Creative Writing History

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Social Studies – Continuing Transformation
ANDREW JACKSON’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN
Just like the nation of the United States of America, Andrew Jackson is largely the product of war. He is no stranger to bloodshed, struggle, pain, and servitude. In fact, it pains him to see his nation submit to them presently, even after half a century of independence. However, the fact stands: a war is raging. This peacetime is an illusion. Beneath the tapestry of apparent unity lie tangled webs of factionalism and rivalry, which serve to destroy the peace that the nation so covets. Andrew says that he “was born for the storm, and that the calm does not suit” himCITATION McK13 p “, line 1” l 1033 (McKay and McKay , line 1). And a storm he does see coming.
Who is Andrew Jackson? He is, in simple words, a man self-made. The only surviving member of his family after the war, he rose from poverty and rubble to be a distinguished lawyer, Tennessee’s first congressman, and a judge. He may not have had a proper education, but he does not lack what matters most—courage, leadership, and the support of the people. He knows that he represents not only his state, but the people of AmericaCITATION Dig14 p “, pars. 5-7” l 1033 (Digital History , pars. 5-7).
He knows it is time that the votes of the people counted. “Democratic Republicanism”: that is what he believes in: he believes in the capacity of the people, and of America as a nation. In some ways, he does not see himself fit to take office.

In fact, he says, “I can command a body of men in a rough way, but I am not fit to be President.CITATION Prend p “, par. 6” l 1033 (Presidential Power.org Staff , par. 6)” Perhaps, it is because he thinks that America does not need to rely on one man to rule. America can rule itself. What the nation needs is a visionary, a fighter, a thinker, a man who rallies behind the people just as they rally behind him. That is Andrew Jackson.
Should you vote for him? Yes, if you want to remove the inequality plaguing the country. Yes, if you want to remove monopoly, favoritism, and special privileges that “make the rich richer and the powerful more potent.” Yes, if you want your labor’s exact social, economic, political and moral worth. Yes, if you want your “industry, economy, enterprise, and prudence” to dictate how you are compensated. Yes, if you want to compete for your spot in a free and open market, and not having to fall prey to corruption and nepotism. Yes, if you want to approach government and law officers that are not set apart from you, the public, through corruption and greed. Yes, if you want to see a leader who works for all—the farmers, the shopkeepers, the artists, the cleaners—and not just the wealthy CITATION Dig14 p “, par. 8-11” l 1033 (Digital History , par. 8-11). “The planter, the farmer, the mechanic and the laborer . . . from the great body of the people of the United States of America, they are the bone and the sinew of the country men who love liberty and desire nothing but equal rights and equal laws,” he saysCITATION Reynd p “, par. 2” l 1033 (Reyes , par. 2).
In some ways, he is America: capable, strong, and persevering to keep his people happy. He will not work for the government. He will work for America. As long as his government will work for America and its people, and administer all its resources to their benefit; as long as it will give just and judicious access to liberty, labor and freedom, it will be a government worth voting for.
PRESIDENTIAL TIMELINE OF AMERICA (GEORGE WASHINGTON-JOHN TYLER)
1789-1797 George Washington
1797-1801 Thomas Adams
1801-1809 Thomas Jefferson
1809-1817 James Madison
1817-1825 James Monroe
1825-1829 John Quincy Adams
1829-1837 Andrew Jackson
1837-1841 Martin Van Buren
1841 Wm. Harrison
1841-1845 John Tyler
CITATION Anind p 1 l 1033 (Animated Atlas Staff 1)LEGEND OF THE CHEROKEE ROSE
Almost 125,000 Native Americans lived on millions of acres of land stretching across the states of Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida. Most of these people had been living there for generations, and their ancestors had cultivated and served the land. However, the then President, Andrew Jackson was a strict advocate of what he called “Indian Removal”, and had spent years in the army uprooting Indians from their homes. After his election as President, he continued his crusade through the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Along with the white farmers who wanted the Native Americans’ lands to grow cotton, the federal government drove out the families of Indians all the way to an “Indian territory”, which lay across the Mississippi River. It has to be noted that most of these people belong to the “five civilized tribes”, who, at the suggestion of George Washington, embraced the American Culture and were generallyCITATION His092 p “, pars. 1-6” l 1033 (History.com Staff , pars. 1-6).
The journey across the states was incredibly harsh, and the officers treated the Indians with disrespect and cruelty. The way eventually came to be known as the Trail of Tears, and rightly so. In 1838, President Martin Van Buren and General Winfield Scott sent 7000 soldiers to remove Cherokees from their native land of Georgia. Not only did the soldiers pillage the homes of the tribal people, but they also proceeded to march them on a 1200 mile long journey. More than 5000 Cherokees died as a result of various diseased like typhoid, dysentery, and diarrhea along the wayCITATION His092 p “, pars. 7-10” l 1033 (History.com Staff , pars. 7-10).
According to Cherokee legends, the Cherokee Rose started growing while the tribe was being relocated from Georgia. Tired of the soldiers’ inhumane treatment, and helpless at not being able to help their children and people survive, the Cherokee elders gathered around a fire one night at their makeshift camp, and prayed to the Great One in Galunati (heaven). They told him of the suffering of their people, and the women who were weakening themselves by weeping. They shared their fears of losing their children, and thus not being able to rebuild their nation.
According to legend, the Great One replied, and said that in return for all of the Cherokee people’s sufferings, he would commemorate their sacrifices. He told the elders to ask their women to look at the ground. There, he said, he would grow a plant in every place a Cherokee woman’s tear had fallen. The plant would have a rose, with five petals, and a gold center, the latter to commemorate the gold that had been stolen from the Cherokees by the soldiers. The leaves of the plant would have seven leaflets, one for each of the seven clans of the Cherokee. It would grow so fast that it would help the Cherokee take back some of the land they had lost.
The next morning, the women looked to the ground where they had wept, and sure enough, roses same as the elders had described were blooming. They took it as a sign from the Great One, and commandeered their strength to infuse courage in their children in order to rebuild the Cherokee NationCITATION Firnd p “, pars. 1-8” l 1033 (First People – The Legends , pars. 1-8).
Works Cited BIBLIOGRAPHY Animated Atlas Staff. American History Timeline . n.d. 14 June 2015. Web.
Digital History . The Presidenct of Andrew Jackson . 2014. 14 June 2015. Print.
First People – The Legends . Native American Legends – Legends of the Cherokee Rose . n.d. . 14 June 2015. Web.
History.com Staff. Trail of Tears . 2009. 14 June 2015. Web.
McKay, Brett and Kate McKay. Lessons in Manliness from Andrew Jackson. 18 November 2013. 14 June 2015. Web.
Presidential Power.org Staff. Andrew Jackson Quotes . n.d. 14 June 2015. Web.
Reyes, Lucia. Andrew Jackson as President: Facts, Quotes & Quiz. n.d. 14 June 2015. Web.