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.