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Topics on the statue of liberty
Topics on the statue of liberty
Topics on the statue of liberty
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“Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction.” These are the words of Ronald Reagan, former President of the United States of America, speaking on the topic of freedom, a subject he frequently dealt with during his long presidency. Over the years, freedom in the U.S. has become an increasingly controversial topic, and the effectiveness of the government in affording these freedoms has been called into question. Through certain historical documents and events, the government’s effectiveness at ensuring freedoms for all can be confirmed. The occurrences of several major events in the history of America eventually gave all blacks equal rights and fostered a culture of change in American society. The Emancipation Proclamation of 1862, written by President Abraham Lincoln, was one of the most …show more content…
It has the ability to create emotions that range from happiness to anger all at one time. To begin with, it is necessary to obtain some background on the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty was given to the United States in 1886 as a gift from France and dedicated as a national monument in 1924. Standing at approximately 46.50 meters and weighing 225 tons it was the largest structure, at the time, to have entered the United States via Ellis Island, New York. Before the entrance of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island was used as a border for immigrants who wanted to be a part of “the land of the free and the home of the brave.” With the coming of the Statue, there was something tangible for new Americans to see when they entered the country. With its newfound fame as the first visual representation of the immigrants, the Statue also soon became a link to the idea of freedom and a brighter future. In 1976, a renovation project began to fix some mistakes made in its initial transport to the United States. Lee Iacocca, CEO of The Statue of liberty- Ellis Island
...hile African Americans went through journeys to escape the restrictions of their masters, women went through similar journeys to escape the restrictions of the men around them. Immigrants further strived to fit in with the American lifestyle and receive recognition as an American. All three groups seemed to shape up an American lifestyle. Today, all three of these perceptions of freedom have made an appearance in our lives. As we can see, the transition of freedom from race equality to gender equality shows that freedom has been on a constant change. Everyone acquires their own definition of freedom but the reality of it is still unknown; people can merely have different perceptions of freedom. Nevertheless, in today’s society, African Americans live freely, women are independent, and immigrants are accepted in society. What more freedom can one possibly ask for?
Abraham Lincoln’s original views on slavery were formed through the way he was raised and the American customs of the period. Throughout Lincoln’s influential years, slavery was a recognized and a legal institution in the United States of America. Even though Lincoln began his career by declaring that he was “anti-slavery,” he was not likely to agree to instant emancipation. However, although Lincoln did not begin as a radical anti-slavery Republican, he eventually issued his Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves and in his last speech, even recommended extending voting to blacks. Although Lincoln’s feeling about blacks and slavery was quite constant over time, the evidence found between his debate with Stephen A. Douglas and his Gettysburg Address, proves that his political position and actions towards slavery have changed profoundly.
Many great minds have discussed their opinions on freedom and or slavery. During the 1800’s, many people, such as Frederick Douglass, became known as abolitionists, or those who oppose slavery. A major speaking point of these abolitionists were the obligations of freedom. Yet, several years later, there was still the discussion of the obligations of freedom. Two men that discussed this topic and made an everlasting impact were John F. Kennedy as well as Martin Luther King Jr. John F. Kennedy discussed it in his Inaugural Address and King discussed it in his letter, Letter from Birmingham City Jail. In the texts, Letter from Birmingham City Jail by Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address the topic of the obligations of freedom is frequently noted.
Jayne argues in this book that the values contained within the declaration of independence heavily influenced Lincoln and that Lincoln attempted to make these values available to African Americans. This type of thinking directly coincides with the modern pro-Lincoln school’s assertion that Lincoln was a good influence on racial thinking. Foner’s Give Me Liberty takes a nearly opposite stance on the issue. The description of emancipation in this textbook reflected Lincoln’s hesitance and actual necessity of emancipation rather than its applications to racial equality. All of the major details were included such as the Corwin amendment and issue of black military service but the book stated pressure from military losses as the cause of emancipation rather than political exchanges. Either way, Give Me Liberty fits into the anti-great emancipator school although it does recognize the positive significance of Lincoln’s actions. Richard’s Who Freed the Slaves? takes an almost identical approach to Lincoln and slavery. Although Richards argues that Lincoln did not play the biggest role in the goals of antislavery and definitely did not support racial equality, he does admit that Lincoln did play an important role in America’s development during the civil war. As a result, this book falls into the anti-great emancipator school but withholds the harsher judgements about
As a child in elementary and high school, I was taught that President Abraham Lincoln was the reason that African slaves were freed from slavery. My teachers did not provide much more information than that. For an African American student, I should have received further historical information than that about my ancestors. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity or desire to research slavery on my own until college. And with my eagerness and thirst for more answers concerning my African American history, I set out to console my spirit, knowledge, and self-awareness of my ancestors’ history. I received the answers that my brain, mind, and soul need. Although Abraham Lincoln signed the 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution, courageous African American slaves were the real heroes and motivation of the movement.
Freedom is defined as “the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action.” Freedom is something that millions take for granted everyday and billions have died throughout history fighting for it. One group whose freedom was unjustly stripped from them were African Americans who were kidnapped from their homes in Africa and shipped to throughout the world to serve as Slaves. Two men who understood what it is like to have their freedom stripped away from them were Nat Turner and Fredrick Douglass. These two men grew up as slaves on southern plantations in the 1800’s, and spent their adulthood fighting for freedom through very different methods. This paper will examine the tactics, effectiveness, and impact of Turner and Douglass
During the Abraham Lincoln’s short time as president, he managed not only to save a nation deeply divided and at war with itself, but to solidify the United States of America as a nation dedicated to the progress of civil rights. Years after his death, he was awarded the title of ‘The Great Emancipator.’ In this paper, I will examine many different aspects of Lincoln’s presidency in order to come to a conclusion: whether this title bestowed unto Lincoln was deserved, or not. In order to fully understand Lincoln, it is necessary to understand the motives that drove this man to action. While some of his intentions may not have been for the welfare of slaves, but for the preservation of the Union, the actions still stand. Abraham Lincoln, though motivated by his devotion to his nation, made the first blows against the institution of slavery and rightfully earned his title of ‘The Great Emancipator.’
Washington Square Park is home to thousands of New York University Students, families leisurely strolling through the park on afternoons, people cooling off at the fountain during the summer, couples lounging on the green grass, and even home to the New York City Pillow Fight held during the summer. At the center of Greenwich Village, it provides an escape from the busy traffic and city surrounding it. Most importantly, it is home to the Washington Square Arch.
It is common knowledge that the American Civil War provided freedom and certain civil rights, including to right to vote, to the African-American population of the nineteenth-century. What is not generally known, and only very rarely acknowledged, is that after freeing the slaves held in the Southeastern portion of the U.S., the federal government abandoned these same African-Americans at the end of the Reconstruction period.2
Freedom has been discussed and debated for a while now and yet no one can completely agree that it exists. Since the Civil, War America has been conditioned to be divided politically. The conflict over the meaning of freedom continues to exist from the civil war, throughout the sixties and in the present. The Civil War was fought over the question of what freedom means in America. The issue was in the open for all to see: slavery. Human slavery was the shameless face of the idea of freedom. The cultural war in the sixties was once more about the question of what freedom is and what it means to Americans. No slaves. Instead, in the sixties and seventies four main issues dominated the struggle for racial equality: opposition to discriminatory immigration controls; the fight against racist attacks; the struggle for equality in the workplace; and, most explosively, the issue of police brutality. For more than two centuries, Americans demanded successive expansions of freedom; progressive freedom. Americans wanted freedom that grants expansions of voting rights, civil rights, education, public health, scientific knowledge and protections from fear.
Although the Civil War is celebrated as the time of emancipation, emancipation was not the primary issue at stake. This leads to wondering how the Emancipation Proclamation and the 14th amendment actually affected the life of the average black. If emancipation was a side effect or an afterthought, what did it really mean? Truly, although blacks were legally freed after the war, they were in many ways still enslaved to the white man. But although the majority of whites in the South did desire and often succeed in keeping the “freedmen” under their control, some few truly did desire to see blacks succeed in the world. Also, the status of blacks during the war was intriguing; for the North, blacks from the South and Northern blacks were treated the same. And that same was inferior to the whites of the North.
On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation; as the country headed toward the third year of the civil war. This proclamation stated: “that all persons held as slaves are, and hence forward shall be free,” however this only applied to the states that were no longer part of the union, leaving slavery untouched in other states. However the Emancipation Proclamation was needed to benefit African Americans.
The prompt for this essay is, “Does freedom need to be won more than once?” In my opinion, it does and it has to be won with every generation. I think even though there are laws ensuring our rights, they are not always upheld. For example, women and men are supposed to be equal, but in some situations they get paid less. In this essay, I will argue that our freedoms must continually be earned. For instance, the Revolutionary War was fought to gain independence from Britain, the Civil War was fought to abolish slavery, and the Women’s Suffrage Movement in the 1910s to 1920s was aimed to allow women to vote.
How should we honor history? Where should we stand in the debate over memorials? These the questions that float to the surface when Gov. Nikki R. Haley of South Carolina signed a bill into law that ordered the removal of the Confederate battle flag from the Capitol grounds. Michael I. Niman author of As Confederate Flags Fall, Columbus Statues Stand Tall and Ernest B. Ferguson author of The End of History write regarding the question, what decisions should be taken against the offending statues and memorials that remain across the United States. Niman believes all offending statues should be removed, but I believe Ferguson idea is much better, we need to have dialogue for a better solution.
This is a great symbol of art because The Statue of Liberty is magnificent in every way, and serves its purpose to a superb level. Like I mentioned previously, “location, location, location .. “ the statue’s location was perfect back in the days of Ellis Island and is perfect now as a tourist site. Shortly after the immigrants on the boats first spotted the land of their new homes, they came into the Hudson river to see this grand statue, and to most people it wasn’t just some lady who was standing in the middle of a river, it was the lady who was going to free them or help them from their inadequate lives.