"Take up the White Man's burden-
And reap his old reward:
The blame of those ye better,
The hate of those ye guard-"
After reading the poem The White Man's Burden, I formulated whats seems to be a pretty accurate description of how the "White Americans" viewed Fillipinos, African Americans, and many other immigrants that help them win battles and maintain economy. These people were viewed as inhumane "savage children". They were considered as animals not people. After helping the Americans prosper in many different ways their only reward was the blame of all negative, and hatred. Automatically today, one would ask why did they continue to obey and not rebel? Booker T. Washington explains in a speech he gave called The Better Part as to why African Americans should hold true to their patriotism and obedience. Coming from slavery and having no rights leaves you with nothing. Any man that went against Americas decisions in law and war could lose their identity, and sometimes even their life. So African Americans were in no position to question or fight "white America." Instead Booker T. Washington used propaganda for one of its main purposes; to enable change and new decisions through the use of symbols. His speech can be considered as a plea for equaility, a plea to be considered a human citizen. By always obeying, fighting without complaint, and never questioning the authority, he thought that the help given by the African Americans to the whites was enough to make a change.
"....we have always been loyal to the Stars and Stripes."
And reap his old reward:
The blame of those ye better,
The hate of those ye guard-"
After reading the poem The White Man's Burden, I formulated whats seems to be a pretty accurate description of how the "White Americans" viewed Fillipinos, African Americans, and many other immigrants that help them win battles and maintain economy. These people were viewed as inhumane "savage children". They were considered as animals not people. After helping the Americans prosper in many different ways their only reward was the blame of all negative, and hatred. Automatically today, one would ask why did they continue to obey and not rebel? Booker T. Washington explains in a speech he gave called The Better Part as to why African Americans should hold true to their patriotism and obedience. Coming from slavery and having no rights leaves you with nothing. Any man that went against Americas decisions in law and war could lose their identity, and sometimes even their life. So African Americans were in no position to question or fight "white America." Instead Booker T. Washington used propaganda for one of its main purposes; to enable change and new decisions through the use of symbols. His speech can be considered as a plea for equaility, a plea to be considered a human citizen. By always obeying, fighting without complaint, and never questioning the authority, he thought that the help given by the African Americans to the whites was enough to make a change.
"....we have always been loyal to the Stars and Stripes."
posted by Maureen Lacossiere @ 12:38 PM
0 comments
