Politics in Context

" Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, a man got fucked. Now how is that for a story? 'Cause that's the story of black people, IN AMERICA!" -Anansi the Spider Under the institution of slavery , black people were property. They had none of the "inalienable rights" laid out in the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution. Countless innocent people were killed, ripped away from their families, forced to endure unimaginable pain and humiliation, all because white America did not consider them to be people. Slavery was the greatest injustice ever perpetuated in American history, enforced by every branch of the United States' government.  Even before the Declaration of Independence was signed, there were abolitionists . The abolitionists sought to end the horror of slavery through various means . William Lloyd Garrison, supported by free African-Americans in Boston, printed an anti-slavery newspaper, the  Liberator.   "Conductors,...

     Thomas Paine’s pamphlet,  Common Sense , was published anonymously on January 10, 1776. In forty-nine pages, Paine clearly laid out the moral and political arguments for declaring independence from Great Britain and fighting for a democratic government. The pamphlet was distributed across the colonies and read aloud at taverns and meeting places. Common Sense was instrumental in rallying the colonists to fight for independence.      The campaign for independence was one of the first nationwide campaigns in American history. People needed to be convinced to act, to stand up for what was right and throw off the shackles of a tyrannical government. A dedicated group of people worked towards convincing a nation, through every medium available, that something had to be done. Campaigning has always been the foundation of democracy. In order to influence the decision-making process in government, Americans have stood up, talked to their fellow c...