Many of You Spent Too Much Time Re-Stating the Quote

In response to the prompt for the in-class essay on February 12th, here is an exemplary introduction and body paragraph. The notes also illustrate an approach to thinking about the prompt.

Common pitfalls (observations I made):

-Many of you spent too much time re-stating the quote.

-There was minimal analysis of facts. You should have included responses to questions of “why?”

-Make a point in response to the prompt. Rather than just say that Foner’s point IS predominantly true, theorize as to WHY.

Samples:

Intro:

Historian Eric Foner’s observation that freedoms and equality “have rarely been given freely or distributed equally” is accurate when looking at many groups who suffered then fought for their rights at various parts during the twentieth century. Interestingly, ultimately it was the rights provided in the constitution that also allowed for the reaction and rebellion of groups such as Christian Fundamentalists in the 1920s, Hollywood actors in the 1940s and 1950s, and Beatniks in the 1950s and 1960s. Although the scope of the first half of the twentieth century is expansive the commonality among these groups was not just their exercise of and fight for constitutional rights like freedom of speech, but that they were reacting to pressures of their era.

Other possible arguments:

Even as rights had to be fought for, rights like freedom of assembly, religion and the right to remained silent allowed people to work towards realizing their rights.

Often in US History, the minority has had to fight harder for their rights

●Beatniks fighting conformists: materialism

●ACLU / John Scopes: fighting Christian fundamentalism

Sample Body Paragraph:

The free speech movement, begun in 1964, demonstrated the truth in Foner’s statement as it clearly exposed the hypocrisy that authority can still exhibit even with the First Amendment. When students violated Berkeley’s ban on political speech to express their outrage at the Vietnam War, the authorities cracked down. As a result, students coordinated sit-ins and demonstrations which landed many of them in jail but ultimately gained them the voice they had sought. Without students who were willing to risk their tuition payments and their education, college campuses might still be places of limited speech in violation of the First Amendment.

People who sought to limit by using the constitution:

●KKK

●Anti-communist politicians