Should the United States Have Annexed the Philippines?

Should The United States Have Annexed the Philippines?

In 1898 the Americans landed in the Philippines. It was unclear if they were there to occupy or liberate the Filipinos. America chased out the Spanish who had dominated the Philippines with "reeking hands" for centuries. Filipino general Emilio Aguinaldo expected to march into Manila hand-in-hand with the U.S. troops. When the Americans would not allow this, Aguinaldo felt betrayed. So the question came to hand, what were the Americans going to do with the Philippines? Ultimately they decided to annex the Philippines, and many questioned if this was a fair decision. (Background Essay)

I believe that the Americans made the right decision by annexing the Philippines. The Filipinos were incapable of self-government. Many people argued, that "no man is good enough to govern another man without the other's consent. When the white man governs himself, that is self-government, but when he governs himself and also govern another man, that is more than self-government. That is despotism(rule by tyrant.) -Abraham Lincoln But the United States governed many other people who were incapable of self-government without their consent. For example, The Indians, their own territories, even their own children. Because it is for their own well being. (Documents B and C)

Other colonizing countries had their eyes on the Philippines. Just waiting for the opportunity to pounce on them. If it were not for the Americans annexing the Philippines after freeing them from the Spanish, they would have fell at the guns of Germany, England, or Japan. The Filipinos would have been in the same situation they were just removed from. In many ways the U.S. was only looking in the best interest of the Philippines.(Documents B and C)

The U.S. felt as if the situation was all God's plan. That God guided them to the Philippines. And it was now their duty to