As an American who received a public school education, I certainly learned about the atrocities of American slavery and the violence committed against black Americans during the Jim Crow era. However, in recent years, as I read more about America’s racial history, I am often amazed by the lengths to which white Americans are willing to go to keep blacks from having equal rights, oftentimes hurting themselves in the process. Below are some of the most striking events in American history where whites went out of their way to harm blacks. Some of them I learned in high school; some of them I only learned about recently. Before the United States was formed, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed laws which elevated the status of whites in the colony and diminished the rights of blacks in the colony. In one such law, white men who killed a slave during “discipline” would not be held responsible. Some have argued that the aim of these laws was purely political – by stoking divisions among whites and blacks, the politicians in power would be able to retain that power more easily. In crafting the Constitution of the United States, the founding fathers saw it fit to count each black person in America as 0.60 of a person for purposes of allocation of political representation. In the years leading up to the Civil War, the economy of New York City was so tied to the cotton industry of the South that the then mayor of New York, Fernando Wood, suggested that New York City, apart from New York State, would secede from the Union along with the Southern states. During the Civil War there was a military draft in order to provide enough troops to fight in the Union Army. However, many whites resented being asked to risk their lives for the freedom of enslaved blacks. White people protested this draft in many Northern cities. In New York City, the violence lasted five days. Black individuals and black institutions were targeted. More than one hundred victims lost their lives, and an orphanage for black children was burned to the ground. In 1868, President Andrew Johnson issued a pardon for all members of the Confederacy. It was easier for him to seek camaraderie with whites who betrayed their own government than with blacks who had fought to support the government in the Union Army. With the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment, black men were given the de jure right to vote. However, blacks attempting to vote often faced violent opposition from armed white groups. An estimated 5,000 black Americans were killed in violence from whites in the ten years after emancipation. In 1898, Charles Aycock, a white man, organized a violent attack on the city of Wilmington, North Carolina. The aim of this attack was to remove the white and black politicians of the city belonging to an opposing political party. Rather than being punished for organizing this violence, Mr. Aycock was subsequently rewarded by being elected governor of the state. In the middle of the 20th century, the Supreme Court declared that it was unconstitutional to prohibit blacks from studying with whites in public schools. In response, Prince Edward County, Virginia closed its public schools entirely, rather than allow black students into what had been white-only schools. In the America of today, the circumstances have changed, but the sentiment is the same. Whites continue to keep blacks from enjoying full and equal freedom in America. Black Americans face elevated violence from law enforcement (think George Floyd). Black Americans are made to live in environments with elevated health risks (think Flint, Michigan). Black Americans regularly have the value of their lives called into question (think of the opposition to the phrase “Black Lives Matter”). This does not have to be the reality of life in America. We are capable of making a change to elevate black lives. I believe that working towards this end is a worthwhile and compelling task. | Mỹ là nước giàu nhất chẳng có nghĩa Mỹ là nước tình cảm nhất. Mỗi đất nước trên thế giới đều có cả điểm tích cực và điểm tiêu cực. Gần đây số lượng điểm tiêu cực của nước Mỹ khá là nhiều. Ở nước Mỹ mọi người dân có quyền sở hữu súng, thậm chí súng trường. Phần lớn người Mỹ dùng súng để bảo vệ nhà mình hoặc đi săn hươu. Tuy nhiên, hàng năm một số người dùng súng để bắn người khác. Trong năm 2017 một người Mỹ đã bắn ra hơn một nghìn viên đạn vào nhóm người tham gia lễ hội âm nhạc. Hơn 400 người bị thương và 60 người đã chết. Dù vậy người dân Mỹ vẫn được phép mua súng. Tại nước Mỹ, như ở mỗi đất nước trên thế giới, dịch bệnh CoViD 19 bùng phát rất nặng nề. Khi vi-rút mới được phát hiện ở Mỹ nhiều người phản đối những biện pháp phòng chống dịch bệnh. Một số bang thậm chí không cho phép những thành phố trong bang đó ra luật đeo khẩu trang. Nhiều người Mỹ cũng chưa đi tiêm vắc-xin, mặc dù vắc-xin miễn phí và hiệu quả. Kết luận là hơn 700,000 người dân Mỹ đã tử vong do CoViD 19. Nước Mỹ là một nước dân chủ. Chính khách Mỹ thường khuyến khích những nước khác rằng nước đó cũng nên biến thành nước dân chủ. Đại diện Mỹ đưa lý do rằng dân chủ là hệ thống chính phủ hòa bình nhất. Nhưng Mỹ không phải là nước dân chủ gương mẫu. Sau cuộc bầu cử năm 2020 vài trăm người không thích kết quả đã tấn công Điện Capitol ở thủ đô Washington. Mặc dù trận đó đã kết thúc rồi, Mỹ vẫn chưa an lành. Theo ý của mình tình cảm có giá trị cao hơn tiền tài, vì có tiền, mà không thể xử lý bạo hành và lo cho sức khỏe của người dân thì chẳng có gì cả. |
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About Me
I started this blog to share my transformation from math nerd to math nerd who loves to share math with young people. I teach high school in Hanoi, Vietnam. Your comments are always welcome. Archives
May 2021
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