Expository Essay - Winnie Ngo

Winnie Ngo

Freshman Comp. Spring 2015

23 March 2015

A Divided Nation is a Weak Nation

People tend to separate themselves from those who are different from them. Unfortunately these people tend not to realize that “those” people are human, just wanting to live happily. Persistent racism in America has kept one group from uniting with another. As new problems arise, racism continues to infect the nation creating a handicap. A divided nation is a weak nation; injustice and unresolved conflicts will continue to thrive throughout the country unless everyone is united as one.

Universal problems such as war, economic difficulties, disease, and natural disaster lead to injustice and unresolved conflict that affects everyone regardless of race or gender. These challenges will forever inflict harm to the American people. The magnitude of their effect is directly proportional to how willing the American people are to work together. This leaves the country weak and in disarray just because of separation due to perceived differences. In his speech, “A More Perfect Union,” Senator Barack Obama speaks to his audience on how crucial it is for people to unite during these difficult times, not just crisis. He states “…two wars, a terrorist threat, a falling economy, a chronic health care crisis and potentially devastating climate change; problems that are neither black or white or Latino or Asian, but rather problems that confronts us all” (Obama 3). Obama believes that all these unresolved conflicts and injustice affect everyone and everyone must band together to keep our communities from falling apart in times like these. Just like a chair needs all its legs to stand, America needs all its people to stand strong against these issues. Not only does division prevents people from resolving conflicts and overcome injustice, but also creates conflicts between and within people.

Segregation and division is a condition that will only bring suffering and hold citizens back from progressing in life. When people are divided, usually one side is labeled as inferior while the other is labeled as superior and inequality becomes an issue. This creates hatred, bitterness, fear and other negative emotions in one side toward the other. Martin Luther King Jr. speaks on behalf of the issue of separation and states negative effects of it has on the community, proving that division is a self-destructive device that is haunting America. In his letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he writes some of those painful torturous feelings and effects of segregation. Through the examples King provides it is clear that segregation not only make one feel conflicted with themselves but also with society. A great example of the development of these negative emotions is when King says:

You seek to explain to your six-year-old daughter why she cannot go to the public amusement park…advertised on television…tears welling up in her little eyes when she is told that [it is]…closed to colored children…depressing cloud of inferiority begin to form…developing a bitterness toward white people. (King 2)

These emotional pain and injustice wasn’t the only suffering these African-American had to deal with; every day these people had to endure physical pain from the violent acts of racist groups who were unwilling to accept African-Americans as their equal. During King’s time mobs were lynching the innocent lives of African American while policemen beating and cursing at these people without justification (King 2).  Without segregation, everyone would consider each other as equal individuals; the seeds of inferiority, hatred, bitterness, fear and other would not be grown by segregation. Instead of wasting time and energy on a problem that would easily be settled through unity, people can utilize that time and energy to create progress and positive change to better the lives of everyone. More division would also lead to constant tension pushing and pulling from multiple sides; the battle would be endless and multiple tragic events would occur if the conflicting forces are not dissolved.

When the nation is divided, tension between two or more sides will create two or more opposing forces leading to chaos and disasters. It becomes battle tug of war where both sides are constantly pulling on each other and nobody goes anywhere. Through Martin Luther King Jr.’s letter, it is clear that there are two opposing forces that plague the nation; one side against segregation and other, mainly the religious leaders in this case, supporting it. As the religious groups are supporting segregation, King raises a nonviolent opposing side to create tension in order to achieve the justice African-American deserves. As segregation continued to exist, these opposing forces continue to go head to head for about a century. Although segregation is now illegal, there is still that boundary that separates the two groups. This division creates the lack of trust between the black and white communities making it difficult to completely overturn social injustice. When a nation is conflicted internally it is impossible for the country as whole to maintain a strong and stable nation.

Looking back into history, there were many other cases of two opposing forces and one great example of that was the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. One side was strongly rooting for communist views while the other was strongly rooting democratic views. The tension between the two sides began right after World War II in 1945 and the conflict did not end until the Soviet Union had decline in 1991. During these times, the conflict had led to the Korean War. In 1950, the Korean War had begun between the communist North that was supported by the Soviet Union and the South that was support by America. After three years of fighting, over 3 million people had died and nothing had changed in which Korean remained divided into two nations (Foner 905).  This is a clear indication that two opposing force that is derived from separation can be destructive and, in this case, can cripple the nations across the world.

 Even through works of literature, two opposing forces tend to be destructive and can cause both side to inflict harm upon them. Writers have shown that tension built from two sides would only keep the situation at a stalemate while creating misfortune and tragic events overtime. A great example of this would be “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare. The two families, the Capulets and the Montagues, were constantly warring with each other and the result was the death of Romeo and Juliet. This demonstrates the two opposing force that could not be resolved and the consequence was the death of the people dear to them. If the families had not been conflicted with each other, Romeo and Juliet would have avoided their tragic fate. Being divided proved to be detrimental to families of the Capulets and the Montagues. Although this may not be a true story, the idea that division destructive is not very far from reality.

            It is strange that when people see a group of others that appear to be different from them they tend separate themselves completely from other group despite the fact that in reality they are same. Everyone shares the same dreams, hopes, worries, and fears that makes everyone human. Problems that affect everyone can only be overcome with the strength of all people combined. When people are separated, their focus is diverted toward the problem that makes the country weak. People develop the feelings of inferiority, anger, hatred, fear and much more. These negative emotions can weaken the state of the nation. Another consequence of division is the tension that is generates disorder and turmoil that could be easily avoid through the act of unity and working together. Hence, unity is the key to a strong nation.