Category Archives: History

History, Geography, Civics, Mock Trial.

Current Events Write Up: US woman’s search for son ends in Lockerbie heartbreak

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US woman’s search for son ends in Lockerbie heartbreak

U.S. woman Carol King-Eckersley began looking for the baby she gave up when she was 19 in 2012 only to discover he had been killed in the Lockerbie bombing, a terrorist bombing that brought down a plane going form London to New York. For decades, King-Eckersley refrained from searching for her son, but finally the 65-year old gave in after her husband died. She knew his adoptive name, and while searching for him found his name on a website that listed students who had died in the bombing. She was heartbroken and attended a remembrance service for her son at Syracuse University.

I think this was really tragic. I think when you have a kid, you always share a bond with him or her, even if you’re not together. To find out that your son is dead, even if you never knew him, is just unimaginable. My mom thinks it’s really tragic that she imagined him for so long only to find out that he had been gone the whole time, and I agree. The author had no bias.

Current Events Write Up: Teacher Disciplined for “Santa is White” remark

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Teacher Disciplined for “Santa is White” remark

In New Mexico, Cleveland High School students were told they could come to school dressed as a Christmas character. When an African American boy, Christopher Rougier, came to school dressed as Santa Claus, one of his teachers, whose name has not been released, said to him, “Don’t you know Santa Clause is white? Why are you wearing that?” This outraged the boy’s father. The teacher felt very badly about the remark and reported it himself to the school principal, as well as apologizing to the boy and his family. However, the boy’s father still feels that if this is the teacher’s attitude, it could affect his classroom and has pulled his son out of the teacher’s class.

I think this was a very, very stupid thing for the teacher to have done. Although no harm may have been intended, America is still fighting to get rid of racial prejudice, and for an adult to single out a kid, in school no less, which is supposed to be a safe learning environment, is absolutely inappropriate. My mom also thinks it was a really silly thing of him to do, and she is glad the teacher apologized to the boy’s family. She also thinks that it would be gracious of the boy’s father to accept the teacher’s apology if he has not already.

This article showed no bias. I thought both sides of the issue were fairly presented.

Current Events Write Up: This Mom Lost 3 Children To HIV. She’s Making Sure No Other Mother Suffers Such A Devastating Loss

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In Zambia, Africa, a woman known as Connie lost three of her children in the 1980’s to HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus). When her children got sick, she suspected it was HIV, but wasn’t brave enough to find out, and they passed away. When her husband got very sick, Connie felt she had no choice but to get tested, and she and her husband both tested positive for HIV. Both got treatment, and Connie found a new purpose in life as an AIDS ambassador and peer counselor. She tests people for AIDS in surroundings they are comfortable in and helps those who test positive figure out what treatment option is best for them. She also lends support to people with AIDS or HIV. In 2012, Connie had a healthy baby who tested negative for HIV.

Here is the Yahoo! link to the article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/01/world-aids-day_n_4350872.html?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592

I think Connie is an amazing woman. She decided to rise out of the ashes of her old life and do real good in the world. She could have just decided to go on with her life, not doing anything important. She could have decided to be a victim. Instead she chose to help others, which is really admirable. My friend Angelina thought it was a very good idea for her to go seek help, especially because it was the reason she was able to have a healthy, HIV-free baby.

This article is not an opinion-based one, but it was obvious the author thinks Connie is an incredible, strong, brave woman, which is true.

Current Events Write Up: Victims’ Family Speaks Out Against Sentencing in ‘Affluenza’ Case

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Victims’ Family Speaks Out Against Sentencing in ‘Affluenza’ Case

In Texas, Eric Boyles lost his wife Hallie and his daughter Shelby in a car crash caused by an intoxicated sixteen-year-old boy, Ethan Couch. Couch was driving at 70 mph in a 40 mph zone when he caused the crash that killed Hallie and Shelby Boyles along with two others and seriously injuring one other. Couch’s blood alcohol level directly after the crash was three times the legal limit and there was valium in his system. Because Couch has always been privileged and has never had boundaries, a psychologist argued in the trial that Couch was a victim of “affluenza”, a disorder that supposedly proved that Cocuh was not responsible for his actions because he could not tell the difference between right and wrong. The boy was given ten years probation. Obviously, this infuriated Eric Boyles, who thinks Couch’s wealth and status definitely played into the sentence and feels betrayed by the system.

This is absolutely ridiculous. Ten years probation? Judge, what were you thinking? AFFLUENZA? I think it’s called being a SPOILED BRAT. This kid didn’t even apologize to the families or show any remorse. It’s one thing to call him a sociopath, because that wouldn’t surprise me at all. But affluenza? Give me a break! I did some research on my own about the crash, and police said it was one of the worst crashes they had ever seen. People who called the crash in were horrified. Bodies were just littered all over. And one of the kids who was in the crash? Totally paralyzed because of it. Can’t. Even. Talk. It disgusts me that our judicial system would place such a light punishment on someone who has made such a horrible mistake and hurt so many. Of course, it WAS a mistake, but he should still be held accountable for his actions! My mom thinks the affluenza defense is ridiculous and Couch should be held responsible for his actions, because not doing so is just catering to his sense of entitlement. If he actually had to accept the consequences of his actions, she thinks he would have a much better chance of becoming a responsible adult.

I felt that the author of this article was biased in favor of the victims’ families because no defense was offered on Couch’s behalf.

Propaganda Posters

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Screen Shot 2013-10-30 at 12.02.36 PMMy first poster is promoting communism. It claims that capitalism lacks order because anyone can have any business. It also says that free speech will be the death of capitalists. At the bottom of the poster, Carlos the strawberry says he would like to be blue instead of red, and the others shun him.

Screen Shot 2013-10-30 at 12.02.18 PM My second poster is promoting capitalism. It says that capitalists have strong morals, putting the emphasis on “we”, which implies that communists don’t have strong morals. It also says that communism takes away one’s freedom and implies that one would stop being a patriot if one went red, or communist.

Current Events Write Up: Girl Found in Gypsy Camp Sparks Thousands of Inquires

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During a drug and weapons raid of a Roma gypsy camp in Farsala, Greece, a blond-haired, blue-eyed four-year-old named Maria was discovered by authorities. A couple in camp claimed Maria was their child, but a DNA test proved she wasn’t related to them. No one can figure out where she is from or who she belongs to. The couple, whose names are not mentioned in the article, claim she was given to them by an unnamed party because her birth mother could not take care of her. However, the family gave authorities conflicting statements on how Maria came to live with them.

I feel horribly for everyone involved. If the couple is telling the truth, it’s awful that their child was taken from them. Also, poor Maria must be so confused right now! She’s just a little girl–how can she possibly understand what’s going on? And all of the families out there who lost a blond-haired, blue-eyed little girl who would be about four by now and are putting in calls and emails to the police–well, almost all of those people are going to be crushed when it turns out Maria isn’t their little girl, possibly all of them.

My mom thinks it’s going to be very interesting to find out where this child came from, if they ever do. She speculates that Maria might have been born to a woman running from the law, which is why whoever gave her to the gypsy couple in the article didn’t go through legal channels–if their story is true, of course. The author didn’t seem to have a bias.

 

Current Events Write Up: Red Lobster Waitress Gets $10K Tip After Racist Receipt

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In Franklin, Tennessee, a woman named Toni Christina Jenkins received a $10,000 check after she was given a receipt with a racist insult written on the Total line. When she received the check, she posted it on facebook, sparking outrage in California resident Matthew Hanson. Hanson started an online fundraiser that collected $10,749 for Jenkins, who was unaware her post had gotten so much attention. The check was presented to her on September 30, 2013. Jenkins was actually briefly suspended from her job for breaking company rules by posting a receipt online.

To be honest, I feel like our generation is hypersensitive to racism. Of course it sucks that this woman was insulted, but really? It was one insult. Red Lobster should have not let that customer come to their store again, because his actions weren’t acceptable, but I think people kind of blew the whole thing out of proportion.

My dad basically agrees. He thinks that drawing so much attention to this instance is only going to make people more adamant on their views. My mom disagrees, saying that racism should not be tolerated in the slightest and hopefully this fundraiser will stop others from making the same mistakes. The author didn’t mention the other side of the argument, so I would guess they were on Ms. Jenkins’s side.

Current Events Write Up: Herpes-Infected Monkeys Invade Florida

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Life takes us by surprise all the time. Things, people, change constantly. Of course, when pondering life’s random unexpected twists, one’s mind doesn’t typically go straight to herpes-infected monkeys invading Florida. Yes, you heard right. This article is actually titled Herpes-Infected Monkeys Invade Florida. These feral Rhesus monkeys, numbering in approximately 1000, were brought to Florida’s Silver River State Park by a man known as Colonel Tooey in the 1930s. Tooey, a tour operator at the park, was attempting to give the park a Tarzan-inspired ambience  using the monkeys. He kept the small primates, who are native to Asia, on a small island off the coast of Florida, where he thought they would remain. Unfortunately for residents of Florida, the monkeys taught themselves how to swim and the majority that have been captured have tested positive for the Herpes B virus. Although the virus only causes minor symptoms in monkeys, it can lead to serious physiological and neurological issues in humans.

Because of the serious nature of Florida’s current predicament, I managed to keep this article in context up until I got to this line: “Tooey kept the monkeys sequestered on an island, but they’ve since taught themselves how to swim, easily reaching the mainland and putting down roots as far as Jacksonville, which is hundreds of miles away.” This line was like something out of a spoof of Planet of the Apes. I found the entire situation utterly ridiculous. Also, Tooey’s plan was pretty idiotic in the first place, because is there a classic novel called Tarzan of the Monkeys? NO.

My mother thinks Tooey is silly for bringing the monkeys to that island and expecting them to stay there, because Florida gets so many storms that animals and even people are displaced from their homes all the time. She is also sorry that the monkeys are sick, because she thinks the government will either have to kill them or sterilize them.

In my opinion, there was no bias in this article, which, in my experience, is rare for a Yahoo! piece. The author was simply relaying the facts of the situation, not voicing an opinion.

The Harlem Renaissance

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In the towering, bustling metropolis that was New York City in the 1920’s, a small town called Harlem lay nestled amid the skyscrapers. The South  was a bad place to be if you were black; you were in constant danger of being lynched, and there were no job opportunities other than farming-related vocations. On the other hand,Harlem was the place to be for aspiring African-American performers, writers, and artists, who flocked to Harlem looking for jobs.  Before they knew it, many of them were changing the world. Blacks who no one had heard of a year, two years before, found themselves a household name. An entire generation of people of all races moved along to the slow, funky beat of the sensational new music known as jazz, almost always performed by African-Americans. These people helped fuel the fight against racism towards blacks, which was stronger than ever. When all was said and done, the Harlem Renaissance meant a new way of life for colored people.

In the twenties, thousands of African-Americans were moving north to urban areas (Danvers 452). This was called the Great Migration. By the end of the decade, 5.2 million of the nation’s 12 million African-Americans—over 40%–lived in cities (Danvers 453). A popular relocation spot for blacks was Harlem, a neighborhood on the upper west side of Manhattan Island (Danvers 454). Incredibly diverse, Harlem had citizens from the South, the West Indies, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Haiti (Danvers 454). It was known as the capital of black America by famous black activist James Weldon Johnson.
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Josephine Baker Biography

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In the 1920’s, blacks were discriminated against and forced to live in awful conditions. One woman who knew these hardships personally, as well as what it felt like to have big dreams and the courage to go out and make them happen was French entertainer Josephine Baker. Although she got off to a rough start, she never gave up on her dreams and never relied on a man for money, although she married several times (http://www.cmgww.com/stars/baker/about/biography.html).

Baker was born Freda Josephine McDonald in East St. Louis on June 3, 1906 to Carrie McDonald and Eddie Carson. Eddie, a drummer, abandoned them when Josephine was young. Soon after Carrie married Arthur Martin, a family man who never had a job. As a result of this union, Josephine was soon gifted with a little sister and two little brothers. When she was young, Josephine was constantly working at jobs here and there—usually that meant waitressing at a diner or taking care of privileged white babies. After surviving the riots of 1917 at a young age and losing her childhood to bitter work, a thirteen year old Baker ran away from her home to go to Broadway with big dreams glinting in the distance and demons chasing her all the way.

After getting her start touring with The Jones Family Band and the Dixie Steppers in 1919, Baker quickly established herself as a gifted singer, dancer, actress, and comedian by dancing her way across America and Europe. Her scant amount of clothing during performances coupled with her exotic appearance were a first for an entertainer of her age and race, and she quickly acquired scores of admirers, as well as approximately 1,500 marriage proposals!

Throughout the course of four failed marriages, Baker obtained a French citizenship, had a child, and adopted eleven more. The first man she was married to was Willie Wells, whom she quickly divorced. The next was Willie Baker (the source of her last name). Next was Jean Lion; he was the man she was married to when she got her French citizenship. Last but not least was Jo Bouillon, who helped her raise her children.

And Performing wasn’t all Baker did.  As well as being an original and successful entertainer, she was a civil rights activist and she played a part in WWII. She worked as a correspondent for the French Resistance and a sub- lieutenant in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. Sometimes she smuggled hidden messages on music sheets. The French Government gave her the Medal of the Resistance with Rosette and named her a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor for her undercover work.

Sadly, Josephine passed away at 68 in a hospital in Paris. She was never forgotten, though. HBO’s 1991 film The Josephine Baker Story won five Emmys and three Golden Globes for its sincerity and compassion. Josephine Baker never got to witness how many people she affected after her death, but if she had, she would have been proud.

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