Jacksonian Democracy Essay, Research Paper
Jacksonian Democracy
For quite some time Americans have been led to believe that
during the 1820s and 30s,
Jacksonian Democrats were the guardians of the people, and
worked to improve the nation for
the people. The truth remains, however, that during this
period, President Jackson vetoed a bill
to recharter the Bank of the United States of America,
infringed on the rights of Native
Americans, used brute force to bring Southerners under
submission during the Tariff of 1832.
He enacted the Spoils System which did not guarantee the
best leadership, and was morally
corrupt. Although the nation s economy and political
democracy flourished during the reign of
President Jackson, constitutional rights, equal opportunity
and individual liberties were
discouraged.
In her 1834 visit to America, british author Harriet
Martineau wrote of the nation s
economy being strong and properous. The absence of poverty
and ignorance and independence of
every man are some of the observations she recorded (D).
The national economy did in fact
boom during the 1820s and early 30s. With Samuel Slater s
introduction of the Factory System
to America, and Eli Whitney s Cotton Gin, the United
States speed in manufacturing textiles
increased rapidly. In 1837, however, America experienced a
tremendous financial depression.
Bad land speculation, and the fall of the Federal Bank (due
to Jackson s failure to recharter the
Bank in 1832) were the two main factors that caused the
financial crisis.
Consequently, along with the inflation of the nation s
economy, working environments
drastically changed. Quaint master and apprentice shops
were quickly overtaken by
uncomfortably crowded factories. While owners of assembly
plants enjoyed a luxurious living,
workers were subject to poor working conditions, low
salaries, and meager meals. Because
wages were so low, whole families were required to work in
order to pay costs of living. This
exploited children as young as ten years old. Because of
these conditions and the exploitaion of
children, relationships between employers and employees
were very professional, and cold. These
emotions were reflected in The Working Men s Declaration
of Independence (A). It wasn t
until the 1840s that Labor Unions were granted by the
President, and workers began to finally
receive the protec
workers and Americans.
In his Diary from 1828-1851, Phillip Hone recorded
observations of what he noticed
during two riots between the Irish and Americans. He also
speaks about quarrels between the
Irish and Blacks, and Blacks and Whites (E). It is
important to understand what was happening
between the Irish and Americans, and between the Irish and
the Blacks. The Irish fleeing british
overlords traveled to America in search of a new life,
hoping to claim land in the west.
Consequently, due to shortage of funds, many were too poor
to make the trip out west, and
forced to live in the slums of eastern cities. Present
Americans, however, found the new
competition between immigrants for jobs unrewarding, and
many business owners would not
employ Irish Immigrants. Thus, equal economic opportunity
for immigrants did not exist.
In Jackson s veto message of 1832, he accused the Bank of
monopoly because it was
dominated by rich aristoctrats and foreigners (B). The
problem remains, however, that after
dismantling the Bank, Americans suffered a huge financial
depression. This not only affected the
U.S., but the world. Jackson s decision to kill the Bank
also was contrary to the will of the
majority of the states who affirmed the Bank to be rightful
(C), thus violating their constitutional
rights and liberties.
In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act. The
Trail of Tears was very hard
on the Native Americans (G). More than 100,000 individuals
were forced to vacate their
homelands, and travel to a new assigned territory. Many
did not even make it to their destination.
Sickness, and murders took the lives of countless
individuals. In 1828, Georgia declared the
esstablished Cherokee Tribal Council illegal, and assumed
power over the Cherokee. Siding with
the Indians, the U.S. Supreme Court declared the
established Cherokee Nation legal. Jacksonians
refused to recognize the Court s decisions, which infringed
on the power of the Court, and
violated the rights of Native Americans. When South
Carolina passed the Acts and Resolutions in
1835, it became a crime to distribute pro-abolitionist
material. This was also not supoported by
Jacksonians because it infringed on the constitutional
rights of people, and promoted sectionalism.
It might be noted that Jacksonians were more autocratic
rather than democratic.