Zachariah Cuyuch

The "New Bathroom Policy at English High School", "Revolutionary Spanish Lesson," " Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz, California, May 3, 1877" by Martin Espada are about one problem. He has a problem with the way Spanish people have been treated. They haven't had the same equal rights as other people. He is trying to make a case and allow them to feel free and be like everybody else.

 

 

The poem "New Bathroom Policy at English High School" makes the reader think about how people react when they face their fears. When people face their fears they start panicking and think about the worse. They don't want the worse to happen so they start to do things that can prevent them from happening.  The principal at this high school was using the bathroom and he heard his name used in one of the kid's conversation.  He didn't understand because they were speaking in Spanish.  So he decides to ban Spanish from the bathroom. It was wrong because in the constitution it doesn't say that you are able to take away or to banish a language from any area. This poem was inspired by an actual event.  Martin Espada went to the high school to suggest the principal read the constitution. The principal had to allow the kids to speak Spanish again.

 

 

Martin Espada in "Revolutionary Spanish Lesson" is about how he hates when people mispronounce his name because he feels like they are insulting him.  He feels like hijacking a bunch of Republicans in a bus and just a big news headline. He feels offended.  Espada feels like that people don't pronounce name right because they don't care how people feel and they could care less.  It looks bad because it looks like people don't care how Spanish people feel. Society is so screwed up. Nobody treats each other with respect.  That is why there is so much violence.

 

Martin Espada's view on the "Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz California, May 3, 1877" is that are own people should not be treated this way.  The vigilantes did not allow them to have a fair trial. They took them out the jail and took matters into their own hands. The Vigilantes did not care so according to the events this poem is based on; they gave them a shot of whisky and hung them. What made it worse they took a picture celebrating.

 

The conclusion is that Martin Espada was trying to prove a point that Hispanic people are not treated equally. I know where he is coming from. All races should be treated equally and with tons of respect. Even to all religions, nobody should be bothered and treated differently because of beliefs.