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Question 1
The NBC news website highlights the stories of various black women in American society. The women act as leaders who seek to improve the lives of black communities. This paper will primarily focus on the video done by Millie Brown, the founder of “Tears of a Mothers Cry.” Her speech mainly focuses on the issue of gun violence that continues to take the lives of innocent children in the United States. Her organization has worked for several years to brighten the lives of families that have lost children to gun violence (Burke). Brown notes in the clip that she started the foundation due to the need to assist the women who lost their children.
The video highlights the suffering of thousands of mothers who have lost their kids to violence and shootings. According to Brown, she always made time to visit affected families in Baltimore to help them cope. For instance, she made an effort to host many thanksgiving parties and park outings for the mothers. The video shows that gun violence affects not only adults but also young kids. Her video, therefore, tries to reach out to the young kids and show them why gun violence is harmful.
To achieve her objective, Brown involves her son to reach out to the young people. She notes in the video that her son had been making portraits for the families for approximately eleven years. Her foundation also encourages parents to involve themselves in their children’s school activities. She also notes in the video that it would be great if her foundation spreads to other states in the country. Millie Brown, therefore, qualifies to be considered a noteworthy person due to her contribution to society.
Question 2
The reasonable perception is that the economy of a country would not function without a functioning form of governance. The state plays an essential role in guaranteeing that its citizens live in quality, sustainable lives. The leading purposes of a government to its people include providing public goods to the community, correcting externalities, and providing security. The absence of a government would lead to the collapse of various structures that maintain stability.
The first function of a government is to improve the quality of life of its people by protecting and providing for its citizens. The government has to ensure its people feel secure by protecting them from foreign enemies or themselves. People living in troubled regions in the world have lower standards of living. Insecurity causes fear in people reducing their productivity in developing their country. Therefore the government has a role of ensuring that every citizen in society is safe. Protection and security can be maintained through equipping and training the police and army. The police have the responsibility of implementing regulation passed by the state on behalf of its people.
The government has the role of providing the necessary and needs to its people, including education, health services, and infrastructure. People in society pay taxes to live in better sustainable lives. The government, in this case, acts as the solution to various problems facing the people. Therefore, people expect the state to build roads, bridges, hospitals, and schools. Besides, the government is required to ensure that people have access to a steady supply of medicine and other essential needs. In essence, the government plays a critical role for its people in crisis and in regular times.
Question 3
The brutal murder of Emmet Till helped ignite the struggle for freedom among the African Americans in the 1950s. African Americans faced racial discrimination and segregation in the 1950s before the murder. However, after his death, people of color began their struggle for justice until they eventually gained freedom. In this case, the victim’s mutilated body forced most people who had retained themselves from the fight to rise. It is, therefore, accurate to argue that the death of Emmet played a significant role in shaping the history of African Americans. If he survived the brutal attack, Emmet would have lived in a life of hardships due to racism and segregation in schools and workplaces.
The death of Emmet led to the end of racial segregation in workplaces and schools in the United States. Therefore, while the murder was horrific, it brought changes that improved the lives of the people of color. Thus, if he survived, he would have lived in an inferior life compared to that lived by the white people. At the time, African Americans were required to live in miserable surroundings and work in low skilled jobs. White people imagined that they were better than the blacks and that it was wrong to mix their lives with the African Americans. Even though some states illegalized segregation, most areas still practiced discrimination of black minorities.
Black activism that was inspired by the murder of Emmet led to the illegalization of segregation, improving the lives of the people of color. The court ruled that separating the white and black children in schools affected the immensely. However, even though several states obeyed the decision, some ignored the ruling and continued practicing segregation. Emmet would have probably ended up working in a low skilled job earning little income if he lived. His death signaled a turning point in the lives of the African Americans due to the struggle of justice it inspired.
Question 4
While Douglass acknowledged the contribution of the American founding fathers, he believed that Africans owed nothing to the founding. He argued that the fourth of July reminded the African Americans the cruelty and injustice they experienced in the hands of the colonial masters. In his speech, Douglass wanted the free Americans to understand that all people are equal regardless of race, and they were all fighting for the same thing. He stresses his disappointment of how the people of color were treated by noting that slaves needed to be treated like other men. Besides, real Christians should not overlook the suffering of black men, especially denying them their liberties and freedoms.
Therefore, while the other Americans celebrated their independence on 4th July, he believed that a lot had to be done for the people of color. He thought that the black people had nothing to celebrate because they were still under captivity. Douglass was frustrated by lack of action and responsibility to improve the lives of the black people. For instance, he notes that most churches in the United States supported the discrimination and suffering of Africans.
Douglass, however, believed that everything could improve if all people made a collective action to champion for the rights of the slaves. He found that segregation, discrimination, and slavery could be eliminated if the church intervened (Douglass). He argued that while the church acted as the source of the suffering of the people of color, it could also offer the solution. Be believed that America was founded on freedom and liberty, creating the need for respecting the rights of the Africans. In essence, Douglass saw Fourth of July as a day that reminded him of the injustice they faced as slaves in the United States.
Works cited
Burke Minyvonne. “Millie Brown: Comforts moms and families who have lost kids to gun violence.” NBCNEWS, January 31, 2019.
Douglass, Frederick. “What to the slave is the fourth of July?: An address delivered in Rochester, New York, on 5 July 1852.” The Frederick Douglass papers 2 (1982): 1847-1854.