The Contemporary U.S
Abraham Lincoln played a pivotal role in the realization of the contemporary U.S. Before his assassination, he led the Americans to overcome several challenges in the realization of a united country. The contemporary American society owes its stature to the dedication of Lincoln to fight all forms of inhumanity in the society.
Prior to the Civil war era, most Americans worked as slaves. Most of the states, under the colonial rule, had legalized slavery by 1663 an aspect that deprived thousands of people in America their right to freedom. John Fields, one of the victims of slavery explains the experience that he had as a slave in his letter (Slave narratives from the Federal writers Project, 1936-1938). The information can be found by following the link, http://www.civil war.net/narrativedata/john_fields.pdf. The victims of slavery were not only men but also women as evidenced by Sarah Graves in her narration retrieved from http://www.civil-war.net/narrativedata/sarah_frances_shaw_graves.pdf. This was to cause the civil war as Stephen D. Lee wrote in his Experience of the War (1861) available at http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/sumter.htm.
The spread of slavery brought about controversies between the North and the South that led to the American Civil War. The election of Abraham Lincoln as the president in 1860 marked the beginning of the war against slavery. William Russell (1861) gives a report about the Lincoln’s preparedness three weeks after his inauguration (p.1) retrieved from http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/lincoln2.htm. He led the opponents of slavery in effecting the fight against inhumanity within the states. On 1st January 1863, the president issued the emancipation claim declaring the freedom of all the slaves that were held in all the American states (National Archives and Records Administration, p.1). This proclamation is available at http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/emancipation_proclamation/index.html. It did not take long before the most of the people joined hands in support of Lincoln’s war against slavery. This is evident in Caroline Richard’s diary (1865, p. 10-15) available at http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/civilwarends.htm. In her diary, she also records the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. The civil war led to massive destruction of property and loss of live. Lincoln also brought about the 14th Amendment of the U.S Constitution.
The end reconstruction era began towards the end of the Civil War. This led to the emergence of the united states from a not only loose but also a confederation of the war stricken soverign states to the contemporary United States of America which is characterized by great federal powers. It also brought about interracial politics as described at http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/reconstruction/section1/section1_intro.html. People from different races and social backgrounds would meet without any restrictions. The American community owes the success of the reconstruction era to Lincoln’s successor, President Andrew Johnson who was sworn into office immediately after Lincoln’s death. He continued with the implementation of Lincoln’s plan to build a united nation. The two documents that acted as his guide were the 1863 proclamation. Most people supported the reconstruction efforts. This included Alexander Stephens who urged people to embrace the reconstruction process on his speech which he gave on 11 April 1866, available at http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/D/1851-1875/reconstruction/stephens.htm. All American presidents who ruled after Abraham Lincoln, in one way or another, have been inspired by the firm foundation that he laid. This includes the current president, Barack Obama as detailed by the University of Gronigen (2010), available at http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/P/index.htm.
In conclusion, the contemporary American society owes it prowess to Abraham Lincoln who led the fight against slavery and other forms of inhumanity in America. The realization of justice within all sectors created an environment that is conducive for the development of all other key institutions in a nation. Additionally, the amendments that have been initiated in the U.S constitution such as the 13th and 14th amendment have played a pivotal role in the establishment of a strong nation. The contemporary U.S has well developed institutions that enhance the economic growth as well as development of the nation.
