Thursday, January 30, 2020

How could the Holocaust have beet prevented Essay Example for Free

How could the Holocaust have beet prevented Essay You have probably heard about a period of time, not so long ago, known as The Holocaust. A holocaust, according to Websters dictionary, is a complete destruction by fire (Stadtler, 1). In Europe, during this period, there was a complete destruction by fire of Jewish homes, Jewish businesses, Jewish neighborhoods, and Jewish people. This destruction was carried out under the direction of Adolf Hitler, during the years 1939-1945, but it actually began earlier, in 1933, when Hitler came to power in Germany. In my opinion, the Holocaust, which was caused by ignorance, could very well have been prevented. There were many powerful nations, such as the United Stated, the USSR, and Britain, whose leaders and militaries could have stepped in and helped the Jewish people who were facing extremely brutal persecution. Throughout most of the war, the American government clung to the delusion that the Nazis were persecuting the Jews because of their political or religious beliefs. The U.S. closed its gates to emigration from Europe in 1940-1941, when Jews were still allowed to emigrate. Anti-Semitism in America actually increased during the war and started to decline only at the end of it (Bauer, 297). A Soviet attitude toward the murder of the Jews simply did not exist. While fighting a desperate battle for its own survival, Britain saved the Jews of Palestine, North Africa, and much of the British Empire from the fate of European Jewry. The British fought only for themselves, but the defense of their own interests coincided with the defense of civilized humanity, including the Jews (Bauer, 296). The May 1939 White Paper on immigration to Palestine stated that immigration to Palestine would end after 75,000 had been admitted between 1939 and 1944. When war broke out, the British decreed that no enemy nationals could enter Palestine, which in effect, closed the doors to those who needing rescue most, specifically the European Jews trying to escape the Nazis. At first, the thought of such destruction in Europe was incomprehensible to other Nations. They heard of what was occurring, but did not believe it, and therefore did nothing. The suffering of hundreds of thousands, soon of millions, was evident for consciences to be aroused, for steps to be taken.  Nothing was done (Bauer, 297). I feel the ignorance of these Nations was the cause of the loss of 6 million lives. Had these Nations not turned their heads away and ignored what was happening, they could have saved many lives and prevented the Holocaust. By allowing emigration from Europe into their countries, by trying to negotiate with Hitler, or if worse came to worse, assassinating Hitler, things might have been different. By not recognizing the events leading to the Holocaust and of the Holocaust, they also caused the Holocaust along with Adolf Hitler. The Holocaust could only have been prevented by the World Powers, but they failed to do so because they were so ignorant. During the 19th century, European Jewry was being emancipated, and in most European countries, Jews were achieving some equality of status with non-Jews. Nonetheless, at times, Jews were vilified and harassed by anti-Semitic groups. Indeed, some anti-Semites believed that Jewry was an alien race not assimilable into a European culture, but they did not formulate any coherent anti-Semitic campaign until Hitler came to power. Germany was defeated in World War I after a four year struggle that left its people exhausted and divided. The harsh peace terms of the Versailles Treaty placed a heavy economic burden on them. Before the war Germany had thought of itself as Europes greatest nation. Now it was confused, bitter, and economically crippled, its wealth drained to pay the vast sums demanded by the Versailles Peace Treaty. Rising inflation left many Germans poor and others jobless. Political differences exploded in assassinations and street fighting. The new democratic government of Germany, the Weimar Republic, was unable to prevent disorder and caused people to lose faith in democracy. With Germans of all outlooks desperately seeking solutions for the nations problems, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party began their climb to power. Hitler was gifted with effective political talents. He offered an explanation for Germanys defeat, and a vision of Germanys future destiny, that played upon the fears, prejudices, and hopes of many Germans. He promised to rebuild  Germanys power and restore its prosperity (Isaacman, 16). This won the support of many Germans. Hitler was such an effective speaker that anything he said was believed even if it was not true. Hitler believed that the German people were part of an Aryan race, a superior group that should be kept pure to fulfill their mission of ruling the world. He felt that the Jewish people were sub-human, when in actuality they were virtually the same as his Aryan race. Not only did Hitler have a personal hatred toward the Jewish people, but he also blamed them for stabbing Germany in the back after Germanys defeat in World War I. Hitler used them as scapegoats because they were a minority and were easy to put the blame on. Historians agree that the Holocaust resulted from a confluence of various factors in a complex historical situation. That anti-Semitism festered throughout the centuries in European culture is centrally important; the Jews were (and are) a minority civilization in a majority environment. In periods of crisis, instead of searching for the solution of such crisis within the majority culture, the majority will tend to project blame for the crisis on a minority which is both familiar and weak. As the originators and bearers of an important part of civilization, the Jews are a father civilization against which pent up aggressions are easily unleashed (Bauer, 330). Anti-Semitism had always played a role in Nazi propaganda, for Hitler blamed most of Germanys problems on the Jews. Anti-Jewish laws of every kind were passed. Jews could no longer be judges, lawyers, teachers, government officials, army officers. Jewish doctors could not treat non-Jewish patients, Jews could not employ non-Jews, and Jews and non-Jews could not have social relationships. Jewish property was taken by the government, Jewish businesses were closed down, Jewish children could not attend public schools. All the media were utilized to spread anti-Jewish messages. On the street, Jews were mocked, tormented, and even beaten for no other reason but being Jewish. Jewish people were forced to wear Star of David armbands and were often attacked by storm troopers. On November 9-10, 1938, known as Kristallnacht (Night of the Broken Glass), hundreds of synagogues throughout Germany were burned by Nazi mobs, windows of Jewish shops were smashed, and thousands of Jews were arrested. Kristallnacht was a signal to Jews in Germany and Austria to leave as soon as possible. Several  hundred thousand people were able to find refuge in other countries, but a similar number, including many who were old or poor, stayed to face an uncertain fate (Stadtler, 12). The countries of Europe and the United States too, only admitted a small number of Jews. Had these countries made an exception for these people who were being treated poorly in their home countries there would have been a smaller amount of lives lost in the years to come. Throughout the 1930s, conditions for the Jews in Germany worsened. Some people in the United States refused to buy German products in an effort to put pressure on Hitler, but it did not help. This was not enough, the United States was a strong world power and could have done more to aid the Jewish people of Germany. What could a small amount of people not buying German products do? Absolutely nothing because Germany was much stronger than these few people; the aid of an entire nation was needed, not the aid of a few people. Since no one was stopping Hitler, he proceeded to enlarge Germanys territory. Threatening to use force if he did not get his way, he gained control of Austria in 1938 and of Czechoslovakia in 1939. Later in 1939, when Hitler invaded Poland, World War II broke out. During the early years of the war, Hitlers armies conquered most of Europe. Millions of Jews were now under German rule, and Hitler felt he was at last in a position to solve the Jewish Question. As Hitler saw it, the Jewish Question was simply the fact that the Jews existed. Therefore, the final solution emerged as a way to destroy them. Throughout Europe, in all the countries under their control- Poland, Western Russia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Greece, Italy, France, Holland, Denmark, Norway- the Jews were rounded up and confined in concentration camps or ghettos. Stripped of their property, brutalized, terrified, and disoriented, they were forced to work as slave laborers in abominable conditions. Many died of starvation and disease. Others were shot or beaten to death. Before long, rumors of this brutality reached capitals of the world, but nothing was done. As the war against the Jews progressed, however, the Nazis turned to large scale centralized killing operations. Jews from all over Europe were loaded into trains and shipped to death camps, among them, Auschwitz, Treblinka, Sobibor. LOCATION OF GERMAN CONCENTRATION CAMPS In the death camps, human life was destroyed quickly and efficiently (Isaacman, 19). Under the whips of cruel SS guards, the Jewish victims were herded off the trains and into gas chambers, where they were exterminated by a poisonous gas. Millions of non-Jews were also systematically killed- political opponents, Slavic peoples, and other minorities. In the case of the Jews, the Nazis were determined to annihilate an entire people. Some Jews fought back at every possible opportunity. Some Christians, too, tried to help. Taking great personal risks, they hid Jewish friends in their homes or cellars. Many of these people were caught and killed by the Nazis. People willing to take such risks were few and far between in Europe. Had other nations of the world been as righteous and as brave as these people, and combined their efforts, this attempted annihilation of the Jewish people could have been prevented. To some Nazis the final solution was more important than anything else. Though Germany was hemmed in by enemies and fighting for its life, they diverted valuable resources to the extermination machine (Isaacman, 20). Trains that could have carried ammunition to the front were used to transport Jews to death camps. Soldiers who could have been defending their country were instead sent to round up and guard Jewish civilians. After several years of war, Hitler knew he could not defeat America and the other Allies, but he was determined to win at least one victory by wiping out the Jews (Isaacman, 20). The United States and other world powers were too focused on the war to maintain their pride. While in Germany Hitler was trying to wipe an entire people off the face of the Earth. If these other nations of the world were not so ignorant, the lives of six million people  could have been saved. Hitler and his Nazi Party treated the Jewish people so inhumanely. He and his party felt that the Jews were biologically different, when in fact they were and are not. Every human being is equal and should be treated equally. No one is superior to anyone else, even though some may have an egocentric attitude. In 1945, Hitler committed suicide. Rather than correcting his errors, Hitler took the easy way out by committing suicide. The ultraorthodox Jewish theology justifies the Holocaust as an act of God, a punishment for sins committed by the Jewish people against their God. Others feel that the Holocaust was a result of mans betrayal to God. I feel that the Holocaust is not at all justified. During the Holocaust, six million Jewish people died, that is more than one-third (about 34 percent) of the Jewish population. From the liberated Nazi camps, weeping skeletons of men and women emerged. Among them were 200,000 Jews. These have to be added to the 210,000 that survived in France, about 37,000 in Belgium, 20,000 in the Netherlands, about 1,900,000 in the Polish-Soviet area, 350,000 in Rumania, 130,000 in Hungary, and smaller numbers elsewhere. Including Soviet Jewry, part of whom were never under Nazi rule, about 3 million Jews were left in Europe out of the original 9 million Jews before the war (Bauer, 334). As I stated before, there is only one thing and one thing only that caused this horrid event called the Holocaust, ignorance. Not just ignorance of the United States and the other world powers, but the ignorance of Hitler and his Nazi Party as well. Had the U.S. and other nations offered aid to the Jewish refugees, and opened their doors to these refugees, they would have saved many lives. Instead, they were just as guilty as the Nazis by helping in the destruction of an entire race. WORKS CITED PAGE Bauer, Yehuda. A History of the Holocaust. New York: Franklin Watts, 1983. Chartock, Roselle, Jack Spencer. The Holocaust Years: Society on Trial. New York: Bantam Books, 1978. Des Pres, Terrence. The Survivor: An Anatomy of Life in the Death Camps. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. Holocaust. Microsoft Encarta (CD ROM). 1993. Stadtler, Bea. The Holocaust: A History of Courage and Resistance. New York: Behrman House, Inc., 1973. Isaacman, Clara. Pathways Through the Holocaust. New York: Ktav Publishing House, Inc., 1988.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

The Goals of the Declaration of Independence Essay -- Essays Papers

The Goals of the Declaration of Independence The American Revolution was not only a battle between the British and the colonists; it was a historical movement that brought about new ways of thinking. The ideas of liberty and equality began to be seen as essential to the growth of the new nation. The separation of the American colonies from the British Empire occurred for a number of reasons. These reasons are illustrated in the Declaration of Independence. Although Thomas Jefferson wrote the document, it expressed the desire of the heart of each colonist to be free of British rule. British rule over the colonies became unbearable in the early months of 1776, making it clear to the colonists that it was time to either give in to British power or declare their independence. This idea of independence divided the colonies, but it was not long before a revolutionary committee met in Philadelphia and drew up the document that would change American history. The Declaration of Independence was written to separate the American colonies from Britain, but there were many underlying goals. It was written to state the grievances that the colonists held against the British, particularly the king. The colonists wanted a better economy, a new republican government, but perhaps most of all, they simply wanted their misery to end. This is what they set out to explain in the document. John Adams described it as â€Å"a Declaration setting forth the causes which have impelled us to this mighty revolution, and the reasons which will justify it in the sight of God and man† (Friedenwald 182). The forceful wording used in the introduction of the document was used for a reason. Jefferson writes, â€Å"When in the course of h... ... clear that government is subject to the people that it governs. The British realized that they could not write a document that would meet the demands of the colonists (Thomas 334). It was time for the colonists to write their own document. This document, the Declaration of Independence, was not only a stand against Britain; it was a stand for freedom. Works Cited Friedenwald, Herbert. The Declaration of Independence: An Interpretation and an Analysis. New York: Da Capo Press, 1974. Pleasants, Samuel A., III. The Declaration of Independence. Columbus, Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Books, 1996. Thomas, Peter D. G. Tea Party of Independence: The Third Phase of the American Revolution 1773-1776. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991. Wills, Garry. Inventing America: Jefferson's Declaration of Independence. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Co., 1978.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Report: Males

GAC013: Science II: Scientific Principles Assessment 1: Scientific Investigation & Report Topic 1: Do Males and Females Have Different Abilities When Estimating Size? Student Name: Tracy Cheng Student ID: SHSA19818 Class:5 Teacher: Shawn Due Date: 10. 29. 2012 Content Abstract†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2 Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 2 Methodology†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 2 Results†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 3 Discussion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦5 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 Abstract This report looks to explore the topic of doing males and females have different abilities when estimating size. The point that males’ abilities to estimate size are more accurate than females is hypothesized. To prove this hypothesis, some importa nt information from the internet and a series of related research has been investigated. After collecting the data in my study, the results of this analysis indicate that males have the more accurate abilities in size estimating than females.Introduction In the society, male and female have much diversity, which is called ‘Sexual Dimorphism’ in sociology and biology. Such differences are specifically expressed in many different areas in the life, such as morphology, ornamentation, and behavior. The purpose of this report is that analyzing some data to show the different abilities to estimate size for males and females, and trying to find what makes this happened. Now, I would like to hypothesis the males’ abilities to estimate size better than females’. MethodologyFirstly, some information on the internet about males and females which kinds of people can reckon size accurately will be found. According to the information, ten males and ten females will be c hose to make them estimate an item’s (pens, notebooks or shoes) size. For different items, the two gender people may show different abilities in size estimating. At the end of this research, data should be collected and analyzed by charts or other ways to compare the accuracies in size estimating for males and females. ResultsThe estimated length of a pen by given ten males and ten females are shown in Figure 1. The actual length of this pen is 14. 5cm, which is shown in Figure 1 (a). According to Figure 1 (b), females’ results include some more precise numbers, such as 13. 5cm and 14. 8cm. Furthermore, the mean value of the estimated length for males is 13. 2cm, and for females is 13. 82cm, which can be seen clearly that the average estimating of females is more close to the actual length than males. Figure 1 – (a) the estimated length of a pen by ten males; (b) the estimated length of a pen by ten females.Table 1 shows the estimated size of a pair of shoes by given ten males and ten females. The size of the shoes is European standard in this research, and actual size is 41. The mean value of the estimated size for males is 41. 7, and for females is 40. 9, and females have more accurate estimating. | Males’ estimating| Females’ estimating| 1| 44| 41| 2| 42| 40| 3| 42| 43| 4| 44| 40| 5| 43| 42| 6| 42| 38| 7| 40| 40| | 41| 40| 9| 39| 42| 10| 40| 43| Mean (rule out maximum & minimum value)| 41. 7| 40. 9| Actual| 41| 41| Table 1 – estimated size of a pair of shoes by ten males and ten females. Figure 2 reveals the area estimating for a notebook by twenty people from two genders. The actual size of the chosen notebook is 446. 25 cm2. Though calculations, the average estimated size is 438 cm2 and 359. 25 cm2 for males and females, respectively.Moreover, a same case which be found in the first research (pen length estimating) also came out. Females’ estimating includes more precise numbers like 454. 6, and males more likely to estimate cursory numbers, such as 400, 300 and 600. Figure 2 – (a) the estimated size of a notebook by ten males; (b) the estimated size of a notebook by ten females. Discussion From the first research, it can be found that female is more careful and accurate (Figure 1), because females more likely to give a more specific value and shows a more exquisite heart.That can also be showed in daily life, girls always be said that do things much more careful than boys in most cases (Women and Men in the Classroom 1985, p. Online). For instance, when a teacher has some works for girls, in the most time the girls can finish these works quickly and better. However, in the third research, these results show that males have better estimated size than females. The researchers found that when people ask males to estimate size, the majority of them always use their hands to measure the length and ponder over for a relatively long time.But in the same situation, females are more li kely to pay attention on the notebook’s color, shape and other things rather than the size, and their reason is that they prefer to care about how lovely the notebook is. According all of these researches in the previous, females are better to estimate something which has exact norms, like shoes and diamond, and males are good at estimating on the things which are very large and dimensional, such as the height of a building and the length of a bridge.Although female is more careful, their ability in size estimating is not necessarily as good as males. Males are more logical and rational, and have better space imagination than females. Another research from the internet proves that metastudies show a male advantage in mental rotation and assessing horizontality and verticality† (Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology. 2010. ) which is why male estimated more accurate than female. Conclusion Depending on a series of researches, people have different abilities to estima te size.Males are more accurate in estimating size than females since males are relatively more rational and logical. The reason may be related to the process in human’s evolutions in the history. More specifically, males always make a more leading role in the society for a quite long time after the end of matriarchal clan commune period. For example, many important jobs such as architects and engineers even most government officials are preferred for males. To sum up, I prefer to think that the ability of males in estimating size is better than females.References Catherine G. Krupnick (1985), Women and Men in the Classroom [online]. Available at: http://isites. harvard. edu/fs/html/icb. topic58474/krupnick. html. [Accessed 26 Oct 2012] Chrisler, Joan C & Donald R. McCreary (2010), Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology. Springer. [online]. Available at: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Male_female_differences [Accessed 26 Oct 2012] Male-Female Brain Differences [online]. Av ailable at: http://www. doctorhugo. org/brain4. html [Accessed 26 October 2012]

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Giant Steppes Toward Freedom by Ancestors - 887 Words

It is difficult for many Americans today to imagine taking everything they own and moving to a new country because of religious and political freedoms. With these freedoms taken so much for granted, we rarely think of the steps taken by our ancestors to gain that liberty. When looking at attempts in history to gain freedom, it is usual to look to the founding fathers of America and their sacrifices. However, other groups of people have strived for the same thing, one such group being the people of the divided German states shortly after the Seven Year’s War. Through several generations of Germans, these people moved across country, across continent, and eventually even across the ocean to America in order to gain that much-desired freedom. In about 1763, the Germans were experiencing many problems. With the seven years war just behind them, much of the land had been destroyed. Crops were trampled, and properties were decimated, making the living conditions in Germany very diff icult. On top of that, the war had left the political system in a state of chaos. At that time, Germany was not together as a nation but was rather divided into forty-two different states. Unified Germany as we know it today did not come about until much later, in about 1872. During this time minority religions struggled in the German states. Evangelical Christians such as Baptists were not looked well upon, as well as Mennonites who were pacifists and did not believe in serving in the military.Show MoreRelatedComparing The Culture of the Mongols versus the Pakistanis Essay1876 Words   |  8 Pagespsychotropic herbs and hypnotic drumming in order for him to travel to the spirit world. Once there, he is able to retrieve the help and spiritual guidance that the tribal society needs. Shamanism seems to have originated from ancestor worship. Images of the ancestors, called ongghot, were kept in the familys tents, and were thought to provide protection if satisfied. The shaman had an elevated position in the society, wore white and rode a white horse, and carried as insignia as staff and a