Andrew Jackson, Hero or Zero?
By: Sam Madsen
Indian Removal Act
During Andrew Jackson's presidency, he wanted to move the Cherokee off their land to a reservation. He moved them because he wanted the land to grow cotton and find gold. While he was moving them, the Cherokee went to court because they thought the removing was unjust. The Cherokee's case went all the way to the Supreme Court and they ruled the removing unjust as well. Andrew Jackson heard this news and and ignored the Supreme Court and continued to remove the Cherokee Tribe.
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was the act of Jackson removing the Cherokee. During the removal, the Cherokee were forced to walk through the burning heat and freezing cold. During the walk, more than 50% of the Cherokee tribe died before they made it to the reservation. When they did reach the reservation, the Cherokee started from scratch building new homes, starting farms, and starting their community again.
Jackson Political Comic Strips
Andrew Jackson hanging John Q Adams
In this comic strip, Andrew Jackson is hanging John Q Adams. Jackson is doing this because Jackson had originally won the election, but Adams had made a deal with Henry Clay, House of Representative Leader, that if he made the House vote for him, John would make Clay Secretary of Sate. Clay couldn't pass the opportunity up and made sure Q. Adams won. This was frustrating to Jackson because he had received more votes than Adams and won fair and square.
Andrew Jackson as the King
In this comic strip, Andrew Jackson is dressed as a king. He's dressed like this because he was thought of as overusing his power and abusing it. People thought this because during the Indian Removal Act, the Cherokee had thought that being moved was unjust and so did the Supreme Court. Jackson knew that he was obliged to stop the removing, but continued because he didn't care what the Supreme Court had said. This is the idea that Jackson did not want to be told what to do by others. This may be thought of as a king type.
Cherokee Trapped
In this comic strip, a giant Cherokee Indian is being held down by ropes held by the people. This symbolizes that the people wanted to hold down or trap the Cherokee nation and take the land that they lived on. Also in the picture there is a women holding scissors that say Supreme Court. This is the idea that the Supreme Court wanted to free or cut the ropes off of the Cherokee nation. This is stated in the Indian Removal Act when the Supreme Court ruled the removing of the Cherokee unjust.
Nullification Crisis
The Nullification Crisis was the act of Jackson putting tariffs on foreign products. The South disliked this because they didn't have factories so they had to buy products for more money. South Carolina refused to pay the overpriced tariffs and Jackson threatened them with the U.S army. Then, South Carolina threatened Jackson that they would secede the Union, but Jackson AGAIN threatened that he would hang the vice president. South Carolina and Jackson then agreed on a reasonable tariff priced and the problem was slightly resolved.
Point of View: Positive
I am a factory worker living in New York. I'm very pleased that Andrew Jackson won the election because he has done so many great things for my family and I. Since Jackson became president, he has raised tariffs, which has helped the economy greatly. The south has to buy supplies from us because the foreign goods are too expensive. This has impacted my life severely, giving me the opportunity to start my own business because I have gained so much extra money from these tariffs. Andrew Jackson is the best president ever!!!
Point of View: Negative
I am a Cherokee Indian living in Georgia. I am very upset that Andrew Jackson has won the election because we have heard horrid news that he is planning to move our tribe to Oklahoma so he can grow cotton and mine for gold. This will be extremely hard for our tribe because we have lived in the Georgia region for over 100 years and starting over will be a hardship. I know that it will take us a while to move, and the journey is very long i don't know how my tribe will survive. I'm very upset with Jackson and I dislike him strongly because of this.