1. Neutral To Be or Not to Be

2. Imagine this…
A long time ago, a student named Woody went to Piedmont. Woody was a good kid. He made good grades (like good kids do), he was pretty popular, and he had a lot to offer his friends and school. He was someone most people would want to have around! He was very generous with his lunch money when his friends came to him in need.

3. So one day…
All of Woody’s friends lived in a separate neighborhood. Woody’s friends were in a neighborhood feud over who had control over their cul-de-sac basketball court. They tried to take turns, and make negotiations for who could play when, but things just weren’t working out. Some of the kids who lived there were named Sera, Germaine, Fran, Brittany and Frank. One day, Fran had a rock thrown at her head by Sera and she was put in the hospital. Things were getting really heated in the neighborhood. Germaine vowed to help out Sera any way he could. Germaine and Sera became the neighborhood bullies!

4. Woody is confused…
Woody heard all about what was going on in his friends’ neighborhood. Woody’s close friends, Brittany and Frank, were very scared for their friend Fran. Brittany and Frank really wanted Woody to help them out, but Woody lived way across town. Woody’s mom would have really been upset if he got into a fight. How could Woody be a good friend, yet not help?

5. Woody is confused…
In Woody’s neighborhood, there was a guy named Meko which he did not get along with very well. Woody decided to keep to himself in his neighborhood. He even made an announcement at lunch one day, that he was not getting involved in anybody’s MESS!

6. Despite trying to stay to himself…
Woody had a hard time not getting involved with the feud. Woody’s friends Brittany and Frank were getting beat up often and getting their basketballs stolen! Woody gave them money for new basketballs, but did not engage in fighting.

7. Despite trying to stay to himself…
One day, Woody found a secret note in class that was being passed to Meko, asking him to join the feud. The note was from Germaine. Woody was very upset by this!!! What did Meko have to do with this?? The note mentioned how Woody had taken Meko’s basketball shoes a long time ago, and Germaine figured Meko was still mad about it.

8. Luckily, Meko had forgiven Woody, and had no plans of getting involved in another neighborhood’s fight. Meko had enough going on in his life. It was obvious that Germaine didn’t like Woody. He found out Woody was giving Brittany and Frank basketballs, and so he gave Woody’s bike a flat tire. However, it was the wrong bike! It was actually Brittany’s bike. Woody and her shared it sometimes.

9. Should Woody get involved in the fight? Why or Why not?
What do you think?
Should Woody get involved in the fight?
Why or Why not?

10. Who was who & what was what?
Two neighborhoods – Europe and the United States
Sera threw a rock at Fran – Serbia assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand which is what caused World War 1
Germaine = Germany (bully – quick Serbian ally -wanted their place in the sun so to speak)
Brittany and Frank – Britain and France
Woody – Woodrow Wilson (America)
Getting involved? (Decision for US to stay neutral before WW1)
Meko’s involvement – Mexico (Zimmerman Telegram) – Germany sent a letter to Mexico asking to join the war effort and in return they would regain land lost to the USA. The US intercepted the message early
All of the friendships – alliances among world powers during WW1
Woody declaring neutral – Wilson also made an official declaration to stay out of war
Brittany and Woody’s bike – Sinking of the Lusitania ship– one of the causes of World War 1 (ship was sank by German U boats for suspected weapons on board)
The basketball court – power and land in Europe
Basketballs – weapons
Woodys’ mom – American people

11. “The effect of the war upon the United States will depend upon what American citizens say and do. Every man who really loves America will act and speak in the true spirit of neutrality, which is the spirit of impartiality and fairness and friendliness . . The people of the United States are drawn from many nations, and chiefly from the nations now at war. It is natural and inevitable that there should be the utmost variety of sympathy and desire among them with regard to the issues and circumstances of the conflict. Some will wish one nation, others another, to succeed in the momentous struggle. It will be easy to excite passion and difficult to allay it. Those responsible for exciting it will assume a heavy responsibility, responsibility for no less a thing than that the people of the United States may be divided in camps of hostile opinion, hot against each other, involved in the war itself in impulse and opinion if not in action. Such divisions amongst us would be fatal to our peace of mind and might seriously stand in the way of the proper performance of our duty as the one great nation at peace I venture, therefore, my fellow countrymen, to speak a solemn word of warning to you against that deepest, most subtle, most essential breach of neutrality which may spring out of partisanship, out of passionately taking sides. The United States must be neutral in fact, as well as in name, during these days that are to try men's souls. We must be impartial in thought, as well as action, must put a curb upon our sentiments, as well as upon every transaction that might be construed as a preference of one party to the struggle before another.” – Woodrow Wilson’s Declaration of Neutrality

12. US ENTERS WORLD WAR 1 in 1917
Despite this speech, why would he change his mind two years later?
You are going to write a letter to Woodrow Wilson prior to his declaration of war against Germany during You need to convince him why American’s should go to war or not go to war.
Consider this video to kick start your research:
The US prior to war: