History Commons^™

Todo Sobre América Latina, Kayla Madeline Schwartz

World Languages and Cultures

This project attempts to inform a Spanish-speaking audience about the humanities of Latin America. The format is a blog which solicits more engagement with the embedded research and written text. Colorful photos and informative videos attract the attention of a general public that may otherwise not be interested in learning extensively about history and culture. Such focus is important because Latin American past has great bearing on the lives of much of the Latinx community today—in many regions.

Specifically, this blog contains articles about history, literature, movies and shows, dance, and travelling. The audience can learn about a broad timeline …

Suppression Of National Identities: Ukrainian And Baltic Cultures In The Soviet Union, Jonathan H. Mastman

Master's Theses

This thesis defines the formation and consummation of Soviet Bolshevism as another imperialist force rather than its stated objective of freeing the people of the United Soviet Socialist Republics from the clutches of an inequitable elite. Through the policies and objectives of the Soviet government the workers and citizens of Ukraine and the Baltic republics were not liberated or given autonomy over their lives and labor, as Marxist-Leninism would have them believe. I review the Russification efforts found first in the Tsarist Russian Empire and then continued by Soviets in the nature of pursuing or denying cultural, political, and economic …

The Women Of Justice: Narratives Of Women Attorneys In California During The 1960s And 1990s, Sarah Zion

Master's Theses

This thesis interviews two women attorneys who have not previously shared their stories to relate their experience of going to law school and entering the field after graduation. The study of women lawyers and their stories is not a new topic, however, there is a focus in the scholarship to only explore the tales of the women who reached the big firsts, such as first female lawyer or first female judge. By providing interviews of women who have not reached these big accomplishments, the field gains a more rounded understanding of the history of female lawyers. The two women interviewed …

Reconstructing Identity: Carlton Burgan, Patient Zero In The Development Of Plastic Surgery, Civil War Through World War I, Teresa M. George

Master's Theses

Plastic surgery has played an integral role in helping people achieve societal expectations of appropriate physical appearance since its inception. Through the story of Carlton Burgan, a Union soldier during the American Civil War, who suffered severe facial trauma by mercury poisoning, this thesis hopes to reconstruct the conversation around plastic surgery’s origins as it is influenced by societal standards of the day. Specifically, this thesis argues that the seminal moments leading to plastic surgery being seen as a worthwhile medical specialty was during the Civil War, not World War I as so many scholars have put forth. Violent acts …

The Role Of Native Hawaiian Spiritual Practices In Social Systems And Environmental Stewardship, Christina A. Hornbaker

Social Sciences

The purpose of this paper is to examine how Native Hawaiian spiritual practices played a role in social systems and stewardship practices. Lightfoot and colleagues (2013) suggest that more archaeological research is needed on traditional resources and environmental management practices. The authors point out that “landscape management practices… are subtle and not prone to leaving smoking guns in the archaeological record” (Lightfoot et al. 2013), which makes such sites difficult to document without ethnographic accounts. Due to this subtlety, I will mainly be pulling information from interviews or oral histories from Hawaiian descendants, early explorers and missionary accounts, ethnographers, and …

Shiso: Asian Culture In San Luis Obispo, Natalie Elise Tsoi Rockhold, Mia Lee Candy

Graphic Communication

There is a serious lack of representation on the subject of Asian culture and history in SLO. This magazine aimed to put a spotlight on this topic, with the unique lens of both authors also being mixed-race and how that factored into us finding a cultural community. Through our use of applied design we demonstrated and developed our technical skills in Adobe CC and tactile skills in printing and binding. We created a printed magazine which incorporated cultural elements into its design. We aimed to reflect a strong message in a captivating visual medium, and used personal skills in web …

Nopal En La Frente: Racial Passing And The Hidden Indigeneity Of The Los Altos Region Of Jalisco, 1720-1950, Brandon Manuel Márquez

History

When people look at Los Altos de Jalisco, they typically think of this area as representing a pocket of European ancestry in a mestizaje state. Yet this ignores one huge aspect of this region: its indigenous history. Throughout the last three hundred years, the Los Altos region of Jalisco has allowed for the racial passing of many different families. This is all the more significant because many of its citizens have what many believe to be European features- mainly being light hair, light skin, and colored eyes. Because of these perceived European features, many of the Alteños believe that they …

The Free Arena Of Literature: Science Fiction Films’ Critiques Of Capitalism In The United States, John (Jack) Michael Bilello

History

Capitalism is an inherently flawed system. The ideologies of Karl Marx have remained relevant for their critiques of the system, yet socially, his ideas are not accepted in the capitalist United States. Capitalism, as the dominant economic system of western civilization, has become synonymous with patriotism in the U.S. This has proved incredibly harmful to criticisms of capitalism, as they are met with questions of allegiance and patriotism rather than a careful reconsideration of ideals. Through science fiction films, these ideas that are usually difficult to express become much more palatable to a capitalist society. But to fully appreciate the …

Equity In Accessibility, A Case Study Of City Of Sacramento, Meredith C. Milam

City and Regional Planning

This paper is a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) spatial analysis of the transportation accessibility and equity in Sacramento, California. A literature review examines discriminatory regulatory policies in the 1900s that wrote racial segregation into law. The effects of these policies have lasting effects on spatial dispersal of people and create barriers to accessibility and therefore result in inequitable transportation systems. The accessibility and equity analysis in Sacramento explores demographic data, job concentration and available modes of transportation, and commuter data. The results of the analysis suggest that there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach when it comes to measuring accessibility and equity. …

Los Zetas, Neoliberalism, And Popular Opposition: A Study In Linkages, Gina R. Lyle

Master's Theses

Los Zetas are considered by security analysts to be a transformative force within transnational criminal organizations (TCO), exporting their unique model throughout Mexico. Los Zetas’ idiosyncratic interventions include their diversification of criminal operations, professionalization of TCO security, sophisticated use of media and technology, extreme forms of violent coercion, and decentralized command structure. This project aims to complicate the narrative that Los Zetas emerged because of top leaders’ sadistic tendencies or due to an inherently violent culture in Mexico by reframing the group’s evolution within historical processes. Moving beyond Los Zetas, this project examines how persons affected by Los Zetas’ indiscriminate …

Upending The "Racial Death-Wish": Black Gay Liberation And The Culture Of Black Homophobia, Kailyn Pope

Master's Theses

This thesis analyzes the origin and impact of Black homophobia found in activist spaces of mid- to late-twentieth-century American society. Black gay Americans were subjected to intersecting forms of systemic and cultural oppression that were exceedingly hard to escape due to both the homophobia in Black spaces and the racism in gay spaces. Black gay activists and artists thus had to create their own avenues of expression where they and others could fully embrace what it meant to be Black and gay. This work utilizes a Black feminist framework to explore the roots of Black homophobia and how this type …

The Ill-Treatment Of Their Countrywoman: Liberated African Women, Violence, And Power In Tortola, 1807–1834, Arianna Browne

Master's Theses

In 1807, Parliament passed an Act to abolish the slave trade, leading to the Royal Navy’s campaign of policing international waters and seizing ships suspected of illegal trading. As the Royal Navy captured slave ships as prizes of war and condemned enslaved Africans to Vice-Admiralty courts, formerly enslaved Africans became “captured negroes” or “liberated Africans,” making the subjects in the British colonies. This work, which takes a microhistorical approach to investigate the everyday experiences of liberated Africans in Tortola during the early nineteenth century, focuses on the violent conditions of liberated African women, demonstrating that abolition consisted of violent contradictions …

From Sidious To Nixon: The Parallels Between ​Star Wars​ And Vietnam, Brennan Simpson

History

In the case of a film franchise that features twelve movies, five television series, and various other forms of media by the time this paper was written, many people may be surprised to hear that Star Wars was actually inspired by one of the most questionable moments in American history. However, the time period in which Star Wars creator George Lucas first wrote what became this world’s ‘‘first step into a larger world’’ actually greatly reflected what ended up on the big screen. Even though the Star Wars movies take place ‘‘a long time ago in a galaxy far, far …

Trudging The Road Of Happy Destiny: The Gift Economy In Early Alcoholics Anonymous History And The Creation Of The Big Book, Timothy J. Parker

History

In 1939, Bill Wilson and his peers published Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How Many Thousands of Men and Women Have Recovered from Alcoholism, and in doing so, codified a spiritual gift economy through which millions of people have recovered from alcoholism and other addictions. This project examines the pragmatic formulation of this economy and argues its origins were driven as much by self-interest as altruism. It further explores the syncretic leadership of Bill Wilson and his mark on "The Big Book."

A Battle Over 20th Century Textbooks: How The Civil War Is Still Fought In American Classrooms, Katie Court

History

This paper analyzed the emergence of Lost Cause history textbooks in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Following the Civil War, Confederate societies such as the United Daughters of the Confederacy and United Confederate Veterans had a vested interest in positively portraying the South. From 1890-1930, Confederate societies attempted to expel textbooks that spoke unfavorably of the Confederacy, and instead encouraged states all around the country to follow stringent rules of how to discuss historical events. This research was led by material written by these societies and the textbooks they endorsed or expelled, in order to analyze the origins …

"Obstinate, Impertinent, Ill-Conditioned": Child Labor, Exploitation And Xenophobia In The British Home Children Movement, Hannah Lauren Palma

History

An examination of the British Home Children program as a movement rooted in child labor, misguided philanthropy, and the exploitation of poor child immigrants.

Phrenology, Physical Anthropology And Ethnology: Nineteenth-Century Race Science And The Foundations Of Eurocentrism, Mckenzie Jayne Leeds

History

This paper explores phrenology, physical anthropology, and ethnology--each a nineteenth-century scientific discipline that significantly influenced racial beliefs. These sciences were integral in forming and perpetuating racial hierarchies and the belief of perceived European superiority. The main goal of this project was to deconstruct the European superiority narrative, and to argue that these disciplines created a network of continued racism.

Silence Over Their Tombs: A Microhistory Of American Perceptions Of Alcoholism In The Late Eighteenth And Early Nineteenth Centuries Using The Adams Family Papers, Lucy Rebecca Wickstrom

History

The perception of alcohol addiction in the United States of America has changed numerous times throughout the nation’s history, with people accepting it as a mere part of life in the colonial era before preachers and thinkers began to denounce it as a vice and a moral failure. The influential writings of respected patriot Dr. Benjamin Rush, however, initiated a fundamental shift in the way that Americans understood alcoholism, as he was the first to make the argument that it was a disease beyond the control of its sufferers. This paper uses the example of the famous Adams family to …

The Midnight Ride Of Sybil Ludington: A Forgotten Hero In The Shadow Of Paul Revere, Jessica Kay Rebollo

History

The American historical narrative has always been dominated by men; the achievements of women are often left to the past. One such woman who has been forgotten is Sybil Ludington, who in 1777 at the age of sixteen, rode forty miles to alert a unit of the Continental Army of advancing British troops. In this paper, I will compare Sybil Ludington to history’s most renowned nightrider, Paul Revere. I will study the way in which Sybil Ludington and Paul Revere are memorialized in American history, and expose the reason for the lack of Sybil Ludington’s popularity in the American historical …

The Holocaust And Human Experimentation: The Nazi Approach To Medicine, Samantha Miller

History

The beginning months of 1945 marked the commencement of the swift downfall of the Nazi regime and the end of the tyrannical, oppressive ruling power it held over most of Europe for close to a decade. As Allied Forces invaded Nazi Germany and the remaining Nazi-occupied territories, they undoubtedly expected to encounter the incredible devastation that World War II had left upon most of the Western European continent, from toppled cities, to separated families, to the rising death toll. However, Allied soldiers would soon have to come face to face with another side-effect of the war, something unforeseen and unimaginable, …

The Irish Republican Army: An Examination Of Imperialism, Terror, And Just War Theory, Avery R. Barboza

Master's Theses

Analysis of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and their actions in the 1970s and 1980s offer insight into their use of just war theory in their conflict with the British government and ultra-loyalist Protestant forces in Northern Ireland. The historiography of Irish history is defined by its phases of nationalism, revisionism, and anti-revisionism that cloud the historical narrative of imperialism and insurgency in the North. Applying just war theory to this history offers a more nuanced understanding of the conflict of the Troubles and the I.R.A.’s usage of this framework in their ideology that guided their terrorism in the latter …

Abalone Fishermen, Changing Management Practices, And The Creation Of A False Dichotomy, Tyler G. Hoyt

Master's Theses

This thesis traces the history of the abalone fisheries on the California Coast and how those fisheries have been understood and shaped by humans over time. An overarching interest that guides this effort is how indigenous populations used abalone and otters (as well as other marine resources) purposefully for millennia prior to European arrival. However, this work is not entirely focused on prehistory. Instead, it shows how a lack of understanding of this prehistory shaped the conservation efforts of the California Department of Fish and Game and its ultimate decision to close the commercial fishery in 1997. In this sense, …

The Yanks Are Striking: Kern County, The 1921 Oil Strike And The Discourse On Americanism, Peter F. Hussey

Master's Theses

In the fall of 1921 oil workers of the San Joaquin Valley faced a post-war economic slump, wage cuts across the board and an increasingly hostile attitude of oil operators towards consultation with the federal government on labor relations. They voted to strike, and the next day eight thousand workers walked off the fields. Strikers crafted an image of “patriotic unionism,” underpinned by a faith in the federal government and the ideology of the American Legion. The strike did not end in gruesome class warfare like had been seen months earlier in the coal mines of West Virginia, but rather …

The Sage Without A Country: The Political And Literary Life Of Dr. Shih-Shun Liu (劉 師 舜) (1900-1996), Caleb Yung-Jen Liu

History

Shih-Shun Liu was my great-grandfather as well as a diplomat for the Republic of China from the late 1920s until 1958. While his life is relatively left unknown to many historians, his contributions to the Kuomintang are significant and help us to understand the inside workings of the ROC and its diplomacy during this time period. Liu was a beneficiary of the Boxer Indemnity scholarship provided by the United States and made use of his love for education and poetry to pursue a literary career that defined the second portion of his life. Liu’s life as a scholar and diplomat …

Planning And Power: Architectural Reflections Of Student Minorities At Cal Poly, Caroline Ambrose

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

This paper will dis sect the power dynamics of the built environment at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) as it relates to spatial representation for minorities on campus. By observing campus growth throughout the university’s history through the lenses of campus minorities, including women, black students, queer students, and disabled students, a pattern of dismissal and reluctanct compliance comes to light. While the administration’s rhetoric often reflects goals of inclusivity and diversity, the architectural history of Cal Poly reflects a lack of investment and reaction to the concerns of student minorities.

Similarities Between The Second Generation Of Female Psychologists And Female Students In Cal Poly’S Child Development Program, Jenny Delk

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

This essay aims to uncover the similarities between female students in Cal Poly’s Psychology and Child Development Department and the second generation of female psychologists in American society. The department’s history will be examined in order to establish its importance at Cal Poly, a traditionally vocational institution. Additionally, this essay will consider how female students in the department argued its importance and validity through on campus advocacy and their senior projects. The essay will close with a section detailing faculty perspectives on the validity of psychology and child development as a true science amongst other disciplines at Cal Poly. The …

Cal Poly Students Struggle For Gay Rights, Dio Capilla

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

This paper follows the gay rights movement at Cal Poly and San Luis Obispo through the 1970s. Cal Poly’s Gay Students Union (GSU) was first proposed in 1972, but had to undergo a series of legal battles before Cal Poly administration finally granted the organization official school recognition four years later. University President Robert E. Kennedy only signed the Union’s bylaws under the direct advisory of the State Attorney General. Kennedy claimed his opposition to the club was only for legal reasons, but this claim did not hold up against previous statements made by the administration. Further discrimination was faced …

History 303 Research And Writing In History: Cal Poly History Presented To Professor Andrew Morris California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo A Course Taken In Partial Fulfillment Of My Bachelor Of Arts Degree In History By Victoria Duehring March 13, 2020 The Discovery Of Margaret Chase And Why It Takes A Detective To Learn About Women, Victoria Duehring

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

Scholarly work on the experience/erasure of Miss Margaret Chase: first and only female president of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. With the main focus being on difficulties throughout her life, and impact of the male gaze on her legacy: which resulted in an extreme lack of direct primary sources. Through analysis of gender issues during Chase’s presidency and the effect of her erasure on campus it is clear that there is a disadvantage to being a woman in a position of power on Cal Poly’s campus. This disadvantage is chronicled throughout Chase’s life, but also to this day as there …

Cal Poly During World War Ii: Financial Decisions And Campus Life 1943-1945, Clara Juarez

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

World War II would bring many hardships to the country and the lives of citizens within the United States. Specifically, those of higher education would be greatly impacted. Cal Poly originally had been fortunate enough to not feel these hardships when war initially started. However, due to a huge financial loss; Cal Polys main source of income, the college would be amongst others struggling to maintain normal school operations. Julian McPhee; President of Cal Poly during WWII, would begin to scramble for financial answers; meanwhile, the school’s admissions continued to decline. The explorations of McPhees reactions to the financial distress …

Court’S In Session: The Development Of Pre-Law Programs At Cal Poly, Megan Hayes

Cal Poly's History: Student Research Reports

The American Bar Association, the association which accredits lawyers, allowing them to practice law, does not recommend a specific path or major in preparation for law school. It does, however, recommend taking demanding courses that will foster skills like problem-solving, critical reading, research, etc. So how does one prepare for law school, especially like a Polytechnic School at Cal Poly? When Cal Poly was founded in 1903, it did not even have a pre-law program, let alone any programs in the liberal arts/social sciences area. It was not until the later development of the Political Science Department that pre-law programs …