HIST 102W Summer 2019 Essay: Territorial Spoils, Black Resistance

This essay analyzes Paula Hastings' article, "Territorial Spoils, Transnational Black Resistance, and Canada's Evolving Autonomy during the First World War," which examines the significance of Canadian campaigns to annex Britain’s West Indian colonies during World War I and its relation to the rise of transnational Black resistance. The essay highlights how Black Canadians faced discrimination and how the war impacted the civilizing mission ideology. The author argues that the war provided a platform for increased participation in imperial affairs and heightened national consciousness. The essay also discusses the historical significance of the argument in exposing the attitudes of white Canadians towards people of color. The essay highlights that the author uses evidence to show how the First World War paved the path for increased participation of the people in the imperial affairs and how it was able to heighten the national consciousness among the people. The essay also reviews the author's argument and validity, emphasizing the rise of Black resistance within diplomatic, political, and constitutional histories.

Running head: HISTORY ESSAY
History Essay
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

1HISTORY ESSAY
The main argument of the article, “Territorial Spoils, Transnational Black Resistance,
and Canada’s Evolving Autonomy during the First World War” that has been written by
Paula Hastings talks about the fact that the importance of Canadian campaigns of annexing
the West Indian colonies of Britain at the time of the First World War speaks of the rise of
the transnational Black resistance. The article has pertinently talked about how the people of
the African descendent within Canada have established the institutions that have given rise to
that of “tangible transnational race consciousness”. The struggle for the racial justice was
characterized more by the disappointment as compared to that of the triumph (Hastings
2014). The acquiring of the colonial territories was important for the domestic growth of a
country.
There are various evidences that have been used by the author to illustrate his points
in the article. The outbreak of that of the First World War in the August of the year 1914
when the men flocked to the Canadian recruiting stations for enlisting speaks of the rise of
the black resistance that had a great amount of impact on the occurrences across the world.
According to Hastings (2014), the black Canadians had to face discrimination in relation to
enlisting that speaks about the discrimination taking place across the world. The military
officials who were present within Canada did not want the black along with the white men to
stay in that of the same regiment which gave rise to the transnational black consciousness.
The author has raised the point how the West Indians who were based in Halifax was
responsible for founding Atlantic Advocate that was a monthly journal that spoke of interest
of the colored people.
The historical significance of the argument resides in the fact that it has been able to
highlight how the First World War had been able to deal a serious blow to that of civilizing
mission idealogy. It has been argued by Hastings (2014), that the strikes along with the riots
that took place was important for developing the reform politics along with labour

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organization in that of inter-war years. The importance of argument resides in the fact that it
has exposed the attitude of the white Canadians towards the people who are of colour. It had
been able to provide the West Indians a glimpse of the kind of life that would be there under
the union. The war contributions took away the post-war dividends for the people of the
Empire that was in the form of the political representation along with the autonomy.
The argument of the author can be said to be valid on account of the fact that it has
stressed on how there was rise of the black resistance that was shown with the help of
confines of the diplomatic, political along with the constitutional histories. The author has
said that the First World War paved the path for increased participation of the people in the
imperial affairs and how it was able to heighten the national consciousness among the people.

3HISTORY ESSAY
References
Hastings, Paula. "Territorial Spoils, Transnational Black Resistance, and Canada's Evolving
Autonomy during the First World War." Histoire sociale/Social history 47, no. 94 (2014):
443-470.