Museum Trip 2 - New York Historical Society.

  I definitely enjoyed my trip to the New York Historical Society. It was interesting to see how New York City, played such a vital role in World War II. It may have been through factory production the enlisting troops to fight, or women doing the jobs of men. New York City and its residents did play a major role in support of allied troops.
 
One of the artifacts that I selected was the "Medals of Dishonor" by David Smith. So often are medals produced to honor those who made immense sacrifices for others during war. I find it interesting that in 1939 someone would actually produce an award for Munition makers who assisted in the bombing of innocent people during war time.

  The second artifact which I selected were "Women at Work" by Sarah Goldsmith. She produced these dolls that were replica's of women and the different career paths they incurred in support of the war. One women was a factory worker, the other was a nurse, and office worker. I selected this because it showed how women made a significant contribution to the war without leaving the home front.

  The third artifact which I selected was a painting by Thomas H. Benton: "The Year of Peril Casualty" 1942. A man dead and a ship that has been destroyed at sea. These incidents occurred many times during World War II, this portrait is a hand painted picture of a moment in time that will never be forgotten. This painting shows the pain and suffering of going to war and how many people suffer, due to violence of war.

Metropolitan Museum Trip.

  I enjoyed my experience at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The great entrance and stairs provide a big space for congregation and meeting before entering a huge building and beginning a marvelous adventure filled with history, education and knowledge. The cathedral ceilings create this vast open space in combination with corridors and stairwells. If you are unfamiliar with your surroundings you may become lost and submerged in a world of Art. The rooms are divided up into different eras of time and provide a depiction of lifestyles using photographs, furniture and paintings. All this combined allows us to become connected with the art we view.    

One of the Artifacts I selected was a photograph of Procession of Troops and Civilians on way to dedication of soldiers National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The one aspect of this photo that I enjoyed was the formation, and how all the soldiers march together in unison towards their destination. We also get a glimpse of the landscape and how early Americans lived. The artist of this photo is Charles J.Tyson and the accession number is 33.65.174.Located in gallery 199.

The second Artifact a painting I selected was Struggle series 10: Washington crossing the Delaware by Jacob Lawrence. This painting located is located in gallery 911 and its Accession number is 2003.414. The blood on the side of the boat indicates struggle and the men are covered in heavy quilts, they are freezing in the rigid Delaware.

  

The third Artifact was a photograph that makes you think about the suffering of war and the devastating toll on the family, especially the children. Frank, Fredrick and Alice, The children of the battlefield by Wenderoth, Taylor and Brown. This picture illustrates the immense sacrifices of war and how families are affected. It was the only formal way for a dead soldier to be discovered by his family because his name tag had been lost at war.

A review of two stories written by:Paul Lawrence Dunbar.

   Paul Lawrence Dunbar has written two similar pieces depicting how race has played a major factor in the decision making of law enforcement and community. These two stories “Lynching of Jube Benson” and “Sport of the Gods” give us a perspective of racism, and how it can create injustice and inequality in society. It also gives us a perspective that darker complexion people are guilty of more crimes than whites. In this blog I will summarize the occurrences of both stories and show how they collaborate and focus on racism and the negative consequences it can create.  

    The story of the “Lynching of Jube Benson” explains how a white man who committed a murder is not prosecuted. Instead the server of the victim is blamed for her murder. Jube is not given a trial or a chance to prove his innocence, before he is killed. Immediately after the servant is hung, the individual who committed the crime Tom Skinner is discovered hiding in the barn with dirt on his face. He has colored his white skin with dirt to appear as dark colored person. He is a murderer and a rapist, yet he is not prosecuted. Jube brother is the person who discovers the actual perpetrator. The brother of Jube tries to cut the rope and save his brother’s life it is too late, he is dead. This great injustice was performed so that a community may remain calm thinking the criminal was apprehended. This perception of the colored man, being always guilty of crime.

   In the story of the “Sport of the Gods” is about a free black man, his name is Berry Hamilton. He is a former slave who becomes a servant to a rich white family. He works for the family for many years and is considered a loyal employee. He is such a great servant that he is given a cottage for his family on the Oakley’s estate. The Oakley’s discover a quantity of money is missing from their home. Frank Oakley blames Berry Hamilton for this theft and subsequently Berry pleads his innocence. This is not enough to persuade the Oakley’s, and Berry is prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Berry is given an obscene amount of incarceration. They court system made an example of this slave who turned free man and now has become a slave again.

   These two stories written by Paul Lawrence Dunbar have strong racial convictions, intertwined in the literature. The racial profiling that occurs in these two stories is egregious and dissatisfying, especially through the course of the text where the author himself unveils the fact that these two main characters are really innocent. Is being punished for a crime you commit lawful? The violations of basic human rights due to race are evident in these two short stories.   

"Slave and Citizen"

   We as people are all expecting to be treated with a certain amount of dignity and respect. Human rights are a guideline to treating all humans regardless of color, creed, and religion. These ideas coincide with a religious aspect of harmonious living and treating all our brothers and sisters as we expect to be treated.

   The problem was slavery in the United States did not follow this basic human right system. A rampart  was created by the white Americans in the United States to stop the black man from achieving equal rights,  according to the book, “Slave and Citizen” by Frank Tannembaum page 42. He also states, “That this barrier has served to deny the Negro the very things that are of great importance among us, equality of opportunity for growth and development”. These main factors have played a major role in the development of African American men in the United States.

   In the book on the same page mentioned above, there is one line that is of great significance, “This barrier has not completely been effective”. That means through perseverance and the willingness to overcome adversity and slavery, American black men have become successful.  This key fact allows us to understand that success may be derived from experience, knowledge.

   Experience allows the individual to remember their history, and prepare for obstacles that might confront them in the future. Knowledge allowed the black man to have a deeper understanding of the struugle they faced within the American Society. I believe that these two qualities greatly enhanced the success of the African American in the United States.

 

The Eugenics of Social Darwinism in comparison to”David Walkers Appeal”.

The Eugenics of Social Darwinism in comparison to”David Walkers Appeal”.

   The quest for equality has taken the human race through a long arduous process.
 The release of the slaves in the Caribbean in the 1830’s by the British Empire is prime example of the struggle that early humans faced due to lack of understanding and education. It took the Abolitionists 70 years to dismantle the notion of slavery within the British Empire. The idea that humans who were not taught to behave or act civilized, were slaves to an advanced society.This seemed to be the reasoning behind the slavery and destruction of people due to different race or skin complexion.

    It is amazing that a push for human rights and the abolishment of slavery would be used as propaganda to increase dominance of the British Empire across the world; this seemed to benefit aristocracy or previous slave owners in regards to owning more property and increasing wealth through expansion of government, by giving people freedom, so they can be governed.

   
In comparison “David Walkers Appeal” is reminding the supposed dominating race that equality must be demonstrated in actions not just in words. David Walker uses the Declaration of Independence to promote equality of men.   He also highlights the fact that African Americans have faced the most extreme form of oppression, and I quote, “they have been treated less than men”. In essence the basic human rights of African American men have been denied in America. His letter demonstrates the need for change in the United States.