Today's lecture made me think of how America has the habit neglecting the core issues on the mainland to fight wars in other countries. This was evident with the internment of the Japanese Americans and the lack of civil rights for African Americans during World War II and it is also seen with the Vietnam War and the issues minorities faced in trying to find civil rights. We learned about the different movements shared by the African Americans and Chicanos that occurred during the Vietnam War and it is sad that many of these Americans were sent to fight the Vietnam War when they were not getting the best treatment at home. It is sad that they had to fight for America abroad and also fight for civil liberties at home.
It says something about our nation when a group of people are not seen as equals but they are relied on the most to fight in the war. We learned in lecture that African Americans and Mexican Americans among others were sent to the front lines the most because they lacked high socioeconomic status and did not have any access to college. I would argue that their lack of economic status and access to college also slowed down their progress when it came to civil rights. I do not like that the government allowed certain people who could afford college to stay in America instead of fighting the war in Vietnam because it makes it implies that the minorities who could not afford higher education were disposable; they were not as important to the nation. These ideas lead me to think of our nation in a different way.
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I absolutely agree with this reflection. Throughout the course we've learned of various situations where the government has done what it believes to be "necessary" regardless of the fact that policies like Japanese internment are undemocratic. I think this Orwell theme of "all men are equal, but some more equal than others" can really be epitomized by wartime drafts and deferrals from military service. As Amerique mentioned, those with more money who could afford college, had the opportunity to study rather than fight. Although this might seem reasonable, is it that much different from the civil war when white men paid slaves $300 to fight for them? In reality, American policies, especially during wartime, are inherently undemocratic as it merely enforces wealthier benefits, and neglects the needs of the poorer workers.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both of you. I like Alex's point about how this is similar to the civil war when white men paid slaves to fight for them. When you think about who has been fighting our wars, it is not even the people who get to make decisions about going to war, or reap the benefits of living in a free country, since most people who fought were Africans Americans or immigrants who had little to no rights. It's horrible and quite sad that so many of our citizens have fought for a country that at many times has betrayed them and not given them the rights they deserve.
ReplyDeleteI think its a great point, and interesting if you really think about it. African Americans and Chicanos were sent to fight in a war, the most hostile of enviornments imaginable. However, at home they still encountered a significantly less hostile, but less than hospitible enviornment. It is sad to think of the mental anguish of having to be mentally tough regardless of your surroundings, while other caucasian soldiers would enjoy a hero's welcome. They were treated as less than Americans at home, but were American enough to die for our country. I also think its a very good point that two of you touched on that the socio-economic inequality among different racial groups in the U.S caused further tension among racial groups with the onset of war, further cementing the archaic notion of a racial strata within the U.S.
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