The American Revolution was a Political Revolution

American Revolution

By Al Weber

Greedy, rich, powerful, white men ruled the colonies before the American Revolution. Afterwards, white, greedy, rich men controlled America. The rich colonial men whom were important in the government realized that by creating a nation out of the colonies, and by extricating that nation from Britain, they could make a handsome profit and earn a new political power. As Howard Zinn said, “all wars are fought over resources,” but in this case, the resources only helped the aristocrats, not the citizens of America. In this way, the American Revolution was a political upheaval (it altered the government and affected the rich aristocrats) but it did nothing for the common minorities: women, slaves, and the landless whites.

            The power of governing the colonies was transferred from one group of rich, aristocratic, white men to the next. Both the Parliament and the congress were created with “the people” in mind, but both failed to represent large portions of their population such as: females, Native Americans, and slaves. The people who were now governing America were the rich merchants, but now they did not have to deal with Britain’s pesky navigation laws requiring them to deal only with Britain. This way, the colonists, specifically our founding fathers, could produce more profit off of trade.

Women experienced a form of freedom during the American Revolution, but afterwards their newfound liberty was striped away. When the men went off to war, the ladies remained at home to govern the house and plow the fields. This inspired a great deal of independence amongst women, causing some to help fight against the tyrannical British government, such as Debora Samson and Molly Pitcher. After the Revolution, when the men came home, they resumed their jobs of plowing the fields and women’s rights were forced onto the “backburner” once again. For example, a stolen letter from Abigail Adams to her husband was used as rhetoric in a political debate in Massachusetts. Abigail Adams wrote to the user ““I could not believe that any gentleman would have so little delicacy or so small a sense of propriety as to have written a vague opinion and that of a lady, to be read in a publick assembly as an authority. That man must have lost his sense.... It will serve as a lesson to be to be upon my guard”. By calling out the thief and accusing him of using a women’s word as evidence, this letter proves how not only did men think that women were not to be taken seriously, but also women believed that they should not. No woman held office in state or national government; no woman practiced the law or enrolled for a college education following the years of the American Revolution. Some reformers such as Benjamin Rush, discussed education for women, but it was in gentility and fine arts, not a way for women to learn how to speak their minds and join the men in the government. (alphahistory.com)

            “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”, these words, although stated by our founding fathers, excluded not only women, but also slaves. The reason why slaves remained an important part of the southern economy was the limited labor force. White indentured servants were becoming too risky to bring over, and the economy in Britain was improving, so new immigration and labor was not easily accessible. This made slaves the only cheap, available workforce, causing a large concentrated population of enslaved African Americans. At the time of the American Revolution, slaves made up at least 25 percent of the population of North Carolina, totaling about seventy thousand, but less than five percent were free. One of those slaves was North Carolina’s famous black soldier, Ned Griffen, who was purchased by William Kitchen to serve as his substitute in the army. After Griffen served his term, he was supposed to be set free, but Kitchen refused to do so. This is only one example of how the rich aristocrats could bully slaves without worrying that the government would even slap them on the wrist. At this time the black slave population was effectively oppressed into a submissive workforce.

On February 3, George Washington wrote to Henry Knox, conveying his thoughts on Shays’ Rebellion. Washington wrote, “if three years ago any person had told me that at this day, I should see such a formidable rebellion against the laws & constitutions of our own making as now appears I should have thought him a bedlamite - a fit subject for a mad house.” He wrote that if the government “shrinks, or is unable to enforce its laws . . . anarchy & confusion must prevail.” Washington, as one of the leading rich aristocrats, was clearly unattuned to the common people’s opinions and will. He appears to be almost frightened by this rebellion. This proves how the aristocratic class distrusted the intelligence of the common people, especially in government. It was therefore the rich white men’s duty to ensure that the uneducated poor would never obtain their voice in the government.

According to Howard Zinn, the American Revolution was a work of genius that created the most effective system of national control devised in modern times. By oppressing and ignoring women, the ethics of slavery, and the common people, the rich aristocrats were able to gain immense profits. By replacing the parliament with a democracy, George Washington and company managed to transfer elevated political status and control unto themselves. This caused the American Revolution to be a Political Revolution.