...American Freedom History Student Name Tutor Date Since the year 1863, Americans have for a long time defined freedom as a battle that was required to be fought in order for the American ideal and moral justice to be preserved. The struggle for freedom in America was enriched with events that are essential for the shaping of the history of America. On the issue of the struggle for freedom, America has been at war with itself as well as with others. Martin Luther King Junior wrote “letter from Birmingham Jail” at a time he was fighting the battle on freedom in 1963. He wrote this letter as a response to some of his critics. He also noticed that there were injustices in America against the population composed of African Americans (Foner, 2005) Anne Moody reveals how impoverished her life was as an African American due to injustices brought about due to lack of freedom. She would take beans for dinner and survived on only one shoe. All of this was due to the fact that her mother never had a decent job. Her last words in her context of coming to age, “I wonder. I really wonder” clearly portray the war on freedom she was going through. America faced a lot of problems during period such as, voting rights, political participation, freedom of expression, and inflation of goods. Many of these problems resulted in rioting and also boycotting of goods. Freedom of political participation was hindered, in that, one had to qualify in terms of property to be declared legible to vote...
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...this is because this war was able to end the animosity caused by the inevitable climax of conflicts and sectional tensions. This paper will discuss the evolution of the modern US society from the inception of the constitution through the civil war and reconstruction. United States constitution remains to be the oldest constitution in the world and since its inception in 1787; it has played a critical role in the development of the modern US society (Sammis, 1997). Historians argue that the United States constitution has helped in providing a remarkable degree of political stability in the US, a country known for its social diversity. According to law experts, since the inception of the US constitution it has been possible to silence matters that seem to be sensitive in regards to the modern way of living. Moreover, the US constitution enabled the sanctions of the slavery, which remained to be the cause of the animosity before the civil war. On the other hand, before the US civil war, the then US President Abraham Lincoln had began to formulate a plan that would ensure the restoration of the confederate states. In December 1863 through the proclamation of amnesty and reconstruction, Abraham Lincoln stated that in the 1860 general elections, which excluded the blacks, ten percent of the voters accepted emancipation and this meant that United States would become a new government and thus could return to the union...
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...African American History Since 1865 Alishia Colella HIS 204 American History Since 1865 Instructor Thomas Roka March 11, 2013 African American History Since 1865 Most individuals are probably familiar with the well-documented information regarding African American history, such as the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., but there are also many little known facts about their history that are of equal importance. African Americans have been present in the United States ever since the early 1600s and their presents plays an important role in American history not only because of the Civil Rights Movement, but because of the strength and courage that they had struggling to try and live a good life in America. History is rife with records of decades of untold torture and harrowing experiences that African American slaves suffered from at the hands of their captors and masters; they were even denied all natural rights as human beings and forced to live like animals. In all actuality, a slave was viewed as one-third of a person and the property of their owner(s), treated as an object instead of a person. Therefore, one could assume that after their emancipation, life would have become significantly better because the slavers were free to move away from the torturous hands of their masters. However, most of them faced incredible opposition and discrimination even after emancipation. Thus by and large, did not truly free them nor did it directly lead...
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...After the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, black soldiers were allowed to enlist in the army. However, black soldiers were not entirely equal to their fellow white counterparts, since they were paid less minimum wage. Gooding then wrote a letter to address this payment issue, in hopes that he and his fellow freed black soldiers may get equal pay. This particular source details a specific “right” given to African American’s after the Emancipation Proclamation was proposed in 1863. While African Americans were given the right to serve the American army they were paid less that the average white soldier. This demonstrates the ongoing prejudice and unequal ideologies towards the African society in America after the Emancipation Proclamation was...
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...Forced Service and the New York City Draft Riots The year was 1863, America was engulfed in a Civil War that was only supposed to last a few weeks. However, it turned out to be a long bitter war where both sides struggled to gain the upper hand against the other. With enormous casualties on both sides, the Union army needed to bolster its troop numbers without enough volunteers, the government enacted the draft. On July 13th, a group of protestors of the draft quickly turned into a rioting mob attacking local institutions in New York City. The draft riots exhibited people’s dislike towards the Civil War. People were so strongly pitted against the war that they were willing to stand up and fight for their right to not get involved in a war they did not believe in. Certain battles were devastating to the Union Army. In the Battle of Antietam an estimated 3600 Union soldiers died. To bolster troop numbers President Abraham Lincoln enacted a draft in March 1863: all male citizens between twenty and thirty-five and all unmarried men between thirty-five and forty-five were subject to be placed into a military lottery. However, since the newly freed slaves from the Emancipation Proclamation were not considered citizens, they were exempt from the draft. There was a way for citizens avoid enlistment however: pay the government $300 or hire a substitute. On July 11, 1863 the first draft lottery took place. Then, on the morning of the 13th, riots broke out across New York City which...
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...Freedom and Equality Freedom and equality are both very important to the life that we now live in America. Freedom gives every free man and woman the right to believe the way that they want to believe, as well as they consider to be a way of life. Freedom is why our nation, America, was created. Equality makes every man and woman equivalent, and gives both the same opportunities in life. Freedom is a basic right to all Americans, old or young, Black or White, Catholic or Muslim, male or female. For many years we have fought for this right. Starting back in the American Revolutionary War days, until now, where we are still active in Iraq and Iran, we have and we will always be fighting for this basic right that we have. Equality has been something that Americans, especially minorities, have been striving towards. Since the beginning of this country, the white classes of land owners have always had every right that our government has had. Eventually the White classes of every man in America have obtained the same rights of the land owners. The minorities and females of every race has had a more difficult time of attaining the rights and freedoms of the White men of America. The Founding Fathers of America wrote the constitution, and in the preamble of that document, are the words “We The People”. This starting sentence of our most important document shows that our America and its people, of any race and sex, should be as equals and sharing the same freedoms...
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...Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness" (Bernstein, September 15,2005). Slavery in America stems well back to when the new world was first discovered and was led by the country to start the African Slave Trade. The African Slave Trade was first exploited for plantations in that is now called the Caribbean, and eventually reached the southern coasts of America. These African natives were of all ages and sexes. Then we have the Underground Railroad in which not many know exactly what it is. First of all, it wasn’t underground, and it wasn’t even a railroad. The Underground Railroad actually refers to a path along which escaping slaves were passed from farmhouse to storage sheds, from cellars to barns, until they reached safety in the North. Women also suffered greatly from slavery and were treated to be lower than a man and were at the mercy of their spouses. Slavery has been a part of our lives for years and to this day we still suffer from it. African slaves were shipped from Africa by the Europeans in what was called “The Triangular Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.” This was an organized route where Europeans would travel to Africa bringing manufactured goods, capture Africans and take them to the Caribbean, and then take the crops and goods and bring them back to Europe. Slavery was common all over the world until 1794 when France signed the Act of the National Convention abolishing slavery. It took America about a hundred years to do the same. George Washington was America's hero, first...
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...Discrimination Eth 125 This was a difficult choice for me since I belong to multiple ethnic groups. Since I have to choose one I have decided to pick the African American side to further discuss as a topic for this essay. After much research I was able to learn so much about my ethnic group, some of which I already was aware of and some information was enlightening. The history of what is now considered to be an African American goes back to that of the seventeenth century. Most African American lineage is traced back to various different parts of Africa thus helping with name title of African American. Africans’ at this time in history were brought over to America as slaves immigrated not colonized. Slavery brought many Africans’ to America not by choice. Once a slave arrived they were bought and sold to an owner or master with intentions to make profit for their owner most not seeing any profit of their own. Slavery went on to exist for many years until the Emancipation Proclamation was put into effect in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln. Even many years after the Emancipation Proclamation African Americans were still slaves. It was not until 1865 that congress took action and signed the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands to help the slaves totaling about four million at that time to learn how to transition from slavery into freedom. Although they were about to overcome being enslaved and now would have freedom the fight was just beginning. Many slaves did not know...
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...War was fought between the Northern and Southern parts of the United States of America, since there were many disputes between the two regions. The South called themselves the Confederates, while the North called themselves the Union army.2 The battle of Gettysburg was one of the most horrific battles of the Civil War. Over fifty thousand soldiers were found dead, wounded, or went missing in a period of three days, July 1-3 of 1863. That is the most number of casualties that has occurred during any battle in American history.3 The battle took place in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where President Lincoln made a speech entitle the Gettysburg Address five months later, on November 19th of 1863.4 General Robert E. Lee, of the Confederate Army, decided to invade the North in June of 1863. Thus, Lee and his seventy-five-thousand-man army began to march towards Gettysburg, coming from Fredericksburg, Virginia. In order to make his troops more manageable, General Lee divided his army of two corps into three corps. James Longstreet was to command the First Corps, Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell was put in charge of the Second Corps, and Lieutenant General A.P. Hill gained control of the Third Corps.5 Major General Joseph Hooker commanded the Union Army of Potomac. There were over ninety thousand men in his army. Later, President Abraham Lincoln would replace Hooker with Major General George G. Meade, since Hooker had proved to be a failure during the previous battles.6 In the middle...
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...The Reconstruction Era was during the time of 1865-1877 lasting 12 years. Previously before the reconstruction era Abraham Lincoln was re-elected President of the United States with Andrew Johnson as his Vice- President. After Lincoln and Johnson were inaugurated the Confederacy later collapsed. During this time the Civil War had just ended, in result approximately 4 million slaves were allowed their freedom.(Source) However, after the Civil War ended no reconstruction plan was put into effect causing Lincoln to come up with proposals to rebuild America. Lincoln did not live to put his proposals to test; John Wilkes Booth assassinated him on April 14, 1865 allowing Andrew Johnson in May to take over his Presidency. Moreover, Johnson started...
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...Dred Scott vs. Sanford: The Dred Scott vs. Sanford case is one of the most important cases that have ever been tried in the United States of America and was heard in the Old Courthouse of St. Louis. This case that is usually known as the Dred Scott Decision was a ruling by the Supreme Court of America that African people imported into the country and detained as slaves were not protected by the U.S Constitution and could never be American citizens. Dred Scott was a slave who sued for his freedom from his master in a Missouri court in the year 1846. As part of his arguments, Dred Scott claimed that he resided in Illinois which was a free state and part of the Louisiana Territory. Therefore, he claimed that he was a free man because of his residence in a free territory in which slavery was prohibited by the 1820 Missouri Compromise (“Dred Scott v. Sanford” par, 1). However, Dred Scott’s suit for freedom in the local federal court in Missouri was unsuccessful. Eleven years later after his initial suit in the Missouri court, Scott brought a new suit in the United States’ Supreme Court. This was after the federal court ordered the jury to depend on Missouri law for the conclusion of the case regarding Scott’s freedom. Additionally, Scott decided to appeal to the United States’ Supreme Court following the decision of the Missouri Supreme Court to consider him as a slave. In his defense, Scott’s master maintained that the American Constitution did not allow people of African...
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...The history of slavery in America dates back to the seventeenth century when slaves were brought to Virginia in 1619. The era of slavery in US can be broadly divided into three sections, The Antebellum, Slavery during the Civil War, The Reconstruction We will be focusing our attention on the lives of slaves during the Civil War - a war many believe was fought for their emancipation. But before we get an insight into this subject, it is important to know in brief the events that led to the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln was elected the President of United States in 1860, and this propelled anxiety and fear in the minds of the southern states who believed that the government will pass laws that will dampen their economy and the 'southern way of life.' This was primarily because of the reason that northerners hadn't too much at stake in the institution of slavery. Their economy chiefly depended on industries and factories. South, on the other hand, depended on slaves heavily for their work. The plantations of indigo, tobacco, rice, and cotton (after the invention of cotton gin) required hard labor and the slaves were made to work for long hours so that profit was maximized. Many people believe that the Civil War was about North's struggle to emancipate the slaves and South's fight to continue the slave trade. However, it should be remembered that the North did not go to war to emancipate the slaves, instead Abraham Lincoln, before becoming the President...
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...“Abraham Lincoln And His Contribution Freedom In the U.S” Throughout history America has gone through many changes, through the minds of many leaders and bloody wars. One of the founders of what makes up our country today was Abraham Lincoln. He was born on February, 12, 1809 in Hardin County, Kentucky. About 20 years later, Lincoln moved and settled in the town of New Salem, Illinois. He was a self-taught lawyer and legislator. Soon he became engaged in local politics. He worked as a supporter of the “Whig Party” and won the election to the Illinois State legislator in 1834. Lincoln was a staunch advocate of internal improvements, a national banking system, and frontier settlement. During his presidency, he continued to support these causes, and implemented policies to further them. He opposed to the idea of spreading slavery to the territories. His vision was to expand the united states with a focus on commerce and cities; rather than agriculture. An unsuccessful bill to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia later became law during his first term as president. So, generally, with reguard to domestic policy, Lincoln's presidency was of a piece with his previous political activity. The main difference between Lincoln the legislator and Lincoln the president lies in his attitude toward the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. As a Member of Congress, Lincoln had been extremely critical of President Polk's sweeping...
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...Reconstruction. 1853 To 1877 1. Kansas-Nebraska Act, 1854 – A Bill introduced by Steven Douglas to organize the Nebraska territory. He hoped to build a transcontinental railroad making Chicago the terminus, but they could not do this until the Indians were cleared away and the land was in control. Nebraska would presumably become a free state due to the Missouri Compromise but to please the South Douglas argued that the territories should be left open to popular sovereignty. Douglas pushed for the bill and won, therefore the Missouri Compromise was repealed and the North was in an uproar. 2. Birth of the Republican Party- Made up of former Free Soilers, Conscience Whigs, and “Anti-Nebraska” Democrats. Presented themselves as the party of freedom though they were not abolitionist, but they believed that slavery be kept out of the territories. The Republican Party appealed too many to voters who not only disagreed with slavery but also wanted to keep slavery out of their states. 3. Stephan A. Douglas- Known as the “Little Giant,” he was the most prominent spokesman of the Young American movement. He held a series of state offices before being elected for the United States Senate at the age of 29. Douglas wanted to get on with the development of the nation; to build railroads, acquire new territory, and expand trade. This made him suggest and push for the Kansas-Nebraska Act. 4. Popular Sovereignty- Also known as “squatter sovereignty,” the doctrine that says the people of...
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...The African Americans: The Birth of Equality after 1865 Leonard Stinson HIS204: American History Since 1865 Instructor John Durr December 5th, 2011 The African Americans: The Birth of Equality after 1865 This was a time when America was trying to find herself. These were the years known as the Reconstruction Period from 1865-1877. During this time period, the African-American people became free from slavery but one can only imagine what free really is. While the nation search for ways to establish true meaning of equality, African-American people continued to struggle to find out just what equality means and to have the same rights and freedom as the white people in the nation. Whether as slaves or free people, the political and social status of African Americans has always been to obtain the ability to participate in the nation’s economy. While many historians believe that slavery and politics can be attributed to the Civil War, more than 600,000 Americans died and with the help of the Emancipation Proclamation to start the motion to free the slaves, America became even more a divided country in 1865 than the previous earlier years (Bowles, 2011). Although freedom in the post-Civil War years did not guarantee equality, African Americans continued to struggle from racism, segregation and discrimination for many years, but the birth of equality is beginning to grow and show that all men and women are created equal. The effort to integrate...
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