Amazing Grace

Johnathan Kozol

Amazing Grace

Kelsey Davenport

February 14, 2011

1. "I wonder how powerful God is , he must be wise and powerful to mke animals and trees and give man organs, and a brain to build complex machineries, but he is not powerful enough to stop the evil on the earth to change the hearts of people".

2. "Evil exists ; somebody has power and pretending that they don't so they don't need to use it to help people - that is my idea of evil".

3. I believe we were put here for a purpose, but these people in the street can't see a urpose. there's a whole world out there, if you know its there if you can see it, but they're in a cage. they cannot see".

My first qute i think means that i god is supposed to be this amazing, powerful and holy figure and he creates all of these beautiful , lively things on earth, then he sould be able to find a way to stop the evil on earth. when creating people he should have created everyone with "hearts of gold" ; I think that is also how Cliffie sees it too. I mean why do we need evil? or ungrateful people? Yeah it makes the people who are grateful and who arent "evil" it makes them stronger as people because they have to face these challenges and others , but is it really worth it? I dont think it is. Like why put the people who do good in this world through hell , if they dont need to be?

My second quotes means that people who have power souldnt pretend that they don't . it is way worse for them to pretend than to admit/know that they have the power. by pretendig its making th people who arent powerful resent those that do more. by pretending you dont have power its basically laughing in those people's faces lower than you and you are saying you dont care if they are suffering.

My third quote means that theres this whole other life, that exists outside of the South Bronz or Mont Haven. People think what they know and how they live is how it is everywhere thats definitely not true!! I mean Im guilty of it. People in Pawtucket Rhode Island or anywhere in RI for that matter are guilty of it. Many people not all but many sometimes think that Rhode Island is it, how it is here is how it is. There's this other quote i have heard people say which is "stop being so rhode island" . they mean stop thinking in terms of just rhode island. theres a whole other world waiting for you to discover and use it. You just need the courage to find it!

Kozol's article really opened my eyes . it opened my eyes to what other places and people are going through. it made me think you know i think i had it bad or where i live sucks. Then i read what Kozol wrote about and it completely shut me up. To hear about how many adults and children had aids, died from aids, were shot or abused. It was very hard to read and terrfying to be informed about it. to hear o the homes these kids lived i, how the homes were infested with cocaroaches crawlling  in every inch of the house. I dont know how they did it, how they dealt and survived it. I know I couldnt. Kozol's article related to other texts we rad because it talked about what familes went through and how race and privelege/power had everything to do with the conditions they lived in. those who had power didnt help those who were in poverty. they didnt recognize that they are art of the probelm so therefore they must be part of the solution!