Was American Imperialism Justified

Was American imperialism morally justifiable? While many would think the answer would vary based on a person’s ethics and values, factual evidence shows us the commonly self-important motives of the United States during this time period. Despite these indications, we also see how some events pertaining to the “Era of Expansion” benefited both sides. To me, American imperialism was not only commonly sneaky, but, for the most part, immoral. The following paragraphs will show some examples of American imperialism in action and explain both the negative and positive factors that have helped me reach the conclusion that American Imperialism was a dishonest series of events. The following two events take place slightly South-East of the United States; …show more content…
Due to the secretly selfish motives of the United States in Cuba, I do not think imperialism on this island was morally justifiable. The incidents originate with the Cuban revolt against Spain. During this time period, a United States military ship was stationed in Cuba as the uprising towards Spanish rule was taking place. Without notice, the USS Maine was blown up. The US took its chance and blamed Spain, sparking the Spanish-American war. In Document 12, we see how America, with little, actual evidence, accused the foreign power. This event gave the United States an opening to get into Cuba to expand their territory; which will be explained in the next paragraph. Based on research done after Cuba was taken over by the US though, we see that the USS Maine was not sabotaged by the Spanish Army. A document explaining, in full detail, what actually happened to the USS Maine shows us that it was a spontaneous combustion that tore a gaping hole through the hull, making it seem as if it was struck by a propellant. (See Research document Link …show more content…
No people were harmed; no wars were fought over this land. Secretary of State Seward focused more on trade routes and resources than world domination. “Seward saw potential in Alaska as early as 1860and refused to give up on his desire to increase the size of the United States.” (See Alaska link 10) The purchase was an overwhelming bonus for the United States. Yet, Russia was majorly benefited as well. Russia’s struggling government was boosted by the purchase. “The looming U.S. Civil War delayed the sale, but after the war, Secretary of State William Seward quickly took up a renewed Russian offer and on March 30, 1867, agreed to a proposal from the Russian Minister in Washington, Edouard de Stoeckl, to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million.” (See Agreement link 11) Another link (See Agreement 11.5) shows us the full treaty with signatures by both the Russian Minister and John Hay. As you may infer, Russia’s struggling government was indubitably benefitted by the purchase. Though, while Russia was happy with the United States intensifying its “sphere of influence,” struggles erupted in other areas of the