American History Assignment

American History

Part I

Racial Minority

It is a group that is in minority as compared to a larger group and is classified according to their common physical characteristics such as skin color etc. Black Americans, for example are considered as a racial minority group.

Ethnic Minority

Sociological factors define the ethnic minority group i.e. factors such as culture, language and beliefs identify an ethnic minority. Asians are one of the ethnic minorities that exist in US.

Melting Pot

Melting Pot metaphorically refers to the assimilation process which means that people coming to settle from different parts of the world, bringing different cultures and customs with them, become one by adopting the prevailing culture when they settle together. London is an example of 'melting pot'.

Salad bowl

The salad bowl in contrast to melting pot is where you do not leave your own culture and adopt the existing culture there after you settle in a new society. This way that society has a mixture of different cultures. This is similar to the things in salad where we have a lot of different things but they can be felt apart. America is a society that can be considered to be 'salad bowl'.

Affirmative action

Affirmative action refers to the policies or measures taken to promote equal opportunities irrespective of any discrimination in terms of gender, sex, race, ethnicity or disability especially in relation to employment or education.

Part II

Declaration of Independence

This Declaration dates back to the year 1776, when 13 American colonies at war with Great Britain announced themselves as independent from the British Empire and formed a new nation called United States of America. This event took place an year after the American Revolutionary War began.

The Dred Scott decision

In 1857, the US Supreme Court Chief Justice declared blacks as non-citizens of US in a decision of a case filed by Scott, a black slave living in a free state where slavery was banned. The decision was responsible for the American Civil War that erupted three years later.

The Civil War

The war fought between the years 1861 to 1865 between the 23 states of the Union (Northern) and 11 seceding Southern states. The Southern part was not in favor of the efforts made by the North to stop the expansion of slavery and feared a loss of the existing slaves that they possessed. Emancipation Proclamation was issued during this deadly civil war.

The Emancipation Proclamation

Issued in the year 1863 ...