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Wysłany: Pon 13:16, 07 Paź 2013 Temat postu: lancel A Time of Reflection |
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I was born on March 24, 1950 in Chicago, Illinois. That was five years after the end of the Second World War. I cannot remember much of the first few years of my life, but I do know that America was establishing herself as the world's newest superpower. A lot was going on politically, socially and economically (Patterson 12). The U.S. was engaged in a Cold war with the Soviet Union. The political conflicts between the two countries were many.
Each wanted to show that they were greater in terms of ideology, possession of arms and technology. Military tension was culpable between the [url=http://www.mquin.com/saclancel.php]lancel[/url] two world powers, and they even engaged in proxy wars as they tried to outdo each other (105). The tension created by the Cold war affected day to day lives [url=http://www.achbanker.com/homes.php]hollister[/url] of Americans. Between 1946 and 1964, it is estimated that some 20 million babies were born in the US. This is the generation that grew up during the tension filled years of the Cold War. It is also the generation that witnessed the Civil Movement. I am a proud member of this generation which is commonly referred to as the Baby Boomers (157).
I grew up during a time when the politics of the United States seemed almost uncertain. There was the ever threatening return-to-war feeling among the general populace. The never-ending tug-of-war between the US and USSR created a fear among citizens. This generated into a phenomenon that came to be known as Duck and Cover as people were [url=http://www.ilyav.com/isabelmarant.php]isabel marant pas cher[/url] afraid that the enemy (that is, the USSR) would drop a nuclear bomb on any part of the country and we had to be ready to duck and find cover if and when that happened (120).
This kind of tension was particularly unnerving for the young generation born after the war. I think the older generations were able to deal with the situation since they had experienced the Second World War and were used to such tension. In my understanding at that time, they were too afraid to speak out of the effects that war was having on the common citizens. But I was not. I felt that it was my right to speak out what I thought should be spoken out. If I thought that something was wrong and it needed to be corrected I was bold enough to say it. My outspokenness was a behavior I had picked up from my grandmother since when I was a child.
The Civil Rights Movement
In 1961 I joined college and like many other young people at the time, I had great expectations for my future. I knew I wanted a good life for myself and I understood that a college education would at least guarantee me a good job with good pay, of course. The 60s were tumultuous years, especially in regards to the Civil rights Movements and the conflicts that came with it. I had heard stories told of how Rosa Parks had defied the high and mighty to secure herself a seat in bus seat that was reserved for whites only (376).
I grew up admiring her courage to face up to people whom she knew could do anything to her if they wanted to. The first time I heard her story, I went home and during dinner asked my [url=http://www.mnfruit.com/abercrombie.php]abercrombie pas cher[/url] mother why people hated parks so much that they did not want her to sit in a set that she had paid [url=http://www.mxitcms.com/abercrombie/]abercrombie milano[/url] for in a bus. My mother tried to explain that people did not hate her, that [url=http://www.ilyav.com/isabelmarant.php]isabel marant sneakers[/url] it was just that people like her could only seat at a designated place in the bus. I was too young to understand the concept of discrimination, but something at the back of my head told me that the treatment Rosa Parks had received was not fare. I think that was the first time I really was able to develop an anti-status quo attitude which I would carry on later into my adulthood.
We had an African housekeeper at home whose son, Jeremy was more or less the same age as me. We were quite good friends and even though we attended different schools (I was in an all-white school while he was in an all black one), we did our school work together. I found him to be brighter than some of the students at my own school. He practically taught me everything I needed to know in all my science [url=http://www.1855sacramento.com/peuterey.php]peuterey[/url] subjects.
After high school we both went to different colleges but we remained good friends until he perished in a car crush in 1994. Spending time with Jeremy helped open my eyes to the realities of the civil movement. We used to talk about it all the time, but in hushed tones to avoid being heard by others. When I joined college in 1968, the civil rights movement was at its peak (678). I found myself in the middle of it all when my friends and I formed a group advocating for equality for all. Our outspokenness did not auger well with the college administration and we were suspended a couple of times.
The Yippies
On my 18th birthday I decided that political activism was important in a young man's life, [url=http://www.mnfruit.com/airjordan.php]jordan pas cher[/url] and that is when I decided to join the Youth International Party, or the Yippies as we liked to be called. Many of the members of the group were young Americans born after the end of the war. We had our own unique [url=http://www.ilyav.com/uggpascher.php]ugg pas cher[/url] ideals which we thought were best for America. There were a lot of anti-war sentiments in the 1960s. Many blamed the government for plunging America into unnecessary wars when there was still so much to do [url=http://www.1855sacramento.com/moncler.php]moncler sito ufficiale[/url] to develop the country.
Personally, I had nothing against the government, but I found felt that the ongoing Vietnam War was a waste of time. My parents, and indeed a large percentage of the older population, were not enthusiastic about the activities of the Yippies. They thought of us as misguided and full of unrealistic ideals. I on the other hand thought they were quite irrelevant and too afraid to voice their thoughts on what they thought of what was going on in their country both politically and socially. I joined the Yippies because I felt that it was the right platform from where I could be free to think however I wanted and act in any way that I pleased.
1968 is a year that will forever remained etched in my mind. It was the year that I took part in [url=http://www.thehygienerevolution.com/barbour.php]barbour[/url] nominating a pig for a presidential candidate (681). The radical nature of our politics made the group even more enticing and many young people joined. I felt that the social status quo created by the older generation was outdated and not fitted to the needs of young people of whom I was part of. By presenting the pig, which we named Pigasus the Immortal, we hoped that our disgust of the status quo was a message that would be heard by all who cared to listen.
I was an active member of the Yippies group and I took great pride in the street pranks we performed. Many of the conservative political leftists did not like our theatrics and they were ready to denounce us at any opportunity. Even though we did not have the older generation's support, we felt that our actions would soon bare fruit. Later in 1986 I left the movement because I felt that it had outlived its usefulness. The cold war was coming to an end and civil rights were better than they had been when I joined the movement.
Looking back, there are a lot of things that I could have done differently, but there is one thing that I do not regret: my outspokenness. I was a rebellious student in college and this got me into a lot of trouble. I joined a political movement whose motives were not so honorable. I got involved in street conflicts as a way of showing the rest of America that the ongoing Cold War tension was unnecessary. I joined the civil rights movement as a rebel advocate for the equal rights of all Americans. The Yippies movement was not a failure. We were able to bring to attention the things that needed to be attended to.
However, there remains so much to be done to improve the lives of Americans. We now have a black president, thanks to the radicalism of the 1960s and 70s. Sadly we are still engaging in unnecessary wars. Resources that can be used for development of the American society are being channeled to wars [url=http://www.sandvikfw.net/shopuk.php]hollister outlet sale[/url] with Arab countries. Still, I have not lost hope that all this can be remedied. I am happy that I was part of a generation that tried to make a difference and actually did.
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