9781422281390

around by clerks, like I was gonna steal something. I thought it funny the first time. But it happened all the time. “School was bad there. I tried to make friends but one kid, Ryan, got beaten up by older white kids for hanging out with me and stopped. My grades got worse. Some of the teachers started to pick on me for making noise in class, even when it couldn’t be me—I had no one to talk to. My locker was broken into and “Nigger thief” written inside, but I hadn’t stolen any- thing. “I don’t want to say much about the worst thing that hap- pened. Some white men I didn’t know grabbed me one night and tied me up. They hit my legs with a metal pipe over and over again. I needed three operations on my right leg. At the time, I thought I was going to die. “We moved to New York soon after I got out of the hospi- tal. I hear about lots of crime here but I feel much safer, like I’m culture— the traditions, values, lifestyles, and beliefs shared by a group of people. ethnic group— a group of people who share the same distinct culture, religion, way of life or language. genetics— the scientific study of human characteristics passed down through gen- erations via genes. Hispanic— Spanish-speaking people living in the United States whose families originally came from Latin America. nationalism— a belief that a person’s nation is superior to others. xenophobia— a fear and hatred of foreigners. Words to Understand in This Chapter

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Racism