Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Assignment Due 12-03

The Gettysburg Address (1863)

"With deportation, even to a limited extent, enhanced wages to white labor is mathematically certain. Labor is like any other commodity in the market---increase the demand for it, and you increase the price of it. Reduce the supply of black labor, by colonizing the black laborer out of the country, and by precisely so much, you increase the demand for, and wages of, white labor.

 
My Interpretation  

This particular portion of the Gettysburg Address highlights the idea that by deporting African Americans from this country is a guaranteed strategy that will result in enhancing wages for "whites". By empowering and influencing white labor the best way is to decrease the supply of black workers. If there are no black workers left to work the demand for white workers will increase tremendously. I chose this particular portion of the speech because I found it interesting that this was actually being appealed as an option. Instead as viewing both "white" and "black" workers as valuable and equally the only other result that was being promoted was getting rid of the black worker all together.

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