The Emancipation Proclamation
Currently, I am able to walk freely throughout the United States, do business with anyone I like and take part in all the activities that interest me whenever and wherever I like, except for places where age and other factors prohibit me from accessing. For a long time, since its founding, many people in America were unable to do the things that we do today. The most affected groups were the blacks and the native Indian communities who could not live freely outside of their reserves. The mistreatment and abuse of the black people were very common since many of them were still slaves and not considered as American citizens. As history shows, it would take a war, the Civil War, and very public proclamation, the Emancipation Proclamation, to accord the black people equal rights in America.
The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order issued on January 1, 1863. In it, the President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln declared that slavery was abolished in the southern states that were part of the Confederation. The Emancipation Proclamation did not directly end slavery since slaves in the northern states that were part of the Union, as well as those in the Border States were not freed by this executive order. In addition to ending slavery in the southern states, the Emancipation Proclamation declared that the freed slaves could join the army in any position even as soldiers. As such, many slaves joined the Union and fought to defeat the rebelling Confederate states. The Emancipation Proclamation changed the cause of the civil war, acting as the turning point that ensured the Unions victory.
Many Americans in the recent times enjoy freedoms and liberties that were not common for all people in the past. Before and during the civil war era, black people in America were not considered American citizens, and as such, they did not share the same rights to the white Americans. Many black people were slaves in both the north and the south. Today black people are distinctively identified as American citizens, and they form a very critical part of the American society and identity. Black people enjoy the same rights and protection from the constitution just as the rest of the American citizens.
As an American citizen, the Emancipation Proclamation did not only change the cause of the American civil war, but it created the society within which I thrive in today. The high rate of integration of different races has allowed me as a person to appreciate my country for all its struggles and victories. The history of America is filled with numerous difficult situations that required tough and fair choices. In every situation, more so during the civil war, it was very important that our leaders were able to make the right decisions even when they were unpopular. The Emancipation Proclamation is an example of the astuteness of American leaders and their intention to build a free country where all people could prosper. Just as the founding fathers did their part commendably, we should as American citizens, forever commend and appreciate our fellow citizens of the civil war era as well as the government that ensured freedom for all people in the United States. The citizens of America during that era were able to keep true with the spirit and desires of the founding fathers.
Today we study the American civil war as an important part of America’s history. The American civil claimed the lives of many American citizens, all of whom fought for what they believed in as their right and duty. These men and women cannot be forgotten for their contribution to this great country, for they showed us that in America, every person has the right to fight for what they believe. They demonstrated the willingness of America to pay the ultimate price for the freedom and liberties of all its citizens. For this reason, I am forever proud of my country and fellow men, and I will not shy when my time to defend the values of my country has come.
The Emancipation Proclamation was an important step for the country, a step that ensured all people in America would have equal rights and that the color of one’s skin was not a label for their social status. As I have stated earlier the price that was paid to ensure this freedom was way too much, the ultimate price. As such, the death and destruction that ensued is a reason why as Americans we must continue to protect the freedom and liberties of all our citizens. It is a shame that today, even worse mistreatment occurs throughout the country; a behavior that belittles the sacrifices made during the civil war, and similarly disregards such important historical events as the Emancipation Proclamation. For those who continue to deny other people their freedom, it is important that they know that 800000 people died and lost their abilities to function normally fighting for equal rights and freedom for all Americans. It should not take another massive loss of life and function for America to understand the price of freedom and liberty for its entire people. As Americans, we should learn from those who went before us, from the devastation that was the civil war and avoid the current disrespect for one another and the inhibition of other people’s freedom.
On the day January 1 1863, America began its journey towards putting an end to slavery. Slavery can never be justified, but it can be identified as a necessity that at the time, served the interest of the country. The country can never be fully apologetic for the acts of enslavement, but it can heal. If anything, then the lives lost during the civil war should mean something to the bitter black people who continue to ponder on and brood over the mistreatment of their ancestors. I have learned that for every wrong action that the American nation took, it has taken an equally opposite action that has ensured the wrongs were remedied. The Emancipation Proclamation was such action that the country took to remedy the effects of slavery on the black. The Emancipation Proclamation identified the black people as citizens of America, and granted them equal protection by the law. This step was a very crucial step that started to heal the difference between the two racial groups that dominated the country at that time, and even today.
Apart from recognizing black people as American citizens, the Emancipation Proclamation began the process of including black people in politics and other social processes in the country. For example, for the first time in the history of America, the Emancipation Proclamation made it possible for the black man to cast his vote and choose leaders. While there was still a long way for the black man to go as far as these rights were concerned, this step was very critical in the process of ensuring that the country fully committed to its intention to end slavery. Today as American citizens, we all have a say in who becomes our representative in all the levels of government. This is not a very little issue with the emancipation Proclamation making it clear that all citizens deserved equal right to participate in the political and administrative roles in the country. The first black American president, Barack Obama was able to win votes from a huge number of people from all races, becoming the culmination and the realization of the freedoms fought for during the Civil War. Therefore, it gives me joy to know that as a country, we remain true to the desires and dreams of our founding fathers as well as the other great leaders and people who have come before us.
Today the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments exist in law and act as protection for the equal rights of all peoples in America. These changes in the law are the result of the Emancipation Proclamation that started the initiative to end slavery and recognize every American citizen as being equal. The 13th amendment protects against slavery and ensures that not ever again in America will a man or woman, of any race or ethnicity be put into slavery. As part of the law, the 13th amendment is the action that demonstrated the country’s intention to abolish slavery. No other action carries with it the impact that the 13th amendment to the United States Constitution does in regard to making all citizens equal.
The 14th amendment was critical towards the implementation of the 13th amendment. Taken directly from the statement of the Emancipation Proclamation, the 14th amendment gave the black people a right to citizenship and equal protection rights. By identifying the black people as American citizens, the law clearly stated that nothing that shall not be done unto a white person by law should be done to the black person. As such, it outlawed acts such as flogging and other forms of violence. The 15th amendment is critical since it gave the newly freed slaves, at least the men in that group, the right to choose their leaders and representatives in the state and national level. Nothing defines equal rights as the right for all to participate in the political process of selecting their leaders and representatives. Through this amendment, the black man’s voice meant something, and his choice was likewise an empowerment to make a good life for himself and his family.
Conclusion
The Emancipation Proclamation is a very important part of the American history, but most importantly, it is a very critical aspect of the history and journey of the black man. The black man was able to move from being slaves working the fields, and subjected to all kinds of inhumane acts to free citizens with equal rights to their fellow Americans. Since the Emancipation Proclamation, we have all of us as Americans, shared the pains and suffering as well as the victories and prosperities with one another. I wonder why we should stop now. American citizens should continue to coexist with one another as our ancestors who came before us intended. They laid their lives so that as a people we could realize the importance of working and living together. In the end, when an enemy comes to fight us or when we are faced with a calamity, we only have ourselves to rely on. It is, therefore, important to acknowledge and celebrate one another despite the color of our skins, the accents with which we speak, and most importantly, the God we pray to.