The Completeness Of Social Justice In America
That doesn’t refer to rights or equality from a governmental view, it refers to how minorities are treated by others and by their own people. The reconstruction of American society was a short period of time between the end of the civil war and the uprising of white supremacy in which black people gained positions of power in politics and important jobs.
President Lincoln wanted abolition of slavery because he knew it was wrong, even though that’s all he was able to do. Douglass wanted complete equality, politically and socially. Even though slavery was abolished in the US and black people have the same political rights now, America is far from erasing the long history and habit of social discrimination against black people. Lincoln wanted to abolish slavery because he recognized it as unconstitutional. However, the Union did not have abolition on their agenda because they saw it as a threat to the peace. Lincoln decided to go above the Union. He fought for the rights of the people through waging an inevitable battle against the inhumanity of slavery. The Civil War was bound to happen some time, and the death of so many seems worth it to ensure that the future generation had more freedom and rights than the last.
Though, Lincoln could only achieve a portion of what he wanted in his lifetime because it was cut short by John Wilkes Booth. His memory still lives on, as we celebrate his achievements through holidays and memorials. Douglass was a freed slave, one who escaped, became successful and then bought his own freedom from the corrupt who kept his people. He advocated for the complete rights and equality that so many enslaved and freed people of color alike wanted. He spoke of how slavery was the great disgrace and shame of America, how the slave holders’ own laws proved that the black man was just as equally human as they were, and many other important ideas and observations. He tried to bring awareness and speak to those who might change their views on the rights of others. Lincoln wanted abolition of slavery and got it. Douglass wanted political and social equality for people of color, and although we got political equality, people of color are still discriminated against today.
The institutionalized racism and hundreds of years of discrimination against black people are impossible to erase. Even today the discrimination and racism exist and thrive, but that does not mean the younger generation cannot do better than the generation before them. All that’s left to do is to hope they learn from America’s mistakes and make a better country for everyone of every color and identity.
