Aborted and Abandoned: A Photo Essay

Chaeli Mycroft: Fighting For Acceptance, Spreading Hope

Think about what you love to do. Now imagine that you couldn’t move your arms and legs, mentally handicapped and unable to leave a wheelchair. Can you still do those things now? Or would the disabilities stop you? Michaela “Chaeli” Mycroft was born with cerebral palsy, making her wheelchair bound for life. Instead of letting life get to her, she decided to go out and make a difference. Chaeli was nine when she first started raising money for her own motorized wheelchair and carried on her fundraising with aspirations to help others like her . Now 17, and the winner of the 2011 children's peace prize, Chaeli has achieved in a couple of years which some spend a lifetime doing. Being handicapped her whole life, living in a wheelchair and diagnosed with cerebral palsy , Chaeli understands the challenges that the disabled have to face. She decided to make a change and help other children with disabilities by opening up opportunities, fighting for acceptance and spreading hope.

Growing up disabled, Chaeli understood that even the slightest bit of assistance could open up possibilities for a person. Chaeli is working to raise money to provide equipment and physical therapy for disabled children living in South Africa. Chaeli’s motorized wheelchair changed her life. She could do more and felt independent. She wanted others to feel the same way: “At the age of 9, Chaeli and her friends and sister started a project to raise money for an motorized wheelchair for Chaeli. In just seven weeks they raised more than enough money, so Chaeli decided to help more disabled children.” 1  By getting others involved she has been able to broaden her campaign to help a large amount of children: “This project has become the Chaeli Campaign, a professional organization that annually helps more than 3000 children with disabilities in South Africa with equipment, physical therapy and which defends the rights and acceptance of disabled children. Chaeli inspires other children to start projects and for that she has developed an ambassadors program.” 1  These children would not get the assistance Chaeli is proving them otherwise as their families can’t afford it. Chaeli's assistance has helped and is helping open opportunities for thousands of disabled children in South Africa.

Throughout her campaign, Chaeli ultimately wants to spread hope to the thousands of disabled children she supports. All her efforts are to help disabled children feel empowered and successful. She wants them to go after their dreams and remain hopeful. Chaeli once said in a speech “Hope is what keeps us going” 5 Her experiences have proven this to her. It’s what keeps us striving for the lives we deserve. I have hope for myself, but I also have hope for all other children with disabilities.” 5 Chaeli knows that her efforts will help. She knows her commitment has helped bring newfound hope to the thousands of disabled children she has helped, and the thousands more to come.

Chaeli wants all children like her to feel needed and accepted within their families and society. Chaeli was lucky in the sense that her friends and family always tried as hard as possible to include her in everything they did. Because of this, Chaeli is the inspirational, fun loving person she is today. She wants disabled children all over to have the same upbringing. ‘“They have raised me to accept my disability. If they stopped believing then I would’ve too and then I would have lost it. My friends are equally as important to me. They treat me like an able person. They even changed games that they usually played so that I could play with them and it’s fun when we are all in it together. In a way my friends treating me like a normal person led to other people treating me normally. They helped a lot” 7  She also wants the disabled to be accepted within society, not treated as outcasts. Within the communities she helps, she tries to promote acceptance and involvement. “I hope that my actions as an ability activist will leave the world more accepting and more accommodating for all people and not just people with disabilities, because we are all different and we all have the need to be accepted regardless of having a disability or not.”6  Chaeli’s determination has helped promote and engage acceptance for the thousands of disabled children in South Africa.

Chaeli’s campaign started small but has grown into an organization of hope, acceptance and opportunity. Chaeli’s work has helped thousands of Disabled children in South Africa find their place in the world. People like Chaeli are the people who change our world. They are impetuses of change for the rest of society.

Chaeli’s campaign “Hope in Motion” helps thousands of disabled children living South Africa get the support they need. The donations have helped set up schools for the disabled and purchase aids and equipment. With the physical support, the campaign has brought hope and the willpower they never had before. Chaeli has helped thousands of children like herself realize their own dreams and given them the hope and ability to follow their hearts. She is an inspiration for us all.           

Sources Used:
1: "2011 Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://childrenspeaceprize.org/childrens-peace-price/2011-chaeli-mycroft/>
2: "SA Career Focus: Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://www.sacareerfocus.co.za/displayArticle.php?id=215>
3: "SA Career Focus: Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://www.sacareerfocus.co.za/displayArticle.php?id=215>
5: "2011 Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://childrenspeaceprize.org/childrens-peace-price/2011-chaeli-mycroft/>
6:"2011 Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://childrenspeaceprize.org/childrens-peace-price/2011-chaeli-mycroft/>
7: 2011 Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://childrenspeaceprize.org/childrens-peace-price/2011-chaeli-mycroft/>
8: "Chaeli Mycroft: HOPE IN MOTION - capechameleon.co.za." 2012. 17 Oct. 2012 <http://www.capechameleon.co.za/printed-version/issue-12/spotlight3/>

Harrison Bergeron - Vonnegut's Message

        In Vonnegut's short story, Harrison Bergeron, Vonnegut tries to get his readers to appreciate and value what makes them different. Vonnegut twists our perception of "equality is the way to a utopia" and tries to make us see that in a different light. Whilst being equal has its advantages, everyone would be the same. People wouldn't have their own weaknesses or strengths, nobody would have their own individual talents. The dystopia Vonnegut has created clearly demonstrates his perception on the topic of individuality and the keeping of one's character. In the story, the ballerinas are ridded of their physical talent by the government adorning them with handicaps. "He tried to think a little about the ballerinas. They weren’t really very good-no better than anybody else would have been, anyway.They were burdened with sash-weights and bags of birdshot, and their faces were masked, so that no one, seeing a free and graceful gesture or a pretty face, would feel like something the cat drug in." (Page 131) The ballerina's here are being oppressed from showing off their own talents. The equality is oppressing them and their identity. Harrison Bergeron's abilities, appearance and knowledge had attempted to be taken away from him by the government. "The rest of Harrison’s appearance was Halloween and hardware. Nobody had ever born heavier handicaps. He had outgrown hindrances faster than the men could think them up. Instead of a little ear radio for a mental handicap, he wore a tremendous pair of earphones, and spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The spectacles were intended to make him not only half blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides. Scrap metal was hung all over him. Ordinarily, there was a certain symmetry, a military neatness to the handicaps issued to strong people, but Harrison looked like a walking junkyard. In the race of life, Harrison carried three hundred pounds. And to offset his good looks, the men required that he Wear at all times a red rubber ball for a nose, keep his eyebrows shaved off, and cover his even white teeth with black caps at snaggle-tooth random." (Page 134) Harrison is not allowed to keep his looks, mind and strength for fear that he may be better than everyone else, which would upset the equality. All that makes Harrison, Harrison, has been taken away from him by the government. George's intelligence had also been ripped away from him. George wore a mental ear handicap that played a loud, excruciating sound in his head every twenty seconds. This was to mess with and interrupt his train of thought. The government wants everyone to be as smart as each other, not have some be smarter than the others. "Every twenty seconds or so, the transmitter would send out some sharp noise to keep people like George from taking
unfair advantage of their brains." (Page 130) Hazel isn't required to wear one as she is of average intelligence, the same level they are dragging everyone else down to. Hazel isn't the brightest person yet the government seems to see this as being ideal. Vonnegut's dystopia is a place of equality and oppression. There is no such thing as a utopia as all things have repercussions. In Vonnegut's dystopia, complete equality is put in place at the expense of individuality and uniqueness. Vonnegut shows his readers that equality is an acceptable way of life to an extent. People should learn to cherish their differences  The degree of equality in the Vonnegut's dystopia is out of hand, making it a dystopia. 

A Person's Identity is Worth Fighting For

Long hair with princess curls & natural highlights,

Eyes like a kaleidoscope, Never seem to be the same colour.

Nails, a little short with silver glow in the dark nail polish, chipping away.

Small owl ring on my left pinky finger. Blue Cardigan, warm and fuzzy from my favourite store. White polo shirt & blue shorts, my school uniform.

Baby pink shoes, that aren’t pink anymore. Hole in my left shoe, which I stitched up last night.

Tall compared to my friends,

Thats Me.

From “ffish” and “psgetti”.

I am High-5 and Barney, and Dipsy, La-la, Tinky Winky and Po.

I’m Hannah Montana hair flips and “Nobody’s Perfect”

From the princess curls in my hair, the hair-tie ever on my wrist.

I’m all tutus and tights, arabesques and pirouettes.

from “point your toes” and “thats not good enough” and “fix up your hair”

from hobo bunny and scruffy the dog, who live by my bed.

from Gus Gus, Toffee and Patches, sadly, their dead.

I am from road rage and traffic jams.

From koalas and kangees.

living in eternal summers and never ending rain.

I am pig noses in the back and billy-carts out the front.

“thats Crodashnikle!”  duck cappuccino I named in the park.

“sew straight ” and  “Pay attention to detail dear”.

“learn from your mistakes”

Im all these memories,

stacked up,

laid out,

and cross-stitched into my personality.

Is a Person's Identity Worth Fighting For? Why or Why Not?

A persons identity is worth fighting for. You have the right to be who you are and who you want to be. You can be yourself and nobody has the right to change you. People should accept you for who you are. People are unique and we should embrace it, not cower behind what is seen as right and acceptable. Some elements that pressure a persons identity are peer pressure, social attitudes and tradition.

Understandings

A good leader considers the will of the people.

           I think that all good leaders are considerate of others. Leaders cannot be selfish or act on what is best for themselves. A leader that makes fair choices is more likely to succeed. In the middle ages, many leaders, such as King William the Conquerer, were disliked for their selfish decisions. He made choices that helped himself and his own people (the Normans) gain wealth. Most leaders in the middle ages were corrupt like this. In more modern times leaders have learnt to be more considerate and non-corrupt. Some of these leaders include Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr and Nelson Mandela. All these leaders had one main thing in common, they were all considerate of the will of the people. They were not corrupt and were not selfish. These leaders were all successful as they had the support of the people behind them. Even though this way of rule is the most effective, there are still corrupt leaders in today's society. 
             If leaders of the middle ages were less corrupt, less selfish and considerate, they would of had much more success and power over their people. There would of been less rebellions and revolts over their rule. 

England in 1066

          In 1066, King Edward the Confessor died, leaving three men, who all had a different claim to the throne, to feud. Even though each man had a decent explanation of why they should be king, I thought that Harold Godwinson had the best claim to the throne. Before King Edward died, he had announced that Harold Godwinson would be his successor. Harold was a strong leader, an English noble, the Earl of Wessex and leader of the army. His experience woud help in his ruling. King Edward had also married Harold Godwinson's sister. If King Edward chose him to be king, he must be a viable choice. When King Edward had died, a council of nobles, known as the "Witan" agreed that Harold should be king.
          The other two men battling for the throne were Harald Hardrada and Duke William of Normandy. Harald Hadrada was a ancestor of Englands former King, King Cnut. Hadrada thought that this meant he had a right to the throne. Duke William claimed that King Edward had once promised that he would have the throne when he died. He also claimed that Harold Godwinson had been once captured by his men and taken an oath that he would support Duke William in becoming king. This decision may of been a hoax, but there was no way to prove it.
           Each of the men had a valid case, some, better than others. Since there was no way to really decide who deserved to be king, the contenders had no other choice but to fight for the throne.

Values and Choices

Think about a time you witnessed bullying/ostracism/peer pressure/exclusion/discrimination/violence. How did you respond? How do you wish you had responded? What stopped you from responding that way?

Exclusion is a common thing in most schools. There are severe cases of exclusion and minor cases. Sometimes exclusion is unintentional. A time I noticed exclusion was when a group of my friends and I all sat down at a table in the canteen. A girl had followed us and sat down next to us. We ignored her the whole time. We didn't try to include her in the conversation. We hadn't ment to ignore her or exclude her, it was just an accident. We had been so caught up in our own conversation we hadn't been bothered to make notice of her. I wish I had of talked to her or tried to include her in our conversation. I think I didn't do this as I was worried my friends may of criticized me later for ruining the conversation by including her.

An incident where I was bullied was in fourth grade. A group of three girls made their mission in life to bully me. They would constantly make comments about me, talk about me behind my back and tell lies and secrets. They would leave me out of everything and make sure everyone else left me alone. Luckily I had my own group of friends who didn't believe this but others we intimidated by the main leader of the group. They didn't want to go against her for their own want for popularity and acceptance. They ended up stopping and becoming my friends. What I didn't know was that they had an ulterior motive. A year later, they started again, way worse than the year before. They used our "friendship" as a way to bully me and so that I would not suspect them. I was the victim in this case and I responded by trying to do the same thing back. I eventually stopped retaliating  to them as I knew I was the bigger person.

1.Where have we seen examples of bullying/ostracism/exclusion occurring in texts studied so far this year- factual as well as fictional?

An example of exclusion in the Hunger Games is when Katniss feels excluded when Haymich announces that Peeta and her will no longer train together. She feels as if they are not telling her anything and excluding her from information. When Peeta declares his love for Katniss feels betrayed and excluded as they never warned her or told her about their plan.

The In-Group

Eve S: The In Group


1.What’s familiar about the incident Eve describes?2.What surprised you? 
The act of bullying is familiar to me as it occurs sometimes during school. It surprised me that after being bullied herself she laughed at another girl being bullied. If I had been in her position I would probably not of said anything and remained silent.

3. How does Eve’s story relate to bullying? Was she bullied? Did she bully? How would you explain her behavior?( perpetrator/bystander/victim?). make sure you justify( back up your answer.
Eve's story demonstrates the common act of several groups being formed within the school and the groups picking on one another. Eve was both bullied and had demonstrated acts of bully encouragement. She was a victim towards the start of her story. She had been picked on by her peers quite alot. Eventually they left her alone, yet she was still cautious around them. She then became a bystander and laughed along with a group of bullies teasing a girl. Eve may of done this as she may of been scared that if she stayed quiet or stood uo for her, she would be bullied again.

Psychologists Michael Thompson and Lawrence Cohen point to the powerful influence of peer groups in guiding our behavior: ‘We all know that groups can go terribly astray in terms of their moral reasoning. Everyone not in the group can be considered an outsider, a legitimate target…It affects every group because we are all prone to that feeling of us versus them and the idea that if you’re not with us you’re against us. Speaking out against a risky, immoral or illegal decision is hard to do because that makes you an outsider yourself’.

4.How did Eve’s need to belong affect the way she responded when another girl was being mocked? Why does her response still trouble her? How do you like to think you would have responded to the incident?
Eve let her want to feel included take over her own moral values. She had gone to school for a long time feeling mistreated and excluded. She feels bad about what she did as she knows how the girl must of felt from her own experience. She still regrets her actions and wishes she could of done something else. I would like to think that I would not react to what they were doing and remain neutral to the whole incident. After the incident, I would go up to the girl that was bullied and offer my support.

5. Eve concludes “Often being accepted by others is more satisfying than being accepted by oneself, even though the satisfaction does not last.’ What does she mean?

She means that people try so hard to impress others that they forget whats right. This impression may not last long but it gives the person who made the impression feel a part of a group and included. Being accepted by oneself is referring to you being a decent person and being proud of your choices. People tend to forget about what is moral when it comes to wanted to feel included and accepted.

The Mysterious Major

In class today we read a short story called "The Mysterious Major". The story is about a holocaust up- stander named Schmahling. Schmahling was the Nazi occupation governor of the Haute-Loire district (including Le Chambon). Schmahling helped hide Jewish people and gave calls to various districts before the Nazi raids. This was done to alert all the people in danger of being taken away and give them time to hide. Schmahling had a few experiences that led to his choice in helping the Jews and not joining in with the discrimination.

When Schmahling was a teacher, he had an experience with one of his students. He was teaching a class on Lions when one of the boys in his class stood up and said "Yesterday, yes, yesterday I saw a rabbit. Yesterday I really saw a rabbit.", Schmahling looked at the student, angry for interrupting the class, and said "Sit down, you little jackass". Schmahling's actions caused him to crush something inside of himself. I think that Schmahling meant that he crushed his kindness, respectfulness and his good nature. By Schmahling saying this he also crushed the boys freedom of thought and speech. He destroyed this young child's self confidence. The boy may of believed that what he had to say was not worthwhile and not important. This was similar in what the Nazi's were doing to the people they ruled/controlled. The Nazi's made people that they found "not good enough" feel like their opinions and ideas were not worth hearing and that what they had to say was not important.

Victory by Sonia Weitz

Victory is a poem, written by holocaust surviver Sonia Weitz. The poem is about finding a glimmer of hope in such a dark and dreadful place. Sonia sneaks into her fathers barracks to see him, and he asks her to dance with him. This is their first and last dance together. Sonia says her dance with her father made it seem as if "The ugly barracks disappeared. There was no hunger.....and no fear."

The part of the poem that really stood out for me was the last line/quote, " There are no tools to measure love and only fools would fail to scale your victory." I think this quote really outlines love and the poem. Even though the conditions were terrible, their love for each other overcame it. This line aslo explains why the poem was named "Victory". It was their victory in a sense that they overcame the odds and reunited with each other for one, last dance. The love they had for each other and the special moment they shared while dancing was not going to be spoiled by the impending demise they would suffer.

A connection I have about this poem was one I had with my grandfather. I was around seven and my grandfather in Melbourne, Australia was in hospital very ill. He had severe diabetes and was having two of his toes amputated. He was in a great deal of pain and I was worried about whether he would cope with his balance and walking again. I was also scared that his life would shortened through suffering diabetes. I visited him daily in hospital and played crazy 8s, a card game which he enjoyed playing. I felt the hour or so we played each day, helped him to forget his pain and the condition he was in. I also felt that I was sharing a special time with my grandfather as I was not sure whether he would return to 100% health after the operation. For that one hour we played, it was like he wasn't ill as we laughed and chatted together. I also was worried that I may not see my grandfather again as he was quite old and I live here in KL.

As it turned out, he had to walk with a cane after the surgery and I did see him one more time when he and my grandma stopped to visit me in KL. I will always remember my grandfather laughing and playing Crazy 8s in the hospital with me. I think this is similar to the dancing dancing scene in the poem where a special and unforgettable moment can be created even though the situation seemed doomed and hopeless.

VICTORY BY SONIA WEITZ:

I DANCED WITH YOU THAT ONE TIME ONLY.

HOW SAD YOU WERE, HOW TIRED, LONELY…

YOU KNEW THAT THEY WOULD “TAKE” YOU SOON…

SO WHEN YOUR BUNK-MATE PLAYED A TUNE

YOU WHISPERED: “LITTLE ONE, LET US DANCE,

WE MAY NOT HAVE ANOTHER CHANCE.”

TO GRASP THIS MOMENT… SENSE THE MOOD;

YOUR ARMS AROUND ME FELT SO GOOD…

THE UGLY BARRACKS DISAPPEARED –

THERE WAS NO HUNGER… AND NO FEAR.

O WHAT A SIGHT, JUST YOU AND I,

MY LOVELY FATHER (ONCE BIG AND STRONG)

AND ME, A CHILD…. CONDEMNED TO DIE.

I THOUGHT: HOW LONG

BEFORE THE SONG

MUST END

THERE ARE NO TOOLS

TO MEASURE LOVE

AND ONLY FOOLS

WOULD FAIL

TO SCALE

YOUR VICTORY……..

Germany 1918-1933 Germany 1918-1933

Hitler and the Nazi's took advantage of several issues and events in Germany. He opportunistically exploited situations that were of great importance to the people of Germany. Germany still owed reparations to other nations due to WW1'S Treaty of Versailles, upsetting many German citizens. They were upset by the treaty , as it caused loss of land, jobs and money. Unemployment benefits were scarce and not enough to live on. The loss of money caused major economic crises in Germany. The Weimar Republic was in power when hyperinflation hit Germany. People thought that the Weimar Republic was to blame for hyperinflation, as they believed in maintaining and following through with the Treaty of Versailles. The Nazi's saw this as an opportunity for them, as people did not have faith that the Weimar Republic was helping Germany in a positive way. People thought that maybe a change in Government may help Germany. The Nazi's promises and propaganda led German citizens to believe that if the Nazi's were voted into power that things would change and Germany would be a better place. Hitler focused on the majority of German citizens, which were working class and unemployed. Farmers, miners, blacksmiths and factory workers were all promised better living conditions, including food and money, for them and their families. Unemployment benefits were touted to include more money and food. The combination of promises and propaganda led to an increase in Nazi party votes, putting them in close popularity to the Communist party in the year 1932 with 37% of the vote. As the Nazi's still had not won the majority, they desperately tried to find anyway possible to put the communists in a bad light. The Nazis published smear campaigns and provoked the Communists in every way possible. They blamed the Communists for bad events or choices. A prime example was the Reichstag Fire. The Nazi's led people to believe that the Communists were to blame and it was their wrong doing.

All the Nazi's work and propaganda paid off. Hitler was appointed Chancellor in 1933 and from there Hitler's popularity increased, therefore gaining Nazi votes. Following Paul von Hindenburg's death, Hitler became his successor as the of Head of State and the Head of Government. With his new position of power Hitler started changing Germany into his ideal vision which imposed anti-semitism on Germany. This delusion of righteousness led to the start of World War Two.

The Nuremberg Race Laws

Here are some answers to several questions regarding The Nuremberg Race Laws:

1. Who could now be defined a Jew.

For a person to be defined a Jew, they did not have to practice the religion themselves. If a person had had three or four Jewish grandparents or if the rest of their closer family were Jewish. People who had previously practiced Judaism and had not for a long time were also considered a Jew, even people who had had family members who had converted from Judaism to Christianity were also considered Jewish.

2. What was meant by "Aryanizing" Jewish Businesses?

German Businesses were avoided and given unfair treatment by the Nazis. Workers and Managers were left without jobs, and in most cases the buisness was taken over by the Nazis and sold to other non- Jewish Germans for a fixed, Nazi price.

3. How were Jews who were professionals (lawyers, doctors etc.) restricted?

All Jewish Doctors were not allowed to assist, medicate and practice on non-Jewish citizens. Jewish Lawyers were not allowed to operate law practices or practice law.

4. What did Jewish identity cards need to include now?

All Jewish Identity cards had to have a large red J stamped on them. Also all Jewish people were to have a new middle name. For males it was Israel and for females it was Sara. These changes were to help Nazi identify Jews more easily.

5. What was the "Law for the Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People" (sum up in your own words)?

The "Law for the Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People" required all marriages to be approved and certified as legal. A certificate of "Fitness to Marry" was handed to the couples when their marriage was approved. No person with contagious illnesses or "Hereditary Diseases" as they were worried that it would affect their offspring or affect each other and ruin the non-Jewish German Citizens. They wanted all non-Jewish Germans to be healthy and proper.

Civil Rights During The Holocaust

Civil rights are rights that help people maintain privacy, give freedom of speech and allow people to have and express an opinion. Civil rights are put in place to protect people from discrimination and pressure. Civil rights are meant to help give a person privacy/protection from others and the government. Below, is what I see as some of the major civil rights of humans that were broken during the Holocaust. These articles come from the “United Declaration of Human Rights”.

· Article 1

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

· Article 2

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

· Article 3

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

· Article 4

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

· Article 5

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

· Article 18

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

· Article 9

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

I think that some people may of seen Hitler’s push to remove civil rights in a positive way. They were lead to believe that the non-Germans were stopping them from rising as a country. The rights of Germans were improved and the others were punished and had all their rights taken from them. It didn’t affect the majority of the Germans, so it was good in their point of view. Some people may have seen it as necessary to remove certain civil rights in order to remove Germany’s current government and change the way the country was run. Some may of seen it as a positive change in the country.