Lincoln A White Supremacist Summary

He still did not think blacks should have the right to vote, hold political offices, or marry white people. He also still believed physical differences between the two races would prevent them from living together socially and politically (186). Lincoln was against whites benefitting from slave labor and did feel that blacks should be able to benefit from the fruits of their own labor. According to Dinesh D’Souza in her article “Abraham Lincoln: Tyrant, Hypocrite, or Consummate Statesman”, he was not, however, an abolitionist. Abolitionists wanted an immediate end to slavery and believed the rights of slaves should not be compromised and that they “had a duty to defend freedom, unreservedly, and careless of the consequences” (3).

This clearly shows that Lincoln was not out for the Negro but just to preserve the union. He says in many other debates that he thought the Negro had a physical difference from the white man as well as an intellectual difference (Lincoln-Douglas, n. pag.). Lincoln was considered by many in the south to be a bigot, a white supremacist who wanted segregation and opposed civil and political rights for blacks (Oates 21). Stephen B. Oates talks of many of the theories in his book, like that many southerners concluded that Lincoln was with them in the matters of race (22). Many of these examples show that Lincoln was a hypocrite of some sorts. He would appeal to the southerners by making statements that led them to believe that he was against the Negro. Yet he was writing the emancipation proclamation that was supposed to free all of the slaves. This also is debatable that the proclamation freed any slaves at all. The emancipation proclamation is looked at by some as one of the most far-reaching pronouncements ever issued in the United States (Oates 25). Also it is said that the proclamation freed few if any bondsman (Oates 26).

Lincoln was a moderate Republican and had argued for black suffrage. However, the issue was complicated because of the debate on whether the federal government has the right to interfere (?) with the suffrage that the Founding Fathers had directed at the sates

The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War, by Thomas J. DiLorenzo completely shatters the illusion of the 16th President as the liberator of the slaves. DiLorenzo provides convincing evidence for Lincoln’s overt racism as expressed in his documented views on racial supremacy as stated in his desire to colonize all American blacks outside the United States (p. 4); Lincoln’s views were matched by the majority in the North who used such tools as state constitutional amendments to prohibit the emigration of black people into Northern states like Lincoln’s home of Illinois (p. 4); and that the Presidents war which killed 620, 000 Americans and destroyed 40% of the

The author says that defenders and supporters of Lincoln can always back up his remarks with a redeeming quality. Lincoln admitted his feelings of racial equality; instead he always stated the feeling of white people. He didn’t always carefully construct his answers when speaking about his position of certain topics, although he tried. Lincoln wanted all questions about race removed from all discussion. His strategy to do so was to agree with the Democratic Party that there was no equality between blacks and whites. He used racism strategically to eliminate it. Lincoln did admit that he was in support of colonization because he truthfully believed that blacks and whites could not live together equally. To a man like Frederick Douglass, what Lincoln and the Republicans stood for was disjointed. And to me, while this may have all been a strategy for Lincoln, I feel it necessary to take Douglass’ side of the issue.

It is hard not to agree with David Herbert Donald in his biography of Abraham Lincoln. He does his best to not give his professional opinion of anything and only writes about the topics from which he has proof of. The main ideas that the author has throughout the text is greatly supported with Lincoln’s own papers and from written first-hand accounts of his generation. Donald accounts for the changes of position on slavery and the equality of blacks throughout his presidency. I think that this book is a great depiction of Abrahams Lincoln’s life.

In many of the speeches that Lincoln made, it was evident he was a racist. It's clear that he was prioritizing the Union instead of the freedom of the slaves and was using the slaves for political reasons. For example, Lincoln stated “I am, not ever have been, a supporter of bringing

Lincoln was always against slavery. He never thought of slaves as better than white Americans, but still thought they should be considered as equal to the law. Lincoln agreed with the founding fathers' phrase “All men are created equal,” which he also thought that it should have applied to black and white people. “The Declaration and the Constitution enshrined these rights: the right to ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’. In essence, to Lincoln this implied the right to be free, to enjoy the fruits of his labour, to have a family and to acquire property.”

accuse Lincoln of being a lover of the Negro race. Lincoln vehemently denied the charge by

In his debate with Stephen Douglas, Douglas said Lincoln wanted “negro equality” and Lincoln explained that he never wanted that. He said he did not want them to be able to vote, marry white people or serve in juries. He thought slavery should end because African Americans blacks should be able to have a better position in society and benefit from the what they had to go through for the past years. He thought that made black people the same as white people, and that slavery was unjust because of that. In his years as president, his views about black people changed. On April 11th, he said that black people that fought in the Civil War need the right to

Abraham Lincoln has gone down as one of the most prominent presidents in the American history, from his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, to his assassination. Having to deal with some of the most troublesome times in the History of America, as president, Abraham did “to the best of my [his] ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States,” (Source B) in hopes to combine the North and South to once again become a United Nation. However, the status of African Americans in relationship of Lincoln must be analyzed further, as it was a crucial aspect of his presidency and distinction as “The Great Emancipator.” Although Lincoln was “ naturally anti-slavery,” (source B) he viewed it

President Abraham Lincoln was put into office March 4, 1861, and this would be the start of a significant change for America. Many people see Lincoln as one of the best presidents that was in office for America, but others have opposing views on how he was not the best president in office. In Lucas E. Morel’s, “Lincoln, Race, and the Spirit of ‘76”, he expresses, “Many people who consider Abraham Lincoln the greatest American president would be surprised to discover that he endorsed black colonizations, did not promote civil and political equality for blacks in the free state of Illinois” (3). By having Lucas E. Morel expressing that, “endorsed black colonizations” and “not promote civil and political equality” shows two ways of how Lincoln was great, but at the same time was not. If Lincoln allowed black colonizations he would demonstrate equality for them, since the freed slaves are still not being treated well. On the positive side, Lincoln was still able to make slaves independent in America which shows how Lincoln affected slavery. As one can see,, Lincoln does not correspond with slavery since he does not see it as a justified act. At the moment in America, human equality was not justified because of slavery. Lincoln wanted to make a change in America and wanted to make sure human equality was justified. In Lucas E. Morel’s, Lincoln, Race, and the Spirit of ‘76, he indicates that, “Lincoln saw this repudiation of human equality as the greatest threat to preserving

During the Abraham Lincoln’s short time as president, he managed not only to save a nation deeply divided and at war with itself, but to solidify the United States of America as a nation dedicated to the progress of civil rights. Years after his death, he was awarded the title of ‘The Great Emancipator.’ In this paper, I will examine many different aspects of Lincoln’s presidency in order to come to a conclusion: whether this title bestowed unto Lincoln was deserved, or not. In order to fully understand Lincoln, it is necessary to understand the motives that drove this man to action. While some of his intentions may not have been for the welfare of slaves, but for the preservation of the Union,

Although Lincoln fits the modern definition of a racist, in the nineteenth century, the definition of a racist was different. Abraham Lincoln grew up in a time period where people based their views on the science and culture of their time. In their time science seemed to prove that there truly was a hierarchy of

Actually, Steven Spielberg’s film named “Lincoln” starts during the time of the Civil War, when President Abraham Lincoln was requiring this war’s end. From the initial scene the cruelty of the war is clearly shown, mostly against African American soldiers. In fact, racial discrimination was a significant problem at that time and that was one of the biggest struggles of Abraham Lincoln, as he attempted to maintain the whole nation as one union. The film describes the situation occurred in the 1860s and discloses that white privilege was a centric faith. Nevertheless, the manner in which white people are depicted in this film assumes that there are only insignificant changes in that respect.