Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Starting
Lexile
(Septembe
r)
865L
545L
BR85L
585L
865L
575L
125L
145L
30L
10
125L
5Jan
63
%
75
%
75
%
63
%
63
%
25
%
75
%
75
%
13
%
50
%
Benchma
rk Lexile
(January)
9Feb
23Feb
2Mar
9Mar
810L
560L
100
%
185L
75% 63%
585L
100
%
88% 75%
100
%
100
%
16Mar
23Mar
100
%
100
%
100
%
100
%
Benchma
rk Lexile
(March)
845L
625L
88% 88%
355L
63%
585L
905L
900L
535L
570L
230L
300L
110L
30L
105L
100
%
100
%
88%
225L
75%
30L
0%
125L
Name: __________________________
At one Trenton hip-hop clothing store, shopper Mark Wise, 30, said that
he wears the baggy jeans for practical reasons, saying, "The reason I don't
wear tight pants is because it's easier to get money out of my pocket this
way. . . . It's just more comfortable."
"It should be my personal choice what to wear," said Jimmy Person, 34, at
a recent hearing on the issue in Atlanta. "Maybe young people should be
more tasteful. But let young people decide for themselves."
"For young people, it's a form of rebellion and identity," said Adrian
"Easy A.D." Harris, 43, a founding member of the Bronx's legendary rap
group Cold Crush Brothers. "The young people think it's
fashionable. They don't think it's negative."
But those who disagree see the trend as a bad influence on children.
"It has the potential to catch on with elementary school kids, and we want
to stop it before it gets there," said C.T. Martin, an Atlanta councilman
who supports banning the loose-fitting pants. In Atlanta, voices have been
Others say that the wearing of baggy pants demonstrates low self-esteem,
pointing to the connection between prison and the clothing style.
But critics of the proposed ban, led by the American Civil Liberties
Union, say the restrictions are a form of racial profiling that would target
African-American males based on their attire, and might not withstand a
court challenge. Citing those concerns, Stratford, Connecticut, rejected a
similar proposal.
"In Atlanta, we see this as racial profiling," said Benetta Standly,
statewide organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of
Georgia. "It's going to target African-American male youths."
Regardless of the outcome, some see an overdue debate about how to
draw the line in public dress in schools, community centers, and churches.
"If nothing else, it's a great part of a conversation we need to have," said
Atlanta City Councilwoman Joyce Sheperd.
EXTENSION
A. Write a summary of the article.
6. What is the
counterargument for
the use of baggy
pants?
Name: __________________________
2. Why is Naidoos
position as Executive
Director important?
As Naidoo puts it: "If the whole planet is under threatwhat's the point
of not addressing that and saying we'll do other development work?"
One of Naidoo's first tests as the leader of Greenpeace came in December
2009, when negotiators from 193 countries sat down in Copenhagen,
Denmark, to try to draft a global agreement to cut greenhouse gas
emissions blamed for global warming. To Naidoo's disappointment, the
Copenhagen summit failed to reach a binding deal on mitigating climate
change. Instead, the marathon talks yielded the Copenhagen Accord, a
non-binding document crafted by a group of countries that account for
around 80 percent of world carbon emissions, including the United
States. While some world leaders view the document as a significant step
toward ending climate change, Naidoo and other Greenpeace officials
have overtly stated their dissatisfaction with the Copenhagen Accord.
As world leaders make plans to gather in Mexico in December 2010 for a
second meeting to discuss climate change, Naidoo and Greenpeace are
paying close attention to the work of these leaders. Naidoo
has averred that while Greenpeace is committed to dialogue to achieve its
goal to end global warming, the organization believes that there is a time
when it is appropriate to galvanize protesters into actionthough always
through peaceful means, an essential component of the group's mission.
"Governments, sadly, are unlikely to change as fast we need them to
unless they are pushed," Naidoo said. "We have to change the politics. If
we can't change the politics, then we have to put our energies into
changing the politicians. We [need to] get it right," Naidoo said.
EXTENSION
A. Write a summary of the article.
B. Make a list of causes that activists support.
Name: __________________________
Ballot and his classmates also visited Mirror Lake Middle School, which has 680 students, making it more
populous than the entire village of Buckland.
The Buckland students had fun, but urban life was a bit overwhelming for some. "It's too big for me," said
Hadley, adding, "It's too busy here."
The previous week, seventh-graders from Mirror Lake ventured up to Buckland, a treeless community built on
tundra just below the Arctic Circle. The urban students went ice fishing for sheefish, learned native dancing,
made swan sculptures out of caribou antlers, sewed traditional cloth parkas called kuspuks, and learned a body
slamming game called buckbuck.
Like their Buckland counterparts, the Mirror Lake students visited the local store to check out food
prices. They were astonished to see how expensive food is in Buckland, which is so isolated that it is difficult
to transport goods there. A large bag of potato chips costs $7.15, and a dozen eggs costs $4.99.
Staying with host families presented many novel experiences for the Mirror Lake students. In Buckland, houses
are built on stilts for protection in case the river overruns its banks. There is also a 10 p.m. curfew for minors
and no indoor plumbing except at the school and in teacher housing. Homes typically have five-gallon plastic
pails for toilets, and the village has a "washeteria," which is a coin-operated laundry and public
shower amalgamation.
Mirror Lake student Tilly Cantor enjoyed a soup made by her host family until she learned that the ingredients
included the heart and tongue of caribou.
Despite the surprises, the Mirror Lake students could see ways that their Buckland peers were very much like
them. Most people have dogs, the teenagers have laptop computers, and many families subscribe to Netflix, the
mail-order movie-rental service.
By the end of their visit to Buckland, Cantor and classmate Heidi O'Hara felt right at home.
"We're thinking of going back this summer," Cantor said.