Honors 210 Course Portfolio

By Murtaza Jafry
 Reflection

This quarter has been a very informative learning experience for me regarding Latinx culture.

From studying leading authors of Latinx texts to critically examining seminal pieces within Latinx

literature, I have been fortunate to understand more about the Latinx experience. Before coming into this

course, I was not very well acquainted with Latinx culture. My only real exposure with Latinx culture had

come from my Spanish courses in high school, and through a few of my friends from Latinx backgrounds.

This limited exposure caused me to not be familiar with many Latinx authors and the way in which their

texts addressed contemporary topics such as racism, classism, and gender norms. From this course, I was

fortunate to learn a great deal of these authors.

The first author I found that had a significant impact on my understanding of Latinx culture was

Anzaldua in her text, Borderlands. Specifically, this text introduced me to the multitude of cultures and

groups that truly exist within the label that has been loosely applied as Hispanic. I learned of the mixed

race people known as the Mestiza people who were historically disenfranchised as they were never

treated as members of the Latinx community or the white community. Thus, they resided in a middle area

in which they were not accepted by either. I found Anzualdua’s articulation of the experiences of the

Mestiza people and her personal experiences as a member of this group to be enlightening on the different

forms of biases that exist within society. Moreover, I also found her argument for adopting a new

“Mestiza consciousness” to combat this cultural dilemma to be helpful with my own life as well.

Specifically, the notion of simultaneously being part of multiple cultures provided me with a perspective

that I can apply to my own own life as the son of Pakistani immigrants. For these reasons, reading

Borderlands has been an important learning experience for me in understanding the history of Latinx

culture.

After this initial introduction towards Latinx culture, I found A Sign Preceding The End of the

World to be a novel that truly pushed me to understanding many contemporary issues faced by

individuals in Latinx culture from a more objective perspective. The use of uncharged words throughout

the text allowed me reevaluate many topics that I have grown up hearing about from the media and
society broadly. Topics such as undocumented immigraiton, drug trafficking, and the US-Mexico border

were all discussed in a manner which would allow for varied interpretation, but also enable each reader to

learn something new about these topics despite having been exposed to them previously. For this reason, I

believe my piece analyzing and reviewing Sign Preceding The End of the World was my strongest work.

At this point in the course, I was not only able to better understand Latinx culture and history, but also

know how to better articulate my points in a manner that was direct and removed fluff words. Through

these additions, I was able to write a piece which provided both a more detailed interpretation of the text

while also displaying my new style of using precise language and removal of unnecessary transitional

phrases. In addition, in the proces, I also learned a lot about myself as I came to understand how to

reevaluate my own writing and how to assess what content and phrases should be included to make the

greatest impact.

Overall, I found the experiences of reading texts in this class to be greatly enjoyable. I was

fortunate to learn about a culture that I knew relatively little about before, and also to learn a series of new

writing styles that I had not previously applied. Specifically, prior to this class, I had predominantly used

only the style of scientific writing needed for research papers and scholarly articles. As such, I was

initially a little worried about how I would transition to other writing and communication styles such as

narrative and public speaking. However, once I was able to go through the different texts and have

multiple revision cycles from our class, I found that I was able to adapt to these new writing styles and

also improve the effectiveness of my writing. For all these reasons, I have found this course to be one of

my favorite Honors courses as I have been able to learn a new methodology and a set of writing styles

that will be applicable to the courses and discussions I will have in the future.
 What is the Latinx-White Wage Gap?

The Latino-White Wage Gap

On average, in 2017, a self-identified Latino identified made 14.9% less in hourly wages than a

white identified male1. While low, this is an improvement from an even larger 17.8% pay gap in

2000. For Latinx identified women, this gap is even larger. A Latina in 2017 was paid 33.1% less

than a white male, also an improvement from the larger 35.1% gap in the year 20001. These

improvements have been attributed to improving educational opportunities, legislation against

discrimination in hiring, and increased funding for workforce development programs.

Overview of Latinx Workforce

Latinxs are defined by the U.S. Census “as [people] of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or

Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race” for purposes of U.S.

Government data collections and employment statistics3. Latinxs make up 18.1% of the U.S.

population, and 17.5% of the U.S. labor force2. Latinas make up 43.3% of these Latinx workers.

Approximately 66% of Latinx workers in the United States are U.S. citizens3.

Education and Qualification

While fewer Latino individuals in the United States have a college degree (24% of Latino people

versus 46% of White people), studies examining college education display that the wage gap is

in fact worse for Latino college graduates3,4. In 2017, College-educated Latino men made 20.1%

less than college-educated white men, and college-educated Latino women made 36.4% less than

college-educated white men3,4. Similarly, when controlling for variables such as employer’s

familiarity with the candidates’ qualifications (e.g. schooling at a local institution, references

written by those known to the employers), by examining second-generation Latinx workers

(those born in the U.S.), studies found second-generation Latinx immigrants still have a
significant wage gap. These results further emphasize the likely cause of wage gap discrepancies

between Latinx and white workers. Even when controlling for variables such as education and

other qualifications, the wage gap remains.

Hiring and Leadership

Part of the cause of the wage gap is hiring discrimination by employers. A recent Harvard meta-

analysis showed that Latinx job applicants were 24% less likely to receive a callback than White

applicants5,6. Similarly, another factor is Latinx individuals are often not represented in higher-

paying managerial positions. Latinxs make up 4.3% of the executives in the United States,

despite being 17% of the workforce, whereas whites represent 85.2% of the executives while

being 78% of the workforce5,7. Yet, 43.4% of Latinos have low-wage jobs (defined as those

below the poverty line), compared to 23.4% of whites, contributing to on average lower wages

and fewer high-paying opportunities for Latinos. This factor is particularly challenging as it

means that Latinx employees often do not see themselves represented in leadership and thus may

not feel comfortable speaking up about their concerns7. Moreover, this can contribute to a feeling

among Latinx workers that they are less likely to be considered for leadership positions, serving

as a deterrent for them to apply.

Stereotyped Media Representations

Stereotypical representations of Latinx in the media contributes to the wage gap. A study from

2014 conducted by the Federal Communications Commission examining the Latino Media Gap

found that despite Latino individuals becoming a larger part of the U.S. population, their

participation as lead actors has dropped precipitously9. One reason for why this may be occurring

at a larger scale is due to the false assumption that actors from Latinx backgrounds are not able

to generate enough of a profit for studios due to American audiences preferring white lead actors.
Instead, Latinx individuals are placed in minor roles and over 50% of the time are type-cast as

criminals, security, or law enforcement, contributing to public misconceptions that Latinos

primarily do low-paying work. This thereby limits wages and opportunities for Latinxs as they

begin to be seen by employers–consumers of these media portrayals–as primarily laborers and

not strong candidates for higher-paying executive positions.

 Works Cited

1. Bureau, US Census. “About the Latino Population and It's Origin.” The United States

Census Bureau, 16 Oct. 2020, www.census.gov/topics/population/Latino-

origin/about.html.

2. “Latino Share of the Labor Force Projected to Be 20.9 Percent by 2028.” U.S. Bureau of

Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Oct. 2019,

www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2019/Latino-share-of-the-labor-force-projected-to-be-20-point-9-

percent-by-2028.htm.

3. Marie T. Mora and Alberto Dávila. “The Latino–White Wage Gap Has Remained Wide

and Relatively Steady: Examining Latino–White Gaps in Wages, Unemployment, Labor

Force Participation, and Education by Gender, Immigrant Status, and Other

Subpopulations.” Economic Policy Institute, 2 July 2018, www.epi.org/publication/the-

Latino-white-wage-gap-has-remained-wide-and-relatively-steady-examining-Latino-

white-gaps-in-wages-unemployment-labor-force-participation-and-education-by-gender-

immigrant/.

4. “Latino College Completion: United States.” Excelencia in Education,

www.edexcelencia.org/research/latino-college-completion.

5. “Latinos in the American Workforce.” U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,

www.eeoc.gov/special-report/Latinos-american-workforce.

6. Quillian, Lincoln, et al. “Meta-Analysis of Field Experiments Shows No Change in

Racial Discrimination in Hiring over Time.” Proceedings of the National Academy of

Sciences, vol. 114, no. 41, 2017, pp. 10870–10875., doi:10.1073/pnas.1706255114.

7. “U.S. Latinos Feel They Can't Be Themselves at Work.” Harvard Business Review, 11

Oct. 2016, hbr.org/2016/10/u-s-latinos-feel-they-cant-be-themselves-at-work.

8. “Along with a Significant Loss of Income, the Unemployment Rate in the Latino

Community Has More than Doubled since the Onset of the Great Recession.” State of

Working America, www.stateofworkingamerica.org/index.html?p=4231.html.

9. Negrón-Muntaner, Frances. “The Latino Media Gap: A Report on the State of Latinos in

the U.S. Media.” Federal Communications Commission,

Https://Ecfsapi.fcc.gov/File/7522909797.Pdf.
Murtaza Jafry

21 October 2020

Letter To Editor

Dear Jules,

I found the editing process to be quite helpful to me both as a writer and as an editor.

From my own experiences, I have found that the editing has allowed me to explore varied styles

of writing. Prior to this class, I had more or less adopted a single style of scientific writing

because I am a physics major, and the discipline demands that most writing be written in one

universal style without much variation. This single style was useful for me as it allowed me to

write the findings of my research or solutions to my problem sets in a succinct, concise manner,

without giving much attention to aesthetic language. However, by being able to edit someone’s

work, I was able to better understand how to incorporate details that may not be included in my

own style. This includes making statements without many “fluff” words and citing sources that

may not necessarily be from a research related group such as literary magazines and TV reviews.

In addition to this, the experience of editing allowed me to better understand how to more

critically read another person’s work. Overall, by the end of the quarter, I hope that I will be able

to more effectively adopt a varied style of writing that caters to multiple different audience,

whether that style be for public speaking or for narrative writing.

Best,

Murtaza
 Response to Letter to Editor

Hello Jules,

Thank you for your letter. I completely understand what you mean about being a better

editor than being a better writer. Most of my writing has been quite specialized, so in situations I

would need a varied writing style such as public speaking or narrative style, I have struggled.

However, from recent assignments in this class, I believe I have seen some self-improvement. I

have been able to better vary my style, and also provide varied sentence structure so that the

writing becomes more interesting to read. One thing you could consider for improving you’re

your writing could be reading magazine style articles. From there, I believe you might be able to

adopt certain sentence styles and phrases that are common in that kind of writing. Overall, it is

very nice to know that someone else in the class also feels as though the style of writing is a bit

foreign. Nevertheless, I hope that we can both improve our writing to the point where we feel

comfortable enough to share our writing with an article in a magazine. Thanks.

Best,

Murtaza
 Representation of Latinx Culture in Modern Television: An Analysis

One Day at A Time is a remake of a popular Norman Lear television show that ran from

1975-1984. It is considered a pioneering television show in that it displays a more accurate

representation of the Latinx culture in the context of lived experiences of multigeneration

Latinx–specifically Cuban-American first- and second-generation–immigrants. The series

follows Penelope Alvaraez, a Cuban immigrant, Army Nurse Corp veteran, working as a nurse

practitioner in a private doctor’s office. Penelope is a single parent of two children, Elena and

Alex. The comedy sitcom investigates contemporary issues such as racism, immigration, and

traditional first-generation Castro-era Cuban culture versus modern second-generation Cuban-

American Latinx culture. Through the daily experiences of the Alavarez family, the series

compelling presents themes that resonate in Latinx communities. The show plays with the

parallels and differences between cultures and ultimately how multiple cultures are manifested in

the daily lives of immigrants in modern day America.

The first episode begins by introducing the audience to the main characters and their

unique perspective on life. The episode starts with a doctor’s appointment between Penolope and

her patient. This scene informs the audience that Penolope is a veteran and a divorced mother.

Both through the language she uses and her sarcastic nature, Penelope displays herself to be a

strong, independent woman who has achieved a great amount of success as well as loss in her

life. By being a multifaceted character who through struggle and determination is working to

provide a better life for her children, Penelope becomes an intriguing protagonist that hooks the

audience onto the plot. Moreover, through Penelope, the writers present a protagonist whose

story resonates with many immigrants who aim to create a better life for their children. I enjoyed

this introduction as I understood who the protagonist was and realized how her motivation and
background create an enticing story. As an immigrant's son, I have seen my own parents sacrifice

so that I could make my way successfully to college and enjoy the benefits of economic success,

and, thus, this narrative is particularly personal for me.

During the first episode we are also introduced to Elena, Penelope’s daughter. Elena is a

young feminist high school student who is constantly questioning her mom’s Latinx culture

through the lens of feminism. We first see Elena’s personal views as she argues against having a

quinceañera, a festive event in Latinx culture which signals the transition of a girl into

womanhood. Elena explains that this is an antiquated tradition arguing that the quinceañera

reinforces the patriarchy by forcing women to be paraded around the “men of the village.” Here

the audience is introduced to an internal clash within the family where traditions within Cuban

culture are coming into contact with the more progressive reinvention of Cuban-American

culture. By observing this battle between the old and new cultural views, the audience sees not

only a comedic family conundrum, but also a subtle investigation of the clash of two cultural

philosophies. Through these scenes in the pilot episode, the show’s writers introduce an

intriguing storyline central to many real-life immigrant stories.

The second episode continues addressing contemporary issues by discussing religion

through Penlope’s mother, Lydia. This episode centers around the conflict between Elena’s

indifference towards Catholicism compared with Lydia’s strict devotion to religion. This conflict

mirrors the same argument many young people have with their parents when it comes to

participation in church and other religious traditions. By observing this conflict between parent

and child, the audience is able to further view the conflict of a younger group of individuals who

question the traditions of their parents, and a group of parents who seek to extend their culture to

their children. Many times, a show presents a one-sided point of view that disregards the other
perspective. In this episode, we instead see a rich explanation of both sides of the argument

through interesting dialogue and comedic relief.

This distinction between the old and new views is further elaborated in season 1 episode

13, when Elena and her grandmother, Lydia, discuss the quinceanera dress. Lydia argues that the

traditional dress should allow Elena to be “overcome with emotion” when wearing it, and in the

process expresses her own investment in tradition and excitement about reliving the happiness

she felt during her own quincenera. However, Elena, a character who resists ascribed gender

roles and had come out as being gay in an earlier episode, despised the fact that she had to wear

the dress, seeing it as being a means of enforcement traditional gender roles. This conflict further

reinforces the distinctions between Lydia's more traditional views and Elena’s more liberal

views. Lydia assumes that traditional glamorous dresses would be an ideal form of attire for any

girl having her quinceanera, however in Elena’s perspective the notion of wearing a dress goes

against her personal beliefs and convictions. Ultimately, the compromise reached by both Lydia

and Elena is that Eleana wear “Doc Martens” underneath her dress in order to preserve her

identity and her resistance to societal norms underneath the traditional dress expected from her

grandmother. Thus, again the show’s writers’ advocate for a compromise between both

traditional and reformatory views in order to make progress among both groups.

Overall, One Day at a Time serves as a great comedic sitcom that provides an excellent

window into the lives of Cuban-Americans and immigrants generally across the country. From

examining contemporary topics in Latinx culture such as the role of tradition, religion, and the

day-to-day struggles of immigrants, the show’s writers are able to present a serious multifaceted

analysis of modern issues packaged in the form of an enjoyable family comedy. One Day at a
Time is a show that seeks to teach its audience important lessons, while also introducing them to

a cultural experience that is lived by a large number of people in modern American society.
 Mountain Hike

I have always enjoyed hiking. I was first introduced to it my older brother and his friends

when they took me on a trip to Tiger Mountain when I was 10 years old. Ever since then, hiking

allows me to clear my mind and connect myself with nature. The reason hiking is so impactful

for me is that I am constantly surrounded by technology and modernization in everyday life, and

I often fail to recognize the natural beauty and complexity of the environment that provides life

to all species. One hike, in particular, provided a uniquely enlightening moment for me was the

hike through Lake Serene.

Lake Serene was a particularly grueling hike as it was one of the steepest and tallest

mountains I had ever hiked. Due to the elevation, it was extremely cold and icy which

contributed to the difficulty of the path. The trek reminded me very much of my own life. The

start of the climb was fun and enjoyable, but soon began to seem insurmountable. This was very

much my initial view of my life overall. I found my goals to insurmountable, while the

introduction to the journey towards those goals to be interesting. As I hiked the path, I grew tired

and was exposed to more of the elements, but I also was able to explore the beautiful landscape

and trees. Similarly, as I began to grow older and pursue my interests within scientific research, I

was exposed to the rigors of physics as a field, but also introduced to a group of incredible

collaborators. Through these friends and colleagues, I developed a renewed interest in

researching the intricacies of particles and further drive to pursue my ultimate goal of a career in

research.

The progress through the hike with friends also demonstrated to me the importance of

companionship in any such kind of taxing endeavor. More specifically, the times it took for each

of my friends and I to climb the path were quite different; however, all of us assist each other
maximize their own effort and push the boundaries to what they could achieve. This is very

analogous to the many different upbringing of so many people in my own community and the

others around me. Specifically, seeing the differences in the resource availability of many of the

individuals around me and the impact that has had on their lives inspired me to try to bring forth

positive change in the lives of others.

For this reason, I sought to better my own local community by creating ReConnect, a

UW RSO that seeks to create a free iOS-based phone application providing information

regarding medical clinics to individuals who are homeless or that do not possess the resources to

find the information through another avenue. Similarly, on the hike, I sought to help everyone,

no matter their starting point, so that as a collective we could achieve our goals. Ultimately,

reaching the summit of the hike reinforced my personal desire of continuing both my academic

and extracurricular work. It showed me the importance of discipline and enjoying the small

things throughout the journey. Moreover, it displayed the importance of helping others on the

way. My hike through Lake Serene is a beautiful metaphor for my life. To this day, I continue to

enjoy hiking and finding new ways of helping those around me reach the destinations for which

they are aiming.

 Language and the Art of Inexact Detail

The novel, Sign Preceding the End of the World, follows Makina, a young telephone

switchboard operator in Mexico who is seeking to travel across the border to the US in search of

her brother. As she navigates the journey from Mexico to the United States, she observes people

adopting new identities, racism against Latinx individuals, and the markedly different cultures

between Mexico and the United States. In this process, her understanding of both English and

Spanish give her a window into the way Latinx and White American culture interact and clash.

Yuri Herrera brings his own experience as a young Mexican student studying at the University of

Texas, El Paso, travelling across the border frequently and seeing the ways in which American

and Mexican culture come together. Through Makina’s journey, Herrera argues about the

profound impact of language on the navigation through the Mexican-American borderlands and

how the discussion through language can provide a means of remedying many of the conflicting

problems encountered in the world.

Makina, as the protagonist, serves as the reader’s primary guide through her journey. She

specifically assesses the transition in landscape, culture, and capitalism as she travels from

Mexico to the U.S. As an operator and a person who speaks both English and Spanish, Makina

operates the telephone switchboard and participates in the diverse language discussion between

the various groups of people in her area. This includes Spanish, English, and the local indigenous

language. Through this experience, Makina is able to effectively communicate from distinct

perspectives. This becomes especially clear near the end in the U.S. when she is able to articulate

in a letter for the bigoted “patriotic” policeman to leave the other immigrants alone. She is able

to effectively articulate this by her control of language and provide a written form of the

policeman’s bigoted views. Specifically, she displays the bigotry of the perspective of the
policeman, namely that the immigrants are “barbarians” who “deserved to be chained by neck

and feet.” She goes further by highlighting this absurdity of his beliefs by explaining how the

policeman believes that the immigrants “are to blame for this destruction” and “taking [their]

jobs,” and then sarcastically emphasizing that it is because these are same immigrants who

“dream of wiping [their] shit, who long to work all hours.” By providing an introspective and

biting analysis, Makina is able to present immigrants as individuals seeking a better life rather

than as criminals seeking to impart malice onto American society. Further, by her control of

language, Makina is able to codify the policeman’s bigoted thoughts into words, thereby

shedding a light on an ingrained form of institutional racism for policemen to self-analyze. This

particular component on the use of language further exemplifies the impact language can have

when resolving issues such as racism and xenophobia. I personally found this component to be

quite informative as it reiterates the common mantra of how the “pen is stronger than the sword,”

and that language and speech can be used as a way of resolving problems that continue to plague

society.

Herrera further employs language that is not as emotionally charged or associated with

negative connotations in order to enable the readers to approach the text with a more open-

minded perspective that helps them interpret the novel in a more personal manner. Herrera

avoids making use of specific terms commonly associated with well-established ideas such as

“Mexico,” “English,” “Spanish,” and “drug trafficking.” By avoiding such terms, Herrera is able

to present a new perspective of the US-Mexico relations through a narrative form while actively

preventing the reader from using pre-conceived notions of the same topic to color their image of

the characters or the plot. Further, by providing a new language within a novel narrative, Herrera

reformulates what it means to be an immigrant and transform readers’ view of charged engrained
ideas that have been discussed for many years. Similar to how Makina, through language in her

letter allowed the policeman to change his perspective through language, Herrera through

language is providing us a means of viewing US-Mexico relations through a new, unbiased lens.

This is particularly important in our present discourse as we find that many hotly- debated topics

in politics generally possess a considerable amount of pre-conceived “baggage” when used.

Thus, being able to have a discourse in which an opposing party is able to accept a new

perspective appears to be an impossible task. However, by using language to remove these issues

and redefining the topic of interest in terms of simpler, uncharged terms, the narrative is able to

provide a similar and more effective discussion in which more ideas can be discussed and

considered.

Throughout, Sign Preceding The End of the World, the articulation of language has been

a defining theme within the story. This can be seen throughout the novel, from the driving force

within the story for Makina’s character to being a tool used by Herrera to reinvent commonly

accepted notions. Language possesses an extensive capacity to unearth many societal issues

within today’s society. Though the narrative may be fictional, Herrera is able to present a story

that is very reminiscent of immigrants within the US. Moreover, by being able to actively avoid

specifying character names, and avoid overly specific discussions which would force the reader

to associate the story with prior misconceptions or biases, Herrera is able to make a broader

narrative that represents a foundational story that very aptly displays the lives of Mexican

immigrants. Furthermore, by reading a narrative that uses uncharged vocabulary, the reader can

better relate to the protagonist, Makina, and her unique ways of viewing the world, as well as

learn about a broader class of hotly debated issues regarding immigration. Overall, Herrera

creates a story that addresses many contemporary issues in US-Mexico relations and develops an
enticing narrative for an audience. For all these reasons, I believe this novel should become a

worthy piece of literature used in discussions regarding Latinx culture and immigration.