During the early 20th century, the United States expanded its influence through military use, economic strategies, and political diplomacy. The Spanish American War played a crucial role in this expansion, as it “ended Spain’s colonial empire in the Western Hemisphere and secured the position of the United States as a Pacific power. U.S. victory in the war produced a peace treaty that compelled the Spanish to relinquish claims on Cuba, and to cede sovereignty over Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines to the United States” (Office of the Historian). The annexation of Hawaii solidified American control in the Pacific. In 1993, President Bill Clinton issued a formal apology through the "Apology Resolution," acknowledging the wrongful annexation of Hawaii (Amin). Even though there was opposition from some Americans who saw imperialism as untrue to the nation’s values. The expansion was largely driven by economic and strategic interests.
Economic imperialism played an important role in American expansion. Particularly through figures like Minor Keith whose dealings in Central America showed patterns of colonialism. Keith’s railroad construction business in Costa Rica led to exploitation of laborers resulting in thousands of deaths. When the Costa Rican government defaulted on its payments, Keith’s company was granted “tax-free land and a 99-year lease on the railroad” (Rund and Arablouei). He then went on to be the co-founder the United Fruit Company, which dominated the banana trade and “exploited local resources, labor, and markets to establish dominance in Central and South America” (Rund and Arablouei). The podcast Throughline describes this as “American colonialism” because it placed economies under the control of private American interests. This reduced Central American countries to economic dependence rather than sovereign states.
While Keith’s actions were primarily motivated by profit, they shared similarities with the federal government’s interventions in the Pacific. The United States justified its expansion through ideals like the “white man’s burden,” which spread the belief that Western societies had a obligation “to civilize and uplift the ‘benighted’ races of the world” (Digital History). Although the federal government often used military force to exert control, while businessmen like Keith depended on economic dominance. Both of these approaches contributed to the larger framework of American imperialism.
Works Cited
Amin, Aisha. “Queen Lili’uokalani.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 7 Mar. 2023, www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/queen-liliuokalani-the-first-and-last-queen-of-hawaii-kx2oc7/15032/.
Digital History. “The United States Becomes a World Power.” www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraID=10&smtID=2. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
Office of the Historian. “The Spanish-American War, 1898.” U.S. Department of State, history.state.gov/milestones/1866-1898/spanish-american-war. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
Rund, AbdelFatah, and Arablouei Ramtin. “There Will Be Bananas.” Throughline, NPR, 9 Jan. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/01/07/794302086/there-will-be-bananas.
Economic imperialism played an important role in American expansion. Particularly through figures like Minor Keith whose dealings in Central America showed patterns of colonialism. Keith’s railroad construction business in Costa Rica led to exploitation of laborers resulting in thousands of deaths. When the Costa Rican government defaulted on its payments, Keith’s company was granted “tax-free land and a 99-year lease on the railroad” (Rund and Arablouei). He then went on to be the co-founder the United Fruit Company, which dominated the banana trade and “exploited local resources, labor, and markets to establish dominance in Central and South America” (Rund and Arablouei). The podcast Throughline describes this as “American colonialism” because it placed economies under the control of private American interests. This reduced Central American countries to economic dependence rather than sovereign states.
While Keith’s actions were primarily motivated by profit, they shared similarities with the federal government’s interventions in the Pacific. The United States justified its expansion through ideals like the “white man’s burden,” which spread the belief that Western societies had a obligation “to civilize and uplift the ‘benighted’ races of the world” (Digital History). Although the federal government often used military force to exert control, while businessmen like Keith depended on economic dominance. Both of these approaches contributed to the larger framework of American imperialism.
Works Cited
Amin, Aisha. “Queen Lili’uokalani.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 7 Mar. 2023, www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/queen-liliuokalani-the-first-and-last-queen-of-hawaii-kx2oc7/15032/.
Digital History. “The United States Becomes a World Power.” www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraID=10&smtID=2. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
Office of the Historian. “The Spanish-American War, 1898.” U.S. Department of State, history.state.gov/milestones/1866-1898/spanish-american-war. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
Rund, AbdelFatah, and Arablouei Ramtin. “There Will Be Bananas.” Throughline, NPR, 9 Jan. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/01/07/794302086/there-will-be-bananas.