Essay Sample on Completing the Revolution

An unfinished nation can be described to be a nation that has irregular progress in terms of its political, economic and social constructs. The United States can be perceived to have a ninety percent aspect of completion because there are still issues regarding gender, racial discrimination and minor conflicts pertaining different perspectives (Cunningham et.al, 2009). However, the civil war brought into various perspective factors that resulted in the transformation of the U.S. such that it has consistently experienced growth and progress. It is worth noting that individuals such as Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt are accredited for their significant contribution to the growth of America. The American history can be described as the most progressive construct; characterized by events that made what America is today. The end of the civil war can be attributed to being the force that pushed America to perceive the reconstruction of the nation (Cunningham et.al, 2009). Plenty of issues were taking place before the civil war and hence the concept of unfinished America. Some of the issues include racial disintegration, feminism, and gender inequality.

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It is worth noting that the main cause of the Civil War contributed greatly to the transformation of the U.S. The civil war took place between the years 1861 and 1865 and was between the northern states and the southern states of the United States of America. Both sides had different perspectives in regards to their organization. The northern part had developed significantly due to industrialization while the southern part based its development on agriculture (the agrarian market). The difference brought about different viewpoints in regards to political and cultural constructs. The differences then brought about conflicts on aspects such as tariffs, improvements within states, federal rights and state rights and also taxes (Cunningham et.al, 2009).

Among the factors that made the U.S. an unfinished nation is the issue of slavery. The northern and the southern sides conflicted when it came to the issues of slavery such that it resulted in secession. The southern side wanted independence such that it becomes perceived as an independent Confederate in addition to having its own constitution while the northern and the western parts aimed at preserving the existing Union (Blattman & Miguel, 2010). In order to sustain its plantations and the agricultural practice, the southern region required a large number of slaves. By the time the civil was taking place, the southern region had more than four million Africans working as slaves in the plantations. Slavery became a big part of the southern region despite the slave owners being small in number. Salves were being treated as goods such that they were traded off when a person wanted to clear the debt. If a person possessed more than five slaves, he or she gained plenty of respect such that he could obtain a position in the society. It is worth noting that slavery was perceived as wealth especially during the time when the prices of land and cotton depreciated. The price of a single slave was quite high. Furthermore, the slaves underwent vetting and bidding such that he or she was given to the highest bidder. However, for the northern region, most states had abolished the slave trade. The influx of immigrants from countries such as Germany and Ireland gave the northern region security in terms of laborers when the potato famine had prevailed during the 1850s. The immigrants provided cheap labor and hence removing the necessity of the need for slaves (Blattman & Miguel, 2010).

Another issue is on gender inequality whereby there was inequality when it came to exercising womens rights in regards to America being an unfinished union before the civil war (PBS, 2016). The feminist movement was also at its peak whereby the activists perceived that women were accorded unfair treatment such that they were sidelined. The suffrage movement for the women began in 1848 during the first convention regarding the rights of women. The convention was held in New York at Seneca Falls. The suffrages movement put the focus on educating women on their value in the society. The leaders of the movement were mainly Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton in addition to other female activists. The leaders pressurized Congress to pass a bill that gave power to women in regards to exercising their rights. In 1920, women voted for the first time in the U.S (PBS, 2016). It can be perceived that before the civil war, America was unfinished in regards to gender inequality as the constitutional push for the rights of women began to be considered at the beginning of the twentieth century. Till now, aspects of gender inequality are being experienced but not as much when compared to the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century.

Another issue is on racism whereby there was racial discrimination when it came to exercising civil rights in regards to America being an unfinished union before the civil war. On racial discrimination, a good example is the Dred Scott Decision (Olhoff, 2011). Scott was seeking to become an American citizen. However, he was denied the right with the view that no African descent had the right to become an American citizen. The denial led to the reversal of the agreement in the 1820 Missouri Compromise that had put restrictions on any form of slavery within the U.S. The incompleteness associated with racial discrimination continued after the civil war whereby the African Americans still found it difficult exercising their civil rights. However, they pushed hard for the right to be treated equally as the whites. The end of the Second World War rose the need for social change in the American society and hence bringing about various issues. The need for equality in terms of race was quite intense in the 1960s in America. America was still finding a challenge promoting racial equality during this period which became an issue for the African American artists. Some of the significant matters in regards to social change were; independence from colonialists, African countries adapting to the new found freedom, in addition to the ideology of civil rights (Olhoff, 2011). The Civil Rights Movement pushed for the need for the African Americans to be allowed to vote as they were part and parcel of the U.S. The movement can be perceived to be the tool weapon that pulled down the wall of racial segregation and bringing a huge transformation in the American society; especially after the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Olhoff, 2011). From a personal perspective, America still has unfinished business with regards to promoting ethnic equality. There is still a huge gap between the majorities and the minorities in regards to economic, social and political factors; a good example is an inequality in the education sector in terms of resources. Furthermore, the recent cases of the shooting of African Americans young men by the police raise a lot of questions in regards to equality. Be that as it may, America has undergone a huge transformation in regards to its political, social and economic prospects.

In conclusion a complete nation entails all the above revolution completions. Key among them is the attainment of the social, political and economic constructs.Also gender equality should be given priority to allow both men and women to exercise their rights.

References

Blattman, C., & Miguel, E. (2010). Civil war. Journal of Economic literature, 48(1), 3-57.

Cunningham, D. E., Gleditsch, K. S., & Salehyan, I. (2009). It takes two: A dyadic analysis of civil war duration and outcome. Journal of Conflict Resolution.

Olhoff, J. (2011). The Civil Rights Movement. New York: Cengage learning.

PBS, (2016). The History of the Womens Rights Movement. PBS.org. http://www.pbs.org/stantonanthony/movement/index.html