Class Artificial Intelligence Videos

The Rise of Black Participation During the Reconstruction Era

Black Politicians During the Reconstruction 
Era

In class, one of the most interesting videos my classmates shared focused on the rise of Black political participation during the Reconstruction era. The video used AI generated visuals and voice narration to bring this important period of history to life in a way that felt both modern and powerful. It started by explaining how the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments opened the door for freedom and equal rights.

Hiram R. Reveals, the First African American
to Serve in U.S Congress

The 13th Amendment simply abolished the act of slavery, the 14th Amendment granted citizenship to formerly enslaved people, while the 15th protected their right to vote. These constitutional changes were monumental, and the visuals helped show just how transformative they were for millions of African Americans. 

The video also showed how federal troops were sent to the South to protect newly won voting rights. With this protection, Black voters reached extraordinary levels of participation by 1868. Many African Americans ran for office, held government positions, and helped shape new policies. It was inspiring to see this era presented through a creative lens that made history feel alive.

However, the video also reminded us that this progress didn’t last forever. Reconstruction officially ended in 1877, and by 1900, Black political participation had dropped drastically. To my surprise, the AI generated video even used slower and saddened music when the video started talking about discrimination and how Jim Crow laws erased many of the gains made after the Civil War. I'm not sure if AI did this by itself or if my classmate put a direction in, but I was very impressed.

Overall, this AI powered project captured both the triumphs and challenges of the Reconstruction era. It showed how technology can be used not just to entertain, but to educate and honor important stories from history.

What I learned in Class

The Reconstruction Era

Learning about Reconstruction really opened my eyes to how complicated freedom actually was after the Civil War. The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments sound so powerful on paper they ended slavery, granted citizenship, and gave African American men the right to vote but in reality, freedom was something people had to keep fighting for every single day.

An Image representing the intensity
of the Reconstruction Era

The Freedmen's Bureau

One thing that really stood out to me was the Freedmen’s Bureau. In just seven years, it helped over four million people. I was amazed to learn that it built thousands of schools and helped start many HBCUs. By 1870, around 250,000 students were learning because of it. That’s incredible progress in such a short time. The Bureau also helped families find each other again and supported marriages, which reminded me that freedom wasn’t just political it was deeply personal.

40 Acres and a Mule

The promise of 40 acres and a mule really made me think. It gave people hope and a sense of independence, but it was heartbreaking to see that promise broken. Still, the brief success showed what could have been a glimpse of true equality.

Tuskegee Institute

Tuskegee University, 1885

I also learned about the Tuskegee Institute, founded by Booker T. Washington in 1881. Students literally built their own school, which says so much about determination. People like George Washington Carver and later the Tuskegee Airmen carried that same spirit of strength and innovation. Then, hearing about Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first African American U.S. Senator, showed how far people could rise even when the odds were stacked against them.

Reconstruction taught me that freedom isn’t just something given, it’s something people create and defend. It made me appreciate how progress always starts with courage, education, and hope.

Gone With The Wind Reconsidered

Gone With The Wind 
Movie Poster

When Mr. Smith said we were going to watch Gone with the Wind, I honestly rolled my eyes. A four hour movie from 100 years ago? I thought it was going to be black and white (it’s not), slow, and way too romantic for my attention span. But it's easy to admit that once I started watching, I got pulled in. It’s way more complicated than I thought, and it left me with mixed feelings.

The first thing that hit me was how huge everything felt the costumes, the sets, the drama. It’s like every scene is trying to be the most dramatic moment ever. At first, it almost felt over the top, but then I realized that’s what makes it so intense. It’s not just a love story, but it’s about a world falling apart and people trying to hang on to whatever’s left of it.

Scarlett's Green Curtain Dress

Scarlett had surprised me the most. She’s honestly hard to like in my opinion, she is selfish, rude, and always thinking about herself but she’s also kind of fascinating. I started out judging her, but by the end, I sort of respected her. She refuses to give up no matter how bad things get. She’s not the type of hero you usually see in old movies. She’s messy and unapologetic, but she’s also real. I think that’s why people still talk about her. 

What threw me off, though, was how the movie treats the South. It’s like it wants to make you miss that world, even though it was built on slavery. That part made me uncomfortable. You see all this sadness about the South being destroyed, but not much about what that way of life actually meant for the people enslaved there. Watching that in 2025 feels strange it’s beautiful to look at, but the story it tells leaves out a lot of ugly truth.

The one character who really stands out to me was Mammy. She’s the one person who actually seems to understand what’s going on. She’s funny, smart, and constantly calling everyone out. Even though the movie doesn’t give her the attention she deserves, every scene of her makes the audience feel strong and real. She honestly has a huge impact of holding the whole house together, and I wish the story showed more of her side.

The Burning of Atlanta 

By the end, I didn’t totally love Gone with the Wind, but I didn’t hate it either, which is good for me considering I become critical towards older films. It’s confusing, beautiful, and frustrating all at once. I get why it’s considered a classic the acting, the emotion, and the way it captures a time that no longer exists. But it’s also a reminder that old movies can carry ideas that don’t sit right today.

So yeah, it wasn’t what I expected. I went in thinking it’d be a boring old movie, and I came out actually thinking about history, survival, and how people can be strong in totally different ways.

Henry Wilson: From Indentured Servant to Vice President

Henry Wilson portrait

     Few American political figures embody the ideals of self-determination and moral conviction quite like Henry Wilson. Born Jeremiah Jones Colbath on February 16, 1812, in Farmington, New Hampshire, Wilson's journey from indentured servitude to the second-highest office in the nation stands as a testament to perseverance and principle. His lifelong crusade against slavery would define not only his career but also shape the course of American history during its most turbulent era.

Wilson's early life was marked by hardship. At just ten years old, his impoverished father bound him out as an apprentice to a local farmer, where he would labor until age twenty-one with minimal formal education. Yet this experience of servitude, however mild compared to chattel slavery, instilled in him a profound understanding of bondage that would fuel his abolitionist fire. Upon gaining his freedom, he legally changed his name to Henry Wilson and walked over one hundred miles to Natick, Massachusetts, where he learned the shoemaking trade. Through determination and business acumen, the young cobbler eventually built a thriving shoe factory, earning wealth and the enduring nickname "The Natick Cobbler."

Wilson's political awakening came during a trip to Washington, D.C., where he witnessed slavery firsthand—the auctions, the chains, the systematic dehumanization. After seeing slaves at work and visiting the slave pens in Maryland, he became a committed abolitionist. This would become the central mission of his life. He entered politics through the Massachusetts legislature in 1840, initially as a Whig, but his frustration with the party's compromises on slavery led him to help establish the Free Soil Party in 1848. He worked diligently to build an anti-slavery coalition that united various factions—Free Soilers, anti-slavery Democrats, Liberty Party members, and eventually the newly formed Republican Party.

Sir Henry Wilson, First Baronet

Elected to the United States Senate in 1855, Wilson served with distinction until 1873, becoming Chairman of the Senate Committee on Military Affairs during the Civil War. His legislative achievements were substantial and consequential. In April 1862, he authored the District of Columbia Emancipation Act, which President Lincoln signed into law, freeing approximately three thousand enslaved people in the nation's capital. He championed equal pay for African American soldiers, successfully adding provisions to the 1864 Enrollment Act that guaranteed formerly enslaved people who enlisted would be considered permanently free by federal action, preventing any possibility of re-enslavement. This single measure freed over twenty thousand individuals in Kentucky alone.

After the war, Wilson aligned with the Radical Republicans, pushing for comprehensive civil rights protections and opposing President Andrew Johnson's lenient approach to Reconstruction. In 1872, Wilson was chosen as Ulysses S. Grant's running mate, marketed as the "Natick Shoemaker" to complement Grant's "Galena Tanner"—a ticket designed to appeal to working-class Americans. Though he won the vice presidency, Wilson's tenure was tragically brief.

Article regarding the Death
of Henry Wilson

Suffering from poor health and grief following the deaths of his wife and son, Wilson spent much of his vice presidency writing his three-volume work, History of the Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America. On November 22, 1875, he died of a stroke at age sixty-three while working in the Capitol.

Henry Wilson's legacy endures as a champion of human dignity who understood that true freedom requires not just emancipation, but equality, opportunity, and unwavering moral courage.

All disclaimer: I used Claude AI to help me format, research and give me ideas to write about Henry Wilson. I constructed the research and blog post format that Claude provided into a blog post

Reflections on the Slavery Abolition Movement

In class today, my classmate presented a video about the slavery abolition movement, and it gave me a deeper understanding of how Britain eventually ended the slave trade. The video focused on the activists who fought against slavery and the legislative victories that finally brought it to an end.

The presentation explained that slavery had no moral, ethical, or logical basis, which inspired abolitionists across Britain to take action against this injustice. These activists recognized that treating human beings as property was fundamentally wrong and began organizing to demand change. However, even as opposition to slavery grew and more people joined the abolitionist cause, the British slave trade still carried on for many years. This showed me how difficult it was to dismantle such a profitable and deeply entrenched system.

A portrait of William Wilberforce

I learned that William Wilberforce became the face of the movement in Britain. He dedicated his life to fighting slavery and pushed for legislative change through Parliament. Wilberforce spent years trying to convince lawmakers to outlaw the practice, facing significant opposition from those who benefited financially from the slave trade. His persistence and commitment to justice were truly inspiring.

The video highlighted two major legislative victories. In 1807, Parliament passed the Slave Trade Act, which prohibited the trading of enslaved people within the British Empire. This was an important first step, but it didn't immediately free those who were already enslaved. It took another 26 years of activism before Parliament passed the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, which finally abolished slavery throughout most of the British Empire.

An Image of the Slavery Abolition, 1833

This presentation reminded me that social change takes time, persistence, and courage. The abolitionists' dedication to justice eventually triumphed, showing that determined individuals can make a real difference in fighting injustice.

Nat Turner Uprising

A Portrait of Nat Turner

        The Nat Turner Uprising was one of the most significant slave rebellions in American history. Nat Turner lived in Southampton County, Virginia and he was enslaved. Nat Turner stood out at an early age because he learned how to read and write which was extremely rare for anyone in the enslaved community. He was also very religious and believed that God had chosen him to lead his people out of slavery. Nat Turner saw divine visions from God which made Turner believe it was his mission to fight back, and that belief pushed him to start the uprising.

  History.com states that the rebellion began when Turner and a small group of followers attacked the family that enslaved him. From there, they moved from one plantation to another, freeing some enslaved people and killing about 60 white men, women, and children. Turner hoped this would inspire other enslaved people to join in and rise up against slavery. For a short time, it looked like his plan might work. 

       At first, the rebellion gave enslaved people hope. It was one of the only times in American history when enslaved people fought back in such a big way. Turner showed courage by taking a stand, and his followers were willing to risk their lives for freedom. However, the uprising soon went wrong. The killing of women and children shocked many people, even some who were against slavery. Instead of spreading, the rebellion was quickly crushed by local militias and angry white farmers. Turner went into hiding but was later caught and executed.

An Illustration of The Uprising

    The worst part came after the rebellion was over. This uprising absolutely terrified white southerners, they retaliated in constant and harsh violence. White mobs and militias killed around 100 to 200 Black people, most of whom had nothing to do with the uprising. Slave laws became even stricter. Enslaved people were no longer allowed to learn to read or gather together, even for church, without white supervision. Instead of moving toward freedom, slavery became even harsher. The southerners thought that if the enslaved community were smarter they would be more of a threat and they were scared of another uprising or rebellion.

Title Page of Nat Turner 
Confession

    The Nat Turner uprising is remembered as both powerful and tragic. Turner wanted freedom, and that goal was completely right. Slavery was cruel, violent, and unfair, and enslaved people had every reason to fight against it. But the rebellion failed because the violence against women and children made people see Turner as dangerous and cruel instead of heroic. Nat Turner's resilience was honorable, but instead of ending slavery, the rebellion gave slaveholders more excuses to keep control and increase restrictions. 

In the end, Nat Turner’s rebellion showed how desperate enslaved people were for freedom, but also how hard it was to achieve it. The uprising made it clear that slavery could not last forever and was extremely unstable because people would always resist it. At the same time, it proved that violence could backfire and make life even worse. Turner’s rebellion is still debated today, but it will always be remembered as a turning point that showed both the hope and the tragedy of fighting back.

I used Resource bank for my summary and I got my in depth information of the Uprising and Nat Turner himself Resource Bank

Marketplace of Ideas:

 In 1644, November 23rd John Milton published "Areopagitica", a speech which introduced a revolutionary concept that is widely considered as one of the most influential factors that helped shape the ideas behind the first amendment. 

The original 1644 Pamphlet of
Areopagitica.

When Milton was writing this pamphlet, he was not just arguing against government licensing of printed materials, he was giving a foundation for what we know call the "Marketplace of Ideas." The First Amendment Watch states that Milton believed that free and open encounters between diverse views serve not to weaken the truth, but to confirm it. Milton was responding to the licensing order of 1643 which requires government approval before a book or story could be published or printed. This is an idea of censoring freedom of speech, which Milton deemed as a threat as an attempt to hide the truth. Milton continuously argued that if the truth and lies are allowed to come out, then the truth will ultimately prevail. 

        What really stands out to me is the emotional weight that is behind Milton's words. It is easy to see how truly passionate he is about how censorship hurts society. I find myself agreeing with him, because I believe we can only truly understand what is true when we confront the ideas that are in our way.

     It's truly discouraging to see how many lies we face today as a society with social media, and even well credible sources constantly misinterpreting important information and even twisting words to make information sound differently. In today's world, false information can spread faster than ever before and it could be very difficult sometimes to tell which is true or false. Although, Milton's writing inspires and influences many people across the world, including well known political philosopher John Locke. Locke and Milton's arguments had become part of the intellectual background that informed colonial resistance to leadership.

Milton Defending Free Speech
Nebraska Capital

    

    It's hard not to admire the courage and foresight that Milton showed in his writing. Even though its impossible to predict our current world challenges, the principal of his argument stands as something most people can agree with.  Milton's defense of the Marketplace of Ideas shows us that the truth is really not fragile. Truth may not always come out or win immediately, but giving it the chance to fight of falsehood is essential. Reading Milton's words makes me realize how deeply his ideas shaped the freedoms we can enjoy in today's society under the first amendment. For me, it is inspiring to see how just one Pamphlet written hundred and hundreds of years ago, can influence our freedom.