The first people to immigrate to America had come in search of some type of freedom, whether it was freedom of speech, freedom from an oppressive government, freedom to practice a religion openly, or even just freedom to own more land. These first immigrants in North America proclaimed they wanted freedom for all and that all people are created equal, which was the basis America was founded on. However, only time would tell what it truly meant to say that all people are equal. Before long, these new arrivals began to import African Americans as slaves, along with taking the lands of innocent Native Americans, in unfair ways. Eventually, the Civil War took place, resulting with the illegalization of slavery across all of America, but the Jim crow Laws and Segregation, primarily in the south, took slavery’s place. Then during the Gilded Age, big businesses and wealthy businessmen began to hold the most power, placing all other people in a lower social status with less freedoms. Later on, the 1960s held the build-up of the fight for total equality between all races (through the Civil Rights movement), along with attempt to gain freedom from outdated rules of older generations. From the very beginning, America placed freedom and equality at its cornerstone, but as it built its way up to where it is today, the people of America constantly changed and evolved the true meaning of those concepts. When the Civil War ended in 1865, Reconstruction began, and people started the long journey of defining the true meaning of freedom and equality. During this time, African Americans were freed from slavery, through the Thirteenth Amendment, but they were not treated as free American citizens either. The Jim Crow Laws were legalized in the south, allowing all public areas to be segregated. In order to provide for their families, African Americans were forced to work as sharecroppers. This meant that they had to complete all of the hard work for farming crops, in return for only some of the profits. They could not own the land, and the wages they earned were meager and unfair. For a short time only, African Americans were allowed to vote, but this privilege, too, was taken away. As these unfair conditions for African Americans continued, many people in the north, like Abolitionists, worked to help them earn some rights. This was because some of the Northerners (also known as Redeemers) viewed black Americans as equals who should therefore have the same rights as white Americans. Eventually, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments were passed, giving African Americans the right to all privileges of American citizens, along with the right to vote. However, these new amendments were not
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People like Andrew Carnegie, and John D. Rockefeller owned entire resource industries, like oil or iron, and these people become so wealthy that they gained an overwhelming amount of power, which could often override the government. This was possible, because since they were the only owners of a certain resource, they had full control over prices, which automatically gave the businessmen power over all of the consumers. Also, the Industrial Revolution brought on a surplus of factories instead of farms, which meant many people worked in factories, especially immigrants. The owners of these factories also had lots of control, since they had no limits on the conditions they could place on their many workers. These wealthy factory owners and resource industry owners continued to hold much power over the majority of Americans, until the US government realized the dangers these people created, both for the country and its people. Many accidents had occurred in factories, like the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, all because of the unsafe and unsanitary conditions the workers worked in. Also, these people had obtained great power, sometimes stronger than the US government, which realized that if the power these people possessed was not harnessed, then there could potentially be great dangers for the entire country. Therefore, laws and acts were passed that limited their power, along with making conditions better for all factory workers. However, as the problem of equality between poor and rich white Americans became mostly resolved, another twist of America’s fight for complete equality
People like Andrew Carnegie, and John D. Rockefeller owned entire resource industries, like oil or iron, and these people become so wealthy that they gained an overwhelming amount of power, which could often override the government. This was possible, because since they were the only owners of a certain resource, they had full control over prices, which automatically gave the businessmen power over all of the consumers. Also, the Industrial Revolution brought on a surplus of factories instead of farms, which meant many people worked in factories, especially immigrants. The owners of these factories also had lots of control, since they had no limits on the conditions they could place on their many workers. These wealthy factory owners and resource industry owners continued to hold much power over the majority of Americans, until the US government realized the dangers these people created, both for the country and its people. Many accidents had occurred in factories, like the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, all because of the unsafe and unsanitary conditions the workers worked in. Also, these people had obtained great power, sometimes stronger than the US government, which realized that if the power these people possessed was not harnessed, then there could potentially be great dangers for the entire country. Therefore, laws and acts were passed that limited their power, along with making conditions better for all factory workers. However, as the problem of equality between poor and rich white Americans became mostly resolved, another twist of America’s fight for complete equality