Blog #11

In reading Pauline Hopkins' “As the Lord Lives, He Is One of Our Mother’s Children”  and Claude McKay's poems, I was able to realize the social changes in the United States after the Civil war. Though there were positive changes in reference to African Americans gaining little rights, lynching became a big problem facing this minority group. When we look at change, we see positive but then as soon as it grows, it gets beaten to the ground in this case. What was so hard for me to understand and maybe this goes along with a perplexing question is that though they were given rights, how was lynching to be able to take place.
In the reading "As the Lord Lives, He is One of Our Mother's Children," lynching was brought to this small town and many whites went after black men in jail first and were to lynch them in front of the crowd. "They only way you can teach these niggers a lesson is to go to the jail and lynch these men as an object lesson. String them up! That is the only thing to do" (pg 245). However, Rev. Stevens discovered a black man who can pass off as a white male hiding from being lynched. In the end, however, the individual is lynched though the true murderer had been caught and he was innocent. While reading this, it brought many questions in regards to freedom and the American dream. The same idea came to mind when reading the poems by Claude McKay. "If we must die, o let us nobly die. So that our precious blood may not be shed."  The reason the Civil War was fought was primarily in reference to slavery. After, they were gained extra rights and many would think that this would be it. However, things changed dramatically when the idea of lynching came about. Due to the fact that many whites feared that blacks would now become a threat, they referred to this as a way to deal with the problem. In tying it all together, the question still comes up to how this was even seen as something right politically and morally. If they had gained rights, what's there to be in fear of? How is lynching solving a purpose and how does it correspond with what was written in the Constitution? 

The Aha Moment

In reading both Frances EW Harper's poem, "Learning to Read" and Charles W. Chesnutt's short story, "The Wife of his Youth", I cam to realize the message of both of the writings. While reading, I realized that both of them talked about slavery and how the African Americans try to become something of themselves, proving better of the white Americans. Both texts represent a sense of "independence" and showing to others that they are no longer going to sit around and watch but make an impact and capture this American Dream that we have previously talked about. In reading "Learning to Read", I got the sense of that underlying message. The quote from the poem, "Our masters always tried to hide, book learning from our eyes; Knowledge did’nt agree with slavery—’Twould make us all too wise. But some of us would try to steal a little from the book. And put the words together,And learn by hook or crook" is one example of showing detachment from their white slave owners and really setting forth their goals. Teaching themselves to read even though it was prohibited showed that African Americans no longer had a fear of their White slave holders anymore and were willing to do whatever it takes. However, by these sorts of actions taken by these African Americans, a sense of fear starts to overcome the white Americans. 
Both readings talk about this aspect of African Americans and their being in the United States at this time. In "The Wife of his Youth", explained the same message as well; become something better as an emancipated slave. I thought that both readings were very insightful and really laid the ground work for class discussions in this sense of overcoming of the barriers and what this may cause in regards to the reactions of the white Americans. 

Contemporary Connection

In stating the connection between today and that of the time of the late 1800s to the early 1900s, politics would be one connection made. In reading the first couple of pages of the reading, I instantly made a connection between the two time periods. After the civil war, many changes were made politically. With the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment, individuals were provided rights to all qualified adult males, regardless of race or previous condition of servitude (pg 6). By this, the amendment enable African American men to participate fully in the political process, both as voters and as representatives on the state and national level and several African Americans were consequently elected to Congress (pg. 6). In reading this, I made the obvious connection to president Obama's election. Before elected, African Americans have been underrepresented in politics in both House and Congress. In electing an African American president, it got rid of the underrepresentation of African Americans since now an African American is the Commander in Chief and leader of the country. It shows that after the civil war, change was needed as a country to grow and come out of this time period in which the country was divided between North and South. In current times, the same situation was needed in which change was needed within a political aspect and bringing someone new and fresh to the arena created some sort of hope in which people needed after the economic downfall and tragedy of 9/11.
In addition, another political connection was noted between the two different time periods. The withdrawal of the troops, which had been deployed to ensure free elections and to protect black populations from attacks by whites who were determined to retain political power in the South, delivered a fatal blow to the civil rights and political aspirations of African Americans (pg 7). I used this example to make a connection between  the two due to the fact that it reminded me of the involvement of US troops in Afghanistan. With the announcement from President Obama to withdrawl the troops from Afghanistan, many would probably feel the same as what the African Americans felt at that time.
The last connection I made was the economic situations of both times. Immigration and rapid industrialization also generated growing conflicts between labor and corporations, or trusts, controlled by a few wealthy men. During what historians called the "Guilded Age", industrialists amassed huge fortunes through cutthroat business practices and exploitation of labor. The flood of immigrants created a massive surplus of labor in the United States where wages further declined during the depressions following the financial panics of 1873, 1884, and 1893 (pg 18). I felt that this was similar to current times when industrialists or banks did the same to other corporations in regards to the housing market which caused part of the economic downfall in recent years. With the increasing flow of immigration to the Unite States currently, many would consider this time period to be the time period of the late 1800s-1900s.

Speech/Writings of Brown and Garnet

     The two texts chosen to be analyzed were that of John Brown and Henry Garnet in which they seemed to be in conversation with each other. Both speeches by the two individuals involved the issue involving slavery and how it is unjust. In addition, both speeches don't disagree with each other but agree on their issue being made. In Brown's speech, Brown argues his belief in the freedom of slaves which he was known before to be apart of the pro slavery militia for control of the Kansas Territory (356). However, he argues before others that he has done the right thing. "The New Testament, which teaches me that all things whatsoever I would that men should do to me, I should do even so to them. It teaches me further to remember them that are in bonds as bound with them" (1358). This statement made before his decision made upon his life is pretty powerful in the respect that he uses religious quotes to serve as a way to bring justice upon the lives lost. In regards to the American Dream, this speech serves as an action that because you help slaves, you loose your freedom in which he feels that should not be allowed but accepts in the end.
      In Garnet's speech, he touches upon the issue of slavery and the injustice populations in American society is facing leading into the unsuccessful gain of the so called American dream. Garnet makes statements such as "He shall be equal before the law, and shall be left to make his own way in the social walks of life" (1376) and "We ask for no special favors, but we plead for justice" (1378) which heavily goes along the lines of a call to end slavery and that the American dream has seemed to be no where to be found or basically "taken away from those who should not be allowed to have it."
     In looking at which author happened to be most persuasive, I would go along the lines of Garnet's speech. In the reading, Garnet brought many powerful arguments to the table in which sent a powerful message to consider to put an end to the slavery crisis and restore the American dream within our culture/society. Garnet seems to even ask questions throughout the reading such as "The great day of the nation's judgement has come, and who will be able to stand?" (1377) which allows for a form of thought for the reader. 19th century readers would be persuaded by such writers/ speakers through relating to them. Most readers who read these forms of writing tend to read with the intent of relating to the writer and maybe gain some inspirations or ideas to maybe change their thought process or their forms of actions. In forms of geography, readers who read writings from writers from different geographical locations would lean towards those from their neck of the woods than somewhere they aren't too fawn of. (ex: north readers reading authors from the north, etc). If an individual who lives in the south read an authors speech or writing that advocated the release or end of slavery, he would probably disagree rather than a southerner reading that same writing or speech given.