APUSH Imperialism Unit Assessment Questions

1.        US exerted control over Hawaii, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Philippines, China, Panama, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Haiti between 1895 and 1917. US exerted control over Hawaii by annexing it and supporting groups of revolutionary white planters to overthrow the queen. Sugar tycoons overthrew the queen and established government. During the Spanish-American war, US seized Cuba and Puerto Rico. The US passed the Platt Amendment in 1901 to limit Cuba’s ability to make treaties with other countries. It also authorized the US to intervene in Cuban affairs. The US treated Puerto Rico like a territory. They passed the Foraker Act to give the US the power to appoint the governor and upper legislative of Puerto Rico. They later passed the Jones- Shafroth Act which allowed Puerto Ricans to have their own civilian government. Yet, it also gave the governor and President of the US veto power over laws in Cuba. They also had power to stop legislation and control economic matters, mail service, immigration, and defense. In the Philippines, the US sent missionaries to convert the people, had business men clamor the Philippine market, and made the Philippines a protectorate. In response, the Philippines strongly disliked how the US did not grant them independence and began to rebel. The Philippine-American lasted from February 4, 1899 to July 4, 1902. In China, the US tried to establish its own “sphere of influence”. They didn’t want foreign powers to monopolize China. Therefore they set up many trade deals and sent many active missionaries. Secretary of State John Hay established the Open Door Note in 1899. The US also helped to finance and send troops to suppress the Boxer Rebellion. They then continued to exploit trade in China and use dollar diplomacy. The US used gunboat diplomacy to secure Panama from Columbia during the Columbia Revolution to build the Panama Canal. They then negotiated the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty to widen the canal zone to 10 miles and in return, pay the New Panama Canal Company $40 million. Dollar Diplomacy was also evident in countries such as Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Honduras, and Haiti, although it was only successful in the latter two. In the Dominican Republic specifically, the US accepted a treaty in 1905 that made the Dominican Republic a protectorate of the US. The US would invest heavily in these weaker countries to lift them out of debt, and thus gain economic leverage over these countries. These countries would then become dependent on the US, who would then exploit the country’s natural resources. One of the main reasons for American imperialism was the fact that the US was running out of resources, therefore, using dollar diplomacy to gain access to these resources was justified in the eyes of the US. In Haiti and Mexico, moral diplomacy was also evident to protect US interests in the area and to promote democracy. In Haiti, the US government and bankers collaborated to take control of Haiti’s national bank, therefore controlling Haiti economically.

2.       The Roosevelt Corollary reaffirmed American protection over Latin America and promised to protect them with military intervention. The Venezuela Border dispute increased the prestige and revived the spirit of the Monroe Doctrine. President Cleveland warned Britain to not take Venezuela territory, saying that the US was dominant in the western hemisphere. They then mediated a border, saying that if Britain did not accept, then war would follow. As a result, Britain was kept out of Venezuela. The Samoan Crisis also revived the spirit of the Monroe Doctrine. The US battled Germany for control of the Samoan Islands. Although the Germans were not completely kicked out, the US limited their influence in the area. The Spanish-American War greatly revitalized the spirit of the Monroe Doctrine. The US did not like how the Cubans were being brutally treated by the Spanish. The US won the war, and therefore expelled the Spanish from the region and gained many territories in the Pacific, like the Philippines.

3.       The US’s reaction to the Mexican Revolution was one that tried to parallel the ideology of Moral Diplomacy. They intervened by supporting the rebels trying to overthrow the government. They did so by giving arms to these rebel groups. They also collaborated with certain foreign countries to ensure that their national interests would be protected and promoted in Mexico. The US’s goal during the Mexican Revolution was to establish a pro-American government in Mexico that was both democratic and supportive of US interests. Therefore, by supporting rebel groups, if these groups gained power then they would be indebted to the US.

4.      Teddy Roosevelt’s Big Stick Policy and Woodrow Wilson’s Moral Diplomacy had some similarities and differences. Yet, in the end, it was Teddy’s Big Stick Policy that leads me to believe that he was the more successful President. Big Stick Policy meant that if you “speak softly and carry a biog stick, you will go far”. By negotiating peacefully, but with a formidable threat of force the US could get other country’s to succumb to their interests without having to actually fight them. This policy proved useful in many cases, for example, in the Panama Canal where the US exhibited gunboat diplomacy. TR also sent around his “Great White Fleet” to promote the perception of American military strength to JapanTakahira Agreement, in which both sides would respect each other’s territorial possessions in the Pacific and follow the Open Door policy in China. Wilson’s Moral Diplomacy was less successful for many reasons. First, it contradicted itself. This is because moral diplomacy advocated economic pressure on non-democratic countries or countries that didn’t support US interests, all without the use of force. Economic pressure was enforced through embargoes. Yet, in the end, force had to be used. Moral diplomacy ended up failing because it led to nations heavily resenting the US, like Mexico. It also inevitably led to the use of arms and overprotected American corporations. It was such a despised policy that it was heavily abandoned in the 1920s. Big Stick Policy was more successful than Moral Diplomacy because Big Stick accomplished more than Moral did. Therefore, Teddy was the more successful President.

5.       DBQ

6.       Traditional American values of freedom and citizenship for all were blatantly dismissed during America’s imperialistic conquest. This was evident in numerous occasions. For example, the US passed the Platt Amendment on Cuba to exert control over them in treaty making and they exploited Cuba’s resources. The use of Dollar and Moral Diplomacy to take control of a country economically and make them dependent on the US was also a direct contradiction to the US’s values of democracy and self-determination. Dollar Diplomacy was used to control countries like Cuba, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua to keep foreign funds out and take over the country economically. The US did not allow the Philippines to gain their independence, and instead, made them into a protectorate. Although the Jones-Shafroth Act allowed Puerto Ricans to establish a civilian government, there were many implications that went along with the Act; the US had the right to veto laws, stop legislation, and exhibit control over economic matters, mail services, immigration, and defense. Cuba and the Philippines were both fighting for their independence, prior to the Spanish-American War. Although the US supported their independence, they ultimately did not grant them full independence. This US hypocrisy was scorned upon by foreign powers.