Trial
Orenthal James “O.J.” Simpson was born on July 9, 1947 in San Francisco, California and is a former NFL player, actor, and broadcaster. He is well known for his defence in the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman. This trial is one of most popular trials in American History and is also one of the most controversial because of the verdict, or outcome. On the night of June 12, 1994, Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman were stabbed outside of Nicole’s condo. The main suspect at the time was O.J. Simpson. Instead of surrendering to the police, the leads them on a chase throughout California. The whole event was streamed live to 95 million viewers, interrupting the 1994 NBA Finals. After being put under arrest and placed in police custody, he entered a plea of not guilty and said, “Absolutely, 100 per cent not guilty”
(Lopez 1). The trial began on January 24, 1995 and Simpson got a group of attorneys known as the “Dream Team” which included F. Lee Bailey, Robert Blasier, Shawn Chapman Holley, Robert Shapiro and Alan Dershowitz. The main reason that Simpson’s defence team was found not guilty was because of mishandled evidence and racism. Mark Fuhrman, a detective for the LAPD, had found a bloody glove at Simpson’s residence. Simpson tried it on in the courtroom and it was seen to be small fitting onto O.J.’s hand. Johnnie Cochran, the lead defence attorney, fired off a crucial quote, “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit” (Lopez 2).
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This was seen as a crucial turning point in the case, as the defence started to claim that false evidence was placed to try and frame Simpson, influenced by racism in LAPD. This jury and trial had lasted for 9 months before a decision was made, the longest trial a trial had to date in California history. On October 3 1995, Orenthal James Simpson was found “Not Guilty in violation of Penal Code Section 187(a), a felony upon Nicole Brown Simpson, a human being. Not Guilty in violation of Penal Code Section 187(a), a felony upon Ronald Lyle Goldman, a human being.” This was one of the highest viewed television event in history, with the number watching being around 150 million.
Verdict
The verdict of “People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson” was “Not Guilty in violation of Penal Code Section 187(a), a felony upon Nicole Brown Simpson, a human being. Not Guilty in violation of Penal Code Section 187(a), a felony upon Ronald Lyle Goldman, a human being.” This basically means that O.J. Simpson was found not guilty in the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman. I think that the verdict was wrong and unjust. There was more than enough evidence on O.J. Simpson including the police chase after the murder, The physical abuse that Simpson had put on Nicole Brown Simpson, and the evidence that had been found at O.J.’s residence.
I don’t think that racism was at play in this case because when they had found the evidence at his house, it was proven to have his DNA on it (this includes the bloody leather glove). At a later date, O.J. publish a book titled “If I Did It” which I think is a blatant give away. An excerpt from that book reads: “If I had actually done it… I would have brought my good gloves that day. I would have thought it was shame they shrunk when I left them out on the patio, but I would have brought them just the same. They were my lucky gloves, and I would have needed them cause I was going to stab my slut of a wife… hypothetically.” (Simpson 1). From that little excerpt, I believe it is very clear he murdered his wife.
Social Issues
The trial had shown a lot of social issues in it. For example, Simpson’s defence “Dream Team” had called the LAPD racist, claiming that they had set up false evidence to frame O.J. This case also brought up a divide between Black and White people. Many blacks thought O.J. was innocent, while most white people thought he was guilty. This verdict cause a lot of controversy between African Americans and White Americans. In 1995, Only 22% of Black Americans thought that O.J. was guilty while 76% of White Americans thought he was guilty. In recent times, however, 53% of Black Americans think O.J. was guilty, while 83% of White Americans think he was guilty. Many people in Society think that he was guilty, but cannot do anything about it now.
Charles C. Mann “1493”
Introduction
Mann attempts to explain the series of events that produces a tomatoes in his garden but the fruit is not native to his country (America). His book examines the various factors that brought non-native species around the world. Mann’s thesis is essential to understanding his book. He believes that these changes were influential in altering the world’s ecological shape, and was pivotal in the raise of European dominance. He states that, “Most Africans live in Africa, most Asians in Asia, and most Native Americans in the Americas. People of European descent, though, are thick on the ground in distant realms such as Australia, the Americas, and southern Africa. They are successful transplants. But why?” (Mann, 5). His book attempts to answer this question.
Summary
Charles Mann’s “1493” is a nonfiction, history book that addresses how the Europeans used the Columbian Exchange to transform the world. “They turned the Americas, Asia, and to a lesser extent, Africa into ecological versions of Europe” (Mann, 6). Mann traveled to China, the Philippines and South Africa to provide first-person anecdotes. The first place he visited was Ifugao, which is a poor region of the Philippines to conduct his research for this book. “Looking around Ifugao, I was stuck by the number of abandoned, crumbling terraces. People were walking away from their farms” (Mann, 370). While in Ifugao, he took pictures of archaeological evidence such as old trails, roads and canals to put into his book. He also included in his book anthropological evidence such as native pictures of art work and pottery.
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On another trip he visited the town of Bulalacao, on the Philippine island of Mindoro. Mann writes, “Later that day, back in Bulalacao, I came upon some women and children tending a family garden…Towering above their heads were tall stalks of corn, now the second most important crop in the Philippines. I spent a few minutes watching the family” (Mann, 376).
Throughout his book there are various examples of ethnographic evidence where he studied the behaviors, customs and cultures of the Bulalacao people, the citizens of Yuegang and the traditions of the Manila people. Mann uses a lot of geographic evidence throughout the book, such as maps, cultural landscapes and jungle analysis which makes it easier for his readers to understand.
Mann argues that in order to understand contemporary globalization one must first address how the Columbian Exchange-which was the transfer of animals, plants, viruses and people across continents-is responsible for globalization.
His book is divided into five parts with two chapters in each part. “Part One begins with Columbus and shows his voyage, and other voyages that established trade between Europe and Asia, gave birth to a new era in the history of life”(Mann, 8). Part Two looks at the exchanges that developed across the Atlantic. “The focus is on the first global craze for a new product and on the arrival of a new and deadly disease that helped shape African slavery in the Americas” (Mann, 9). Part Three moves the focus to the Pacific, “where the era of globalization began with massive shipments of silver from South America to China” (Mann, 9). Part Four shows the role of the Columbian Exchange in two revolutions: the Agricultural Revolution and the Industrial Revolution. “Two plant species, each transplanted to a new parts of the world, fueled these revolutions and helped the West emerge as a controlling power in the world” (Mann, 9). Part Five examines the most significant exchange of all: the slave trade. “This discussion focuses on how slavery worked and its later effects, rather than on the moral argument against it” (Mann, 10).
Context
Mann’s 1493 for young people: from Columbus’s Voyage to Globalization was adapted by Rebecca Stefoff was published in 2014 by Seven Stories Press. The original book was written and published in 2011 by Alfred A. Knof, Inc.
Charles C. Mann born 1955, is a graduate of Amherst College where he studied journalism. He is a journalist and the author of 1493, a New York Times bestseller, and 1491, which won the U.S. National Academy of Sciences’ Keek Award for the best book of the year. A correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, Science, and Wired, Mann has covered the intersection of Science, technology and commerce for many newspapers and magazines here and aboard, including National Geographic, The New York Times, Vanity Fair, and The Washington Post. Mann is the co-author of five other books in addition to 1491 and 1493.
I believe that Mann’s 1493 was mostly from a narrative perspective with a twist of revisionist ideas. For instance, Mann discussed the 19th century ecological disaster that consumed China. Traditionally, it was the belief that the floods that killed millions of Chinese people were the result of geography. According to Mann, the introduction of the “New crops (from the Columbian Exchange) led to more food and to rising population growth, and at the same time to more potential cash crops, increasing the pressure on existing and holdings, and leading to vast land clearances. That made the floods far worse when they came, undermining the political structure and compounding China’s problems” ( ).
Critique
The historical events in Mann’s book is organized thematically rather than chronologically. Throughout the text the author uses several primary sources to help his readers understand the book. He used Histoire Naturelle des Indes which is an illustrated manuscript, various maps including the map of the islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, archives, photographs and newspapers as resources for his book.
I believe that Mann has provided thorough and valid arguments for his thesis. Ever since Columbus explorations, animals, plants, people, viruses and ideas have been “exchange more freely among continents” ( ).
Historiography
Mann argues that it wasn’t Christopher Columbus voyage that was significant, it was all the activities that followed that truly created a New World. “It was a tremendous ecological convulsion-the greatest event in the history of life since the death of the dinosaurs,” says Mann. “And this underlies a huge amount of history learned in schools: the Industrial Revolution, the Agricultural Revolution, the rise of the West-all of these are tied up in what’s best called the ‘Columbia exchange’( ).
Mann was inspired by the writings of Alfred Crosby and I believe other historians will be inspired by this book. This book can be used by other historians and in other fields. He begins this book with a scientific interpretation of the past. The author’s audience was the general public. The use of text features such as: illustrations, maps, timelines, captions, and subheading made it easier for the reader to understand the text.
Conclusion
I like how the author introduce the subject by asking how the tomatoes got to America. He takes his readers on a journey through history to answer the question. It is fascinating how he was able to link many events in history back to the Columbian Exchange. I’ve been taught that Europeans colonized the Americas, but Mann challenges that notion. According to Mann, “from 1500 to 1840, about 3.4 million Europeans immigrated to the Americas. Over the same period, about 11.7 million captive Africans were sent to the Americas. Which resulted in, much of the United States and most of Latin America was far more black than white. Mann states the racial balance changed as white immigration ramped up and millions of blacks died too young.
I would definitely recommend “1493.” It is a great book for an 11th or 12th grade history class. Students can learn about the Columbian Exchange and the unforeseen consequences it brought about.
