Of Pride and Predjudice in South LA
“Don’t pidgen-hole me into this Asian-American sterotype of a naive student coming in here just wanting research to finish my Master’s paper.”
My boss stared at me, both flabbergasted and insulted. She replies back with, “I would be very careful of the way you word things around here.”
For several months, I have been working part time at a non-profit community development center in South Los Angeles, called “X” (name not mentioned to ensure privacy) to research for my Master’s paper, along with fulfilling the mission of the center. The organization seeks to leverage the collective voice of LAUSD parents and their children, by providing parenting/empowerment classes, making opportunities for civil engagement, and given individual attention to each family (case by case). My role at the center is to be a “parent counselor / case mananger” where I assess each parent’s level of involvement in their children’s lives with regards to educational success.
For the few months I have been there, I was given no translator till the 3rd week into the parent empowerment academy classes, given only a list of obscure objectives, and the green light to implement a pilot case management follow up program. Now, by pilot, I mean, I AM SUPPOSED TO CREATE AND EXECUTE the program. I am basically a counselor working with parents one-on-one to ensure that their children don’t end up dropping out of school now or in the future. Mind you, I’ve never been a case manager, let alone worked in South Los Angeles. I knew there was a atmosphere change when all the staff members continuously warned me not to walk to my car alone in the daytime (even if it’s 30 feet away). This area “South Central” was not as bad as the rappers claim it to be. Sure, it’s far from poshy West LA, but again, it’s not as ghetto glamorous.
