Birth Control Controversy

Birth Control in the late 19th and early 20th century was a very controversial topic. It caught the attention of women and men all around the world. Especially in the United States where in every magazine, newspaper, or street corner talk about the idea of birth control was everywhere. Birth control was such a controversial topic because this was the first time that sex had been thought of as something other than as use of procreation. This bothered some people because of religious beliefs, morals, and lifestyles. However others saw birth control as a great new invention that needed to be spoken about.

When the topic of birth control was first brought up, it was during a time of intense feminism, so this topic fit right in since it pertained to women. The rights of women was a main reason for the fights for contraceptives. Since women were the ones who were going through childbirth and having to take care of the children many people thought it was time for them to be able to have some sort of planing in their pregnancies. Tone a birth control activist said, "They feel it is important for women to gain political and social power by defending their roles as mothers and protectors of virtue." Before birth control for women was brought up everything depended on the men. Contraceptives were only made for men which didn't make much sense to the women because they were not the ones having involuntary pregnancies. Women began to think that no birth control was a disadvantage to their family and to themselves, they wanted to be as involved as the men. This brings back the idea of feminism and the equal rights between men and women.

Margaret Sanger is a name that goes hand in hand with birth control. She was a nurse turned birth control activist in the late 19th century. Margaret Sanger was the "pioneer of the American birth control movement" who argued that women such be free to enjoy the pleasures of sexual activity without any connection to procreation the same as men. Margaret Sanger's mother is thought to be the reasoning for her want to legalize birth control. Her mother died from tuberculous and exhaustion at the relatively young age of 50. She had eleven children that didn't even count her seven miscarriages. Sanger thought that the strain of the pregnancies had caused her mother to be weak and frail. She put her heart and soul in the legalization on women contraceptions and would not stop until her rights had been given. She fought for the repeal of the Comstock Laws, laws that had banned the distribution of contraceptives medications. Her fight consisted of challenging this law by distributing contraceptives and instructional literature to inform people of the rights in which they had. Margaret Sanger continued to live her whole life as a birth control activist and eventually got to see her idea of the birth control pill come to life.

People fought against birth control because of religion and morals. For the longest time sex was only used for procreation not pleasure. It was not a simple activity to be taken lightly, but a serious matter that no one seemed to take seriously anymore. Many people thought that women were put on this earth specifically for procreation and the fact that humans were taking advantage of this greatly aggravated them. Politicians and other important people feared the nation may be headed into a "time of sexual anarchy" that could not be stopped if continued. Some extremists even thought that the birth control pill was a major element in the falling apart of the standards of sexual mortality. In the bible it is said that a women should not lie with a man unless they are wed, so for most religious people unwed sex for pleasure was disrespectful to God.

The only way that activist such as Margaret Sanger could share her thoughts about birth control throughout the United States was through communication, persuasion, and collaboration. Without these three things the legalization of contraceptives could not have been possible. Communication was a big one because without the talking of birth control nothing would have started. The conversational aspect of any situation is key to the success of that situation. Ester Katz the editor of Margaret Sanger's Paper said, "Sanger, initially sought the support of liberal proponents of scientific eugenics in an effort to gather main stream support for birth control." This quote shows how Margaret Sanger used communication and collaboration to achieve her goal of contraceptions for women.

Birth control has come a long way since the topic was first brought up in the late 19th century. There are many different views and opinions on the subject and with this come both the positive and the negative. All it takes is one brave voice such as Margaret Sanger to start a worldwide phenomenon such as birth control. With many different aspects came the legalization of women contraceptives as well as the equality that men and women have now over this subject matter.

Birth Control Protester

Advertisement of America's First Birth Control Clinic

Margaret Sanger: Birth Control Activist

Present Day Birth Control

Margaret Sanger Paper:The Birth Control Review

Sources

1. HRC Margaret Sanger Segment I found this video to be very important to my research because it gave a look into how the people of this time period were dealing with the concept of birth control. It was a great primary source that put me into the time period. 

2. PBS Article on Margaret Sanger This source helped me to figure out why and exactly what Margaret Sanger was fighting for. 

3. Margaret Sanger Public Writing I found this source very important because it allowed me to read actual words of Margaret Sanger and be able to get into her head.This was a great primary source to use to figure out the way that she thought. 

4. Medicinenet History of Birth Control This was a good site to use because it allowed me to view the medical side of the topic instead of just the opinion and people based side. 

5. PBS Primary Source Article from 1966 This article found in a magazine in 1966 helps me to see the other views surrounding birth control, so I see both the positive and negative outlooks on it.

6. Margaret Sanger Bibliography I wanted to learn more about Margaret Sanger's background, how she grew up, family, etc. This bibliography was a great source for that.

7. History of Birth Control- Wikipedia Wikipedia was my first source that I looked out to get a bases understanding of my topic and learn a few things without getting to in depth.

8. American History Textbook

How Do You Analyze a Political Cartoon

When I am trying to analyze a political cartoon the first thing I do is look at the drawings and try and figure out the little hints and add ins used to portray the political situation.

Teachers Guide: Analyzing Political Cartoons
        -observe
        -reflect
        -question
These are the three steps that the guide told me to do when analyzing a political cartoon. I had the observing part correct but missed the refection and question asking section of the analyzation process. Now when I analyze a political cartoon I will not only observe what I see why question the importance and why it was but into the cartoon.

1.

Clifford Berryman Political Cartoon Collection
On first glance of this political cartoon my eyes went straight to the boot crushing the Philippines. Your mind then wanders over to the sign that says, "Notice. The US has requested to withdraw P.D.Q" and the little man next to the boot. After the observance I started to think about the meaning of all of these things and why they were placed into the cartoon. The boot is representing America because of the flag pattern on the pants and its overpowering hold that it has over the island. The small man next to the boot is used to show the Philippians are putting up for their country. This political cartoon causes the viewer to question the intrusion of the Philippians and to show the power that America had over them.

2.    Uncle Sam Political Cartoon WhiteBurden

  When observing this political cartoon the first obvious thing that is seen is Uncle Sam, Americas mascot spanking a Filipino with what looks like straw. The Filipino is drawn as a child being punished and Uncle Sam drawn as the father figure having to do the punishing. After I observed everything in the political cartoon, I then start to think of the importance of the parts of the cartoon. I think that Uncle Sam is spanking a Filipino because he is scolding him for not listening to him and being unfit to run his own country. This political cartoon causes the viewer to question the intenseness of the hold that America has over the Filipino community.








3. American Propaganda and War in the Philippines
This political cartoon is depicting three men one Filipino, one Hawaiian, and one Cuban joining together in celebration over the Independence of America. You can tell this by the American flags that are being waved and the caption of the cartoon itself. This cartoon is important because it shows the coming together of all the countries. The political cartoon makes you question why they didn't come together earlier because of the happiness that is seen on their faces.

1st Semester Essay

1st Semester Essay 

           The United States of America has undergone a mass of transformations since Columbus first set foot on American soil. So far in this year of US history class we’ve learned an ample amount of things from segregation, to reconstruction, to cowboys, to the industrial boom, and so much more. Through all these changes have come new economies, new forms of politics, and countless new societies.

In a way this is what I was most pleased to learn about the United States. I enjoyed studying all the hardships that the United States has surpassed, building up to the country that we live in today. Seeing the great business typhoons emerge and submerge as their legends live on for new generations to admire and learn from, as well as the rise and fall of fads such as the romanticized west. Retaining the knowledge of the allure of the United States and why it was so appealing to others; from the better job opportunities, to the political and religious freedom, to the overall opportunities that we had to offer.  Seeing the quantity of conversions that our country has gone trough as well as the success and failure that occurred to reach our present day position has allowed me to have a steady foothold in our past.

With all the good however came some bad, from our semester only one thing really displeased me about our countries history. The downgrading way that we treated the people that simply didn’t look like us for that reason alone. Stating off with the majorly obvious example of this, slavery. Native Americans were treated terribly because of the color tone in their skin, they were not allowed the chance to succeed in life simply because of this one thing that set them about from the “average” white American citizen. Elaborating on more people that were looked down upon in earlier society were immigrants in the early to late 19^th century. Simply because their native born country was not the United States, equal rights were not received. Lower wages, social isolation, and horrific living conditions were the effects of this patronization. Learning about the unfairness that was cast onto harmless lives was very unpleasing for me to hear about my beloved country.

From this semesters studies in ten years I will be able to talk about in great detail slavery and the impact that it had on me. If you were to stop anyone on the street and ask him or her if they knew what slavery was their answer would be yes. Everyone knows what slavery is, but a lot of people don’t really know the true horrors that come with slavery. Through the historical film study of 12 Years a Slave I was able to see the true feelings that were experienced and pain that was endured for numerous years. To me slavery is one of the most important things that an American citizen should know in great detail about because of the intenseness that it embodies.

If I were to name the time of history of the United States from 1865 to 1920 the name would be the Age of Transformation and Reformation, because of the changes that the United States went through in this time. Varying from social, to political, to economical change all add up to the country in which we call home today.

Thinking About Success

Thinking about Success

Luck 

Opportunity 

Skill 

Hard work 

Ingredients of Success: 

1. Hard work 

2.Opportunity 

3. Skill 

4. Luck 

I personally think that hard work is the number one factor to success because their is no way that you can achieve something without working for it. The harder you work the more successful you will be. I chose opportunity as the second most important factor in being successful because with great opportunities comes great things. Without opportunities nothing can be done. Opportunities can make or break a career. I ranked skill as third because skill is important but it is not everything. Hard work can make up for skill. If you aren't great at something but you work at it then it will eventually become easier for you and become almost natural instinct. Luck is the last in the ranking because it is something that can not be relied on. If you base your entire life on luck, your life is a gamble. Hard work and dedication to something is much more promising than hoping that luck will be their to catch you if you fall. 

Consumer Summary

While ready both articles on the growing consumer retailing I have learned that their are multiple ways to sell relatively the same thing. In the Business Week article about the chain store Zara I learned that they use the idea of fast fashion. Zara uses fast fashion and predicting what their customers want to make their brand successful. In the Forbes article I learned about how H&M heavily relies on guessing what the up and coming trends will be to allow their brand to succeed. H&M doesn't stock their stores as much as Zara and many would argue that this is why H&M is not the number one store and Zara is. Zara has new clothing items to display every week which keeps their customers interested and makes them continue to come back for more. They are one of few stores that use this method of retail because of the intensity that it requires to run smoothy. However it is shown to be an affective method for those who are willing to put the time into it.
Reading these two articles has shown me that their is much more of a science behind retail than I had ever known. The amount of different ways to buy and consume is quite amazing to think about. Shopping seems like such a simple thing when in reality it is very unique and tedious task that takes a lot of hard work to succeed.

Immigration Letter

Dear Mom,
Its been seven months since Sarah and I came here to America. The least I can say is that its been
interesting. Its not how I thought it would be, yet it is better then we had. I thought that coming to
America would give me a chance to get my professional career going, however that is completely untrue. The only jobs I can seem to find are factory jobs, no one takes me seriously as a profession.

I thought the americans were going to be welcoming, don't get me wrong some are but most don't even make eye contact with us. Its like their on a completely different level than us just because of where we are born. The place that we live is rough, its small with no windows or heating. I feel like I'm letting Sarah down which is the last thing I want to do to her and to you. You let your only two daughters come to America for a new start and its not what we thought it was going to be at all. Even with all the bad there is still good that is coming out of this. Life here, though it may be rough now is growing into a life that was much needed.

Sarah and I are beginning to learn and adapt to the culture here, while staying true to what we learned from home. Learning the language was hard at first. But now that I have to speak english at work and Sarah has to learn it at school, it is becoming much easier. Factory life is hard but I have to work my way up to the jobs that I desire. Nothings going to come easy here. We will have to work hard but eventually we will be better than ever. This move was definitely worth it, please think about coming. We miss you and don't want to live separated anymore.

We love you.

Native American Research Project

Native American Research Project: Western Artists

When the west began to advance into a civilization artists started to gravitate towards it as their new muse. Artists wanted to depict the west because of the culture, beauty, and lifestyle that had never been seen before. The west was a new world that was waiting to be seen through the eyes of others. Some artists looked at the west in a romanticized way, while others trying to capture what they believed as the true west. Fritz Scholder was one of few artists that wanted to show the realism and actuality of the west, and Albert Bierstadt was one of many to romanticize and idealize the west.

Fritz Scholder was a well-known painter before the movement of western/ Indian painting, but this movement put him on the map. Fritz was annoyed at the fact that all art surrounding the west were these beautiful landscapes and high cultural people. He wanted to show the authenticity and reality of an Indian, or better known as a person. Even though this was his goal he sometimes struggled to meet it. During this time, romanticized art was a humongous fad that could not be stopped. Thus leaving Fritz with a hard challenge that he had to overcome. Fritz Scholder’s main subject matters included: locals where he worked, his ethnic heritage, and various romantic and misguided ideas of the west. The main reason that Fritz wanted to depict the Indians as their true selves was because he was sixteenth percent Indian from his grandmother. He did not embrace this side of his heritage until he began to paint them and realized that he had to show the truth. Fritz wanted to show Indians in the twentieth century such as in cars or drinking a can of beer. To emphasize that Indians are normal people, yes they do have a great culture that surrounds them but that is not all that Indians are. This way of the thinking is the reason today that Fritz is regarded; he changed the way that Indians were respected. This did not happen right away however. Most people really didn’t like the way he chose to show Indians and their lifestyle. People wanted to see the beautiful and captivating images they were used to, instead of the green faces distorted bodies that Fritz was painting. This did not get to Fritz at all, he loved any sort of reaction he could get from his paintings, “I’m interested in someone reacting to my work and I don’t care if they react negatively or positively, as long as they react.” This quotes was taken from a documentary from 1975 about Fritz Scholder. The first painting of Fritz Scholder’s that is shown below is called “Untitled Portrait of an Indian”. This painting is a simplistic, rugged painting that shows the culture with the feathers on the top of the head. However the abstractness from this paintings show that Fritz was not in anyway trying to show the beauty of an Indian, he was showing the true beliefs and lifestyle of an Indian.  The third paining that is shown below is called, “Indian with Beer Can”. This piece is one of Fritz Scholder’s most well know and most controversial of all of his paintings. As you can see the painting shows an Indian casually holding a beer can like any other man would. This was huge. People did not like to see Indians doing things that they did because they didn’t people that Indians were on the same level as them. Some believed them to higher and some believed them to be lower. All in all however Fritz Scholder completely kept his promise to himself that he would not romanticize the west, and with this kept promise came one of the most influential painters of the Western time period.   

Albert Bierstadt was a wonderful and beautiful painter that made his mark in the world by painting romanticized versions of the west. Albert was always a landscape artist but with the western movement of art came his fame. Albert painted what he saw but altered it to create an even more awe-inspiring look. He believed that things were beautiful, but that he could make them even better. Most of Albert’s paintings were done on huge canvases to emphasize the effect of greatness. Albers painting of the newly accessible American West made him a renowned artist. Unlike Fritz Scholder he painted to shoe beauty and love instead of true culture and lifestyle. Albert did paint culture but the way that he painted it changed the way people viewed it. When viewers look at romanticized art they immediately think beauty and are instantly moved by what they see. This is why most people gravitate towards romanticized work or realism work. People want to see what they see instead of having to comprehend what the artist is trying to show. Albert Bierstadt believed that, “our own country has the best material for the artists in the world”. Both of Albert’s paintings that are below us complex color patterns that are pleasing to the eye and that make you want to continue glancing at the paintings. He did show Indian settlements but they are from far away and not personalized in any way. Fritz Scholder put so much personality into every single one of his paintings. You can feel the emotion that is being depicted from the painting. While Albert Bierstadt chose landscapes looking in onto Indians instead of initially drawing the emotion he sees. Albert Bierstadt was an amazing painter that fully captured the beauty and life of the west; he completely captured the imagination of all Americans in the ninetieth century.

Both artists are amazing for different things, Albert Bierstadt is known for his beauty and moving sensation that is captured through his art. Fritz Scholder is known for his realism and starkness of his paintings. I personally feel as though Fritz Scholder paintings had more of an impact on me because of the emotion and truth behind it, while Albert Bierstadt’s paintings are lovely and awe-inspiring they do not convey a certain truth about the west. 

Fritz Scholder untitled portrait of an Indian

Fritz Schilder "The American Indian"

Fritz Scholder "Indian with a Beer Can"

Albert Bierstadt "Indian Encampment, Shoshone Village "

Albert Bierstadt "View of Chimney Rock, Ohalilah Sioux Village in Foreground"

1. Academy of Achievement Fritz Scholder Biography
2. NYTimes Fritz Scholder
3. Fritz Scholder: indian not indian Book  
4. Fritz Scholder Voice of America Article
5. Albert Bierstadt Biography
6. Encyclopedia Britannica Albert Bierstadt
7. Haggin Museum Albert Bierstadt