HIS 100 Project Template
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School
Southern New Hampshire University *
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Course
100
Subject
History
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
4
Uploaded by ElderStar12527
HIS 100 Project
Part 1: Creating a Research Question
1.
Describe how your assumptions, beliefs, and values influenced your choice of topic.
The globalization of trade and commerce during the 18th and 19th centuries led to the
transatlantic slave trade, in which millions of Africans were forcibly transported to the Americas
to work on plantations and in other industries. The importation of slaves was eventually
prohibited in many countries, including the United States, through legislation such as the Slave
Trade Act of 1807. This legislation was influenced by a variety of factors, including changing
attitudes towards slavery, economic considerations, and political pressures. The prohibition of
slave importation was an important step towards the abolition of slavery, but it did not
immediately end the practice of slavery in the Americas. Slavery continued to be legal in many
countries until the mid-19th century, and its legacy continues to impact social and economic
systems today.
2.
Discuss the significance of your historical research question in relation to your current event.
The current event that I chose was an article about the last survivor of the transatlantic slave
trade who was discovered. Matilda McCrear who lived until 1940 and died in Selma, Alabama at
the age of 83. This is connected to my historical event because if the Act of prohibiting
Importation of Slaves was passed in 1808 then how was Matilda McCrear abducted from Africa
and brought into the United States? This is proof that the slave trade continued to expand even
after the act passed. By connecting my historical event and current event it helped improve the
understanding of my topic as well as the question I presented in my previous assignment. It
allowed me to understand that not only was the slave trade ongoing, but it continued to grow
and expand beyond the population that was created within the United States.
3.
Explain how you used sources to finalize your research question.
Historical perspective and evidence from sources influenced my finalized research question by
not only providing me with first-hand information but also information that was discovered later
throughout time. It was mentioned that even though there was an Act Prohibiting the
Importation of Slaves, the enslaved population continued to grow and expand. The evidence
from my sources most defiantly strengthened my research question by providing evidence but
also challenged my research question to provide certain answers as to why it expanded. Allowing
me to find all possible factors and sources pertaining to the expansion of the slave trade even
after the Act was passed to prohibit slave trades.
Part 2: Building Context to Address Questions
1.
Describe the context of your historical event that influenced your current event.
The historical context of the early 19th century United States was characterized by a growing
opposition to the institution of slavery and to the transatlantic slave trade in particular. Many
Americans, including James Madison and other abolitionists, believed that the slave trade was a
cruel and inhumane practice that violated the inherent rights and freedoms of all human beings.
Additionally, many slave owners in the United States were concerned about the impact of the
slave trade on the domestic market for slaves. They believed that the importation of slaves from
other countries was driving down the price of slaves in the United States and making it more
difficult for American slave owners to compete in the market. As a result, the Act Prohibiting
Importation of Slaves was passed by Congress in 1807 and went into effect on January 1, 1808.
The act reflected the growing opposition to the transatlantic slave trade in the United States and
was an important step towards ending the institution of slavery altogether.
4.
Describe a historical figure or group’s participation in your historical event.
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The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves was passed by the United States Congress and signed
into law by President Thomas Jefferson on March 2, 1807. The act was supported by many
abolitionists in the United States who were working to end the transatlantic slave trade.
However, the act was also supported by many slave owners in the United States who were
concerned about the impact of the slave trade on the domestic market for slaves. One of the key
figures in the passage of the act was James Madison, who was a member of Congress at the time
and who later became the fourth President of the United States. Madison was a strong
supporter of the act and believed that it was an important step towards ending the institution of
slavery in the United States.
5.
Explain the historical figure or group’s motivation to participate in your historical event
.
James Madison, as well as many other abolitionists in the United States, was motivated by a
belief in the inherent rights and freedoms of all human beings. Madison and others believed that
the transatlantic slave trade was a cruel and inhumane practice that violated these rights and
freedoms. Additionally, many abolitionists were concerned about the impact of the slave trade
on the domestic market for slaves in the United States. They believed that the importation of
slaves from other countries was driving down the price of slaves in the United States and making
it more difficult for American slave owners to compete in the market. By prohibiting the
importation of slaves, abolitionists hoped to end the transatlantic slave trade and eventually end
the institution of slavery altogether.
Part 3: Examining How Bias Impacts Narrative
1.
Describe a narrative you identified while researching the history of your historical event.
One narrative that has significantly influenced the contemporary understanding of my historical
event would be the first primary source that includes letters written by slaves. Those letters are
proof that slaves were continuously growing in population. Abolitionists at the Constitutional
Convention believed that ending the foreign slave trade was a necessary first step to ending
slavery in America. Yet, they could not have been more wrong. During the twenty years between
1787 and 1807 record numbers of slaves were imported. The children of slaves automatically
became slaves, thus guaranteeing a self-sustaining slave population (Admin, n.d.-b). My primary
sources are letters from slaves before, after and during the act prohibiting the importation of
slaves.
6.
Articulate how biased perspectives presented in primary and secondary sources influence what
is known or unknown about history.
It is important to consult a variety of sources when conducting historical research because in a
lot of cases most sources won’t provide you the entire scope of the event. We can use my
historical research topic for example, “Globalization: Act Prohibiting the Importation of Slaves”.
There is a saying of it always being more than one side of the story. During the 1800s slaves
knew that taking them away from their home and importing them into a foreign country was
inhumane and bad but other people saw it differently because slaves were the reason why they
were able to make so much progress when it came to agriculture, construction, factory work,
etc. If you just use their story, only one source you wouldn’t be able to provide the research of
the entirety of the situation.
7.
Identify the perspectives that you think are missing from your historical event’s narrative.
The bias that is presented in my primary resources is that the researchers and analyst were
speaking as if they were on the side of the slaves. They didn’t provide information from the slave
owners or individuals who constructed the slave trade itself. If the narrative about the
globalization of the act prohibiting the importation of slaves were told from a missing
perspective, such as the perspective of enslaved people or their descendants, it might emphasize
the role of resistance and activism in bringing about the abolition of the slave trade. For
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example, it might highlight the ways in which enslaved people and their allies fought back
against the trade through acts of rebellion, sabotage, and escape, and how these actions
contributed to the eventual banning of the trade. This perspective might also highlight the
ongoing legacies of slavery and the slave trade, such as the continued exploitation of people of
color in many parts of the world, and the ways in which structural racism and inequality continue
to shape societies around the globe. By centering the experiences and perspectives of those who
were most directly impacted by the slave trade, this missing perspective could help to challenge
dominant narratives that have historically minimized or erased the contributions of marginalized
groups to global history.
Part 4: Connecting the Past with the Present
1.
Explain how researching its historical roots helped improve your understanding of your current
event.
In general, exploring the reasons for the increase in the enslaved population after the prohibition
of slave trade can provide insight into the historical roots of issues related to racism and
inequality that are still relevant today. Understanding how slavery and racism were perpetuated
in the past can help us better understand how these issues continue to impact society today and
inform efforts to address them.
8.
Articulate how questioning your assumptions, beliefs, and values may benefit you as an
individual.
If another person’s beliefs, assumptions, and values were focused on the pros or advantages of
the importation of slaves may lead that person to create a different question than my question
because their mostly focused on the economically efficient system of production that the slaves
provided. “Slavery was an economically efficient system of production, adaptable to tasks
ranging from agriculture to mining, construction, and factory work. Furthermore, slavery could
produce enormous amounts of wealth” (Historical Context: Was Slavery the Engine of American
Economic Growth? | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, n.d.).
Questioning my assumptions, beliefs, and values can be a valuable process for my own personal
growth and development. By examining my own beliefs and values, I gained a deeper
understanding of myself and my motivations and can identify areas for personal improvement.
Questioning assumptions can help me to recognize and challenge biases and stereotypes that
may be limiting my perspectives. By questioning assumptions, I can gain a more nuanced
understanding of complex issues and can develop more informed opinions. Questioning beliefs
and values can also help me to identify areas where I may be holding myself back, or where my
beliefs may be limiting their potential. By examining beliefs and values, individuals can identify
areas where I may need to challenge myself or seek out new experiences. Overall, questioning
assumptions, beliefs, and values can be a valuable tool for personal growth and development,
and can help me to become more open-minded, empathetic, and self-aware.
9.
Discuss how being a more historically informed citizen may help you understand contemporary
issues.
Being a more historically informed citizen can help you understand contemporary issues in several
ways. First, understanding the historical context of current events can provide valuable insights into
the root causes of contemporary issues. For example, understanding the history of racial
discrimination in the United States can help to explain current disparities in areas such as healthcare,
education, and criminal justice. Second, historical knowledge can help to identify patterns and trends
in social, economic, and political systems. For example, understanding the history of economic
policies and their impacts on different groups of people can help to inform contemporary debates
about economic inequality and social welfare. Third, historical knowledge can help to identify
potential solutions to contemporary issues. By examining how similar issues have been addressed in
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the past, individuals can gain insights into what strategies have been effective and what strategies
have not worked. For example, understanding the history of social movements can help to inform
contemporary efforts to address issues such as racial justice, gender equality, and environmental
sustainability. Overall, being a more historically informed citizen can help individuals to better
understand and engage with contemporary issues, and to contribute to positive social change.
Resources:
Historical Context: Was Slavery the Engine of American Economic Growth? | Gilder Lehrman Institute of
American History
. (n.d.). https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/teaching-
resource/historical-context-was-slavery-engine-american-economic-growth#:~:text=Slavery
%20was%20an%20economically%20efficient,producing%20enormous%20amounts%20of
%20wealth.
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