Freedom From Above or Below

           Lately in history class, we have been analyzing documents and producing charts to find the answers to intriguing questions. Early one morning, the class was introduced to a picture depicting a slave kneeling down before Abraham Lincoln. It appears that Abraham Lincoln had freed the slave, and the slave is thanking him. This picture fueled a lot of discussion and difference of opinion, which is why the picture is the center of our essential question. Who gave freedom to enslaved Americans?Did freedom come from above or below?To what extent were Abraham Lincoln's actions influenced by the actions of enslaved Americans? In order to answer this essential question, we performed many tasks as a class. We first watched videos and were assigned a document to analyze as a group. Each group was signed one of four documents and then had to find quotes from the documents to put into the following categories: goal of the war, position on freeing slaves, and evidence of personal feelings on slavery. Then, each group used the whiteboards to draw a chart, putting the documents into two categories: Freedom from above, and freedom from below, based on whether or not the document is evidence of freedom from above or freedom from below.
           As a class, we analyzed documents in order to answer the following question: Who gave freedom to enslaved americans? Did freedom come from above or below? To what extent were Abraham Lincoln's actions influenced by the actions of enslaved americans? Freedom from above or below means whether or not slaves were freed due to actions taken by themselves or by the authority or superiors such as Abraham Lincoln. Based on the documents, it is evident that freedom came from above. Abraham Lincolns excerpt, Emancipation proclamation, Gettysburg address, and the second inaugural address all show evidence of freedom from above. Freedom from the authority of superiors.
Document X Letter from general Ambrose E. Burnside, and Document Y engraving both show evidence of freedom from below. Freedom by being proactive and taking action for yourself. Abraham Lincoln's actions were very much influenced by the actions of enslaved americans. During the civil war, slaves would see the union troops and follow them around and make a nuisance of themselves. The slaves would take up a lot of resources such as food and living space. The union officers would report this to their superiors and these complaints would eventually make it all the way to the president.

Throughout history and in modern day, there are many examples of freedom coming from above and below. However, in my opinion freedom comes from below. In modern day, the "freedom from below" does not exactly have to be freedom. Any situation in which you are changing your situation and bettering yourself by being proactive and taking initiative for yourself could be considered freedom from below. A modern day example of freedom from below is excelling on a sports team. Everyone on the team plays, but if you want to reach varsity, you have to be proactive and take it upon yourself to work harder. The coach is not going to just move you up out of the blue.

Civil War Battles Scavenger Hunt

           Lately in class, we have been learning about the many battles of the civil war in order to answer the following questions: Who was the ultimate victor in each of the theaters of war, East, West, and Naval? What are some commonalities you can identify in the reasons for the results of the battles? Instead of taking notes off of a board while the teacher lectures, our class took a different approach. To learn more about the battles of the civil war, we had a civil war battle scavenger hunt. In order to have the scavenger hunt, each student first had to pick a civil war battle of their choice. After choosing a battle, each student then had to find the name of the battle, the location, when it was fought, the victor, in which theater of war the battle was fought(east, west, naval), reasons explaining the outcome, and one image. Also, each student included directions to the next poster in their Google doc. Once the necessary information was recorded in a Google doc, the students then made a shortened url using bitly.com, a custom QR code, and a printed out poster including both. When the QR code is scanned, it redirects you to the Google doc containing all of the valuable information on that battle. When the posters were finished, the students then hung their posters in hidden locations, and began the scavenger hunt by scanning the battle after theirs and finding the next one until all posters had been scanned.
           Based on all of the information collected throughout the scavenger hunt, it is evident that the union dominated the western theater and naval theater of he civil war while the confederacy dominated the eastern theater of the civil war. The union dominated in many battles in the western theater, including the battle of  Fort Donelson and the battle of Vicksburg. In the battle of Fort Donelson, the confederates were unable to break General Grant's lines, leaving themselves with no choice but to surrender. In the battle of Vicksburg, the confederates suffered a lot more missing and captured soldiers than the union, causing them to surrender. The union dominated in many battles in the naval theater, including the battle of Hampton Roads and the battle of Fort Henry. In the battle of Hampton Roads(the battle of the iron clads), the unions superior naval force of four iron clads defeated the confederates one iron clad. In the battle of Fort Henry, the union army out numbered the confederates, who were poorly armed with out dated weapons. When the confederates fled Fort Henry, the union badly damaged the confederate's naval fleet, forcing them to surrender. The confederacy dominated in the eastern theater, including the battle of cold harbor and the battle of Second Manassas. In the battle of cold harbor, the confederates focused  on causing as much damage as possible and produced 7,000 union casualties in less than 1 hour. In the battle of Second Manassas, the confederate's heavy artillery and reinforcements devastated the union forces. A commonality between these battles is that the losing side was always out numbered or out gunned. This commonality is a reason for the loss of many battles.

           There were many challenges we faced during the scavenger hunt. The wifi in the school did not always reach certain areas of the building. An example of this is poster 17. Poster 17 was located in the field house, which was out of reach of the wifi. Wifi is necessary for the QR scanners on the ipads to work. This meant that poster 17 was unable to be scanned. Another challenge was the physical effort. In many situations, posters could be located at different ends of the school. Some times, you had to walk back and fourth form one end of the school to the other, and up and down stairs. Eventually, this became a little exhausting.

Civil War Educreations Video

Civil War Educreations Video

Infographic

Essential question: How did the differences between the North and South affect each regions strategy and success in the civil war?

I designed my infographic to resemble a students project on a piece of paper written in pencil. I made the background look like a sheet of paper and chose a font that resembled writing. Post it notes were also added to make it look more realistic. By putting the population statistics of the north and south at the beginning, the viewer gets an idea of how much of an advantage the north already had over the south, before introducing the other statistics. Out of that small southern population, only 75% of southern white families owned slaves and 25% did not. Even though not all southerners owned slaves, many fought to defend slavery because they were fighting to defend their lifestyle. The north had the advantage when it came to railroad mileage, industrial workers, and factories. The south had railroad mileage, industrial workers, and factories also, but the north easily had than 2 to 4 times more. By having a lot more factories and industrial workers than the south, the north was able to produce a vast amount of ammunition, weapons, and other goods to fuel the war. Also, by having more than 2 times the railroad mileage than the south, the north was able to transport soldiers and goods very efficiently. By analyzing these primary sources and making an infographic, I realized that north overpowered the south in almost all categories. The infographic clearly showed the north drowning the south in statistics, and these advantages and disadvantages are why the north won the war.

infographic

Slavery: The Elephant In The Room

           How do we know the debate over slavey was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th century?

           Over the last few days, we as a class have been researching and analyzing information in order to answer an essential question. How do we know the debate over slavey was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th century? What this means, is how do we know the debate over slavery was the obvious problem that no one wanted to address for American politics in the early 19th century. To find the answer, we divided into groups of three and researched the following topics: the Missouri compromise, the compromise of 1850, Gadsden purchase, Kansas Nebraska act, bleeding Kansas, caning of Charles Sumner, Dred Scott decision, Lincoln Douglas debates, and John Brown's raid. Using Timline, we then recorded every topic onto a timeline and organized it in order of occurrence. After thoroughly analyzing information, the answer was evident. We know the debate over slavery was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th century because was slavery was the sole cause of many major political and social events such as the compromise of 1850, Bleeding Kansas, the Dred Scott decision, the Lincoln Douglas debates, and John Brown's raid.

           Slavery was a big issue during the compromise of 1850. In one of five parts of the compromise of 1850, the gold rush in 1849 drew a vast amount of people into the California territory. Eventually there were enough people in California for it to be recognized as a state. California territory petitioned congress to enter the union as a free state. This sparked a lot of controversy. Ever since the Missouri Compromise, the balance between slave states and free states had been maintained. Finally, California would be admitted as a free state. To pacify slave-state politicians, who would have objected to the imbalance created by adding another free state, the Fugitive Slave Act was passed. Slavery was the sole cause of this problem. The debate over slavery was such a big issue, it literally had the United States split in half.

           Slavery was the driving force in Bleeding Kansas. The Kansas Nebraska act of 1854 called for
 popular sovereignty. Meaning that the decision of Kansas entering the union as a free state or a salve 
state was to be determined by the settlers. In 1856, anti slavery settlers set up in Topeka, and pro slavery settlers set up in Lecompton. In some cases, the disagreement did get bloody. At Pottawatomie creek on the night of May 24th, John Brown, a white American abolitionist who believed in a violent overthrow of slavery, and his men took 5 men from their beds and killed them in front of their families. Slavery was what caused these events to happen.
           Slavery was the problem in the Dred Scott decision. In 1857, an enslaved man living in Missouri filed suit against his owner arguing that because he and his wife Harriet once lived in states and territories where slavery was illegal, he and his wife were free. This issue was eventually taken before the Supreme Court, which ruled 7 to 2 against Scott. The effects of the Dred Scott decision were that slaves were not citizens and were denied the right to sue in court, enslaved people could not win freedom simply by living in a free territory or state, and the Missouri compromise was ruled unconstitutional and all territories were opened to slavery. The debate over slavery caused this to happen.
           Slavery played a big role in the Lincoln Douglas debates. During an election between
Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in 1858, Lincoln and Douglas engaged in a series of seven debates called the Lincoln Douglas debates. Douglas supported popular sovereignty, and believed people could rule as they wished, including making slavery legal. Lincoln believed that a majority should have the power to deny a minority their rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The main issue during these debates was slavery. Douglas was pro slavery and Lincoln was anti slavery. Douglas went on to win the election. Slavery was what fueled these arguments.
           Slavery ignited the violent actions in John Brown's raid. On October 16th 1859, three years after his raid at Pottawatomie creek in Kansas, John brown attacked the federal arsenal at Harper's ferry, Virginia. With him were 21 men including 5 African Americans. In an attempt to steal weapons to arm enslaved people so they can rebel. Troops under the command of colonel Robert e Lee, surrounded the arsenal and killed half of browns men including two of his sons before they surrendered. Convicted of treason, John brown was hanged. The debate over slavery was what caused    
this violent uproar.
           The debate over slavery was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th
century. It was the issue that needed to be addressed and could not be ignored. Slavery fueled disagreements and violence in many social and political events.

           

Antebellum Slavery

           By the early 19th century slavery had become economically entrenched in American society. But why? To put it simply, cotton is to blame. By the late 18th century, slavey was declining and the cotton industry was almost non existent. In 1793, Eli Whiteney's invented the cotton gin which easily removed seeds from cotton. This made cotton easier and more profitable to grow. As the demand for cotton grew, so did the slave industry. Slaves could bring in $500 dollars a piece in 1794, but as cotton became more profitable, that number tripled to $1500 in 1825. The more cotton being produced, the more slave labor needed to pick and process the Cotton. By 1860, the cotton producing states in the south produced 2.28 billion pounds of cotton. This was 57% of the nations total export revenues. At the time, the total slave population of the United States was estimated to be approximately 3,954,000. Compared to 85 million pounds of cotton and 1,191,000 slaves in 1810. By the early 19th century, slavery had become economically entrenched in American society because cotton was in the highest demand out of all crops, and the production of cotton depended on slave labor. http://mappinghistory.uoregon.edu/english/US/US18-00.html

           A system of slavery based on race affects human dignity because people see the whole black 

race as slaves and not worthy of similar freedoms and respect. In document G, it describes a speech that Frederick Douglas gave about the Fourth of July. Douglas spoke about how the Fourth of July is a day of celebration for whites, but a day of boasted liberty and swelling vanity for slaves who don't have this liberty. This system of slavery where slaves are not given the same liberty that is provided 

to whites, takes this liberty away from all blacks. That the Fourth of July is just a reminder that blacks don't have the same freedoms as whites. In document H, George Fitzhugh says that the whole negro race is weak and were born to be slaves. Describing blacks as dumber, inferior, and not worthy of respect.http://www.edline.net/files/_BEHdp_/b9a40a0b44d61aac3745a49013852ec4/Morality_of_Slavery_DBQ_Documents.pdf

          Such a system tends to ignore human characteristics such as god given rights and humane 

treatment. Slaves in the US had no privileges. They were owned by their masters and had no control over their own lives. Slaves were considered property and had a price. Blacks were enslaved by being captured and sold. From that point on, they were no longer considered people and were not treated as such.http://princeamongslaves.org/module/comparing.html

Women's Reform

Essential Question: How did mid 19th century American society react to women's demands for equality? Does 21st century society still react differently to men and women?

           The way Women were treated prior to their granted equality, could be best described as the unjust oppression of human rights. In many ways, the way women were treated was borderline slavery. Women were confined to a certain set of laws and common practices. Women were expected to maintain a family like a well oiled machine, while at the same time were not allowed to own property, all possession belonged to their husband, could have her children taken away from her if the father dies, it was legal and encouraged for a husband to beat his wife, women we're not allowed to vote, colleges did not accept women as regular students, women could not sign contracts, and women only got paid 30-50% of what men were paid for the same job. In July 1848 more than 300 men and women assemble in Seneca Falls, New York for the nations first women's rights convention. Many people thought the idea of women's equality was silly and rash. Though there have been great advances in women's rights since the Seneca Falls convention, women are still not treated equally. During the mid 19th century American society thought women's demands for equality were unrealistic and 21st century society still reacts differently to men and women.

           Mid 19th century society thought that women demands for equality were silly and unrealistic. At the time, people believed that these demands were crazy. As if women were requesting to live like royalty. Many men believed that it would cause everyday society to fall apart. One man declared, "If our ladies will insist on voting and legislating, where, gentlemen, will be our dinners and our elbows?  Where our domestic firesides and the holes in our stockings?"(The Seneca Falls Convention, Oneida Whig, August 1, 1848). Arguing that if women gain equal rights, who will cook dinner and set the table?

           Today 21st century society still reacts differently to men and women. Women are sometimes not given jobs that men are usually responsible for. Also, there are still expectations for how women are supposed to act. If a woman is in a management position, people will think that she is bossy. Where as if a man  is in a management position, people will think that he is a leader.

           During the mid 19th century American society thought that women's demand for equality were unrealistic and crazy. Society believed that the social order would collapse and everyday jobs would no longer be done. Society today in the 21st century still treats men differently than women. Men are often seen as harder working and more tough. Women will sometimes be denied jobs that men commonly do.