The Spanish American War was short and fought over a period of 10 weeks. Most Americans supported the war because we were freeing the natives in territories such as Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines from Spanish rule, but our definition of freedom was to only make money. "But freedom was above all economic in nature for most Americans: it involved private property, free enterprise, and opportunities for material gain. Most Americans thought that political rights, civil liberties, and private enterprise were all of a piece and that it was not possible to have one without the other” (Boller 200). The press told the public that the war was for a good cause. It was to show the natives American ideals, but this was a lie. What ideals would we teach? …show more content…
All we wanted was more land to expand our empire. By doing so, we could open more private factories to make large profits at little costs by taking the native people 's resources. Also, the only people that could open factories were the rich. Anyone on a lower social status was considered a fool to think they could make money in these foreign lands. Furthermore, the Spanish American War created more racism in our country. Since slavery became illegal after the Civil War, many Americans needed to get their anger off in other ways. "Frederick Douglass’ son Lewis, saw the war as an extension of America’s racist ideology, for it resulted in 'in the acquisition of an empire containing millions of colored people '" (203). With more colored people part of the American empire, white supremacy was increased. Not only did whites have black people to oppress, but also millions of brown people in the former Spanish lands. All this led to more verbal abuse and murders of colored people. The Spanish American War was said to educate the native people, but it actually created more racism in our
Eventually, this led to US intervention in the Cuban War of Independence. At the start of the 20th century, an immense number immigrants flocked to America in hopes of achieving the American Dream so many wished to achieve. Unfortunately, with racism becoming such a prevalent issue in the nation, specifically towards African Americans, segregation and a belittling
Imperialism (Spanish American
The first reason is the main reason the U.S joined the Spanish-American war is territory and resources. According to a document by Jason Colby, Spain took control of Cuba, the Philippines Islands, and Puerto Rico. The U.S was worried that
Before the American Civil War, we struggled with the concept of slavery based on our economic and moral differences. People who lived in the North believed that slavery should be abolished since they did not grow crops that needed an abundance of slaves. Moreover, they thought that slaves should be treated like all human beings based on the constitution. On the other side, Americans who lived in the South thought slavery should not be abolished as their crops demanded twice as much work than the ones in the North; therefore, they needed much more workers working in their field and that’s where slaves came into view. They also thought that Africans were inferior because of their skin color and origin.
Latter President Ulysses S. Grant was another American in opposition to the war with Mexico. In his personal memoirs he wrote “To this day, I regard the Mexican War as one of the most unjust wars ever waged by a stronger nation against a weaker nation . . . in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory.” (Document 3) On the other hand, there were publications like The New-York Daily Tribune would called the war “piratical” and the invasion was a “flagrant outrage” and it was also called “immoral and unwise”.
With the finding of the gold rush, they expanded the land for settlers from around the world, which means more money and more goods and trading ports. But the downside to all of this is that the pattern of American racism and discrimination kept of going, but that started to die down once the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was in progress. This treaty is “free enjoyment of their liberty and property.” In addition, the luring of immigrants around the world led to the railroad and jump-started the industrial revolution.
Even though Native American involvement during the Revolutionary War is often overlooked. they played a significant role. Not only did the war determine which direction in history America would take, but it also progressed the downfall of the Native Americans. They lost land and freedoms while America gained it. Both sides in the war wanted the Native Americans to stay neutral, however most Native Americans sided with the English during the American Revolution.
Throughout various articles, facts have lead to the belief that the Mexicans were responsible for starting the Mexican War. The dilemmas began to appear when Mexico failed to recognize Texas as an independent state. The president of Mexico at the time, Antonio de Santa Anna, signed an agreement in Texas for their freedom but neglected it as soon he came back to Mexico. Afterward, The United States annexed Texas and Mexico cut off all relations with the U.S. The communication between them was completely dissolved and Mexico refused to negotiate with any American.
A question that has left many Americans puzzled is, was the civil was inevitable? Could the United States of America survived without the famous war? Would America be split in half? To answer this question one must look back and the reason the civil war happened and how it affected America.
In a way, they just wanted their freedom like in the rest of America. This paper will show evidence that supports America’s right to go to war. When Mexico declared its freedom from Spain in 1821, the size of Mexico was equal to the United States (background essay). American farmers were encouraged to settle in the Mexican providence of Texas since the land was was empty (background essay). Once the settlers came it turned out to be
As a result of this unkind behavior, there were many arguments and the Civil War ensued. Racism was behind most conflicts during the time periods of the 1800s. The race relations that formed between the whites and blacks in our society today were the results of racism damaging Americana long ago. Slavery was a rough time for many people throughout the world, and it teaches us to be equal and to treat people with kindness and love. Most people who are sick rely on their physicians to get a skilled diagnosis.
Another promise that was not made was teaching the Native Americans how to adjust to “white customs”. Not only did the white men not teach them their customs, they took away
There were many important causes and effects of the Spanish American War. In the 1880’s the U.S. wanted to achieve manifest destiny and so they expanded out west and took control over the Native Americans. There were four different motives that the United States could’ve used to imperialize: political and military interest and economic interest were mostly with trading. Humanitarian and religious interest, to help those that you have allied with or to spread religion and the rich help those who were “under privileged.” Lastly, social darwinism, the idea that you are superior than someone else.
When Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, a string of ruthless dictators and weak presidents made Mexico an easy target for its powerful neighbor, the United States. The US swooped in to expand its territory and its popular institution of slavery. By doing so, the US started a war with Mexico that was justified for illegitimate reasons. The Mexican-American War was not justified because the US took Mexico’s land for the expansion of slavery, and justified their taking advantage of Mexico when it was politically weak by hiding behind Manifest Destiny.
The Spanish terrorized Native Americans, which led many natives to fear the Spanish, and caused some to revolt against their reign. According to Eric Foner, “the Spanish forced tens of thousands of Indians to work in gold and silver mines, which