Speech

Speech Study Guide

Multiple Choice Practice Exam 1. 41. A 42. C 43. A 44. B 45. C 46. B 47. C 48. A 49. B 50. D Speaking Practice Exam Good afternoon, I’m Derrick Waterford, a Sociology major at the University of Kentucky. My primary focus and interest is in race relations, and the current struggles concerning confederate monuments is a passion of mine. Nightly news reports are filled with stories about racial tension. From the black lives matter movement to protests in the streets over racially motivated acts of aggression, the divide in the United States over continuing racial conflict seems to be growing. Fueling this growing divide is the movement to remove confederate monuments from public places. While many agree that the antiquated monuments are a painful reminder for African American communities, there are still some who argue that those monuments honor beloved historical figures from an era of southern greatness. Despite the ongoing debate, it is essential that monuments honoring white supremacy be removed from public locations as they celebrate a horrific time in history and promote racial tension. The Civil War and Jim Crow law eras were periods of history that should not be celebrated. During the Civil War the South fought to maintain slavery. Upon the abolishment of slavery, states instead enacted Jim Crow laws, which legally enforced segregation. It was during this time that lynching was an acceptable and commonplace occurrence as African Americans were routinely hanged, burned alive, or violently dismembered. People sought to continue traditions of racial inequity and enacted a campaign that honored the Confederate past, including the practice of slavery. It was during this time that Confederate statues and monuments were built in public places, many of which are still there today. This time of acceptable horrific violence towards African Americans is not one that should be celebrated, let alone revered by statues of Confederate generals or founders of the Ku Klux Klan in public parks and outside prominent government buildings. While some may argue that the statues are simply honoring political and military leaders of the time without any underlying implications of the promotion of racial inequality, it is impossible to have memorials immortalizing people who sought to foster racial violence without also acknowledging what they stood for. Additionally, the timing in which these statues were put in place are times in which white people have wanted to celebrate racial division and exert that one race is better than another. Regardless of the intent and motivation behind these statues, the bottom line is that they do continue to foster racial tension. Many of the cities where these monuments are displayed are predominately African American. Why would an African American on his way to the courthouse for a marriage license want to pass by a statue of the KKK founder? It just serves as a reminder of the C 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. A 6. D 7. C 8. A 9. B 10. D 11. B 12. C 13. D 14. A 15. D 16. D 17. D 18. B 19. C 20. B 21. A 22. D 23. C 24. A 25. C 26. B 27. A 28. C 29. A 30. B 31. B 32. A 33. C 34. D 35. C 36. C 37. B 38. A 39. D 40. D

©2018

Achieve

Page 97

of 99