Introduction
Every Fourth of July, all Americans celebrate the Declaration of independence. Marina in his article “Only a third of Americans supported the American Revolution” wonders what exactly is celebrated on this day, especially when one considers the fact that the US is usually involved in bringing democracy in the world. He argues that he does not really understand why a country such as the US pretends to be democratic in the world when the American Revolution, in itself, was not a democratic movement.
This article will help us understand the American Revolution and determine whether Americans have a reason to celebrate Independency Day every Fourth of July or not, whether all American supported the war, and whether the Revolution taints American image in its democratic interventions in the world.
The American Revolution
The American Revolution witnessed the first of many wars that ended European control of both South and North America. Many of us American celebrate the Independency Day believing that all Americans fought or supported the war to independence. This article shows that actually not every American supported the revolutionary war, or in other words, not all Americans sided with fellow Americans in the war. The author Marina shows that not all Americans favored the war.
This was mostly pronounced in areas occupied by mixed races and those that had not been affected by the war. Two specific regions stood out, these were the two loyal colonies to Britain, Quebec and Florida. Records show that there were fifteen British colonies in America, meaning that thirteen colonies didn’t like the way the British was ruling with the exception of Florida and Quebec.
It is also shown that many Native Americans sided with the British because the colonial power promised to protect their land from the American settlers. One notable Native American who supported the British was Joseph Brant who worked with the British as their translator and fought alongside them in the war.
The author claimed that a letter written by John Adams during the war indicated that only a third of Americans supported the revolution, a third did not support it, and the other third were either neutral or indifferent to the revolution. The author further shows that the British also had the same view, a fact the compelled them to venture into the interior with the hope that they would find British loyalists there. They strongly believed that just a few rebellious Americans wanted independence from them.
This letter has been held to be true by many intellectuals in America for many years. However, Marina says that a close look at the letter shows that its writer was emphatic about the neutral part, which, he said were lukewarm to the French and the British. He therefore concludes that the Revolutionary war was not just a war for independence, but it also determined the type of nation that would be formed out of the war.
For us to understand better the American Revolution, Marina splits it into three phases. The first was the debate over the freedoms or liberties of Americans after the war. The second phase he called it the issue of independence and the ensuing war to win it. The last phase was the eventual formation of an American nation. This last phase was not achieved until after the civil war. He has also shown us that majority of the Americans were against the Stamp Act of 1765.
This Act led to the British occupation of Boston, an act that led to the 1770 Boston Massacre, the 1773 tea party and many opposition acts. For a while the British thought that end of protests meant victory on their part, but this was just the opposite because American militias were busy organizing themselves in the villages. They eventually waged war which ended British rule in America.
This author has tried to answer the question as to whether all Americans supported the revolutionary war by showing that only a third of Americans supported the war. He has not conclusively tackled this issue; instead he ends by promising that this will be the subject of another article. The question on whether Americans should celebrate Independence Day or not has not been answered. He also leaves us in suspense regarding America’s intervention in the democratic process in the world.
He only briefly mentions that America’s independence war was not democratic. He also alludes to it when he mentions that the British thought that the end of protests meant victory to them, just as what happened to America and the issue in the Middle East. Marina has only given us part of what happened, he has not resolved the issues he started with, in other words, he has just given open-ended answers that need more research to better understand what really occurred.
Conclusion
Although, this article does not answer all the questions, it has at least raised my curiosity about the American history, whether everyone supported it, whether we should celebrate Independence Day, and whether we should be the one advocating for democracy in the world. This gives me reason to read more for a better clarification of these issues.
Bibliography
History, Wiz. “Native Americans and the American Revolution.” History wiz, 2008. Web.
Marina, William. “Only 1/3rd of Americans Supported the American Revolution?” History News Network, 2004. Web.