Module 4: So Much for a Revolution

The Revolution brought prosperity and a better life to the rich people, but what happened to the other half? Edward Morgan claims that the revolution was just a “struggle for office and power between members of an upper class”. Richard Morris insists that the revolution “did nothing to end and little to ameliorate white bondage”. Carl Degler states “the men who engineered the revolt were largely members of the colonial ruling class” All these figures along with Zinn’s analysis indicates how the revolution was merely an act seeking the best for the wealthy people, and doing nothing for those unprivileged ones.
Even Frederick Douglass acknowledges this when he said that independence was for the rich, not for him, adding that while they rejoice, he mourns. He viewed everything as a mere sham, and claims “this fourth of July is yours, not mine” referring to the wealthy people. He represented the African American community, among those were slaves, laborers, farmers, all those which didn’t experience any change after the revolution.
Zinn argues that the native Americans and Indians “have been ignored by the fine words of the Declaration, had not been considered equal”. The revolution didn’t benefit them at all, since without the presence of the British , Americans could now push Indians out of their lands, killing those who resisted and seeking for imperial control in the West.
Zinn claims that to many Americans the Constitution of 1787 “has seemed a work of genius put together by wise, humane men who created a legal framework for democracy and equality”. However, this results ironic when Charles Beard states that the Constitution was composed by wealthy people and everything was “written merely to benefit the Founding Fathers personally”. Therefore, we can see how the interests of slaves, indentured servants, women and men without property were not even considered.
I believe that even the minority groups were not considered while putting together the Constitution, it did indeed mark a new era for the American society. The rhetoric of Revolution did led slavery to an end, even if it was done at a very slow pace. Zinn claims that the Revolution “created space and opportunity for blacks to begin making demands of white society”, referring to those few black elites.
Moreover, Zinn promptly states that the Founding Fathers were trying to achieve a balance of power, but they wanted a balance that kept things the way they were, not a balance that would make every single being equal among others.

Douglass, Frederick. Frederick Douglass on the Fourth of July.
Zinn, Howard. A People's History of the United States. New York: The New Press, 2003.