Major Civil War result

            The Civil War ultimately became a war over the freedom of blacks, marking a significant change in the nation. It was one of the bloodiest wars in American history, leaving over 600,000 dead. The South rejected the idea that the government had the right to force them to stay in the Union and compared it to the American Revolution. Lincoln argued that the South had no right under the Constitution to leave the Union, therefore, introducing war. For a while, Lincoln was under pressure to make the war a battle over slavery, but he refused. Ultimately, Lincoln projected the damages to the country that would occur if the South were allowed to secede into a nation built upon slavery. As a result, he introduced the Emancipation Proclamation.

            On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln notified the country in the Emancipation Proclamation that slaves in any state or part of a state where the people were rebellious against the country will be free unconditionally. In turn, the war was introduced with a new aspect, a war about slavery, not just the Union. Following this event, Lincoln tried to persuade several Union States with existing slavery to free their slaves and be compensated for the loss, but his attempt was not successful. Luckily, in April of 1862, Congress favored his plans and forbade slavery in certain areas, compensating owners for the loss of property. A couple months later, slavery was abolished in territories without compensation.

            With the Emancipation Proclamation being a result of the Civil War, its benefits were significant. Although not all blacks were free immediately, upon their freeing, they were provided with the right to serve in the military as equals. Eventually, the South surrendered and again became a part of the United States. The war’s inflicted damages were great, which introduced the Reconstruction Era. The freeing of the blacks was probably the most important benefit of the war because it introduced the issue of equality, which later became for everyone.

Carter Administration: Greatest foreign policy victory

In the Middle East, the region was divided by old and new conflicts. In 1977, the Egyptian President courageously traveled to Israel to deliver a plea for peace. As a result, President Carter, seeing the incident as an opportunity, invited the Egyptian President and Israeli Prime Minister to his mountain hideaway at Camp David. Carter had intentions to persuade them to settle their differences, which he felt would be more simple in the informal environment. For approximately two weeks, he served as a mediator between the two. Although it seemed as if he would fail, in September 1978, the foreign leaders shockingly agreed to peace between their countries. Following the agreement, Carter visited both countries to produce a peace treaty in 1979. As a result, Carter won a Nobel Peace Prize for his mediation efforts, and therefore, the incident was the greatest foreign policy victory for the Carter Administration.

Johnson Administration's policy on civil rights

The Johnson Administration supported equal rights for everyone. After Kennedy’s assassination, President Johnson convinced Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, originally proposed by Kennedy. It forbade major forms of discrimination against blacks and women. Shortly thereafter, he also convinced Congress to pass the Voting Rights Acts, which forbade discrimination in voting. He tried to eliminate different forms as discrimination as best as possible, and Kennedy’s death was motivation for many.

Significance of Winston Churchill's speech in 1946

On March 5, 1946, Winston Churchill gave his “iron curtain” speech in Fullton, Missouri. In his speech, he included:

From Stettin in Baltic to Trieste in Adriatic an iron curtain has descended across the continent

I do not believe Soviet Russia desires war. What they desire is the fruits of war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines…

This speech, meant to broadcast the new danger, had a multi-point purpose. He felt that the Soviets might want expansion but not war, which refers to his ability to have discovered the roots of the emerging issues—Soviet territorial motivations. In turn, he warned about the anticipated cold war following World War II, resulting from the “iron curtain.” Also, he believed in order to have stability, American involvement would be required. It was not just a warning but also a plea for peace. His speech was later supported by Russia’s failure to keep its promise to remove its troops from Iran.

Japanese-American treatment during World War II

In the U.S., discrimination occurred everywhere with nearly everyone. It was not limited to just blacks but also to women and immigrants. As a result of the incident at Pearl Harbor, discrimination toward Japanese- Americans greatly increased. Other citizens blamed them for what Japanese militarists had done and began to suspect they might be helping the enemy across the Pacific. Franklin D. Roosevelt was pressured to remove them from coastal states and excused it under national security even though there was no evidence of disloyalty. The Japanese-Americans were forced to sell their homes and businesses on short notice at sacrifice prices. Then, they were confined in camps and treated by army guards as if they were dangerous. The government finally began releasing them after the 1944 election.

A benefit of the New Deal

As a result of the New Deal, there were many significant, positive outcomes. Thanks to Mrs. Roosevelt, one of the greatest outcomes includes the growing rights of women. Although women were still not completely treated as equals, the New Deal had its great benefits. For the first time, women gained substantial political influence and positions of power on the national scene. Reformers came in large numbers to work for the government. Some of the most important positions were given to women.

Roosevelt's Confidence

Franklin D. Roosevelt was eloquent, persuasive, and smilingly confident. As a result of the Great Depression, he promised a “New Deal” and rapid recovery of prosperity for business and agriculture. He wasn’t discouraged by the depression. In his inaugural address, he asserted his faith in democracy and declared “The people of the U.S. have not failed… they want direct, vigorous action.” He also reminded people that the nation and its wealth were still there. He had faith that there were lots of new ways to be tried, so he promised to experiment.

Company town system: Fair or Unfair?

The company town system refers to a town built and controlled by a company or a town that depends on a single company for most of its jobs. The system had its pros and its cons, but overall, the cons out-weighed the pros leaving it unfair. It was convenient for workers to not have to live in crowded areas and with the filth of slums. On the contrary, it left the company with the power to control where and at what price a person could buy food, to control schools, and hire police. Some of the most violent strikes occurred in these towns resulting in fatalities.

Impeachment of President Andrew Johnson

During the Reconstruction Era, the first impeachment of a sitting President, President Johnson, occurred on February 24, 1868. It was a result of his firing and replacement of Edwin Stanton, which violated the Tenure Office Act—an act designed to protect Edwin Stanton. There were eleven articles describing his “high crimes and misdemeanors,” which were presented as the supporting basis of his impeachment. Upon the completion of the trial, Johnson was acquitted as a result of the total votes being one less than the required number for conviction. Following the trial, the Tenure Office Act was declared invalid and was abolished by Congress; later rulings by the Supreme Court were in favor of Johnson’s stance to fire without approval from Congress. Therefore, the Tenure Office Act can be considered unethical, as well as the impeachment of President Johnson. 

Concept of Popular Sovreignty

Popular sovereignty is the political principle that the legitimacy of the state is created by the consent of its people. It places ultimate authority in the people. It is the idea that people in an area should decide for themselves the questions that concern them. Pre- civil war, one of the greatest issues rising was slavery. Therefore, pre- civil war, the term was used to suggest that the U.S. residents should be able to decide by voting whether or not slavery would be allowed in the territory. 

Concept and Importance of Judicial Review

Judicial review is the power of the Supreme Court to review statutes and government actions to determine whether they conform to rules and principles laid down in the Constitution and can declare acts of Congress unconstitutional. It is based on the idea that the Constitution is the supreme law. Actions by the government that violate Constitutional principles are invalid. Without judicial review, there would be an entirely different political system. Also, without judicial review, the legislative branch would be supreme and fundamental protections in the Constitution would be ineffective.

J. Blaine’s Mudslinging toward G. Cleveland

                One of the most difficult and critical decisions to make for the United States population has been and continues to be choosing the better candidate for President. Campaigning to be President is a difficult task because effective strategies must be used to persuade people to believe they are the appropriate individual for the position rather than their opponents. Due to the lack of modern-day technology, print ads were the most common type of advertisement used for campaigning until approximately the mid-1900s, but the candidates pre-1900s didn’t need to appeal to the entire population, mainly upper and middle class white men because they were the majority of the population with voting rights, because not everyone had the right to vote –few black males in the South that were former slaves, few women in Wyoming and Utah, and middle and upper class white men (who were mostly land owners), all at age eighteen or older, had voting rights (Ayers, Gould and Oshinsky 510). During the campaigning for the election of 1884, James Blaine, a Republican strongly motivated to win the Presidential election, published a series of print ads using a negative campaigning strategy; they directly aimed to negatively portray Grover Cleveland and his party, the Democrats, to significantly and intentionally play upon the morals of that particular group of white men. In turn, the campaign became one based upon not what each candidate had to offer the country but the personal character of each individual.

                One print ad, currently at the Museum of American Political Life, that was published, most likely in a newspaper, by Blaine in 1884 drastically compares the lifestyle differences that are expected to surface upon nomination depending on the selected party in office as a result of wages being affected by a tariff[1] (Boorstin, Kelley and Boorstin 458). The colored print ad is a drawing rather than a photograph because color photographs were not available at the time, photographs were not printed in newspapers, and a photograph could not capture in precise detail the message being offered by the author; at this time, drawn, colored print ads were very common as a result of the color being the first thing the viewer notices, which captures the audience’s attention and persuades them to proceed in considering the ad. This particular print ad is conveniently in a landscape layout, making comparisons much easier to analyze, in which the first half of the page shows the projected damages to a man’s life if Cleveland is elected for President, and the second half displays the projected and desired lifestyle if Blaine is elected.

                In the first image, a raggedly-dressed family of four is shown in their slum-like house. While the poorly, dirtily dressed man of the house is cutting bread for a meal on a table accompanied by a broken chair, the woman of the house, dressed in green rags, appears to be sending her son somewhere. A little, brunette girl sluggishly sits in a cradle on the severely damaged, wood floor. The filthy walls are accented with cracks and a frameless picture, and instead of the well-known “Welcome” mat upon entry of one’s home, the “Welcome” was implied by a door-less entrance where a factory is pictured from a left-side angled view outside. At the top of the image, it is described as “The effects of a Tariff exclusively for Revenue as laid down in the Democratic Platform and which the Democratic Congressman tried to enact last winter at Washington.” At the bottom of the image it states “Democratic Free-Trade Means low wages, children in rags, and ignorance;” followed by “If you are satisfied with this picture vote for Cleveland…” This image displays some of man’s greatest fears, but the subsequent image is contrary in all aspects.

                In the second image, completely opposite to the previous, a different, well-dressed family of five is shown in their well-kept home. The intelligent, sophisticated –appearing man of the house is holding his blonde, toddler girl while the woman of the house appears to be saying her goodbyes to her son who is awaited by his older sister at the open front door where two sets of railroad tracks and a factory are pictured at a right-side angled view outside. In this scenario, the house is clean and nicely decorated with multiple framed photos, curtains, and area rugs, and left-over food with place settings rest upon the table-cloth covered dining table. Unlike the preceding image, this home is greeted with a “Welcome” mat upon entrance. At the top of the image, it is described as “The effects of Protection to American Industries as guaranteed by the Republican Party and Platform.” At the bottom of the image, it states “Republican Protection Means good wages, happy homes, and education for your children;” it is proceeded by “If you prefer this picture vote for Blaine…” With the print ad’s image now mentally embedded, an understanding of the different aspects and appeals can be determined.

                The simple-sentenced and limited text, which provide the ad’s basis and the key to interpretation, effectively makes the ad easy to understand by not overwhelming the audience with information and allowing the images to do the talking, which is important for the time period because approximately only eighty percent of the population was literate to different extents –with and without formal education (National Center for Education Statistics). Although the population and economic growth increased the importance of education (seen as a requirement to have a decent life and a gateway to higher income classification) for that particular time period by the standards of life being and getting higher, advertisement still needed to be simplistic for those who were education deprived. In this print ad, for example, in the sentence that states “Democratic Free-Trade Means low wages, children in rags, and ignorance,” we can assume that the word “adults” is omitted from “children in rags” because by having the emphasis being on the children, it can naturally be assumed that if children are in rags then their parents are too, and therefore, the exclusion of “adults” makes the same point but with the emphasis on the aspect of children rather than adults and children, making the ad more audience- friendly by saving time, thought, and possible criticism for stating the obvious. Also, the interpreted message of “Vote for Blaine and not Cleveland” avoids possible hostility to the presented argument, Cleveland and the Democrats versus Blaine and the Republicans, by stating “If you are satisfied with this picture vote for Cleveland…” for the Democratic scenario and “If you prefer this picture vote for Blaine…” for the Republican scenario, and therefore, the author maintains a position of neutrality to the argument. In turn, the audience would likely choose to favor the “good” scenario, but one print ad’s persuasion is not enough to win the campaign because the audience is provided with factors offered by the opponent too. If the print ad consisted of only the text, yes, the message would be available but without appeal, and therefore, the images are necessary to effectively relay the message.

Although the text is necessary to delivering the ad’s message, the images and their details are by far the most important contributions within the print ad because they motivate the audience to proceed to and complete a thorough analysis of each situation. With this particular Presidential campaign ad, Blaine is mudslinging [2] by indirectly attempting to persuade his audience to vote for him by planting a seed in his viewers’ minds that Republicans are better than Democrats, and as a result of the voting population’s concerns[3], leaving the basis of their votes on moral and religious beliefs, the most effective, audience-touching aspect, the comparison of two different families’ –which we know because the facial features are different, the hair of the toddler girls are different colors in each scenario, there is another child in the “good” scenario, the house structures vary, and the point of view of the factory implies possibly neighboring homes –quality of life, is the display of what Blaine believed he needed to take into consideration regarding what he felt to be his audience’s most important values: work, family, and quality of life (Ayers, Gould and Oshinsky 510). Also, with the given image portrayal, it can be expected that family and responsibilities to family are important to a man, which at that time [men] had high moral standards and religious beliefs, because it is obvious that he is the provider –which can be assumed because the woman of the house is attending to mother, wife, and household duties rather than being of independence like the males –and has a close-appearing relationship with his family, and the portrayal of the women also eliminate them from the author’s target audience. Additional key aspects contribute to the narrowing of the audience.

In the images, only white people are shown, therefore, leaving white people solely within the target audience. Additionally, as a result of the men appearing to be in between the twenty-five and forty-five age range and the man in the “good” scenario being sophisticatedly dressed, implying success, in his own home, implying ownership, the audience is further reduced. Finally, the statement “Protection of American Industries”[4] further reduces the audience to businesses and laborers because almost all categories of industries would likely be negatively affected by the Democrat-favored free-trade[5]. Therefore, Out of approximately 50 million people, Blaine’s audience can be narrowed down directly to upper and middle class, literate, successful, and land-owning white males (business men or laborers), likely between the ages of twenty-five and forty-five, who hold the majority of voting rights (Demographic history of the United States). Now that the physical aspects of the ad have been evaluated, the features of the internal appeals can be examined.

                For self-presentation, Blaine essentially presents himself to the audience as a third person, allowing his viewers to perceive him exclusively as the representative for the Republican Party to provide Protection to American Industries. As a result, the audience could be left to believe that someone else is implying to vote for him rather than himself. With this technique, since the message is not viewed as coming from him or solely his opinion, the audience could be persuaded toward his favor because someone besides Blaine appears to be providing the message, but on the contrary, although Blaine was popular, the population questioned his political honesty as a result of a prior incident regarding the corrupted awarding of railroad charters (James G. Blaine). Although the chances of Blaine being acknowledged as the author may be limited, the audience most likely finds the author, known or unknown, to be credible.

Regardless of the author’s self-presentation position, the factual appeal of the revenue tariff that the Democrats previously attempted to enact, which the author bases the argument’s support on its damages, permits the audience to consider the author to be knowledgeable and credible. The Mongrel Tariff Act (of 1883), designed to allow free trade and break down protection by decreasing and increasing tariff rates on different things, was the response from Congress after President Arthur tried to find ways to lower the existing tariff, an issue that surfaced in the 1870s; it satisfied no one because it mostly increased duties rather than lowered them, which was beneficial to few and damaging to many others (Tariff of 1883).  It was believed by the Democrats and their followers in favor of the tariff that “high customs duties protected American Industry, helped workers, and developed the economy,” but the effects were adverse (Ayers, Gould and Oshinsky 511). Therefore, provided the acknowledgement of the tariff, Blaine is left in a positive and credible standing with the audience. Using the tariff as supporting evidence of the argument’s basis leaves the thought in the viewers’ minds that if they choose Blaine they’ll be provided with Protection of American Industries and have a good quality of life or if they choose Cleveland, who favors the tariff, they will have a poor quality of life. Even though the effect of the factual appeal was significant, the appeal of one’s life’s quality is far more effective.

                The appeal of one’s life’s quality is the aspect of the print ad that immediately persuades the audience to analyze every detail held within following the attention-grabbing color. Having being provided with two different scenarios, the audience becomes emotionally entangled to the print ad’s message because of the relation to and fear of their desired and undesired life’s standards of home, family, and work. While the quality of life comparison provided captivates the audience by its factors regarding the value of assets, the happiness in one’s home, and more importantly, the well-being of family, the diction captures the audience by their prioritizing of their children’s education, which at this time had increasingly high demand because of the population and economic growth, and the importance of wages earned, which without reasonable earnings supporting a family would be difficult and a poor quality of life would exist. With one’s life’s quality having been the most effective appeal, the use of multiple appeals working together deems this particular ad to be effective

                Although campaigning is definitely a difficult task, as shown in the Blaine versus Cleveland Campaign, the effort applied during the campaign must be utilized appropriately to effectively persuade the target audience. For example, this print ad significantly attracts the audience by the appeal of one’s life’s quality and a fact creating the argument’s basis while the author maintains a stance of neutrality, which guides the audience subconsciously toward the favor of Blaine. Regardless of Blaine’s sole participation in the subconsciously-persuading, demeaning print ads he was still unable to win against Cleveland, who fathered an illegitimate child. With the votes being in close distance, the issue of corruption in the government was shown as greater concern to the population rather than personal immorality when Cleveland was elected for President.

Works Cited

Ayers, Edward L., et al. American Passages: A History of the United States. 4th. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2008.

Boorstin, Daniel J., Brooks Mather Kelley and Ruth Frankel Boorstin. A History of the United States. Needham: Pearson Custom Publishing, 2002.

Demographic history of the United States. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

James G. Blaine. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

National Center for Education Statistics. National Assessment of Adult Literacy. n.d. 11 July 2011 <nces.ed.gov>.

Tariff of 1883. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

Bibliography

1884 Cleveland v. Blaine Biographies. n.d. 11 July 2011 <elections.harpweek.com>.

Encyclopedia of Everyday Law: Voting Rights. n.d. 11 July 2011 <http://www.enotes.com/everyday-law-encyclopedia/voting-rights>.

Gilded Age. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

Greenspun, Phillip. History of Photography Timeline. n.d. 12 July 2011 <http://photo.net/learn/history/timeline>.

History of the Population of the United States. n.d. 11 July 2011 <http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~riss/hrtg/census.html >.

History of the United States (1865-1918). n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

Literacy in North America. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

McNamara, Robert. The Election of 1884 Between Cleveland and Blaine was Marked by Scandals. n.d. 11 July 2011 <http://history1800s.about.com/od/presidentialcampaigns/a/electionof1884.htm>.

Negative Campaigning. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

Republican Congressional Committee. The Republican Campaign Textbook for 1880... n.d. 11 July 2011 <books.google.com>.

Secondat. 23 May 2011. 11 July 2011 <http://secondat.blogspot.com/2011/05/color-printing.html>.

Tariff. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

Tariff of 1883. n.d. 11 July 2011 <http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h733.html>.

Voting Rights in the United States. n.d. 11 July 2011 <wikipedia.org>.

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[1] A set of rates designed to raise money for the government

[2] Wikipedia.com’s colloquial synonym for Negative Campaigning

[3] how the government raised and used money, the corruption within government officials, new and changing taxation, and the protective tariff

[4] Republicans, who believed in stimulating the economy, didn’t approve of trade with other countries because of potential threats.

[5] Democrats, who believed in government’s non-interference with industries, favored free trade with foreign nations.

Daddy

“I’ll be back, Padre!” I stated to my father, Mark, in an Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Terminator” voice as I left his auto repair shop to go on a run for parts. It was a beautiful fall day, and it seemed as if nothing could really go wrong. I got into Dad’s blue Jimmy with my puppy, Angel, and headed out. My destination was approximately thirty minutes away, so I enjoyed my paid break from the office with the music blasting and the wind blowing in my hair.

            “Who the fuck is this? O.M.G.! Why are these people in my way?” I questioned myself upon returning to the shop as if I would get an accurate answer. There were about five newer model GM cars parked in front of the shop and in the allies. Mike, a mechanic, and a customer stood on the side of the street opposite to the shop talking. Naturally, I thought nothing of any of the awkwardness. I left the truck parked in the middle of the street, and my dog and I got out. With the intake gaskets in my hand, I walked slowly toward Mike, savoring the free time away from the office.

“Whose cars are those in my way?”

“The cops are in there with your dad.”

“Oh my God! Why? What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. Some guy in an explorer asked me to check out his radio, and it was fine. And then the next thing you know all these cops came swarming in.”

            My mouth dropped, and my heart raced. I felt my adrenaline rushing, and inside of me was a tornado of fear, anxiety, concern, and disbelief. I didn’t know what to think, and I never realized how important my dad was to me. Finally, I worked up the nerve to approach one of the investigators and inquire about the situation. “This doesn’t involve you. Did you know that your father has been selling drugs?” I was left speechless with difficulty of trying to register the arrogance and unkindness put forth in so little words. Then I knew what was going on. “Damn! This mother fucker done got his ass caught the fuck up. Ain’t that some shit? Damn! Damn! Damn!” was all I could think to myself. He was getting busted for selling ecstasy. Awkwardly, I understood he was only selling drugs to help keep the shop running so everyone could have jobs. It wasn’t about him or greed; it was about helping others have a better quality of life. Because of his selflessness, I accepted it with compassion and understanding. It was all with good intention, but that didn’t matter anymore.

            Suddenly, huge trucks pulled onto the street, and in came SWAT and additional detectives from different departments. The arriving detectives took my dad in a room and beat his ass; newly arriving detectives searched the shop for drugs and checked VINs on all of the cars. A detective politely approached me and asked me if I was familiar with my dad’s dog. They needed me to get him out of my dad’s house (which was located was just across the ally on the opposite side of the street) so they didn’t have to kill him. Then, the house raid began.

            As I walked back to toward the shop, I saw a few familiar faces. It was a group of county cops that were regulars at the restaurant I used to work at. Ironically, we shared our greetings and hugs and parted ways. After hours of investigation, they were pissed to have found nothing which gave me positive hopes. Then, I looked up, and my daddy walked out handcuffed and being put into the back of a squad car, and the cops had all of the shop’s money. My every hope and dream was suddenly shattered, and I felt like a lost child. It was the end of my world, and I didn’t think there was a thing I could do to change anything. I didn’t know how to function without him; this made me realize he was my “everything”.

            It was up to me to keep the shop running, and I planned on doing so faithfully. The shop was as disastrous as a tornado after the raid. Everything I worked so hard to fix, file, and organize for so long (fixing my cousin’s mistakes who was the old secretary) was almost instantaneously destroyed. Boxes and files were equivalent to the ground. Within 48 hours, my father was released from being held on probable cause. The burden and hurt was lifted from me, until three days later when one of the mechanics brought it to my attention that we had another unfortunate visitor out front. I rushed outside to see what was going on, and again, I became a lost child at the sight of my daddy being handcuffed. I thought everything was over and done with, and here they came breaking my heart all over again. In my eyes, my daddy was always a saint. They told me his bond was $12,000, and he was being charged with four counts of dealing a controlled substance which were B felonies. I took all his belongings from his person before they escorted him to the back seat of the well-known “bitch-mobile.” I thought I was stabbed in the heart, and I was left breathless and hopeless. I had never seen that much money in my life, and never thought I would. The love for and expectations of my father was my motivation for everything good to come in my life, and that same love put it in my heart and my mind that I was going to try as hard as I could to get the money even though the goal seemed completely impossible.

            Although I felt mostly dead, I got up in the morning earlier than usual and went to the shop to create a daily plan. I tried to motivate the employees to have greater productivity and help in every which way possible. I called customer after customer to see if they needed any work done, wanted to buy any of the shop equipment, or buy any cars on the lot. Our lot was filled with inoperative cars, and more than half of them were unclaimed for years, so the “sitters” were put up for sale along with assets. Amazingly, the response from others was great; no one could believe I was doing so much and trying so hard because I loved my daddy. The phone calls paid off; more customers were bringing in cars to get worked on. Fleet account representatives came to purchase two lifts and the tow truck for dirt cheap. Two running cars were sold for only $1500 to another fleet customer. Then, I started calling people that would buy junk cars without titles to compare offerings, and I scheduled for them to come out the next day to see what was available.

            The following day, I woke up earlier than usual, and I was feeling determined more than I had ever in my life. I went to the shop and started making phone calls to everyone I could think of that might make a difference. I confirmed my appointments, called someone in to buy scrap, and scheduled to meet his lawyer the following day. For a moment, I sat at my desk and stared feeling empty, lost, and confused, like there was nothing in the entire world anymore. Shortly after, a few guys from other companies came to look at the cars I was offering. Comically, in my eyes, it was like an auction between them going back and forth about prices fighting over cars. It was blessing that between them a total of eighteen cars were gone. Then, a man came to buy all the scrap which was a few more hundred dollars added to my total. Still short, I went to the neighboring shop and spoke to the owner, Ray, and he loaned me $1800 because he knew that my dad was a good man. At the end of the day, I deposited the money in the bank and still felt like I had nothing even though it was more money than I’ve ever had in my possession in my life.

            The following day, I woke feeling slightly at ease which was extremely ironic because of the situation. My dad had court that morning, so I went to the jail house. The anxiety that came upon me was great, but when my dad walked out, all I could do was smile like I was giving him sunshine to last a lifetime. It was just his initial hearing, so nothing significant occurred. After leaving, I went to the shop to check on the guys and see how things were going. I called my grandma that I had not spoken to in years on my dad’s behalf, and it felt awkward. My heart filled with guilt after asking for money because the lack of contact that I blamed my father for. My brother’s friend, Dre, went with me to Skokie to get $2000, and even though the visit was short and awkward, it was enjoyed by everyone. Then, finally, it was like a glorious triumph; I made $13,000 within a week. “I did it!” I thought over and over again smiling with great radiance. As quickly as possible, I went to the lawyer’s office to see what he had to say; I was eerie about giving him money, thinking he couldn’t get my dad out immediately like bonding him out would. I was assured that he was able to get his bond reduced to $5000, and if I gave him $7000 we could get my daddy out by the morning.

I cared for my brother and my mother and managed to keep business steady. I thought I would never be able to make it. I felt like I wasn’t doing enough, but somehow, I was doing much more than I thought. I couldn’t even comprehend all that I was doing until after the fact. It felt so good to have accomplished so much in so little time under so much pressure all because my father meant so much to me and I thought so highly of him.

The next morning, I went to the shop, excited, but still not knowing what to think or how to react to anything. Then, I got a phone call:

“Ay, where you at?”

“Oh my God! It’s a miracle. You’re out!”

“So are you gonna come and get me or what?”

“Yah, I’ll be there in a little bit.”

“Ok. I’ll be walking down Cleveland ‘cause I don’t wanna be near this place.”

There were so many feelings and thoughts rushing at once to the point that I couldn’t fully comprehend anything. I immediately rushed to my father’s rescue. When I saw him, it was like seeing him for the first time in a long time, and even though I was coming to his rescue, he rescued me. He looked so funny, and all I could do was laugh and cheese. Never had I seen before his facial hair, especially not gray. It was the most humorous attribute to my day. His jail stories were comical too; I never imagined my dad stealing anything, particularly not a Twinkie. He didn’t want anyone to know he was out yet, so he went to my house as his safe haven.

            I never thought I could accomplish anything so intense in my life. I concluded that it’s true when they say “Love is the best motivation.” Daddy’s little girl accomplished the unthinkable and was promoted to co-owner of his business. This obstacle made me realize that I am much stronger than I expected. My internal outcome was like the watering of a seed provided with sunshine; I grew mentally in multiple aspects.