Exploration

**Slavery In America ** ** Slavery played a big part in American history. Slavery- a form of forced labor which people are considered to be owned as property for others. Slaves can be held against their will from when they are purchased till when they are set free. ** **The Underground Railroad** -- The Underground Railroad brought many slaves to freedom in the north. It was believed to have started in 1787 when Isaac T. Hopper began to orgainze a system for helping fugative slaves. Although it started in 1787, it became very well known during 1800-1850. During that time frame a vast network of people helped fugative slaves escape to the north. These people were called abolitionists. They did not agree with slavery and wanted it to be abolished hence the name abolitionists.The first step was to escape from their masters. Sometimes a conductor posing as a slave came to the plantations and guided the runaways northward. The slaves would move at night about 10-20 miles to the next station. While they waited, messages would be sent to the next station to alert its station master. Throughout the years, the south lost over 100,000 slaves due to the Underground Railroad. When Slaves entered the north, they thought that they would be free but soon foujnd out they only had semi freedom. African Americans faced segregation and violoence by white northerners.

-- Harriet Tubman wa one of the many conductors ofthe underground railroad. She made 19 trips from the north to the south, saving 300 slaves and bringing them to freedom. Throughout her years she took part in antislavery meetings. During the Civil War she worked for the union as a cook, nurse, and a spy. Although many people know her as Harriet Tubman, her real name was Araminta Ross. She had changed her name because of her mother who she idolised. By 1856, if any one caught her, they would recieve $40,000 dollars reward from the south. As you know she had made 19 trips to the south.Those trips were very risky, but as she always said, " She never lost a single passenger." After the underground railroad ended, she settled in Auburn, New York were she spent the rest of her life. She died in 1913 from pneumonia.
 * Harriet Tubman**


 * Abraham Lincoln**

-- We all know Abraham Lincoln as the 16th president of the United States Of America. He was all of that and much more. He was not aggainst slavery and thought slavery protected the consititution in states where it already existed. When he was in office, The Civil War began between the north and south. On June 1st of 1865, President Abraham Lincoln gave one of his most famous speeches called the Gettysburg Address. One of the most well known parts of the speech was the first sentence," Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." Because of this speech, he is one of the most remembered and famous leaders in America. The reason why he is considered to be one of the best, was because he put his own beliefs behind and did what he thought was right for the whole country and helped to stop slavery in America.


 * Civil Rights Movement**

-- The Civil Rights Movement was a movement in the United States aimed at banning racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring suffrage in the southern states. The movement was from 1955 to 1968. During this time, many events occurred. Some of these events include sit in, the marches of Martin Luther King Jr., The Little Rock Nine, and one of the most tragic Emmett Till.

-- Emmett Till was a fourteen year old African American boy and was born in Chicago. One summer at the age of fourteen, hsi mother sent him to Mississippi to stay with relatives not knowing that the south was segregated. On August 4th of 1955, he was hanging out with other teenagers when one of them urged him to whistle at a white woman, who owned a store with her husband. This action led to much anger by the woman's husband. On August 28th of the same year, Emmett was kidnapped by the woman's husband and brother-in-law and then brutally beaten and shot to death. His mangled body was found in a river by two fishermen. His body was in such bad condition, the only way to identify him was by the ring his mother had given him. At his funeral, his mother wanted an open casket to show the world the harm done by the men and also show how bad segregation was becoming. Although the two men were trailed for murder, they were acquitted by an all white jury. They even confessed to doing the crime, but were never held against their actions. Emmett's mother continued to tell the world of his murder and the hatred behind it until she died at the age of 81 in 2003.
 * Emmett Till**

-- The Little Rock Nine were nine African American teenagers who wanted to enroll at Central High School. In the summer of 1957, the city of Little Rock, Arkansas desegregated its public schools allowing African Americans to attend. On December 4th the governor called the national guard to surround the high school so that no African Americans could enter the school. The reason they were called, was to prevent the Little Rock Nine from entering the school even though the federal government was allowing the student to attend the high school. The governor of the state was racist so he would not allow this to happen. He dismissed the troops, leaving the students exposed to an angry mob that threw bricks and had beaten several reporters. By noon that day, police were forced to evacuate the 9 students. Under Federal protection, the Little Rock Nine finished out the school year. The following schoool year there was more violence, including the bombing of a students house. Although there was a lot of violence, four of the nine students attended the school the following year protected by police. Currently at Central High School, there is a tribute for the Little Rock Nine. The Little Rock Nine consisted of Ernest Green, Elizabeth Eckford, Jefferson Thomas, Terrence Roberts, Carlotta Walls Lanier, Minnijean Brown Trickey, Gloria Ray Karlmark, Thelma Mothershed-Wair, and Melba Pattillo Beals.
 * Little Rock Nine**