The Lynching Memorial was very powerful. It was also interesting to see how much thought went into the planning. Everything seemed deliberately placed in order to convey their emotions through physical structures. The first museum we went to has lots of information and it really made me angry looking at the wall full of signs that said: "whites only".

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One, in particular, was an add for a place that listed good things on one side like good weather, nice beaches, and then on the other side, it said no black people. It is a horrible thing to feel unwanted and for black people, or any other person who wasn't white and Christian, it was thrown in their faces. 

2.7: Mid-Semester 2 Reflection

1. The most important thing I learned about immigration in the 19th century was the push and pull factor and why immigrants decided to leave their home country. Understanding why people immigrate might help to get a better idea of what's going on in the country and what people value.

2. The most important thing I learned about immigration today is that the US government does not care about the well being of immigrants. I already knew this in a way, but I also learned that they aren't really hiding this fact. I'm not talking about the Trump administrations belief on immigrants and how we need a stricter border, I'm talking about how they treat them as people. I learned that it is an official policy of immigration to use kids as bait to catch illegal immigrants. No matter what a person believes about immigration, they are still people too and they don't deserve to be treated like that. Separating families is not ok on any level.

3. The two most challenging aspects of living in the 19th century are the overcrowded cities and bad sanitation. People were rapidly moving to cities and they had not figured out a good sanitation system in any regard, so health was an issue. In the 19th century. In the late 19th century, there were highly successful people like Carnegie and Rockefeller. Based on data we looked at, the richest people to live were born in the 19th century.

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4. The progressive movement wanted to fight poverty, preserve environmental resources, and get the government more involved in the economy. The Highline does all of these things. It might not directly fight poverty, but it improved a bad neighborhood in New York City which could attract new businesses and stimulated the economy. It preserves the environment because they incorporated so much greenery, and the government provided a service to people by allowing this. There was a lot of clap back when the idea was presented to make the Highline. People wanted the railroad gone.       

Philanthropy is defined as the desire to promote the welfare of others, especially by the generous donation of money to good causes. Charity is similar to philanthropy but there is a difference. Charity is a short term response. Charity doesn't solve any problems in the long run. Philanthropy is more about solving problems. link

Carnegie donated money for projects that helped teachers and education. He gave 125 million dollars to help colleges and schools. He also gave money to over 2000 libraries. By 1911, he had given away 90% of his money. He believed that the rich had an obligation to help others less fortunate than they were. Link

Rockefeller gave away 540 million dollars in his lifetime. link Carnegie gave away 350 million dollars. link

Carnegie foundation branches include council for ethics in international affairs, Dunfermline trust, the endowment for international peace, the foundation for the advancement of teaching, Carnegie Hall, the institution for science, the library of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, trust of the universities of Scotland, the UK trust, The Hero fund commission, and other international foundations. link

Warren Buffett is a major philanthropist today. He pledged to give 99% of his wealth away to churches and schools. Link

If I was a Philanthropist, I would definitely give money to help the arts departments in schools in lower income areas. The arts are very important and there is a lot of research that supports this. Some schools don't have a budget to foster a good band or theatre program. Money isn't everything, but it helps these departments to grow and exist. Without a substantial budget, it is harder to expand a band program and get more people to join. Instruments and equipment have to be paid for along with trips and festivals. The arts can provide a wonderful experience for kids in schools.