President Nido Quebeins Seminar

 attended President Quebeins speech on communication. I decided to watch this event because my FYS class watched it together in class so i decided i should just do my paragraph on the speech. Honestly there was a lot of interesting points mentioned during his speech. I wouldn't say i learned something new but a new way of thinking about life and communication. President Quebein brought up many great points about communication. Communication not only is how we speak but how we carry ourselves. What do people think when they see you? What is your attitude when you speak to different people. Communication can be the difference between making money and missing out on opportunities to make money. He brought up an excellent point, You can have all the training in the world but that does not mean you know how to apply it. This caught my eye because I really feel like this is something i struggle with. I am fed the right information but i never apply it. When someone gives you advice or training on a particular topic we should use that, and apply it to our everyday life

Plessy V Ferguson

 There is a lot to digest in the case of Plessy V. Ferguson. One side believes that segregation was unconstitutional because it hindered the African American from living similar to the whites, and on the other side they believe that segregation had no intentions on destroying the legal equality of the two races. I strongly believe that Louisiana’s Separate Car Act, “separate but equal” train cars is indeed unconstitutional. Segregated facilities violate the 14th Ammendment’s Equal Protection Clause, which prohibits discrimination based on race, gender, or religon. Plessy should not have been required to give up his right or access to board any train car he wants to. As a fully participating citizen, Plessy should not have been denied any rights given to him by the Constitution. By requiring black people to sit separately on the train car implied that African Americans are inferior to white people and therefore unequal. The Louisiana law violated the Equal Protection Clause and was, therefore, unconstitutional. 

I believe that denying the right to sit on the train showed how much our country views color as a reason to discriminate. 

I believe that the constitution was written color blind, so a person should not have to experience what plessy experienced that day.

Town Hall historical Figure

Hello everyone, My name is Fredick Douglas. As many of you may know, I am a runaway slave. I am from Talbot county, Maryland. I was born into slavery and started working at a young age. Due to my struggles, I became a leader in the abolitionist  movement; as I did not want my people to suffer in slavery any longer. At a very young age, I was taught the alphabet by my owner’s wife. From there that was all I needed; I proceeded to teach myself how to read and write. While also providing the same education to other slaves using the bible. After many failed attempts, I successfully escaped Covey's farm in 1838. After escaping, I boarded a train in Maryland and traveled through Delaware before I finally arrived in New York. After getting married, I began to speak of my past life as a slave in abolitionist meetings. Soon after I began to lecture about anti-slavery , teaching everyone what it truly meant to be a slave and what happens to my people. 

No man can place a chain around the ankle of his fellow man without at least finding the other end fastened about his own neck. No man should be born into slavery, slavery in our society should never have been normalized. I prayed for freedom for 20 years, but received no answer until I started using my legs. I therefore hate the corrupt, slaveholding, women-whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity of this land…I look upon it as the climax of all misnomers, the boldest of all frauds, and the grossest of all libels. Never was there a clearer case of stealing the livery of the court of heaven to serve the devil in.  I have observed this in my experience; whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only increased my desire to be free, and being free is what I gain through determination. However, my mission is not done. I can not be truly free until more people like me can say tall and shout “I’m free!”

Religion Team Challenge

 How do traditional religion view slavery 

How did those views change over time? 

Slavery in the bible. 

Christianity, 

In Christianity, some followers had believed that in the bible when god referred to the word ham, he was referring to black people or people with darker skin color. The word ham is close is the Egyptian word for black(Kem) Only a few branches fo Christianity followed this interpretation of the bible.  In general, for centuries, slavery was permitted and promoted through many church-affiliated states as a way to deal with sin, and if you were a slave, you had sinned and where facing judgment for it. 

Judaism, 

Judaism has a strange history with slavery, they were in fact slaves for a very long time. The idea of slavery is not rejected in religious texts though, and it was common back in the 2nd century for wealthy Jews to own no jews slaves. It was illegal for a jew to own a jew. The idea of slavery was altered by the writing of the Talmud, a very important religious text, where it made becoming free from slavery easier. 

Islam 

Just like most societies, Islamic society’s practiced the slave trade.  Slaves from Africa would be taken and shipped to Islamic countries in the middle east. This occurred at the same time as the Atlantic slave trade to America and when the Atlantic slave trade ended the eastern slave trade continued to grow.  Slavery was altered by Islam though 

   

   Islam greatly limited those who could be enslaved and under what circumstances

• Islam treated slaves as human beings as well as property

• Islam banned the mistreatment of slaves - indeed the tradition repeatedly stresses the importance of treating slaves with kindness and compassion

• Islam allowed slaves to achieve their freedom and made freeing slaves a virtuous act

• Islam barred Muslims from enslaving other Muslims

Christianity

One reason abolitionists are forgotten is that they were inescapably Christian in their motives, means, and vocabulary. Not all abolitionists were orthodox Christians. For the most part, though, most were. But even those who had left the church drew on unmistakably Christian premises, especially on one crucial point: slavery was a sin. Political views could not get in way of political views, and if our country was to use slavery, a form of sin, the country as a whole would need to repent.

Judaism

To begin, in Jewish beliefs states that “Every human life matters” This is definitely visible by the story of Adam, and how 1 human being killed could destroy a whole world. It is no wonder that the Hebrew Bible is so sensitive to human dignity and to freedom as an essential human right. The Bible is actually against the abuses of power, this does include slavery as well as slavery. It is known to break down the biggest of empires. Its main story is of an enslaved people who break free, accept their own laws, and create their own independent state. Even in the 10 commandments, it was expressed as being free from slavery “Slaves above all — is the Fourth Commandment: to rest on the Sabbath in memory of Israel’s liberation from slavery”(Deuteronomy 5: 15). 

Islam

{So when you meet those who disbelieve [in battle], strike [their] necks until, when you have inflicted slaughter upon them, then secure their bonds, and either [confer] favor afterward or ransom [them] until the war lays down its burdens} [Surah Muhammad 47:4].  This is a very unique verse from the Quran because it does not mention slavery being a way to work against slavery. The late journalist and writer Abbas al-Aqqad were not lying when he said that “the Quran legitimizes emancipation and does not legitimize slavery.” However, all that came in the Quran regarding slaves is either to emancipate them, urge their Mukataba (manumission) to redeem themselves, or organize their affairs with kindness, and to be kind to them even in the event of sin…{then for them is half the punishment for free [unmarried] women} [Surah al-Nisa’a 4:25].

The Supreme Court

    Some may ask what is the purpose of the Supreme Court? The Supreme Court is to review is to review cases that are involved on the federal level or that involves the breaking of the constitution. The Supreme Court does not hear domestic cases or cases that have to deal with state laws. Those are handled by the appellate courts. Their key job is to hear a case and interpret the constitution and decide whether or not a case breaches the constitution or is something that is not protected by the constitution. The Supreme Court is the boss in terms of court systems. They play the parent role when the appellate courts are contradicting to the constitution. 

    Marbury v. Madison was the most important court case in the history of United States in which established the idea of Judicial Review. In other words, the power of the Judicial Branch allowed a law being declared unconstitutional. Through the power of judicial review, the Court affirms it’s government to determine the meaning of the constitution. The courts decision as well affirmed that the constitution must always take first in order in any controversy regarding federal or state laws. In this case, for the first time declared a law passed by congress unconstitutional. This significant decision altered power of the Supreme Court and changed the history of the United States. With having so much power, the U.S. Court system became an accomplice with the executive and congressional branches in conducting the nation.