Katherine's Global Blog

the collapse of communism

2009-05-13T09:31:00.000-07:00

Read the four links below. Why did Communism collapse in Eastern Europe and the USSR? Why did people tear down the Berlin Wall? What happened to the Soviet Union and how did the collapse of the Soviet Union change the world?
Link 1. Link 2. Link 3. Link 4.

The Berlin Wall first went up in August of 1961. The Berlin wall was a gigantic structure separating the East and Western part of Germany. The east part of germany were all communist and wouldnt allow anyone who wasn't. At least 100 people were shot at the Berlin Wall attempting to get on the other side. In 1989 the Berlin Wall came crashing down. At first this was a problem but then they were able to better their financial situations.

not done...

Nelson Maldela and apartheid

2009-05-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

In my opinion apartheid is a former policy of segregation as well as political and economic discrimination. In this case it was against non-European groups in the Republic of South africa.

Nelson Mandela was fight for freedom. He became a lifelong fighter for the freedom of South Africa. In 1964 he was sentenced for life in prison in order to silence him. Although while in prison it did not stop the people from believing. In 1990 he was set free and that was the ending of apartheid. 5 years from then he was elected president and won the noble peace prize. Thanks to him Apartheid stopped and everyone in South Africa was free.

african independence

2009-05-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

In the 20th year period from 1955 to 1975 africa changed in many ways. The french speaking africans and west indians formed the negritude movement. This was a movement to celebrate african culture, heritage and values. After World War II, many European countries were ready to transfer government to the african people. The british of gold coast allowed more africans to nominated to the legislative council.

If you look at a map from 1955 there was only 4 independent countries and the rest were were colonies. Then in 1975 there was only 3 colonies in africa, while the rest of the countries were independent. Patrice Lumumba became the nation’s first prime minister. He ruled a divided country. In the southeastern province of Katanga, a local leader named Moise Tshombe declared that region’s independence.For 32 years, Mobutu ruled the
country that he renamed Zaire.

NATO and the warsaw pact

2009-04-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

Read the three NATO links below. What were NATO and the Warsaw Pact? Who formed these alliances and why?
Read the three NATO links here.

NATO is an organization with countries in Europe Northen America. Basically NATO was form as an alliance. If they were ever to go war the countries included in NATO would aide them.

The warsaw consisted of the soviet union and stallite countries.

NOT DONE

Film Lesson - Schindler's List

2009-03-26T09:58:00.001-07:00

Schindler's Listed illistrated the Holocaust in being terrible. The details on the graphics, the musical background and just the mood the movie had made you just realize how bad it really was. There was many powerful scenes in this movie like the little girl in the red dress, but i believe it was the scence with the little boy. The little boy escaped from getting into the pick up trucks and he was running so that he wouldn't get caught. He was looking for places to hide (the huts they created under the ground) but all of them were full of people. There was still space but the children replied as it being full. I found that pretty rude in there behalf they should of helped eachother.

The little boy then snuck into the toliets. The toliet was numerous holes in a long block of wood. He jumped right in. I thought he would be the only one in there and that hopefully it would be empty. Although when he jump in there was other kids in there and the toliets were half way full. The kid in the toliet also replied that that was there hidding spot and he didnt belong there. I found this part very powerful.

That image will stay with me as well as the other horrible things I saw in the film. Seeing the little girl dirty and dead heading to get burned, the people that hid in the ghettos getting looked forand shot. Also the man stepping out of his home in the ghetto and getting shot in the head right in front of his family. Those are images that I will remember.

Film Lesson: night and fog

2009-03-26T09:31:00.000-07:00

Watching the film Night and Fog left me very shocked. The pictures that they showed would say it all. The subtitles weren't needed in order to understand what the french man was saying, thats how severe it was. I found the film extremly powerful. I knew that the holocaust was bad but I hadn't realized that it was that cruel.

Both schilndlers List and Night and Fog had very graphic scenes, although they both hit the same topic of how grave it was. I would say that Schindler's List was more effective then Night and Fog. In Schindler's List it showed how the germans had no mercy. Instead in Night and Fog all they really had was pictured or clips.

The Treaty of Versailles(ended WWI)

2009-02-24T09:32:00.000-08:00

The Treaty of Versailles affected Germany at the end of WWI in many ways. Germany took all the blame for WWI. They had to reconstruct all countries involved in WWI. They also had all there overseas colonies taken away as well as all the other ones they had taken over. Not only did they lose all of these things they also lost a lot of military people and were excluded from the legue of nation.

I think that the treaty of versailles was extremley unfair! I like many others believe that the treaty of versailles is what cause WWII. They put all the blame on germany and lowered its power. They werent even able to reconstruct there contries completely.

Historians say that the treaty of versailles led to the rise of Fascism and Adolph Hilter because the treaty of versailles was unfair. They believe that they came back looking for revenge. to regain all the power they once had.

Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) and the Modernization of Turkey

2009-02-13T09:40:00.000-08:00

Mustafa Kemal (aka: Ataturk) modernized Turkey and made it more secular. He made many changes and passed many laws. Secular means not pertaining to or connected with your religion. He believed it was necessary to abolish the fez. He created the Republic of Turkey in 1923, establishing a new government truly representing of the nation's will.

Not only did he modernize turkey he as well aspired to freedom and equality for all. He also wanted the people to wear more modern clothes instead of the robs and religious clothes they wore before.

Film Lesson - "Gandhi"

2009-02-12T09:36:00.000-08:00

Yesturday in class we watched a film on Gandhi. I noticed that he had a great impact on India gaining it's independence. He pointed out in many ways that the Brititsh weren't being fair to the Indians while it was their homeland. They taxed clothes and salt while it was their natural resources. He had many people that supported him and would follow the things he did. Him and his people had a salt march and went to the ocean to collect salt because the British was taxing the salt. The British afterward went and beat the Indians and arrested them.

Not only did they have a slat march and stop the british from making money off them, they also began to make there own clothes. The British would take there cotton make the clothes in Britain and ship it back to India where they had to pay more for the clothes. Through out all this protest they showed no violence. There was a few times that certain people would slip but they made the British look bad because they would not fight back. Ghandi got Indias independence without any violence or rebel.