This week's web log was given to us via a number from Mr. Bruns. I got #16, which was 'Ruling the Phillipines.' Honestly, I have no clue what this means, so here is my wing-age. These are their stories.
Philippine-American War- Taking place from 1899-1902, this was considered to be the first true war of the U.S. as a colonial effort. It sparked due to the Philippines wanting to have independence after being annexed by the United States. They had already been in a revolution with spain for three years, they were not going to be taken over by yet another country looking to extend their rule.
The Philippine-American War was the third part of a series of wars, its predecessors being the Philippine Revolution and the Spanish-American War. Of the 70,000 U.S. soldiers sent over to the Philippines were African-American, which raised the question, "Why are African-Americans helping spread racial prejudice to the Philippines. Realizing this, many of the black soldiers pulled a 'Benedict Arnold' and switched sides, aiding the Philippinos. Over the course of the war, it was tallied that over 4200 U.S. soldiers were dead and around 2800 wounded. This may sound crass, but in comparison to the Philippine military losing 20,000 soldiers and up to 500,000 civilians, 4200 is nothing.
This is a political cartoon, depicting their view of The White Man's Burden, which was the white man's "duty" to uplift other races. This obviously shows the opposite of what I just mentioned, so whoever drew this would agree with Mark Twain that The White Man's Burden was a self-serving lie.
After the War- Subsequent to losing 4200 soldiers and $400 million (which was twenty times the amount the U.S. had paid for the islands itself), the U.S. gradually granted the Philippines the independence they'd requested. The U.S. had initially planned to create a government similar to what they have with Puerto Rico. The president would appoint a governor to appoint the upper house, giving the Filipinos the election of the lower house.
The Filipinos still pushed for independence. Despite this, the US tried its best to "Americanize" the islands, attempting to properly prepare them for independence. One way they did this was by establishing the Jones Act, which was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1916. It instituted a Senate in the Philippines while promising eventual independence. In 1934, the U.S. passed the Tydings-McDuffie Act, also known as the official Philippine Independence Act, provided the rights to self-government for the Filipino people. Finally, the Manila Treaty between the Republic of the Philippines and the United States provided recognition that the Republic of the Philippines was an independent country and NOT a U.S. sovereign anymore.
This is the flag of the Republic of the Philippines, who was one of the main characters in the story.
I would like to put my two cents in and say that I think it's great that the Philippines were given the independence they'd been wanting. I also thought it was pretty cool how the African-Americans switched sides to fight for what they believed in, as no one should be treated differently because of their race. Lastly, I would like to know your opinion on the fancy large lettering used at the beginning of paragraphs. :)
http://www.patriotfiles.com/forum/showthread.php?t=116643
http://www.historyguy.com/PhilipineAmericanwar.html
The Americans by McDougal-Littell
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