The Tragedy that is 'Manifest Destiny'

"And about the Indians, considered to be "like animals" by the "settlers" (a very benign euphemism for what they actually were), who did not understand their description as a compliment" (612)

"By viewing the experiences of animals-- such as dogs and "milk cows"- through the lens of human slavery, we come to realize that master/slave relationships permeate our culture" (623).

"cultural blinders hinder our ability to see society's (current) slaves as the individuals they are, while simultaneously obscuring our own motivations from us" (623).

In "Am I Blue?", the narrator explores past injustices to compare to the suffering of Blue, her neighbor's horse. Just as animals were exploited for human incentive, she says, "And about the Indians, considered to be "like animals" by the "settlers" (a very benign euphemism for what they actually were), who did not understand their description as a compliment" (612). Just as the truth about the Native American genocide was hidden behind an iron curtain of American policy, the exploitation behind slaughterhouses and the meat industry is intentionally kept in the dark from American citizens. In order to justify political action, the government constructs policies used to convince the masses for movement. More specifically, the 19th century government created the term, "Manifest Destiny" describing the movement as an inexorable opportunity for the American people to spread democracy across the land. The belief of economic success and overall prosperity was enough for settlers to trust the hands of the government and its expansionary measures. Little did the people know, this movement was responsible for the killing of thousands of Native Americans during this conquest. Native tribes were forced off their land and placed into reservations and "boarding schools", which are interment camps provided by the federal government.


Just as the truth was hidden from the public by political policies during the 19th century, the current voyage in animal testing and medical research has condoned the death of millions of lab animals. This empirical suffering has shown that "By viewing the experiences of animals-- such as dogs and "milk cows"- through the lens of human slavery, we come to realize that master/slave relationships permeate our culture" (623). A lot of our reading discusses the inherent power struggle humans suffer from, but these examples truly illustrate just how devastating the political power dichotomy has become. Just as the Native Americans were seen as means of economic exploit, innocent animals are viewed as sources for anthropocentric development. Our American "cultural blinders hinder our ability to see society's (current) slaves as the individuals they are, while simultaneously obscuring our own motivations from us" (623). Just as we have call for a reparation for our past government's actions, I think it's time to acknowledge the genocide that goes on behind closed lab and research doors. Most of the actions done against these animals are supposedly justified for the sake of medicinal development in the United States. Yet, very little is done to challenge the authorities on this question. This type of ignorance and false hope places the government in the "master" position once again.