**More information on the supporting material can be found by clicking on hyperlinks within the blog**
Welcome to Chapter 12, specifically relating to Minorities in US. Like the others I have already mentioned, this one stood out to just as much. I say that because, where would America be today if it weren't for the different cultures, skills, and talents brought by many different backgrounds? Unlike other countries, I feel this chapter explains unique makeup of the United States as a whole! When reading through the book or even the snapshot of information I provided below, you can expect a better understanding of what some other minorities have been through & witnessed in there struggle for happiness in the US. Yes, a lot of you may have read about it in History class, but some of material mentioned may not have been as detailed. I also believe the material speaks for itself. Just think about where some minority groups came from to where they are now and I feel you'll have a better understanding on the importance behind this entry....
This portion focuses on de facto & de jure segregation. It explains more in detail, the definition and descriptions of the previously mentioned terms.
A Nation of Minorities: America in 2050, News Article
Hispanic Contributions to the US, in respects to the Hispanic Culture within the United States. Directly, it highlights their importance and contributions to the US as a whole.
by John Ponomarenko
‘When the sun comes up and the first quail calls, follow the drinking gourd.
For the old man is a-waiting to carry you to freedom,
If you follow the drinking gourd.’
(With the beginning of winter on Dec. 21, the sun starts climbing higher in the sky each day. And in winter, the call of migratory quail echoes across southern fields. So Peg Leg Joe's ingenious song advised slaves to escape in winter and head north toward the Big Dipper -- code name, drinking gourd. A guide will be waiting at the end of the line. )
‘ The riverbank makes a very good road.
The dead trees show you the way,
Left foot, peg foot, travelling on
Follow the drinking gourd. ‘
(This verse directs fugitives to the Tombigbee River, where special "Peg Leg" markings on fallen trees will show they're on the correct northerly course. Travelling under cover of darkness, slaves could find their way along a river even on nights too overcast for the Big Dipper's stars to shine through. The Tombigbee River, which empties into Alabama's Mobile Bay on the Gulf of Mexico, originates in northeast Mississippi. Perhaps as many as 200,000 enslaved people lived near that river, according to Gloria Rall, producer of a children's planetarium show, Following the Drinking Gourd, about the escape route. )
‘The river ends between two hills.
Follow the drinking gourd.
There's another river on the other side,
Follow the drinking gourd. ‘
Follow the drinking gourd.
There's another river on the other side,
Follow the drinking gourd. ‘
(When the Tombigbee ends, the runaways who'd memorized the song knew to walk north over a hill until they came to another river, the Tennessee, then go north on it as well. )
‘Where the great big river meets the little river,
Follow the drinking gourd.
For the old man is a-waiting for to carry you to freedom,
If you follow the drinking gourd. ‘
(The song ends by instructing slaves that at the end of Tennessee River they must cross over to the north side of the big Ohio River, where someone from the Underground Railroad would ensure their passage to the first of a string of safe houses reaching all the way to Canada.
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