I am a Grenade

Gregory Mantsios' piece "Media Magic" reminded me very much of Kozol (Amazing Grace) and Chang (Model Minority). Mantsios' main argument in this piece is that the media controls and shapes how we think about ourselves in relation to the class structure in the United States.  He states that "the mass media is arguable the most influential in molding public consciousness" (Mantsios 99).  Then he goes on to describe the media's "stories" about the poor: "The Poor Do Not Exist", "The Poor Are Faceless", "The Poor Are Undeserving", "The Poor Are an Eyesore", "The Poor Have Only Themselves to Blame", and "The Poor Are Down on Their Luck" that make up the way we feel about the poor today (Mantsios 100-102).

Jonathan Kozol's piece "Amazing Grace" was extremely depressing.  He goes through describing the every-day struggles of the poor in New York--more specifically the effects on the poor children.  Right from the beginning of the piece Kozol highlights an important class distinction in parts of New York as illustrated by the subway.

"When you enter the train, you are in the seventh richest congressional district in the nation.  When you leave, you are in the poorest" (Kozol 3).