Open Response # 3

         Martin Luther King Jr. is a legendary figure in American History. He was extremely influential to the people in America, and convinced many people to accept African Americans in order to make the United States the best nation it could be. Martin Luther King Jr. projected his loyalty to recieving equality by risking his life and speaking out to the nation. He and many other protestors fought for equality, and even when they were denied, they never gave up. King and the other protestors marched and protested from day one until they finally recieved their equality and American citizenship. Laws were made to prohibit segregation, and many whites gave up their racial views after the campaigns by Martin Luther King Jr. and other protestors. Martin Luther King is a legendary figure from U.S History because he never stopped fighting for what he believed in, and he greatly impacted Americans' views on equality. if Martin Luther King had not protested and given famous speeches, America may still be segregated today, and that would be very unfavorable because there would be violence, and tension between American citizens.

Open Response #2

        A very important event in American history was when Lincoln made the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Indepenence stated that America would be an independent nation, and no longer part of Great Britain. America wanted to break away from Great Britian so that our nation could have its own government that would give equality to all citizens.The overall goal of the Declaration of Independence was to give the nation and its citizens freedom. This was a very imporant event in American history because if our nation had not become independent, America would not be the desirable place it is today: a free country. This event also illustrates how powerful the United States Congress is because they were able to achieve independence, which was not an easy task.

Open Response #1

          One topic that we learned about in class that really intrigued me was the New Deal. I think the New Deal really symbolized how the Congress and President Theordore Roosevelt really cared about American citziens when they were facing many problems during the Great Depression. The New Deal contained of many different programs based on Recovery, Relief, and Reform. Recovery programs were meant to save the economy, Relief programs were meant to help citizens who lost their jobs, homes, money, etc., and Reform programs were meant to protect the financial system to prevent another depression in the future. These programs were mainly meant to help the American citizens personally, and by saving the nation they live in. Some specific programs that were created by the New Deal were the Works Progress Administration, which provided many jobs for people in need, the Federal Housing Administration, which gave money to people fir food and clothes, and the Public Works Administration, which provided money to states for construction of schools and community buildings. These specific programs were all passed by Congress during the Great Depression, which shows their loyalty to the people of their nation, and how they care about providing a nice place for them to live. I think the New Deal was a very important part of American History because it shows that the government took the initiative to save the nation, which is very reassuring to Americans.

Studs Terkel # 5

        Peggy Terry, a non-combat worker during World War II, did not know much about the war, except that she hated the idea of it, and that her husband was a soldier. All she knew was that the Germans needed to be stopped. After moving around trying to find jobs, Peggy found a job that required her and other women to make shells for the war. At the beginning of her working experience, she was not aware that she was making shells for the war, but after a while she realized she was. Although it was a priveledge that women were able to work in non-combat positions, it was not as great as it seemed because they were not given workers rights, and they were not respected. Peggy was against war because she did not like violence, but she had to keep her job because she needed to make money. Once her husband came back from war, she realized that she did not hate war only because of the violence, but also because it changed the soldiers into different people. Her husband came back an alcoholic, and a completely different man. "It seems so obvious to say- wars brutalized people. It brutalized him." (194) Peggy explained in her story that the war changed her husband, and all other soldiers in a horrible way because of what they were exposed to. This story relates to the Women's Auxilary Army Corps because Peggy Terry would not have been able to get her job building shells if that bill had not been passed. This story also relates to soldiers who are coming home from Afgahnastan today because they have been brutalized, just like Peggy Terry's husband.

       E.B. (Sledgehammer) Sledge was a young, sensitive and caring soldier who had a different view on World War II than most other frontmen because he did not fight in the biggest battles, or risk his life as much as they did. Because he and his group were so young, they did not take the war so seriously, and they just wanted to get it over with. Sledge claimed that the only reason he and the other young soldiers fought in the war was because they did not want to let each other down. But as the war proceeded, it seemed as if Sledge started to understand what the objective of the war was, and how serious it was after seeing so many dead people, and worn out soldiers. Sledge came to realize that war was about killing the enemies before they killed you, so that it could end faster. Even though Sledge felt bad seeing people being killed, even if they were enemies, he knew that he had to suck it up. Sledge came across a Japanese man who was suffering, and he called a nurse to help him, only to realize that the Japanese man was playing a prank and he set fire. Sledge knew that he was being too nice, and that there was no point because Japanese soldeirs were evil, and they did absolutely anything to not surrender. "I have heard many guys who fought in Europe who said the Germans were damn good soldiers...When they surrendered, they were guys just like us. With the Japanese, it was not that way." (199) During Sledge's time in war, he realized that the only way to stop the Japanese army was through violence in war. The Japanese army proved that they would do anything not to surrender when they used suicide planes called kamikazes, which showed they were willing to kill themselves in order to not surrender. Sledge's story can relate to the soldiers who are fighting in Afghanistan today.

Studs Terkel # 7

     First, I read an introduction about a man who was curious to see all the different kinds of people around Chicago, and to write a book about how and why their lives differ from one another. He went around Chicago looking for people who were rich, poor, of different races and religiois, and to see the urban phenomenas with his own two eyes. He met people at random places around Chicago, asking them questions about their jobs and if they do or do not like them. What he learned from doing this is that people who live completely different lives because of their jobs, income, etc., are completely divided, and do not associate with each other. "Although there is a division street in Chicago, the title of this book was metaphorical." (225) What he learned is that people in Chicago are completely divided because nobody will associate themselves with people who differ from them. This relates to the segregation that occurred during the Civil Rights Movement because the people that this writer wrote a book about segregated themselves from people who were different from them. This story also relates to separation that occurs today. For example, the north shore contains of people who make a better income than the people who may live on the South side of Chicago.

     Florence Kelly was a was a woman who grew up in Chicago. She loved it there becuase of the city, but she also hated it because nobody respected each other. When Kelley was young, she moved to a neighborhood called the Hull House. The Hull House was a very diverse neighborhood where gangsters and hoodlums lived. Kelley enjoyed living in that neighborhood because it gave her insight on what the real world was like. Kelley learned that the people she thought were "nice" before moving into the Hull House were actually fake, and the people who lived in the Hull House were real. Many people did not like the gangsters and hoodlums because they were a threat, and people secretly knew they could succeed. Kelley was very inspired by her experience living in the Hull House and she decided to share it with the world by making a proposition: to speak out and convince people that the Hull House was a great place to live and it could be saved. Kelley did everything in her power to make people have the desire to live in the Hull House, but after some time, she recieved notice that the Mayor decided to use the space the was currently used for the Hull House to be used as a place to put a college campus. As much as Kelley wanted to protest, board members of the Hull House convinced her not to. One day, Kelley went to a meeting with a board member, and was influenced to believe that she did everything she could to help the Hull House, but there was nothing else she could do."The first time I went, I thought this was a friend through whom we could work. But I could see, you know, that she allowed me to be just so friendly, and there was a place beyond which I couldn't go. There was a difference now. I stayed in my place, but I said what I wanted to say...I was glad to experience it that way."(232) Kelley proved that she was a very strong woman because she did everything in her power to make the Hull House succeed, but she became aware that there was nothing else she could do besides share her thoughts. She also knew that protesting would lead to conflict, which would get her nowhere. Florence Kelley's story relates to Theordore Roosevelt's thought on conservation, to use areas in wilderess to be developed for common good. The mayor who decided to place the University in the area where the Hull House was relates to this concept. Florence Kelley also relates to the speakers of the Invisible Children program because the speakers try to convince people to help the children living in Uganda, but they do not protest against people who do not try to help. Like the Invisible Children speakers, Florence Kelley also made the decision not to protest against the people who did not agree with her views on the Hull House.

       The last person I read about, Lucy Jefferson, was an African American women who was very passionate about reading. Lucy grew up in a very low rise project, called the Robert Brooks Housing Projects near the west side. She was a very tough woman who intimidated many people because she proved wrong the stereotype that blacks were unintelligent and could not succeed in life. She strongly believed that negro women could do anything they want as long as they had nerve, just like she did. Lucy Jefferson had children of her own, and she became very aggravated due to the facts that her children were not learning anything in school because the teachers did not care to educate the children, and there were no books in the schools. Lucy believed that the things that people thought were important when getting an education, like getting a diploma were not as important as actually learning. "If I woke up in a house that didn't have a book in, I'd just burn it down, it wouldn't be any good. To me, they're my life blood. Types of caps, gowns, all that crap, it don't mean nothing." (252) Lucy Jefferson was able to see the importance of education that many others did not see. Lucy Jefferson relates to Rosa Parks because she let everyone around her know that she was going to do whatever she wanted to do, even though she was black. Rosa Parks also proved that she was going to do whatever she wanted when she refused to sit in the back of a bus. Lucy's story also relates to the education that many people receive in this day and age because the quality of education today has greatly increased since her era.