I’m not going to write a full-blown summary here so that you have the opportunity to write your own if your instructor has decided to assign this. However, here are my answers to the questions:

• Main point: Mitchell argues that we need to choose between “segregated coexistence,” where people of different races and ethnicities live in enclaves but mostly stay separated from one another, and “living in community,” which he calls integration. He favors the latter.
• Supporting points: Mitchell explains that we have been living in segregated coexistence for a long time and argues that this status feeds inequity and racism in our society. He claims that living in community is difficult to achieve and that we can only do this if we decide that we don’t want to live in conflict any more.
• Two examples of evidence:
  • He uses statistical demographic data from the Othering and Belonging Institute to support his claim that we currently live in enclaves.
  • He uses Eric Yamamoto’s description of the process of interracial justice that leans to racial reconciliation. Eric Yamamoto is a professor of law and social justice at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. He’s internationally known as an expert on racial justice.
• Two examples of examples:
  • He gives Detroit and Baton Rouge as examples of cities that appear to be demographically diverse but that are really made up of enclaves.
  • He gives the example of “equitable funding for schools” as something that the government must do if we are going to be able to live in community.

When I go back to the assignment, I see that I am being asked to think about Mitchell’s terms and apply those to one of the readings from the list in the assignment. The assignment lists three terms, so I need to make sure I understand the following:

• “Segregated coexistence”
• “Living in community”
• “Quality of diversity”

If I’m going to use this text successfully, I must make sure I understand what Mitchell means by these terms—not just what I think they mean. In my annotations, I have already marked some passages that deal with these terms, but it would be helpful for me to write my own paraphrases of them.

As for why I was asked to write about Mitchell, this assignment is a kind of analysis in which the professor wants me not only to understand terminology from a text, but also to apply those terms in a context where they are not necessarily used.

Some of my reflection will depend on what else has been going on in the class. Here are some examples:

• If we’ve covered quotations and paraphrases, then the professor is probably expecting me to use those well.
• If we’ve covered paragraph development, then the professor is probably expecting me to make sure I am using enough evidence and enough explanation to make my point clear.
• If we’ve covered thesis statements, then the professor is probably expecting me to develop a clear thesis that makes an arguable claim and that provides the reader with some idea of the reasoning behind that claim.

One way to reflect on what I should be focusing on would be to review the syllabus and my notes up to that point.

Notice that this part of my reflection isn’t about Mitchell’s text. This is a writing class after all, so a good part of the purpose of the assignment would be to practice skills relevant to writing in college.

Reading Mitchell’s article taught me a number of things:

I hadn’t really thought about diversity in something other than demographic terms before. The possibility of “living in community” is intriguing to me, and I am thinking about what I can do to foster that kind of integration in my teaching, in the university, and in my work in the community. For example, as I am writing this textbook, I am thinking about assignments and activities that would help all of my students feel represented in what they read here. Specifically, I am considering having students add images and examples to this text that speak to them.

I already knew that I was pragmatic, but Mitchell helped me solidify my desire to understand concrete changes and actions that I can take. My resentment at the vagueness of how we get to “living in community” makes me want to talk to people who do this kind of work to get better ideas. I would like to learn more about how I can support this kind of change.