History

                                     Reflection on "Teens Step Up and Speak Out" Article

                                                                                                                       Written by: Amanda Cisneros

                                                                                                                                          10-2-20

     After reading the article, I learned a lot. I learned that some of these peaceful protests are being held by teenagers, and I also learned that kids are also trying to be involved with this movement. I agree with this article. I agree that there needs to be an end to systemic racism, for we are all human. People should learn to respect other's believes, and heritages. I strongly believe that social media can really help spread awareness about what is going on today, and I feel like this new generation can use social media to their advantage. I am happy to see kids my ages trying their hardest to spread awareness about this topic because I feel that more people need to hear about this. In my opinion, I support BLM protesting. I don't support the looting and vandalizing, because I believe that is not tied to the protesting. I feel that it is wrong what those officers did to George Floyd, and all of the officers involved need and should be charged accountable. Nobody should be judged by the color of their skin, nor should anyone be discriminated against by the color of their skin. These were some of my opinions when it came to the BLM movement, and the article in general. 

Here is a link to a website that explains what the BLM movement is all about:https://www.britannica.com/topic/Black-Lives-Matter         

                                                                    Democracy Prevails                                                                                                                                                                                                             Amanda Cisneros                                                                                                                                                        1-15-21

    

    After reading the article, I think the most shocking/surprising thing I learned was that these rioters' sole purpose for raiding the U.S. Capitol, was to try and terminate the certification process for the president-elect, Joe Biden. What I would really like to be informed of, is why did these people think that it was okay to break into the U.S. Capitol? It really angers me because not only were these rioters selfish, but they did a sickening thing. They not only put the lives of officers and fellow Congress members at risk, but there is a serious global pandemic going around, and hardly any of these rioters seemed to care! I think that what these people did was disgusting, unnecessary, and foolish. If these people wanted to show how much they care for trump, they simply could have waited outside of the capital, peacefully. Since watching the news, and multiple video clips on this topic, I and many other people believe that these rioters' got away with this crime easily. Not hardly enough were arrested, and there was little to no use of force against these rioters. Therefore, here was my opinion and reasoning on how I felt about this topic. 

Here is a report I read about the U.S. Capitol Raiding:

CBS News: U.S. Capitol Raiding

                                                              Amanda Gorman                               1-21-21                                                      

                                                              Inauguration Poet                                                     

                                                                                                                        

    After watching Amanda Gorman present her poem, and reading it on paper, I felt honored. I loved that she didn't "sugarcoat" anything, and what I really enjoyed was the fact that her poem had depth and meaning to it. Personally, I thought Amanda's message to her audience was, even though this year has been extremely difficult, we can still come back and conquer it. Although life isn't always peaceful and normal, somehow we still made it through the day, and we can soon make this country better again. What got my attention when she was saying her poem, was when she said "Being American is more than a prize we inherit. It's the past we stepped into and how we repair it." I think this line caught my attention the most because I do believe that we Americans, are entitled to trying to repair what has been damaged in our country. I completely agree with what Amanda Gorman is saying in her poem, and I do think that at the end of the day, we all need to all put our differences aside, and work together as a team to make this county what was once called "great", again.                                       

                                                                                                                               

                                                                        Joe Biden                                           1-22-21    

                                                                 Inauguration Speech                                                                              

          Overall, I really enjoyed Joe Biden's speech. I thought that it was very inspiring, very well written, and extremely welcoming as well. One thing that stood out to me when he was speaking, was when he said "Without unity, there is no peace." I think this is extremely true because if we Americans don't work together to try and fix this country, there will be no peace! Another thing that caught my attention was when he said "We can deliver racial justice, and we can make America once again, the leading force for good in the world." I really liked that he mention racial justice because it is a serious topic, that not a lot of people feel comfortable talking about. What I think the president was trying to get across to all people was, 

"Let us all unite together as one. Let's put away our differences, and work together to make our country amazing. Even though there have been many hardships right now, I just want you to be able to trust me." This is what I thought he was trying to say, but overall I really enjoyed his speech.