Gary Gerstle’s “American Crucible: Race and Nation in the Twentieth Century” thrive upon the ideals of race and civic nationalism definitively shaping the American twentieth century (Gerstle 5). Racial divides impacted most conceivable aspects of daily life: economic status, social divides, laws, and even military practices. Civic nationalism is synonymous with patriotism, and a loyalty to one’s country of citizenship, an aspect constantly under question with an unsure government. Along-side race and nation-key American figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and the prominent Roosevelt cousins, Franklin and Theodore shaped America’s policies and cultural attitudes for over half a century. Theodore Roosevelt, or TR as he was known,
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TR romanticized America, thinking of it as the saving grace for all white Europeans, because together if they abandoned their old ways, they could create the perfect nation. However, Roosevelt was strict on the numbers of Asians and African Americans let into the country; he won congressional approval for laws stiffening naturalization requirements for citizenship (Gerstle 55). Then in 1906 he established the Bureau of Immigration to better regulate the immigration and look for individuals overstaying their American welcome. TR believed in a disciplinary power he called the “Big Stick”, and that such discipline would regenerate and replenish the superior American race (Gerstle 56). To have civic nationalism, one must be proud, embrace America and her ideals, to be physically fit, active, sharp and cunning. For this reason, Theodore dubbed men as society’s leaders and pushed the greatest importance’s upon them. Women, he felt, were important in the aspect of being the best wives and raising the most civic sons for the country to have a bright future (Gerstle …show more content…
The movement in the 1940s spoke about racial equality, and the American dream. These were ideas that inspired the movement to gain momentum and allow for people to listen with open ears. Black World War II veterans returning home from wars, no longer felt obligated to follow Jim Crow laws after fighting for their country. These disgruntled men, infused themselves with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to undermine the legal basis of discrimination. In the 1950s the boundaries of the Rooseveltian nation shifted, “allowing ethnic and racial minorities a good deal of room for maneuver and intergration” (Gerstle 268). The floor opened up for color individuals in the fifties with leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. Doctor King pushed for working within the system, using peaceful protests and turning the other cheek when violence occurs. When MLK spoke, the masses listened and people became inspired. Malcom X was a leader in the civil rights movement as well; his style however, was far from passive. Malcom spoke of “arming yourself” and meeting the force with even greater force, saying “America understood only one language, the language of power and force” (Gerstle 298). Malcom was a follower of the nation of Islam, and felt that the black were still enslaved to the American nation. The racial movement, civil unrest and the constantly evolving idea of what a good
TR romanticized America, thinking of it as the saving grace for all white Europeans, because together if they abandoned their old ways, they could create the perfect nation. However, Roosevelt was strict on the numbers of Asians and African Americans let into the country; he won congressional approval for laws stiffening naturalization requirements for citizenship (Gerstle 55). Then in 1906 he established the Bureau of Immigration to better regulate the immigration and look for individuals overstaying their American welcome. TR believed in a disciplinary power he called the “Big Stick”, and that such discipline would regenerate and replenish the superior American race (Gerstle 56). To have civic nationalism, one must be proud, embrace America and her ideals, to be physically fit, active, sharp and cunning. For this reason, Theodore dubbed men as society’s leaders and pushed the greatest importance’s upon them. Women, he felt, were important in the aspect of being the best wives and raising the most civic sons for the country to have a bright future (Gerstle …show more content…
The movement in the 1940s spoke about racial equality, and the American dream. These were ideas that inspired the movement to gain momentum and allow for people to listen with open ears. Black World War II veterans returning home from wars, no longer felt obligated to follow Jim Crow laws after fighting for their country. These disgruntled men, infused themselves with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to undermine the legal basis of discrimination. In the 1950s the boundaries of the Rooseveltian nation shifted, “allowing ethnic and racial minorities a good deal of room for maneuver and intergration” (Gerstle 268). The floor opened up for color individuals in the fifties with leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. Doctor King pushed for working within the system, using peaceful protests and turning the other cheek when violence occurs. When MLK spoke, the masses listened and people became inspired. Malcom X was a leader in the civil rights movement as well; his style however, was far from passive. Malcom spoke of “arming yourself” and meeting the force with even greater force, saying “America understood only one language, the language of power and force” (Gerstle 298). Malcom was a follower of the nation of Islam, and felt that the black were still enslaved to the American nation. The racial movement, civil unrest and the constantly evolving idea of what a good