The Impacts of the American Expansion
The 19th century experienced immense growth and expansion of the American territory. It started with the movement of the settlers into the wet of America after the purchase in Louisiana by the then-president Thomas Jefferson. The movement was significantly driven by; the gold rush and a belief in the “manifest destiny.” As a result of the gold rush, an expansion went into the vast areas of California; gold was a precious resource (Ballou, 1852). The manifest destiny was a belief that was widely held by the United States in the 19th century, that it had to expand both in the north and the west. As O’Sullivan puts it that ”this is a God-given mission to the United States to lead the world in a peaceful transition to democracy, and this should be through expansion” (Manifest Destiny). The main pillars in the “manifest destiny” were in; the mission of the United States for redemption and re-creation of the west in the image of the agrarian revolution, the American institution, and the virtuosity of the American people and the need for accomplishing essential duties (Manifest Destiny).
As many historians have argued, the aim of the manifest destiny was for redemption and creating a better world by improving it. Initially, the manifest destiny had a backing of many leaders who heavily contested the idea. But later on, it was rejected because it was not a representation of the American consensus. The American mission is to promote democracy rather than conquest, as conquest is predominantly marred with violence and no democratization morally. The manifest destiny presented many gains, especially to the American people. The expansion meant an increase in land for agriculture and resources as well. Resources that were heavily contested for in the wake of technology and transportation, which included gold. The expansion offered large tracts of land that provided diversity from other crops like tobacco, which was no longer productive. Tobacco ripped the nutrients out of the soil and could not be grown successively to immerse more production and profits (Cotton Revolution). The diversity of cotton offered a significant growth to the economy, and this move spiked further manifestation of expansion.
The phrase “manifest destiny” was embraced more by its critics more than its supporters, with the majority of the Northerners finding room to promote slavery. Also, In the process of expansion, war ensued, especially with Mexico, brutal ill-treatment of the; Hispanic, Native American, any other foreign groups within the territorial expanding regions was the order of business. Some of the states that the United States was expanding to did not consent to slavery, which was allowed in the US, and this sparked civil wars. The idea of mixing two hostile races in one state was very perilous as conflict will often ensue over discrimination or bias (Harper, 1858). The question of slavery ignited much criticism amongst the democrats and the republicans, as it was contradictory to the mission of the American democracy. Some leaders who had experienced the benefits of the increasing cotton revenue would not champion for the disbandment of slavery.
Slavery meant more cotton, massive production of raw materials in the vast tracts of land that were already bought or seized, and this translated to more money. And likewise, cotton grew alongside slavery (Cotton Revolution). Albeit, slavery had been in existence before the wake of cotton profitability, cotton just fueled its upsurge. The controversies surrounding the “manifest destiny” saw many American leaders who were pro-expansion to get discouraged. The mission that steered the ideology had been hijacked by unscrupulous individuals who were inhuman and greedy, threatening the American conscience. These group of pro manifest destiny propagated violence, violations of human rights as well as pain infliction on the victims of expansions. Even though the expansion was a brilliant idea as it provided resources, economic growth, and development, the prospects that surrounded it was inhuman and unpleasant.
References
Ballou. M. (1852). “This Muddy Place” a Boardinghouse Keeper in the California Gold Rush
Cotton Revolution. The American yawp
Harper (May 15, 1858).Who May Be Citizens of the United States
Manifest Destiny. The American yawp,