It's rather ironic that the United States fought a war to liberate itself from one empire to then build an empire of its own. Our war of independence proclaimed a new age of liberty and popular sovere

It's rather ironic that the United States fought a war to liberate itself from one empire to then build an empire of its own. Our war of independence proclaimed a new age of liberty and popular sovereignty in it's founding documents and later generations fought a war to end slavery, the president declaring America was "dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal" and America "shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

By the 1880s and for the next forty years, the USA would acquire overseas territories and built an empire, its supporters claiming American ambitions would spread and encourage liberty with "enlightened expansion." According to the textbook, "... the United States had embraced its cultural, economic, and religious influence in the world, along with a newfound military power, to exercise varying degrees of control over nations and peoples. Whether as formal subjects or unwilling partners on the receiving end of Roosevelt’s “big stick,” those who experienced U.S. expansionist policies confronted new American ambitions."

In 1917, America went to war in Europe, but rather than fight for empire and land, Americans said they went to war to "make the world safe for democracy."

What do these sources tell us about American ideals and our actions? What was the reality of the situation that America went to war? Part I addresses the expansion phase. Part II, the war in Europe. The textbook chapters provide plenty of context for understanding this material and you should refer to it when thinking about and analyzing the following sources.

Part I: Expansion

1. School Begins: https://www.americanyawp.com/reader/19-american-empire/school-begins11/

Links to an external site.

2. American Expansion: Declined with Thanks

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(with visual sources like these, you definitely need to refer to the textbook for context.)

Part II: World War I

1. President Wilson requests a war declaration: The world must be made safe for democracy

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2. The Sedition Act: The Sedition Act

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3. Returning Soldiers: WEB DuBois on Returning Soldiers

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Follow the example of an evaluation posted in Canvas and refer to the checklist of the requirements as you write up your evaluation. There is no specific word count, rather, focus on analyzing each source and questions with specific details and facts according to the directions.