Aleasha - Quinn

Within this documentation of Quinn's life of being born into slavery, we can obtain an understanding of the lifestyle he had experienced by being born on a plantation and stating his master was Colonel Ogburn, who was one of the biggest plantation owners within the area of Mississippi.

For Quinn' it is clear that the Civil War had a significant impact on him due to joining the army and fighting in his home state Mississippi. In addition to this, he also fought in other states such as Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. By encouraging the ex-slaves to vote and voting on their behalf it was not the ex-plantation slave owners who acted out against him but the Black people themselves. Many of them believed he had 'Too much influence over the rest' and continued to intimidate him leading to them attempting to lynch him. The impact of the attempted lynching still has an effect on him to the day of his documentation being written as he states that he can 'still feel the rope around my neck', a long-term impact of the outcome of the Civil War that affects Quinn personally.

Quinn's reputable relationship with the White people of America led to him being discontent with the horrors that occurred after the Civil War. By seeing the ex-slaves lynch two little boys and attempt to lynch his White friend, led to the discontent he held towards the Black people.

Throughout Quinn's statement, it is clear that he frowns upon the work of the Black people within America after the Civil War. This was mainly due to the unnecessary treatment towards children within his account who had potentially not grasped an adequate understanding of the society that they were being brought up in within the American States, the behaviour Quinn saw, that had led to death for many was deemed unacceptable.

Sources: https://www.loc.gov/resource/mesn.026/?sp=5

Alek - Slavery

https://www.loc.gov/resource/mesn.043/?sp=4

https://www.loc.gov/resource/mesn.043/?sp=4

When looking at this, I am able to tell that that even within the slave families (excluding owners) they were subjected to harsh conditions - for example, she says 'The first thing she remembers is being whipped by her mother' this shows that discipline had been taught from a very young age. This could be seen as beneficial for the child as the child would be taught to respect their elders specially in regards to their owners at the time. This would ensure that they did not do anything that would cause anger from the owners part.

It was also stated that her owner was not rich, he only owned only 2 other slaves along with Kendricks and her family. This shows that they did not need to acquire such a mass amount of income to be able to have a slave but in fact - white supremacy is something that is something that played a huge part in this.

I feel that the experiences that were most important was the ones that she had growing up. This is due to the fact that she did not have a full understanding as to why she was a slave. We know that she spent all her time within her masters house and she grew up with their kids. This shows that she was still able to have a small amount of child hood even if it was not the best one.

Alek - Gun Control

http://gun-control.procon.org

This website gives both the pro's and con's of gun control throughout the US. We see many different facts which help balance out the arguments but from seeing theses facts we are able to identify that they are raising awareness for the issue. We also can see a constant referral to the second amendment which talks about a free state and the right to bare arms.

http://csgv.org

We see this to be against guns and we can see this due to the fact that it refers to the Coalition to prevent anymore gun violence. We can see a reference to Hillary Clinton and her views on gun control - these views is what she used within her campaign. Alongside this, they have a donation page  in which you are able to send money, latest news and also information in regards to guns.

Even though the NRA informs us about gun control and we have the second amendment that states that every American has the right to bare arms, I agree with having guns due to the fact that I had grown up around military weaponry, I feel that this serves as defence when needed.

Aleasha - Gun Control

https://csgv.org

It is stated clearly on the bottom of the front page that the Coalition to Stop Gun Control that their mission is to ‘secure freedom from gun violence through research, strategic engagement and effective policy advocacy’. By providing factual statistics and information, alongside the latest news, donation links they also have their blog that focuses on different issues that correlate with the use of guns and how America would be a more protected within society due to restrictions placed upon the people. The anti-gun website gives various views on the matter and therefore can give diverse views and reasonings as to why the people should enforce gun restriction laws.

https://www.nraila.org
The pro-gun website is styled to the needs of the people. In the newspaper format style, the audience are able to locate the latest news whether, political, legal, or what the public have said via social media. The NRA also list their sources of their association, for example, the Second Amendment, Gun Laws and Bills that have been passed and how this successfully re-iterates that the people of America should continue to have the ‘right to bear arms’.

Although the NRA-ILA inform us, the people, with information for their cause to continue and maintain their right to bear arms due to the Second Amendment, I do not agree with them due to the lack of restrictions that are in place for people who can obtain a gun without permits or licenses.  The impact of using a gun irresponsibly can be devastating and therefore needs to be considered as an issue within the state and needs to be addressed accordingly.

Jordan Webb - Pro-Gun vs Anti-Gun Control (week 8)

I  believe that guns should be limited in America, and that there should be certain laws put in place to control who is allowed guns, but I do understand why Americans rely on guns in terms of defence, however this could lead to the misuse of guns.

Pro-Guns

The first article you see on this website is showing how someone with a concealed gun saved a police officers life. this shows that this website is highlighting the positives about guns. By looking at the side heading there are many articles concerning restrictions that could have been made is Hillary Clinton had been elected as President, which shows the worry that many have in america over their right to own and carry a gun, and how they fear it being taken away.  This website is made to target those who believe in the freedom of owning and carrying guns and is aimed to protect those rights.

Anti-Gun

This website highlights the dangers of the selling of guns in the USA, especially on the right side of the website where there are statistics on the selling of guns and background checks, showing the lack of laws in place. There are many links to petitions and campaigns to stop gun violence and put in gun laws in America. There is even an article on ways to stop gun violence. This website is a huge contrast to the pro-gun website as it focuses on the issues that guns cause, while the other focuses on the positives of being able to freely have guns for protection.

Freedom of Religion (week 7)

This video shows a brief overview of the rights to freedom of religion in America. It is under the first amendment of the Bill of Rights where it is stated meaning it is very important. The clause allows for people in America to have the freedom of practising a religion, unless that practise is too extreme, such as the sacrificing of others, where it then will be stopped by authority.

In the first amendment it is stated that ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion’. this means that in America there is no set religion, unlike in the UK for example where the Church of England is the state religion. this allowed for many to go to america as they could practise their religion freely without being punished for it.

However, it could be said that Christianity is the leading religion in the USA, which can be shown in the pledge of allegiance where is it says 'one Nation under God' showing that Christianity has a big impact on most of the population of America, although this does not make it the state religion.

Hillary Clinton - Liberty

Hillary Clinton

Within this video, Madame Clinton explains about internet freedom in which can, in away, be related back to the principles of Liberty. Liberty can be seen as an act of freedom, especially since the First Amendment is founded on the basis of freedom/liberty.  

In this video, Hillary explains that there are 4 BILLION phones and everyone uses them for social sites in order to 'hopefully' come together and co-operate. This can be linked back to many different periods within America. The ideals in which America was founded on was all down to liberty. There is even a statue which is dedicated to the U.S. - The Statue of Liberty.

Aleasha - Freedom of Speech; How free is America?

Throughout America, the key beliefs of the people are that they live within the Land of the Free. That since the Founding Fathers of America (such as Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin.) they believed that within America every man was deemed equal and had the right to free speech and beliefs. 

Throughout this video, it gives the modern day reality surrounding the aspects of freedom of speech within America. The analysis of the young and educated people who go to college and university are being criticised for their attitudes and values. By seeing the percentage of only 30% of the people feel they are able to voice their views and beliefs aloud if alarming. Not only this but the fact that students feel unsafe to hold an unpopular opinion as they continue from freshmen to senior year is shocking as the people of America believe and reiterate that they are the Land of the Free but that unfortunately society has made an impact on each other as people are unable to confidently say what they feel or believe publicly. 

Continuing on from this, the events that occurred for students at the University of Delaware that was made compulsory, suggests that 'Freedom of Speech and Beliefs' are more than likely not spoken of publicly and potentially students fear to speak out about their views. By operating a compulsory orientation where students are "re-educated" into having the right views and beliefs. This "treatment" outlined by the university continued for further examination on how students should have "approved views" on matters such as race, politics, sexuality and even philosophical differences. 

So how can modern day society within America enforce and feel empowered to say that they have "Freedom of Speech and Beliefs" when the evidence within this video shows that the younger generations are being made to be the exact same as if they were indistinguishable, whom all held the same view and if they did not, they would go through this 'Treatment' outlined by some universities. 

I decided also to research further on this aspect of Freedom outlined by the Founding Fathers and discovered that this inalienable right is more or less partly based upon the fact that religious factions were prosecuted in the Thirteen Colonies within America before the Revolution. By outlining that all men are equal and have the right to free speech in the Declaration of Independence but in modern day society Americans are contradicting themselves. Which leads us to question them.
How free are they, if at all? For it is known that Madison stated "If you aren’t free to think your own thoughts and believe your own beliefs, you aren’t free, period, since freedom is seamless." When he participated in the creation of America.

So is freedom that was outlined by the Founding Fathers based upon the ideals of having similar views within a nation and that if different ideals came into central view that they, the people are 're-instituted'? Or the ideals of each individual has their own view and beliefs and within society everyone accepts each separate persons ideas.

Are the views of the Founding Fathers still reiterated clearly today?

If, you wish to look into this aspect of American Liberty further, there is a short clip of the drama TV series "Newsroom" that explores the idea of freedom of speech further here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VMqcLUqYqrs

Sources: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/420615/vision-founding-fathershttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dJaM8IOev7E
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VMqcLUqYqrsUIKEYINPUTUPARROW

Jordan Webb - Mirrors by Hillary Clinton (week 6)

This video was released on Youtube on the 23rd September 2016 to the official Hillary Clinton channel. Although this video is only 30 seconds long, it highlights the nasty words of Donald Trump about what he says about women. It is the most popular video from her channel and a shows a new light on Donald Trump that many have probably ignored or looked over when supporting him.

This video definitely shows the vulgar comments that Donald Trump has made recently and in the past also, this showing that his misogynistic views of women have not changed and he does not seem to want to change or care about his views on women. This video shows that Hillary supports all women and this is highlighted at the end when the words 'Is this the president we want for our daughters?' appear, asking the question of does America what a misogynistic man for president. This may make many think about their choice in voting and I believe this has made quite a lot of women switch their vote from Trump to Clinton.

This campaign video is mostly aimed at women and parents of young women in America. It makes all these people think about how Donald Trump thinks and talks about women, even to their faces, and there are some video clips within the video showing that Trump has actually said those things as well. Many women would not want to be treated badly like that which is a fear that that could happen if he became president.

This video means that Hillary has a chance of gaining more of the women's vote as, I hope, many women will be disgusted in the language and behaviour of Trump, especially with the recent leaked video of Trump (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFEqVARTYkY) which he claimed to be 'locker room talk', showing his dismissal of the whole thing and not owning up to his actions.

Alek - week 6 B. Sanders

Bernie Sanders

Throughout the video, Sanders is always thinking about the people. He is always stating what they have, what they don't have and what they need etc.

He makes a lot of comparisons to the things America does not have but the rest of the world does and how he states that there are rights that individuals of America should have but don't - in this case, he mentions Health Care.

Though he mentions a lot of negatives that America has, he does not fail to end the video with showing that America can be and what it can do to become a nation united. 

He states that the top tenth of 1% owns as much wealth as the bottom 90%. Millions of people are working long hours, working very hard, putting in so much effort into their job and getting paid beneath the minimum wage. The video that plays in the background backs up what he is saying as we are able to identify that people are putting in so much time and getting very little from it. We see the use of the clock spinning really fast which is able to show the significance of how much people do just to remain off the streets.

Within the video, he speaks in very short sentences. This allows the audience to fully engage in what he is saying as we are able to acknowledge the points he makes. He does not raise his voice to get his point across but instead, he speaks directly at you showing concern of the topic he is speaking about.
We are easily able to understand and see that he has concern within his voice as he is someone who wants best for the youth.

A Bit About Bernie Sanders

He has always been keen on trying to make finances better for the American people due to the fact that he himself grew up with very little.
He represents the Democratic Party and is in complete favour of making College and University tuition free as well as substantially lowering interest fees on student loans. He believes that a better economy is a result of having better well-educated work force.

He first got involved with following the civil rights movement when he was studying at university in which he was able to see the movement for himself and understand about true equality. 

So what does he do now?

He is America's longest-serving independent within congressional history who is currently serving his second term within America's Senate in which he represents the state of Vermont. Sanders had actually won the re-election in 2012 after winning a huge 71% of the peoples votes. Along with this, he was also a congressman in the House of Representatives in which he represented his own state of Vermont. 

Aleasha Week 6 - Barack Obama

Throughout the video, Barack Obama re-instates the views of America as whole. By re-instating “we are all one people” and that America is not divided and that there is not “a liberal America” and a “conservative America”, Obama is unifying the American’s from all background, under one government, one flag and one nation.

Within the short TV ad, the narrator gives a brief overview of Obama’s educational background, how he went to college and law school and continued to make a difference in his local area that would soon become nationwide change. Acknowledging that Obama could have grounded himself at the level of education he had and deciding against this, to persevere and help others and continue his career, could suggest that within the ad, that the narrator is connecting Obama to the “American Dream” of being successful. 

The first impact made by Obama was in the state of Illinois in 1996 by becoming a part of the Senate. His success in the state of Illinois, led to multiple connections by the end of 2004 that would help him gain success in the lead-up to the presidency elections in 2008. In January 2003, Obama formally enters the race for the United States senate, winning 53% in the Illinois primaries in 2004, he later succeeds and is sworn as a U.S. Senator in 2005. Throughout this time, Obama was able to unite the Democrats and the Republicans and was able to accomplish Obama tax cuts for workers and improving the health care for children. 

What is interesting within this campaign commercial is that Senator Kirk Dillard - a Republican not only comments but also praises Obama on his achievements that he has made since 1997 and how successful Obama had been in backing legislations and laws within the state community by forming and maintaining relationships with both parties. As Obama was running for the Democrats in 2008 (and later 2012) it is quite unusual and interesting that Obama had praise from the opposing faction. 

Although, Obama was born out of Illinois, in Honolulu, Hawaii, he still faced criticism and discouragement from people within Congress arguing that Obama did not have great knowledge of his neighbourhoods and the streets. This is intriguing as the people criticising him and his lack of knowledge did not comment on his race as part of the criticism. However, Obama continued to strive and form relations with people from all areas of work, whether they were part of the lobbyists and/or the Senate. By making connections throughout the political and legislative pathways, Obama was uniting himself with people which later led to his campaign to unite the people of America under the “Stars and Stripes”. 

Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/30/us/politics/30obama.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKGqyMtnO7E
http://www.barack-obama-timeline.com/

Jordan - The Supreme Court (week 5)

The Supreme Court is the highest federal court in the U.S. and is situated in Washington D.C. It was established in 1789 under Article III of the United Stated Constitution. All decisions made here must be passed by all other courts in the United States, as it states in Article III, section I that "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the congress may from time to time ordain and establish." The supreme court is also the only power able to challenge or declare a state law unconstitutional. Only the president has the power to nominate the Justices and appointments are made with the advice and the consent of the Senate.

Over the years, various Acts of Congress have altered the number of seats on the Supreme Court, from a low of five to a high of 10. Shortly after the Civil War, the number of seats on the Court was fixed at nine. Today, there is one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices of the United States Supreme Court. The Court does not have to hear a case. The Certiorari Act of 1925 gives the Court the discretion to decide whether or not to do so. The best-known power of the Supreme Court is judicial review, or the ability of the Court to declare a Legislative or Executive act in violation of the Constitution, is not found within the text of the Constitution itself. The Court established this doctrine in the case of Marbury v. Madison (1803).

The Supreme Court plays a very important role in the constitutional system of government in America. As the highest court in the land, it is the court of last resort for those looking for justice. Due to its power of judicial review, it plays an essential role in ensuring that each branch of government recognises the limits of its own power. It also protects civil rights and liberties by striking down laws that violate the Constitution. Finally, it sets appropriate limits on democratic government by ensuring that popular majorities cannot pass laws that harm and/or take undue advantage of unpopular minorities.

The decisions of the Supreme Court have an important impact on society at large, not just on lawyers and judges. The decisions of the Court have a profound impact on high school students. In fact, several landmark cases decided by the Court have involved students, e.g., Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District (1969) held that students could not be punished for wearing black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War. In the Tinker case, the Court held that "students do not shed their rights at the schoolhouse gate."

Sources:
https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/briefoverview.aspx
http://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/about-educational-outreach/activity-resources/about