We Stink To The World (oppression) Essay, Research Paper
“. . . believe as you might that this country has been the land of the free, home of the
brave, and true as that may be for some people, there is a huge number for which the
whole thing is a joke.” Howard Zinn wrote these lines in his acclaimed book, A Peoples
History of the United States, published on July 1, 1995. Zinn’s philosophy of history is
that it is nothing more than conqueror’s writing about their conquests. Textbook history,
in Zinn’s view, does not accurately present the oppression and hardships faced by the
downtrodden people. Included are American Indians, blacks, women, and slaves.
As the population center of the new nation moved westward, it became necessary
to displace the American Indians who occupied the coveted lands. This was done by
using several strategies. When it became evident that the Indians would not be “forced’
to surrender their lands, they were often told that if they refused to move, they would be
subjected to the states laws. This was against their rights of sovereignty. The Indians
were also promised the lands they were to occupy would be theirs forever. As history
clearly shows, this was a lie. As the nation continued to expand, the Indians were
confined to the small and inadequate reservations they still occupy. America grew
geographically at the expense of the true “native” Americans.
Indians were promised uncountable benefits for their cooperation with the nation.
Some Indians, having been promised the right to occupy the lands they already held,
fought against other Indians. While these volunteers fought, their families were attacked
and brutalized by whites. Supposedly for their own protection, the families were moved
from their land and transported to concentration camps. Once the volunteers returned,
instead of being allowed to return to their homes, they were marched west to the
Mississippi. From there they were held in camps while disease and hunger thinned their
numbers. They were then forced onto the aged steamer Manmouth which sank killing
more than half. As Ralph Waldo Emerson later wrote, “. . . the name of this nation,
hitherto the sweet omen of religion and liberty, will stink to the world.”
Slaves and black Americans were subjected to incredible hardships and
indignities. Many took different steps in the fight for equality. Nat Turner, a religious
leader among his fellow slaves, become convinced he had been chosen by God to lead his
people to freedom. Leading a revolt, he and five other slaves killed their master and his
family. Joined by about sixty other blacks, he led a general revolt. Within days, the
revolt was suppressed by militiamen and Turner was ironically hung in Jerusalem,
Virginia. Turners revolt led to stricter legislation concerning the control of slaves.
Harriet Tubman, who was born into slavery, made her way to freedom as a young
woman and was a famous conductor on the Underground Railroad. Tubman made
nineteen dangerous trips back and forth helping slaves in their flight to freedom.
Tubman, who always carried a gun, told her fellow fugitives “. . . you’ll be free or die.”
Her philosophy was that she had two rights, the right to liberty, and the right to death.
Leaders of the American nation, including Abraham Lincoln were hypocrites. As a
volunteer Captain in the regular army, Lincoln and Jefferson Davis helped suppress the
Black Hawk rebellion in 1832. Lincoln also offered different opinions about his personal
views of slavery depending upon his audience and location. While speaking in northern
Illinois in 1858, Lincoln stated that “all men are created equal” and that race should be
put aside. Speaking in southern Illinois, closer to the slave states of Kentucky and
Missouri, Lincoln noted that he did not favor making Negroes jurors, office holders, or
allowing intermarriages with whites. Perhaps if the media was as sophisticated in 1858
as it is now, Lincoln would have remained a frontier lawyer in a log cabin.
One group faced multiple oppressions. Certain black women like Sojourner
Truth, who was an abolitionist and reformer, led the parade toward women’s and equal
rights. Truth believed that eventually women would have equal rights and that she and
others like her would continue the fight until they were heard.
During the period of 1820 to 1860, American history was made at the expense of
several groups of oppressed people. On the blood and tears of Indians, blacks, slaves and
women, expansionism was made possible. Manifest destiny overshadowed the moral
beliefs of the white Christians who were in power. There is cruelty, oppression,
rebellion, and war in history. There is also compassion and opposition to war. Without
the hardships there would be no need for courage. Without despair, there would be no
triumph.