Political Writings
Political writings may be fiction or non-fiction. They explore the activities of a government, state, or society. These works are often critical of the status quo and illuminate the shortcomings or corruption of those in power.
The Mayflower Compact was a document written and signed by the Pilgrims as they arrived in the New World in 1620. The group had originally planned to go to the Hudson River area, which was part of the Virginia Colony. Bad weather, however, put them farther north, near the coast of Massachusetts. Since they…
This passage is about Eliza, an enslaved woman owned by the Shelby family. Her husband George is owned by a neighboring family. Eliza and George have one child, a small boy named Harry. Harry is charming, smart, and handsome. Earlier Eliza had overheard a slave trader speaking with her owner…
Black Beauty is the story of a black horse in England in the 1800s. It tells the story from the horse’s viewpoint. The book covers Black Beauty’s life from the time he is born until his old age. In this passage, Black Beauty has been harnessed to a cart to…
By the President of the United States of America: A Proclamation. WHEREAS, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit: “That…
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. “Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.” This is the full text of the 19th Amendment to the…
Devils Tower in Wyoming was named the first United States National Monument by President Theodore Roosevelt. His proclamation establishing the monument is below. —————————- BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. A PROCLAMATION. Whereas, It is provided by section two of the Act of Congress approved June 8,…
President Abraham Lincoln gave his most famous speech, the Gettysburg Address, on November 19, 1863. At that time, the U.S. was in the middle of the Civil War. Lincoln gave the speech at the dedication of a cemetery for the soldiers who had died during the Battle of Gettysburg. ————————…
On September 12, 1962, President John F. Kennedy delivered a speech at Rice University in Houston, Texas. His remarks are a continuation of a promise he made in 1961 to put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. The promise was kept when on July 20,…
Sojourner Truth was born into slavery in New York around 1797. Her birth name was Isabella Baumfree. She changed it to Sojourner Truth in 1843. She suffered under several owners before she finally escaped to freedom in 1825. She became a widely admired abolitionist and feminist. Below is a passage…
On November 1872, women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony and almost 50 other women voted in Rochester, New York in the election for U.S. president. At the time, only men were allowed to vote in New York. Anthony was arrested for illegally voting. Before her case came to trial, she…