Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Who Owns This Body? Enslaved Women's Claim On Themselves, Loucynda Elayne Sandeen

Dissertations and Theses

During the antebellum period of U.S. slavery (1830-1861), many people claimed ownership of the enslaved woman's body, both legally and figuratively. The assumption that they were merely property, however, belies the unstable, shifting truths about bodily ownership. This thesis inquires into the gendered specifics and ambiguities of the law, the body, and women under slavery. By examining the particular bodily regulation and exploitation of enslaved women, especially around their reproductive labor, I suggest that new operations of oppression and also of resistance come into focus.

The legal structure recognized enslaved women in the interest of owners, and this limitation was …

No Place For Middlemen: Civic Culture, Downtown Environment, And The Carroll Public Market During The Modernization Of Portland, Oregon, James Richard Louderman

Dissertations and Theses

Following the Civil War, the American government greatly expanded the opportunities available for private businessmen and investors in an effort to rapidly colonize the West. This expansion of private commerce led to the second industrial revolution in which railroads and the corporation became the symbols and tools of a rapidly modernizing nation. It was also during this period that the responsibility of food distribution was released from municipal accountability and institutions like public markets began to fade from the American urbanscape. While the proliferation of private grocers greatly aided many metropolises' rapid growth, they did little to secure a sustainable …

Senator Dodd Versus The National Rifle Association: Passing The Gun Control Act Of 1968, Bennett D. Sorensen

Young Historians Conference

After the assassination of President Kennedy, Senator Dodd sought to pass gun control legislation. The National Rifle Association took the forefront on the debate against Dodd and became more politically active as an organization. After long debate, news coverage, and blame on both sides, the assassinations of two political figures MLK and Robert Kennedy spurred Dodd's Bill into passing, but only after amendments lessening its original effect The Gun Control Act of 1968 formed the basis of the modern, polarizing gun control debate and reflects the process of passing gun control legislation today.

John Law’S Flawed But Well Intended Système, Katy Baker

Young Historians Conference

Of the world's many economic meltdowns spurred by desperation, overconfident leaders with too much power, and a lack of experience or transparency, the Mississippi Bubble was one of the first that wiped out an entire economy. This paper explores how the decisions of John Law, a Scottish financier, economist, and compulsive gambler, led to the so-called Mississippi Bubble. A phenomenon which contributed to the drastic rise and fall of individuals' finances, hyperinflation, the devaluation of France's currency during the regency of Philippe d'Orleans.

How Did Wwii Pull The United States Out Of Economic Stagnation?, Chris Constans

Young Historians Conference

This investigation will evaluate how U.S. involvement in WWII stimulated the economy allowing America to climb out of economic stagnation and decline. To assess the extent to which the war stimulated the U.S. economy, this investigation will focus on parts of the economy specifically effected by the war, and the U.S. economy as a whole from 1939‐1945. To understand the drastic change in economic growth, Depression era statistic will be referenced for comparison. The investigation will cover macroeconomic topics specifically government spending and the multiplier effect and their effects on GDP. This investigation does not extend to Roosevelt’s New Deal …

The Armenian Problem: What Was The United States’ Response To The Armenian Genocide?, Alexandra Fleming

Young Historians Conference

The Armenian Genocide was an appalling tragedy that has proven to have longstanding effects upon many individuals. Would the effects have been so widespread if the Armenian people received more help? This paper will explore the United States' involvement in the Armenian Genocide as shown through primary sources by individuals in the U.S. and Armenia.

Labor Issues During The Construction Of The Panama Canal, Paul C. Diebold

Young Historians Conference

The Panama Canal represented America’s first great achievement on the international stage. But in its triumph, the United States showed itself willing to pursue success on the backs of the laborers—most of them black—without whom the canal could not have become a reality. This paper focuses on these men—men who braved dangerous conditions and the institutionalized segregation of the Canal Zone despite America’s reluctance to confront the issue of racism over a group of non-citizen, non-white laborers hundreds of miles removed from any American city or shore.

Hardcore Punk For A Hardcore President: The Action And Response To Ronald Reagan, Julian Heninger

Young Historians Conference

President Ronald Reagan has been both highly revered and despised by different groups of Americans. In order to find an accurate view of what life was really like under the Reagan presidency, this study views Reagan through the exciting and gritty lens of the Punk movement, specifically in Southern California. Through research of lyrics, a personal interview, and writers of the Punk era, the voice and feelings, personality and purpose of a great amount of people reveal the true opposition to the effects the Reagan Administration had on the Nation.

Black And Blue: Police-Community Relations In Portland's Albina District, 1964-1985, Leanne Claire Serbulo, Karen J. Gibson

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

As in many cities across America, the relationship between African Americans in Portland, Oregon, and the city police force was fraught with tension through the late twentieth century. Scholars Leanne Serbulo and Karen Gibson argue that Portland's African Americans, who collectively made up less than ten percent of Portland residents and were segregated into neighborhoods including the Albina district, experienced police as figures of colonial oppression. The authors chronicle how, over two decades bordered by African Americans' deaths at the hands of police, neighborhood activists attempted to reform the police department and met resistance. The authors conclude that transformation of …

Portland, Oregon's Long Hot Summers: Racial Unrest And Public Response, 1967-1969, Joshua Joe Bryan

Dissertations and Theses

The struggles for racial equality throughout northern cities during the late-1960s, while not nearly as prevalent within historical scholarship as those pertaining to the Deep South, have left an indelible mark on both the individuals and communities involved. Historians have until recently thought of the civil rights movement in the north as a violent betrayal of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s vision of an inclusive and integrated society, as well as coinciding with the rise, and subsequent decline, of Black Power. But despite such suppositions, the experiences of northern cities immersed in the civil rights struggle were far more varied …

Past Tense, 2013, Retired Association Of Portland State

Past Tense columns of the RAPS Sheet

January, 2013 "A Tribute from 1955"

February, 2013 "Remembering our PSU Women's Association"

March, 2013 "RAPS, the Campus Traveler"

April, 2013 "Early Leadership at Portland State College"

May, 2013 "The Beginning: Geology at Portland State"

June, 2013 "Launching Study Abroad at Portland State"

September, 2013 "We Celebrate a Half Century of RAPS at PSU!"

October, 2013 "Celebrating the History of RAPS"

November, 2013 "PSU Football Players Make the Pros"

December, 2013 "PSU's Chamber Choir Has Been Singing Since 1975"