Civil War

Hussien Nasser

AFAM 2100 – The New Jim Crow

Professor Young

9 February 2017

Civil War

The class discussion on Civil War came together and made what I have been taught about the Civil War more detailed and broader. In high school, middle school, and elementary School, the Civil War was taught on a general level and not on a broader aspect like class discussion. I was taught that the

Civil War simply started due to tariffs, a tax or duty to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports. South Carolina leaving the Union followed by other states joining together and creating the Confederate States of America was also another cause that I learned about the Civil War. This led to the Civil War resulting in over 600,000 deaths and many being wounded. Slavery was also a reason to the separation of states. It was taught however on a brief spectrum. In high schools and elementary schools, teachers are taught in my opinion to keep the real truth away from students. Not the real truth necessarily but information that will open up our eyes and make us to think in-depth about the

reasons we learned the Civil War or other wars actually occurred.

After class discussion, the Civil War was caused from slavery and the transition from agricultural system to an industrial system. Slaves would work in cotton and large mining fields. After the creation of the cotton gin, it made the production of cotton easier and more efficient. It helped the South economy resulting in the demand for more slaves. The government then placed tariffs on raw and manufactured goods causing the South to pay a high amount of taxes and importing goods to the North. After slavery, the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution was the next spark to the Civil War. States were given full access to creating their own laws as well as each stated having the same number of senators; however, the number of representatives was based on population. This affected the South in a negative way because the North would be given more power in the house of Congress. The next cause was the abolitionist movement and northern abolitionist fighting to abolish slavery. For example, William Lloyd Garrison and his newspaper The Liberated became popular as he wrote continuously to justify slavery and the need for it to be abolished. The last spark that caused the Civil War was the creation of the Republican Party by Abraham Lincoln and his predecessors. The Republican Party wanted to stop the expansion of slavery which caused the South to become furious. All of these were the causes toward the Civil War as discussed in class. It made it come together with what I have been taught in high school and elementary school and that it was caused from the separation of stated and the creation of the Confederate States of America.    

An interesting question that I have is “How does a President who does not support social and political equality amongst everyone become President of the United States of America?” This is also an important fact that I was not taught prior to class discussion. It fascinates me learning how much power whites had during this period. White individuals could literally fool, trick, or just walk themselves into power. I also wonder to myself, “How did whites feel when mistreating blacks?” Did the thought of what if this was my son, brother, or sister ever come in mind. It amuses me because I personally would at least get a spark of sympathy or some sort.