Imperialism

What is Imperialism? Colonialism?

• $Imperialism$: a policy by which stronger nations extend their economic, political, or military control over weaker territories
    * context:
• $Colonialism$: implanting of settlements on a distant territory
    * context: common way that imperialistic countries extended their power over others
• $Berlin Conference$: 1884-85, meeting where imperialist countries of Europe divided Africa into colonies
    * context:

Isolationist to Imperialist:

• $Isolationists$: Favored keeping out of foreign affairs,
    * context: against American imperialism
• $Expansionists$: favored imperializing other territories beyond continental US
    * context: aka imperialists
• American foreign policy was rooted in $isolationism$ (staying largely focused on developing our nation) since 1796
• $isolationism$: staying largely focused on developing our nation)

Sea to Shining Sea:

• After fulfilling the policy of Manifest Destiny, US started looking overseas…
    * 1867: Alaska
    * 1898: Hawaii
• Hawaii as an example of imperialism:
    * economic: wanted sugar plantations
    * military: pearl harbor military base established (1887)
    * cultural: religious missionaries established

Imperial power instead of isolationist one… Why?

1. Economic: desire for new markets, demand for raw materials
2. Military: desire to establish military presence overseas to protect economic interests abroad
3. Cultural: belief in cultural superiority leads to idea that imperialism is a way to spread democracy and improve the lives of “inferior” people- very racist ideology
4. Humanitarian: Americans sympathized with the oppressed people of some of the places that were imperialized by European countries

   
   1. Cuba
   2. Phillipines

White Man’s Burden:

• $White Mans Burden$: people who viewed it as the duty of white people to imperialize
    * context: justified it by misusing Charles Darwin
• $Social Darwinism$: Darwin had said that stronger individuals of a species evolve and adapt over time
    * context: he never said “survival of the fittest” and he never meant that groups of people were superior to other groups

“A splendid little war”:

• Desire to protect business interests also led to increased involvement in the Caribbean
• $Spanish-American War$: 1898,
    * context: support of Cuban indep. led to US involvement
• $Yellow Journalism$: Newspapers publish graphic (and often exaggerated) stories of Spanish cruelty to the Cubans
    * context: prompts public anger
• $USS Maine$: April 1898, explodes in the Havana harbor is blamed on the Spanish
    * context: causes calls for Congress to declare war, they do, US wins after 16 weeks

Spoils of War:

• Cuba gets indep. on conditions:

1. $Platt Amendment$: gives USA right to intervene in Cuban affairs anytime there is a threat to “life, property, and individual liberty”

   
   1. One condition of Cuban indep.

2. Cuba has to lease Guantanamo Bay to USA for naval base

• Although the intention was not to gain land, territorial gains from the war included Guam, Puerto Rico, and Philippines
    * Philippines is biggest cause for debate: should the USA keep these territories or give residents their indep.