Democratizing Twentieth Century Break Assignment

You will be writing term papers and making group presentations this spring. These papers, coupled with your final exams will be about fifty percent of your second semester grades.

Much of the work we do after the Labor Movement unit will be dedicated to preparing for these projects.

In groups you will investigate the roots of a particular New Left reform movement and present the legislative and cultural changes it brought. You can read a little more about the New Left here: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display.cfm?HHID=376

The groups are as follows:

Civil Rights and Black Power Movements

The Anti-War and Student Movements

People of Color: Latino and Native American Cultural Liberation Movements

The Women's Liberation Movement

The Gay and Lesbian Liberation Movement

The objective of the response paper is to develop your understanding and interpretation of the assigned readings and films—and thus some of the forces that helped expand democracy and equality in 20^th century America. Your paper should respond to the following questions:

1. Why then? Why did the endeavor for this reform get underway when it did?
   
2. What gains were won? What gains were sought but not won?
   
3. If the reform was only partially achieved, what limited its attainment?
   

More detailed guidelines and requirements for the projects will be posted shortly, but please remember that all of upcoming readings (including break readings) will have connections to this project. I will post the groups soon. If you have any special requests, please email me at copeland.jl@gmail.com

Break Assignment:

1. Read and take notes on the following link. When you are finished, create a timeline in your notebook titled "WWII: Major Events"
   

Your timeline should demonstrate an understanding of the reading.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/ww2_summary_01.shtml

2. Identify the following terms, people or places from the reading:

-U. S. relationship with Britain, 1939
-Battle of Britain
-Ribbentrop Pact
-Winston Churchill
-Charles de Gaulle
-Operation Barbarossa
-Auschwitz
-VE Day
-War in the Pacific
-Hiroshima, Nagasaki

3. Read Zinn chapter sixteen "A People's War?" pgs 405-415
Answer the following questions:
a) What was the point of the Communist party sketch about the war?
b) List numeric data regarding public participation in the war.
c) Zinn seems to suggest that there was a degree of hypocrisy in the U. S.'s opposition to Germany during the 1930s. Provide two quotes that show evidence of this. Explain.
d) Discuss the pre-WWII relationship between Japan and the United States.

Identify: Atlantic Charter, Open Door Policy

Remember:

Allies- (Major Countries) Britain, France, Soviet Union, United States

Axis- (Major Countries) Germany/Austria, Italy, Japan