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Revolutions
Contents
The Russian Revolution
The Russian Famine of 1891
Bloody Sunday
The Febuary Revolution
An Interview with Lenin
The Chinese Revolution
The Fall of the Qing Dynasty
The Long March
The Communist Takeover
The Iranian Revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Islamic Religion
Hostages Released!
The South African Revoution
South Africa
Nelson Mandela
Mother Jones
Revolutions, in Perspective
Introduction
This book was written in the form of a news magazine. All the essays are in the style of news articles. The various personal accounts were written by myself based on events that actually happened.
This book covers four revolutions: the Russian Revolution, the Chinese Revolution, the Islamic Revolution, and the South American Revolution. This book was reformatted from its original layout to suit the web. Much of the quality and artistic layout was lost. To download the publisher file with the original format, click here: Revolution MainLesson Book (13 mb).
The Russian Revolution
The Russian Famine of 1891
In the Volga River region in Russia, a great famine has broken out. Numerous people have died of starvation, and we see many more years of deprived health in front of us. Food trains have been rolling in for several months now, but it is "too little, too late."
This all began several years ago when a severe drought struck the Volga region. This drought limited the amount of food harvested over the summer, and the cold shot that struck in the winter only made things worse. 85% of the Russia population are farmers, and this famine hit the peasants worse of all. Already living in extreme poverty, the peasants were forced to continue paying taxes down to their last grain.
The Czar actually did not find out about the famine until nearly a year after it had taken place. By this time, countless villagers were buried because of starvation. When the Czar did find out, he immediately sent food trains down to the Volga River, but again, it was “too little, too late.” Other countries, as well as the United States pitched in and sent food and supplies, and they are continuing to ship in more goods.
To my disgust, I have seen the officials who are in charge of handing out food. They see themselves as having power over the lives of the village, and indeed, they do. They are able to set old grudges straight by prohibiting the food distribution to whomsoever they please. They leave many families dead in their wake behind them. Many people resorted to eating something known as “hunger bread.” It is a sickly mixture of weeds, chopped straw, tree bark, and sand. It resembles a lump of hard black earth covered with mold. It is revolting in smell and appearance.
What I have observed as a result of this famine is atrocious. After the poor harvest, the peasants are forced to eat their animal’s food. Animals then die first, and the peasants eat them too. There is starvation and sickness hanging in the air. When I walked into someone’s house, I was nearly knocked over by the smell. The smell of vomit and rotting flesh hung in the air. There was mold on what little food was left as a result of rationing. Next to every house is at least one mound of loose earth, the last symbol of those who have died. The collectors continue to wheel up with their wagons, holding a cloth over their noses to keep out the stench. They are obvious about their reluctance to touch the villagers; apparently they all carried a virus, deadly to all who made contact with them. This prejudice did not stop them from taking their last livestock however, and the resentment of them only grew in the villagers’ hearts.
After being deprived of good food for so long, the villagers who did not die from starvation or sickness were overwhelmed with joy when the relief wagons came in. Unfortunately, not enough was sent to feed all that were left. The peasants knew that Russia was continuing to sell food outside of their country, and the peasants could feel their loyalty to their country begin to diminish.
We do not know how long this famine will continue. With already 300,000 villagers dead, there are not enough left to grow the next year’s crop. Will this be a never-ending cycle, or will the people Russia find a way to resolve this?
Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday, January 9, 1905: the workers of Western Russia marched peacefully toward the Czar’s winter palace in Petrograd, a protest mainly against their working conditions and Russia’s current political position. As the crowd neared the palace, the women and children in front to show their sign of peace, the Czar’s soldiers opened fire killing 200 and wounding another 800.
In 1904, Japan attacked Manchuria (in the remote eastern Russia) for it’s natural resources. This caused Russia to begin an unpopular war against Japan. The lower class (around 85% of the Russian population) gained nothing from the war, while the higher class received all the benefits that Manchuria and it’s resources had to offer. The lower class simply had to sit at home and watch as their family and friends were sent out to the battlefield to, most likely die a painful death. The Czar’s decision on this matter only fed the lower class’ disgust for their nation.
The working conditions in Russia were entirely unsatisfactory to the lower class. Their main complaints were their low wages, long hours and dangerous conditions. The workers wrote a petition to better their state of affairs, and the march to the palace was their way of getting the Czar’s attention.
Several strikes have already begun to protest the massacre on the 9th, and many more will assuredly follow. Many say this is the first hint of a revolution.
The Febuary Revolution
Mass strikes fill the streets of Petrograd on February 27th 1917. The signs of most of the crowd cry complaints of food shortages. ‘More bread, more bread,’ someone cries. Similar pleas fill the mouths of the 200,000 people crowd. A few gunshots are fired to keep the mass at bay, but only a few of these are aimed at people.
Orders arrive directly from the Czar telling the cities’ police to shoot the crowd. The police, however, blatantly disobey the orders and refuse to commit a massacre. "It is clear the government has lost control," says a short middle-aged worker. "This seems to mark the beginnings of a revolution." Hence comes the name "the February Revolution".
People say that the works of Karl Marx inspires them. Marx envisioned a perfect society where everyone owned his or her own land. Where exploitation was ended and all people were at equal levels. This idea, called communism, he believed would set itself up automatically. Marx believed that eventually all the wars between classes (the rich and the poor etc.) would resolve themselves, and communism would be the natural choice of government.
An Interview with Lenin
In 1917, Lenin took control of the Russian government and he set up a Communist Regime. With his health failing, he has chosen Stalin to be his successor. I have interviewed Lenin on his views on a broad expanse of topics.
"What is your background in politics? How did you get your communist ideals?" I began. Lenin sat in front of me in his wheelchair waiting for my questions. He is suffering from several diseases though his face remains only gently touched by sickness. He has an aura about him that just makes you feel good about yourself. He listens and answers questions with interest and understanding. I can see how he has gotten into power.
"As a teenager, I studied the works of Marx, which has been an enormous influence on today’s politics." He started, his thick heavy moustache dancing every time he speaks. "Marx’s main ideals are to have everyone own property, and to end exploitation. He believed that there shouldn’t be any classes, or that everyone would be on the same level. He believed that this would come about on it’s own eventually, because the oppressed always eventually overthrows the oppressors. I believed that the workers wouldn’t have been able to overthrow their government by themselves. They cannot be trusted as leaders. Only the educated can be trusted to not give in to the sort of things like bribes from their opponents. This is where I came in. I decided to band together trained revolutionaries to lead the people in a revolution. Unfortunately, I was arrested by the monarchy and exiled to Siberia. Later I was let out, and I went to live in Switzerland. In 1917, I heard about the ‘February Revolution’ and I decided it was time to head back to Russia. When I got there, I found the groups that I had started lacked any motive or direction. They were like ‘vegetarian tigers’ with the right weapons to take over their government, but they lacked the drive to. I quickly rounded them up, and set about taking control of the Russian Government.
"Fascinating. I heard that the day you took the Government from the Duma was named the "October Revolution." Could you give me some details of this day?"
"It was actually quite simple. We gathered the arms that we had and went to the important public buildings of Petrograd, like the train stations, the libraries, and even the Czar’s Winter Palace. Most of the takings of these buildings simply consisted of walking up to official in charge and demanding their surrender. In a few places, shots were fired, but for the most part, there was little bloodshed. At the Winter Palace, where the Duma leaders were residing, they promptly surrendered at the sight of our force."
"A quiet revolution. It’s quite rare that this feat is possible, but you managed to pull through with few casualties. So after you had power over the government, what did you do then?"
"There were two pressing issues that needed addressing. These were land control, and the current war. I immediately ended the war against Germany, and signed several treaties. It would be foolish to continue the war, which would only make the populace angry with me. I then satisfied another of the peasants’ issues by allowing the peasants to farm as much land as they needed for a minimal fee. My goal was not to create a solid government, but to encourage the population to begin governing themselves, another one of Marx’s ideas."
"This certainly cleaned up the mass hate of government in Russia. So after you set up these ideals, what next? What do see is the future for Russia?"
"As you can see, I am suffering from several illnesses, and my time on earth is limited, so I have declared that Joseph Stalin will take my place of power. He is young and energetic, and he knows how to rule. I do see him as slightly power-hungry, but this shouldn’t be a problem if my advisors keep an eye on him. I envision a perfect government for Russia, but it is only the people and the people in power who can dictate whether this will become a reality."
The Chinese Revolution
The Fall of the Qing Dynasty
The government in China has always been dynasties, which rise and fall. The latest dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, was in power since 1644. In the Chinese tradition, it is the population that overthrows their current dynasty and appoints a new one when that dynasty doesn’t do its job. So it was in 1911.
In the late 1800’s, many problems were beginning to arise. Foreign countries created their own trade zones in China, saying that they, and only they could trade with that part of China. The British were mass producing opium in India and selling it all over China, which caused many of the Chinese, including those in power, to become addicted to opium. The public facilities were falling into ruin, including irrigation canals, and roads. Warlords, who were rising and gaining confidence, terrorized the villages and engaged in many wars with other warlords. And the government was growing in incompetence, a main reason being that many of them were addicted to opium. These problems began to upset the population. A revolution could be smelled in the air.
In 1908, a 2-year-old boy stepped onto the throne. This caused much corruption and was the last piece of fuel that fed the fires of revolution. Uprisings of all classes started all over the country, including the peasants, students and local warlords. Finally, in 1911, the Qing Dynasty fell and the monarchy was ended.
Sun Yai-Sen stepped up to take control of the Nation. He offered a Republic to the populace, but there was too much chaos in the country and his government fell apart in two years. 37 years of chaos followed.
After World War I, Japan was awarded the Shandong Province by the Allies. Some warlords in China said it was okay, but most of the populace did not agree. On May 4th 1919, 3000 students gathered together in Tiananmen Square to protest the sellout to Japan. Only one student died that day, but it was enough to incite the workers to strike. Through this mess, the Chinese were asking questions such as: How should China become part of the modern world. Should we leave our tradition behind?
In 1921, Sun Yai-Sen headed a Nationalist Party called the Guomindang. He had a vision of a democratic republic, and he sometime worked with the communists to achieve his goals. He died in 1925, and Chiang Kai-Shek took his place. Chiang was a military man whose main goal as a leader was to crush the warlords and gain power.
Mao Tse-Tung was a communist and went to war with Chiang Kai-Shek. He thought that the peasants would lead the revolution. He set about making changes such as creating libraries and schools, and he also gave some land to the peasants. He had a big say in woman rights, such as allowing them to have a say in their marriage and allowing them to divorce.
In 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria. This engaged China in a 3-way war: Chiang Kai-Shek vs. Mao Tse-Tung vs. Japan.
The Long March
October 16, 1934 -The enemy has us pinned. They have created a blockade of troops around our fortress. Our food and supplies are running low. Looking out of the tiny barracks window, no bigger than my hand, I can see sparkles of light - the enemies’ campfires. The room I am in is a simple one, where most of the space is taken up by bunk beds. Most of the soldiers are asleep, those who aren’t write in their journals like I am. Many of the soldiers sleep with their guns next to their bed on the stone floor. I don’t see why it’s necessary, if the enemy were to invade the barracks, there would be plenty of time to run to the artillery room to grab a gun.
I climb into my bed, but I don’t go to sleep. I recall the previous hours of battle. When I look back, I see myself as less than human, blindly killing others for a reason I hardly know, or care about. I can however, remember how I felt firing the trigger through the smoke and watching an enemy soldier fall dead. At the moment, I couldn’t care less that I killed a man. When you’re in the heat of battle, with adrenaline pumping through your veins, nothing matters much. You just do as you’re told and hope to God that you don’t die.
Now I feel almost sick when I think about cold-blooded slaughter. I couldn’t imagine killing another man with no real motive, except I have. This thought is almost enough to make me hurl. A man shot dead, his love life, his pains and happiness suddenly gone, vanishing like a wisp of smoke. And, somewhere, his wife sits at home crying, with no one but herself to raise three attention-loving children.
I break myself away from this thought. Luckily this does not apply to me. I have no wife and probably never will, seeing how we will all probably perish here at this fortress, either from battle, or starvation. I look up, the leader of my regiment stands at the door, talking to a young messenger. My leader nods and waves the young boy on. He shuts the door and makes his way though the beds. The soldiers are roused silently, where they don their red uniform. I hear whispers of a breakout tonight as I put my pen and paper away. Tonight may be the day I die.
October 18, 1934 -
It’s the middle of the day and we’re resting near a forest. We should be sleeping, but it is much to hot to sleep. Our plans for travel is to walk for four hours, rest for four hours, walk for four hours etc. We never get a full night’s rest, but hopefully, our obscure marching pattern will throw Chiang Kai-Shek’s army off. Ah... but how did we get here? Let’s see, last time I wrote, I was in the barracks back at the fortress. That seems so long ago. Ah yes, I remember.
We were quietly marched out into the opening. When we got near to the enemy, we dropped to our hands and knees and crawled forward. We got quite close to the enemy without being seen. As we approached their camp, someone spotted us and sounded the alarm. Instantly, we sprang up and sprinted across the flat plain. Being farther back in the army, I avoided most of the action. But that did not prevent me from hearing the gunfire, the grenades exploding, and the men screaming. It was over in a remarkably short time. We had blown a hole in Chiang Kai-Shek’s army and have been marching ever since. For four hours we continuously march, until we finally take a break. While we are all resting, the commanders pass word around of the new rules and policies. They said that we would be passing through many villages and that we must pay for all the goods we take. There would be no stealing tolerated whatsoever, and we must treat the peasants as nicely as possible. Mao Tse-Tung wanted to gain the respect of the villagers, for it will be they, he said, that would lead the revolution.
The first day, we didn’t get the full amount of rest that we normally do, because we wanted to put as much distance as possible between the Guomindang and us. We are resting again now, in broad daylight. If I stand up, I can see the heads of 80,000 people. Our red coats are a sharp contrast to the yellow plain. To a bird, we must certainly look like a great wound on the face of mother earth.
May 25, 1935 -
It is night, and I should be sleeping. But the pictures of today’s battle race through my head like a whirlwind. I thought that the endless march with constant hunger pains was bad. I was wrong. Today I had the most terrifying experience of my life.
We were approaching the Luding River with no feasible way to cross. The Guomindang held the only bridge over the raging river. We couldn’t cross by boat, no man could row down that river, the fierce currents would spin the boat like a leaf and smash it to bits on the protruding rocks. Mao led us to the bridge, but I had little hopes of crossing it.
In the middle of the day, my commander called me before him. He said to me that I was one of the toughest fighters he had seen. I waited patiently as he continued his praise-giving speech wondering what he had in mind for me. At last, he told me that I was to cross the bridge with a score of others to try to take control of the bridge. He then handed me a tommy gun and a dozen hand grenades. A suicide mission I thought, we’re going to cross a chain bridge over a roaring river straight into the enemy. Brilliant, I thought, sarcastically, brilliant.
I met with the other twenty-one soldiers near the bridge and we discussed our plan. I looked at the bridge with displeasure, it was simply made up of large metal chains stretched across the river, and the base was simply made up of wooden boards laying on top the chains. The Guomindang had removed the first third of the wooden planks, so we were going to crawl hand by hand along the steel chains.
We situated ourselves in formation, and I found myself in the middle. The bugle sounded charge and we started our perilous trek across the metal chains while machine gunners covered us from our bank. There is no way to describe the terror I felt at that moment, with the bridge swaying, and guns shots firing all around us. The river so close, that if I had reached my arm down as far as I could, I could touch the water. The sun blazing at my back while the river spray soaked my front and made my hands slippery added sensations. I pushed myself onward hand over hand. Hand over hand, I told myself it was as simple as that. Get into the rhythm and it would be over before I knew it. But it was not as simple as that. Halfway across the boardless portion of the bridge, my comrade next to me was shot. He fell toward me and knocked my off balance. I would have plunged into the river along with him if it hadn’t been for the soldier in front of me. As I fell, my hands feebly slipping off the chains, I felt sturdy hands grip my shoulders. He had turned around when my comrade gurgled his last breath, and when he saw me begin to fall, he braced himself with his legs twisted around a chain and pulled me back up. Without a word he turned around and continued crawling. I just sat there in utter disbelief until I felt a nudge from the person behind me.
We finally made it to the boarded section of the bridge when I first noticed it. The Bridge house on the opposite end was on fire. The people in the front of my assault force chucked a few grenades into the enemy. We then all ran with our guns drawn. We ran through the burning bridge house and started firing. A fiery beam had struck a man behind me and he lay unconscious, burning out his death. The enemy fled surprisingly quickly and we held control of the bridge. We immediately set to work, dousing the flames of he bridge house and resetting the planks of the bridge. We then buried the four men that had died during the assault. The rest of Mao’s army then crossed the bridge, and my commander came up to me and congratulated me on my bravery. He then walked away. I looked after him, his words would be the only reward I would get from my acts today. I wouldn’t accept an award even if he wanted to give me one. I don’t want recognition for killing men. I would look at myself with more loathing than I do now. It’s bad enough killing a man. To boast about it is, in my opinion, the worst crime a man can do.
The Communist Takeover
After months of savage fighting, Chiang Kai-Shek flees to Taiwan. Rumor has it that he will establish his own government there. Mao Tse-Tung has been declared victorious, and he has already begun cleaning up the country. China is now officially a communist country.
Chiang Kai-Shek was much more powerful than Mao Tse-Tung, mainly because the United States was funding them. Chiang fell from his position due to corruption in his own politics. The U.S. Funded Chiang over Mao because it did not want to see Communists take control of China.
In 1931, the Japanese invaded Manchuria. They easily took control of this due to the current Civil war in China. They then continued to push farther into China, their main goal being the Coast with its ports. The Chinese were fighting them back, but they managed to inch their way through China.
In 1937, the Japanese invaded Nanjing. The day before, they had dropped leaflets in the town promising a clean takeover if they met no resistance. The Guomindang leaders instantly abandoned the city even though they had given Chiang Kai-Shek their word that they would defend the city to their dying breath. This left only the soldiers to defend the city with no leadership. On December 13th the Japanese entered the city with almost no resistance.
In the next seven weeks, the Japanese wreaked havoc in the cities. They displayed horrific acts of cruelty such as raping women until they died. Though no numbers can be completely accurate, at least 20,000 women were raped, 30,000 fugitive soldiers were killed (those who had already surrendered) and 12,000 civilians were murdered.
The U.S. heard of these things, but all they did was cut off some trade with Japanese. Finally the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, which got the U.S. completely involved in the war. The U.S. retaliated by bombing Nagasaki and Hiroshima. They then funded Chiang Kai-Shek so that he could drive the Japanese out of China. Of course, Chiang diverted some of the money to help fight the Civil war.
After many years of fighting, Chiang Kai-Shek’s government finally fell apart allowing Mao Tse-Tung to begin his Communist government.
Tianmen Square
After two months of demonstrations and protests in Tiananmen Square, the communist soldiers clear the square killing many. On April 17, 1989, students began gathering in Tiananmen Square in Beijing after the death of the Communist reformer Hu-Yaobang. By May 17th, over 1,000,000 students were in the square. The attention of the world was focused on China through television. The communist leaders gave orders to stop the protest, and after one failed attempt, the soldiers entered the square and shot at the crowd until the people dispersed.
In 1959, Mao Tse-Tung began to create a communist government. This movement was named the "Great Leap Forward". Mao created communes, which were an embodiment of 2,000 to 20,000 households. Every household in China belonged to a commune, and the entire commune was paid based on what they produced. This meant that if a worker broke his arm and couldn’t work as efficiently, he would still get the same amount of money because his earnings were determined the amount that everyone else in his commune produced.
There was an extreme drawback to this system. If one person did not work at all, he would still get paid the same amount. This created a lack of incentive, and eventually, everyone caught on, and began working less efficiently because each individual’s efforts were not very important. This led to mass starvation.
In 1966, Mao realized that his communes were not working out. He then began something later called the "Cultural Revolution". Since China was still based on tradition, the rest of the world advanced much faster than them. Mao decided that China needed to begin to advance. His plan was to first eliminate the old traditions, which he summed up in what he termed "the Four Olds": old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits.
He appointed young people, between the ages of ten and fifteen, to ensure that China was rid of the olds. He named these young men his “Red Guard” and sent them out. The Red Guard began burning old books, and old building, and if they saw anyone acting through the old customs, they dragged them out on the street and humiliated them. They also sent many grandparents off to work in labor camps. Mao soon realized that the Red Guard easily got carried away with their power. He tried to stop them, but failed. Eventually the Red Guard died out, but they left behind them a wake of destruction.
By 1989, things had quieted down. The Red Guard had stopped patrolling the streets and Mao was dead. This was a historical year. It was the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution, the 70th anniversary of the May 4th movement, and the 40th anniversary of the Communist takeover. Since communism all over was collapsing, there was talk in China about the need for democracy.
On April 15, Hu-Yaobang died. Two days after that, many students began gathering in Tiananmen Square. There were many demonstrations, which made the communist leaders angry. They threatened the students with arrest, but they continued.
On May 4, over 100,000 students, including teachers and journalists, had assembled. This large number drew the attention of the media worldwide. On May 13, a hunger strike began asking for reform and democracy. This did not work, but by May 17, there were 1,000,000 people in the square.
1,000,000 bodies is a lot in such a small space such as Tianmen Square. There was not enough food, or public services, such as restrooms, to go around. As a result, there was garbage in the streets and disease everywhere. There was also a constant fear of government retaliation, all of which bred a horrible feeling in the hearts of the protestors.
On May 20, the Communist leaders finally launched an attack to clear Tianmen Square. However, the citizens of Beijing had grown fond of the protestors and took every measure they could to stop the army. They set up barricades, stood in front of the tanks, and let the air out of the vehicles’ tires. The army also didn’t agree with their leaders, they didn’t want to kill the students. The citizens were successful, and the army turned back.
A group of art students then created a 30-foot Statue of Liberty to symbolize what they were protesting for. The Leaders launched another attack with new troops that were unaffected by the protestors’ views. The citizens again tried to stop them, but they failed, and finally, on June 4, they entered the Square.
In the early morning, they blocked off the entrances and exits. They then crossed the threshold into the Square, crushed the statue, and began the shooting. No one knows how many were killed, but those who didn’t escape and survived, were taken to prison, arrested in the name of Treason.
The Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution
On January 16, 1979, the Shah of Islam fled to Iran to save his own life. The old leader of the theocracy branch has returned from his exile in Paris to start a government he calls "Islamic Republic of Iran".
In December of 1978, millions of people were protesting the Shah’s return to power. The people on the street complained about the aid that the Shah received from the U.S. including funds for his secret police. The people of Iran were so angry with the Shah and the U.S., that they didn’t stop protesting even when the police opened fire at the crowds.
In January of 1979, the people of Iran began to take control of key government buildings such as the post office and train stations. They shut down many businesses to slow the economy and assassinated some government officials. From this, the Shah decided that it was time to leave, and he fled Iran.
An anonymous protestor has given a thorough lesson in the background of the revolution. He says: "Many people believe that the Revolution began in the 1940’s when the Shah brought in Western culture. The people of Iran felt cheated that the government was taking away their old culture. In 1953, we protested for democracy. The Shah’s secret police arrested some of us and killed others. Finally, the conditions for the Shah were too dangerous, and he fled.
"We voted in a Prime Minister and he struggled hard to keep control. However, there were many protests against his regime. It turns out that the U.S. had sent their CIA to hire people to protest. The U.S. was good friends with the Shah and wanted to keep their oil trade with him open, so they sent in the CIA to overthrow the Prime Minister and reestablish the Shah in power. They succeeded and the Shah returned.
"This enraged the Iranians, and they tried harder than ever to throw out the Shah. The three models of government (democracy, communism, and theocracy) all worked together to get rid of the Shah. Ayatollah Khomeini was the leader of the theocrats and he got so involved with the protests that he had to flee to Paris. He kept in contact through the telephone and his speeches were broadcasted all over Iran. Eventually, the Shah lost control of the government and fled. Within a few days, Khomeini returned and started his Islamic Republic of Iran."
The Islamic Religion
Islam is a peaceful religion. The word ‘Islam’ is actually derived from the word ‘Salaam’ which means peace. Many people believe that Islam is a violent culture, but in reality, most Muslims are peace loving. It is only a small group of Muslims that have twisted the Qur’an (the Muslim holy book) and killed in the name of Allah, their god.
The media talks about the Muslims’ ‘Holy War’, which, the media says, is the work from Allah permitting Muslims to kill. There is no ‘Holy War’ in the traditional Islamic religion. This is a twisted version of the Jihad, which means ‘to struggle’. In Islam, there are three parts of the Jihad: the struggle within one’s self, the struggle against evil, and the struggle to defend one’s community. This last struggle is what some Muslims have twisted. The Qur’an says that if a community is attacked solely on the reason that they are Muslim, then the community is allowed to take up arms to defend themselves. At no other time are the Muslims allowed to take arms. This Jihad has been twisted by some Muslims to say that because they were attacked they now have Allah’s permission to take up arms and attack back with full force, instead of just defending themselves.
There are five main beliefs of Islam. These are: the belief in one god, the belief in angels, the belief in Allah’s messengers, the belief in the Qur’an, and the belief in the day of judgment.
The one god that the Muslims believe in they named Allah and they believe this is the same god that is in Christianity and Judaism. Allah is omnipotent and is the creator of everything.
Angels, Islam teaches, are messengers of god. They have no free will and whose purpose is to carry out Allah’s wishes, mainly to communicate with humans. Angels are separate entities from humans, and humans do not turn into angels when they die.
The third belief says that the messengers are sent to give signs of Allah’s existence. The Qur’an was given to aid people build their faith and spirituality. The Muslims believe that the bible was once the word of god, but that parts of it were later altered to suit the needs of the time. The Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the latest word of god that was sent by angels to Muhammad to spread over the world.
The last pillar is the belief of the Day of Judgment. This is where the world ends, and all the people are sent before god to be judged on their faith and how they showed their faith. In Islam, it is not enough to just believe in the religion, you must show your belief and be a good person. Family life is very important in the Day of Judgment. It is said that if you raise a girl, educate her, and marry her off to a good husband, you are guaranteed a place in heaven.
Hostages Released!
On January 20, 1980, after 444 days as captives, the Iran government has released the 52 remaining U.S. hostages. Jimmy Carter, the former U.S. president who worked endlessly to free the hostages, has been sent by Ronald Reagan to greet them on their arrival in Germany.
On November 4, 1979, a group of students in Iran seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran to protest the failing economy and the Shah’s entry into the U.S. A few workers escaped through the back door, but 71 U.S. workers were taken hostage. The students did not have any real plan. Their idea was to hold the people for maybe a day or so, just to make a political statement. However, Khomeini, the leader of the nation, sent word to keep the hostages until further notice. The students had no idea how to care for the hostages. They didn’t even agree whether they should be blindfolded or not, but even so, they managed to keep them alive.
Within a few weeks, they released the women and an African-American under the pretext of not oppressing someone who was oppressed in his own nation. Khomeini still told the students to continue holding the remaining hostages. Holding hostages gave power to Khomeini. It also helped divert Iranians’ attention away from the failing economy and the internal problems that Iran had.
Within a few months, a constitution was finally passed in Iran that is similar to the U.S. constitution with one main difference. The Judicial branch of government was given more power than the other two branches. This branch was led by religious figures that were not elected by the population. They would decide whether the laws coincide with Islam, and they had the sole power to veto a law.
The Americans were furious with the hostage situation in Iran. Jimmy Carter, their president, spent every free hour that he had negotiating their release. When diplomacy failed, he froze the Iranians assets making it impossible for the rich Iranians to withdraw their money from foreign bank accounts. At that time, their money was much safer in foreign bank accounts than in Iran, so this freeze had a huge impact against Iran.
President Carter spent so much time negotiating, that he did not campaign effectively. This, in combination with his miserably failed rescue mission termed ‘Eagle Claw’, caused him to lose the upcoming election. Even when Ronald Reagan won, Carter still was constantly negotiating with Iran. It was said that he was on the phone during the car ride to Reagan’s Inauguration. It was right then, that Iran finally gave in and freed the hostages. Ironically, since Reagan was then president, he was the one who announced the release. Graciously, he permitted Carter to meet the American hostages on their way home.
The South African Revolution
South Africa
When South Africa became an Independent country in 1934, two main government groups were against each other, the Nationalists and the African National Congress. The Nationalists, who call themselves ‘Afrikaners’, wanted to preserve the white rule. The Congress, inspired by Gandhi, wanted South Africa to be a multi-racial country. After many years of stress, the Nationalists finally won the majority of votes, and South Africa now is a Nationalist government.
The Nationalists have immediately passed laws that prohibited many Natives’ rights. These laws, known as the "apartheid" laws, forbid the Natives to have intercourse with any other race, forbid them freedom of speech, required them to have a ‘reference book’ on them at all times, and deny many other privileges.
The Dutch began settling South Africa in 1652. They pushed the Natives out of their land, killed many of them, and enslaved others. Two native groups, called the Zulu and the Xhosa, were well organized and fought the Dutch invasion. A brutal war ensued, which ended in the 1800’s. The Dutch killed so many natives, that it is said that the rivers flowed with blood. Thus, the war was called ‘the Battle of Blood River’.
The British then decided to colonize South Africa, and in 1902, the Boer War began with the British Fighting the Dutch. The British won, and Africa became a British colony. The British forced the Natives into ‘Bantustans’, which are similar to the U.S.’s Indian Reserves. The British often took Natives out of the reserves to have them do physical labor. When the work was finished, the British sent the back to their Bantustan.
In 1912, a government group inspired by Gandhi began fighting against African discrimination. They never were able to achieve power, and in 1948, the Afrikaners took control of the government and passed terrible laws.
Nelson Mandela
After twenty-six years in prison, Nelson Mandela is released. He was sentenced with life imprisonment after he was found guilty of High Treason in 1962. He was put into a high-security prison, but later was transferred to a less security intense prison in 1982. In the late 1980’s, Mandela negotiated with the President of South Africa, F.W. de Klerk. In 1990, after several years of conversing with de Klerk, Mandela was freed.
Nelson Mandela was born a native of South America in 1918 and attended school through college. In his childhood, he often spent time with the chief of his tribe. This is where he learned his ideals of diplomacy and leadership.
In the 1940’s, he became a member of the African National Congress (ANC). The ANC was an association whose purpose was to abolish South African oppression. Nelson Mandela soon became a prominent figure in the ANC.
In South Africa, natives were required to have a pass (like a passport) on them at all times. If they did not, they could be immediately arrested and sent to jail. This rule even applied when they were standing on their front porch.
In 1952, an organized protest led by the ANC began. South Africans all over openly disobeyed the laws that were oppressing them, with a heavy focus on the law that required them to wear passes. This protest was named the ‘Defiance Campaign’, and it lasted for six months. Throughout this protest, absolutely no violence ensued. The ANC was strict about this. They strongly disapproved violence, and absolutely hated the idea of killing people, even the ones who killed their brothers. During the Defiance Campaign, Mandela was arrested many times and began working underground.
In 1959, another Defiance Campaign started. People all over South Africa went out without their passes. The government threatened to ban the ANC, so the leaders of the ANC and many other members went to Sharpeville to protest their situation. There, they surrounded a police department unarmed. The police then without warning opened fir on the crowd killing 69 and wounding 400. Many of these were shot in the back as they ran away. This event was named "The Sharpeville Massacre".
The ANC finally decided that they needed to resort to violence to meet armed forces they were facing. They created a branch called the "Spear of the Nation" whose job it was to destroy key structures.
In the early mornings, members of the new branch would set charges in buildings such as electrical stations, and government offices and blow them up. Nelson Mandela planned many of these strikes. They always attacked in the early morning or late night because the buildings were usually empty so they wouldn’t end up killing anyone. When they accidentally killed someone, they mourned for them.
For some time, the ANC had been collecting weapons. In the 1970’s they became thoroughly armed. De Klerk feared a civil war and he wanted Mandela to talk the citizens out of starting a war. During Klerk’s negotiations with Mandela, Mandela was often given an option to free himself, but he said that he would not allow himself to gain anything if it meant sacrificing rights for his people.
Finally, the negotiations stopped with the promise that the oppressing laws would be lifted. Nelson was then freed and it is known that he intends to run for president. Seeing how popular he is, he will undoubtedly win.
Mother Jones
"My sons," Mary Harris Jones began, "Do you see the despicable conditions that you work in? The damned company owners are stealing money out of your very pockets!" From her vantage point, she lifted a finger and pointed at the coal miners that she was addressing. Her sharp gaze penetrated the hearts of the men that stood before her in the open field. Within minutes, her compelling speech had trapped the worker’s attention. In another few, she had persuaded most of them to begin a strike to better the working conditions for miners across the state.
Mary’s life was filled with speeches such as this. Throughout her one hundred year life, Mary traveled all over the country organizing strikes. She loved the laborers so much that she often referred to them as ‘sons’, and they referred to her as ‘Mother Jones’.
Mary was born in Ireland, where the working conditions were worse than terrible. Her father went to the U.S. to seek better work, and when he saved enough money, he brought the rest of his family to him. Mary was the first one in her family to graduate from a university. She became a teacher, but found that she preferred her mother’s dressmaking than bossing around little kids.
She quit being a teacher and opened a dressmaking shop, but there was not enough business for dressmakers, so she went back to teaching. She met George E. Jones in Memphis, Tennessee, and married him. George was an ironworker, and worked long hours in terrible conditions. George belonged to The Iron Molders International Union, which was a group of iron molders that was actively arguing for better conditions. George frequently brought home news of his meetings which greatly intrigued Mary.
A few years later, George became a paid official of his Union, and he spent lots of time traveling around the States urging workers to join the Union. Mary spent a lot of time caring for her kids, but when George came home, she eagerly listened to his tales of his travels.
In the summer of 1867, Mary’s children and husband died from Yellow Fever. Heartbroken, she sat alone in her house for many days. Finally, her resolve grew, and she moved to Chicago and reestablished herself as a dressmaker. She was doing quite well, until another tragedy befell her.
During the hot, dry summer of 1871, a cow knocked over a lantern, which set a barn on fire. The dry barn burst into flames, and the fire quickly spread from house to house until nearly eighteen thousand buildings were alight. It took three days for the fire to burn down, and at the end it had taken its toll, many people had lost their houses and their lives. Thus, Mary Jones lost her shop and house in the Great Chicago Fire.
Though she had been struck down again, Mary Jones resolved never to give up. She heard about a labor group called the Knights of Labor, and attended their meetings. Being an outstanding speaker, she soon found herself up on the podium giving speeches.
In 1877, a massive strike by the railroad workers erupted. Mary Jones found herself pulled into this strike, but she did not take a prominent role. She encouraged the strikers, asked supporters for money, and passed out leaflets informing people of the latest news.
Soldiers entered the city to control the mob. A few kids in the crowds threw stones at them, and they opened fire, killing twenty people. This enraged the crowd who drove the soldiers into the roundhouse. They then soaked the boxcars of a train with oil, lit it, and sent it crashing into the soldiers refuge.
Some of the soldiers then ran at the crowd with their bayonets, and some of them tore off their shirts and ran out the back door, hoping the mob wouldn’t recognize them as soldiers. Mary Jones and some of her friends watched all this from a hill.
The strike ended in failure, but was a turning point in labor movements. It was the first time the government had sent troops to defend a big business, and from then on, many workers did not trust the government. Labor leaders also realized that mobs could easily get out of control and future strikes would have to be more controlled.
Mary Jones attended many more strikes after this, and she became so well known and liked from her powerful, profanity-filled speeches, that she was generally referred to as ‘Mother Jones’. She even signed most of her letters as ‘Mother’.
A famous strike that she led was termed ‘The March of the Mill Children’. In 1903, Mother Jones traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to oversee the mill worker’s strike. One sixth of the mill workers were under 17, and many of these, though the law prohibited it, were under 13.
Mill work was extremely dangerous and consisted of working sixty hours a week in lint-filled rooms amidst whirring machinery. Children often had to stick their hands into the spinning mechanics to repair snapped threads. As a result, many children lost fingers and hands in accidents. The lack of exercise made them scrawny and weak. Many were mutilated from accidents or just inappropriate posture, such as developing a hunched back from leaning over a workbench for twelve hours a day. All of this they did for a wage of six dollars a week, which was incredibly low even for those times.
Mother Jones, inspired by the tour of the ‘Liberty Bell’, organized a march to Sagamore Hill, the president’s seaside mansion on Long Island, to persuade President Theodore Roosevelt to pass a law that would take children out of the mills and mines and put them into school where they belong.
The journey from Pennsylvania to Sagamore Hill would cover 125 miles, and many parents refused to let their children take this perilous journey. However, Mother Jones managed to round up 300 children and parents who began the trek with the aid of supply wagons.
Soon, the weather grew hot, and the roads turned dusty. Many of the girls returned home. With the hundred or so workers that were left, Mother Jones passed through town after town often putting on plays of the children’s working conditions to earn money. Mother Jones often went ahead of the procession to arrange food and lodging in the upcoming cities.
Many of the children grew weak and returned home, and Mother Jones was left with only a handful of children to show her cause. When they neared Princeton, New Jersey, a thunderstorm struck. The procession was granted permission to sleep in the barn of former President Grover Cleveland’s estate.
Throughout the march, Mother Jones made frequent speeches in the cities they passed. At a college campus, she turned to a large group of Professors and said, "Here’s a textbook on economics." The boy’s body was stooped from carrying seventy-five-pound bundles of yarn. "He gets three dollars a week and his sister, who is fourteen, gets six dollars. They work in a carpet factory ten hours a day while the children of the rich are getting their higher education." Mother Jones continued her speech about children who couldn’t read or write because they spend ten hours a day cramped in a crowded mill. Those who hired child workers used "the hands and feet of little children so they might buy automobiles for their wives and police dogs for their daughters to talk French to." She accused the mill owners of taking "babies almost from the cradles."
As they neared New York City, Mother Jones wrote a letter to President Roosevelt, depicting how the children lived and asking him to meet with her. Roosevelt did not answer, but instead sent his secret service to watch her fearing her as a threat. This infuriated her.
In her next meeting, addressing thirty thousand, she spoke of how the President treated her. "We are quietly marching toward the President’s home," she told her crowd. "I believe he can do something for these children, although the press declares he cannot."
In another speech she said to her listeners, "We want President Roosevelt to hear the wail of the children who never have a chance to go to school, but work eleven and twelve hours a day in the textile mills of Pennsylvania who weave the carpets that he and you walk upon; and the lace curtains in your windows, and the clothes of the people." She continued, "In Georgia where children work day and night in the cotton mills they just passed a bill to protect songbirds. What about the little children from whom all song is gone?"
Even after all her publicity, she did not persuade President Roosevelt to meet with her. Roosevelt’s secretary wrote to Mother Jones saying that the President felt that it was a problem for individual states to solve. "He is a brave guy when he wants to take a gun out and fight other grown people," Mother Jones said in disgust, "but when those children went to him, he would not see them." Although the March of the Mill Children had no immediate effect, within a few years, other states passed child labor laws.
Other strikes Mother Jones organized were an immediate success, but many failed. On one occasion, when she was around the age of eighty-three, she was put into prison for twenty-six days, which made her prone to painful attacks of rheumatism. She fought many more battles, but finally she grew old. Around the age of ninety-seven, she described herself as, "An old war horse, ready for battle, but too weak to ride forth."
After her hundredth birthday, Mother Jones became too sick to walk. Her doctor prescribed her a daily dose of whiskey, but that did little for her. She began to fade in and out of consciousness. During her waking moments, she wrote letters to her friends and leaders of the Labor Groups.
To a reporter she said, "I haven’t been very discreet in my language. You’ve got to talk a language people can understand. The public is the sleepiest damn bunch you ever saw. You’ve got to wake them up! Then you can get action."
On Sunday, November 30, 1930, at 11:55 P.M., Mother Jones did something she had never done before "she slipped quietly away. She was buried on Mount Olive, in a miner’s cemetery. She wanted to "sleep under the clay with those brave boys." During her funeral, thousands of coal miners and their families filed past her open casket.
Six years after her death, a miner’s group erected a huge granite monument to her at the Mount Olive cemetery in remembrance of their beloved mother, everyone’s beloved mother.
Bibliography:
Atkinson, Linda. Mother Jones: The most dangerous woman in America.
Crown Publishers, Inc., 1978.
Josephson, Judith Pinkerton. Mother Jones: Fierce Fighter for Worker’ Rights.
Lerner Publications Company, 1997.
Rappaport, Doreen. Trouble at the Mines.
Thomas Y. Crowell, 1987.
Revolutions, in Perspective
Once, Mohammad Khatami said, "The most stable and lasting system is the one which creates the least limitations to freedom and expression. In my view, freedom means freedom of thought and security to express those thoughts without fear of prosecution."
This means that only governments that allow citizens to express their ideas can be assured a noteworthy length of power. As in the Russian, Chinese, Iran, and South African Revolutions, when people are not allowed to express their thoughts, they become restless, and in time, will undoubtedly overthrow their government.
Before the Chinese Revolution, dynasties always ruled. When the citizens felt that the monarch was not doing his job, then they took him out of power and appointed a new one. Such was their tradition. This is an excellent example of Khatami’s quote. The people are happy under their monarch unless the monarch takes away the citizens freedom. When this happens, the citizens overthrow their ruler, and they start again.
The U.S. is currently governed by democracy. This system has been in use by the U.S. for a couple centuries. It is a stable system because of the first amendment, freedom of speech. This allows all citizens to speak against their government without fear of retribution.
In the Russian Revolution, the people overthrew their leader when he tried to suppress a protest with blatant violence. Lenin took control and was a good leader, allowing the citizens to express themselves, but when he turned over his power to Stalin, Stalin became a dictator and took away the Russians’ rights. As a result, he was overthrown.
Khatami seemed to have pinpointed what makes a government last. If the people are not satisfied, then eventually, they will overthrow their government.
Copyright © 2004 Daniel Parecki. All rights reserved.