Introduction
America has experienced a series of violence throughout her history. There are two types of propagators of violence in America. The propagators include the government which suppresses and oppresses the citizens that it should take care of. Whenever activists came into the open to oppose the oppression, the government executed them. Another group that propagated violence are the activists who could organize for massacre in order for the government to act. John Brown saw it wiser to kill all the slaves than see them suffer in the poor living conditions of poverty.
American character in this sense means the way America has been viewed. The perception that has been derived from America is the oppression nature. America is seen to be oppressing the inhabitants Violence and oppression is part of American character and no body could dare coming out in the open to oppose the ruling class. There is a lot of violence that has been witnessed in the United States propagated by both the government and the activists who organize massacres. John Brown was a man of violence and one who can be referred to as a terrorist in the present day. He believed that the government which oppressed the citizens should be met with violence. He did not make any distinction between the innocent and the guilty in a society where evil perpetuated. America has been an arena of violence for a very long period of time.
Dred Scott was an African American slave. He was involved in a Supreme Court case which was based on the fact that although he and his wife were slaves, they lived with their master in states where slavery was illegal. His case was however not successful because he had an African origin and so he was not entitled to bring suit in federal court under the diversity of citizenship. Scott thought that he was free as he stepped on free soil but later realized that the citizenship rules could not even allow him file a suit in the federal courts. Different generations write their own history. An assumption of continuity can be used to apply American Constitutionalism. The people of America require knowledge and the understanding of the legal instruments to carry out their political life. Historical knowledge of law is very important as it helps one to ascertain the judgment and know whether it is in line with the constitution. Scott’s case is an example of a court’s decision to write it political philosophy into the constitution. There was no body who was willing to accord the right judgment to Scott because he had the Africa American Origin.
Work Cited List
http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/04/050425crbo_books
Shurtleff, Mark. Am I not a Man? The Dred Scott Story. Valor Publishing. 2009
Swain, Gwenyth. Dred and Harriet Scott: A Family’s Struggle for Freedom. Saint Paul, MN: Borealis Books. 2004
Tsesis, Alexander. We shall overcome: A history of Civil Rights and the Law. New Haven, C.T. Yale University Press. 2008
