The United States of America is home to all sorts of unique individuals. Individuals who come from as close as South America or as far as across the world. These people come to the United States in hopes of starting a new life. This kind of thinking has been the motive for people to uproot their lives, and come to the America in anticipation of having a better life. But does America treat all their citizens that equally? What about immigrants? Do they get treated equally as citizens? Does every person get to act out their personal preferences, whether it be because of religion or sexual preference, as equally as Americans? Throughout America’s history, Americans have had several equality issues. There is one type of inequality that has gone through multiple generations. Racial inequality. When the Founding Fathers fought for racial inequality, many of the founders owned slaves. However many of them also wanted to free slaves as well. Stephen Brooks, who wrote Understanding American Politics (2013,109), said, “Some of the founders were downright racist, and it is fair to say that even among the most enlightened of them, not a single one would have found interracial marriage or even racially mixed schools to be acceptable.” As Brooks said some were racist and would not like to consider African Americans as their equal. While some were willing to free slaves, others would not even consider it. Our first president, George Washington, owned slaves but having the discussion about whether we should have slaves or not. He decided to set his slaves free. On the other hand, Thomas Jefferson, who also owned slaves, refused to set his slaves free as he could not live without them. Although he did think that a future generation could abolish... ... middle of paper ... ...ase, there would be at least two more cases based on the same thing. The United States of America is quite different then since the Founding Fathers. Despite all the advances that the government has made. It seems some of the issues that they have. We still face today. It might be the exact type of issues, but it is our evolved version of theirs. If we were to finally rid this problem. Would it just evolve again? Works Cited 1. Brooks, Stephen, Douglas L, Koopman, and J. Matthew Wilson. Understanding American Politics. N.p.: University of Toronto Incorporated, 2013. Print. 2. Facilities. "Jim Crow Laws." National Parks Service. National Parks Service, 16 Nov. 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 3. Lyons, David. "Corrective Justice, Equal Opportunity, and the Legacy of Slavery and Jim Crow." LexisNexis.com. 2004 Trustees of Boston University, Dec. 2004. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
Dye, Thomas R. , L. Tucker Gibson Jr., and Clay Robinson. Politics In America. Brief Texas Edition ed. New Jersey: Pearson, 2005.
Kernell, Samuel, Jacobson, Gary C., Kousser, Thad, & Vavreck, Lynn. 2014. The Logic of American Politics 6th ed. Los Angeles: CQ Press
The Strange Career of Jim Crow, by C. Van Woodward, traces the history of race relations in the United States from the mid and late nineteenth century through the twentieth century. In doing so Woodward brings to light significant aspects of Reconstruction that remain unknown to many today. He argues that the races were not as separate many people believe until the Jim Crow laws. To set up such an argument, Woodward first outlines the relationship between Southern and Northern whites, and African Americans during the nineteenth century. He then breaks down the details of the injustice brought about by the Jim Crow laws, and outlines the transformation in American society from discrimination to Civil Rights. Woodward’s argument is very persuasive because he uses specific evidence to support his opinions and to connect his ideas. Considering the time period in which the book and its editions were written, it should be praised for its insight into and analysis of the most important social issue in American history.
The irony present when dealing the concept of freedom in America causes great discussion about the ideals on which our country was originally founded. Americans take great pride in not having a ruler that dictates their every move. How it is possible that in the past Americans felt, and even feel today, that there is a white supremacy? This standpoint may be a more modern view of the issue, but it is still a prevalent one. Before the Civil War, African Americans were not only viewed as another’s personal property, but also as non-human entities that were below everyone else. Our own Declaration of Independence, the very document that announced our freedom from a ruling power, states verbatim, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happ...
Dye, Thomas R., L. Tucker Gibson, Jr., and Clay Robison. Politics in America. Ninth ed. Vol. 2. New York, NY: Longman, 2011. 337. Print.
“All men are born free and with equal rights, and must always remain free and have equal rights,” (Thomas Jefferson) This is the famous statement made by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. He is being extremely hypocritical here considering he himself owned a near two hundred slaves. The slaves are still owned and treated as ‘property’. Thomas Jefferson did not have care for the slaves. The equalities discussed in the Declaration were not aimed to all men, they were aimed at specific white men. Frederick Douglass a former slave excellently asks in reaction to Jefferson; “Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?” What he means by “Us” is African American, it could also mean slave considering he was one. It is just so perfectly put because it is obvious the beliefs of Jefferson were not extended to African American’s or slaves. He continues on rather sarcastically “confess the benefits”, this is important because there was very little benefits. (Frederick Douglass, 1852,
Throughout America, we have slowly been working towards equality. We started off wanting equal representation, and from there we worked for equal rights for all white men. Slavery was
Throughout history, the United States has fallen flat in showing equality. In 1861 was the start of the Civil War. The country was “split in half” about equal rights and liberty. The South was set on having slaves and thought nothing was wrong with it. To them slaves were not people, but instead they were property. The North,
After hundreds of years of slavery in the western world, the end of the American Civil War brought forth a new age of questions which debated what rights qualifed as unalienable civil and human rights, and who should be afforded them. Whether it be the right to marry, the right to own land, the right to work, the right to vote, or the right to be a citizen, African Americans had to fight for and prove that these were rights that could not be denied to them as freedmen in America. After the Civil War and the abolishment of slavery, there was a great split in opinion between white and black Americans about what American freedom entailed and whether or not African Americans had fair access to it.
Throughout history, African Americans have encountered an overwhelming amount of obstacles for justice and equality. You can see instances of these obstacles especially during the 1800’s where there were various forms of segregation and racism such as the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan terrorism, Jim- Crow laws, voting restrictions. These negative forces asserted by societal racism were present both pre and post slavery. Although blacks were often seen as being a core foundation for the creation of society and what it is today, they never were given credit for their work although forced. This was due to the various laws and social morals that were sustained for over 100 years throughout the United States. However, what the world didn’t know was that African Americans were a strong ethnic group and these oppressions and suffrage enabled African Americans for greatness. It forced African Americans to constantly have to explore alternative routes of intellectuality, autonomy and other opportunities to achieve the “American Dream” especially after the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were passed after the Civil War.
South University Online. (2013). POL2076: American Government: Week 4: People and Politics—Interest Groups. Retrieved from http://myeclassonline.com
Even though the Declaration of Independence stated that "All men are created equal’’ this hasn’t always been the case. In 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified and finally put an end to slavery. In addition, the Fourteenth Amendment (1868) strengthened the legal rights of newly freed slaves by stating that no state shall deprive anyone of either "due process of law" or of the "equal protection of the law." And finally, the Fifteenth Amendment (1870) further strengthened the legal rights of newly freed slaves by prohibiting states from denying anyone the right to vote due to race. Despite these Amendments, African Americans were still treated differently than whites in many parts of the country, especially in the South. In 1954 the Warren Court ruled that separate educational facilities for whites and blacks are unequal, and don’t follow the 14th amendment, which is the right of “equal protection under the law”. This resulted in the Brown v. Board of education case, which stated that publ...
Edward III, G., Wattenberg, M., & Lineberry, R. (2006). Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy (12th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education.
“We hold these truths to be self evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” If the confusion has not yet set in, then give it a moment. This nation, the United States of America, prides itself on being far superior to all other nations because here in America we are free men. We set ourselves on a pedestal above Great Britain because the Declaration of Independence clearly states that everyone inside the parameters of our country will be treated as equal as the same individuals neighbor. Yet for nearly three centuries, our nation was full of individuals, including our forefathers, who “owned” people that were regarded as less than themselves simply due to the fact that the pigments in their skin did not allow them to fall within the Caucasian race. The very legal document that had the word “Independence” written within it’s name and blatantly stated that it is obvious that no human is greater than any other because we were all made by the same god for the same reason, is the foundation of a nation that used innocent lives as fuel for slavery. It wasn’t until some educated individuals finally stood up and realized how incredibly wrong these two concepts are when put together. It is said that when the former slave Frederick Douglass
When it comes to the visions of America we tend to think of two sides. Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin. They each have their own unique way of saying what Americas Vision is.Thomas Jefferson 's vision of America is what we would call idealistic. Meaning it is ideal to be lived for and for which must always strive. He states in the Declaration of Independence that "All are created equal." Defining equality can be difficult because the meaning is always changing. It does not mean we are the same, but it does mean we all are granted the same rights and freedom. I believe that America is always struggling to live up to "all are created equal" but have yet to succeed at it. I think that America has not lived up to Jefferson ideal. If we look back it in time and compare to the present we are still dealing with some of the same situations. Race, Religions, etc. A quote from the Declaration of Independence states, "That they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness." Stating that every human deserves to have their own life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness if they do to wish so.