Final Presentations of Blogs

In our world today, we get most of our information off of the internet, you can Google just about anything. While technology was accessible during these times that we focus on in class, the internet had not really taken off yet. Typically we hear about a lot of world issues through the internet or the news but it has not always been like that. I can only imagine how different the civil rights era would have been with access to the internet and blogs. If this movement happened today, there would be news coverings, blog posts, and even hashtags supporting the movement. It amazes me that after learning the impact many people made on the world through the civil rights movement that they did that without the help of the internet. In events that have occurred in our lifetime, that one day will be taught in classrooms, we have all come together with the help of social media. For example, school shootings, presidential elections, BLM movement, and even natural disasters. Social media and the internet has allowed us to all have free access to fight for what we believe in and stand up for it.

It almost seems unfair to me that Martin Luther King did everything he did and made that big of a difference without the internet or social media. If Martin Luther King had access to a blog I think it would have totally changed the Civil Rights Movement as we know it. I think that if MLK had everything that we have today he would have approached things very differently, it would have helped publicize the movement better and faster. The great thing about the internet today is that whenever there is a world issue, we all hear about it extremely fast. I believe that MLK would have used the internet and social media as a great outlet to speak out in the injustices. The internet gives people that would usually not be listened to an outlet to speak out against injustices and give them a voice in these different situations.

One thing that I found very difficult to keep up my blog this semester is the fact that it is public for everyone to see. I tend to get nervous when other people see and critic my work which often impacts the outcome of my work. On the contrary, it also helped me that it was all behind a screen instead of having to present every single blog post. I like the idea that we have access to read our fellow classmates work and listen to their ideas and opinions on everything we learn and discuss in class. One thing I would recommend to future students is to not be afraid to express your opinions through your blog posts as well as discussions in class. Having you own blogs gives us our own creative outlet to express our thoughts and ideas through the internet. 

Something I learned EOTO 3

 The most recent EOTO and mock trial, Regents v. Bakke, we learned a great amount of very valuable information. Something that really stuck with me during these presentations was the segregation of academies. During these times schools were segregated therefore white and black students were not in the same schools. There was also a huge difference in the learning style and environments. White people typically were the first ones to receive textbooks and actually had decent size classrooms and a reasonable student to teacher ratio. Black schools had none of these. Their classrooms were very subpar, most students did not have textbooks and there was a terrible teacher to student ratio. 

While talking about education, "White Flight" refers to the decreasing white enrollment in poor performing, inner-city public schools. In some cases, parents withdrew their children from certain schools based on the amount of colored students attending and/or the location of the school. Many white families decided to send their kids to private schools and pay an expensive tuition just so they would not be in a classroom with colored students. Many private schools claimed that they were christian or church schools that provide that type of education but their only objective was allowing parents to avoid enrolling their children in racially integrated schools. Many of these schools exist where there is a very low percentage of color in the student body. These are schools that do not legally discriminate against minority students yet still have an extremely low amount of diversity.

Mock Trial

    In Regents of University of California v. Bakke, the supreme court ruled that using racial “quotas” in the administration process was unconstitutional. A racial quota is when business and educational systems use numerical requirements in hiring or admitting only a certain race. The medical school at the University of California reserved 16 percent of its admissions for applicants who were minorities. Allan Bakke who was a white Californian had been denied by the school twice filed a lawsuit against the school. He proved that his test scores and grades were a lot better than most minority students so he sued for reverse discrimination. Bakke fought in court and proved that he had a higher GPA and test scores than these other students therefore proving that the only reason he got denied from the school was simply because of his race. While the school had nothing but good intentions with their decision to reserve 16 spots for “qualified minorities” it is still unfair to the other thousands of applicants. Having this quota system directly violated the equal protection clause in the 14th amendment. 

Having a racial quota in special admissions is well intentioned but it is destructive of equal opportunity. Having these quotas make it impossible to compete with the other students that are not in these groups. The only way this could be okay is if the constitution was constructed so that whites would have less protection against discrimination than minorities. White students were allowed to apply through their special program but not one of them had ever been admitted through it. Having these quotas only for minority students makes it extremely unfair to everyone else that does not meet the requirements for the quota. It gives these specific students a better chance at getting admitted into the school while other students were not helped out one bit. In this specific case the school blocked off ⅙ spots for acceptance for only a specific type of student. This is not the only time this has happened. At Harvard, 11.8 percent of students admitted as freshmen are African American which is almost exactly the same amount as years in the past. Hispanic students are also 11.8 percent of the admitted students and these statistics have stayed the same year after year. These quotas are also present when it comes to athletes, coaches are given a certain amount of spots for the athletes that they want on their teams in the future. The admission process for college should be extremly equal and race should not even be looked at in these types of decisions. The fact that your race and other factors that can not be controlled are considered in this process makes it so that you do not have the same chance to get into the school as another student even if you have exactly the same grades and extracurriculars. 

EOTO #3

The civil rights protest of 1960 began when young African American students organized a sit in at a segregated diner called woolworths. They were all students of A&T college, just down the road. They were motivated by non-violent protests that they had seen in the past. The policy of the diner was to deny all customers unless they were white. When the four boys walked up to the counter they were immediately denied service, but they insisted on staying there and not giving up their seats. The police showed up to the scene but couldn’t and wouldn’t do anything about it. This sit-in became known to the media very quickly and it was even covered on the television. The four boys stayed until the diner closed that night and showed up with even more people from local colleges the next day. 

As the Greensboro sit-in became more known around the country, there started to be a lot more all around the nation. They spread to beaches, libraries, hotels, and many other establishments. The sit-ins became very popular in a lot of college towns where black and white people would come together for these peaceful protests. By the end of March 1960, these peaceful protests had spread to 55 cities in 13 different states. Sadly, a lot of these protestors were arrested for trespassing, disturbing peace, or disorderly conduct. 

These sit-ins were very monumental in civil rights history and in response to the spread and success of these sit-ins, a ton of dining facilities became integrated by the summer of 1960. At the end of July, when the students were on summer break, Woolworths diner in Greensboro became integrated. Woolworths had 4 black employees and these were the first people to be served after becoming integrated. 

EOTO Mock Trial #2

 In the year 1896, a major event was the Plessy V Ferguson court case but nobody really talks about what life was like for the people living through these historic times. I am mainly focusing on what schools were like during this time. Blacks and whites were separated by law for basically everything: transportation, public accommodations, churches, recreational facilities, cemeteries, and schools. Before the civil war ended, the education of slaves was a crime. When education for black people finally became legal, schools were very poorly funded and overall ignored. Children were put in very harsh conditions to simply receive the bare minimum education.

As you can see in the photo above, these schools were extremely crowded and lacked the right amount of teachers for the amount of kids attending these schools. These children were lacking the basic school supplies and materials that assist children in being as successful as possible. These schools lacking the proper and fair amount of funding really affected the quality of education that these children were receiving. These children had to work especially hard in these already tough conditions to be able to succeed. Because of the amount of students and the lack of teachers, the kids were not able to receive the necessary one on one time with a teacher, making it more difficult. The Plessy V Ferguson court case outcome was that segregation was legal and this includes schools. This ruling did not help these under-educated children to receive the proper education. It was not until 1954 when the Supreme Court finally made public schooling open to all races. 

 

Reconstruction Video

 The incident that occurred in Charleston that we have read and heard all about lead to many people around the world asking why these hate crimes are happening. People started looking into the history of our country leading all the way back to the civil war in the 1860's. America had always promised to be the land of the free but this wasn't the case up until the reconstruction era. As this reconstruction occurred, it caused a lot of backlash, white southerners could not accept the fact that we are all equal and tried to do something about it. The goal of this was to have the government run without race playing any part in it which was different from what it was in the past. On April 9th, 1865, the civil war was over and this was the death day of slavery in the US. The United States had the opportunity to make up for the decades of slavery and inequality but failed by not redistributing the land formerly used for slavery, and we are still dealing with the backlash from it. Before slavery was abolished, it was a part of the economic, legal, and political systems in the United States. After it being abolished, the United States had to work to change how slavery was viewed and how it effected the country. Also, the racism against slaves and black people in the US didn't just immediately change, it took a while and we are still working on it to this day. The United States created laws that only applied to the black people, the Black Codes. The overall purpose of the Black Codes was to accept and recognize that slavery has been abolished, but for there to be as little change as possible. Every adult black person was forced to sign a labor contract for the year with a white person as their employer. If they didn't do that, then they would be fined but if they could not pay the fine then they would be hired by a white person who could pay the fine and work to pay the fine off. Any white family could go to the courts and say that a family could not take care of their own child and to let them do the job. The white southerners would take these young children and train them in farming methods as well as train their daughters in housewifery. The parents would receive little to no payment at the end of it, but they had no say in it. Thaddeus Stevens believed that black people saved the United States and that we have a moral obligation to create freedom and equality before the law. He believed that without that, everything was a fraud. Johnsons reconstruction plan established the idea that anyone born in the country is a citizen. They did this because they knew that southern states were trying to define ex-slaves as non citizens. Even though black people were given the right to vote, they were still threatened and worried about going and voting. They would gather the night before and discuss plans as to when to go to the polls when the least amount of white people would be there. They would bring weapons and show up in large groups just in case, for their own safety. Grant won the election and he treats black people as equal citizens and said that they could not defeat the confederacy without the help of the blacks. In this election, even tons of black men were elected to office, even if they were enslaved in the past. 

#6 EOTO & Mock Trial #1

 The Election of Lincoln was one of the most important elections in History. The main issue during the time of the election was states rights and slavery. Lincoln believed that slavery was a “great evil” and did not support it one bit. To Lincoln, American Democracy meant equal rights and opportunity for everybody in the country. He supported the idea of giving government aid to the freed slaves. He also supported them being able to establish their own colonies abroad leading to them having their own political and civil rights. 

Overall, Lincoln thought that slavery was wrong morally. He thought the main cause of it was that it was sanctioned by the Constitution, the highest law. Working strongly with the abolitionists, Lincoln deeply wanted the termination of slavery to occur. Lincoln’s Peoria Speech was where he declared his opposition to slavery which he later used in his presidential election. In 1860, the Democratic party was split, half for slavery, the southerners and half against it, the northerners. One of Lincoln’s main campaign goals was to not be like the democrats and stay unified about their ideas of slavery.