American Ethic History

In the onset of the year 1776 that a writer named Thomas Jefferson conceived and drafted the Declaration of Independence. Such eloquent phrasing made it to be such a masterpiece in the history of political writing. The declaration, in its fight for democracy and sovereignty as it was besieged by Great Britain that time had constructed a way in which to breakaway and attain their freedom that is through the declaration of Independence.

The Declaration of Independence consists of three parts; one is about the grievances that England’s King, George III had initiated, the second is the legitimacy of the revolt and third is the statement of principles concerning the rights of men. In which case, it was stated in the declaration that all men are created equal and has inherent right as endowed by the Creator to pursue a life of happiness, life and liberty.

It illiterates that the government exists to protect these rights as given by the people but when thwarted, it is the right of these people to obstruct and alter these by creating a new government that will be in accordance to the principles, that is their right. It was through this declaration that the people of America were able to express their desire for equality and independence. Through this powerful remark as written by Jefferson that “all men are created equal,” that several race and nations alike were able to fight for their right as humans as it is inherently theirs.

The phrase, not to mention the masterpiece itself has up to now, creates a great deal of impact to the people, especially to the oppressed so that they have something that they can hold on to in times of grievances and despair. Through these words, many people, countries and races suffering have been strengthened, as the words lit the fires for the battle ahead, for democracy and the right to be treated as equals. It is then a contradiction that the Naturalization Act of 1790 was proclaimed with the discrimination against race and sex.

Naturalization Act of 1790 Naturalization is a process in which a person who has other countries of origin or birth is given the right to become citizens of the country. In the Naturalization Act of 1790, the Congress passed an act stating that any alien, being a free, white person can be a citizen of the country after two years of stay. The Act came to be when the Congress realized that the newly independent country consists of many different races, African slaves, the French, Native Americans, and other immigrants from European countries.

With the right of citizenship, the selected few have the capacity to vote and exercise their right to make decisions. The Issue It is such a contradiction to the part of the Congress to discriminate the people in means of color. The others who are not given the rights to citizenshp are treated as inferiors. This is also the time where trade of African slaves are afoot and wherein women are not given the right to vote and work as they please.

It is then to that aspect that the Naturalization Act even though there is no naming of gender, in particular it only states “any free white alien” but with the deprived right of women to vote, the Naturalization Act for women is of no use to them. This onslaught of discrimination through the creation of the Naturalization Act is a contradiction to the Declaration of Independence that was uphold in July 4 of 1776, that all men were created as equals by the Creator and therefore shoulf live a life that is just and meaningful.

To treat the Africans not to mention other races with a color different from theirs in a way that is no different from the buying and selling of an inanimate object is a violation of such constitution. To restrict women in doing household chores and caring for children without any priveledge to express their thoughts or without a means of independence such as freedom to work is also a violation to the constitution they once so proudly uphold. The Root Cause Slave trading has been prevalent in the United States since the 17th century wherein natives from Africa are captured and sold as slaves.

They served their purpose as they were forced to labor on productions crops that includes sugar, tobacco, coffee, and cotton. It was not until 1865 that they were given the rights to be a part of the country In the part of women suffrage, it took a longer time before women were granted the right to vote (1920’s). Women during that time are have no means to acquire education nor work. Like the slaves, they are treated as second-class citizen and not much was expected from them.

It was a time where white male individuals were the only ones who was able to have the full grant of being citizens to the country. Conclusion In conclusion, one of the reasons that may come into consideration when thinking about the contradictions in American history maybe due to the influence of culture and strong tradition that occurred. During that time, their way of thinking was not that advanced and modernized so as to free slaves and give women the right to vote because that is a situation wherein they are not used to.

It took a lot of time before thay can accommodate that into their minds that not only male and white persons are Americans. Africans and women had long been with them and in such time have proven their right to be a part of the country. In the light of today, some problems are still in need of a solution, it cannot be said that we have attained true freedom. There is still many who suffer due to discrimination of their gender and their race and that is a challenge to attain the true equality we all hope for. References Foner, Eric, and John A. Garraty, eds.

(1991) The Reader’s Companion to American History. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Gilje, Paul A. “Declaration of Independence. ” Microsoft® Encarta® 2007 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2006. Kerber, Linda K. (1998). No Constitutional Right to Be Ladies: Women and the Obligations ofCitizenship. New York: Hill and Wang. Kettner, James H. The Development of American Citizenship, 1608–1870. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press,. Smith, Rogers M. (1997). Civic Ideals: Conflicting Visions of Citizenship in U. S. History. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.