American Imperialism in the 19th Century Term Paper

Anti-Imperialist League, formed in 1899 by prominent citizens such as Andrew Carnegie and William James, held the belief that American Imperialism went against the spirit of those that fought the Revolutionary War and participated in the creation of the Declaration of Independence (Halsall, 1997). Specifically, they asserted that the American government's actions in places such as Cuba, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico represented a hostile attitude toward liberty and step in the direction of militarism (Halsall, 1997). Moreover, they argued, the American Government derived its power from the consent of the governed, and imperialism denied man's natural right to either govern himself or choose to be governed (Halsall, 1997). Instead, it promoted a form of despotism (Halsall, 1997). They maintained that, through imperialistic policies, the United States was practicing truth-suppressing censorship and the deliberation of war, and they called for an immediate end to the United States' presence in the Philippines as well as the liberation of the Filipinos (Halsall, 1997).

However, the U.S. never technically adopted a policy of "imperialism." The Anti-Imperialist league were simply the first to term U.S. actions as such, and that term, related to U.S. foreign policy, remains debated to this day. Just as today's leaders would scoff at calling the "War on Terror" an imperialistic policy, 19th century leaders never called their involvement in Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam "imperialism." It remains, however, that the U.S. did in fact follow imperialistic policies in these countries, simply extending, or mirroring, the Spanish imperialism that had been instituted there for over two centuries.

These imperialistic policies were quite possibly rationalized, perhaps unconsciously, by the belief in Manifest Destiny -- or the widespread American belief that it was the U.S.' destiny to widen the borders of democracy and extend its rights to whoever was capable of self-governance (PBS, 2006).This philosophy created the framework by which involvement in Spanish imperialism in the Philippines, Cuba and Puerto Rico could be justified.

The reasons for U.S. imperialism in the 19th century -- or the Spanish-American war -- are numerous. First, the U.S. had significant interest and money invested in Cuba, and had been looking to purchase it from Spain long before its outspoken wishes for autonomy (Library of Congress, "The World of 1898: the Spanish-American War," 1998). Most notably, the U.S. had "more than $50 million invested in Cuba and annual trade, mostly in sugar, was worth twice that much" (Library of Congress, "The World of 1898: the Spanish-American War," 1998). Thus, it was in their interest to help Cuba gain their autonomy; a Cuba without Spain would be a Cuba that was easier to attain and harvest resources from. Also influencing the U.S. imperialistic policies was a man named Alfred T. Mahan, who wrote The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1600-1783. This book advocated the attainment of the Caribbean Islands, Hawaii, and the Philippines for bases to protect U.S. commerce and naval operations (Library of Congress, "Chronology of the Spanish-American War," 1998). Also motivating imperialist U.S. policy was the public sentiment at the time. The American public saw their own revolutionary struggle for autonomy from England in the 18th century reflected in Cuba's, and thus supported American involvement in the affair (Library of Congress, "The World of 1898: the Spanish-American….....