Amistad Movie Questions PDF

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Amistad Movie Questions 1.What year does the Amistad insurrection take place? The Amistad insurrection takes place in January 1839. 2.What does "Amistad" mean? (Hint: it is a Spanish word.) Why is Amistad a good name for the film? In Spanish Amistad means friendship. It is a good name for the movie as it showed us how justice was able to unite people in friendship. 3.What is the legal status of slavery when the movie takes place? At that time, slavery was still legal and an important part of the country’s economy . 4. According to the movie, who are the five parties that make claims at the arraignment of the Amistad Africans? What does each party argue and upon what basis do they make their claim? 1. District Attorney Holabird: his basis was on the claim of murder and piracy based. on what happened on la Amistad ship. 2. Talbot: he was an abolitionist who believed these slaves were wrongfully charged. . 3. U.S. Secretary of state John Forsyth: he believed that they were the property of Spain and should be returned to the Spain by order of the queen. 4. Thomas R. Gurney and Richard W. Mead: they commissioned naval officers who claimed that these slaves are salvaged and should belong to them. . 5. Jose Ruiz and Pedro Montez: they were on la Amistad with these slaves and claimed that they had a receipt of purchase for these slaves. 5. Why does Baldwin need to prove where the slaves are from? He needs to prove that the slaves were kidnapped from Africa because they are facing murder charges. 6. How is the issue of religion addressed in the film? Provide 3 examples. The film addresses the issue of religion by recognizing that Christianity played a part in supporting slavery. 1. During the middle passage sequence, a priest is seen giving his blessing to a Portuguese slave ship. 2.Prosecutor William Holabird uses the Book of Genesis to argue before the courts that it is only natural for one human being to subordinate another. 3.Yamba pages through an illustrated Bible, explaining to Cinque that Jesus was bound and tried and executed because he stood up for the poor and oppressed, and that after his death he came back to life and went to heaven 7. What documents does Baldwin find onboard the Amistad? He found documents that show that the slaves came from Africa and not Cuba. 8. What is the name of the Portuguese transatlantic slave ship? The Portuguese transatlantic slave ship is the Tecora.

9. Why is the young Judge Coglin handpicked by the President Van Buren? Because Baldwin’s side was winning and the judge was from the South. 10. What state is Mr. Joadson from? Mr. Joadson is from Georgia. 11. What is the name of the interpreter? The name of the interpreter is James Covey 12. What flag is the Portuguese slave ship flying? The Portuguese slave ship is carrying the American flag. 13. Who is John C. Calhoun? Why is the Amistad case symbolic to the South? John C. Calhoun is a Southern Senator from South Carolina. For the South, the Amistad case was symbolic of a threat to slavery 14. How does Calhoun threaten the President? Calhoun threatens the President with a Civil War. 15. What is the name of the island where the African natives were first offered as merchandise? (hint: it was a Spanish colony) The name of the island is Havana in Cuba. 16. Why is the case of the Amistad Africans important symbolically to the South? It is symbolic to the South because it was the beginning to the end of slavery. 17. Why does the President appeal the court’s verdict? The president appeals to the court’s verdict because Calhoun told him that letting the slaves win it will make him look like a weak president. Moreover, he needed the support from the south side for reelection. 18. Who does Baldwin quote in his letter to John Quincy Adams? Baldwin quotes Cicero in his letter. 19. How many of the Supreme Court justices are slaveholders? 7 of 9 of the Supreme Court justices are slaveholders. 20. What were the names of the abolitionists who came to the aid of the slaves. Sojourner Truth, Harriet Stowe, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, William Lloyd Garrison, Lucretia Mott, David Walker 21. Explain why the case had to go all the way to the Supreme Court. Because the government wouldn't accept the decision and repealed it.

22. What document does John Quincy Adams call "embarrassing" and "annoying"? Why is it "annoying"? John Quincy Adams thought that The Declaration of Independence was “embarrassing” and “annoying because it said that all men are created equal but with all the slavery that was going on, the document was not effective because there was no equality. 23. What does Adams suggest to do with the document? He suggests to rip the document. 24. What is the name of Cinque’s tribe? Cinque’s tribe are the Mende people. 25. Who defeated Martin Van Buren in the 1840 election? William Henry Harrison defeated him in the 1840 election. 26. What happened to Cinque’s family? The Cinque family disappeared. It was suspected that his family were taken and sold in slavery. 27. With how many more Presidents did the Queen of Spain appeal to the Amistad ruling? The Queen of Spain appealed the Amistad ruling with 7 presidents....