Carrie Butler '11
The Abolition of the Slave Trade in Great Britain
The British slave trade began around 1555. By
the mid-1700s, some members of British society began
to realize the inhumanity and inherent evil in this trade of
human flesh. After
twenty years of work
by abolitionists in
Parliament and the
general society,
Parliament passed the “Act for the Abolition of
the Slave Trade” on
March 25, 1807. Using
letters of abolitionists,
slave narratives, antislavery
tracts, and autobiographies, the author argues that
the abolitionists could not have won this fight as
individuals and abolition could not have happened without
the abolitionists fighting both among the people in society
and in Parliament.
Quinesha R. Cruz '11
Charles Hamilton Houston: The Rebel against Jim Crow
Charles Hamilton Houston was a man who
rebelled against the unjust nature of Jim Crow by using a
gifted perspective to identify the weaknesses of the federal
government in exercising substantive equality. The
methodical selection of court cases that Houston and his
legal team executed to
dismantle Jim Crow is
the focus of this study.
Ms. Cruz examined
court cases and
speeches that were
argued by Houston and
his legal cadre and
interviews of everyday
people from the Jim Crow era. Ms. Cruz’s analysis reinforces the view that
Charles Hamilton Houston is undoubtedly the unsung and
distinctive rebel who brought Jim Crow to its knees.
Amy Montoya '11
The Dance of Skeletons: An Analysis of the Causes of the Pullman Strike
In the 1880s, George Pullman built his model
town of Pullman, Illinois, to house the workers who worked
at his Pullman Palace
Car Company. During
this era of strife
between capitalists and
laborers, Pullman
received a reputation
as a benevolent
employer. In actuality,
tensions also
simmered among his employees as a result of Pullman’s rigid, paternalistic
control of his town. The Depression of 1893 added fuel to
these already existing tensions, and the Pullman Strike of
1894 was the result. Pullman, along with many other
businessmen and government officials, condemned the
strike as unjustifiable. However, an examination of the
United States Strike Commission Report submitted to
President Cleveland in 1895 showed otherwise. Pullman’s
policies during the Depression, including maintaining low
wages and high rents, along with his refusal to negotiate or
participate in arbitration, brought his employees to a place
of desperation, which justified the actions of the strikers.
Rachael Phillips '11
French Aid in the Revolt of Owain Glyndŵr
The beginning of the fifteenth century in
England saw an eruption of discontent and violence
stemming from tensions which had been brewing for
many years. In the aftermath of the deposition and
murder of Richard II, a land dispute between a Welsh land
owner and an English lord quickly escalated into a revolt
that would garner international support. With offers of aid
from France, Owain Glyndŵr bravely took on the cause of
Welsh independence. However, the aid received from
France was lackluster and nowhere near its full potential.
If the full resources of French foreign aid had been given
to the Welsh, then Glyndŵr might have been successful
in his quest for Welsh independence.
Meg Pitts '11
The Importance of Collaboration: Wyatt's Rebellion of 1554
In late 1554, Mary I, Queen of England,
informed her Privy Council of her intentions to marry
Philip II of Spain. Many
people fervently
opposed the match,
and once it was
understood that Mary would not be
deterred, a group of
noblemen took it upon
themselves to stop
the marriage. Their
actions ultimately led
to the event known as Wyatt’s Rebellion of 1554, which
failed due to the leading conspirators’ differing personal
agendas and intended results of the rebellion.
