Thandiwe Chama

A young girl grows up in a community full of HIV/AIDS, her only hope is that she can finish school and have a successful future. Living in a small house, and having to work at a young age in order for her family to afford education, winning the “Children’s Peace Prize” seemed impossible. Adoring her days at school suddenly realizing that it was going to be taken away from her. This is Thandiwe Chama the girl that brought education back into her community. She stood up for both her and her fellow 60 schoolmates, she also went to the government officials to try and get them to build her community a new school so that they had shelter from the hot sun and the rain. At only 8 years old having her school shutdown, and living in Zambia flowing with HIV/AIDS, Thandiwe fought for the right to education and for people to take action and fight along side her to make her community a safer and more educational place to live.

Thandiwe is fighting for the right of education and for people to realize that it is the key for a successful future. There are two types of education needed in Thandiwe's community, regular education that can help you get into college and get a job, and education on how to prevent catching HIV/AIDS. When Thandiwe was only 8 years old her school was shut down due to lack of teachers. Thandiwe did not accept the fact that she had no education, and decided she was going to stand up for herself by going to the government and demanding education for her and her fellow 60 classmates. Thandiwe and her schoolmates learned out in the hot sun all day, so Thandiwe went to the government official to plead for a new building where students could learn in the shade, and have shelter through the bad weather. The government listened and Thandiwe was granted a new school where both her and her schoolmates could learn. Thandiwe had terrible personal experiences in her community with HIV/AIDS and she knew how important it was to keep yourself sanitized to stay away from those diseases. HIVS/AIDS can be spread through sexual intercourse or sharing needles for injections of drugs or steroids. Children need the education in order to help prevent them from catching HIV/AIDS and Thandiwe knew that. Thandiwe knows that education is the key to a successful future. Without a good education, there is very little chance of a successful future. She wanted the best for both herself and the people in her community, so she fought long and hard for her community to be granted the gift of education.

Thandiwe knows that she can’t go through this fight all on her own, and that she is going to need people to take action and fight along with her. Thandiwe rallied with her community so that the government would provide more land for more classrooms. She organized this rally, and made sure she had enough supporters for it to be successful. Once Thandiwe won the “Children’s Peace Prize” in 2007, she started getting noticed by a lot more people, and was able to interview big stars like BONO. People decided they were going to help her, and after Thandiwe gave her speech during the “Children’s Peace Prize Ceremony” she was granted a library. The library was called “Thandiwe’s Library” and it was placed in the middle of her community so that all her people could have access to it. She knew that she couldn’t win this fight if she was fighting it herself. Thandiwe knew how important it was for people to take action with her, after she won her award she made sure everyone knew about her.

A young girl growing up in a small town in Zambia, the right to education being taken away from her and her schoolmates, very little education on how to prevent HIV/AIDS, and a very slim chance of succeeding in her future. Thandiwe fought for 9 years, for the right of education and for people to take action along the way before she became successful and won the ‘Children’s Peace Prize’ in 2007. Thandiwe was successful throughout her journey on trying to make her community a better place for both her and her fellow people, and was recognized for that by being given the ‘Children’s Peace Prize’ award of 2007. Thandiwe was absolutely delighted with her accomplishment, and so was her country. She made her community proud as it is now a better place to live in, full of education and more awareness on how to prevent HIV/AIDS.

In "Harrison Bergeron" different types of irony is used to make a statement relating back to the present. 'Vonnegut' the author, used dramatic irony to show us how Hazel and George think they are living in a utopia, when really they are living in a dystopia and we as readers know that. In this Vonnegut is trying to make a connection at how people nowadays think that there is such thing as perfection. But even when you think you have perfection, you really haven't got it at all. Vonnegut is showing us that in his story by having Hazel and George think they are living in a perfect world, where everyone is equal and everything is fair, nobody is better than anyone else. When really, nothing is fair, people don't have any rights, yes they might think everything is equal, but really there is no such thing as happiness. Vonnegut is trying to tell us, that there is no such thing as a utopia, it can be written in books, and told in stories, but we will never have a true utopia, it doesn't matter how hard we work. We are living in a dystopia and that will never change.

Chiune Sugihara

Chiune Sugihara was a Japanese diplomat that worked as a Consul-General in Kaunas, Lithuania. One day when Sugihara was getting up for work, he looked out his bedroom window and saw at least 200 Jews waiting for Sugihara to issue their visas. Sugihara was their last hope, and the Jews all knew that if Sugihara signed their visas they would be on their way to freedom. From then on Sugihara knew he had a purpose in the world, and he was going to help save as many Jews as possible. But there was obstacles along the way, Sugihara had to go against his government to save the Jews. Sugihara sent at least 10 requests for permission to sign the Jews visas. But there was no approval. So Sugihara just went and did it himself without permission. Sugihara had shown Dissidence in his actions by going against his government, by not waiting for an approval because he knew by the time he would have got one, it would be too late.

Sugihara had shown dissidence by not listening to what his government was telling him to do. The Japanese consul denied all of the requests that Sugihara had sent asking the if he was allowed to issue the Jews visas. But that didn’t stop Sugihara. He kept asking and asking, until he had reached the point were he knew that it would be too late, whenever the Japanese consul did approve his request, or if they ever approved his request. So Sugihara signed the visas without his consul’s permission. But by doing that he had saved so many Jews from death by the Nazi’s. So Sugihara showing dissidence to his government wasn’t a bad thing at all, he decided to do what was right, than do what he was supposed to do. Sugihara said that he chose to obey God, rather than obey his government.

Sugihara had saved over 2,000 Jews from the Nazi’s by issuing their visas, sending them to Japan to safety, freedom and a better life. Sugihara woke up every morning and signed visas, he signed visas when he was ill, when he was tired, and even when he was meant to be having time off. Sugihara was working under pressure because he knew that if the Nazi’s ever found out about what he was doing they could take him away, separate him from his family, and kill them all. But that didn’t stop Sugihara from doing his job. He knew that if he had issued the Jew’s visa, then they would be able to go and live a safe life in Japan away from all the torture and horror in Lithuania. Sugihara was a dissident person because he didn’t care in the end about what his goverment had told him to do or what they wanted him to do, he made sure that he did what was right, and that was to save all the Jews that he had saved.

Sugihara to me was a truly inspirational person. He was so selfless and didn’t care about himself at all. Sugihara didn’t want to be known as a superhero, he didn’t want to be famous and popular, he knew his job and he wanted to do it correctly. Sugihara saved over 2,000 Jews from the Nazi’s, when they could have all been sent to their death. Even on day’s when Sugihara was sick, tired, and felt that he couldn’t work, he made sure that he signed more visas and as much as he possibly could. He didn’t care about himself being sick or all the medical attention that he needed, he knew that there were more important things in the world than him, and he wanted to make sure that they were seen to.

Sugihara had such courage to help all of the Jews. What really stood out to me was that he knew the severe consequences he would have to face if he was ever found out about. But he kept going, and signed visa after visa after visa. Sugihara was a true hero to all of the Jews who thought that there was no hope, and that they were going to get killed. But he stopped them thinking that, and told them there was hope and not to give up, he didn’t tell them that with speech, but with actions. He made sure that he could save as much Jews as he possibly could. He never gave up, and showed actions of dissidence, that people now would have thought that that would be dangerous, going against your government when they had so much power. But Sugihara didn’t care and wasn’t going to stop until he really had too.

“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” -Elie Wiesel

Germans, Jews, and Propaganda.

This picture "Der Bannerträger" was painted by Austrian-born artist Hubert Lanzinger (1880-1950) in 1935. This painting shows Hitler gazing into a better future for Germany. Der Bannerträger was first displayed in the Great German Art Exhibition in Munich 1937. This image was turned into a postcard by Heinrich Hoffman ( Hitler's official photographer) in 1938.

In this image I see Hitler on a black horse, looking ahead strong and proud into Germany's future. Hitler is sitting on the horse proudly holding the German flag, while wearing a knight in shining armor suit. Hitler is looking into a better future for Ger

many and that of course means killing the Jews, and making Germany only for Germans. But of course that is the way Hitler see's Germany in a positive way. This image was made into a postcard, so basically people can choose to by a postcard of Hitler. Hitler is trying to make himself as popular and as famous in Germany as possible because he wants to make Germany under his control.

In this image Hitler is looking proud and ready to work. He is holding the Nazi flag, and is on a black horse. Normally when someone is the leader of a parade, or of an army, you will see them on a horse holding a flag, or a sword, or something like that. In this image Hitler seems to be on a horse, holding the Nazi flag, as if he is leading the Nazi's into a brighter and happier future.

Der Stürmer was the most famed newspaper in Germany. It published tons of Anti-Jewish images, and articles by Philipp Rupprecht known well as Fips. The image on the front cover of Der Stürmer shows the "Jew" as a warmonger who looks at the non-Jewish world supportingly as it is crucified on a cross marked "war" (Krieg).

In this image I see a German on the cross, supposedly being crusified, while a Jew is looking at him and smiling. This was written by a German so of course this might be a bit mis-leading. In this image I see hatred between the 2 races. I think that Philipp Rupprecht put this on the cover page because he wants Germans and German families to see how terrible the Jew's are and how they mistreat the Germans. He wants Germans to think that the Jew's are terrible people and to hate the Jew's is the correct feeling to have against them.

In this image the German is looking really sad while the Jew is looking back at him in a selfish type of way. If I was a German and I saw this image I would be quite angry because the Jew's would be killing us. So of course this is putting a bad look on the Jew's to the Germans. Because of course all of Germany wants to be safe and not killed. This image is definitely going to get Germans to start hating Jew's because it is showing the Jewish Race killing the Germans and over powering them.

Is it right to risk bringing such danger on one's relatives and friends by challenging the forces of law and order?

Is it right to risk bringing such danger on one's relatives and friends by challenging the forces of law and order?

I believe that it is both right, and both wrong to risk danger against on relatives and friends by challenging the forces of law and order. This is a difficult question because there are so many different answers to this questions for both the question being right and wrong. Why I believe that this question is right is because the forces of law and order are very harsh, when you are messing with them, your basically playing with a ball of fire. They control the country and how everything is supposed to go. In the case of "Boy in Striped Pajamas" the Nazi's want the family to go and work at Aushuitz. The Nazi's are very powerful people and you never know if you don't follow their rules and how they want things to go, what might happen to you. So I believe that he was doing what was right for his family in a way, he didn't want the forces to get a hold of him.

The reason why I believe that this is the wrong idea is because, well, the mother in the book was completely correct. This was no place for young kids to grow up. To think that your kids should grow up near a concentration camp is just horrible. Just to think that there are people being tortured, and people are dying there everyday is just really disturbing and to bring your family there is just a horrible thing to do, and I myself would never do, because I would never want my family, or my children to grow up in those surroundings. I believe that this is a dangerous situation, because like exactly what happened in the book, Bruno and most young boy's are adventurous and love playing around and discovering new things. To think that your child would just sit around the house all day for about a year is ridiculous and it's very dangerous because some day he is just going to want to break free, and will go out and explore. It's dangerous to think that if your child explores he might possibly run into the concentration camp and, will want to go in and see what is going on in there. In the book this is exactly what happened, and if the father had thought of the family, and the kids a bit more before he moved there he might not be in that situation.

Treaty of Versaille Fair of Unfair?

‘I am convinced that if this peace is not made on the highest principles of justice, it will be swept away by the peoples of the world in less than a generation.’ Woodrow Wilson

The Treaty of Versaille was established in 1918 by President Woodrow Wilson. His goal was to make the world forever at peace and to stop all the war going on between the Germans and the other countries. But and interesting question came up. But was the Treaty of Versaille fair of unfair?

I believe that the Treaty of Versaille was fair. There were only 14 rules but they would be a lot to ask for for a country to do. The country's would really have to work at making peace. If all the countries decided to follow the Treaty of Versaille they world would be a much better place. Yet they didn't. That is another interesting question, Why would some of the countries dissagree to this? Wouldn't most countries and their leaders want a more peaceful place for their people to live in? I think that it was completely fair to everyone, because who wouldn't want the world to be a better place? But there were 14 points, there are only 14 but that is quite hard to follow when you have to make a whole country follow them as well.

President Woodrow I think would really need to think this over because this is a lot to ask from many countries especially Germany at that time. So of course there are going to be many countries that are going to completely disagree because it a lot to ask from them. But coming back to the question. The Treaty of Versaille was fair but hard to follow for some countries and I think that is the reason why some of them didn't sign it.

No Man is an Island

No man is an island entire of itself; every man

is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europeis the less, as well as if a promontory were, aswell as any manner of thy friends or of thineown were; any man's death diminishes me,because I am involved in mankind.And therefore never send to know for whomthe bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

These words by John Donne from the 1624 Meditation 17,

from Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions

How do these texts explore similar themes?

I think that the main theme for this piece would be that all men are equal and we are all the same. There is not better man or no worse man. The saying " No Man is and Island" means that no man is isolated and we are all together and are to help each other in whatever we need help with. We are not individuals in the world we are a team, a community, and we are all to help each other. There are so many people in the world who suffer from segregation and cannot receive any help because they are different. This piece of writing tells us that it doesn't matter how different we are, we are all equal and should help each other.

How do the texts provide insight to prejudice and "otherness"?

Well John Donne was saying that every man is equal in the world and no man is greater than another. Because some people in the world believe that they are greater than others and will refuse to help anybody under their status. What John Donne is trying to say is that we are all the same, there is no difference. For example if I cut myself I will bleed, if you cut yourself you will bleed. There is no difference in mankind we are all equal.

Why do people make distinctions between "us" and "them" ?

People make distinctions between "us" and "them" because they are probably jealous, or afraid, or maybe just being cautious with the other "kind". Some people might not want the "others" to take over their power, they might be afraid of losing it. They might be afraid that the "others" are different and may harm them. In the end it just depends on our emotions with the "others" and what we think of them that makes us make distinctions.