JOHN QUINCY ADAMS - Bill of Rights Institute...HANDOUT B CHARACTER CARDS (CONT.) BEING AN AMERICAN...

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©THE BILL OF RIGHTS INSTITUTE AMERICAN HEROES PAST AND PRESENT

AN

DR

EW C

AR

NEG

IEJO

HN

QU

INC

Y A

DA

MS

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CHARACTER CARDS (CONT.)

BEING AN AMERICAN ©THE BILL OF RIGHTS INSTITUTE

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CHARACTER CARDS

Joh

n Q

uin

cy A

da

ms

17

67

- 1

84

8

Som

e be

lieve

Joh

n Q

uinc

y A

dam

s’s m

ost

hero

ic

cont

ribut

ion

to h

is co

untr

y cam

e afte

r he w

as P

resid

ent.

Ada

ms w

as b

orn

in M

assa

chus

etts

in 17

67. H

e was

the

son

of P

resid

ent J

ohn

Ada

ms.

Afte

r ser

ving

in va

rious

offi

ces,

incl

udin

g the

Pre

siden

cy, J

ohn

Qui

ncy A

dam

s w

as el

ecte

d to

Con

gres

s in

1830

.In

1835

, the

Hou

se o

f Rep

rese

ntat

ives

vote

d to

tabl

e (p

ostp

one w

ithou

t hea

ring)

any p

etiti

ons a

bout

slav

ery.

Ada

ms,

then

in h

is m

id-s

even

ties,

was

still

vigi

lant

. He

led

a sm

all g

roup

of R

epre

sent

ativ

es in

the fi

ght a

gain

st

the G

ag R

ule.

Ada

ms s

aid

that

wha

teve

r one

’s po

sitio

n on

sla

very

, the

Gag

Rul

e w

as a

vio

latio

n of

the

Firs

t A

men

dmen

t’s p

rote

ctio

n of

free

dom

of p

etiti

on. “

[T]

he st

ake i

n th

e que

stio

n is

your

righ

t to

petit

ion,

you

r fr

eedo

m o

f tho

ught

and

of a

ctio

n, a

nd th

e fr

eedo

m

in C

ongr

ess o

f you

r Rep

rese

ntat

ive,”

he d

ecla

red.

The

Gag

Rul

e had

to b

e ren

ewed

each

sess

ion,

and

Ada

ms

cour

ageo

usly

foug

ht a

gain

st it

eac

h tim

e. O

ver t

hose

ni

ne y

ears

, Ada

ms

was

acc

used

of t

reas

on a

nd e

ven

rece

ived

dea

th th

reat

s. Bu

t he

neve

r bac

ked

dow

n.

The

Gag

Rul

e w

as re

peal

ed in

184

4, d

ue in

par

t to

John

Qui

ncy

Ada

ms’s

cou

rage

ous

fight

for

the

Firs

t A

men

dmen

t rig

ht to

free

dom

of p

etiti

on.

An

dre

w C

arn

egie

1

83

5 -

19

19

And

rew

Car

negi

e’s r

ags-

to-r

iche

s st

ory

is on

e of

pe

rsev

eran

ce, in

itiat

ive,

and

reso

urce

fuln

ess.

Car

negi

e w

as b

orn

in 18

35 to

a w

orki

ng-c

lass

Scot

tish

fam

ily. H

e ca

me t

o th

e Uni

ted

Stat

es w

ith h

is fa

mily

whe

n he

was

th

irtee

n ye

ars o

ld. H

e be

gan

wor

king

righ

t aw

ay: a

s a

mes

seng

er, a

bob

bin

boy,

and

stea

m m

achi

ne o

pera

tor.

In 18

53 h

e too

k a j

ob as

tele

grap

h op

erat

or at

a ra

ilroa

d co

mpa

ny. H

e w

as c

harm

ing

and

inte

llige

nt. H

e to

ok

an ac

tive i

nter

est i

n hi

s wor

k an

d qu

ickl

y ad

vanc

ed at

th

e co

mpa

ny.

Car

negi

e al

so t

ook

the

initi

ativ

e to

lear

n ab

out

inve

stin

g. H

e wise

ly in

vest

ed h

is m

oney

in eq

uipm

ent

and

tech

nolo

gies

that

he b

elie

ved

wer

e goo

d fo

r to

the

railr

oad

indu

stry

. In

1889

, he

foun

ded

the

Car

negi

e St

eel

Com

pany

. T

his

com

pany

com

bine

d w

ith

othe

rs to

cre

ate

U.S

. Ste

el. U

.S. S

teel

hel

ped

mee

t the

co

untr

y’s g

reat

dem

and

for

stee

l—us

ed in

rai

lroad

s, sk

yscr

aper

s, an

d ot

her e

xam

ples

of g

reat

tech

nolo

gica

l ac

hiev

emen

ts. H

e lit

eral

ly h

elpe

d bu

ild A

mer

ica.

Late

r in l

ife, A

ndre

w C

arne

gie b

ecam

e a ph

ilant

hrop

ist

(som

eone

who

hel

ps a

ctiv

ely

othe

rs).

He

used

his

fort

une

to fo

und

the

Car

negi

e C

orpo

ratio

n of

New

Yo

rk, C

arne

gie E

ndow

men

t for

Inte

rnat

iona

l Pea

ce, a

nd

Car

negi

e Mel

lon

Uni

vers

ity in

Pitt

sbur

gh.

HANDOUT B



HEN

RY C

LAY

CES

AR

CH

AV

EZ

HANDOUT B



Ces

ar

Ch

ave

z 1

92

7 -

19

33

Ces

ar C

have

z st

rugg

led

thro

ugho

ut h

is li

fe f

or

bette

r w

orki

ng c

ondi

tions

for

unio

n fa

rm w

orke

rs.

He w

as b

orn

in Y

uma,

Ariz

ona.

His

pare

nts l

ost t

heir

farm

in th

e G

reat

Dep

ress

ion,

and

the

fam

ily m

oved

fr

om p

lace

to p

lace

, wor

king

the

field

s. H

e at

tend

ed

thirt

y-se

ven

diffe

rent

scho

ols.

Thes

e ear

ly ex

perie

nces

le

ft th

eir m

ark

and

gave

his

life p

urpo

se. H

is fa

ther

had

be

en in

jure

d in

a c

ar a

ccid

ent,

so a

fter e

ight

h gr

ade,

youn

g C

have

z bec

ame a

farm

wor

ker t

o he

lp su

ppor

t hi

s fam

ily.

In 19

62, C

have

z fou

nded

and

orga

nize

d th

e Nat

iona

l Fa

rm W

orke

rs A

ssoc

iatio

n, la

ter

calle

d th

e U

nite

d Fa

rm W

orke

rs. Th

is un

ion

was

the fi

rst o

f its

kin

d, an

d fo

ught

for c

ontr

acts

, saf

e con

ditio

ns, h

ighe

r wag

es, a

nd

job

secu

rity

for u

nion

mem

bers

. He

led

a na

tionw

ide

boyc

ott o

f gra

pes t

hat i

ncre

ased

supp

ort f

or th

e Uni

ted

Farm

Wor

kers

. In

a m

ovem

ent

calle

d La

Cos

a, h

e br

ough

t tog

ethe

r chu

rche

s, un

ions

, and

cons

umer

s. H

is m

otto

was

“Si,

se p

uede

.” (“

Yes,

it ca

n be

don

e.”)

A hu

mbl

e and

dee

ply r

eligi

ous m

an, C

have

z’s hu

nger

st

rikes

, boy

cotts

, and

mar

ches

got

Am

eric

a’s at

tent

ion,

an

d im

prov

ed th

e liv

es of

thou

sand

s. Th

ough

his

criti

cs

poin

t out

that

uni

oniz

ed fa

rm la

bor

resu

lted

in g

reat

nu

mbe

rs of

will

ing m

igra

nt w

orke

rs b

eing

turn

ed aw

ay

from

jobs

, Ces

ar C

have

z’s p

erse

vera

nce

brou

ght t

he

expe

rienc

es o

f mig

rant

wor

kers

to n

atio

nal a

ttent

ion.

Hen

ry C

lay

17

77

- 1

85

2

Hen

ry C

lay’s

per

seve

ranc

e and

mod

erat

ion

earn

ed

him

his

repu

tatio

n as

the “

Gre

at C

ompr

omise

r.” C

lay

was

raise

d w

ith h

is ei

ght s

iblin

gs in

Han

over

Cou

nty,

Virg

inia

. With

littl

e for

mal

scho

olin

g, h

e was

trai

ned

as a

law

yer.

He

saw

opp

ortu

nitie

s on

the

expa

ndin

g fr

ontie

r, an

d m

oved

wes

t to

Kent

ucky

in 1

797.

H

e fo

und

grea

t suc

cess

, and

was

kno

wn

as a

n el

oque

nt

and

cour

teou

s spe

aker

. Th

e new

fron

tier b

roug

ht gr

eat c

halle

nges

as w

ell a

s op

port

uniti

es. C

lay r

epre

sent

ed K

entu

cky i

n bo

th th

e H

ouse

and

Sena

te. A

s a la

wm

aker

, he p

ut th

e int

egrit

y of

the

Uni

on fi

rst.

He

mad

e a

deal

in th

e Se

nate

to

low

er ta

riffs s

low

ly w

hen

Sout

h C

arol

ina

thre

aten

ed

to se

cede

(lea

ve th

e na

tion)

in re

spon

se to

the

Tariff

A

ct. A

s Spe

aker

of t

he H

ouse

, he h

elped

lead

the y

oung

na

tion

thro

ugh

stru

ggle

s ov

er sl

aver

y. C

lay

was

abl

e to

calm

the b

itter

ness

on

both

side

s to

secu

re p

assa

ge

of th

e Miss

ouri

Com

prom

ise an

d th

e Com

prom

ise o

f 18

50. H

e he

lped

pas

s law

s he

hope

d w

ould

allo

w th

e na

tion

to su

rviv

e. H

e di

ed in

185

2, a

yea

r aft

er le

avin

g C

ongr

ess.

Hen

ry C

lay’s

com

mitm

ent t

o hi

s cou

ntry

as a

who

le

was

mad

e cle

ar o

n hi

s hea

dsto

ne: “

I kno

w n

o N

orth

—

no S

outh

—no

Eas

t—no

Wes

t.”

HANDOUT B



FRED

ERIC

K D

OU

GLA

SSD

OR

OTH

EA D

IX

HANDOUT B



Do

roth

ea D

ix

18

02

- 1

88

7

Dor

othe

a Dix

cour

ageo

usly

foug

ht fo

r peo

ple w

ho

coul

d no

t figh

t for

them

selv

es. D

ix tr

avel

ed to

alm

ost

ever

y sta

te in

the U

nion

and

visit

ed o

ver 9

,000

peo

ple

suffe

ring

from

men

tal i

llnes

s. Sh

e sa

w th

em c

ast o

ut

of s

ocie

ty a

nd la

rgel

y ig

nore

d. S

he v

isite

d th

em in

po

orho

uses

, jai

ls, d

ark

cella

rs, a

nd h

ovel

s. Sh

e sa

w

man

y of

them

chai

ned,

froz

en, s

tarv

ing,

or n

egle

cted

. Ap

palle

d by

thei

r tre

atm

ent,

she

beca

me

a cr

usad

er.

From

1842

to 18

87, D

ix le

d a o

ne-w

oman

cam

paig

n fo

r com

pass

ion.

She

wro

te a

nd sp

oke

publ

icly

abo

ut

wha

t sh

e ha

d se

en. S

he w

as c

onvi

nced

tha

t m

any

patie

nts,

if tr

eate

d w

ell,

coul

d be

cur

ed. S

he a

lso

thou

ght t

hat g

over

nmen

t had

a re

spon

sibili

ty to

hel

p.

Dix

was

succ

essf

ul in

lobb

ying

stat

e le

gisla

ture

s. Sh

e w

as w

ell-c

onne

cted

, soft

-spo

ken,

and

per

suas

ive.

In a

tim

e w

hen

wom

en c

ould

be

jaile

d fo

r vot

ing,

D

ix c

oura

geou

sly c

ham

pion

ed h

er c

ause

. She

rai

sed

publ

ic a

war

enes

s. C

ongr

ess

deba

ted

man

y of

Dix

’s pe

titio

ns. H

er fi

rst p

etiti

on le

d to

the

cons

truc

tion

of

a st

ate

hosp

ital i

n M

assa

chus

etts

. Tw

elve

oth

er st

ates

an

d th

e Dist

rict o

f Col

umbi

a fo

llow

ed su

it. D

orot

hea

Dix

fore

ver c

hang

ed th

e w

ay A

mer

ican

s car

e fo

r the

m

enta

lly il

l.

Fred

eric

k D

ou

gla

ss

18

18

- 1

89

5

Fred

eric

k D

ougl

ass

wro

te a

nd s

poke

abo

ut t

he

inju

stic

es o

f sla

very

, and

hel

ped

open

the

eye

s of

a

natio

n. H

e w

as b

orn

a sla

ve in

Mar

ylan

d, in

181

7 or

18

18. A

lthou

gh it

was

agai

nst t

he la

w to

teac

h en

slave

d pe

ople

to

read

, Dou

glas

s le

arne

d to

rea

d an

d al

so

taug

ht o

ther

slav

es to

do

so. H

e kne

w th

at re

adin

g and

le

arni

ng w

ould

hel

p pe

ople

see t

hat s

lave

ry w

as a

grea

t in

just

ice.

Afte

r tw

o fa

iled

atte

mpt

s, D

ougl

ass e

scap

ed

from

slav

ery

in 1

838.

Dou

glas

s set

tled

in M

assa

chus

etts

whe

re h

e wen

t to

abol

ition

ist m

eetin

gs. H

e beg

an gi

ving

spee

ches

on

his

expe

rienc

es, a

nd so

on h

e be

gan

trav

eled

in A

mer

ica

and

Euro

pe g

ivin

g le

ctur

es. H

e al

so p

ublis

hed

his

thou

ghts

in a

wee

kly

new

spap

er. H

is m

ost i

mpo

rtan

t w

ork

was

his

auto

biog

raph

y, N

arra

tive

of th

e Li

fe o

f Fr

eder

ick

Dou

glas

, an

Amer

ican

Sla

ve. I

t w

as v

ery

popu

lar a

nd, l

ike h

is sp

eech

es, o

pene

d m

any

peop

les’

eyes

to th

e ho

rror

s of

sla

very

. Dou

glas

s ad

vise

d tw

o Pr

esid

ents

, Abr

aham

Lin

coln

and

And

rew

John

son,

ab

out t

he tr

eatm

ent o

f Afr

ican

Am

eric

ans.

He

spok

e an

d w

rote

in f

avor

of

a co

nstit

utio

nal a

men

dmen

t se

curin

g vo

ting

right

s and

oth

er li

bert

ies f

or fo

rmer

sla

ves.

Fred

eric

k D

ougl

ass

pers

ever

ed in

his

wor

k fo

r eq

ual r

ight

s fo

r fo

rmer

sla

ves,

and

also

for

wom

en,

until

he

died

.

HANDOUT B



THO

MA

S ED

ISO

NB

ENJA

MIN

FR

AN

KLI

N

HANDOUT B



Ben

jam

in F

ran

klin

1

70

6 -

17

90

Benj

amin

Fra

nklin

ded

icat

ed h

is lif

e to

impr

ovin

g th

e liv

es o

f his

fello

w ci

tizen

s. H

e did

this

by cr

eatin

g go

ods,

serv

ices

, and

a fo

rm o

f gov

ernm

ent.

“The m

ost

acce

ptab

le se

rvic

e of

God

is d

oing

goo

d to

Man

,” he

sa

id. H

e liv

ed b

y th

is pr

inci

ple—

as a

citi

zen,

aut

hor,

inve

ntor

, sci

entis

t, an

d st

ates

man

.Fr

ankl

in’s

life

was

fille

d w

ith fi

rsts

. He

put

his

idea

s in

act

ion

to c

reat

e th

e fir

st fi

re d

epar

tmen

t, th

e fir

st p

ublic

libr

ary,

and

the

first

pub

lic h

ospi

tal

in P

hila

delp

hia.

He

shar

ed h

omes

pun

hum

or a

nd

advi

ce in

his

popu

lar

Poor

Rich

ard’s

Alm

anac

k. H

e al

so im

prov

ed p

eopl

es’ l

ives

with

his

inve

ntio

ns. H

e m

ade

the

first

ligh

tnin

g ro

d, b

ifoca

l gla

sses

, and

iron

fu

rnac

e st

ove.

Yet

Fran

klin

mad

e hi

s gr

eate

st c

ontr

ibut

ions

to

Am

eric

a’s fi

rst g

over

nmen

ts. H

e ha

d a

stro

ng s

ense

of

res

pons

ibili

ty a

nd n

ever

ref

used

a p

ublic

offi

ce.

To b

uild

the

new

repu

blic

, he

serv

ed fa

ithfu

lly a

t the

Se

cond

Con

tinen

tal C

ongr

ess.

He

help

ed d

raft

the

Dec

lara

tion

of I

ndep

ende

nce.

He

help

ed n

egot

iate

th

e Tr

eaty

of P

aris,

end

ing

the

Revo

lutio

nary

War

. H

e jo

ined

the

Con

stitu

tiona

l Con

vent

ion,

whe

re h

e st

ood

up fo

r a

stro

nger

uni

on a

nd w

orke

d ha

rd to

pr

otec

t citi

zens

from

tyra

nny.

Benj

amin

Fra

nklin

was

op

timist

ic a

bout

Am

eric

a’s fu

ture

; and

gav

e m

uch

of

his l

ife to

hel

p he

r gro

w.

Tho

ma

s Ed

iso

n 1

84

7 -

19

31

Thom

as E

diso

n sa

w ev

ery o

bsta

cle as

an op

portu

nity

. “G

eniu

s is

1% in

spira

tion

and

99%

per

spira

tion,”

he

said

. He h

ad lit

tle sc

hool

ing,

and

was

dea

f fro

m a

youn

g ag

e, bu

t he p

ursu

ed h

is in

tere

sts w

ith re

sour

cefu

lnes

s an

d pa

ssio

n. H

e lov

ed sc

ienc

e and

mec

hani

cs. H

e was

dr

iven

to in

vent

.By

186

8, E

diso

n ha

d im

prov

ed th

e te

legr

aph

and

the t

ypew

riter

. He m

ade a

n el

ectr

ic v

ote r

ecor

der a

nd

a st

ock

ticke

r. Tw

o ye

ars l

ater

, he

had

enou

gh m

oney

to

ope

n hi

s fir

st “

inve

ntio

n fa

ctor

y.” H

e w

as o

nly

twen

ty-t

hree

. He

and

the

tale

nted

team

of e

ngin

eers

an

d sc

ient

ists h

e hi

red

wou

ld ch

ange

the

wor

ld.

With

in fi

ve ye

ars,

they

had

per

fect

ed th

e tel

epho

ne

and

crea

ted

the

phon

ogra

ph. N

ext,

they

bec

ame

fam

ous

for

the

inca

ndes

cent

ligh

t bu

lb. L

ater

the

y w

orke

d on

the m

otio

n pi

ctur

e cam

era,

talk

ing m

ovie

s, a

car

batte

ry, a

nd a

n x-

ray

mac

hine

. In

his

lifet

ime,

Ediso

n re

gist

ered

1,0

93 p

aten

ts.

“The t

hree

esse

ntia

ls to

achi

eve a

nyth

ing w

orth

whi

le

are,

first

, har

d w

ork;

seco

nd, s

tick-

to-it

ive-

ness

; thi

rd,

com

mon

sens

e,” E

diso

n sa

id. W

ith a

boom

ing b

usin

ess

and

boun

dles

s en

thus

iasm

, Thom

as E

diso

n he

lped

br

ing

Am

eric

a in

to th

e m

oder

n ag

e.

HANDOUT B



FAN

NIE

LO

U H

AM

ERA

NN

E H

UTC

HIN

SON

HANDOUT B



Fan

nie

Lo

u H

am

er

19

17

- 1

97

7

Fann

ie L

ou H

amer

cou

rage

ously

foug

ht fo

r he

r rig

ht to

vot

e. H

amer

was

bor

n in

Miss

issip

pi in

191

7.

In 19

62 sh

e atte

nded

a vo

ter r

egist

ratio

n m

eetin

g. It

was

th

ere

that

she

first

lear

ned

the

Fifte

enth

Am

endm

ent

prot

ecte

d A

fric

an A

mer

ican

s’ ab

ility

to v

ote.

She

left

that

mee

ting

dete

rmin

ed to

regi

ster

to v

ote.

Ham

er d

ecid

ed s

he w

ante

d to

hel

p ot

her

Afr

ican

A

mer

ican

s pa

rtic

ipat

e in

Am

eric

an d

emoc

racy

. She

to

ok th

e in

itiat

ive

to o

rgan

ize

regi

stra

tion

driv

es. O

n th

ese d

rives

, she

bec

ame f

amou

s for

sing

ing h

ymns

. In

one

1963

driv

e, sh

e w

as th

row

n in

jail.

Mon

tgom

ery

Cou

nty g

uard

s bea

t her

and

fello

w ci

vil r

ight

s wor

kers

. Sh

e lo

st h

er jo

b an

d ev

en re

ceiv

ed d

eath

thre

ats,

but

she

pers

ever

ed.

In 1

964,

Ham

er s

poke

out

at

the

Dem

ocra

tic

pres

iden

tial c

onve

ntio

n ab

out p

eopl

e be

ing

illeg

ally

pr

even

ted

from

vot

ing.

A y

ear l

ater

in 1

965,

Pre

siden

t Jo

hnso

n si

gned

the

Vot

ing

Rig

hts

Act

. Thi

s la

w

rem

oved

man

y ba

rrie

rs to

vot

ing,

and

man

y se

e it

as

a fu

lfillm

ent o

f the

Fift

eent

h A

men

dmen

t’s p

rom

ise.

Fann

ie L

ou H

amer

’s co

urag

e an

d pe

rsev

eran

ce h

ad

neve

r wav

ered

.

An

ne

Hu

tch

inso

n 1

59

1 -

16

43

Ann

e Hut

chin

son

stoo

d up

to a

relig

ious

theo

crac

y (w

here

the c

hurc

h an

d th

e gov

ernm

ent a

re th

e sam

e) in

de

fens

e of r

elig

ious

libe

rty.

A w

ell-e

duca

ted

min

ister

’s da

ught

er, H

utch

inso

n ca

me

to th

e M

assa

chus

etts

Bay

C

olon

y in

163

4. S

he b

ecam

e a m

idw

ife, a

nd sh

e mad

e fr

iend

s. So

on sh

e beg

an to

invi

te w

omen

to h

er h

ome

for B

ible

stud

y.O

ver

the

year

s, H

utch

inso

n at

trac

ted

a fo

llow

ing.

A

lmos

t six

ty p

eopl

e, bo

th m

en an

d w

omen

, joi

ned

her

grou

p. Th

e disc

ussio

ns at

her

hom

e soo

n be

cam

e mor

e lik

e ser

mon

s. Sh

e crit

iciz

ed th

e tea

chin

gs of

the c

olon

y’s

min

ister

s. Fo

r any

one—

and

espe

cial

ly a

wom

an—

to go

ag

ains

t the

offi

cial

relig

ion

of th

e co

lony

was

a c

rime.

Col

ony

min

ister

s ch

arge

d H

utch

inso

n w

ith e

ight

y-tw

o “e

rron

eous

opi

nion

s.” B

ut sh

e did

not

kee

p sil

ent.

She

cour

ageo

usly

def

ende

d he

r be

liefs

. In

the

end,

H

utch

inso

n w

as co

nvic

ted

and

bani

shed

. H

utch

inso

n’s s

trug

gle

help

ed s

prea

d th

e va

lues

of

resp

ect a

nd re

ligio

us li

bert

y. In

178

9, th

e Con

stitu

tion

bann

ed r

elig

ious

tes

ts f

or p

ublic

off

ice;

the

Fir

st

Am

endm

ent,

adop

ted

in 1

791,

sto

pped

the

fede

ral

gove

rnm

ent

from

est

ablis

hing

a r

elig

ion;

fina

lly, a

ll th

e sta

tes e

nded

thei

r offi

cial

chur

ches

by t

he ea

rly 19

th

cent

ury.

Ann

e H

utch

inso

n’s st

rugg

le h

elpe

d re

ligio

us

liber

ty ta

ke ro

ot.

HANDOUT B



THO

MA

S JE

FFER

SON

AN

DR

EW J

AC

KSO

N

HANDOUT B



Tho

ma

s Je

ffer

son

17

43

- 1

82

6

Thom

as J

effer

son

spen

t hi

s lif

e fig

htin

g fo

r th

e in

tegr

ity of

each

per

son’s

bel

iefs,

and

the i

nteg

rity o

f his

coun

try.

Born

in V

irgin

ia in

174

3, h

e was

a re

spec

ted

law

yer a

nd w

riter

. Whe

n he

was

33 ye

ars o

ld, J

effer

son

wro

te a

nd s

igne

d hi

s na

me

to t

he D

ecla

ratio

n of

In

depe

nden

ce. Th

e Kin

g co

nsid

ered

this

trea

son,

but

Je

ffers

on a

nd th

e ot

her

signe

rs h

ad th

e co

urag

e an

d in

tegr

ity to

stan

d by

thei

r bel

iefs

. Je

ffers

on fo

ught

for

the

new

nat

ion’s

pro

mise

to

prot

ect

righ

ts. H

e au

thor

ed t

he V

irgin

ia S

tatu

e fo

r Re

ligio

us F

reed

om in

178

6. Th

is s

tatu

te, w

hich

is

still

par

t of V

irgin

ia la

w, b

roug

ht a

n en

d to

the

stat

e ch

urch

. Jeff

erso

n w

as s

ervi

ng in

Fra

nce

whi

le t

he

Con

stitu

tion

was

bei

ng d

rafte

d in

178

7. B

ut h

e sta

yed

invo

lved

. He w

rote

lette

rs to

Con

vent

ion

dele

gate

s. H

e ur

ged

that

a bi

ll of

righ

ts b

e add

ed to

the C

onst

itutio

n.

Year

s aft

er th

e Bi

ll of

Rig

hts

was

ado

pted

, he

foug

ht

agai

nst a

179

8 la

w th

at m

ade i

t a cr

ime t

o cr

itici

ze th

e fe

dera

l gov

ernm

ent.

Two

year

s la

ter,

he w

as e

lect

ed

pres

iden

t. A

fter

two

term

s as

pre

side

nt, h

e re

tired

to

his

hom

e, M

ontic

ello

. In

1819

, Thom

as Je

ffers

on fo

unde

d th

e U

nive

rsity

of

Vir

gini

a, o

ne o

f hi

s pr

oude

st

achi

evem

ents

.

An

dre

w J

ack

son

17

67

- 1

84

5

And

rew

Jack

son

serv

ed h

is co

untr

y with

cour

age:

as

an A

rmy G

ener

al an

d as

Pre

siden

t. Ja

ckso

n w

as b

orn

in 1

767

near

the N

orth

and

Sout

h C

arol

ina b

orde

r. A

yo

ung

boy

durin

g th

e Re

volu

tiona

ry W

ar, h

e fo

ught

as

an

“irr

egul

ar.”

He

was

cap

ture

d by

the

Briti

sh, a

nd

late

r re

leas

ed. Th

ese

early

exp

erie

nces

str

engt

hene

d Ja

ckso

n’s in

tegr

ity a

nd re

solv

e.

Jac

kson

con

tinue

d se

rvin

g hi

s co

untr

y in

the

m

ilita

ry. H

e le

d vi

ctor

ies

agai

nst t

he C

reek

Indi

ans,

and

mos

t fam

ously

agai

nst t

he B

ritish

at N

ew O

rlean

s in

181

4. A

s an

Arm

y G

ener

al, h

e be

cam

e kn

own

as

“Old

Hic

kory

.” Afte

r the

war

, Jac

kson

bec

ame g

over

nor

of t

he n

ew F

lori

da t

erri

tory

, whi

ch h

e ha

d he

lped

ac

quire

from

the

Span

ish.

As

Pres

iden

t, Ja

ckso

n oft

en c

lash

ed w

ith o

ther

br

anch

es o

f go

vern

men

t. H

e ve

toed

Con

gres

s’s r

e-ch

arte

r of t

he N

atio

nal B

ank,

whi

ch h

e be

lieve

d w

as

a go

vern

men

t-sp

onso

red

mon

opol

y. H

e de

fied

the

Supr

eme

Cou

rt. H

e ev

en lo

cked

hor

ns w

ith h

is V

ice

Pres

iden

t. Bu

t hi

s re

fusa

l to

com

prom

ise w

on h

im

man

y ad

mire

rs. A

ndre

w Ja

ckso

n w

as b

elov

ed b

y th

e pe

ople

, win

ning

56%

of t

he p

opul

ar vo

te an

d fiv

e tim

es

as m

any e

lect

oral

vote

s as h

is op

pone

nt in

the e

lect

ion

of 1

832.

HANDOUT B



MA

RTI

N L

UTH

ER K

ING

, JR

.A

BR

AH

AM

LIN

CO

LN

HANDOUT B



Ma

rtin

Lu

ther

Kin

g, J

r. 1

92

9 -

19

68

Mar

tin L

uthe

r Kin

g, Jr

. per

seve

red

for c

ivil

right

s th

roug

hout

his

life

. Kin

g w

as b

orn

in G

eorg

ia in

19

29. H

e fo

ught

for

dese

greg

atio

n an

d eq

ual r

ight

s fo

r A

fric

an A

mer

ican

s by

spe

akin

g ou

t and

lead

ing

mar

ches

. He a

lway

s pre

ache

d no

n-vi

olen

ce as

a m

eans

fo

r cha

nge.

The m

ost i

mpo

rtan

t mar

ch o

f Kin

g’s ca

reer

was

the

Mar

ch o

n W

ashi

ngto

n in

196

3. A

qua

rter

of a

mill

ion

peop

le p

acke

d th

e N

atio

nal M

all.

Kin

g st

ood

on th

e st

eps

of t

he L

inco

ln M

emor

ial.

In h

is sp

eech

, Kin

g re

ferr

ed to

the

“arc

hite

cts

of o

ur re

publ

ic”

and

thei

r co

mm

itmen

t to

freed

om. H

e ele

ctrifi

ed th

e cro

wd

with

hi

s spe

ech,

sayi

ng, “

I hav

e a

drea

m th

at o

ne d

ay th

is na

tion

will

rise

up

and

live o

ut th

e tru

e mea

ning

of i

ts

cree

d: ‘W

e hol

d th

ese t

ruth

s to

be se

lf-ev

iden

t, th

at al

l m

en a

re cr

eate

d eq

ual.’”

In t

he y

ears

tha

t fo

llow

ed, K

ing

led

civi

l rig

hts

mar

ches

in

Selm

a, A

laba

ma.

He

alw

ays

urge

d m

oder

atio

n in

non

-vio

lenc

e pro

test.

Kin

g was

awar

ded

the N

obel

Pea

ce P

rize i

n 19

64. K

ing

was

ass

assin

ated

in

1968

. Mar

tin L

uthe

r Kin

g, Jr

.’s fu

nera

l was

atte

nded

by

300

,000

peo

ple,

and

his c

oura

geou

s life

con

tinue

s to

insp

ire p

eopl

e to

day.

Ab

rah

am

Lin

coln

1

80

9 -

18

65

Abr

aham

Lin

coln

rose

from

obs

curit

y to

cele

brity

, fr

om b

oyho

od o

n th

e Ke

ntuc

ky fr

ontie

r to

Pres

iden

t of

the

Uni

ted

Stat

es. D

espi

te e

lect

ion

defe

ats,

he

pers

ever

ed in

his

purs

uit o

f pub

lic o

ffice

. In

1858

, he

beca

me f

amou

s in

deba

tes o

ver t

he w

este

rn ex

pans

ion

of s

lave

ry. Th

e na

tion

coul

d no

t su

rviv

e ha

lf-sla

ve,

half-

free

, he

said

.El

ecte

d on

the e

ve of

Civ

il War

, Lin

coln

cour

ageo

usly

le

d th

e nat

ion

thro

ugh

four

blo

ody,

tum

ultu

ous y

ears

. At

Get

tysb

urg

in 1

863,

he

insp

ired

all A

mer

ican

s to

re

cove

r the

inte

grity

of t

heir

coun

try a

nd it

s ide

als.

The

Uni

ted

Stat

es w

as “c

once

ived

in li

bert

y, an

d de

dica

ted

to th

e pro

posit

ion

that

all m

en ar

e cre

ated

equa

l.” F

or

his

seco

nd in

augu

ral s

peec

h, L

inco

ln s

tood

on

the

East

Por

tico

of th

e Cap

itol,

Mar

ch 4

, 186

5. Th

e end

of

the C

ivil

War

was

in si

ght.

Thou

sand

s had

gath

ered

to

hear

him

. They

exp

ecte

d a

vict

ory

spee

ch.

Linc

oln

surp

rised

them

. He

calle

d fo

r for

give

ness

an

d un

ity. H

e kn

ew th

e ch

alle

nges

the

natio

n w

ould

fa

ce. A

brah

am L

inco

ln’s

wor

ds ec

ho th

roug

h th

e age

s: “W

ith m

alic

e tow

ard

none

; with

char

ity fo

r all…

let u

s st

rive

on to

fini

sh th

e w

ork

we

are

in, t

o bi

nd u

p th

e na

tion’s

wou

nds..

.” an

d ar

rive

at a

“ju

st a

nd la

stin

g pe

ace.”

HANDOUT B



JOH

N M

AR

SHA

LLJA

MES

MA

DIS

ON

HANDOUT B



Joh

n M

ars

ha

ll 1

75

5 -

18

53

As

Chi

ef J

ustic

e of

the

Sup

rem

e C

ourt

in

the

earli

est y

ears

of t

he A

mer

ican

repu

blic

, Joh

n M

arsh

all

had

impo

rtan

t re

spon

sibi

litie

s. M

arsh

all w

as b

orn

in 1

755

on t

he V

irgi

nia

fron

tier.

He

serv

ed in

the

Re

volu

tiona

ry W

ar, a

nd la

ter s

tudi

ed la

w.

Mar

shal

l wish

ed fo

r the

new

nat

ion

to b

e st

rong

an

d un

ified

. He

knew

the

Art

icle

s of

Con

fede

ratio

n w

ould

not

hel

p th

is ha

ppen

. He

spok

e ou

t on

beha

lf of

the

new

Con

stitu

tion

in 1

789.

He

was

app

oint

ed

to th

e Su

prem

e C

ourt

by

Pres

iden

t Joh

n A

dam

s. H

is ro

le o

n th

e C

ourt

gav

e hi

m th

e ch

ance

to in

terp

ret

the

Con

stitu

tion

and

the

syst

em o

f go

vern

men

t it

crea

ted.

H

e w

rote

mor

e th

an 5

00 o

pini

ons.

His

mos

t im

port

ant o

pini

on w

as M

arbu

ry v

. Mad

ison

(180

3),

in w

hich

Mar

shal

l exp

lain

ed th

at it

was

the

Supr

eme

Cou

rt’s

job

to “

say

wha

t th

e la

w is

.” Th

is d

ecis

ion

affi

rmed

the

pow

er o

f ju

dici

al r

evie

w. M

any

of

Mar

shal

l’s ru

lings

affi

rmed

the

pow

er o

f the

nat

iona

l go

vern

men

t. H

is op

inio

ns a

re st

ill c

ited

by S

upre

me

Cou

rt Ju

stic

es to

day.

They

form

the b

ackb

one o

f muc

h co

nstit

utio

nal l

aw. Th

roug

hout

his

thirt

y-fo

ur ye

ars o

n th

e Sup

rem

e Cou

rt, J

ohn

Mar

shal

l’s ru

lings

supp

orte

d th

e in

tegr

ity o

f the

new

nat

ion.

Jam

es M

ad

iso

n 1

75

1 -

18

36

Jam

es M

adiso

n’s id

eas

form

ed t

he b

ackb

one

for

the U

nite

d St

ates

’ pla

n fo

r sel

f-go

vern

men

t. M

adiso

n,

a w

ealth

y V

irgin

ia p

lant

er, g

rew

up

smal

l, th

in, a

nd

sickl

y. Ph

ysic

ally,

he

coul

d no

t com

pete

with

man

y Fo

unde

rs. I

ntel

lect

ually

, he

was

a g

iant

.M

adiso

n ha

d th

e in

itiat

ive

and

reso

urce

fuln

ess t

o nu

rtur

e a

natio

n in

way

s no

one

else

cou

ld. I

n 17

87,

he w

as a

lead

er at

the C

onst

itutio

nal C

onve

ntio

n. H

e to

ok n

otes

, spo

ke o

ften,

and

hel

ped

peop

le c

ome

to

com

prom

ises.

He

was

eve

r vi

gila

nt a

bout

the

abus

e of

gov

ernm

ent p

ower

, and

wor

ked

to p

reve

nt it

. He

was

wis

e en

ough

to

be w

orri

ed a

bout

fact

ions

. He

sugg

este

d a

syst

em o

f che

cks

and

bala

nces

. He

also

w

orke

d to

bal

ance

the

pow

er o

f the

sta

tes

and

the

fede

ral g

over

nmen

t. Bo

th a

re k

ey p

arts

of A

mer

ican

go

vern

men

t.W

hen

the

Con

stitu

tion

was

sen

t to

the

sta

tes,

Mad

ison

wro

te n

ewsp

aper

artic

les t

o de

fend

it. W

hen

it be

cam

e cl

ear t

hat t

he C

onst

itutio

n w

ould

not

pas

s w

ithou

t it,

he

draft

ed t

he B

ill o

f Ri

ghts

. Mad

ison

be

lieve

d th

e ne

w g

over

nmen

t w

as “

the

wor

k of

m

any

head

s and

man

y ha

nds.”

Hist

ory,

how

ever

, has

m

ade

Jam

es M

adiso

n fa

mou

s as

the

“Fa

ther

of t

he

Con

stitu

tion.”

HANDOUT B



WIL

LIA

M P

ENN

THU

RG

OO

D M

AR

SHA

LL

HANDOUT B



Will

iam

Pen

n 1

64

4 -

17

18

Will

iam

Pen

n’s fi

ght f

or re

ligio

us li

bert

y sp

anne

d fo

ur d

ecad

es a

nd t

wo

cont

inen

ts. A

t tw

enty

-fou

r ye

ars

of a

ge, P

enn

was

impr

isone

d in

the

Tow

er o

f Lo

ndon

in 1

668

for l

ife. B

ut h

e was

did

not

repe

nt. “

I ow

e m

y co

nsci

ence

to n

o m

orta

l man

,” he

dec

lare

d.

A d

evou

t Q

uake

r, he

had

bee

n pe

rsec

uted

for

his

belie

fs. F

ortu

nate

ly, P

enn

was

wel

l-con

nect

ed. W

ithin

ei

ght m

onth

s he

was

rele

ased

. He

cont

inue

d to

writ

e an

d gi

ve sp

eech

es. H

e co

ntin

ued

to su

ppor

t rel

igio

us

tole

ratio

n. H

e co

ntin

ued

to p

rote

st e

ffort

s to

forc

e En

glish

men

to fo

llow

one

faith

.A

s he

gre

w o

lder

, Pen

n be

cam

e in

tere

sted

in

Am

eric

a. I

n 16

81, t

he K

ing

gave

him

the

larg

est

rem

aini

ng p

iece

of

land

bet

wee

n N

ew Y

ork

and

Mar

ylan

d as

pay

men

t of

a d

ebt

to h

is fa

ther

. Pen

n na

med

the c

olon

y for

his f

athe

r, cal

ling i

t “Pe

nnsy

lvan

ia”

or P

enn’s

Woo

ds. H

e adv

ertis

ed fo

r col

onist

s, an

d th

ey

cam

e in

dro

ves.

Penn

calle

d it

his “

Hol

y Exp

erim

ent.”

As g

over

nor,

he b

elie

ved

that

goo

d go

vern

men

t cou

ld n

ot fo

rce

a fa

ith o

r re

quire

con

form

ity. R

espe

ct fo

r in

divi

dual

be

liefs

and

sel

f-go

vern

men

t, W

illia

m P

enn

argu

ed,

wou

ld b

ring

peac

e an

d pr

ospe

rity

to P

enns

ylva

nia—

and

they

did

.

Thu

rgo

od

Ma

rsh

all

19

08

- 1

99

3

Thur

good

Mar

shal

l may

be

best

kno

wn

as t

he

first

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an Su

prem

e Cou

rt Ju

stic

e, bu

t his

cour

age a

nd d

eter

min

atio

n w

ere c

lear

long

bef

ore h

is ap

poin

tmen

t to

the

Cou

rt. H

e w

as b

orn

in 1

908,

the

gran

dson

of a

slav

e. H

e gr

adua

ted

from

col

lege

with

ho

nors

. In

1930

, he w

as tu

rned

dow

n at

the U

nive

rsity

of

Mar

ylan

d be

caus

e he w

as b

lack

. He c

ompl

eted

law

sc

hool

at h

istor

ical

ly b

lack

How

ard

Uni

vers

ity.

Mar

shal

l de

cide

d to

use

his

tal

ents

to

end

segr

egat

ion

in p

ublic

life

. His

first

lega

l vic

tory

cam

e ag

ains

t th

e U

nive

rsity

of

Mar

ylan

d’s

adm

issi

on

polic

y—th

e ve

ry s

choo

l whi

ch d

id n

ot le

t hi

m in

be

caus

e he

’s bl

ack.

He

beca

me

chie

f cou

nsel

for

the

Nat

iona

l Ass

ocia

tion

for t

he A

dvan

cem

ent o

f Col

ored

Pe

ople

(NA

AC

P). M

arsh

all a

nd th

e N

AA

CP

bega

n a

lega

l cam

paig

n ag

ains

t seg

rega

tion

in p

ublic

scho

ols.

This

stru

ggle

end

ed w

hen

Mar

shal

l arg

ued

Brow

n v.

Boar

d of

Edu

catio

n (1

954)

bef

ore t

he S

upre

me C

ourt

. Th

is de

cisio

n de

clar

ed s

egre

gatio

n in

pub

lic s

choo

ls un

cons

titut

iona

l.

Mar

shal

l was

app

oint

ed to

the

Supr

eme

Cou

rt in

19

67, b

ecom

ing

the

first

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an A

ssoc

iate

Ju

stic

e. T

hurg

ood

Mar

shal

l spe

nt a

lmos

t a

quar

ter

cent

ury

on th

e C

ourt

, sup

port

ing

the

Con

stitu

tion’s

pr

otec

tions

for i

ndiv

idua

l and

civi

l rig

hts.

HANDOUT B



ELIZ

AB

ETH

CA

DY

STA

NTO

NJA

CK

IE R

OB

INSO

N

HANDOUT B



Eliz

ab

eth

Ca

dy

Sta

nto

n 1

81

5 -

19

02

Eliz

abet

h C

ady

Stan

ton

foug

ht fo

r th

e id

eals

of

the D

ecla

ratio

n of

Inde

pend

ence

—th

at a

ll pe

ople

are

crea

ted

equa

l. St

anto

n w

as b

orn

in N

ew Y

ork

Stat

e in

1815

. She

rec

eive

d a

form

al e

duca

tion,

unl

ike

mos

t w

omen

of h

er ti

me.

She d

id w

ell i

n sc

hool

, im

pres

sing

her t

each

ers a

nd cl

assm

ates

with

her

inte

llige

nce.

But

as a

wom

an, s

he c

ould

not

atte

nd th

e co

llege

of h

er

choi

ce.

Sta

nton

was

dis

turb

ed b

y w

omen

’s lo

wer

lega

l st

atus

. She

hel

ped

orga

nize

the

firs

t wom

en’s

right

s co

nven

tion

in th

e U

S in

Sen

eca

Falls

, New

Yor

k. A

t th

at c

onve

ntio

n, th

e D

ecla

ratio

n of

Sen

timen

ts a

nd

Reso

lutio

ns w

as r

ead.

This

docu

men

t, ba

sed

on th

e D

ecla

ratio

n of

Inde

pend

ence

and

writ

ten

by S

tant

on,

decl

ared

the

lega

l equ

ality

of m

en a

nd w

omen

, and

lis

ted

the

lega

l rig

hts w

omen

shou

ld h

ave,

incl

udin

g th

e rig

ht o

f suff

rage

(vot

ing)

. Her

wor

k he

lped

laun

ch

the w

omen

’s m

ovem

ent w

hich

even

tual

ly w

on w

omen

th

e rig

ht to

vot

e.St

anto

n kn

ew sh

e was

figh

ting f

or so

met

hing

bigg

er

than

her

self.

She

did

not

live

to se

e the

pas

sage

of t

he

Nin

etee

nth

Am

endm

ent.

Susa

n B.

Ant

hony

wro

te

whe

n El

izab

eth

Cad

y Sta

nton

die

d, “M

rs. S

tant

on w

as

alw

ays a

cou

rage

ous w

oman

, a le

ader

of t

houg

ht a

nd

new

mov

emen

ts.”

Jack

ie R

ob

inso

n 1

91

9 -

19

72

Jac

kie

Robi

nson

was

bor

n in

Geo

rgia

in 1

919.

A

band

oned

by

his

fath

er a

nd r

aise

d w

ith h

is f

our

sibl

ings

by

thei

r m

othe

r, R

obin

son’

s ea

rly

life

expe

rienc

es w

ere o

f seg

rega

tion:

in re

stau

rant

s, m

ovie

th

eate

rs, a

nd a

t sch

ool.

His

mot

her

taug

ht h

im s

elf-

resp

ect,

cour

age,

and

pers

ever

ance

. His

athl

etic

tale

nts

blos

som

ed in

hig

h sc

hool

. He e

xcel

led

at m

any s

port

s. A

s a p

laye

r in

the N

egro

Am

eric

an L

eagu

e, Ro

bins

on’s

batti

ng av

erag

e ap

proa

ched

.400

. Ro

bins

on si

gned

on

with

the B

rook

lyn

Dod

gers

in

1947

, end

ing

80 y

ears

of s

egre

gatio

n in

pro

fess

iona

l ba

seba

ll. R

obin

son

knew

it w

ould

be

a to

ugh

road

. So

me p

laye

rs th

reat

ened

to st

rike.

Whe

n he

was

at b

at,

fast

bal

ls w

ould

nar

row

ly m

iss h

is he

ad. Th

e cr

owd

taun

ted

him

with

raci

al e

pith

ets.

His

fam

ily re

ceiv

ed

hate

mai

l. Bu

t Rob

inso

n di

d no

t bac

k do

wn.

And

as

time

wen

t on,

his

fello

w b

all p

laye

rs c

ould

not

den

y hi

s tal

ents

and

cont

ribut

ions

to th

e te

am.

Robi

nson

was

a t

railb

laze

r in

Am

eric

an s

port

s. In

199

7, o

n th

e an

nive

rsar

y of

his

first

gam

e, M

ajor

Le

ague

bas

ebal

l ret

ired

Jack

ie R

obin

son’s

num

ber—

42—

as a

test

amen

t to

his c

oura

ge a

nd p

erse

vera

nce.

HANDOUT B



HEN

RY D

AV

ID T

HO

REA

UH

AR

RIE

TT B

EEC

HER

STO

WE

HANDOUT B



Hen

ry D

avi

d T

ho

rea

u 1

81

7 -

18

62

As

a w

rite

r, fr

iend

, and

citi

zen,

Hen

ry D

avid

Th

orea

u liv

ed a

life

of i

nteg

rity

and

mod

erat

ion.

For

ov

er a

yea

r, Th

orea

u liv

ed in

a sm

all b

are

cabi

n ne

ar

Wal

den

Pond

, Mas

sach

uset

ts. I

n st

ark

cont

rast

to th

e In

dust

rial R

evol

utio

n go

ing o

n ar

ound

him

, he w

ante

d to

live

by

Tran

scen

dent

alis

t pr

inci

ples

: sim

plic

ity,

econ

omy,

and

mod

erat

ion.

Thor

eau

trie

d to

live

his

life

with

thi

s ki

nd o

f in

tegr

ity. I

n th

e m

id-1

800s

, he

oppo

sed

the

Uni

ted

Stat

es’ w

ar w

ith M

exic

o. H

e be

lieve

d th

at t

he w

ar

wou

ld le

ad to

slav

ery’s

expa

nsio

n in

the W

est.

He d

id

not w

ant h

is ta

x m

oney

to su

ppor

t the

war

or s

lave

ry.

Whe

n th

e M

assa

chus

etts

gov

ernm

ent r

equi

red

that

ci

tizen

s pa

y a

poll

tax

to v

ote,

Thor

eau

refu

sed.

As

a re

sult,

Thor

eau

was

arr

este

d. H

e sp

ent

a ni

ght i

n ja

il an

d w

rote

abo

ut it

. “U

nder

a g

over

nmen

t whi

ch

impr

isons

any

unj

ustly

, the

true

pla

ce fo

r a ju

st m

an

is in

pri

son,

” he

arg

ued.

He

belie

ved

he a

lone

had

ac

ted

resp

onsib

ly a

s a c

itize

n, b

y re

fusin

g to

supp

ort

an u

njus

t war

. Th

rore

au b

elie

ved

that

one

per

son,

firm

in h

is or

her

bel

iefs

, can

cha

nge

the

wor

ld. H

enry

Dav

id

Thor

eau’s

wor

ds an

d ac

tions

hav

e ins

pire

d ge

nera

tions

of

Am

eric

ans.

Ha

rrie

t Bee

cher

Sto

we

18

11

- 1

89

6

Har

riet B

eech

er S

tow

e us

ed th

e po

wer

of h

er p

en

to o

pen

the e

yes o

f a n

atio

n to

the i

njus

tices

of s

lave

ry.

She

was

bor

n in

Con

nect

icut

in 1

811.

She

live

d in

a

Prot

esta

nt, a

bolit

ioni

st tr

aditi

on: h

er fa

ther

a m

inist

er,

her b

roth

er a

theo

logi

an, h

er h

usba

nd a

cler

gym

an.

Whe

n C

ongr

ess

pass

ed th

e Fu

gitiv

e Sl

ave

Act

in

1850

, Sto

we k

new

she h

ad to

act.

At th

e tim

e, w

omen

ha

d fe

w w

ays t

o en

gage

in p

oliti

cs. S

he co

uld

not r

un

for o

ffice

, or e

ven

vote

, but

she

was

und

eter

red.

Eve

r re

sour

cefu

l, she

foun

d a p

oliti

cal v

oice

in h

er w

ritin

gs.

She b

egan

to d

o re

sear

ch by

inte

rvie

win

g for

mer

slav

es

and

othe

rs w

ho h

ad p

erso

nal e

xper

ienc

e with

slav

ery.

Her

firs

t nov

el, U

ncle

Tom

’s Ca

bin,

told

of t

he a

buse

su

ffere

d by

ensla

ved

peop

le an

d fa

mili

es in

emot

iona

l, hu

man

term

s. U

ncle

Tom

’s Ca

bin

sold

10,

000

copi

es in

its

first

w

eek,

and

was

a b

ests

elle

r in

its

time.

She

rea

ched

pe

ople

s’ he

arts

and

min

ds in

a w

ay th

at p

oliti

cian

s had

no

t bee

n ab

le to

do.

Hist

oria

ns b

elie

ve th

e pub

licat

ion

of U

ncle

Tom

’s Cab

in sp

ed u

p th

e out

brea

k of

the C

ivil

War

, as m

ore a

nd m

ore p

eopl

e bel

ieve

d th

e nat

ion

had

a dut

y to

end

slave

ry. H

arrie

t Bee

cher

Sto

we’s

writ

ing

trul

y ch

ange

d a

natio

n’s v

iew

of j

ustic

e.

HANDOUT B



MA

RY T

SUK

AM

OTO

MA

RY B

ETH

TIN

KER

HANDOUT B



Ma

ry T

suka

mo

to (

left

) 1

91

5 -

19

98

Mar

y Ts

ukam

oto

devo

ted

her l

ife to

ensu

ring

civi

l rig

hts f

or al

l Am

eric

ans.

She w

as b

orn

in Sa

n Fr

anci

sco

to p

aren

ts w

ho h

ad co

me t

o C

alifo

rnia

from

Japa

n. Sh

e at

tend

ed a

seg

rega

ted

scho

ol, a

nd h

elpe

d he

r fa

mily

gr

ow m

odes

t cr

ops

desp

ite la

ws

bann

ing

Japa

nese

pe

ople

from

ow

ning

the

land

they

farm

ed.

In 1

941,

the

Japa

nese

bom

bed

Pear

l Har

bor

and

the

Uni

ted

Stat

es e

nter

ed W

orld

War

II.

Pres

iden

t Ro

osev

elt

was

con

cern

ed t

hat

peop

le o

f Ja

pane

se

desc

ent m

ight

aid

the

Japa

nese

. Roo

seve

lt sig

ned

an

Exec

utiv

e O

rder

cre

atin

g de

tent

ion

cam

ps. 1

20,0

00

peop

le o

f Jap

anes

e des

cent

—m

ost o

f the

m A

mer

ican

ci

tizen

s—w

ere

roun

ded

up a

nd fo

rced

to li

ve in

the

cam

ps. Th

ey lo

st th

eir p

osse

ssio

ns, t

heir

livel

ihoo

ds,

and

thei

r dig

nity

. Ts

ukam

oto

wor

ked

to m

ake

sure

the

sto

ry o

f Ja

pane

se In

tern

men

t wou

ld n

ot b

e for

gotte

n by

hist

ory.

She r

ecor

ded

her e

xper

ienc

e in

a boo

k: W

e the

Peo

ple:

A St

ory o

f Int

ernm

ent i

n Am

erica

. She

also

wor

ked

with

th

e Cal

iforn

ia H

istor

y M

useu

m an

d th

e Sm

ithso

nian

In

stitu

tion

in W

ashi

ngto

n, D

C t

o de

velo

p ex

hibi

ts

abou

t Jap

anes

e In

tern

men

t. D

espi

te h

er e

xper

ienc

e, sh

e rem

aine

d co

mm

itted

to se

lf-go

vern

men

t. In

1990

, M

ary T

suka

mot

o w

rote

: “O

nly i

n a d

emoc

racy

can

we

corr

ect m

istak

es. I

am

pro

ud to

be

an A

mer

ican

.”

Ma

ry B

eth

Tin

ker

b.

19

52

Mar

y Be

th T

inke

r fou

ght f

or th

e rig

ht o

f stu

dent

s to

resp

ectfu

lly e

xpre

ss th

eir p

erso

nal v

iew

s in

publ

ic

scho

ol. T

inke

r was

a th

irtee

n ye

ar o

ld m

iddl

e sc

hool

st

uden

t fro

m D

es M

oine

s, Io

wa i

n 19

65. S

he o

ppos

ed

the

war

in V

ietn

am. S

he, h

er o

lder

bro

ther

John

, and

ot

her

stud

ents

dec

ided

to

wea

r bl

ack

arm

band

s to

sc

hool

to p

rote

st th

e war

and

mou

rn th

e dea

d. W

hen

they

got

to

scho

ol, t

hey

wer

e to

ld t

hey

wou

ld b

e su

spen

ded

from

sch

ool u

ntil

they

ret

urne

d w

ithou

t th

e ar

mba

nds.

Tink

er b

elie

ved

the

puni

shm

ent

she

face

d w

as

unju

st. S

he b

elie

ved

had

a rig

ht to

expr

ess h

er vi

ews i

n a r

espe

ctfu

l and

non

-disr

uptiv

e way

. She

cour

ageo

usly

w

ore t

he ar

mba

nd ev

en th

ough

she k

new

she w

ould

be

susp

ende

d. S

he re

fuse

d to

giv

e up

her

figh

t. Sh

e an

d he

r bro

ther

took

thei

r cas

e to

the

Supr

eme

Cou

rt.

In T

inke

r v. D

es M

oine

s (19

69) T

inke

r won

her

case

. Th

e C

ourt

said

that

the

arm

band

s wer

e “a

kin

to p

ure

spee

ch.”

Scho

ols m

ust h

ave

the

abili

ty to

kee

p or

der,

but u

nles

s stu

dent

s tru

ly d

isrup

t sch

ool,

they

do

not

“she

d th

eir c

onst

itutio

nal r

ight

s to

free

dom

of s

peec

h or

exp

ress

ion

at t

he s

choo

lhou

se g

ate.”

Mar

y Be

th

Tink

er’s

fight

for

just

ice

beca

me

a la

ndm

ark

vict

ory

for p

ublic

scho

ol st

uden

ts’ ri

ghts

.

HANDOUT B



GEO

RG

E W

ASH

ING

TON

HA

RR

IETT

TU

BM

AN

HANDOUT B



Geo

rge

Wa

shin

gto

n 1

73

2 -

17

99

Geo

rge

Was

hing

ton

wan

ted

his p

resid

ency

to b

e an

exam

ple o

f mod

erat

ion,

just

as h

e had

live

d hi

s life

. O

n Se

ptem

ber 1

9, 17

96, W

ashi

ngto

n ga

ve h

is Fa

rew

ell

Add

ress

. Alth

ough

the

Con

stitu

tion

did

not l

imit

the

Pres

iden

t’s t

erm

, Was

hing

ton

knew

the

sys

tem

of

chec

ks an

d ba

lanc

es w

as d

esig

ned

to p

reve

nt ab

use o

f po

wer

. The l

ette

r of t

he la

w d

id n

ot fo

rbid

a th

ird te

rm,

but h

e be

lieve

d its

spiri

t did

.Th

e de

cisio

n to

step

dow

n ke

pt w

ith W

ashi

ngto

n’s

char

acte

r. Th

roug

hout

his

life,

he w

orke

d to

follo

w a

se

t of s

tron

gly

held

val

ues i

nclu

ding

mod

erat

ion

and

resp

onsib

ility

. He

was

a h

ot te

mpe

red

pers

on, b

ut h

e m

oder

ated

his

actio

ns. H

e alw

ays a

nsw

ered

the c

all o

f du

ty—

as C

omm

ande

r in

Chi

ef of

the C

ontin

enta

l Arm

y, an

d as

pre

siden

t of t

he C

onsti

tutio

nal C

onve

ntio

n. A

nd

he a

lway

s st

eppe

d do

wn

whe

n th

e jo

b w

as d

one.

In

fact

, Was

hing

ton

war

ned

agai

nst l

eade

rs w

ith a

“love

of

pow

er” a

nd th

e abi

lity t

o ab

use i

t. Th

ere w

as n

o gr

eate

r da

nger

to li

bert

y, no

gre

ater

per

il fo

r a fr

ee p

eopl

e. Th

e pe

ople

wan

ted

him

to

stay

, but

he

knew

he

coul

d no

t. H

e w

as a

war

e th

at a

s th

e fir

st p

resid

ent,

ever

ythi

ng h

e di

d w

ould

be

setti

ng a

n ex

ampl

e fo

r all

the f

utur

e pre

siden

ts o

f the

Uni

ted

Stat

es. B

y res

igni

ng,

he w

as a

mod

el o

f mod

erat

ion.

To

Geo

rge W

ashi

ngto

n,

the

pres

erva

tion

of th

e A

mer

ican

repu

blic

was

mor

e im

port

ant t

han

pers

onal

gai

n.

Ha

rrie

t Tu

bm

an

18

20

- 1

91

3

Har

riet T

ubm

an, a

n en

slave

d fie

ld h

and

who

coul

d no

t rea

d, e

scap

ed to

free

dom

in 1

849.

Thirt

y ye

ars o

f po

vert

y and

abus

e had

left

her s

mal

l bod

y bat

tere

d an

d sc

arre

d. B

ut h

er s

pirit

was

uns

topp

able

. “Th

ere

was

on

e of

two

thin

gs I

had

a rig

ht to

—lib

erty

or

deat

h.

If I c

ould

not

hav

e on

e, I w

ould

hav

e th

e ot

her,”

she

la

ter s

aid.

Not

con

tent

with

sec

urin

g he

r ow

n fr

eedo

m,

Tubm

an t

hen

turn

ed t

o he

lpin

g ot

hers

esc

ape.

A

lthou

gh sh

e fac

ed d

eath

or r

e-en

slave

men

t if c

augh

t, Tu

bman

bec

ame

a “c

ondu

ctor

” on

the

Und

ergr

ound

Ra

ilroa

d in

the

1850

s. At

firs

t, sh

e re

turn

ed s

outh

to

resc

ue h

er fa

mily

. Ove

r tim

e, sh

e sa

ved

hund

reds

of

slave

s. Sh

e was

clev

er an

d gi

fted

at av

oidi

ng ca

ptur

e, so

su

cces

sful

that

she w

as n

ickn

amed

“Mos

es.”

Nin

etee

n tim

es, s

he m

ade t

he d

ange

rous

650-

mile

jour

ney f

rom

M

aryl

and

to C

anad

a. Sh

e was

nev

er ca

ught

, and

“nev

er

lost

a p

asse

nger

.” D

urin

g the

Civ

il W

ar, s

he b

ecam

e a sc

out,

spy,

nurs

e, an

d co

ok. S

he re

crui

ted

free

dmen

to th

e Uni

on ca

use,

and

help

ed le

ad ra

ids t

hat f

reed

hun

dred

s mor

e sla

ves.

With

une

qual

led

cour

age,

Tubm

an p

ursu

ed li

bert

y for

ev

ery

Am

eric

an, a

nd in

doi

ng so

bec

ame

a le

gend

.

HANDOUT B



THE

WR

IGH

T B

RO

THER

SID

A B

. W

ELLS

HANDOUT B



W

rig

ht

Bro

ther

s

Wilb

ur a

nd O

rvill

e W

right

’s re

sour

cefu

lnes

s and

pe

rsev

eran

ce ch

ange

d a n

atio

n—an

d th

e wor

ld. W

hen

the b

oys w

ere y

oung

, the

ir fa

ther

bro

ught

hom

e a to

y th

at c

augh

t the

ir in

tere

st: a

rub

ber-

band

con

trol

led

helic

opte

r. Th

eir f

asci

natio

n w

ith m

achi

nes t

hat h

elped

pe

ople

trav

el co

ntin

ued

thro

ugho

ut th

eir l

ife.

Peo

ple

had

drea

med

of

“flyi

ng m

achi

nes,”

but

no

one

had

eve

r be

en a

ble

to b

uild

one

tha

t co

uld

be c

ontr

olle

d in

flig

ht. Th

e W

right

Bro

ther

s too

k th

e re

sour

ces

they

’d e

arne

d fr

om m

anuf

actu

ring

and

se

lling

bic

ycle

s and

put

it in

to th

eir d

ream

of i

nven

ting

an a

irpla

ne. Th

ey e

xper

imen

ted

with

win

d tu

nnel

s. Th

ey h

ypot

hesiz

ed. Th

ey fa

iled,

and

faile

d ag

ain.

One

fa

iled

atte

mpt

, a g

lider

, was

so

disa

ppoi

ntin

g th

at

Wilb

ur a

lmos

t gav

e up

. Th

en, o

n D

ecem

ber 1

7, 19

03, t

hey s

ucce

eded

. Thei

r en

gine

-pow

ered

air

plan

e fle

w 1

20 fe

et, l

andi

ng 1

2 se

cond

s aft

er ta

keoff

. They

pat

ente

d th

eir

inve

ntio

n as

a “fl

ying

mac

hine

,” an

d fo

reve

r cha

nged

the w

orld

. G

reat

dist

ance

s co

uld

be s

pann

ed in

day

s in

stea

d of

w

eeks

or m

onth

s, id

eas s

prea

d ac

ross

the g

lobe

mor

e qu

ickl

y, an

d th

e mod

ern

age w

as u

sher

ed in

due

in p

art

to th

e pe

rsev

eran

ce o

f Orv

ille

and

Wilb

ur W

right

.

Ida

B.

Wel

ls

18

62

- 1

93

1

Ida

B. W

ells

wor

ked

to b

ring

nat

iona

l atte

ntio

n to

end

ing

the

inju

stic

e of

lync

hing

. Wel

ls w

as b

orn

in M

ississ

ippi

in 1

862,

the

old

est o

f eig

ht c

hild

ren.

H

er p

aren

ts d

ied

whe

n sh

e was

14,

and

she r

aise

d he

r yo

unge

r sib

lings

her

self.

She p

ut h

erse

lf th

roug

h co

llege

an

d be

cam

e a

teac

her i

n M

emph

is, T

enne

ssee

.In

189

2, W

ells

lost

thre

e cl

ose

frie

nds

to a

lync

h m

ob. Th

ese

grue

som

e ki

lling

s m

ade

head

lines

, but

no

one

was

arr

este

d or

cha

rged

. As

a jo

urna

list a

nd

a ne

wsp

aper

ow

ner

and

edito

r, W

ells

cour

ageo

usly

w

rote

abou

t the

raci

sm th

at m

otiv

ated

such

mur

ders

. Th

e pr

ess a

ttack

ed h

er a

s a “b

lack

scou

ndre

l.” A

mob

ra

nsac

ked

her

office

and

thre

aten

ed h

er li

fe, b

ut s

he

cont

inue

d to

spea

k th

e tr

uth

abou

t lyn

chin

g.W

ells

late

r mov

ed to

Chi

cago

whe

re sh

e pub

lishe

d Th

e Re

d Re

cord

, the

fir

st d

ocum

ente

d st

atis

tical

re

port

on

lync

hing

. She

bec

ame

a re

spec

ted

publ

ic

spea

ker,

and

trav

eled

wid

ely.

She

co-

foun

ded

the

Nat

iona

l Ass

ocia

tion

for t

he A

dvan

cem

ent f

or C

olor

ed

Peop

le (N

AA

CP)

in 1

909.

Ida

B. W

ell’s

cou

rage

and

pe

rsev

eran

ce h

elpe

d en

d an

on-

goin

g in

just

ice,

an

d br

ough

t abo

ut im

port

ant c

hang

e in

the

Uni

ted

Stat

es.

Orv

ille

Wri

gh

t 1

87

1 -

19

48

Wilb

ur

Wri

gh

t 1

86

7 -

19

12

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS - Bill of Rights Institute...HANDOUT B CHARACTER CARDS (CONT.) BEING AN AMERICAN...

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Transcript of JOHN QUINCY ADAMS - Bill of Rights Institute...HANDOUT B CHARACTER CARDS (CONT.) BEING AN AMERICAN...