A case study for our World Development text book...
How useful was digital technology, particularly social networking sites, to democracy protesters in Tunisia and Egypt? How important are the democracy protests in the Middle East and North Africa to world development? Social media has fundamentally changed the cultural and political paradigms.
While we sit here on Facebook and Twitter for a way to connect with friends, share photos of our vacations or follow our favorite celebrities every move places in North Africa and some of the Middle East are using social media to change their country. In countries like Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt people have used these social media sites to disperse information to the general public. Where a rally will be held, a map of where police forces will be located, and what to do in the event teargas is used are all topics for discussion on social media. With the use of these websites a larger group of people are able to take part in the overthrow of the government. With leaders restricting the access to the web even more people were intrigued to join the protests. When people can't follow along on the internet the events they decided to go take part in the events themselves. With the use of these social media websites the Arab Spring in these areas was able to be as successful as it was.
I think it is important that technology plays a role in these revolutions. Before, if a revolution happened, the dictator could just silence its population. Now the population has things like Facebook and Twitter to mobilize their plans of attack for meeting places and advice about how to confront the government. As such, the power of the citizens has grown and according to the article some argue it was this power that made the government officials in Egypt and Tunisia stand down. I tend to agree since the coverage of the event helped increase the size of the demonstrations.
I love that these protests for democracy are being led by the citizens. Since the citizens actually want this type of government, there is actually a chance that this might be what the country needs. As you mentioned during the Solar Diem video, what works for one society may not translate to another. The author of this piece is more than likely from a western democracy given how the author thinks "democratic change offers the only solution" to issues like poverty and internal strife within "Arab" countries. Yet, that isn't the case in the Middle East. By forcing a democratic revolution on Iraq, the region is more destabilized than it was under the harsh command of Saddam Hussein. As you mentioned in class, Iraq needed a dictator like Hussein to keep peace though. So as helpful as technology might be for democratic revolutions, democratic revolution might not be the answer to every countries problems.
The Arab Spring owes its origins to the mass use of social media websites to get organized and launch the protests that ultimately overthrew several dictators in the region. Social media was crucial for the movement to spread like wild fire, as young people all over North Africa and the Middle East banded together against the tyranny of their governments. Protests broke out in every capital of the region, noticeably in Cairo, where the protests briefly transcended ethnic and religious disputes in the name of freedom for all. Although the movement has long since fizzled out in the face of increased violence, instability, and the lack of a consensus among protesters as to what their next move should be, the Arab Spring served as a powerful example as to extent of which the Internet will now play in global affairs. It is a powerful tool that has completely revolutionized the way we live our everyday lives, and it has completely changed the game for much of North Africa and the Middle East.
After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and the United States entered a war in Europe and the Pacific, the nation was overcome by shock, anger, and fear—a fear exaggerated by long-standing anti-Asian prejudice. Ten weeks later President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, under which nearly 75,000 American citizens of Japanese ancestry were taken into custody.
"Jazz is often viewed as a uniquely American genre, frequently considered one of our nation's greatest artistic gifts to the world. The Rhode Island College course 'Jazz & Civil Rights' intensely traces the roots of Jazz from the dark times of slavery throughout the Civil Rights Movement. As a story map & timeline, this guide attempts to cohesively lay out key events in Jazz and the movement while incorporating the curriculum of the Jazz & Civil Rights course."
Seth Dixon's insight:
This Story Map was created by one of my students, exploring the history of Jazz from the times of slavery in the United States to the Civil Rights movement.
"Cartoon shows a young woman carrying buckets on a yoke, looking up at ladder ascending up to the sky, bottom rungs labeled 'Slavery,' 'House Drudgery,' and 'Shop Work.' Top rungs labeled 'Equal Suffrage,' 'Wage Equity,' and 'Presidency.'
Seth Dixon's insight:
An alternative title for this political cartoon that was published in August 1920, was "Enfranchisement now means the sky's the limit, in woman's sphere." Nearly 100 years later it seems quite likely that the presidency (the symbolic top rung on this ladder) will be reached next month. However, the election of President Barack Obama in 2008 did not signify that the United States entered a post-racial era where full racial equality is not a matter of fact. Similarly, the election of a woman, while still being a monumental achievement, won't mean that full gender equality has been achieved. I look at the rungs on the ladder and see that "Wage Equity" was seen place about 3/4ths of the way up. While women certainly make more than they have in the past, they don't earn as much money as their male counterparts in the workforce. Who would have guessed in 1920 that full wage equity would be more elusive than the presidency?
"Few African Americans have excelled at Olympic swimming, which makes Manuel’s gold medal in Rio de Janeiro that much more powerful."
There is a reason why 70 percent of black teenagers, like those who died in Shreveport, and 60 percent of Hispanic teenagers can’t swim. But it isn’t due to some genetic disorder, as some actually believe. It is because of abject irrational racism and Jim Crow and its vestiges.
'There is a reason why 70 percent of black teenagers, like those who died in Shreveport, and 60 percent of Hispanic teenagers can’t swim. But it isn’t due to some genetic disorder, as some actually believe.'
The Rio Olympics is the 28th Summer Olympic games. The first one took place in Athens in 1896 and since then the games have been held in 19 different countries.
"The story of the 25th Infantry's bicycle trip from Missoula, Montana, to St. Louis, Missouri in 1897. The African American infantry took the trip to test a theory that the bicycle would replace the horse in transporting men for the army. The program also examines the life of the African American soldier at the turn of the century, in particular First Sergeant Mingo Sanders." http://www.upworthy.com/the-black-soldiers-who-biked-2000-miles-over-the-mountains-and-out-of-american-history?g=2&c=reccon1
This week, after severe criticism, Scholastic pulled a newly published picture book entitled A Birthday Cake for Mr. Washington. The book, which was written by Ramin Ganeshram and illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton, focused on George Washington's enslaved cook, Hercules, and his daughter Delia, as the two overcome obstacles to make a cake for Washington's birthday.
Many critics argued that it displayed an overly rosy view of a slave's life, and the book was deluged with one-star on Amazon reviews.
Many children, and, sadly, their parents, still need to learn that slavery wasn't idyllic, a boon to their family lives, or an improvement over remaining in their homelands. In fact, slavery was often brutal and dehumanizing even when owners exhibited basic kindness. Slaves were often sold away from their families and loved ones with no notice, destroying what little domestic life they were allowed to have; and the severing of black Americans from their ancestors and heritage in Africa is an irreversible trauma.
These are tough facts to confront kids with, especially young kids, but it's better to start with small doses of truth rather than sowing the seeds for "smiling slave" mythologies. Here are 13 (mostly) honest books for young readers that will help them confront the unpalatable truth of slavery, and celebrate the ingenuity and strength of those who resisted, escaped and survived.
Are you on the wrong side or the right side of history? Is there even a "wrong side" or a "right side"? What do those terms mean and why do politicians and pundits use them? Nationally syndicated columnist and best-selling author Jonah Goldberg explains
Seth Dixon's insight:
Just some context for how the phrase is used in the United States and the ideological assumptions about history.
It's fascinating the diverse places which people came from when entering the US through Ellis Island. I think its pretty odd that someone from the Caribbean region would enter the US through NYC. The diversity demonstrated by these pictures is also impressive, considering that four continents are represented.
It is amazing the lengths to which people will go when faced with the desire and need for a symbol to rally behind. Especially when the search simply ignores so much of the history which happened int the intervening years. One can only wonder what the differences would have been in modern American symbolism if a Native American figure had been chosen.
It’s a big day in American history as September 25 marks the moment that Congress approved a Bill of Rights with 12 amendments to the Constitution. So how did we wind up with only 10?
Globalization has been in process for centuries, and has had a huge effect on Big History, and on Collective Learning. This week, Emily is investigating early globalization through three things that moved around the world and shaped collective learning in the early decades of globalization: Printing, Potatoes, and Plagues.
Printing, Potatoes, and Plagues. Even without being an historian or watching the video, there is no doubt these 3 things had an impact on the whole wide world.
"Here’s a collection of totally ridiculous vintage postcards and posters dated from around 1900 to 1914 warning men of the dangers associated with the suffragette movement and of allowing women to think for themselves. I think my favorite is the postcard where the woman is pinching the man’s ear and forcing him to clean the home. The nerve of her to request such a thing!"
It isn’t enough for a commander in chief to invite friendly academics to dinner. The U.S. could avoid future disaster if policy makers started looking more to the past.
"The adult coloring book fad is not allowed to be dead, not until you’ve gotten your hands on Gretchen Peterson’s delightful little project, City Maps.(And actually, the trend seems to show no signs of abating, if the global colored pencil shortage is any indication.) Peterson (whose career I recently profiled) is a renowned GIS and map design consultant who took a break from writing cartography textbooks to make the book. For your coloring pleasure, she assembles 44 aerial city maps, which are reduced to black outlines at different scales and levels of detail. Familiar urban patterns include Paris’s Arc de Triomphe, Venice’s Grand Canal, New York City’s Central Park, New Delhi’s Lotus Temple, and the Great Pyramids of Cairo."
200 years of America deciding who should be an American.
Seth Dixon's insight:
Understanding the immigrant experience is critical to understanding U.S. history, and in charting out the changing way that we have redefined what it means to be an American.
The student's answers went into an unexpected topic.
Seth Dixon's insight:
This is some good food for thought to consider when making assignments for a class as well as how we treat certain subjects such as slavery in the classroom.
Segregated public facilities, including beaches, were commonplace, but even today, the inequality persists
There are few words more closely associated with 20th-century South African history than apartheid, the Afrikaan word for "apartness" that describes the nation's official system of racial segregation. And though the discriminatory divide between whites of European descent and black Africans stretch back to the era of 19th-century British and Dutch imperialism, the concept of apartheid did not become law until 1953, when the white-dominated parliament passed the Reservation of Separate Amenities Act, which officially segregated public spaces such as taxis, ambulances, hearses, buses, trains, elevators, benches, bathrooms, parks, church halls, town halls, cinemas, theaters, cafes, restaurants, hotels, schools, universities—and later, with an amendment, beaches and the seashore.
GeoInquiries are designed to be fast and easy-to-use instructional resources that incorporate advanced web mapping technology. Each 15-minute activity in a collection is intended to be presented by the instructor from a single computer/projector classroom arrangement. No installation, fees, or logins are necessary to use these materials and software.
Seth Dixon's insight:
These GeoInquiries from ESRI are excellent resources for history teachers looking for ways to bring online maps to life in their classrooms. The are designed for mapping novices, so don't worry if you don't have an GIS background.
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While we sit here on Facebook and Twitter for a way to connect with friends, share photos of our vacations or follow our favorite celebrities every move places in North Africa and some of the Middle East are using social media to change their country. In countries like Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt people have used these social media sites to disperse information to the general public. Where a rally will be held, a map of where police forces will be located, and what to do in the event teargas is used are all topics for discussion on social media. With the use of these websites a larger group of people are able to take part in the overthrow of the government. With leaders restricting the access to the web even more people were intrigued to join the protests. When people can't follow along on the internet the events they decided to go take part in the events themselves. With the use of these social media websites the Arab Spring in these areas was able to be as successful as it was.
I think it is important that technology plays a role in these revolutions. Before, if a revolution happened, the dictator could just silence its population. Now the population has things like Facebook and Twitter to mobilize their plans of attack for meeting places and advice about how to confront the government. As such, the power of the citizens has grown and according to the article some argue it was this power that made the government officials in Egypt and Tunisia stand down. I tend to agree since the coverage of the event helped increase the size of the demonstrations.
I love that these protests for democracy are being led by the citizens. Since the citizens actually want this type of government, there is actually a chance that this might be what the country needs. As you mentioned during the Solar Diem video, what works for one society may not translate to another. The author of this piece is more than likely from a western democracy given how the author thinks "democratic change offers the only solution" to issues like poverty and internal strife within "Arab" countries. Yet, that isn't the case in the Middle East. By forcing a democratic revolution on Iraq, the region is more destabilized than it was under the harsh command of Saddam Hussein. As you mentioned in class, Iraq needed a dictator like Hussein to keep peace though. So as helpful as technology might be for democratic revolutions, democratic revolution might not be the answer to every countries problems.
The Arab Spring owes its origins to the mass use of social media websites to get organized and launch the protests that ultimately overthrew several dictators in the region. Social media was crucial for the movement to spread like wild fire, as young people all over North Africa and the Middle East banded together against the tyranny of their governments. Protests broke out in every capital of the region, noticeably in Cairo, where the protests briefly transcended ethnic and religious disputes in the name of freedom for all. Although the movement has long since fizzled out in the face of increased violence, instability, and the lack of a consensus among protesters as to what their next move should be, the Arab Spring served as a powerful example as to extent of which the Internet will now play in global affairs. It is a powerful tool that has completely revolutionized the way we live our everyday lives, and it has completely changed the game for much of North Africa and the Middle East.