I just returned from my 25th High School reunion and as I drove all I could think about was how wonderful it felt to be home. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pa, I can say that I bleed BLACK and GOLD and that I am a Steel City Girl. Proud to be a Pittsburgher, my chest fills with pride whether I'm staring at our amazing skyline and beautiful rivers, counting our fabulous bridges, or climbing those magnificent, rolling mountains, that we call "hills." Either way, I'm proud to claim Pittsburgh as my home and I'm willing to bet many Pittsburghers feel the same. Pittsburgh is who I am, it's where I'm from, and it's what has help mold me into the person I am today.
As I continue driving, I began to think about what we've been studying in my Culture and Civilization class. I asked my students why did it take so long for Latin American countries to "fight" for their countries? Why did it take so long for the "feeling" of home to come into play?
Think about it...
1492 Columbus sails the ocean blue... more or less the beginning of Conquest Period, in which the Spanish, the Portuguese, the French...came to the Americas and took claim to the land and the people
1537 The Pope declares that Indians have souls...nice of him
1780s Indian Revolt led by Tupac Amaru
1790s Slave Revolt ... Haiti
1810 "Grito de Dolores" Mexico Independence against Spain
1800s Slowly countries begin to fight for their Independence
1900s Revolutions and "outside" interference from power houses like... US and Russia
Here's my question... I'm 42 and my pride for my home is overflowing. I can understand how at first the Americas were merely nothing more than a cash crop to the Spaniards, however, once they began building colonies and claiming land...it soon became their home... so, why did it take generations...and I mean centuries before the people, decided that this was their home, this was where they were born, where their parents were born and even where their grandparents were born... why did it take that long for revolts and revolutions to occur?
3 comments:
Economics? It takes money to buy weapons.
Fear? Having children taken away and families and villages wiped out.
Sickness? It didn't take much to kill indigenous people. Probably continued in cycles.
Or perhaps they tried to revolt and there is no history written about it. Smaller uprisings may have happened frequently but weren't recorded.
Good points! I didn't think about the smaller revolts. You may have a point...why document the small ones? Who would it benefit?
i cant wait for my tenth high school reunion but that wont be until 2019 lol. i will drive all the way back to atlanta,ga.i am glade you enjoyed your reuion i hope i enjoy mine when the time comes .
Swest@mcc
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