Education Subjugation!

by dj146722

As the farmer’s fell one by one the Industrial age would soon be  in full swing. Industry requires workers and “breeding” a work force would be an excellent opportunity to have wage slaves toil without asking questions. The system used to create this new work force was called the Public Education System. Howard Zinn on page 263, paragraph two says, “…the spread of public school education enabled the learning…for a whole generation of workers, skilled and semiskilled who would be the literate labor force of the new industrial age.” A work force was literally being grown to serve the interests of big business. this didn’t start until the late 19th century, but once it started i quickly ran amok. Certian textbooks were banned for being laced with propaganda, teachers had no control of the content to be taught, and the teachers themselves were now selected based on citizenship. The school system is now successfully indoctrinating the new generation with patriotism and capitalism.

Of course the only children not being controlled by the public school system were the children of the rich. The grand scheme of the school system was aimed at the working class. This is the epitome of how industrialization “screwed” the working class and made the rich richer. At this time education was not a way to better one’s self so much as it was a tool of capitalism to create the new working class; civil, obedient, and patriotic slaves. This generation would have the intelligence necessary to allow the factory owners to reason with them thus preventing any form of  “controversies and strikes.” Howard Zinn most likely included this in order to show the crux of the Industrial revolution. The farmers are being replaced by people who only know how to work in factories. Everything is to be industrialized including the public school system. Zinn uses multiple accounts of people to prove this point. Industrialization could not thrive with constant striking holding up production and ruining efficiency. whereas people who were forced to leave their farms would strike soon they wouldn’t be needed. As the industrial revolution headed into full swing, the already gargantuan gulf between the working class and the rich would grow to become astronomical!

The Fate of the Farmers

by sk156825

The Farmers Alliance-

“The government played its part in helping the bankers and hurting the farmers; it kept the amount of money- based on the gold supply- steady, while the population rose, so there was less and less money in circulation”

Farmers who were financially unstable lost their land and homes and were forced to become tenants. This happened mainly due to the lack of money in circulation. It made it harder for the farmers to pay back debt. And when they did managed, due to deflation they ended up paying more money than they were given. Bakers profited because the dollars they got were more valuable than when they had given it away. The rising number of tenant farmers and lack of help from the government led to the creation of the Farmers Alliance. It began in Texas and as a result of the brutal crop-lien system that was “little more than a modified form of slavery” (Goodwyn). The Alliance spread like a wildfire and by 1892 it had reached forty three states. Howard Zinn included the Alliance because of the atrocities committed against the farmers. The large corporations, bankers and government gave these people no other option but to riot. The Alliance played an important role in this era because they ended up becoming the People’s party—the Populist Party.

The Honest Capitalists

by mk162079

During the second Industrial Era, wealth was dominated by banks and corporations, whereas laborers were exploited at lower wages and many of them died at work by accident. Russell Conwell, the author of Acres of Diamonds justified the rich by saying, “I say you ought to get rich, and it is your duty to get rich … The men get rich because they are honest men … there is not a poor person in the United States who was not made poor by his own shortcoming.”(262) The Capitalism movement tends to be criticized because of the inequality between rich and poor. Only some people had wealth and authority and the rest of people were exploited as labor. However, the idea of Capitalism was accepted by the public including lower-class people in the American Society and gave opportunities to the poor and improved people’s life certainly.

              At that time, the entire society encouraged the Capitalism movement. Indeed, churches, schools and literature taught people the idea of Capitalism the rich is superior to the poor and the poor needed a tremendous effort and extraordinary luck to become wealthy. Furthermore, wealthy people donated their money to education and were called philanthropists. As a result, many colleges were founded and many children became literate. It was like the rich built the factory to produce new generations who are better-educated and trained. It was beneficial to both the public and the corporations. People started having better jobs and salaries. On the other hand, people obtained the opportunity to climb to the upper class by education. These rewards to the poor from the rich formed the obedience to the authority. The poor appreciated the rich people for spending money for the poor and also recognized the fact that the rich people had enough money and power to control the school systems. Hence, the poor people realized they needed to obey the rich people.

I think Howard Zinn mentions these arguments because he thought the Capitalism improved the society a lot although it caused inequality and harsh working environments. Zinn also gives examples of successful people, such as John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie, to emphasize how Capitalism gave people opportunities and luck. In my opinion, Zinn does not say that the rich are generous to the poor. They redistributed their earnings to the poor for their own and the society’s future prosperity. Capitalists are good at manipulating people like easing their complaints and encouraging them to be obedient to the authority. In my opinion, the philosophy of Capitalism is not as simple as “the more money the rich gets, the more the poor suffer,” but also “the more money the rich gets, the more the society is improved” because the rich people enhanced the standard of life of the poor in actuality.

A People’s History of the United States, Chapter 11: Robber Barons and Rebels (Group 3, Due 10/21)

by David Parsons

Instructions:  Let’s generate a list of key terms for this chapter. Using the “New Post” function, write a brief (1-3 paragraph) blog post that describes a specific person, event, organization, or institution mentioned in this chapter and how it fits into the larger narrative. Your group should aim to produce as diverse a list of terms as possible, so try to pay attention to what others have already posted and choose your term accordingly. A blog post should include:

(1) the name of a specific person, event, organization, or institution,

(2) a (brief) relevant quote from the text

(3) a short (no longer than one paragraph) summary of how the term fits into Zinn’s argument about the era. Why do you think he mentions it? 

IMPORTANT:  Be sure to categorize your post under “A People’s History, Chapter 11″ (the Categories buttons should be on the lower right) so you can get credit for your post! 

Should the Chinese Be Excluded? (1893)

by jy155669

“The Chinese are not driven away because there is no room for them. Our country is not crowded. There are many millions of acres waiting for the plow. There is plenty of room here under our flag for five hundred millions of people. These Chinese that we wish to oppress and imprison are people who understand the art of irrigation… They are modest and willing to occupy the lowest seats.”

Robert G. Ingersoll is an Illinois attorney who despised the unwarranted and racist views that filled anti- Chinese laws. He was a reputable speaker and public figure who addressed many other issues and established his creditability as an orator.

To explain his viewpoint on the unwarranted, unjustified treatment of immigrants, Ingersoll referred to the arrival of the Irish and German. They became numerous in population and soon became powerful and an influential presence in the political field. Eventually the Irish and the Germans drove the native Americans out of trades and other forms of labor.

Yet when the Chinese arrived, they had no plans of moving up the social ladder. They were “inoffensive, peaceful, and non meddlesome.” They simply worked for themselves and didn’t try to instil their different faiths and culture onto other people. The Chinese were considerate of others yet they were met with hate and resistance – political with the Exclusion Act in 1892. Their employers were the only ones sympathetic and offering them jobs. The Chinese were denounced and asked to leave.  They were willing to be servants and sweep and scrub. They did not expect to be masters, yet they were hated because of their patience and honesty in their work.

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

by lw157338

“The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 suspended all Chinese immigration for ten years and declared the Chinese ineligible for citizenship. Chinese workers already in the country challenged the constitutionality of the law, but their efforts failed. The act was renewed in 1892 for another ten years, and in 1902 Chinese immigration was permanently prohibited. Not until 1943 did Congress grant Chinese Americans eligibility for citizenship.Whereas, in the opinion of the Government of the United States the coming of Chinese laborers to this country endangers the good order of certain localities within the territory”

The Chinese Exclusion Act appears to me as Americans slapping their own faces. The United States is the country that advocates human rights. On July 9, 1868, before Chinese Exclusion Act was adopted, American established the Fourteenth Amendment, which states, “No State shall deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” This Amendment should protect not only citizens but also aliens. But 14 years later, all Chinese immigrations were suspended. The Chinese Exclusion Act considered not only the racial, but also the national discrimination. They were ignoring the human rights that Amendment protects.

The Chinese Exclusion Act reflects two situations. First one is the rapid growth of Chinese population during the California Gold Rush period, which have caused the increasing of unemployment rate and economic crisis. The phrase “endangers the good order of certain localities” indicates that the influx of Chinese laborers resulted U.S. workers fight for the job within the tense situation. They were considering the job opportunities that Chinese took “endangers” residents’ life. American citizens lost their job due to the cheap Chinese laborers. Furthermore, American politicians exaggerated the negative image of Chinese laborers for votes. They are saying that Chinese have a lot of bad habits and prejudices. It is impossible for them to be Americanized, and it is unlikely they will accept the basis of the Christian ethical standards that the United States has established.

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

by Brian Waldron

“An act to execute certain treaty stipulations relating to Chinese: Whereas, in the opinion of the Government of the United States the coming of Chinese laborers to this country endangers the good order of certain localities within the territory thereof: Therefore, Be it enacted, that from and after the expiration of ninety days next after the passage of this act, and until the expiration of ten years next after the passage of this act, the coming of Chinese laborers to the United States be.. suspended; and during such suspension it shall not be lawful for any Chinese laborer to come, or, having so come after the expiration of said ninety days, to remain within the United States.”

The Halocaust, the Rwandan Genocide, the Bosnian Genocide: these are just a few of the major tragedies of world history that have left a significant adverse impact on mankind. The Chinese Exclusion Act was just like the rest of them, if boiled down to its components. This act prohibited any Chinese immigrant from entering the United States and it wasn’t until 1943 that it was revoked. This act exemplified a huge extent of racial profiling and discrimination, preventing an entire race from entering America. It was detrimental to the principles the United States was built on: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Although the Chinese workers that were already inside America’s borders revolted, their efforts were quickly diminished, as the military put a stop to it immediately. America at the time felt this act was needed because supposedly the Chinese workers endangered “certain localities”, which is honestly difficult to believe.

This act showed the degree of nativism within the country at the time, how certain Americans could feel so threatened by immigrants, that they would have to cause an uproar and have these people’s rights deprived. Although nineteenth century America saw this act as a way of assisting the “American people”, but in reality all they really did was demonstrate how low the country could go, because in the world’s eyes they committed a genocide of not life, but liberty.

 

 

Money Rules

by oz157937

Mary E. Lease, The Money Question (1892)

“Money rules… The parties lie to us and the political speakers mislead us. We were told two years ago to work and raise a big crop, that was all we needed. We went to work and plowed and planted ; the rains fell, the sun shone, nature smiled, and we raised the big crop that they told us to; and what came of it? Eight-cent corn, ten-cent oats, two-cent beef, and no price at all for butter and eggs-thats what came of it.”

One of the most active and passionate woman during the populist movement was Mary E. Lease. Mary urged farmers to “raise less corn and more hell!”  Farmers were told to raise big crops by the parties only to learn that they were deceived into working a lot harder. After all the farmers hard work what came out of it was eight-cent corn, ten-cent oats, two-cent beef and nothing for butter and eggs. The farmers were told by the politicians that them that they suffered from overproduction but 10,000 little children starved to death and 100,000 shop girls in New York are forced to sell their virtue for the bread. The farmers were making barely enough money to survive. The Santa Fe Railroad and loan companies were just robbing the common people to make the rich richer. Mary E. Lease wanted to motivate them to fight for what belongs to them, go all out and do not give in. The people will refuse to work and pay their debts until the government pays its debt to them. Her speeches helped the farmers stop working like slaves and they also warned the government, letting them know that they were done being abused by the rich and their “masters” and they were done being controlled by the government. The country was done being run by wall street and it was going back to the peoples control. The time of people being abused is over.

Racism in the South (1902)

by dw156902

“… A colored woman, however respectable, is lower [in status] than the white prostitute. The Southern white woman will declare that no Negro women are virtuous, yet she placed her innocent children in their care…. (An Anonymous Black Woman For the Record Chapter 21 Page 82).”

 

The middle of the 20th century was a time well-known for the activists for racial equality to step up and show the world a piece of their mind. However, before the time of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X, African Americans were not represented or heard for their concerns on inequality within America, the land of the free. For all the Whites cared for, Black people didn’t have any problems with what was happening to them. In the South, it wasn’t unusual for Blacks to be lynched. For a woman who lived in a white neighborhood, she must have been living in terror for her and her family every day. Although everyone in her area probably had the same income, everyone looked down on her family because they were Black.

According to the quote, she claimed that even White prostitutes are more respected than a Black housewife, like herself. Black women during her time faced double oppression; Whites looked down upon them for being Black, and Black men thought Black women were inferior because they were women. Knowing that she was the lowest of the low, her neighbors still left their kids to be babysat by someone who was worse than a prostitute. They used her for these kind of tasks, in some way, continuing to instill their authority over her family for being the inferior household in the neighborhood.

Should the Chinese Be Excluded? By Robert G. Ingersoll(1893)

by Qiao Zheng

“This law is contrary to the laws and customs of nations. The punishment is unusual, severe, and contrary to our Constitution, and under its provisions aliens-citizens of a friendly nation-can be imprisoned without due process of law. The law is barbarous, contrary to the spirit and genius of American instructions, and was passed in violation of solemn treaty stipulations…After all, it pays to do right. This is a hard truth to learn-especially for a nation. A great nation should be bound by the highest conception of justice and honor. Above all things it should be true to its treaties, its contracts, its obligations. It should remember that its responsibilities are in accordance with its power and intelligence.”

The Chinese started coming to California in large numbers during the Gold Rush in the mid 1800s, hoping to strike it rich and return home. Many stayed and more came, working in the mines or taking other jobs. In 1882, they were made the targets of the United States’ first law limiting immigration based on race or nationality, the Chinese Exclusion Act. The Chinese Exclusion Act, approved in 1882 in Congress and lasted for 60 years, was the first and the only federal law in US history that excluded a single group of people from immigration on no basis other than their race. It explicitly banned Chinese workers from immigration and existing residents from naturalization and voting.

There are two reasons for accelerating the speed of this Act. 1) With the completion of the process of U.S. industrialization, labor shortages problem has gone, so they were no longer welcome those uneducated and unskilled Chinaman who earn their living just by doing manual work. 2) In the 1880s, Chinese worker were restricted themselves on making garment, leather, and matchstick for living. Therefore, Chinese worker was of no consequence in the development of American industrialization.

In the 1776, US Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson set in writing the people’s unalienable right to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. American are treated  with the so call human right, however Chinese were not protected under the human right even though they are human being as many other people too. In this case, the Chinese Exclusion Act against the sprint and genius of American Constitution.