Stories from the Past

MLK: Birmingham Jail  

Modern America in a Global World

This week we completed our study of the Civil Rights Movement by reading about the leaders and groups that struggled for equal rights for all Americans.  You saw that at one end of the spectrum Dr. Martin Luther King and the Freedom Riders used peaceful protest, while at the other end of the spectrum Malcolm X was willing to threaten violent confrontation.  Your graphic organizer encouraged you to compare and contrast different leadership methods and styles. You also read an excerpt from “A Letter from Birmingham Jail,” a moving and carefully reasoned explanation of why African Americans were tired of waiting for their rights.  We looked at this primary source through the eyes of an historian.  You will read this letter again in English class to examine the structure, word choice and tone to better understand why this letter is such an eloquent statement of the human condition. Make sure to hand in your responses to the questions about this letter and the new voting restrictions that are currently being advocated. (Due to technical issues, the worksheets could not be loaded this week)

One of the most frightening events of the Civil Rights Movement was the integration of Central High School in Alabama.  We watched a clip from “Eyes on the Prize” where you saw how a huge mob threatened the young African-American students who wanted to attend this school.  It was chilling to hear the crowd talk about lynching one of the students. 

We also looked at the political response to the movement.  You compared JFK’s response with LBJ’s.  While President Johnson will always be linked with Vietnam, we should also remember him for the landmark Civil Rights legislation of 1964.  This legislation prohibits discrimination in a legal sense, but it is only when all individuals truly believe in equal rights that discrimination will end. 

Finally you have your editorial assignment which is due next class.  This will be part of your final assessment, along with the 10 multiple choice questions you will do in class.

Oral History Project

By now you should have handed in your preliminary oralhistory project sheet.  Your person and topic must be approved before you start your project.  While this final fourth quarter project gives you a great deal of choice on topic, person, and format, it must also be completed in a timely fashion.  You may hand in the project the week of May 6-10.  We will continue to talk about what makes for a good project next week.

International Officer Series

On Friday we heard from our last two officers, from Romania and Japan.  As Captain Yaw stated, we should all recognize that while our countries may look and act in different ways, we are all people who have a common need for peace, security and stability. I hope seeing these representatives from other countries will encourage you to take the opportunity to travel and see the world.

World History

This week we completed a graphic organizer on the Russian revolution.  We looked at Russia under the Czars and saw that most of the people were peasants with few rights and living in poverty.  The revolution led by Lenin promised the people “bread, peace, and land.”  You should note that there was much in common with the French Revolution. If you completed the organizer and took good notes when we reviewed the sections in class, you should have done well on your five question assessment.

We then started our discussion of Gandhi, a man of peace and nonviolent resistance.  While we only watched a small clip from the award winning movie “Gandhi,” I would encourage you to watch the entire movie on a rainy day this summer.  It is an excellent rendition of his life and the principles he lived by.  The movie shows the massacre in Amritsar, the salt march and the tragic end of his life.

We will complete our study of Gandhi next week and then start on the rise of dictators and the steps that led us to World War II.

 

 

 

 

Dealing with Tragedy

 

The past two weeks have marked another milestone in the ongoing national debate over gun ownership and how to balance second amendment rights with the need to keep guns out of the hands of people who could harm themselves or others.  While millions of law abiding individuals own guns for hunting and sport shooting, too many guns are also available to people who use them while committing crimes.  Guns are also involved in many family tragedies. 

On April 18, the U.S. Senate failed to pass a bill that would have required more thorough background checks and expanded mental health services to aid people who may be prone to violence.   Although a majority of Senators supported the bill, Senate rules required a 60-40 majority for passage and the final tally was 54-46.  Other measures to increase regulation of gun sales and ownership also fell short of the required 60 votes, as did a proposal to ease restrictions on carrying firearms.

Even though 90% of the American public supported background checks prior to the purchase of a gun, some Senators said the restrictions would interfere with the rights of law abiding citizens.  Supporters of the proposed legislation, including President Obama, raised another issue as well.  In order to be reelected, members of Congress need millions of dollars to run campaigns.  The gun lobby, heavily financed by gun manufacturers, provides much of this money…so politicians have to make a decision…if you are a Senator and need the money to run a campaign are you going to vote with or against the gun lobby?  This issue gets to the heart of what it means to live in a democratic society…who has the final say…the will of the majority, or a few organizations with millions of dollars at their disposal?  

Closer to home we witnessed the kind of carnage at the Boston marathon that some countries experience every day.  It is amazing to watch the FBI and other law enforcement organizations sift through the smallest pieces of evidence, review thousands of photos and watch hours of surveillance video as they seek to identify who committed this heinous act.  No organization has taken credit for the bombing…so I am wondering if this is the action of one deranged person.

On the international front, North Korea continues to threaten South Korea and the US with a possible missile attack.  Secretary of State John Kerry has gone to South Korea to reassure the country that the US will be there to help prevent an attack or respond in case a missile is fired.  This week you had a current events assignment to bring in an article about this buildup of tensions and link it to our study of the Korean War.

And England laid to rest former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, “The Iron Lady.”  Mrs. Thatcher is credited, along with President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev, with helping end the Cold War.  She remains controversial in the United Kingdom, however, because critics blame her policies for undermining social welfare and accentuating class divisions in Britain. 

Modern America in a Global World

This week we continued our study of the Civil Rights Movement by looking at diverse strategies and leaders.  Dr. Martin Luther King stood at one end of the spectrum…a man who advocated nonviolent confrontation.  Other leaders, such as Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael, were discouraged by the slow progress toward equality and invoked the threat of violence, while advocating for separate black communities.  You had a chart to fill out after reading the one page handout on the movement.  We can see that leaders of the Civil Rights Movement employed widely varying tactics in the effort to win civil liberties for all.

Brown versus Board of Education

We read an excerpt from the Supreme Court ruling in 1954 that outlawed segregation in schools.  The unanimous court ruled that separate facilities were unequal and thus schools had to be integrated.  This was not a popular decision in the South or in some parts of the North, where schools struggled to integrate by busing children out of their own neighborhoods to other parts of the city where either white or black students were needed to meet the court orders.

Little Rock Nine

Of all the events within this era, the one that speaks loudest to students is the integration of Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.  Officials at first did not think it would be a problem, but once the day arrived, a mob of opponents from throughout the region gathered at the school.  The Governor brought in the National Guard to keep the African American students out of the school.  President Eisenhower, who had to uphold the Supreme Court ruling on integration, met with Governor Faubus at the summer White House in Newport, near Fort Adams, and urged him to allow the students to enter.  When the Governor returned to Arkansas, he replaced the National Guard with local police, again with the intent to keep the African American students from entering.  At this point the President sent in federal troops, who escorted the students into the school.  The mob dispersed, and the rule of law prevailed.

A particularly chilling moment in this episode came at the height of the tension, when someone suggested they lynch one of the students to placate the crowd.  What a chilling thought – that an adult would suggest hanging a teenager to calm a mob!  But lynchings were a constant threat for African Americans living in the Deep South.  If you are interested in learning more about this heinous time in our history you should read “Lynching and Spectacle” by Amy Wood. As one of the students, Ernie Green, said, “It was a year like no other school year.”  A story of courage - and to think it happened just a little over 50 years ago.

Oral History Project

The overview of your final fourth quarter project was handed out this past week.  This project gives you the opportunity to select a topic of special interest to you and find a neighbor, relative or friend who lived through the event and would be willing to answer your questions.  My favorite historian, David McCullough, continues to recommend that history be taught through storytelling, so this is your chance to hear the stories through an interview.  You may interview a grandparent, aunt, uncle, neighbor or friend.  You can select any topic from 1945-2000 that interests you and that you did not experience directly.  Examples might include the space race, the Cold War, Beatlemania, changing social trends, the assassination of JFK, or the first Gulf War.  You will need to do some reading on your topic to get ready for the interview.  The assignment was given to you prior to the break in case you are travelling and may be visiting relatives or friends who would be good to interview.  When you get back from break we will do a decades activity that will give you additional ideas for topics.  The project is due the week of May 6.

World History

This week we completed our study of World War I by reading an UpFront article on why World War I still matters, and by completing a graphic organizer.  Much of the conflict in Southwest Asia can be traced back to the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the redrawing of the map of that region.  On Friday you had your assessment and you were able to use your notes so good grades should have been earned by all.

We also returned to our Imperialism essay and focused on writing one perfect paragraph.  By using the rubric and your help sheet on thesis statements many of you made excellent revisions.

We also finished off third quarter by updating our status of assignment sheet and filling out a form that needs to be taken home for a signature.  This is a perfect time to reflect on what successes you had and what improvements you can make so the fourth quarter is your best quarter to date.

Dangerous Rhetoric

Let’s start with the good news…Frostee Freeze is open, the Boston Red Sox beat the Yankees twice, and the MHS sports teams are off to a great start! And rumor has it that Spring is actually going to arrive on Aquidneck Island – sometime.

Now for some of the worries around the world:  North Korea continues to threaten us by moving missiles onto a launching site and talking about a “light” nuclear attack.  Most analysts dismiss these threats as the blustering of a young leader, Kim Jong-un, who wants to demonstrate how tough he is.  However, we all need to pause and learn from history that heated talk can lead to unintended consequences.  President Obama has been in contact with China’s new president, Xi Jinping, in an effort to have him act as a mediator to defuse the rising tensions.  Meanwhile, the US has shown off its superior military strength with flyovers of B2 stealth bombers as it participates in regularly scheduled military exercises with South Korea.   

Next week we will look at the Korean War, sometimes known as the Forgotten War, and see the historical roots of today’s conflict. 

Cold War Wrap Up

This week we finished our study of the Cold War by watching “Duck and Cover” and going over our timelines.  The Cuban Missile Crisis is probably the closest we ever came to nuclear war.  If you are interested in learning more about this event, I urge you to watch “Thirteen Days in October,” starring Kevin Costner.  It is a very accurate rendition of the tense weeks as President Kennedy and Premier Khrushchev faced off over the Soviet missiles in Cuba.  

I urge you to talk with family members about this time period and the unique role Newport played during the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the city was still home port for the Atlantic Fleet.  Oral history makes our past come alive and gives major events a more personal meaning.  As we enter our last quarter, you will be interviewing someone who lived through events we are talking about so you can get a better understanding of how they affect all of us.  I can guarantee you that in years to come, when your own children are taking American History, they will ask you what it was like during the economic slowdown of 2010 or when President Obama was elected.  You are living history and you will be the primary sources of the future.  Stay alert!

On Friday you had your announced final assessment on the Cold War.  Prior to your writing assignment you were told that vocabulary was a key to being successful.  When you came in to take the assessment you should have felt confident in your ability to do well IF you had prepared the vocabulary sheets we did in class.  As Juniors you should be responsible for taking time to prepare.

 

Civil Rights Unit

Our next unit of study will be the Civil RightsMovement.  While most historians focus on events that deal with African American efforts to gain political and economic rights long denied them, our concept of civil rights for all groups is constantly expanding. We will start with the efforts by such key leaders as Martin Luther King, the Little Rock Nine, Malcolm X and others to bring African Americans into parity with whites.  But the success of their efforts also led women and other minority groups to fight for equal rights.  There was an interesting news report recently on California’s efforts to include the study of Gay History in the high school curriculum as a way to further broaden the idea of civil rights for all Americans.

If you are looking for a good book about this time period, I would recommend the best seller “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett.  It tells the story of several black maids and their relationship with their white employers in Mississippi in the 1960’s.  It is a moving and sometimes disturbing account of how racial divides were viewed very differently by whites and blacks. This book has become so popular it has appeared on the best seller list for hardbacks for over 100 weeks and is now on the ebook best seller list. The book has also been turned into a movie starring Rhode Island’s own Viola Davis.

Status of Assignment Sheets; Importance of Deadlines

This week we once again updated our sheets.  Work for the quarter was due on Friday. While there seems to be a trend in some quarters toward relaxing the emphasis on submitting school work on time, New York Times columnist Tom Friedman recently wrote about the importance of “soft skills” if young Americans are to compete successfully in an increasingly challenging global economy.  Students in other nations – China, India, Japan – grow up learning the importance of punctuality, persistence, and determination.  The habits you are forming now will make the difference between success and failure when you move on to your next level of education or work.

World History

This week we continued our study of World War I. You had a worksheet on the terms and some key questions as to why the world went to war and how the new technology of warfare caused massive casualties.  If you did not finish the worksheet in class, you were supposed to complete it for homework.  You may not like homework, but it is essential to do it so you can be prepared for the next class.  Just as sports teams must practice before a game, students need to read and think about the topics they will be required to discuss in the next class.

Poster Task

On Friday you had the entire period to do your poster analysis.  You were able to select a World War I poster or cartoon to analyze using your guiding questions.  You had to email the poster or cartoon to Ms. Averil who posted it on Voice Thread, a web site that allows all of us to view your work and gives you the ability to comment on your fellow students’ analysis.  This project required you to complete multiple steps.  One of the major sticking points was the use of email.  As indicated in your room management plan, you need an MHS email account.  If you were a student at Gaudet you already had one.  Using the MHS account allowed you to quickly send the image to Ms. Averil.   Some had to use private email accounts but our servers sometimes do not recognize accounts and it slows down the process. If your account was not working, take the time to check in the Main Office or with Ms. Gill or Mr. Dumais to get your account in good shape as you will be using it for the next three years.