The 1619 Project was created by the New York Times to re-examine American history through the lens of slavery and the contributions of black Americans. It argues that 1619, the year the first enslaved Africans arrived in Virginia, should be considered the country's founding date rather than 1776. The project examines how slavery impacted all aspects of modern American society and the economy. It also explores how the civil rights movement helped advance democracy by securing voting rights and anti-discrimination laws. The project aims to show how past injustices still influence present-day issues and change common perceptions of U.S. history.

1. Running Head: THE 1619 PROJECT 1
The 1619 Project
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Argument
The 1619 project was a program that was prepared by the New York Times with the
primary aim of analyzing and re-examining the history and legacy of slavery in the United States.
The year 1619 marks an important date to American history because it was the first-time enslaved
people from Africa arrived in the Virginia colony. The primary aim of the 1619 project was to
reframe America history through the lens of slavery (Bouie, 2019). The argument made by the
article is that it makes a date 1619 as the actual founding years of the United States democracy.
The article tries to examine the consequences of slavery and the contribution made by black
Americans in the realization of American democracy. According to Nikole Hannah Jones, slavery
impacted everything in modern American society. The 1619 project tries to show how the modern
phenomenon is related to slavery, and at the same time, it works to show how the past can be used
to explain the present situation in America (Villarosa, 2019).
Connection made by the writer
The connections made by the writers concerning slavery and the history of race in the
United States revolves around the industrial revolution success. The industrial revolution success
was mainly contributed by the black Americans who were slaves in the cotton plantations. Also,
the writer makes a connection between slavery and the history of race in the United States by
showing how slavery made America exceptional. For example, Nikole Hannah explains that the
industrial power of the US was due to slavery and even the betterment of the electoral system is
because of the contribution of black Americans. For instance, the 1965 march from Selma to
Montgomery contributed to the improvement of the electoral system because black Americans
were allowed to exercise their constitutional right to vote. Also, the passing of the Civil right Act

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contributed to the betterment of employment laws, and it catalyzed the adoption of universal health
coverage in the US (Interlandi, 2019).
Convincing
I find the article convincing because one of the reasons that made America become a nation
was because of slavery. Most of the founding father wanted the tie between America and Britain
to be broken because they thought that Britain was going to regulate slavery. Therefore, since
slavery was bringing in a lot of money, most founding fathers argued that Britain would regulate
the slave trade with the aim of abolishing slavery totally (Villarosa, 2019). The article shows that
due to the enormous wealth brought by slavery most of the founding father wanted to continue
with the slave trade and thus they opted to gain independence from Britain with the aim of
maintaining the slave trade.
Furthermore, the article is convincing when it comes to explaining the current situation and
economy of the US. For example, the article shows that the industrial revolution success was due
to slavery. For instance, most of the cotton that was being spun in textile industries came from
enslaved people who were living as a slave in the south. Also, the article shows how various sectors
of the US economy grew because of the slave trade (Bouie, 2019). For instance, the banking
industry thrived because they were financing the slave trade. Also, the south region grew because
the shipbuilders were bringing slave from Africa, meaning that this was a national enterprise that
was bringing a lot of money to the US.
Change of thought about US history
The article changes my thinking about US history because it highlights the various
contribution made by the black Americans in realizing the American dream. For instance, the

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article shows how distinct modern phenomenon is related to slavery. For example, the article
indicates that slavery is not just something of the past that has been resolved but is something that
is instructive of the future (Morris, 2019). Also, the article change how I think about the US history
because it shows that slavery was the primary reason that most founding fathers found the strength
to believe that they could defeat Britain which was the most powerful nation in the world. For
example, more than five first presidents of the US were slave owners.
Moreover, the article is informing since it shows how the Civil right movement contributed
to the realization of the American democracy. For instance, the article shows how the Civil right
movement helped the nation at large to recognize the constitutional rights of black Americans in
the US (Morris, 2019). The Civil right made the whole of the US population to understand the
inhumane nature of Jim Crow laws which advocate for the practice of segregation and even
discrimination against black Americans (Interlandi, 2019). Lastly, the article is convincing since
by giving evidence that the first ten presidents of the US were slave owners means that slave trade
is a sector that was a backbone of the US economy. The reason is that the article shows that slavery
made the industrial revolution to be successful since most merchants depended on cheap labour
provided by the slave to run the textile industries other industries that depended on the slave as
labourers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, my opinion on the 1619 project is that it is very educative since it comes up
with a new way of viewing the US history whereby it explains that the US did not start in 1776
when it gained its independence. The article shows that the US history can be traced way back
when the slave trade began and showing how the slave trade acted as a catalyst that leads to many
Britain colony in America to join together as one country under the name United States. The

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primary lesson learned from the article is that the realization of American democracy can be
attributed to black Americans and the various marginalized group in society. For instance, the civil
right movement helped American realize the effects of Jim Crows laws that advocated for
segregation of the black community. Also, the civil right movement helped American implement
democracy because they highlighted the various problems that many people were facing. For
instance, the lack of universal health coverage and the right for black America to vote (Villarosa,
2019). I think the article is important because it does not reflect on the good side of American
history, but it re-examines both the good and bad side of American history that made it be great.

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References
(2019). Retrieved 6 November 2019, from
http://pulitzercenter.org/sites/default/files/full_issue_of_the_1619_project.pdf
Bouie, J. (2019). What the Reactionary Politics of 2019 Owe to the Politics of Slavery. Retrieved
6 November 2019, from
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/republicans-racism-african-
americans.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com&gwh=6A295CA68E051D036C6EC71A69D
56216&gwt=pay&assetType=REGIWALL
Interlandi, J. (2019). Why Doesn’t America Have Universal Health Care? One Word: Race.
Retrieved 6 November 2019, from
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/universal-health-care-
racism.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com&gwh=A6E379D63CE99848A75BC705C64A44
AE&gwt=pay&assetType=REGIWALL
Morris, W. (2019). Why Is Everyone Always Stealing Black Music?. Retrieved 6 November
2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/music-black-
culture-
appropriation.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com&gwh=B92BC835B03C1C13E14F0AE45
96C75DC&gwt=pay&assetType=REGIWALL
Villarosa, L. (2019). How False Beliefs in Physical Racial Difference Still Live in Medicine
Today. Retrieved 6 November 2019, from
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/racial-differences-

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doctors.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com&gwh=5FD2EF82DF796436DBD261A30ECCD
31A&gwt=pay&assetType=REGIWALL