P1+Tovi+J,+Erica+H,+Amalia+G,+Vahe+G

4)
 * Term**: The New Deal Program that Benefited Whites Over Blacks
 * Student**: Amalia

During the times of the New Deal it was thought that these plans would be equal for both black and whites. It didn’t turn out that way. Alfred Reed author of many articles for an online newspaper wrote “The New Deal programs gave more benefits to the whites than they did Black Americans” (Reed). This was because programs that were created by the New Deal program especially the Social Security excluded nearly 90% of the black population. This is because of the fine print in this program and others like it. It excluded those that were agricultural and domestic workers. This obviously was most of the black population. So even though the New Deal was supposed to give everyone the idea of being equal it still affected certain groups more than others.
 * Definition**: [[image:newdeal.jpg width="300" height="416" align="right" caption="A Political Comic demonstrating how the New Deal Program Affected Black Americans"]]

//The Nation//. Race and the New Deal Coalition, 2008. Web. 10 Jan. 2010
 * Works Cited:**

5)
 * Term**: The Scottsboro Trials
 * Student**: Amalia

The Scottsboro trials also known as The Scottsboro Boys Trials are known as a dark time for the black community. It was an incident where nine boys were tried and charged for the assault and rape of two young white girls. These girls were Victoria Price and Ruby Bates. Miss Hollace Ransdall who represented the American Civil Liberties Union was there to write the report on the overall cases. In her final report she wrote, “Nine of the Negroes were seized by an armed posse of officers and men. The other Negroes had left the train before it arrived at Paint Rock and nothing more has been heard from them” (Ransdall). The boys all ranged from the age of 13-20 years of age each tried and convicted as guilty. This was until it was later found that that Victoria Price had lied about the incident. Three of those boys spent a total of 6 years in prison but were later released on parole. The Scottsboro trials reflected and era where the white word was more powerful than the black were the people were separated by a line.
 * Definition[[image:SCOTTS.JPG align="right" caption="The Scottsboro Boys meeting with their lawyer "]]**:

//Famous American Trials//. The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931), 1999. Web. 7 Jan. 2010. lawyer
 * Works Cited:**

6)
 * Term**: Harlem During the Great Depression[[image:Untitled1.png width="301" height="225" align="right" caption="A Public Sign In Harlem"]]
 * Student**: Amalia

During the great depression Harlem suffered dramatically more than any other section of New York. The unemployment rates increased dramatically. Larry Greene a professor at Columbia University wrote in a historical dissertation about Harlem that during the great depression “This left limited social mobility and occupational diversification characteristic of previous decades” (Greene). Before the Great Depression, Harlem was a growing place giving Black American a chance to move up in the social chain of society unlike the times during the great depression. More and more African American needed public assistance because of the fact that living situations decreased because of the lack of jobs. Also as a result of the large unemployment rates was the fact that there was a large number of evictions. Harlem was largely affected and it just decreased the richness of living in Harlem for African Americans. Leaving one of the places that were rich with Black culture to become poorer than any other place in New York.
 * Definition**:

Greene, Larry. “//Harlem in the Great Depression, 1928-1936.//” Columbia University, 1979. 5. //Columbia University Libraries//. Web. 10 Jan. 2010.
 * Works Cited**:

Richard Wright By Tovi Johnson

He grew up on a plantation with an illiterate father and a schoolteacher mother. When he was five years old his parents left and the children were forced to live in an orphanage. According to Ann Rayson, a researcher for Illinois education on modern American poetry, “Wright moved from school to school, graduating from the ninth grade at the Smith Robertson Junior High School in Jackson as the class valedictorian in June 1925. Wright had published his first short story, "The Voodoo of Hell's Half-Acre" (“Richard Wright”). There are no copies left of that story. His illiterate grandmother smothered his attempts at a career in writing. She was highly religious and kept books out of the house. To her fiction was considered a work of the devil. Wright kept his goals in writing to himself to continue working. He moved around much of the time picking up primarily servant jobs to work his way north and avoid Jim Crow Laws. He borrowed an Irish co-workers library card with forged signatures to be able to read the books in the library. Through his efforts he wrote //Native Son// becoming the first number one selling African-American novel making him one of the wealthiest African-American writers of the time.

“Richard Wright’s Life.” //Modern American Poetry//. Illinois.edu, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2010. Segregation By Tovi Johnson

Segregation was a way of life between the mid 1800s and 1900s. There were amendments passed to help create equality between the races, though they were not always effective. According to an exhibit on the Library Congress website, “the Supreme Court handed down a series of decisions that virtually nullified the work of Congress during Reconstruction” (“Century Segregation”). There were laws passed that counted people of color as second-rate citizens. They would separate water fountains between the blacks and the whites, buildings, restrooms, etc. Transportation was a large deal as the front of the bus was designated as white authority. Education was another controversial issue as they would separate black and white schools and classes. This was under a separate but equal clause and civil rights activists continued to fight for desegregation and complete equality.

“A Century of Racial Segregation.” //With an Even Hand//. Library Congress. n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2010. Jim Crow Laws By Tovi Johnson

The Jim Crow Laws were created soon after the American Civil War. They were laws that suppressed the newly freed African Americans. According to an educational document done by Spartacus Educational group, “this included laws that discriminated against African Americans with concern to attendance in public schools and the use of facilities such as restaurants, theaters, hotels, cinemas and public baths” (“Jim Crow”). These laws were made to keep the freedmen as lower class citizens and white as the superior. The people were not willing to make the change from slavery to equality. They would separate entire facilities and transportation. There were those who doubted and fought the laws that were made to keep down the people. One was Plessy who rode on a white only railcar and was arrested and convicted according to the Supreme Court whom enacted separate but equal. These laws went on for over a hundred years and took many attempts to eliminate.

“Jim Crow Laws.” //Spartacus Educational//. Schoolnet.co.uk. n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2010.

Free Will Erica Harris

Free will is the choosing of something based on one’s desires. It is the idea that one can control one’s own actions. The existence of free will is a much-heated debate amongst people. There are different philosophical positions taken on the subject between determinism vs. indeterminism. Free will is the belief people’s fate is not predestined and humans make their own destiny and make their own choices. “Free Will Skepticism: Where Are the Skeptics?” naturalism.org. Naturalism, n.d. Web. 8 Jan 2010.

Fatalism Erica Harris Fatalism is the belief that all things are predetermined or has to do with fate. According to mb-soft.com “The belief that ‘what will be will be’, since all past, present, and future events have already been predetermined by God or another all-powerful force”(General Information). In theology it is called predestination. Humans fates are chosen for them before they are born and got the heaven or hell based on that decision regardless of the good deeds they do in life. “Fatalism”. Mb-soft.org. Mb-soft. N.D. Web. 8 Jan 2010. Literary Naturalism Erica Harris Literary naturalism is a movement in the 19th century that used detailed realism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment played a huge role in the shaping of the character. According to Wendy Pan, an EzineArticle.com expert author, “As such, literary naturalism can be said to be the creation of literary masterpieces that portrays the nature of human beings through detached and objective study based on scientific principles”(Literary Naturalism). A literary naturalist writer would have to approach the novel at a scientific standpoint. One would jot down observations of humans based on heredity and environment. Most of the time the characters used are of poor or middle class status to further show the struggle of humans. By setting the novel around a main character that has a seemingly boring life, many people can relate to the book. Literary naturalism uses scientific methods to produce the literary style seen in works like Native Son. “Things to Know About Literary Naturalism. Ezinearticle.com. Ezinearticle, n.d. Web. 8 Jan 2010.

**Marxism** By: Vahe Ghazarian Marxism is a political and economical view that analyzes capitalism and social change. Marxism is based on the works of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. One of their greatest works was //The Communist Manifesto//. Marxism focuses on three main points. “The three primary aspects of Marxism are the dialectical and materialist concept of History, The critique of Capitalism, Advocacy of proletarian revolution”(“Marxism”). Marxism focuses on social classes. It analyzes the struggles between these social and working classes. Marxism views that world from an Atheist view. Some of the important concepts that Marxism covers are exploitation, alienation, and Ideology.

"Marxism -." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Web. 11 Jan. 2010. Jean-Paul Sartre By: Vahe Ghazarian

Jean-Paul Sartre was a French Existentialist. He was known for having several important titles. Some of these titles included a “philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic”(“Jean-Paul Sartre”). Sartre was drafted during World War II. During the war, he served as a meteorologist in the French Army. As a political activist, Sartre supported communism. Though a great supporter of communism, Sartre never joined the communist party. Sartre was a French Existentialist and he defended Existentialism. As a novelist, Sartre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Sartre declined the Nobel Prize, and later when he changed his mind, it was too late for him to receive the award.

Jean-Paul Sartre -." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia// . Web. 11 Jan. 2010.