Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Make up research: Civil Rights

Civil Rights: The Montgomery Bus Movement

This movement started in December of 1955. Rosa Parks, an African American, was one a bus ride home on Montgomery, Alabama when a white man demanded her to move to the back so he can have her seat. She refused to move and was arrested. That started the bus boycott that lasted a little over a year. People in the black community organized the boycotts and their refusal to ride buses was hard on the cities bus and shop economical standing. The bus boycotts started a lot of violence, however. The website, historylearningsite, states, “The black community of Montgomery started using the buses again on December 21st 1956. However, the argument used by the city’s leaders in court came true. Buses were shot at, four churches were bombed, and a bomb was found on the porch of Martin Luther King’s home. Seven white men were arrested for these but no-one was ever found guilty – a deal was done whereby those blacks arrested under the anti-boycott laws had their charges dropped while the seven men had their charges dropped (though King still had to pay his $500 fine).” Finally the boycotts stopped and the integration of buses was allowed.

For more information on the Montgomery Bus boycott, visit:

http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/montgomery_bus_boycott.htm

http://mlkkpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_montgomery_bus_boycott_1955_1956/

Monday, November 28, 2011

Ain't scared of your jails

In my opinion this video was great. Not too often do you get to see first hand exactly what the african Americans went through. As a kid you always hear they were beat and mistreated but the actualy video footage, for your eyes to see for themseleves was drastically different. Jim Lawson's groups where they practiced getting yelled at and beat was mind blowing, they actually practiced all this rather than just going out and sitting there. Along with the freedom rides and when they got off the bus, surrounded by mobs and the mob firstly beating the white guy almost ignoring the blacks for 30 seconds just because he was with them, what a shame and dark spot on America's past. "You remember when your parents used to say, when they whipped you, it is gonna hurt me more than it hurts you, well it hurt Pee Wee more than it hurt me". Gosh what a good quote to end the movie on, Pee Wee was forced to beat the colored man in jail because he would not let go of his bed, Pee Wee knew he was wrong for beating him, and still did it.

Extra credit prompt: Using persuasion creatively in a radio ad

}You may get up to half a grade upgrade for this work, depending on the quality of the work. In other words, you can potentially move from a B- to a B+ or from a B to an A-.  This is a significant opportunity to increase your final overall grade.
}The task: Create a 30-second radio-style advertisement for one of these products: hand soap, a carwash, sneakers, or a beauty shop.  You must focus your advertisement mainly using chiefly either logos or pathos for your appeal.  You will ask me which one and I will tell you which way to lean with your advertisement.
}You will write out the ad copy and post it to the blog, and then you will also record yourself on video performing the advertisement, and post that to the blog along with your ad copy. 
}Remember, some conventions for radio ads are: repeat product name to enhance audience awareness, 30 seconds exactly in length, use some sort of dramatic situation to demonstrate viability of product, use of spokesperson or endorsement, use of research or statistics for demographic, etc.  You have heard many radio ads in your life, so think about the variety and how they make arguments for the audience.
}This extra credit must be done and on the blog by Tuesday at noon of Finals Week.  Have fun and good luck! 
 

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Ain't scared of your jails

Students and community members started their protesting because they couldn't "wait" any longer. They used tactics that were non violent in order to maintain the title of peace maker while causing tension to come to the surface. This is a tactic to put pressure for change. This took a lot of courage and practice to not fight back even when people were brutal.

Ben West played a big political role by answering the "big" question as a man. That he did feel it was wrong to segregate colored people.

The freedom ride was important to the change and I enjoyed how the one guy said "That ride was like a military operation" because of all the police and riot going on while trying to accomplish their goal in peace and the right to ride the bus upfront.

aint scared of your jails

the risks and sacrifices facing the freedom writers were immense, not only were they breaking the law but they were also putting their bodies on the line with every ride or march they took place in. the riders were lied to about protecting and care when arriving in different locations but nothing not even a firebombing stopped their determination. although it took a long time for progress to made the riders helped influence the culture by participating in peaceful sit ins and marches. news media showed violent beatings of the protesters which inevitably swayed opinions and lead to change.

Ain’t Scared of Your Jails

Ain’t Scared of Your Jails

The Freedom Rides were composed of both white and black citizens who would ride on a greyhound bus into the major cities of the South, in order to protest segregation. The white Freedom Riders would sit in the back of the bus, while the black Freedom Rider’s sat up front. At their stops, the white Rider’s would use the “black only” facilities and waiting rooms, while the Black freedom Rider’s would use the “white only” facilities. The group of both white and black citizens faced mobs and violence, and had no police protection from the Southern state governments until Robert Kennedy stepped in. When Alabama failed to protect the freedom riders when they rode into Birmingham, where a huge white mob attacked the rider’s, the U.S. Marshalls where issued in to protect the Freedom Rider’s bus, thanks to Robert Kennedy and Robert Patterson. Along with the U.S. Marshalls, FBI men, State troopers, and state police followed the bus, prepared to stop any mobs or any attacks against the freedom rider’s.

What the Freedom Ride’s stood for was the most important role they played in the civil rights movement, and in getting ride of southern segregation of the time. It was a group of both black and white American citizens, standing up against the norm’s of the time, and fighting against the civil wrongs that were being done against African American’s by their state’s that were supposed to be protecting them rather than suppressing them with segregation laws. Through the rider’s persistence, and through their determined non-violence, the freedom ride’s forced the government to make a choice; either stop segregation, or be faced with an even larger separation of American citizens with more violence being done amongst them.

We Ain't Scared

Young college students inspired the rest of the world with what they did. The boycotts and peaceful protest are some of the most memorable parts of black history. The way they were mistreated and still they didn't stoop to a lower level and fight back was very inspiring. The knew that what they were doing was for something greater, and that in the end the beatings and mistreatment was going to pay off.

Also, the showed the power of people in masses. They all stood for common ground, blacks and whites joined together for the first time. "...and all you could here is 4000 footsteps..." They demonstrated a way of solving conflict without war and violence. It shows that violence isn't the only problem solver in the world today. It's refreshing.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

I thought it was very inspirational that these students were able to organize and execute demonstrations that were so powerful. Their bravery is remarkable. Not just anyone would be willing to face mobs and get arrested. Their commitment to nonviolence is admirable, and sets a good example for the future for how to go about making a change.

I had not really thought about the fact that you would have to train yourself to be non-violent in certain situations. Your natural reaction when someone starts to beat you is to fight back, but you have to restrain yourself to make the demonstrations effective.

Ain't Scared of our Jails

Its amazing to see so many people stand up for what they believe in, and it wasn't just the blacks there was whites fighting for the blacks among this too. For me the Freedom Rides is what struck me the hardest, I think its because I don't ever remember learning about them in high school or elementary school. The whole purpose of them was to let blacks ride on public transportation wherever they wanted and when they wanted and how they wanted. I liked this part the most because that's when i saw whites helping the blacks and came to this realization that not all whites were against the blacks.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Ain't Scared of your Jails

Students and community members obviously started their protests because they felt they were being treated unfair and wanted equal rights. They used many tactics such as "sit-ins" and "freedom rides". I found it interesting that the sit-ins went smoothly for 2 weeks and then white people became fed up and attacked participants. I didn't know that protestors had to take training in non-violence in order to effectively carry out the protests. Non-violence meant taking a beating in many cases and it is very admirable that many did accept the consequences, however unfair. Protests often lead to arrests and one man said that "arrest became a badge of honor" which is striking to hear. I remember the arrogant white women who said that "not being allowed to give and refuse service to whomever they wanted was a violation of white people's civil rights" this is utterly ridiculous.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails Response

“After the first arrest on May 24th, 1961, Freedom Riders continued to pour into Jackson. By summer's end, 300 had been arrested and sentenced.” The purpose of the Freedom Rides was to go against the Jim Crow laws and demand integration of buses in the South in 1961. There were blacks and whites who rode to fight segregation in states like Mississippi and Alabama. They were attacked in Birmingham and Montgomery by white segragationists. The people that went on the Freedom Rides wanted to abloish the segration of bus riders because it was morally and constitutionally wrong. They did this peacefully and did not fight the people who beat them.

A'int Scared of Your Jails

The purpose of this movement was to stop the segregation that was in Nashville. The college students felt like this was an infringement on their rights as human beings, they wanted to be treated like the people that they were. At first this movement was mainly ran by African American students but later on many African American community members joined in on the movement. Later on even members of the Caucasian community joined in on the movement. Many people felt like this was a problem that needed to be dealt with. The way that this joining of people is shown in the film is when the one professor said " I am not saying that all black students should be part of the civil disobedience I am saying that students should be part of the civil disobedience,"

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

The people involved in the Freedom Rides had to risk many things. They had to realize that they might get beat up and they can’t fight back since they were part of a nonviolent protest. As the Freedom ride went on, “some freedom riders got hurt, but still wanted to move on” (Ain’t Scared of Your Jails). They also had to realize that as they tried to get their freedoms rights, they might get sent to jail. The protesters had to be able to stick up for what they thought was right but couldn’t fight back if they were getting beat up. They had to risk their lives because they never knew what was going to happen as they tried to get their own rights. In the movie “Ain’t Scared of Your Jails,” you would see the blacks getting hit and them not hitting back because they were part of the nonviolent protest. It was hard to watch because the people that were hitting the blacks and they were just trying to get the rights they’ve always had. They didn’t know how the blacks felt: isolated, unwanted, lonely, didn’t belong, depressed, and many other things. I feel so bad that so many people didn’t want to help the Freedom riders. They just wanted the same thing many people already had, they wanted to be a normal citizen. They didn't want to be pointed out just because of their color because they were really all the same.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

I believe that the tactics that the students used were essential in the Civil Rights movement. Using things such as boycotting local bus companies that were segregated put economic stress on those companies, pushing for desegregation in order to maintain economic stability in the community. Sit-ins were also important, as it showed that black students would not submit to the tradition of segregation, even though they were often beaten and threatened with death. These kinds of protests rarely, if ever, had violence of the students side. Non-violence was essential to the movement, as it showed that the students were willing to risk their lives to further their cause, and that they would not fight back, even in the most dire circumstances. This showed the nation that black people indeed were fighting for equal rights, but they fought through peace.

"Ain't Scared of Your Jails"

What stuck out to me the most in "Ain't Scared of Your Jails" was the level of dedication that the Freedom Riders had. Even after people were beaten and hospitalized, more and more kept coming. Even when they were refused protection (at first). All of the riders took the risk that they could be beaten to death, or brutalized, by an angry mob at any one of the stops. All of the riders had extreme courage that I'm not sure I would have had. I don't know if I would have had the guts to join the Freedom Rides myself, even if I would have had the chance.
I was also impressed by what the mayor said after protesters marched to his office and asked him questions. "I could not agree that it is morally right to refuse to sell something to someone purely based on race." It took a lot of guts for the mayor to say this, especially when he had not been very supportive of the protests before. It was a major turning point in the restaurant lunch counter protests.

Ain't Afraid of Your Jails

Some of the tactics used by the students and community members included non- violent protests and sit- ins. There were workshops lead by a few protest leaders that got the attention of students and community members whom opposed segregation. Their protests started when leaders Jim and Diane first walked into white dining areas and waited to be served. At one point Diane had said that " the waitresses were so nervous that they must've broken thousands of dollars of plates that night. It was hard nor to laugh, but they would pick one up and drop it, then pick the next one up and drop that. They were scared of us." The group members would just go to segregated places, sit in the whites side, and wait to be tended to. And if they were attacked, they did not fight back, no matter how bad the situation got.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

During the Civil Rights Movement, many different tactics were used including the freedom rides which took place in 1961. The African Americans and Caucasians who participated in the freedom rides were trained in non-violent tactics. When they were attacked by anti-civil rights protestors, their only way of protection was to run or the police who on many occasions disregarded the attacks. John Lewis, one of the Freedom Riders, said "It was like being involved in a holy crusade." The Freedom Riders set aside their security in order to advance the Civil Rights Movement in a direction toward peace. Some of the people who were hurt the most by the anti-civil rights protestors included the Caucasians who traveled with the African Americans on the freedom rides. This happened because many other Americans couldn't accept the fact that their own race was beginning to help the African American movement towards civil rights. As I watched the video, I couldn't believe the brutality that had occurred fifty years ago. Even though many Americans suffered during the Civil Rights Movement, today's society shows how important the movement was toward advancing equal rights in America.

Aint Scared of Your Jails Response

Why did students and community members start their protests? They started it because they felt they should all be treated equal and no one should be denied anything just because of their skin color. African Americans and also some Caucasians were sick of how African Americans were being denied access to certain amenities such as restaurants and transportation. They thought that treating others like an animal or just some object was morally wrong. They felt very strongly that all be treated equally and were willing to do whatever it took to achieve this.

My response to watching “Aint Scared of Your Jails” was astonishment. I was astonished by what they overcame and what they helped people oversee, but more importantly, how they did it all. No matter how they were treated, they never showed any violence. Without this group, who knows where society would be today. One man from the video said, “One thing we did right was the day we started the fight.” I agree immensely with this quote. If it wasn’t for the people in this group that helped change the peoples’ view on the subject, we wouldn’t be as united as a nation as we are today.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

The tactics the students were trying to use were nonviolent protests. They started out doing sit in’s at local stores. Soon after they did the freedom ride through the Deep South, even threw violent opposition, the freedom riders still maintained their nonviolent stance. One of the most striking moments of the movie that I found to catch my eye was when Ben West was asked as a man if he felt what was happening was right. His response was. “…that I could not agree that it was morally right for someone to sell them merchandise and refuse them service. And I had to answer it just exactly that way...I would answer it the same way because it was a moral and it was one that a man has to answer and not a politician." It took a lot of courage to say something like this, given the circumstances.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Freedom Rides= Change for all

The first thing that resulted in the freedom rides were the counter sit ins. Black students from 4 different colleges wanted a change so that why they devolped the sit ins at local diners. the interesting part is that even when they got arrested the people at the counter sitting, the next rave sat down in the chairs. They had so many blacks partipate in the act to better our country. Ben West was the mayor then and at the beginning of the sit ins he was not for them at all, but after the sit ins, the freedom ride began. The freedom ride was designed for blacks as well as white people helped too. Tipically the white people ride in the front of the bus, but the road thousands of miles with two busses where the white's sat in the back and allowed the blacks the front. A black man said " One thing we did right was the day we started the fight". This is so true in so many ways, if it wasnt for those sit in and the freedom ride we wouldnt all be equal like everyone is. It was intresting that Ben West mayor finally reliezed what was going on and did admit what was happening was wrong in so many ways and after he spoke from the heart of a real man (not just speaking from the mayors point of view) he changed everyhting for everyone. Three weeks after he spoke the black people finally got justice and was served at the counter.

Ain't Scared of Your Jails

After watching the documentary film, Ain't Scared of Your Jails, I came out thinking how crazy it must have been during that time period. It was only 40-50 years ago but that shows how far we have come. The film was about the early civil rights movement leading up to the Freedom Riders movement and its affect on the nation afterwards. Early in the Civil Rights movement students and community members lead the way with the protests. Protest tactics included peaceful sit-ins at restaurants, and diners primarily, but soon they occurred at local government areas and segregated areas of the city. The protest involve people sitting down or remaining in place peacefully in a form of rebellion against the segregated society. They would be there for days on end until eventually they were attacked by racist mobs or arrested by local police while still remaining nonviolent. In the film one quote that caught my ear was by Ben West, major of Nashville, Tennessee. "They asked me some pretty soul-searching questions. And one that was addressed to me as a man, and I tried as best I could to answer it frankly and honesty, that I could not agree that it was morally right for someone to sell them merchandise and refuse them service. And I had to answer it just exactly that way...I would answer it the same way because it was a moral and it was one that a man has to answer and not a politician." This caught my ear, because it was the first time I heard a governing official admit that segregation is wrong, and back then it was was seen as the first of many wins the Civil Rights movement will eventually achieve.

Freedom Rides

During 1961 although public transportation was not supposed to be segregated blacks were still to sit in the back of the bus so the whites could sit in the front. Because this was so a group of people calling themselves the Freedom Riders decided to take a bus trip through the South ignoring this idea, with hope that their demonstration would compel the Federal Government to uphold their laws to desegregate interstate travel that state officials in the South would not uphold. The Riders ran into many mobs and were beat and hurt many times even though authorities had prior knowledge of what was going to happen. With this happening they thought the rides would have to end until the SNCC students stepped in. Diane Nash was one the student who felt strongly about finishing the ride to prove their point. She even said, “If the Freedom Ride had been stopped as a result of violence I strongly felt that the future of the movement was going to be cut short because the impression would have been given that whenever a movement starts all that has to be done is that you attack it with violence and the blacks would stop.” After the violent incident the purpose of the Rides evolved to show that the citizens, no matter their skin color need to be protected by the state, and just because they were attacked didn’t mean they were going to run scared and not fight for their freedom. It took until September but finally then their purpose was fulfilled when the Interstate Commerce Commission complied to ban segregation of interstate travel.