American Imperialism In The 19th Century Essay

Nearing the end of the 19th century, America began to undergo some huge societal changes. Americans who had risen to the top and had power were unstoppable and plenty of political corruption took place as a result. The changes in during this period brought negative impacts to America and the rest of the world. This was mostly spurred by corrupt politicians and unsafe working conditions, as well as the problem of American imperialism.
With the rise of progressive politics, there came plenty of political corruption in the system. For example Tammany Hall, a powerful political machine in New York City, would pay people to vote for certain politicians. These politicians would feel indebted to them and would be more likely to do whatever they were
told by the organization. Tammany Hall’s original purpose was as a place for discussion of politics. It quickly gained popularity among the poor and working class. Tammany Hall eventually ended up controlling many positions in New York County. It would even pay certain politicians to stay out of the race for mayor. The corruption of Tammany Hall made the electoral system unreliable, which took away the key component of democracy in the United States.
The labor concerns during this period were a huge problem.
Children were forced to work by their families, who couldn’t make enough on their own to support them. People were earning low wages, which often were barely enough to feed themselves. There was no federal minimum wage, so workers would work for whatever wage they would find. It was very difficult for them to get a financial foothold and raise themselves out of the working class. In addition to low wages, workers often had very poor working conditions. They had to work in cramped workplaces that were unsanitary and often were fire hazards. In 1911, a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York killed 146 workers. There was only one unlocked stairwell down, and it was engulfed in flames. Workers crammed into the elevator, or tried to escape to the roof. Not only was the building not well equipped for people escaping a fire, but the emergency services were not ready for the catastrophe they had to deal with. The firefighters’ ladders were too short to reach the fire, and the ambulances had to make many trips back and forth to the hospital because they were so small. The conditions suffered by these workers were unjust, and would not be solved completely until much
later.
During this period, the US developed imperialistic foreign policies. In the eyes of Theodore Roosevelt, this was largely to maintain the United States’ “manly and adventurous qualities” that nations such as China seemed to be lacking (Major Problems, 108). This is no reason to endorse the invasion of another country. The US would often occupy a country with en explanation of how it was helping that country’s people, but there were often ulterior motives. For example, when the United States occupied the Philippines, it was originally to liberate the Filipinos from Spain. But in December of 1898, the US annexed the entire Filipino archipelago. This outraged the Filipinos, creating lasting enemies that we never would have had, had we not gone there in the first place. The Filipino guerillas resisted the occupation, and the Americans fought back. As the American Anti-Imperialist League said, the slaughter of Filipinos was a “needless horror” (Major Problems, 110). President Monroe said, “The United States is for the Americans, now I answer that the Philippines is for the Filipinos” (Major Problems, 128). This is how it should’ve been handled, instead of another attempt at a land grab for the US. The Philippines were not the only place abused by the United States. In 1893, the US military invaded the Hawaiian Islands and overthrew the constitutional monarchy that was in place. Their land began to be used for American military outposts and sugar plantations. At this point only land owners were allowed to vote, which were predominantly white American businessmen. The settlers did not care about the native Hawaiians; they were simply in it for the profit. This led to the destruction and exploitation of Hawaiian culture. Tourists made a spectacle of their traditional dances (hula) and ceremonies. The effects of American imperialism on the native people of the countries invaded were destructive and undeserved.