Getting Over It. Chapter 19. By: Ella Hamilton & Abby Reynolds

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1 Getting Over It Chapter 19 By: Ella Hamilton & Abby Reynolds

3 Bill Mehlinger Grew up in the chicken farming business Florida native Moved to Tucker, Georgia with his family when he was fourteen Integration of the refugees had just begun when they moved there Worked an assortment of grocery jobs after college and rose through the ranks Tucker, like Clarkston at the time, was a typically homogeneous white southern town (St John 173)

4 Problems With Money Mehlinger opened an all-american shop by borrowing half a million from the bank. The store did okay, until refugees started to come and live there and the Americans moved away, which the refugees weren't interested in his store. He became very in-depth and things started to go downhill. Hong Diep Vo, a Vietnamese refugee, suggested Mehlinger should start selling Vietnamese food. Her suggestion made sales skyrocket. Within six months I was making enough to make my payments to the bank, Mehlinger said. Things picked up from there (St John 192).

5 Faith Was Lost Across the railroad of the store that Mehlinger owned, was the old Clarkston Baptist Church. The white population started to move away as they became uncomfortable with the increasing nonwhite population. Originally had 700 members of the congregation, which gradually changed to just over a hundred in a decade. Owner of church, Perrin, decided to redo the church and have it fit all type of religions and have different meetings for all religions and people. Many Catholics left in protest due to it being unfair that their church was being reinvigorated by different religions.

6 Faith Was Lost Continued The church renamed itself after 125 years: Clarkston International Bible Church. Had problems figuring things out like music, prayers, church adornments, and what language to do the service in. But the new pastor, Phil Kitchin, was determined to keep this church going. Jesus said heaven was a place for people of all nations Kitchin likes to say. So if you don't like Clarkston, you won't like heaven (St John 177).

7 New Chief Tony J. Scipio was of Trinidadian descent and became the police chief of Clarkston. When Scipio came to Clarkston, the police force was extremely racist towards the refugees. Scipio spent a week before his hiring announced walking around the town and figuring out how the residents feel about the police and their safety. He saw the obvious racism and instated the guidelines CPR (courtesy, professionalism, respect), diversity training, and watched his officers closely. He ended up writing almost everyone a violation for not following his rules. And they'd (refugees) been through hell. Why not, Scipio asked, cut them some slack (St John 181)?

8 New Chief Continued Scipio reviewed Timothy Jordan s arrest and beating of Chike Chime, the Nigerian immigrant. He got Chime released from jail and handed the video of his abuse over to the investigators. All charges against Chime were dropped. Jordan was fired and arrested.

9 Drug dealers An Afghan family lived next to an African American family, who were drug dealers. The drug dealers and their friends would sprawl out on the shared front steps. The Afghan mother would walk up the steps, carrying groceries and the men would not move out of her way and blow smoke at her. Her son, marched out there and told them they should respect a women. After that, the drug dealers all stood, made way for her, and covered their joints when she walked up the steps.

10 Efforts to embrace diversity Steven Vertovec proposed three rules Emphasize the individual, and all of the groups they belong to, rather than just their nationality Recategorization: focus on what you have in common, not differences Mutual differentiation: respecting different groups of people, even though you might be different

Daniel Tafoya. Dr. Mary Warner. English 112B. Book Talk. All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

Daniel Tafoya. Dr. Mary Warner. English 112B. Book Talk. All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely Daniel Tafoya Dr. Mary Warner English 112B Book Talk All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely Jason Reynolds (left) and Brendan Kiely (right) Jason Reynolds considers himself a writer in the