The Scholarship Jacket By Marta

The story, “The Scholarship Jacket” is about a young, hardworking girl named Marta who strives to be awarded the scholarship jacket. After her teachers gather the grades, and have a winner they realize who it is and sporadically change the rules. Of course Marta and her family pick up on these discriminatory actions and are upset. After the principal informs Marta that the jacket will now cost 15 dollars, she ends up standing up to him by telling him, “that the jacket wouldn't be a scholarship jacket if you had to pay for it.” (Salinas) The central idea is that compromising other people's discriminatory actions should not be normalized. Marta was promised a scholarship jacket for her academic achievements, so in the end she should get the jacket

Throughout the story she battles her inner strength especially after she overhears her teachers arguing about who really deserves to win. Martas grandfather also plays a huge role in how the story ties together with the central idea. When Marta comes to him heartbroken and worried, he calmly says, “If you have to pay for the jacket then it isn't really earned, and it loses its meaning of being a “scholarship jacket.”” (Salinas) Grandpa helps shape Martas morals and the way she handles situations. You can tell a change in the way Marta carries herself after her grandfather helps her realize what this scholarship jacket is now really about. Instead of being scared and embarrassed she is determined to stand up for what she knows is right, and she feels relief after the principal says, “He will make an exception” (Salinas) in her

I was walking around looking at the clothing and shoe section when I stumbled upon two workers pointing to a person of color also looking at the shoes. At first, I just blew it off, but as the time went on I registered what I thought was happening and I started observing. After a few minutes they approached her and pointed her in the direction of a cheaper shoe choice. I was taken back, because I feel like this is something that you only see in the movies. Then after she went back to the more pricey shoes, they came back up to her and told her that the shoes she was looking at were very expensive and that she was just wasting her time. After she stood up for herself and told them that they were insane to be saying this to her she went to the counter to purchase the pair of shoes. They continued to be disrespectful to her and were talking amongst themselves that her card would be declined. I was in shock from the whole situation and it really brought to my attention the discrimination that happens in reality on a daily basis. This story can be compared to Martas conflict because they both were looked down on because of their skin color and financial assumptions. Overall, I think that Martas story is very common nowadays and it is something we should be aware of, and take actions to stop the discrimination in