oh nah nahhhhh, what's my nameeee?

"No Name Woman" by Maxine Hong Kingston is quite a compulsive essay. I guess that it's for the fact that Kingston give space for the reader to collect the minor details and try to put it together into a mystery. For example, when she says that " I wonder whether he masked himself when he joined the raid on her family. " She gives her own ideas to the readers, maybe he planned this or maybe he just a evil being. She gives different plots, such as maybe her aunt was raped or maybe she wanted to commit adultery. The one thing that I noticed is that she doesn't talk down about her aunt. Even though her mother told her and warned her that, " Don't humiliate us. You wouldn't like to be forgotten as if you had never been born. " All cultures have their own consequences to the way that people act out with their own family and friends. It doesn't amaze me the fact that only men have a saying and are able to talk down towards women. Maybe this is a way of Kingston to go against the " rules " and try to eliminate the cycle her family have. 

" What Happens When Your Hood is the Last Stop on the White Flight Express ? " A.K.A. Gentrification

Taigi Smith and many other groups have experienced gentrification, including myself. I got to see the point of view from the people moving into my neighborhood and basically " invading " our culture. As being part of Brownsville community, seeing a different group of people such as White people, it's a bitter sweet experience. For one, rent has basically raised sky high. My family and I used to pay for a 3 bedroom apartment for only $1000/ month. Now as a result of gentrification by White people my family had to relocate to a new apartment now paying $1,500/month for only 3 bedrooms. As Smith said in her essay," When White people move into black neighborhoods, the police presence increases." Due to the fact of more police presence there's been less crimes around my neighborhood and more safety. You can now walk around my neighborhood past midnight and it's rare that you'll run into trouble. Though, Black people have to be cautious while walking around that time of the day, because most likely you'll be stopped by a cop, black male specially. Also, it's pretty cool to have a " chic cafe " around the corner. It's safe to study, and even chat with a friend. Before then it was rare to have a cafe in my neighborhood 5 years ago. Ever since White people started to pop up so did the " chic cafes ". I just wonder would had my neighborhood become a better place if the White people wouldn't had moved in.