised me. I received a
moderate automatic preference for European American compared to African American. Prior to the test, I thought I was going to get a "strong automatic preference for European American" because of my cultural background. It is a tendency within the Cuban Culture for white Cubans to make racist jokes against black Cubans. With that said, I automatically assumed I was going to show a great bias toward people who are black.

I was extremely curious what the IAT would demonstrate in the test that was focused on Weight. Well the tests results proved to be on target because I got a strong automatic preference for people thin people. About four years ago, I had to be treated because I had an extreme phobia of overweight people and becoming overweight myself.

I don't think that just because anyone gets these results means that they are just rude stereotypical people. It might just mean that somewhere inside, there is a deep rooted perception that was instilled by media and even family as we grew up. Luckily, some us are aware and try not to let ideas influence our day to day life.

Mexican does not mean Tobasco Sauce

During this semester, I'll be embarking on a journey to a far away place...Homestead, to immerse myself in the depths of Mexican culture and become acquainted with people of illegal status in this country. Although I am Hispanic, I know that I will learn a lot from this experience.

Hispanics even within our own people tend to stereotype each other based on someones nationality. Americans might not fully understand this because some of them out of ignorance classify us all as Mexicans. (Side note- notice how some non-Mexican Hispanics get offended when asked if they are from Mexico).Growing up in a Cuban family, there was always that uncle making a racist joke often referring to people from Central America as "Tira Flechas or Indios" which in English would mean Wet backs or Indians. For many Cubans, being referred to by any of the above terms is an insult. My parents never instilled those stereotypes in me but a lot of my other relatives did. Aside from that, my classmates in elementary and middle school were students of Cuban background. Even as a little kid I remember hearing Mexican jokes, or other children getting teased because they were called "Tira Flechas".

Now as an adult, I don't look down upon them or anything of the sort but I do feel I would be extremely uncomfortable in a social setting where the majority of the people are Mexican or illegal immigrants. Often, the media portrays these people to be blood-thirsty women abusing, carrying guns in their back pockets, and drugs in their front pockets  yelling "Bato" at each other. That is not always the case. Still, because I've already had my brain fumigated with these kinds of stereotypes I do get extremely nervous when I am around many Mexicans. As for the illegal immigrant part, I feel uncomfortable around them because I have somewhat of an idea about their situation and I feel sorry for them. I don't know how to cope around a large of people going through a extremely devastating situation.

Based on all that I've explained, I chose my Community Insight Project to be at the Homestead Flea Market. My goals at the end of the semester are to  shatter my preconceived notions of the Mexican culture, gain insight on issues affecting immigrants, learn how to manage my own personal awkwardness with a situation etc.. I am very excited but nervous. Hopefully tomorrow I can visit it for the first time.

I'm taking Intro to Stereotype 101

Stereotypes are often difficult to avoid in today's societies. Many times we make decisions based on the stereotypes our elders instilled in us while growing up. Whether it was during the first day of fourth grade and your mom told you to zip up your book bag because of your 3 black classmates, or perhaps in college when your best friend advised you to get your professor a bottle of Tabasco sauce for Christmas because she is Mexican. Not a lot of people take the time to stop and analyze if these are true, instead they continue going through life with these misconceptions floating around in their minds.

"Reporting in a Multi-Ethnic Community" seems like it will be a very promising class, one from which many of the students in it will realize that stereotypes are just that stereotypes. The class requires that a Community Insight Project is turned in at the end of the semester. Each student must find a population or group that they are uncomfortable with, know nothing about, or are scared off and visit that certain location at least 3 times during the semester. Although a challenging assignment, it is also going to be very exciting because all the students are required to interact with the individuals who visit that place.

Making a decision as to what place I will be visiting has not been easy. In order to really learn and grow from this experience I want to choose a place that will really push the boundaries of my comfort zone. Different groups I have considered are the lesbian and gay community, the Mexican population, the homeless, folks living in Liberty City or Overtown, and unwed teenage mothers. I have to yet to make my final decision but before the end of this weekend I will know what community I will  be visiting.

STAY TUNED!