Article: Was Lincoln a Racist? by Louis Gates Jr.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Was Lincoln a Racist? - Article Response
Article: Was Lincoln a Racist? by Louis Gates Jr.
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Article: Was Lincoln a Racist? by Louis Gates Jr.
While reading, I went back to the title of this article. "Was Lincoln a racist?” I thought about this question in my head. Lincoln never truly stated that he was against slavery; however, Lincoln was never a slave owner that wanted slavery to be in America forever. In the beginning of Lincoln's presidential career, Lincoln stated that if a race had to be superior, it would be the whites and the African Americans would be sent back to Africa. But as his career went on, Lincoln began to state more openly his feeling that slavery is wrong and the slaves deserved the right to keep the “fruits of their labor.” Before Lincoln died, he made a speech to give Blacks the right to vote. I believe that Lincoln was not a racist, but if Lincoln had not died on that day then he would have come to believe that colonization was wrong and the African Americans need equal rights.
ReplyDeleteRacism: (n.)"The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, esp. so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races." Was Lincoln a racist? This is a tough question to answer because Lincoln personally detested slavery, but he did not think that blacks should be equal to whites. Once slavery started to divide the country, Lincoln did not know the correct solution. He "deeply conflicted about whether to liberate the slaves, how to liberate the slaves and what to do with them once they had been liberated. Whereas abolition was a central aspect of Lincoln’s moral compass, racial equality was not." He decided not to colonize the slaves to Africa and instead gave African Americans the right to vote. Frederick Douglass "was the first black person Lincoln treated as an intellectual equal, and he grew to admire him and value his opinion."I think that since he gave the African Americans equality and admired Douglass demonstrates that Lincoln was not a racist person. A man who was racist was John Wilks Booth who said “That means nigger citizenship. Now, by God! I’ll put him through. That is the last speech he will ever make,” when Lincoln told the public about giving the African Americans to vote. The President was assassinated by Booth a few days after that event; however, he is greatly remembered in the United States since he led all American citizens to have equal rights.
ReplyDeleteWas Lincoln racist? "Lincoln was deeply conflicted about whether to liberate the slaves, how to liberate the slaves and what to do with them once they had been liberated." Lincoln definitely wanted to abolish slavery; however, he wanted to send the slaves back to Africa. Does that mean he really cares about them? After 200 year of them being in America, the slaves had created lives, made friends, and raised their children. Does he really think that he can just send them back to Africa? This part of what Lincoln did might have been on the verge of being racist. But the definition of racist is: prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on such a belief. I do not believe that Lincoln is racist; however, I do believe that some of the thing that Lincoln said, did and thought could have been perceived as racist.
ReplyDeleteIn others perspective, is Lincoln a racist? In my mind, I personally believe that, Abraham Lincoln, is not a racist. Many thought that Lincoln could have been a racist in some eyes. Lincoln was a black supporter; however, he did find that his race was still more superior compared to the blacks. Is Lincoln a racist? No, I don't think he is. The definition of racist is "the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race." Lincoln is not in this category. In my point of view, he is not a racist.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think about the question of Lincoln being a racist, I would definitely hope to say no. When I read more into the story of someone else talking about the subject, I become uncertain about what I truly think. Abraham Lincoln embraced anti-black attitudes and phobias in his early years, but by the end of the Civil war, he was on an upward arc of being anti-slavery. At some points he said that he wanted to ship the slaves out of the United states, and that makes me think that he does not like the slaves. Maybe it was supposed to be nice to give them another chance, but I am not so sure as there seems no potential shipping them to a place they have never been. Some Americans have become so devoted to Abraham lincoln that they have reinvented him to fit what they wanted him to be like. Knowing that, I do not know who to trust when talking about the subject. Lincoln may have been a good man and may have stood by his word, but when it came to being a racist, I think that he might have had a little bit of an edge to him that, throughout all his encounters, never wore off.
ReplyDeleteWas Lincoln a racist? Lincoln personally despised slavery for many reasons but also because the whites that could not afford slaves were viewed as inferior to their peers who could. Until much later in his presidency, Abraham Lincoln was very conflicted on whether or not to allow the blacks to fight and to liberate them of slavery. He was afraid that if he allowed them to use guns and fight with the Union, that the guns would soon be pointed towards them instead of the Confederacy. Even as he was writing the Emancipation Proclomation, he was planning to ship them overseas and colonize them. It took several things to change his view on the African Americans. One was the fact that the Union was losing the Civil war and he knew he needed them to win. In addition, he met Fredrick douglas and began to see him as an intellectual equal. This and many other contributing factors began to change Lincoln's views on the blacks and want to give them the rights they deserved. No, he was not a racist, he was just a man put in a powerful possition who struggled to fing the right answer for slavery that would not only satisfy him, but the rest of the country as well. Even though it was impossible to bring the whole country together on one decision, he chose what he thought was best and changed our country for future generations to come.
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ReplyDeleteAbraham Lincoln was not a racist but at the same time he was. Lincoln was in every way opposed to the idead of one man working under another without pay but he was not opposed to sending back those people after their job was finished. Ask yourself, would a non racist person exterminate people from his country? Would a racist person try to free another race? Even though lincoln has had his moments when he is racist, in the end he is just trying to do the best thing for the african americans.
This article points out a very interesting topic that is debatable. Being that we are in the present and not in Lincoln's time, it makes us hard to judge accurately about his true emotions. All answers as of right now are mere opinions. No one knows the correct answer. Different teachings and environment can lead to different thoughts on this issue. From what I learned, Lincoln cannot be considered a racist compared to the people from his era. We have to think as if we were in the 1800 hundreds; not the views of the 21st century. Almost everyone considered the blacks as inferior so it would not be normal for the president to treat them as equals. That does not make him a racist. It was simply the views of his generation. He actually stood out for the other race and took a risk just to free slaves, let alone give them the same rights. He is a man to be respected and should be honored just like what Barak Obama in his presidential campaign.
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