Photoessay

Chaeli Mycroft

   A staggering 1.7 million individuals, in other words, 4.3% of the population in South Africa are disabled. One incredible young girl is trying to aid these poor people. The International Children's Peace Prize of  2011 was designated to Chaeli Mycroft, at the age of seventeen.  Living all her life in South Africa, Chaeli Mycroft was born with Cerebral Palsy and at the age of nine started her journey with the support of her three best friends, sister and mother. They helped her with her first project that inspired her to start helping others, earning money for her first electrical wheelchair. This encouraged Chaeli’s determination to help disabled children all over South Africa through her organization, The Chaeli Campaign. Perseverance, is what led her to being presented with the prize. Throughout Chaeli Mycroft’s journey she is fighting to stop discrimination towards disabled children and the right to assistance no matter who you are.

   In South Africa not all disabled children are born into a society that accepts them, instead they are discriminated against and Chaeli Mycroft  helps to prevent this with her organisation. She goes and meets disabled children in their homes and at their schools doing workshops and getting them the medical care they need to be able to be more independent and in control of their lives. “The Chaeli Campaigns helps 3,000 people a year with assistant devices, therapies, and emotional support.” In giving the disabled children the assistance they need she lets them be more “normal” which lets them be more accepted in their societies. This causes less discrimination to be pointed their way. Chaeli is disabled and understands the limitation on her abilities and knows what it is like to be discriminated against. “Chaeli was born with Cerebral Palsy, through which the function of her arms and legs is limited.” Even with Cerebral Palsy Chaeli has followed her dreams and is fighting for what she feels is right, to stop discrimination towards disabled children just like her.

   Rights are important, not everyone has equal rights and unfortunately that is the case of many disabled children in South Africa. Not only has Chaeli fought for the stopping of discrimination she also have devoted her life to share the gift of equal rights. She has been help children gain the rights to assistant devices, therapies, and emotional support. Most of the kids Chaeli visits would never have the opportunities she has given them. She has saved their lives. The Chaeli Campaign goes to communities and bring to light the fact that a lot of their disabled children need attention, care, and love. They breaf people on how to do this or help them do this. “Chaeli received the prize for her commitment to the rights of children with disabilities in South Africa through her project: the Chaeli Campaign.” Rights, a morally good, justified, or acceptable way. Chaeli is giving children the right they deserve in the world. She does this because as I said before she is disabled and feels that every disabled person should have the same rights as everyone else in the world. “Disabled people are still people, who have the same needs and rights” Chaeli is an inspiration and should be heard because her message is important RIGHTS MATTER and with her message comes a story, her story, her life!

  Chaeli’s work as changed the lives of many people and children alike, with her drive to stopping discrimination and helping giving right to disabled children. People such as Chaeli help change the world for the better. She has taken her disability and made it into her message the message that everyone should be equal, no matter who they are. That is why the Peace Prize is so important because it reminds us of all the beautiful things that are happening in the world every day. Such as the Chaeli Campaign and it helps us realize all the little things that we can do to help contribute to making the world a better place to live for me and for you. This would help the 1.7 million people in South Africa who are disabled with their everyday life. IMAGINE!

Sources used:
1 "Disability Statistics - SignGenius." 2004. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://www.signgenius.com/info-statistics.shtml>
2 "Children's Peace Prize winner Chaeli Mycroft in South Africa ..." 2012. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24zQ13hQfKI>
3"Dreams Begin With Dreamers: Chaeli Mycroft." 2012. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://ctang17.blogspot.com/2012/10/chaeli-mycroft.html>

Harrison Bergeron- Vonnegut's Message

In the story of Harrison Bergeron the author Vonnegut is trying to send us/the world the message that we can't have perfect equality. We should know that we, (people) are not flawless and can't achieve perfect equality in the world. 

Everyone is equal in the Harrison Bergeron story yet there is still something wrong, “everyone is finally equal...Some things about living still weren’t quite right,

though.” (pg. 130) In the short story of Harrison Bergeron the government or ruler has tried to accomplish equality but in making everybody at the same intelligence and ability level they have created a dystopian instead of an utopia society. "And George, while his intelligence was way above

normal, had a little mental handicap radio in his ear. He was required by law to wear it at all times. It was tuned to a government transmitter. Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like George from taking unfair advantage of their brains." (pg.130) Diana Moon Glampers and the rulers of the world in 2081 have made everyone like Hazel, "stupid" (quote Olivia Gardiner) or under the average intelligence for our world. You would of thought that this would have make the world a utopian place but in pursuit of equality the rulers of 2081 were blinded in the haze of fog. They were led through the fog by the idea that we/people can reach complete equality. The world can come to a form of equality, I am sure, but we shouldn't be chancing rainbows. 

Our Identity

Where I'm From?

I am from Polly Pockets,
Barbies, Ellie the elephantand my worry dolls.
I am from the Teletubbies, Dexter's Laboratory,
Winnie the Poohand all the Home Alone movies.


I am from sailing around the Greek Islands
and dressing my brother up as a girl.
I am from Scotland;
cold, wet, and green.
I am from playing in the snow.
I am from my marshmallow jacket.
I am from the old scary Dell computer
and the scar on my right upper lip.


I am from Tiddle Pop, Looly, tinternet, consputer and d’migusting!

I am from the blinding colours of a picture,
that swirl into a beautiful image.
I am from the single picture concealed in a stack of thousands.
I am from that single, unique, and complex picture.




Me!

Blue sandals from Zara.Long tanned legs
with about a thousand scars on them.
Small navy school shorts
with a small panther head
on the left leg,
lend up by a new navy belt I got from my mum
over the holiday.
I have on a light blue polo shirt
with my school logo in the left hand corner.
On top of that I have a navy cardigan from my aunt
that she got in Gap because French class is COLD!
My favorite turquoise
that I got for my birthday last year lies on my left wrist.
I had to put my hair up in science so it is very messy like me!   

Is Identity Worth Fighting For

A person’s identity is with out a doubt, worth fighting for.  If we didn’t have an identity everyone would be the same and that is just plane BORING. Your identity forms who you are not just on the inside but on the outside too. Occasionally others can stamp our identity on our foreheads with permanent ink. A great example of this would be the poem that we read in class,

Maybe Dats Youwr Pwoblem Too. In this poem "Spiderman" wants to be something other than "Spiderman" but you just can't quit being "Spiderman", people depend on you. "Spiderman’s" suit is "fwame wesistent". This means that he can't just give up his identity of being "Spiderman" because people have this image of him and his identity, keeping him confined to that identity ONLY. We need to fight for our identities they are important, don't let anyone tell you different!

The Feudal System-Extension Task

Father Francois, you are my honored guest. Please allow me to explain the Feudal system to you before you ask any questions of me. I am but a simple farmer, a worker on the Kings land. The vassal a citizens  of the King entrusted with land, accept he would loose his possession if he did not obey the oath that he had sworn. Although the King owned the land, the vassal could lend the land to other vassal's while the vassals can ask peasants to work on the land for protection and so becoming a lord themselves.

1066: The Best Claim to the Throne

In 1066 King Edward the Confessor, the leader of England passed. After his death there were three people competing for the throne, Duke William of Normandy, Harald Hardrada and Harold Godwinson. They all had different views on who would be worthy of the throne but there was one person that I felt had the best claim, Duke William of Normandy he was promised as Edwards successor in 1051 by Edward himself. William also got the Pope to support him. This gave him a huge advantage as the Pope was the head of the church and very powerful as he had the support of all the people and was extremely wealthy. Duke William also claimed that in 1064 he captured Harold Godwinson when visiting Normandy and when in Normandy William made Harold Godwinson make an oath to help him in his aim to be King of England. Harold Godwinson was called an oath breaker because he was competing with william not helping him and back them it was a big deal to break an oath. This made the people of England take a second thought about having Harold Godwinson as their King because at that time no one wanted an oath breaker as their King. Duke William of Normandy had three strong main claims to the throne and he even had a claim that made people over look Harold Godwinson. In my opinion he would had been the one that the people of england because of his claims.  

Values & Choices

Think about a time you witnessed bullying/ostracism/peer pressure/exclusion/discrimination/violence. How did you respond? How do you wish you had responded? What stopped you from responding that way?


 I have watch too much of bullying more than I have wanted and it doesn’t take a lot of effort to remember the many events than have occurred in the past but there is one I can remember very clearly almost like it was just a second ago. I will not mention any names because I do not wish for anyone to get hurt. The bullying took place in one of my classes and there are only a small number of us exactly six if I remember correctly but it dose not take many to hurt another. The two victims of this bullying are not fully aware of the bullying but I am sure that they felt some hurt when the bullying took place. It was when the class was practicing for a Math test that was coming up and the two victims, a girl and boy didn't understand the questions that were given to us so that we could practice. The teacher tried very hard to get them both to understand but it seemed that they were not really paying attention to the teacher because of this the teacher decided to make the lesson more interesting by adding a little consequence if a student did not get the questions right so that the girl and boy would pay more attention in class. The little consequence was five push-ups for every question that a student got wrong. Both the girl and boy got the question wrong and the girl managed to do the push ups but with a lot of pushing and nagging. She was bullied by a couple of small remark, "Even ... could do it!" said one of the boys in my class that got the question correct. The classmates that got the question right kept putting the boy and girl down. Some of the remarks were, "Your arms must be so weak if they can not even handle five push ups!" and "Even ... could do it! And look at her." and "Stop being a wimp!" and many more. I stood up when the comments got out of hand but my class mate gave me this look as if to say, "What are you doing sticking up for them." That stopped me right in my tracks, their intimidation created a small spark of fear that aloud me to back down but if I would have said some thing I would have said this, "Leave them alone, it's not like you have not understood something before. You have not right to be making fun of them if the thing that you have be making fun of them for is something that you have done!" I wish that I could go back and change what I have done by honestly I don't think I could because "Often being excepted be others is far more satisfying than being excepted by your self."- Eve S

Where have we seen examples of bullying/ostracism/exclusion occurring in texts studied so far this year- factual as well as fictional?

There were a lot of examples throughout all of the books that we read but I remember one example from The Hunger Games, the best. It involved ostracism, the character that was ostracised was Peeta, he felt excluded from Haymitch and Katniss's plans. Katniss had to get coaching from Haymitch at the end of the book because of the stunt with the berries was too rebellious agents the Capitol and she didn't want to make the situation worse. The coaching from Haymitch was to help Katniss seem like the love between Peeta and her was so strong that they couldn't live with out each other, that was why they did the stunt with the berries. Peeta wasn't coached because he was a natural at the love act because, for him it wasn't an act. He got very upset with this and felt that he should have known what was going on. Here is a small quote from the book on pg. 372 that shows Peeta's emotions, "Coaching you? But not me," says Peeta.  "He knew you were smart enough to get it right," I say. "I didn't know there was anything to get right," says Peeta. " So, what you're saying is, these last few days and then I guess...back in the arena...that was just some strategy you two worked out." There is also a very little quote the show us some more of his emotions towards the topic, "the pain in his voice is palpable."  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Eve S: The In Group

Select one line/phrase/group of sentences that are significant to you. Explain why.


"Looking back I wonder how I could have participated in mocking this girl. When I knew perfectly well what it was like to be mocked myself. I would like to say if I were in that situation today that I would act differently but I can't honestly be sure. Often being excepted be others is far more satisfying than being excepted by your self. Thou that satisfaction dosen't last too often our actions are determined  by the moment." I feel that this line of sentences are significant because they are sentences that I agree with. We all would like to go back and change a moment in our life but sometime we are not sure if we could change it because "too often our actions are determined  by the moment." 


How is ostracism different from other forms of bullying? When does ostracising or excluding someone from a group become part of bullying?



Ostracism is different from bullying in the way that ostracism is exclusion from a society or group and bullying is use superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him or her to do what one wants. Ostracising or excluding someone from a group is apart of bullying but excluding is only a small part of bullying. Bullying takes it on step farther.


What’s familiar about the incident Eve describes? What surprised you?


Eve's incident is familiar because it happens all over the world, anywhere you could think of that human live. The thing that surprised me was the fact that all the people in her class were so close yet the incident was still able to occur.

How did Eve’s need to belong affect the way she responded when another girl was being mocked? Why does her response still trouble her? How do you like to think you would have responded to the incident?


Eve's need to belong affected the way she responded because at last she was being included and even though she knew that it was cruel she wanted to be accepted. This is reaction still worries her as she knew how hurtful it can be to be mocked. I would like to think that I would have stood up for the girl and told the "popular group" that they were being mean and that the diary was private.



Eve concludes “Often being accepted by others is more satisfying than being accepted by oneself, even though the satisfaction does not last.’ What does she mean?


I think that Eve meant that sometimes you can get over whelmed by the need to be accepted by others, we like to be liked and look for the company of friends, so that we can enjoy things together. It is more difficult for us to appreciate time spent on our own even though it can be just as rewarding and maybe even more so.     

The Mysterious Major

 Julius Schmahling was a teacher before he became the major of the Haute-Loire district in France.When he was a teacher Schmahling crushed a little boy in his classroom. After this happened the boy didn't say a word for the rest of the year. Schmahling meant that he was destroying the boys self-confidence, his idea's, and his spirit when he was crushing him. He was also destroying something in himself in the very act of destroying the moment of joy in the little boy's life. He was destroying a piece of himself a piece that he could never get back. A part of his personality, his happiness, and his self-confidence. This was like the relationship between the Nazi's and the people that they ruled. The Nazi's destroyed who they were, and their joy. They made them scared, and full of fear like Schmahling made the little boy feel.

Victory

I danced with you that one time only.
How sad you were, how tired, lonely...
You knew that they would "take" you soon...
So when your bunk-mate played a tune
You whispered: "Little one, let us dance,
We may not have another chance."

To grasp this moment...sense the mood;
Your arms around me felt so good
The ugly barracks disappeared
There was no hunger...and no fear.
Oh what a sight, just you and I,
My lovely father (once big and strong)
And me, a child...condemned o die.

I thought: how long
             before the song
                           must end

There are no tools
             to measure love
                         and only fools

Would fail
             to scale
                  your victory

Victory is a poem written by Sonia Weitz's a Holocaust survivor who died June the 23ed, 2010 at the age of 81. Sonia and her sister surveyed five concentration camps; Plaszow, Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen, Mauthausen, and Venusberg during the Holocaust. She wrote this poem about the last time she saw her father before she was taken away. Victory is also about Sonia Weitz and her father dancing to a song played by one of the men in her fathers camp. One part in the poem that really stood out to me was when she wrote, "Only fools would fail to scale your victory". To me this meant that only silly people would try to measure her father’s victory because it was immeasurable or in other words the victory was so substantial that no one could put it on a scale. The mood in the poem shifts, in the first few lines it seems sad. Then further towards the end I sensed that the words became full of hope, joy, and happiness. Victory is about a small spark of hope in an endless eclipse of darkness. Out of all the unimaginable event that occurred in the Holocaust Sonia and her father were able to bring hope to the situation with their unbreakable bond. I think that the poem was called Victory because no matter what the Nazi's did to the Jews they could not take away who they were. They could not break the bond between father and daughter, no matter how weak, hunger, or small they made them.

Germany 1918-1933

  There are few conditions that occurred allowing Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party to take control of Germany in 1933. The Treaty of Versailles (which was established in 1919) was a great benefit for Hitler because it meant that the people of Germany had to pay reparations for World War 1. The Germans felt that is was dreadful, now they have to pay for other countries losses as well as their own. Hitler took the hate of the Treaty of Versailles and used it to win over the people of Germany. The Treaty of Versailles also led to the hyperinflation and economic crisis because Germany couldn't find the money to pay for the reparations. Hitler took advantage of this because the people became desperate and they needed the Treaty of Versailles to be abolished and he wanted to do just that. Another great bonus that appeared was the Reichstag Fire in 1933. This fire was not just any fire it was burning down Reichstag Building in Berlin, where German's Parliament sat. Hitler blamed the fire on the Communist's this gave Hitler the power to imprison them and make the Nazi's the only party allowed in Germany because the German’s thought that they had been saved from the evil Communist’s they voted for Hitler and the Nazi party. I beleive that these main event's helped Hitler and the Nazi party to take control of Germany. 

  

The Nuremberg Laws

1.  Who could now be defined as a "Jew"?
A Jew was not only defined by there believes bur also by their heritage. If they had 3-4 grandparents that were Jews they would be classed as one as well. 


2.  What was meant by "Aryanizing" Jewish Businesses?
Aryanizing Jewish Businesses ment that a Jew employees and manegers were replaced with "non-Jews" Nazi's. This left the Jews with nothing, no money or any way to earn it. 


3.  How were Jews who were professionals (lawyers, doctors etc.) restricted?
Professionals (lawyers, doctors etc.) were restricted so that they could not have any contact with "non-Jew's".  Jewish doctors were not allowed to treat "non-Jewish" patience. Lawyers were prohibited to practice the law. 

4.  What did Jewish identity cards need to include now?
The Jewish identity cards included a red 'J' stamped on them, and a Jews middle name would be changed. If you were a boy 'Israel' would be changed to your middle name, and if you were a girl 'Sara'. This allowed police to identify the Jews with more ease.

5.  What was the "Law for the Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People" (sum up in your own words)?

The "Law for the Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People" was to prevent the population from being harmed. If a couple were to be married they were entitled to have a "health check-up" and if one of them had a health problem they wouldn't be able to marry. 

Hitler Takes Control: Targeting the Communists and other Political Parties

 During Hitler’s rise to authority one of the things that he wiped out Civil Rights. Civil Rights are the entitlement of individuals to social and political liberty and equality. Some of the Civil Rights are freedom of speech, being able to practice any religion; it's unlawful to seize people’s homes and property without due cause and freedom to assemble. The reason that some people thought that taking away Civil Rights was necessary was that it would take away the threat of Communism, as political parties could no longer meet. 

Treaty of Versailles

I thought that the Treaty of Versailles was mostly fair to Germany. I agree that the countries of Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland all have their independence. The treaty called for Germanys military to be reduced which I think was fair due to the destruction that was caused. Germany and her Allies were to accept responsibility for all damages but it was unfair that only Germany had to pay ($33 billion). I also felt that Germany was being blamed a bit too much for the cause of the war, it was not all their fault, the war began due to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In conclusion I felt that if the money was distributed evenly throughout Germany and their Allies the Treaty of Versailles would have been much more fare to Germany.