The United States Constitution - 1698 Words

The United States Constitution was ratified in the summer of 1788 and is the governing document of the United States of America. Owing to its brevity and clarity of thought, it has stood the test of time, whereas founding laws of other nations have come and gone, lost to the thoughts of the many for whom they were originally conceived of to sustain. Of the prescient statutes that comprise this most venerable of documents is Article 1, Section Four, which laid a foundation for the election of federal representatives. It states in part: The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such†¦show more content†¦While codification of this statute in 1875 for the U.S. House of Representatives and in 1914 for the U.S. Senate has accomplish much in the way of streamlining the elections process throughout the United States, the na tion is still saddled with a patchwork of 50 state laws which make it, almost by constitutional decree, impossible for citizens of the United States to equally exercise their civic voting rights. While the U.S. Code mandates a date for federal elections, the Constitution simultaneously grants each state broad power in how it conducts federal elections. The outcomes on Election Day are the result of disparate voting experiences and, some argue that to protect the integrity of the electoral system, changes need to be implemented. Others argue that voter turnout is a problem, with the United States historically ranking embarrassingly low internationally in voter turnout, but that these results are due to lack of voter interest in the political system as a whole rather than lack of opportunity to cast a ballot. Is there a problem, and if we agree there is, what is at its root? Furthermore, what could be done politically to address any such problem? Those U.S. citizens that seek to participate in the election process are in some precincts faced with an inadequate number of poll workers and voting

Georgia Douglas Johnson Harlem Renaissance Writer

Georgia Douglas Johnson (September 10, 1880 - May 14, 1966) was among the women who were Harlem Renaissance figures. She was a pioneer in the black theatre movement, a prolific writer of more than 28 plays and many poems. She challenged both racial and gender barriers to success as a poet, writer, and playwright.  She was called the Lady Poet of the New Negro Renaissance. She is especially known for her four poetry works,  The Heart of a Woman  (1918),  Bronze  (1922),  AnAutumn Love Cycle  (1928), and  Share My World  (1962) Background Georgia Douglas Johnson was born Georgia Douglas Camp in Atlanta, Georgia, into an interracial family. She graduated from the Normal School of Atlanta University in 1893. Georgia Douglas taught in Marietta and Atlanta Georgia. She left teaching in 1902 to attend Oberlin Conservatory of Music, intending to become a composer. She returned to teaching in Atlanta, and became an assistant principal. She married Henry Lincoln Johnson, an attorney and government worker in Atlanta active in the Republican Party. Writing and Salons Moving to Washington, DC, in 1909 with her husband and two children, Georgia Douglas Johnsons home was often the site of salons or gatherings of African American writers and artists. She called her home the Half-Way House, and often took in those who had no other place to live. Georgia Douglas Johnson published her first poems in 1916 in the NAACPs Crisis magazine, and her first book of poetry in 1918, The Heart of a Woman, focusing on the experience of a woman. Jessie Fauset helped her select the poems for the book. In her 1922 collection, Bronze, she responded to early criticism by focusing more on racial experience. She wrote more than 200 poems, 40 plays, 30 songs, and edited 100 books by 1930. These were often performed in community venues common to what was called the New Negro theatre: not for profit locations including churches, YWCAs, lodges, schools. Many of her plays, written in the 1920s, fall into the category of lynching drama. She was writing at a time when organized opposition to lynching was part of social reform, and while lynching was still occurring at a high rate especially in the South.   Her husband reluctantly supported her writing career until his death in 1925. In that year, President Coolidge appointed Johnson to a position as Commissioner of Conciliation in the Department of Labor, recognizing her late husbands support of the Republican Party. But she needed her writing to help support herself and her children. Her home was open in the 1920s and early 1930s to the African American artists of the day, including  Langston Hughes,  Countee Cullen,  Angelina Grimke,  W.E.B. DuBois,  James Weldon Johnson,  Alice Dunbar-Nelson, Mary Burrill, and Anne Spencer. Georgia Douglas Johnson continued to write, publishing her best-known book, An Autumn Love Cycle, in 1925. She struggled with poverty after her husband died in 1925. She wrote a syndicated weekly newspaper column from 1926-1932. More Difficult Years After she lost the Department of Labor job in 1934, in the depths of the  Great Depression, Georgia Douglas Johnson worked as a teacher, librarian, and file clerk in the 1930s and 1940s. She found it difficult to get published. Her anti-lynching writings of the 1920s and 1930s were mostly not published at the time; some have been lost. During World War II she published poems and read some on radio shows. In the 1950s Johnson  found it difficult to publish poems with a more political message.  She continued writing plays into the era of the Civil Rights movement, though by that time other black women writers were more likely to be noticed and published, including Lorraine Hansberry, whose  Raisin in the Sun  dates to 1959. Reflecting her early interest in music, she included music in some of her plays. In 1965 Atlanta University awarded Georgia Douglas Johnson an honorary doctorate. She saw to her sons education; Henry Johnson, jr., completed Bowdoin College and then Howard University law school. Peter Johnson attended Dartmouth college and Howard University medical school. Georgia Douglas Johnson died in 1966, shortly after finishing a Catalogue of Writings, mentioning 28 plays. Much of her unpublished work was lost, including many papers thrown away after her funeral. In 2006, Judith L. Stephens published a book of Johnsons known plays. Family Background Father: George CampMother: Laura Jackson CampBorn in Atlanta, Georgia; birth year is uncertain, given as early as 1877 and as late as 1886Her mixed race heritage (African American on both sides, English on her fathers, Native American on her mothers) is a theme that she explores in some of her writings. Education Atlanta University Normal School (graduated 1893)Oberlin Conservatory of Music (1902)Cleveland College of Music Marriage and Children Husband: Henry Lincoln Johnson (married 1903; lawyer; appointed recorder of deeds, Washington, 1912; Republican National Committeeman from Georgia, 1920 to 1925)Children: Henry Lincoln Johnson, Jr. (born 1906) and Peter Douglas Johnson (born 1907)

Obama State of the Union Essay Free Essays

A Man Stands Alone: â€Å"We are not quitters. † That is what young Ty’Sheonna Bethea from Dillon, South Carolina had to say about attending a schoolhouse which is literally falling apart. She and the were asking for nothing more than what every school age student across the country has every right to receive. We will write a custom essay sample on Obama State of the Union Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now This was just one of the many examples that President Barrack Obama had addressed during his State of the Union Address that was read on February 24, 2009 to the Nation. This speech was to inform the us that the problems of America have been heard, not ignored President Obama was given this position at one of America’s lowest points in history. He had inherited close to a trillion dollar deficit, a financial collapse and a skyrocketing as our Commander in Chief, he spoke candidly of the goals we have to meet as â€Å"a people†. Works Cited Barack Obama: Address Before a joint Session of the Congress President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Deal, 1933-1945 Rollins, Lisa L. â€Å"Comparing Barack Obama to Franklin D. Roosevelt† One of the greatest President’s in the history of the United States if America was four term elected, 32nd President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. President Roosevelt led the United States through two of the greatest crises of the 20th century: the Great Depression and World War II. In so doing, he greatly expanded the powers of the federal government through a series of programs and reforms known as the New Deal, and he served as the principal architect of President Roosevelt had succeeded former President Hoover, who had led the country into the worse financial instability ever in our young country’s history. Both men, in order to create something out of nothing, have or had plans to build economic stimulating programs. But one man’s ideas are tried and proven while the others has yet to be given the opportunity to flourish. In that respect only time can really tell how these two great leaders share strengths through trying times. How to cite Obama State of the Union Essay, Essays

Dekada 70 free essay sample

Dekada 70 is set in the turbulent Martial Law era in Philippine history. In the 1970s, the Republic of the Philippines was under the rule of then President Ferdinand Marcos. On September 21, 1972, Marcos declared Martial Law which placed the country under the rule of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, but kept himself in power. Under the Martial Law era, Marcos consolidated control of the armed forces, freedom of the press was severely limited and opponents of Marcos were detained. [edit] Plot summary Amanda Bartolome is a mother of a middle-class family who has five young sons. Her eldest son, Jules, had a normal upbringing. Being the eldest in the family, he was already old enough during the declaration of martial law President Marcos. He became exposed to rebellious reading material, and inevitably molded his mind into that of guerilla. Jules grew up to become a member of the communist New Peoples Army. We will write a custom essay sample on Dekada 70 or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Amanda and her husband, Julian, had suspicions of their sons inclination to become an anti-Government winger but became convinced when they find copies of rebellious pamphlets lying around the house. They confronted their son about them, and he had to admit his decision. At first, conflict ensues in the family. Eventually, the parents learned to accept their sons decision, and eventually became proud of him. Since then, their home became a constant place of recreation for Jules who often brought a friend along with him. One of these friends of Jules is Domeng who stayed with the family for some time while recuperating from an injury. The family became close to the young man because, among other things, he reminded them of their son Jules. Unfortunately, it was already late when they realized that Domeng was an operative of the government all this time and that the friendship was all a front. Domeng exposed Jules participation and involvement in the NPA movement. And Jules was subsequently sent to prison. Isagani, the second child, grew up to become a sailor, and became the familys cream of the crop. Gani, however, quickly became the goat of the family because he had made the simplest mistake of getting a girl, his girlfriend Evelyn, pregnant. Naturally, being a Catholic country, the parents insisted on marriage. Alas, their lives were nothing but hollow imitations of couples in love, without enough of the very essence that keeps two people together. Their separation was inevitable; Gani never lived the shame down. The third Bartolome offspring that provided himself with the most secure future. Emmanuel lived the same life as his elder brothers, but knew that the extreme left and the extreme right had no place in society. He called for peaceful evolution, change in the form of expression. He wanted to become a writer, a noble profession, one exceptionally crafted for someone of Emmanuels ability. His problem was, his father violently objected to his sons decision, due to practical reasons. There is no good pay for a writer. Jason was Julians favorite among his children. He was also the opposite of Emmanuel. While Emmanuel was studious and hardworking, Jason was a typical teenager. He joined rallies to make noise, not express a message. He was a constant failure in school, albeit his problems were self-inflicted. He stole from his parents. He lied to them. However, in the midst of the first three brothers hardships, it was Jasons happy-go-lucky demeanor that provided Amanda and Julian with a well-needed dose of happiness. Unfortunately, in the end, it was Jasons felonious tendencies that caused hm his life; it wasnt his fault, but he was out with his usual round of pecadillos that the police accidentally killed Jason. Sometime before he was sent to prison, Jules himself met a girl he wanted to marry. And unlike Gani, he truly loved this woman, Marah, and also got her pregnant. While in prison, he married Marah, and so there was the first addition to their family. The youngest son was Benjamin. After all had come to pass, he was in the middle of his teens.