Final Presentation Script

Hello, my name is Lucas Gustason. Ben and I will be doing our final presentation specifically on the topics of the EOTO’s, Blogs, and the use of A.I. in the classroom. First off, I think that the fact that when we were presenting the EOTO’s it gave us a different perception that most classes wouldn’t show us. It gave us firstly the angle that usually only professors have, teaching in-front of the class. This not only helps with presentation skills but it also helps with speaking skills in environments that you might not be comfortable in. I think that this has helped me not only gain confidence knowing that with enough preparation I can make it so that the presentation will not only sound better but I can present it better. Another thing that made the EOTO’s so much fun was the fact that it was a group project, it wasn’t just you sitting in front of the class, it was your group. This definitely helped elevated some of the stress that for example the Mock Trial gave. 

Adding on to what Lucas mentioned, I believe the EOTOs opened our eyes to looking beyond just one perspective. The fact that there was always a **contradicting viewpoint—whether supporting slavery or supporting desegregation—**forced us to consider sides we wouldn’t typically examine. It strengthened both arguments, because each perspective pushed back against the other.

Also, when facing problems in life, you're going to want to look at situations from both sides and identify key factors, even if they don’t support your original claim. Another positive I took away from the EOTOs, as Lucas mentioned, was my improvement in presenting skills. Having my own script for a few days and practicing it in front of a mirror until I could confidently stay within three minutes really helped. This boosted confidence for many people’s presentations, especially mine.

Being able to incorporate AI ethically into our writing also taught me a lot. Instead of tediously looking through websites that might have biases or unreliable information, we were able to use AI. It made me focus more on the content rather than skimming through articles I wouldn’t end up using. While you can’t fully lean on AI, being able to use it as a tool felt like having training wheels. It provided us with scholarly sources, scripts, and well-crafted slides.

Being encouraged to use AI was a unique and valuable part of the way Professor Smith taught. Learning how to use it ethically was a game changer. It helped me understand not just how to gather information quickly, but how to evaluate it, refine it, and make it my own. Using AI responsibly showed me how to improve my writing without losing my voice, and it taught me how to double-check sources and avoid misinformation. I’ve already applied that knowledge in a few of my other classes, making research and writing feel more efficient, structured, and insightful.

Jumping off what Ben was talking about, my opinions on the fact that this classroom not only allowed us to use A.I. but it was heavily encouraged for some projects, was a really cool idea. I think that as A.I grows we must also grow around it not against it; While most colleges and even other professors heavily deny the use of A.I; this class taught us that when using it correctly it can be a great tool. Firstly, we shouldn’t rely on it for everything, it’s a learning software, it’s going to make mistakes. Secondly, we should guide it so that it gives us exactly what we want; an example being that when making our EOTO’s we only wanted facts that coaligned with the topic we had. Lastly, we learned that while A.I. can be an amazing tool, in some scenarios we shouldn’t use it at all, mainly when the professors strictly say it’s not allowed. 

The last part I want to talk about is how much I enjoyed the blogs. I’ve always enjoyed typing and writing but blogging has to be one of if not my new favorite way to write. It’s in an entire different league than an essay for a few simple facts. Firstly the fact that when writing and essay your main goal is to talk about the prompt usually; but for blogs it’s different. Your only goal is to make something that is both interactive and presentable. You have to think in the mind of out of the millions of blog posts out there, yours has to be the best for the most retention. Finally I love the fact that all blogs can be and will be different, it gives it a sense of personalism an essay prompt wouldn’t give. I also love how we add hyperlinks; instead of just writing a work cited you make it so you cite inside the work.

Lucas summed it up pretty well. Being tasked with a writing prompt is a thing you see in most of our classes, but being able to personalize and add your own flair to it is one special thing about the blogs. The short quick 300 or 500 word blogs were way easier to write than an essay. I think I speak for most, when writing an essay you get to about 500 words and a lot of the times after that find yourself repeating information. And being able to incorporate AI in some of them was extremely helpful, but when Professor Smith says it’s not an AI assignment, definitely don’t use AI. In the end, this class gave us more than just the material taught in class—it gave us experiences that actually taught us something. The EOTOs pushed us to think from multiple perspectives. The blogs gave us the freedom to express ourselves and write with personality. And learning how to use AI responsibly gave us a skill that’s becoming more and more essential. Altogether, these parts of the course helped us grow as writers, presenters, and students. Thank you.

Reaction Post EOTO

Reading about the rise of the KKK and the pushback against the Civil Rights Movement honestly shocked me more than I expected. I always knew the Klan used violence, but seeing how openly they worked with some local authorities made it feel even more disturbing. They claimed they were “fixing problems,” but really they were using arson, attacks, propaganda, and harassment to keep Black people from gaining equal rights. Freedom Summer in 1964 especially stood out. The murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner showed how deep the racism ran not only did the KKK kill them, but the police helped set it up. And the fact that real justice didn’t come until 2005 says a lot about how long this fight has been. 

The massive resistance against integration also surprised me. Southern states were literally willing to shut down entire public schools rather than allow Black students in. The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door was another example; Seeing a governor physically block students from entering the University of Alabama shows how political leaders were part of the problem too. 

The four girls who died in the bombings

What’s interesting is how every violent event also seemed to push the movement forward. The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing was horrifying, but it also made people around the country take the movement more seriously. The same goes for peaceful protests like the lunch counter sit-ins, the Freedom Riders, the March on Washington, and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Even though they faced violence constantly, their nonviolent approach actually made the government step in. Laws like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 didn’t just appear, they were forced by years of activism. 

Overall, learning about groups like the NAACP and all these protests helps me understand why the Civil Rights Movement made the progress it did, even while facing so much hate. It’s honestly inspiring how people kept pushing forward despite everything against them.

Ai disclosure: I used ChatGPT to consolidate my notes into a blog post using the parameters that it should be 300 words and in the style of a freshman in college. 

Reconstruction Video Reaction

Looking back at the Reconstruction era, it’s clear that it was one of the most complicated and contradictory periods in American history. On one hand, it brought incredible hope and opportunity for newly freed people; On the other, it unleashed backlash, violence, and new systems of oppression intended to keep Black Americans “in their place.” Even long after slavery ended, the legacy of these struggles is still visible today.

The formerly enslaved men

During the Civil War, thousands of enslaved people escaped to Union lines in the summer of 1862, finding safety and a chance at a new beginning. By the end of the war, around 180,000 formerly enslaved men had joined the Union Army, fighting not only for the nation but for their own freedom. After Appomattox, Abraham Lincoln even began considering giving voting rights to some Black men, a radical idea for the time. But Lincoln’s assassination brought Andrew Johnson to power, and everything changed.

Johnson blamed wealthy Southern planters for the war but still held deeply racist beliefs. Frederick Douglass recognized early on that Johnson would not support true freedom for Black Americans. Under Johnson, the Freedmen’s Bureau, led by General Howard, was forced into impossible situations. Although the Bureau controlled large amounts of land, Johnson ordered much of it returned to former slaveholders. Freed people were pushed into labor contracts with their old masters, a system that felt like slavery under another name.

By 1865, Southern states passed Black Codes, laws designed to control Black people and limit their rights. Violence exploded as groups like the Ku Klux Klan formed to restore white supremacy through terror. Congress responded in 1866 by passing civil rights legislation and the 14th Amendment, granting birthright citizenship and equal protection.

Despite everything, African Americans pushed forward. They believed in democracy and entered political life with determination, hoping to reshape the country. In just a decade, formerly enslaved people went from bondage to holding office, creating schools, and building communities; Proving that freedom, once claimed, cannot be easily taken back.

Ai disclosure; I used ChatGPT to consolidate my notes that I took into a blog post that was around 300 words. I then edited what I thought didn't fit. 

Heat of the Night reflection

When we watched "Heat Of the Night" in class the first thing that I thought about was the fact that while we look back and know that separate but equal was a load of crap; seeing it through the eyes of Virgil Tibbs just made it all the more transparent. For example one of the first reasons we know that this was a lie is because when Tibbs tells the other officers that he is a cop at first none of them trust him until the chief calls the head chief in Philadelphia. 

Tibbs knows that the only way that he can make the social system that he is dealing with come to end is to not only show them he is smarter than them but do it in a way that has no margin for error. He does this by not only calling out the doctor for a faulty time of death assessment but also by in the movie seeming to always be three if not four steps ahead of everything that the other officers tried to prove was the culprit for the murder. Another way that he tried to ruin the social system is that over time he and the chief officer, Gillespie, by the end of the movie had a not amazing but a very respectful and understanding relationship. On one hand Gillespie still had his ego and pride but he also understood that without Tibbs there was no way that they could've solved the case. As the mayor pointed out the old chief would've just shot Tibbs when he went against an order but Gillespie just got angry at Tibbs.

Mamma Caleba

When we view the position of the women in this movie, I think that instead of treating them as separate but equal we can more view them as the ones in power didn't want to give up the power but the ones without power tried their best to gain power. Lets for example say Mamma Caleba, since she managed to open a semi successful store as a black women in Philadelphia; A thing that most women in general couldn't do, she really didn't want to give it up when Tibbs threatened to report her if she didn't help him. Delores Purdy on the other hand tried to reach for power in anyway that she could, even if that meant having a kid at 16 years old. 

Wrapping up my views on the movie, "Heat of the Night," is both complicated but also easily plausible. I think that instead of saying I felt negative I more felt bad for the fact that Tibbs was not only racially profiled but also his clear expertise was ignored for what felt like 90% of the movie. On the other hand I feel joy that the chief, Gillespie, grew and started to respect the work Tibbs did showing that while during that time things were definitely going bad, it was going in the right direction slowly. All in all; I think that the movie, when we finally watched it after 3 attempts, was well made and really did show what it was like living as a black man in the 1960's. 

Video Reaction Post

Booker T Washington 

After watching the AI videos today in class that where played I learned a lot. Firstly we watched a video about Booker T. Washington. He was a worker in the coal mines as a young kid, at 16 he traveled over 200 miles to find a new job as a janitor to also pay for his college tuition. At 25 he had made a place for African American's to gain practical skills, like farming, trades, and learning the importance of hard work. in 1895 he gave a speech in Atlanta and was talking about how people should learn so that they could gain respect. He was an advisor for president Roosevelt and Taft; and was the first black person in the white house to have dinner.  

For the second video, we learned about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, when he was planning to give African Americans, mainly the ones who fought in the war the right to vote; Booths realized that instead of just kidnapping the president he would kill him. Lincolns death was not only a tragic event; but it was life changing for the reconstruction era; Johnson who took over after Lincolns death completely didn't follow the ideology that Lincoln had and easily forgave the south and did nothing for African Americans. Eventually Congress took over reconstruction because they realized that Johnson was doing a horrible job, and he eventually got impeached. This had an everlasting effect on the struggle that African Americans faced and prolonged their complete freedom and rights. 

The third video was about sharecropping, basically slavery under another name. This was a labor style that didn't just hurt black people, though it mainly targeted them, it also hurt poor white people. When they farmed they had to give a large percentage of their crops to the land owner and they also had to rent the tools they needed from them at a ridiculous 60% interest rate; leaving the people who delt with this broke and basically a slave. Some would think that this would only last a few years, however share cropping lasted all the way until the 2000s in some areas. The end of slavery didn't mean the end of racial oppression.   

The fourth video was about black political participation, in 1865 for the first time ever America had black people in positions of power and also had a huge voter turnout from black people. While these times were great sadly, after the reconstruction era with the introduction of Jim Crow laws these times ended for a while until black people eventually fought again for their rights. 

The fifth and final video was about the great migration, over the spam of a little less than 50 years over 5 million people migrated from the south to the north and western areas. The main reason for moving was because they firstly offered more money in the north after world war 1; but also because they weren't treated anywhere as bad in the south and north compared to the south. While they didn't have the best treatment it was still leaps and bounds better, and while it did take a while they would preserver for their rights. 

Reaction Post

Why Separate Train Cars were a Bad Idea 

Let’s break this down. Homer Plessey who was a citizen, taxpayer, and working guy gets kicked out of a train car because of his race. He looks white; He acts like any other passenger. But Louisiana says nope, separate cars and why, because he was 1/8th African American. 

The 14th Amendment says citizens are protected by both the U.S. and their state. So why is Louisiana ignoring that? Louisiana’s culture is mixed. African Americans and French families have been intermarrying for generations. Diversity is baked in however this law doesn’t reflect that it tries to erase it and push the will of white supremacy. 

Also, how is this supposed to work? Are train workers supposed to inspect every passenger’s racial background?  Are they supposed to do a blood test for every single passenger that tries to board the train? That's not only ridiculous but costly and time consuming.

From a religious angle, it’s offensive. Genesis says we’re all God’s children. Segregation goes against Christian teachings. It’s spiritual hypocrisy. Economically? A nightmare. Railroads have to double everything cars, staff, costs. It’s wasteful at best, even the companies didn’t want it. Northern states skipped this nonsense and thrived but, Louisiana’s law did this not only hurting the railroads but also scares off investors that didn't want to have this imagine on their background.

And think of the damage to kids? Huge and life changing; It teaches Black children they’re inferior and that even if a law bans something people will find loopholes, this could cause a bigger distrust in the government.  

Justice Harlan nailed it: “Our Constitution is color-blind.” If segregation starts with trains, where does it stop? That's the question, where would it stop? Would we basically just bring back slavery if nothing was done to stop this? 

Now, the state says it’s about peace and order. They claim the law is neutral, that it applies to both races. But let’s be real; It’s rooted in the legacy of slavery. These laws are part of a system that keep black people from owning land and gaining independence. It’s control, dressed up as policy. The state says it’s protecting white workers and avoiding racial tension. But that’s just fear talking. Bottom line; This law isn’t about safety, it's about giving white people more power all over again.

Ai disclosure, I used Co-pilot to use my notes to make a blog post; however I edited so that it better reflected my ideas and the things that I wanted to say in the blog post. I made sure that I also used a format that would make it in a college freshman style. 

Anti Miscegenation Laws

When people think about racism in American history, we often think about segregation, slavery, or the civil rights movement. But one of the most invasive forms of racism has to be the Anti Miscegenation Laws; laws that literally made it illegal for people of different races to get married. 

These laws have a ugly and long history, going all the way to 1967, a whopping 102 years after slavery was officially abolished. It was first passed in Maryland in 1661 and followed soon after in Virginia in 1691. These laws didn't only just ban interatrial marriages but also punished it very harshly. White people who married black or indigenous people were banished from the colony. Over time, 40 states adopted similar laws; Targeting and trying to end the idea of interatrial marriage or feelings, especially for black people. 

Richard and Mildred Loving

But over time people resisted, one of the most well known and famous challenges to this law was from Mildred and Richard Loving. They were in an interracial relationship that lived in Virginia and were arrested in 1958. Their case, Loving v. Virginia, went all the way to the Supreme Court. In 1967, the court ruled that anti-miscegenation laws were unconstitutional, violating the 14th amendment's guarantees of equal protection and due process. This decision struck down all remaining bans on interatrial marriage across the country. 

Still, the legacy of these laws didn’t disappear overnight. Some states, like Alabama, kept the laws on the books until as late as 2000 even though they couldn’t be enforced anymore. And the social stigma around interracial relationships didn’t vanish with the stroke of a judge’s pen. Many couples continued to face discrimination, judgment, and even violence.

Today, Loving v. Virginia is often cited in other civil rights cases, including those involving same-sex marriage. It stands as a powerful example of how the law can both oppress and liberate and how love can be a radical act of resistance.

This is a showing that during the reconstruction era peoples minds, mainly pissed off white people, wouldn't change overnight. They made sure that while not blatantly having slavery they instead did as much as they could to limit progression towards equality. They were in all regards doing legal racism, even after the abolishment of slavery. 

Ai disclosure: This blog post was created using Co-pilot, but was mainly written by me. I used the prompt that I was a college freshman and that the post had to be 500 words.