1. In a speech given in 1852, Frederick Douglas raised the question, "What to the Slave, is the Fourth of July". How does literature of the reconstruction address the issue of patriotism or country? How does this literature relate to modern- day society?
2. What does the use of dialect bring to the meaning of a work? Does it add a layer of meaning, or does it detract from the message? Provide examples and explain your views.
3. Booker T. Washington was an advocate for African American rights. One aspect of society he focused on was that of education. PBS's website titled "The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow" (2002) depicts Washington as a man who was "considered the most influential black educator of the late 19th and early 20th centuries insofar as he controlled the flow of funds to black schools and colleges" (web).
4. Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States.
Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.
* Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation - which had become official January 1, 1863.
The Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on the Texans due to the minimal number of Union troops to enforce the new Executive Order.
However, with the surrender of General Lee in April of 1865, and the arrival of General Granger's regiment, the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance.