Open Prompt: Characterization of America by Meg Higginbotham

Open Prompt: Characterization of America by Meg Higginbotham https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo en-us 2019-04-22 11:37:56 UTC 2019-04-23 17:34:46 UTC hello@padlet.com Natalie: While the make up of the United States remains the same, the America as Paine knew it has changed in so many ways he would not even recognize it. nplaut https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087711

- racism/islamophobia hateful acts such as the car driven into the protesters
-Trumps comments on Twitter and in general as an American leader
-Tax problems with rich people not paying them *cough cough Trump]]> 2019-04-22 15:37:53 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087711 Lindsay Dewar https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087764 Thesis; In the book Rights of Man by author Thomas Paine, Paine examines the setting of America in the early stages of its independence, and in looking it this characterization, it is safe to say America has changed dramatically since this time and Paine's description now proves itself to be false.

1st point; the rich do hold privilege, as seen in the 2019 college admissions scandal.
2nd point; the Government can be unjust as well, as seen in the two cases of Cyntonia Brown and Brock Turner.
3rd point; There is now a massive rift between groups of different races, sexual orientations, sexes, political standings, and religious beliefs, one of the many examples is with Trump's plans for the Mexican-American border (could also use the Charlottesville riots if you want). ]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:01 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087764 Simon https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087805 Thesis: Thomas Paine's 1791 evaluation of American unity does not hold true today: modern American society is more polarized than at any point in its history.

1: Trump and fake news (political)
2: Segregation in D.C. (racial)
3: BLM and police brutality (racial)]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:08 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087805 L.A. https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087807 Thomas Pain uses the complexity of how American was built off of our citizens diverse skills and how the government does not control our whole lives, and this still mainly holds true to this day.
Examples:

1. Everyone has an equal chance in our education system to thrive and get their degrees.
2. The United States accepts thousands of immigrants per year and makes them integral parts of our societies.
3. Everyone has the chance to vote if you are an American citizen and have not committed a crime. ]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:09 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087807 Peter Heller https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087819 Thomas Paine and his compatriots were able to form the first country based on the ideals of democracy, rights and freedom, and by uniting otherwise divided groups, the founding fathers were able to form an almost perfect union. Although there are some issues with wealth inequality today, that doesn't detract from the fact that the country today remains extremely powerful. Today we have a country were there is a just and robust judicial system, a country were everyone has equal opportunities to succeed, and because the Bill of Rights ensures that our rights are protected, America today is just as great as it was in the time of Thomas Paine. ]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:10 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087819 18- Thomas Paine's excerpt from his 1791 book, Rights of Man, is what America aspires to continue to be, but unfortunately is not as they no longer fully embody the equality and just government. https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087822
examples
-impunity from crimes (because you're famous or a politician or smth)
-tax cuts for the rich while the poor have a lot of taxes to pay (directly contradicts Paine's "poor are not oppressed, the rich are not privileged")
-all the hate crimes and racism and sexism and homophobia ]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:11 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087822 Nix https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087845 Although America in 1791 was a melting pot of different cultures that were brought into unison, America is no longer unified the same ways Thomas Paine wrote that it was.
1. events such as the riots in Charlottesville
2. people not paying taxes. . .
3. different religions and religious buildings being pitted against each other (Notre Dame vs the 3 black churches)

]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:16 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087845 Nancy Thesis: Although America did not fully accomplish his idea, we as a whole are working towards and even beyond his goal. https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087873 P1: college enrollment based on racial diversity
P2: Philanthropists helping the poors by giving them money or establishing charities.
P3: While Many people are suffering from poverty, we as a society put the idea of the importance of volunteerism in education

]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:21 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353087873 17 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088014 Even though the United States has transitioned culturally, there is still a divide in society, countering what Paine argues.

- religious division
- race division
- wealth division]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:44 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088014 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088029 Although throughout the For many United States Citizens, college ]]> 2019-04-22 15:38:47 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088029 14 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088169 Although the American government continues to be constructed the same way, Thomas Paine's depiction of America does not hold true today.
1: poor are forced to live in towns together separated from the rest of the world (economical segregation)
2: terrorism, targeting specific races (racism)
3: trump is not just (political) ]]> 2019-04-22 15:39:10 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088169 mljohnson5 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088262 Although Paine's Characterization of America is upheld in the constitution, the America Paine Depicts ultimately has changed drastically and no longer upholds the same values in the governments actions

1. large Corporations like Amazon and Facebook control society
2. No longer a middle class
3. hate speech]]> 2019-04-22 15:39:26 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088262 11 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088359 While parts of Thomas Paine's characterization fo America written about in Rights of Man still holds true, there are some aspects of America that have changed the way people characterize this nation]]> 2019-04-22 15:39:42 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088359 5 - Although, the United States has had periods in its history where society has been unified, the large majority of America's history and present day has seen a major divide between socioeconomic classes, religions, and backgrounds. https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088535 - ]]> 2019-04-22 15:40:10 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088535 csabet https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088636 Although Thomas Paine advances the contention that America was fundamentally unified in his literary work Rights of Man and on the surface America may appear tightly unified as the leader of unity, unfortunately upon closer examination this was true neither in 1791 or in 2019.
- My relatives were denied the VISA they worked for years to obtain due to the current political climate.
- Other countries (ex. EU refugees, etc.) & globalization.
- Some cultures (ex. Middle Eastern cultures) are stigmatized or downright ignored in our "inclusive" culture.]]> 2019-04-22 15:40:27 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353088636 73 https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353090049 Although Thomas Paine’s words regarding the characterization of America held true in the past, they are not applicable to today's society.]]> 2019-04-22 15:44:21 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353090049 Abigail https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353136726 Thesis: Thomas Paine’s excerpt from the Rights of Man, 1791 is a rather archaic and outdated evaluation of American unity. As of today, American society is completely divided and marginalized communities are still forced to suffer, thus making Paine’s excerpt inapplicable to modern society.

Example:

a. Race-targeted acts of terrorism

b. The lack of distribution of wealth

c. Religious intolerance

]]> 2019-04-22 18:00:47 UTC https://padlet.com/mhigginbotham5_1/216esqjm0euo/wish/353136726