Modern Abolitionists

Modern day slavery has been a topic of discussion for a while, and we have previously talked about underpaid workers in foreign factories. However, this article in the New York Times also brings up the issue of human trafficking. While it is worse in other countries, human trafficking often takes place in the United States. Thousands of people in the United States are held against their will and are victims of exploitation. They are forced to work endless hours for no pay. As Obama has declared, human trafficking is modern day slavery.

What I find most interesting about the article is how it was closed. It ends with, "For those who insist they would have been abolitionists during the Civil War, now is the chance to become one." I find this especially interesting, because so many people learn about slavery, and do not doubt that if they had lived during that time, they would have done everything they could to help free the slaves. I admit to having thought that about myself at times. It is so easy to recognize the wrongs of slavery now, and say that you would have done something. But in reality, there is a form of slavery going on in our own country right now, and very few people have been doing anything to stop it.

I believe that there needs to be more awareness of human trafficking in the United States for anything to be done. How can we bring awareness? Do you think that people who claimed they would have done something during the Civil War will do anything to help stop modern day slavery?

Tragedy Strikes: Cause for Change

On Friday, a tragic shooting of 26 innocent victims happened in an elementary school in Newton Connecticut. Americans all over the country are grieving for the victims and are sending out their support and keeping everyone affected in their thoughts. For the most part, we as Americans are coming together to grieve for the victims. Memorials and tributes are everywhere, and the list of the victims was published to keep their memory alive.

However, the tragedy also brings up the controversy of gun regulation, an ongoing battle for many Americans. I personally believe that something needs to be done about our gun control policies in order to better prevent these mass shootings from continuing to happen so frequently. I know that having stricter gun regulations will definitely not completely stop the violence, but anything that may help us get a little closer to limiting the amount of gun violence in America I believe is a success.

Many people also believe that now is not the time to be arguing about gun polices because we should only be remembering the victims. While I agree that it is of utmost importance to remember the victims and send our support, I think that now is the time to act on gun regulations. Right now is when Americans are outraged, right now is when we have enough motivation to make something happen. In a few months, probably even sooner, the Sandy Hooke tragedy will just be a distant memory for many Americans. Most people, besides those directly affected, will go back to their daily lives, and not think about the tragedy anymore. However, events like this keep happening, so I think that in order to prevent future tragedies, we need to discuss these issues now.

Do you agree that now is the time to discuss gun regulations? What are your opinions on gun regulation?

The Civil War: The War of Northern Aggression?

Last week, someone mentioned that in the south, the Civil War was always taught as The War of Northern Aggression. I have never heard the Civil War referred to as that in my entire life, so it really got me interested in how the same subject could be taught so differently depending on your geographic location. The material that kids learn are so biased based on what their teachers chose to teach them and their teachers' biases come from what they learned in school. So the education system is a cycle of biases. I think that it is really strange that a student in the south could be learning completely different things from a student in the north. I think that there needs to be a way for the gap in the education system to be bridged.

It was mentioned in class that the Civil War wasn't about slavery, but was about "the north trying to destroy the south's economy." While I respect that person's opinion, I believe that the main reason for the war was about slavery. There were obviously other factors, but the central conflict of the war, based off of my previous knowledge, was slavery. A professor at Clemson University wrote here about her experience of hearing about the War of Northern Aggression from some of her students. She asked her students to think about the rhetoric of the terminology, "about why a specific region calls it something that inherently blames the entire rest of the country for the war and its devastating repercussions to the South." I think the terminology in itself teaches students in the south that the south was the innocent side in the war. The north came in to ruin the south and take away their rights. I probably also have a pretty biased view of the war, in thinking that the north was a reluctant hero of sorts, just trying to free the slaves and keep the country united. However, I am trying to gain a less biased view of everything that I learn, so I am trying to be open to every side of history.

How do you think our education system is impacted by bias? Is there a way to eliminate it? Also, what do you think about the Civil War being referred to as The war of Northern Aggression?