California State University, San Bernardino CSUSB ScholarWorks History in the Making Arthur E. Nelson University Archives 2012 History in the Making (Volume 5) CSUSB - Alpha Delta Nu Chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/historyinthemaking Recommended Citation CSUSB - Alpha Delta Nu Chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society, "History in the Making (Volume 5)" (2012). History in the Making. 2. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/historyinthemaking/2 This Journal is brought to you for free and open access by the Arthur E. Nelson University Archives at CSUSB ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in History in the Making by an authorized administrator of CSUSB ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HISTORY IN THE MAKING California State University, San Bernardino Journal of History Volume Five 2012 Alpha Delta Nu Chapter, Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society History in the Making is an annual publication of the California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) Alpha Delta Nu Chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society, and is sponsored by the History Department at CSUSB. Issues are published at the end of the spring quarter of each academic year. Phi Alpha Theta’s mission is to promote the study of history through the encouragement of research, good teaching, publication and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians. The organization seeks to bring students, teachers and writers of history together for intellectual and social exchanges, which promote and assist historical research and publication by our members in a variety of ways. Copyright © 2012 Alpha Delta Nu, California State University, San Bernardino. Cover photo: Buddhist Monk in Doorway in Shangri-la, Yunnan; 中甸县 ,云南, by Melissa Fitzgerald History in the Making History in the Making Table of Contents Introduction __________________________________________ v Acknowledgements ___________________________________ vii Editorial Staff ________________________________________ ix Articles Coping with an Impossible Reality: The Jewish Sonderkommando of Auschwitz-Birkenau by Jennifer Weed _____________________________________ 1 There Is No Bournville in Africa: Chocolate Capitalist, African Cocoa Workers, and International Labor Relationships from the 19th Century to the Present by Ryan Minor ______________________________________ 43 To Protect and To Serve: Effects of the Relationship Between the Brown Berets and Law Enforcement by Paul Flores ______________________________________ 81 Marvin the Martian, Godzilla, and Other Purveyors of Atomic Destruction by Bethany Underhill ________________________________ 103 Travels Through History Burning Paper: Cultural Connections in China by Melissa Fitzgerald ________________________________ 137 Beauty and Sadness: Experiencing Poland’s History and Jewish Heritage by Jennifer Weed ___________________________________ 151 iii History in the Making Reviews Psychiatry, Mental Institutions, and the Mad in Apartheid South Africa by Chris Moreland __________________________________ 155 Bound Feet and Western Dress: A Memoir by Briana James ___________________________________ 157 Warriors: Tombs and Temples The Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA by Brandi Rauterkus ________________________________ 159 iv History in the Making Introduction The History Department of California State University, San Bernardino welcomes you to the fifth edition of our annual journal, History in the Making. The journal is proudly managed and edited by California State University, San Bernardino students, and is exclusively written by current and recent undergraduate and graduate students. Our mission is to produce a journal containing interesting and informative articles that will keep readers thinking long after they have turned its pages. This year’s journal features four full-length articles, two articles on student’s travels to far- away lands, and three reviews. In our first article, “Coping with an Impossible Reality: The Jewish Sonderkommando of Auschwitz-Birkenau,” Jennifer Weed brings to light the story of Jewish men forced to work in the crematoriums of the infamous Nazi death camp. Jennifer uses published testimonials and interviews to shed light on the coping strategies used by these men in an article that challenges our notions about the lengths to which people will go in order to survive. Our second article moves us from the death camps of Poland to the cocoa fields of Africa. In “There Is No Bournville in Africa: Chocolate Capitalist, African Cocoa Workers, and International Labor Relationships from the 19th Century to the Present,” Ryan Minor looks at the connection between the exploitation of West African cocoa laborers and neocolonialist chocolate manufacturers of Europe. Ryan combines multiple economic and sociological theories with secondary sources on the African chocolate industry in an article that seeks to discover just how easy it is to exploit a person that is geographically distant from the society exploiting them. Our third article shifts focus from neocolonialism in Africa to the mean streets of East Los Angeles. In “To Protect and To Serve: Effects of the Relationship Between the Brown Berets and Law Enforcement,” Paul Flores focuses on the social movement that became a militant movement in its war of words with local and v History in the Making federal law enforcement during the tumultuous time of the Vietnam Conflict. Paul uses rich detail to explore how legal and physical harassment and police infiltration led to the collapse of the once-powerful movement. Our final full-length article takes us from the streets of Los Angeles to the televisions and movie theaters of the atomic-age. In “Marvin the Martian, Godzilla, and Other Purveyors of Atomic Destruction,” Bethany Underhill explores the influence atomic testing had on children’s media and popular culture in America. Bethany employs extensive research, citing a wide variety of films, to show the ways the tests were presented to the public and how those presentations changed the public’s attitude about the atomic bomb. History is not just about the exploration of events in time, but also the temporal region of space. This idea is brought to light in our section “Travels Through History,” where we feature a pair of short articles written by those who have personally visited the places about which they have written. First, Melissa Fitzgerald takes us on a trip to China, and shows us the ways funeral rites and the honoring of ancestors links traditional Chinese culture to that of modern-day China. Next, Jennifer Weed guides us through the streets of modern-day Poland and shows us how the country has been shaped, virtually and literally, by its Holocaust history. Rounding out this year’s journal are two book reviews and an exhibit review. First, Chris Moreland reviews Tiffany Fawn Jones’ book, Psychiatry, Mental Institutions, and the Mad in Apartheid South Africa. Next, Briana James reviews Pang-Mei Natasha Chang’s book, Bound Feet and Western Dress: A Memoir. Finally, Brandi Rauterkus reviews the Bowers Museum’s exhibit, Warriors: Tombs and Temples. We hope that you find these articles as interesting and informative as we do, and sincerely thank you for reading the 2012 edition of History in the Making. Thomas Hagen, Chief Editor vi History in the Making Acknowledgements Bringing a peer-reviewed journal from concept to print is a process that requires the collaboration of many dedicated individuals who devote countless hours to the project. Three such individuals are faculty advisors, Dr. Tiffany Jones, Dr. Cherstin Lyon, and Dr. Jeremy Murray. Their unyielding patience and thorough guidance throughout this process provided a beacon of light to editors and authors, alike, illuminating our path and keeping us focused on our ultimate goal to produce a high-quality, educational journal. Further recognition goes to our editorial staff, whose hard work, dedication, and professionalism never wavered, even in the face of such adversities as a social life, occupations, and exams. Special recognition goes to all of the authors who answered our call for papers and took a chance by submitting their articles for critical peer review, and to Melissa Fitzgerald, whose cover photograph allowed us to again maintain the spirit of a student-only journal from cover to cover. Finally, we would like to recognize the entire faculty, staff, and student body of the California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) Department of History, CSUSB’s Instructional Related Programs, and Phi Alpha Theta for their continued support of History in the Making. Thank you all. vii History in the Making viii History in the Making Editorial Staff Chief Editor Thomas Hagen “Travels Through History” Editor Claudia Mariscal Review Editor Erica Maien Ward Associate Editors Anthony Gomez Skye Gomez Ryan Minor Sophia Rosa David Shanta April Stang Faculty Advisors Dr. Tiffany F. Jones Assistant Professor of History Dr. Cherstin Lyon Assistant Professor of History Dr. Jeremy Murray Assistant Professor of History ix History in the Making x Articles Coping with an Impossible Reality: The Jewish Sonderkommando of Auschwitz-Birkenau By Jennifer Weed Abstract: Despite the vast amount of western scholarly work on the Holocaust, there are issues that remain under-analyzed which would help nuance our understanding of this historical event.