...I am an African American from Little Rock, Arkansas. I am going to tell you a story of my people and how we got to where we are today. African Americans are originally from Africa, a large continent across the Atlantic Ocean. Throughout the years of 1450-1750, there brought about enormous changes to the North American continent and people began traveling looking for new life. European Explorers eventually came to the land of Africa where they began a trans-Atlantic slave trade. This estimated to bring 10 million Africans to America. Unlike other subordinate groups in America today, African Americans came to America unwillingly and in doing so suffered great loss, pain, death and so on. Africans being sold to white people of America eventually brought about new economic status and a new social system. Slave trading deemed a very profitable market for European settlers. Goods were exported from Europe to Africa, Africans were sold across the ocean to America where they were enslaved and worked for landowners/famers, and those goods produced by the American farmers through the work of African slaves were then exported back to Europe. Shamefully, fear and greed is a large part of why slavery continued and social segregation infected this country for so long. “Not long after the first colonial settlement in 1619, Africans came to Virginia with the Dutch. At first, like their poor English counterparts, the Africans were treated as indentured servants; laborers under contract...
Words: 689 - Pages: 3
...Artifact Analysis For this week’s Artifact Analysis, I have chosen the “George Washington family portrait,” In this portrait, everyone is well dressed and gathered at a table. The people included appears to be George Washington himself, followed by his wife, kids, and an African American man. Right off the bat, I am assuming that this man is their house slave. While it’s obvious that this man isn’t related to George Washington by any bloodline, it’s interesting for him to be included in this family portrait. In my eyes, this man represents the family dog or pet to be exact. Usually, when a family owns a pet, they most definitely consider them to be part of the family. They include them in pictures, as such, and would not want them to be deceased...
Words: 365 - Pages: 2
...Slavery January 30, 2011 HIS 325: African American History Civil War and Slavery The decade of 1850s was a very fateful and turbulent time in the US history. This is when the seeds of the US Civil War began due to the North and the South disagreeing on the status of the slaves and the idea of slavery. The South had many plantations that were run by the slaves and the North was in favor of abolishing slavery. The South knew that if slavery was abolished, they would stand to lose a lot as they would have to pay their farmers instead of them being their slaves. The North was more industrialized and it really did not have much need for slaves and slavery. It is perhaps most interesting to note that slavery had a very direct relation with the Civil War as one of the root causes for the start of the war was because of slavery. Slavery was introduced in the America during the early colonial times and the American Revolution had established that all men should be equal. There was a lot of debate amongst the Americans and the North and the South came across a rift when it came to the ideas regarding slavery. The South had more plantations and needed more workers and this is why they favored slavery. The North had different ideas and they wanted the freedom of the slaves. This caused a rift and was the cause of the Civil War between the North and the South. The South really needed the slaves to work on their plantations. They...
Words: 1089 - Pages: 5
...literary impact of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. From its publication in 1845 to its present status in the American literary canon, the Narrative has become one of the most highly acclaimed American autobiographies ever written. Published seven years after Douglass' escape from his life as a slave in Maryland, the Narrative put into print circulation a critique of slavery that Douglass had been lecturing on around the country for many years. Yet while the Narrative describes in vivid detail his experiences of being a slave, it also reveals his psychological insights into the slave/master relationship. What Douglass realizes that day is that literacy is equated with not only individual consciousness but also freedom. From that day, Douglass makes it his goal to learn as much as he can, eventually learning how to write, a skill that would provide him with his passport to freedom. What gives the book its complexity is Douglass' ability to incorporate a number of sophisticated literary devices...
Words: 1647 - Pages: 7
...an in depth analysis of African Cultural survivals among the Negroes of the United States. The article involves far more than the traditional linking relationship of traits of Africa and the West Indies. The article examines the resistance and spiritual survival of African Culture among the black Diaspora in the United States. While at the same timeexpounding the scope and the significance of African culture by providing a fertile concept of Africanism that reflects the unique manner in which each black individual of the Diaspora envisions African Cultural retention. Herskovits in his writing posits that the retention of the African cultural has been long lost in the American Culture; however this observation is not the same in the Caribbean/West Indian context. The West Indian retention of the African Culture is evident in many of the religious practices that are still being done in the Caribbean, some of which are Revivalism, Pucho, Voodoo (Vodun), Keele, Santeria, Shouter Baptist and Komfa (Cumfa). These are some of the ways in which West Indians have retained many of the cultural practices of their African ancestors. In his writing Herskovits argued that “for the negro to appreciate his past he has to endow confidence in his own position in his country and by extension the world. He must have scientific facts concerning the ancestral cultures of Africa and the survivals of Africanisms in the New World. In the article Herskovits argued that the survival of African Cultural forms...
Words: 996 - Pages: 4
...Analysis of Fredrick Douglass’s Narrative David W. Blight is a professor, who teaches as of November 2, 2015 American History at Yale University. Blight obtained his PhD from the University of Wisconsin in 1985 with a thesis titled “Keeping Faith in Jubilee : Fredrick Douglass and the Meaning of the Civil War.”Before Yale University, he taught at Amherst College for thirteen years. He has wrote many annotated editions on slavery and as of late, he is working on another biography of Fredrick Douglass.He has received a handful of awards, these include: Lincoln Prize,Bancroft Prize,Fredrick Douglass Prize, Merle Curti award and James A. Rawley prize. Anyhow The introduction by David Blight was very well constructed and It would’ve helped if...
Words: 1832 - Pages: 8
...pertaining to racism, and the general population’s. I. Sewall’s devotion to his religion and to the Bible is what backs his opinions and his view of slavery a. public positions address specific concerns about the rights of Native Americans and of African-Americans brought as slaves to the colonies b. “The Selling of Joseph” addresses his position on some of the inhumanities of his “fellow sons of Adam” c. His somewhat literal interpretation of the Bible is what leads him to his opinion about slaves d. What sets Sewall apart from other anti-slave sympathizers is his public opinion II. His views of natural rights can be contrasted to those of the early explorer Christopher Columbus e. Both exaggerated as most did during this time f. Sewall may have exaggerated in asserting that slave resistance had caused “many” to begin thinking about the value of maintaining the institution III. Sewall was a living contradiction in his beliefs g. He wrote the first anti-slavery piece of literary but was he himself a racist h. Very biblically based opinions yet he was a racist i. Points out how the African American slaves attitudes showed sewall how much they didn’t want to be slaves and were not going to work hard with that attitude so basically it was pointless to keep them enslaved j. Use bible quotes to show contradiction between what the bible says and how he actually...
Words: 373 - Pages: 2
...essay gives you the opportunity to go in-depth into an issue in American culture. Your three possible topics are: (1) relations between blacks and whites; (2) the status of women; and (3) relations between the U.S. and the rest of the world. You pick one of these topics and, using only our textbook, write 1800-2000 words on how you have seen that topic throughout the course, from the beginnings to the present. How has it changed? What were the big events or people involved in it? What analysis can you bring to the topic, in order to assess it critically? The essay is to be critical and not just a summary of sections in which your topic is mentioned in the textbook. The essay should be double-spaced, with one-inch margins, and a 12-point font. Frequent citations (probably one or two per paragraph) to the textbook are essential for each point you find from the textbook. Use Turabian or MLA for your citation format and be exact in your citations, including page numbers for each one. No title page or works cited page are needed. In the beginning of the African American history, there were many obstacles and struggles that the colored people had to face. They were being mistreated, sometimes even less than a white man’s dog. It all began in 1619, the first African slaves were brought to Virginia. Once a person becomes a slave, they were slaves for life and so were the next generation. The majority of the slaves worked in rice or tobacco plantations in dangerous living conditions...
Words: 825 - Pages: 4
...Andy, who generously gave me his kindly help and instructions during the whole process of my paper-writing. Then I’d like to give my many thanks to my classmates who helped me a lot with my information collecting and paper-polishing. Most important of all, I want to give my thanks to my mother university and all the teachers in the English Department, who educated and cultivated me to be a qualified graduate in the future. Abstract When Harriet Beecher Stowe published Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852, the novel was a huge success. It talked about the slavery which was a controversial issue at that time. Many critics made comments on this novel. With the passage of time, attitudes to the book changed considerably. The history of African American in US has always been considered as a bitter story. In recent years, their status...
Words: 5443 - Pages: 22
...Literature Analysis Noah Serna Western Governors University Humanities C100 January 15, 2016 Personal Observations of the Work The work of literature that I chose to do my initial observations on is a poem written by Phillis Wheatley, called “To S.M., a Young African Painter, on Seeing his Works.” This poem was written during the enlightenment period. I particularly chose this poem because I always had an interest in reading about African literature and how over time equal rights for everyone became a success. Upon reading this poem, which was slightly difficult to understand, Wheatley communicates about how powerful imagination can be. She mentions how imagination can give an artist the ability to go beyond their limits to the point were there are no longer any more limitations. She points out a painter several times which I am not sure who she is referring to yet. I am assuming it is an African painter at that time. The one aspect of the work that really sparked my interest was when Wheatley said, “But when these shades of time are chas’d away, and darkness ends in everlasting day” (To S.M., A Young Painter, n.d., para. 2),which I think she implies that when this era of slavery and racism passes the darkness (harsh times) will end and there will be daylight or good times. Analysis of the Work Phillis Wheatley was a writer who greatly differed from other writers in American literature mostly because...
Words: 702 - Pages: 3
...African American Religion in America in the 1800's Introduction The act of religious revivals took place in the middle of the eighteenth century. The religious revival quickly swept over the colonies of America. The impact of the religious revival was it resulted in the doctrinal change as well as stimulated and provoked social as well as political thoughts. It was able to have a permanent effect on the religion of America. The act or the revival was also termed as the Great Awakening. This act made Christianity as a religion extremely personal to everyone. It also fostered an intense sense of religious belief and reclamation. It also encouraged and introduced the concept of self-analysis according to the theological perspective and induced a sense committal to the newly established benchmark of personal morality. Consequently, the Second Great Awakening also occurred in the early 19 century. The movement began in the 1800’s. It introduced a set of reforms which was aimed at removing the evils from the society (www.encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com). The impact of the Great Awakening The First Great awakening eventually led to a major change and a revolution took place. In the lower county, the Baptist in the northern side and the Methodist preachers aided in converting whites and blacks into Christianity, enslaved them as well as gave them freedom. The blacks were given a warm welcome and were asked to play an active role in the congregations as well as become preachers...
Words: 2766 - Pages: 12
...Americans are moving toward Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of racial equality, yet a gap between races remains. This racial segregation is prevalent in the media, particularly in advertisements, magazines, and television. Today’s media have been more inclusive of different ethnic minorities, as the numerical representation of, for example, African Americans has increased. The media, however, have been condemned for exhibiting and perpetuating the racism still existent in our culture. This critique is due mainly in part to the media’s contribution to the social construction of minority stereotypes. Through the media, stereotypes generally distort the images of minority groups, thereby revealing white Americans’ attitudes toward minorities, particularly African Americans. The most dominant attitude promulgated by the media is one that emphasizes low status roles of African Americans. Although more minorities are being represented in contemporary media, the progression of race relations is often diminished by racist overtones that insinuate inferiority of African Americans. Subordination of African Americans through media stereotypes reflects an asymmetrical stance on race relations. An asymmetric race relation is founded in the notions of white domination and black inferiority, with whites on the higher end of the seesaw. While most degrading stereotypical portrayals of African Americans as slaves, porters, coons, and bucks, have faded, depictions of African Americans still remain...
Words: 2331 - Pages: 10
...The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin is an analysis of race relations in America in the 1960’s. It is a personal perspective in the experience of being a Negro in that time. My Dungeon Shook is a letter addressed to the author’s nephew, named after him, written in the one hundredth anniversary of the emancipation, in which he tries to enlighten his nephew in order to keep him from following his father’s footsteps. He numbered the reasons why the white men have such closed perspective about inter racial relations and insists that it’s the Negros who must accept them and accept them with love because they are just confused and do not understand. He believes that the white men are innocent people with no hope, trapped in lies. He thinks they are like younger brothers to African Americans and therefore they shall force them to see themselves as they are. I am amazed of the way of thinking of this man. Instead of inciting fighting or protesting, which are in their every right after all African American people had been through, he rather put himself in the white men position. He has an almost Jesus Christ philosophy of love and acceptance and sees the white men as lost young brothers of the Negros and has the urge to guide them back the right path. He also points that African American are almost as guilty as the white men for following the standards they put them and live the lives that they set them to. Pretty amazing if you ask me. I think I would have never led myself to this...
Words: 705 - Pages: 3
...A Sociological Perspective on Racism and Wealth Disparities Amongst African-Americans and Caucasians Introduction The consequence of racial discrimination has a clear relationship with wealth amongst racial groups. In the last 50 years, although the high school completion rate gap between blacks and whites has narrowed, blacks still only have one-tenth of the wealth of whites and according to Economic Policy Institute blacks make 17.5% less an hour than their white counterparts3. In light of these data, I will use quantitative and qualitative analysis to illustrate both the existence of racial inequality as it pertains to wealth and identify its origins within a sociological context. History of racism and wealth disparities To understand the...
Words: 1202 - Pages: 5
...For Scott, the facts of the case were simple. At the time of the lawsuit, Dred Scott lived in Missouri, which had a policy towards slaves which held that if a slave had spent prolonged time in a free territory, they would become automatically free upon returning to Missouri (Whittington, 2001). Known as “once free, always free”, Dred Scott believed that this applied to him due to the fact that he had spent significant time living in Wisconsin when he was owned by John Emerson. However, the defense claimed that Dred Scott was never owned by Mrs. Emerson, and that relationship was hearsay, which they believed invalidated the concept of “once free, always free” (Levinson, 2007). With this set of facts, the trial went forth at the St. Louis federal-state...
Words: 2011 - Pages: 9
