The UN has been struggling to help countries Jordan and Syria to cope with the gigantic amount of Iraqi refugees pouring in from the country. There are about 1.2 million Iraqis in Syria and 800,000 in Jordan. “There has been an abject denial of the impact, the humanitarian impact, of the war, the huge displacement within Iraq of up to 1.9 million people who are homeless because of the war, and those people who are homeless and never got back to the homes after Saddam Hussein was overthrown,” said UNHCR spokesman Peter Kessler. Many of the refugees require basic needs, like food and water and healthcare, as well as education and counselling. In all of this, the goverment has to intervene before it gets out of hand. Also in Iraqi, people have tried running away from, or have been displaced, at a number higher than 2 million. This obviously affects the world, and especially these people, in a big way. It affects the countries where refugees are headed and how they will respond to this crisis, and it affects the world as to how to wish to help them. It’s our fault they’re like this, so now we have to help them. The link to the article is here.

Q: Step 1:
Where did the Aztecs originally live? What prompted them to relocate? Where did they end up and why? Chose an artifact, which you feel best, represents this event. Support your choice

A: Step 1:
The Aztec originally lived in a place called Atzlan somewhere in North Mexico. Tenoch received a vision from their god that told him to lead his people to a swampy island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, and that’s exactly where they ended up. The vision told Tenoch to find an island with an eagle perched on a cactus eating a snake. They began their new life there and later named the city Tenochtitlan.

Q: Step 2:
The Aztecs ended up in the middle of a lake and built their new capital Tenochtitlan. What were the pros and cons of settling in the middle of a lake? Describe the lay of the land and chose an image for your exhibit.

A: Step 2:
The pros of building their city there was they could grow crops all year long by building ‘floating gardens’ and the canals that they built became part of the defense. The cons were that soon they ran out of space, the island was infested with snakes and they had no available rock nearby to build their magnificent temples.

Q: Step 3:
Which gods were worshiped? The pyramids were built for what purpose?

A: Step 3:
The Aztecs were polytheists, or in other words, they worship more than one god. They had three main gods, Huitzilopochtli, Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl. After these three main gods came four lesser gods, and below them came hundreds and hundreds of gods. The purpose of the temples were to sacrifice people in order to please the gods.

Q: Step 4:
Who are the different members of Aztec society? What are their roles? Choose an artifact that represents the social order of Aztec society.

A: Step 4:
Aztec society was divided into three classes, slaves, commoners, and nobility. Slaves were made up of poor children that came from poor parents. They were usually sold for some time before they could actually buy back their freedom. If they escaped and reached the royal palace, they were instantly freed as well. The commoners were made up of many groups. There were the commoners who worked in farms and those who were merchants. They were allowed to own a piece of land and keep it forever. There was another type of commoners who were below the ones I just described. These were peasants and even though they could work on a piece of land, they couldn’t own it. They were like European surfs. They were forced to work on someone else’s land in order to get some of it. Then came the nobility. They were the people who made up the priests, and kings. Warriors were also part of the nobility but a lot of the time, they offered themselves to sacrifices. Sometimes, long-distance merchants enjoyed some of the rights the nobility had. The best teachers, artists and physicians were also part of the nobility.

http://www.geocities.com/architecture_aztec_america/index.htm

Q: Step 5:
The Aztecs have a spoken language. What was it called? Did they use any other forms of communication? Include an example of either written or visual language of the Aztecs.

A: Step 5:
The Aztecs spoke a lanuguage called Nahuatl, but this wasn’t the only form of communication they used. They used a writing system that consisted of symbols and pictograms. Many of them were quite obvious, like the word for tree was the drawing of a tree, but some were harder, like the names of towns and cities.

Q: Step 6:
How did the Aztecs grow food and what was their main crop? Did they trade and with whom? Did they have a currency (money)? Find an image for your exhibit about making a living Aztec style.

A: Step 6:
The Aztec’s main crops included corn, chili peppers, beans, squash and tomatoes and they grew it by making terraces where there were steps to control the flow of the water and stop the crops from flooding. The Aztec did have currency, but not like we do today. Since they had no metal money, they used cacoa beans. Cacao beans were scarce and valuable and they could be used to make chocolate. Most of the time, they were traded in markets and you could buy almost anything with them. The Aztecs, like the Maya, traded as well. They traded with what’s now Honduras, Guatemala and Belize. They also traded cacao beans and food and materials as well, like cotton, rubber and other things that were made by animals.

http://library.thinkquest.org/16325/y-eco.html

Q; Step 7:
Discuss the Impact of Spanish Contact 1519 from both the Aztec point of view and the Spanish point of view. Find an image depicting this event.

A: Step 7:
At the arrival of the Spanish, or Cortez, the Aztec thought that he was their god, Quetzacoalt in human form. Because of this, the Aztec didn’t attack the Spanish and instead treated them with respect and kindness. Later they found out that the Spanish were greedy pigs that only wanted their money and wealth.

Q: Step 8:
Discuss La Malinche or Dona Marina. Debate her positive/negative impact on Mexico past and present. What does the term Mestizo refer to? What influences remain today from Aztec

On March 19, 2003, George W. Bush announced to the world that as he spoke on national television, America had begun a war against Iraq. The purpose of this war was to disarm Iraq, free its people and defend the world from grave danger from Saddam Hussein. Bush gave a short speech describing how ruthless Saddam Hussein was and how he believed the people there needed their help. He also said that they respected the Iraqi citizens, their culture and their religious practices and were going to try their best to avoid civilian casualties. More than 35 countries are giving crucial support through any means necessary, he said and they have begun bombing what America hopes will weaken Saddam Hussein. His final words were “May God bless our country and all who defend her” 

To see the full article and speech, click here.