Anti Imperialism Essay

The United States has inflicted imperialism on the island Hawaii on January 17, 1893. They did this by overthrowing the government which was a monarchy and its ruler was Queen Liliuokalani. Then by overthrowing the sugar planters who overthrew the Queen, President William Mckinley was able to obtaining the territory for the U.S after the Spanish-American war. The U.S wanted to obtain Hawaii because of its monopoly on Sugar and its Sugar exports to The United States. The United States wanted to obtain the territory also to get rid of taxes on them and the business, and wealthy people were losing their ability to manipulate the government and wanted it as a naval base like pearl harbor.

In 1899, the United States annexed the Philippines after a short but bloody war with Spain. These rich, plentiful islands full of resources were in great demand. The U.S. saw the Philippines; fighting against Spain so like them when they were rebelling, and decided to step in and aid ‘the spirit of 1776’ (Doc. A). However, the question still remains: should the United States have annexed the Philippines?

First, America annexes Hawaii. They did this so they could build good naval bases and they wanted to protect the sugar planters in that area. An added bonus was that America got a stop in the journey across the pacific. Next they bought Alaska from Russia because they wanted to stop the expansion of trade and Alaska’s land was also rich in natural resources. America also took over Japan and China.

Why Imperialism Was Not Justified Many Americans and Europeans believe that there was many good reasons for imperialism. These people think this because they were the ones that benefited from it. In imperialism, the stronger countries took over the weaker countries and used them for their resources which improved their economy. Most also claim that they helped the countries they were imperializing, but the Europeans were actually hurting them. This led to the natives rebelling which arguably led to World War 1 later on.

Colonialism and Imperialism affected our world both positively and negatively. On one hand, Imperialism has often been linked with racial segregation, manipulation, and hardship. On the other, it has been said that many colonial powers contributed much in terms of schools, roads, railways, and much more. Whether this time period was constructive or harmful, it has played a large part in shaping our lives today. European Imperialism started long before the 1800’s.

Before the 20th century the United States was an isolationist nation but around the late 19th century America decided to convert into an imperialist power. They had numerous reasons to shift into being an imperialist nation. America didn’t want to begin imperializing to settle and live in the nations they were taking over, they already had America for that reason, they wanted to adopt these nations for what they had to offer, which was many things. America saw an opportunity to improving their nation and took it. Even if there were many causes for America to imperialize, three of them stood out the most.

Anti imperialists had the better arguments than imperialists. Imperialism violates the peoples rights to vote/ the declaration of independence. White business leaders forced king kalakaua to amend Hawaii's constitution limiting voting rights to only wealthy land owners. Congress also proclaimed Hawaii as an american territory, although Hawaiians never had the chance to vote. Imperialism goes against ideals of self government for an example the military controlled Puerto Rico until congress decided otherwise.

Meanwhile, the United States began to expand their territory, gathering states like Florida, central

Separate countries trade with each other without having to be annexed in another country, so the US took away the Philippines independence and they did not truly profit. In the end, Annexing the Philippines to profit from trade was

Imperialism was a controversial idea that a nation can extend its power outward through means of diplomatic or military force. This often results in a shift of power from one major force currently in control to another. The people of that nation under control conflict may also experience wars, rebellions, or cultural destruction. Looking at some of these events, we see some positives and negatives of imperialistic action taken by the United States, and how it affected the nations imperialized by the United States. For starters, let’s look at Hawaii’s annexation.

Essay One: Imperialism Flies circle great black lumps as the moist air ravages the corpses. Dried blood soaked into the ground after faceless soldiers brutally destroyed its owners’ lives. These were the stories in the newspapers, the movies, and the films. Horrified by these crimes against humanity, the American public was spurred into action against the Spanish oppressors. the United States invaded Cuba in 1898 to pursue humanitarian efforts.

American imperialism is economically, socially, and politically damaging to countries, as well as costly for America. Furthermore, it infringes upon national sovereignty and the right to self-governance. Historical cases have shown the detrimental repercussions America has repeatedly caused. The few cases of success should not undermine the calamitous effects American neo-imperialism has caused. The United States should cede its colonies and stop intervening in the affairs of other nations.

And lastly the desire for a new frontier to settle in order to maintain America’s identity and prosperity. All three of the examples: economically, politically/military, and culturally can simply explain why and how America became an imperialist nation in the late

“Imperialism has been the most powerful force in world history over the last four or five centuries” (Parenti). Imperialism has been the most influential force in the history of the world for about half a millennium. Many people still do not know what imperialism is, imperialism is the attempt at controlling other countries through political, economic or military means; there is an ongoing argument on whether imperialism is favorable or unfavorable. Imperialism has improved much of the world, whether it be through the economy or safety, much of the world has improved. Imperialism has improved the economy and has a positive effect on national safety, imperialism has also improved the economy and influence of other smaller countries.

Everyone, or in this case, every country, travels at a different pace. Some countries may develop slower than others, but that doesn’t automatically mean they require assistance. Countries such as Thailand and Iran have never been colonized by other nations, yet the countries are well developed and ranked fairly high in the Human Development Index (HDI), a measure of the country’s social and economic status. Mark Twain, a great American writer who was also an anti-imperialist, once said, “It should, it seems to me, be our pleasure and duty to make those people free, and let them deal with their own domestic questions in their own way.” So if the imperialists truly wanted to help the people, they should let them be and stop interfering in their business.