Author Archives: paramjoat

In the past, people sent letters.  Today, people send emails.  In the past, people used the Post Office.  Today, people use Western Union.  In the past, people traveled in ships across the sea.  Today, people travel in planes across the … Continue reading →

Madness, absolute madness. These are the words that came to my mind when reading the first chapter of Henry Goldschmidt’s “Race and Religion Among the Chosen Peoples of Crown Heights”, appropriately titled “Collisions”. In the introduction and chapter 1 of … Continue reading →

Susan Slyomovics’ “New York City’s Muslim World Day Parade” paints a detailed picture of the Muslim World Day Parade, a parade that South Asian Muslims use to “speak for the larger Muslim community to other New Yorkers” (158).  As Slyomovics … Continue reading →

It was interesting to read about the Haitians’ race frustrations because I once had similar frustrations myself.  A few years ago, I had an argument with a teacher over the fact that all people from Asia are labeled as part … Continue reading →

How can women be so powerful and so powerless at the same time? As I read about the powerlessness of women in Italian Harlem, I couldn’t help but draw connections to the powerlessness of women in conservative societies today, such … Continue reading →

The Italians are a passionate people.  They are passionate about their beliefs, about their family, and about their culture.  What impresses me is that, despite being thousands of miles away from home, the Italian immigrants of East Harlem managed to … Continue reading →