America Conquering the Philippines.
The annexation of the Philippines by the United States of America was a controversial topic in the 1900’s due to the American population arguing whether it was a good idea or if the decision was moving against America’s constitutional values. Although the information may be true, after reviewing the primary sources, it is obvious the United States should not have annexed the Philippines.
All the arguments claimed during this period pointed to the Philippines to be annexed to America and get the statehood. Thus, many people held their opinions based on the Constitution principles claiming to leave the citizens from the southeast island alone as America did with the British Empire. Moreover, the platform of the American Anti-Imperialist League stated in 1899 “extinguishes the spirit of 1776 in these island”, clarifying that the values of independence in America should be applied for any other nations since we all are born free (Doc. A). In addition, William Jennings Bryan (Doc. D) maintained, if the United States of America annexed the island, they should not let Filipinos read the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution, because the
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Filipinos would know the American values and how they (Americans) acted against their principles. Furthermore, Jennings Bryan claimed the values of America written in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Notwithstanding, many Americans outlook towards the discussion of whether the Philippines should be annexed or it should not was fairly valid.
As stated in Beveridge’s article (Doc. B) it was not an option to leave the Philippines alone in the limbo in the hand of the “savage, bloody, rule [Spanish]” arguing that God was the guider of America. Comparatively to the argument claimed by Christian Advocate in 1903 (Doc. C) which “there was nothing else for us to do but take them [...]” affirming the US could not have considered any other options such as (1) to give the Philippines to Spain, (2) to give Philippines back to Germany and France because they were rivals of the US or (3) to not leave them alone or by themselves. Advocate also asserted that God’s grace would do the very best of
them. Ultimately, various opinions affirmed the United States did want to help the Philippines. Conversely, it does not matter how much American did want to support the Philippines, if they did not want to be helped by anybody, they should have been left alone. Altogether, as it can be seen by a sizable number of people claiming the annexation of the Philippines should have been done, it is evident, the United States of America should not have annexed the Asian island of the Philippines since America would have moved against its fundamental principles and essential values stated in the federal law.
Dear fellow senators: Yesterday, February 6, 1899 was a big day in United States history; we decided as a nation to annex the Philippines. The Philippines is an island country in Southeast Asia, and was independent until 1565 when the Spanish colonized the islands. I have one question for you, my fellow senators, should the U.S. have annexed the Philippines? The United States should have annexed the Philippines for three reasons: our duty to spread the values of democracy overseas, the Filipinos natural inability to govern themselves, and saving the Philippines from the tyranny of Spain or other European countries. The first reason the United States should have annexed the Philippines is because it is our duty as a country to spread the values of democracy overseas.
The scene is set; America is the great power in the western hemisphere. Post Spanish-American War, America is faced with a dilemma of annexing the Philippines. In the winter of 1899 following the annexation of the Philippines, America had a problem. Filipinos had been fighting for independence from Spain and did not want to be seceded (83). Despite the Filipino objection, the United States displayed their assertion on the land. In conflict, both the Filipinos and American had many meetings with death. There were consequences and repercussions from invoking the American power on this foreign land. The American victory in the Spanish-American War helped propel the nation. Thesis: Although met with conflict from the natives, the
Miller, Stuart C. “Letter from New York-Born Soldier.” Benevolent Assimilation: The American Conquest of the Philippines, 1899-1903. New Haven, CT: Yale University, 1982. 88. Print.
Section I,2. Analyze the consequences of American rule in Puerto Rico, Cuba and the Philippines. Did the citizens prosper? Enjoy freedom? Accept American rule? Comment on the consequences for the United States with regard to the statement made by Eric Foner in the text, “Thus, two principles central to American freedom since the War of Independence – no taxation without representation and government based on the consent of the governed – were abandoned when it came to the nation’s new possessions.
Throughout history, the United States had come off as a stubborn nation that would take what they wanted at any cost. This was prevalent in both cases of expansion as the Americans risked war and national safety for the sake of gaining land, or even merely for proving a point. During the early years of expansion, the Americans had pushed aside the Native Americans and whoever else inhabited the land they wanted. They believed that the land was rightfully theirs and that every one else was merely squatting on their territory. This idea was continued into the early twentieth century as the Americans looked to the oceans for new territories to their kingdom. This idea is greatly exemplified in document 'E', in which Senator Albert J. Beveridge delivers a speech to Congress, saying that, "...and thanksgiving to Almighty God that He has marked us as His chosen people, henceforth to lead in the regeneration of the world..."
The late 1800’s was a watershed moment for the United States, during which time the Industrial Revolution and the desire for expansion brought about through Manifest Destiny, began to run parallel. Following the end of the Spanish-American war, the United States found itself with a wealth of new territory ceded to it from the dying Spanish empire. The issue of what to do with these new lands became a source of debate all the way up to the U.S. Congress. Men like Albert J. Beveridge, a Senator from Indiana, advocated the annexation, but not necessarily the incorporation of these new l...
Many Americans believed in implementing imperialism by extending the republic to Philippine Islands was the best option for society. One very key promoter of this form of politics was Albert Beveridge. During his 1898 campaign for Senate, he discussed the positive and beneficial outcomes of keeping the Philippine Islands. Beveridge believed that the American Nation consisted of the chosen people for the Philippines. He believed the American government to be the best in the world, and it was the duty of the American citizens to spread their government to other provinces. Furthermore explained in his campaign America would reap great benefits once the American republic was spread to the Philippine Islands. Another important benefit Beveridge stood firm to was becoming the sovereign factor in the peace of the world. According to Beveridge, “The hour of the decision to keep the Philippines and expand beyond the borders should not be wasted,” many agreed with this claim. With many influential standpoints and promotions, Beveridge won the 1898 campaign for Senate. The popularity of his ideas and the support he had from the voting people justifies his claim to victory. Even with his winning of the election, there were many Americans who disagreed with his ideas, believing that the Philippines deserved
could not rightfully seize the Philippines. McKinley, an imperialist presidential candidate against Bryan, gave a speech to clergymen in 1899. McKinley attributed his will to annex the Philippines to God for guiding him (Document C). At an opposition to those words. Christianity is truly against violence and injustice yet the Filipino people were at crystal clear unrest with not being free. Since McKinley was speaking to clergymen instead of nonreligious individuals, he could have used religion as a way to snatch votes against the anti-imperialist Bryan. In his speech to like-minded citizens of the same political party, Bryan stated that God’s order to preach the gospel “has no Gatling gun attachment” (Document D). At the Democratic National Convention, he knew many people would vote for him as a Democrat; Bryan did not need to be corrupt and lie about his opinion. Beyond this, these words opposed Imperialism as a whole which strongly emphasized military, particularly the Navy. Using force to steal land would further ruin a nation’s image and could hurt existing trade relationships. Promoting unfair power usage only makes light of political machines, monopolies, and other greediness. Progressives could have been discouraged by the government’s lack of care about morality and not strive for it. To preserve its morals since its birth and prevent corruption, America should not have annexed the
Document A states that “no man is good enough to govern another man without other’s consent. When the white man governs himself, that is self-government, but when he governs himself and also governs another man… that is despotism.” Despotism is rule by tyrant. This was recounted by Abraham Lincoln a famous world leader and former U.S President. Lincoln fought for equal rights of white people and African American people. This is similar to the governing of the Filipinos because the U.S wants to annex the Filipinos and put them under their government regulations to benefit their goal of world power and expansion. The Filipinos did not give consent because they were under the impression that while they were fighting alongside the Americans they would be liberated as Cuba was. But instead they fell into the insatiable hands of the United States. Furthermore, Document D states “it is not necessary to own people in order to trade with them.” This relates back to document A because we do not need to govern or own the Filipinos as the U.S. did with slaves to trade with them to improve our businesses and markets. Therefore, the United States cannot govern the Philippines because they do not give their
To start with, by annexing the Philippines, America went against the original guidelines that had been set for the country. The foundation of America was set on freedom and expanding from coast to coast. One of the founding fathers even mentioned that it is unwise to get tangled in issues with foreign countries. One document states “It
President William McKinnley said,”And then I went to bed, and went to sleep and slept soundly.”(Rusling 151) Normally if you do not know what you are doing or did something wrong you would be awake all night thinking about it. He knew that what he was doing was right because he slept soundly. “that I went down on my knees and prayed Almighty God for light and guidance”(Rusling 151) He also knew what he was doing because he got the guidance from God and God is the ultimate source of guidance. So, overall he knew he was making the right decision. In conclusion, The United States should have annexed the Philippines because people who wanted to annex the philippines knew that they were doing the right
Studying the societal climate and political motivations surrounding the annexation of the Philippines by the United States, historians, often use political source documents from the period to gain insight. Theodore Roosevelt in 1901 while giving the stump speech National Duties in Minnesota, twelve days before being elected the 26th president, articulated his views on the topic of the Philippines. Historians Nell Irvin Painter and Kristin L. Hoganson offer their interpretations regarding the rationales that contributed to the annexation of the Philippines. In Fighting for American Manhood: How Gender Politics Provoked the Spanish-American and Philippine-American Wars Hoganson argues that male-centered
One of the reasons for annexing the Philippines was because the United States felt it necessary to Educate the Filipinos. William Jennings Bryan, a Democratic candidate stated, “(We) dare not educate them lest they learn to read the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States and mock them for their inconsistency”(Document D). If America was to educate them they would have to use the American school curriculum. This is not right because they would be robbed of their cultures and customs of schooling. They would not be given the opportunity to decide what the youth of their country is studying. He also claims America would be mocked for their inconsistency. The U.S had just helped them fight for their country to protect their cultures and customs. In the eyes of all other countries America would be looked at as hypocrites because they are now contradicting their own actions. The Anti-Imperialist League stated, “It seeks to extinguish the spirit of 1776 in those islands”(Doc A). When The U.S annexed the Philippines they stole their spirit of 1776, as Britain tried to do to the Americans. The hypocrisy of the matter was outrageous because America had faced the same type of problem when trying to gain their own independence. Now that The United States has the upper hand they feel as if inferior forces can be controlled, such as the Philippines. America stole the amazing
There were several policies in place at the time, some which were put into place before the war, some during the war, and some after. The ratification of the annexation process was long and difficult. There were debates as to how to treat the Filipino people. One suggestion was to treat the Filipinos as dependents, and not citizens, like the Native Americans came to be treated. Many of the imperialists believed that the Filipinos were savages and harsh policies would give America control. The anti-imperialists were not exactly sure whether to treat them as peers or to set them free. I would treat them as equals, as normal people, as they are like everyone else. At the time they might not have been as technologically advanced as we were, and their government may have seemed primitive to ours. I think we should have worked with them to help create a government, rather than occupy and just take over.
The Philippines is a tropical country consisting of islands, with amazing landscapes, coral waters, and tropical forests. It’s home to the emerald rice fields, smoldering volcanoes, fuzzy water buffalos, and happy-go-lucky people. The tropical country consists of 7,107 islands. It has a population of 99 million people, which is the 7th most populated country in Asia, and the 12th most populated country in the world. The country withholds two official languages, Filipino, and English, along with 19 other regional languages.