Jim Crow Laws: Intermarriage

Hello there, reader! This blog is about Jim Crow laws in the United States (south). These laws were passed in the times of segregation in the Untied States (1960's). These laws would separate Negros and Whites mostly. In certain states with large population of different races, (like the Chinese) the Jim Crow laws would apply to them as well. 

"Intermarriage All marriages between a white person and a negro, or between a white person and a person of negro descent to the fourth generation inclusive, are hereby forever prohibited. Florida"


The Jim Crow law I picked was about intermarriage and how it was prohibited. No couple could get married if there were from different race. Don't quote me on this, but I think they couldn't date either. It would make sense it corresponds with the law. This specific law that I picked was passed in the state of Florida. The sunshine state! I believe this law was passed because they thought the spouse that was colored was below the white spouse. That the white spouse was superior. Maybe they thought that they don't deserve to be with someone to be with someone has more opportunities in life or that is treated as a regular person, not just some person that is a maid or something (that they thought wasn't important). Also later in their lives, if they were to have children, they could inherit white, "high class" (if they were colored). I believe they thought they didn't deserve it.

Personally, I think this is absolutely idiotic and racist. If you care for someone or love someone, your not going to stop if the other person is a different skin color. I mean you can't control who you are attracted to. If I was in that situation, I would feel so torn and helpless. That I can't be with a person who always will make me happy and that I deeply care about because of the law? I think that is ridiculous.

"Examples of Jim Crow Laws." Autoredirect to Main Site. Web. 27 Jan. 2012. <http://academic.udayton.edu/race/02rights/jcrow02.htm>.

Where in the World Answers :D

And now, the answer to my Where in the World! What you have all been waiting for! Well, drumroll... it was The Great Barrier Reef in Austrailia like most of you guessed. Good job you guys! Hopefully I'll be picked again to give you guys an even HARDER one! Well hasta luego until the next post!

Wedding Time!

Well hello again, followers! In this blog post, you will learn about a special wedding and the culture within it. Weddings are a time when two people have a marriage ceremony and want to spend their whole lives together. In this particular post I would like to tell you about a particular wedding that was back in 1987 which is my parents’ wedding. I compiled a list of 11 questions and I interviewed my mom to get a clearer picture of what it was like. Also, I looked at their photo album to help me publish this. I asked and she answered questions like “where were you during your reception?” and “how did you find your dress?”.                                                                                            

First, before I get into all the details I would like to give you a general description of the wedding. My parents, Monique and Alan, were married on March 1, 1987, 25 years ago. My mom said that they knew each other for about a year before they were wed. They invited about 300 people to their wedding which included friends, family, and colleagues. Since my parents are both Jewish they had a Jewish wedding. In the photo album, you could see my dad wore a kippah (a little Jewish hat covering the head that men only wear) during the ceremony. They were married under the famous hoopah/chuppah which is a wedding canopy that people marry under.  My parents were married in the Sheraton hotel in Lima, Peru. That is where my mom is from and where my dad was working at the time. The Sheraton room had a big wood dance floor in the middle surrounded by round tables where the guests sat at. The ceremony also took place in the hotel instead of a synagogue.  The whole wedding was indoors.                                                     

And now for what you have been waiting for- the rich, juicy details! As in most weddings that you might be familiar with, my mom did wear a white dress and my dad wore a typical tuxedo and bow tie. The dress had a wavy neckline and a full, tool skirt with lace peeking through on the bottom and ends of the sleeves. She wore a long thin veil and the same material was on the dress before the neckline so the dress wasn’t strapless. This was put because whenever there is religious gathering, you have to have your shoulders covered.  My mom did say that in all the shops in Lima, she couldn’t find a wedding dress she liked. A solution to that was she went to a local seamstress and had her dress custom made. I personally really liked the dress. I think it looks very elegant and it fits her figure well.                                                                                       

Next, my granny (My dad’s mom) escorted the groom down the aisle and my grandfather (mom’s dad) did the same for the bride.  Instead of a grown-up maid of honor, in Peruvian weddings they are kids doing similar tasks to flower girls and ring bearers so my parents had 4 or 5 kids in the ceremony. The little girls wore white dresses like the bride’s, but the sleeves were larger, and it had a turtle-neck kind of a collar. They also held white bouquets like my mom.  For decorations, there were also bouquets on each of the tables but many white and red roses instead of what they were holding. The table bouquets really made the tables illuminate and add a sense of sophistication. My parents hired a live mariachi band to perform at the wedding. No just kidding. They hired a regular live band. Since they hired a live band, the guests had the opportunity to dance on the dance floor if they wanted. My parents did definitely dance.  They ordered a three teared white cake with marzipan flowers and ribbons. It looked like it would have tasted delectable. I wish they would have saved me some! But it probably would taste terrible 30+ years later! Also, my mom and grandpa did the traditional father daughter dance.  Some traditions they had in the wedding were like I said before, the groom’s mother and bride’s father walked them down the aisle. Also like I mentioned as well, this was a Jewish wedding. The bride and groom were lifted in chairs while they sang the horah. You might have seen this in many bar and bat mitzvahs when they do this to the girl/boy and sing Havvah Nagilah(a Jewish song). Also, my mom said they have a Peruvian tradition to put many ends of ribbon in a cake and one with a ring on it. The single person who gets the ring is the next one to be wed, supposedly. They also had my mom throw the bouquet to all the single ladies to catch and the same is supposed that lucky lady. My mom also had to take off her garter and throw it behind her for someone to catch and put on. Lastly, the wedding was a long one. It lasted from 8:30 pm to 3:00 am at the hotel!                                                                                                        

When I interviewed my mother she remembered it vividly, it seemed like it really meant a lot, and she had a very good time. I totally understand too because this was a very memorable mile stone in my parent’s life. I hope she felt wonderful during the wedding because it was her special day with family and friends. One thing she might’ve of changed was invite less people. My dad invited his whole office so she didn’t know some people from that group.                                          

 From the pictures and the interview, it seemed like a fairytale wedding. The decorations, attire, and guests were phenomenal. The cake, flowers, and the food looked elegant and the whole wedding just looked… polished. If I ever get married, I think my dress would be different; some of the décor, and the Jewish traditions might change if the groom isn’t Jewish. If he is, I think I would keep them in because Judaism is a big part of my life. I also really like the ribbon cake idea and same with the horah. I would also like to be wed in a nicer hotel. The hotel in the pictures looked mediocre. Lastly, I think I want a grown- up maid of honor, a best friend. I think it would make the planning easier and the whole experience a lot more fun! Well thanks for reading! I hope you learned more about my parents wedding and blogs are coming up. Adios!

These are my parents on their wedding day. Behind them is the hoopah which is four poles with flowers and a talla on it. You are suppost to be married underneath it with two candles and a glass of wine.

Where in the World!!!!!!!!!

Hi everyone! In class, Ms. Deu picked my name to do this weeks "Where in the World" student edition. Well, I hope my picture is hard enough for you guys and  please take your best guess. Remember put the word spoiler if you research this after your guess. Enjoy!

11 For 2011--- Leslie's Version!

Recently, we've watched the documentary Life in a Day showing people from 192 countries around the world on July 24, 2010. Anyone can video anything if its on this certain day! Some of the videos in the documentary were from someone lovelife to waking up in the morning to a slaughter house (YUCK!)! My teacher gave me questions to answer like in the video, but my answers are just in blog form.

1. What do you have in your pocket?
    To tell you the truth, I have nothing in my pocket! Yesterday I had a piece a paper in my pocket! Does that answer the question?
2. What was the last thing you had to drink?
    Water at lunch... yummy :)
3. What makes me happy?
    Laughing at a funny jokes with my friends and family, eating pad thai and cupcakes, and traveling. Also shopping at Target. Ahh I love Target.
4.What was the last really nice thing you did for someone?
   I helped out a friend by giving her a book so she could do a chapter notes about our Social Studies book. She left hers at home!
5.What scares you?
  I absolutely hate and I'm scared of snakes and paper cuts. They both make me cringe!
6. What is the last movie you saw?
   The last movie I saw was Monte Carlo. My mom rented it from the DVD club we go to. Wasn't half bad actually... it was pretty good!
7. What was the last song you sang?
    The last song I sang was probably Party Rock Anthem By: LMFAO or Paradise By: Coldplay. Also yesterday I sang Halo By: Beyonce. As you can see my interests in music is a lot of different genres, its widely spread.
8.  What was the last thing you bought?
    The last thing I bought was cookies from Debbie's Cookies. Ah.. there just so good you can't pass them up! Oh and the smell from when you step into the bakery is magnificent.
9. What couldn't you live without?
   I can't live without my family and friends. They are always there for me when I need them.
10. What do you hope for?
   Well, I hope for a lot of things. I hope that I get good grades, make new friends, see places, visit family. There is not just one thing I hope for.
11! What could you live without?
 I probably could live without sweets.. junk food mostly, but I really dont want to. I can DEFINETLY live without homework, though!
Well thanks for reading followers! More blogs coming soon from this crazy blogger! :)

The Story of L.K.D!

Hello again, followers. Today we are going to get a little personal. And when I say personal I mean you are going to learn how the name Leslie Katherine Davis was created. Now, did you know that the origin of Leslie is mainly Scottish. In the UK, Leslie is mainly a boy’s name but in the United States it is mainly a girl’s name. The meaning of Leslie is “holly garden”. Umm… yeah I guess I was named after some bush. Uh, cool….? I am Peruvian-American (I consider myself American) so my name is pretty misleading because I am definitely not Scottish. Then again there are some girls in the States with the name Leslie like the actress Leslie Ann Down and Lesley Ann Warren.                                                                                    

 Well, according to my mom, she picked the name Leslie because she really liked it and so did my dad. My brother, 5 years old at that time, wanted to name me Katherine. Why, you ask? Because he was obsessed with the Power Rangers and wanted to name me after the pink Power Ranger or Katherine at that time. Thus we have Leslie Katherine Davis.                                                                                                                                   

 I guess I do like my name. I mean I can’t imagine my name as anything else. Can you? Actually, if my name means garden I’m not so sure. Just kidding. I have always liked the name Michelle but recently I’ve been liking the name Kailey or Kelly. Alright, so that is my personal story of my name J Talk to you in another blog post.  Adios!

P.S. Did you know there are 10 different variations of my name?

A Tradition In My Family!

Hello there, followers! In this blog post, I’d like to tell you about a tradition we do in my family. Every year we celebrate Thanksgiving. If you don’t know what Thanksgiving is, it is a day we give or say thanks to friends, family, anything! We remember the Pilgrims on this day too. In the US, you usually have a feast that usually includes mashed potatoes, vegetables, casseroles and puddings, and of course…. TURKEY!!!! This holiday is primarily celebrated in the US and you have a couple days off from school.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          In my family, this is an annual tradition. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of every November. It is special because it’s good to have a nice family get together, eat yummy food, and we don’t realize that we should say thanks more often. Every year, my mom cooks the turkey for 5-6 hours and the house smells amazing. Also she makes mashed potatoes, string beans, and my favorite corn pudding. It’s a delicacy to me! Also for dessert, its pumpkin pie in this house! My dad is the official carver in my family. We cook so much food we have leftovers for the rest of the week!                                                               

Thanksgiving has been celebrated in my family for as long as I can remember. I think whe my dad was young he celebrated Thanksgiving so that’s how it was passed down to our family. I pretty sure my mom didn’t have a Thanksgiving feast as a kid because she was raised in Peru.  When I’m older I am sure I am going to have this tradition in our family because its one of the holidays I really look forward to, along with some others. I can’t wait for this year’s Thanksgiving! Do you celebrate thanksgiving? Thanks for reading J

Whats better than turkey and Snoopy? :D