Understanding American History

This assignment explores key aspects of American history. It examines the reasons behind Andrew Jackson's popularity, analyzes how conflicts between white settlers and Native Americans could have been resolved differently, discusses the beliefs held by Southerners regarding slavery, and investigates the factors contributing to the development of the domestic slave trade and its impact on Black people.

Running head: AMERICAN HISTORY 1
American History
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AMERICAN HISTORY 2
Question 1. Why do you think Andrew Jackson was so popular?
Andrew Jackson was a General in USA and he led the army in 1812 War. He became popular
because he defeated the British at New Orleans (Bacci, 2017). During the War the British
had humiliated the Americans by capturing briefly the city of the Washington and they burnt
down many public buildings as well as the White House (Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards
&Self, 2014). Jackson was able to avenge thus loss by defeating the superior English force at
the New Orleans. Additionally, he also became popular after promising to clear out any
corruption which was taking place in the USA government in case individuals were to elect
him (Bacci, 2017). What made the victory of America very impressive was the forces which
Jackson defeated were the ones which previously triumphed over the Napoleon army. He was
more than the hero of the New Orleans exploited (Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards &Self,
2014). Jackson was able to overcome lifetime adversity and defeat power structure to become
the President.
Question 2. How could the conflict over land between white settlers and Native Americans
have been resolved differently?
The conflict between the Native American and the white settlers could have been resolved
differently, if the White settlers had moved past the Native American land. Additionally, they
could have moved to the land which the Native American were not taking up and then they could
have industrialized everything. It would have been much easier if they moved the Native
American to the land that had not been occupied (Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards &Self, 2014).
They did not need to move them quickly and brutally. The idea of the Indian removal act was
important but it did not need to move them quickly. If the White settlers had given the Native
American or Indian American a little time to move and not force them to march out quickly over

AMERICAN HISTORY 3
a great distance then the conflict could have been solved differently and few deaths would have
occurred. Additionally, they could have negotiated with the settlers so that they moveexploited
(Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards &Self, 2014). The Native Americans were negotiable as shown
through adopting the American life style, as well as signing treaties with the White settlers. Even
if they did not want to move they did it anyway for the sake of keeping the peace with the White
settlers. It was also not necessary to move them all the way to the east of the Mississippi River,
besides the fertile soil they were living on.
Question 3. Do you think southerners believed that slavery was truly beneficial to
African Americans?
I think they just hypocritically justify slavery so as to advance on their own political as well as
economic situations. The southern just wanted to exploit these individuals. There was
discrimination against the blacks which kept them in the low paying jobs and they were
considered socially inferior (Wolfe, 2006). These individuals were not giving any suffrage. The
slavery was not beneficial to the African American since they were exploited (Henretta,
Hinderaker, Edwards &Self, 2014). In the south the African and American were being forced
into the slavery, and they were denied the jury trial and other kidnapped and sold (Tindall & Shi,
2016). This happened against their own will and if it was beneficial to them they could have just
agreed without being forced or even being kidnapped. Question 4. What were the most
important factors in the development of the domestic slave trade? How did the trade
impact black people?
After the war which occurred in 1812, the southern plantation system was expanding more
rapidly due to the cultivation of the cotton. This was one of the significant factor towards the
development of the domestic slave trade (Henretta, Hinderaker, Edwards &Self, 2014).

AMERICAN HISTORY 4
Another significant factor was the readily available number of the slaves which were in the
south as a result of the natural increase.
The domestic slave brought a lot of misery, which lead to the separation of the families and
increased the sense of insecurity amongst the black people. The mothers suffered a lot since
they did not know when or if their children will be taken at night by the slave traders (Wolfe,
2006). During that time this made it more difficult for the slaves to start families or even
have children.

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References
Bacci, M. L. (2017). A concise history of world population. John Wiley & Sons.
Henretta, J. A., Hinderaker, E., Edwards, R., & Self, R. O. (2014). Loose-leaf Version for
America's History (Vol. 1). Macmillan Higher Education.
Tindall, G. B., & Shi, D. E. (2016). America: A narrative history. WW Norton & Company.
Wolfe, P. (2006). Settler Colonialism and the Elimination of the Native. Journal of Genocide
Research, 8(4), 387-409.