In class yesterday, we extended our knowledge of the Mexican War to discuss the results in America. A decision had to be made about slavery in the new territories, so we voted as a class over how we would solve the issue. The majority of the class wanted to let the territories choose how they felt about slavery. In actuality, the American leaders chose to do nothing about the issue. Another issue that came up was the Compromise of 1850, which would combine 5 bills about slavery. The class voted to pass the set of bills, but the bills were actually passed one at a time. I was not surprised that the leaders of the country voted this way, as they did not want to create any major conflicts.
Today, we discussed how slaves escaped to freedom. We looked at a drawing of escaping slaves. I was surprised that many of the slaves were smiling. Maybe they were hopeful about becoming free. A Fugitive Slave Law was passed to make escape more difficult. Slaves had to be returned to their owners without trial. We then read an excerpt from the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, which showed the evils of slavery. It told how a slave named Eliza made a dangerous escape, and was chased after by slave-catchers. I would not want to be an escaping slave because it would be terrifying to be followed by men and dogs.
My 30 day goal has been successful so far. I am starting to write in my journal daily without having to deliberately remind myself. I don't know if I will continue it after the 30 days, but I think it has been helpful so far. I will be able to form other positive habits after this because it has been fairly easy forming this habit.
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