When examining the legacy of John Brown, it becomes difficult to categorize him because of what he stood for. As we know, John Brown was a key abolitionist and because of his actions people often portrait him as a hero (which he is). In light of this, I believe that John Brown was a terrorist and committed terrorism. Now I want to stress that I am not comparing him to modern day ISIS and I still believe that he is a hero, however his actions are one of a terrorist.
If you examine the actions of John Brown, and then put them into modern context it becomes quiet clear that his actions are terrorism. For example, John Brown specifically targeted and attacked property that belonged to slaver owners and pro-slavery individuals. He was not targeting people as much as their property to get his point across. This is used as a tactic today by many groups such as environmentalists and pro-choice extremists. Rather than attacking individuals of their opposing view, they attack offices or public locations so their actions can publicly be seen. John Brown also specifically chose his targets for psychological reasons. He wouldn't attack someone or something that people did not care about, but rather he would target known individuals or landmarks to psychologically affect his victims. We have seen this recently with the case of 9/11, when they chose the World Trade Center because they knew the psychological impact it would have on the US (among other reasons).
I liked your point of view on how John Brown is a hero but still committed terrorism. Often we think as anyone who uses terrorism as a villain and in the wrong. But in your piece you made it seem as though sometimes terrorism can be actable if their cause is just and righteous.
ReplyDelete-Christopher Bouchard
Hi Andrew, this is great argument. As you said it is difficult to categorize him because some saw him as a freedom fighter/hero. I like how you backed your argument on how John Brown specifically chose his targets for psychological reasons.
ReplyDeleteChirusha de Mel
I agree with this argument that its hard to label John Brown a terrorist when he was fighting for such a nobel cause. But ultimately it comes down to the strategies he used which is what makes him a terrorist. I like ow you were able to show that his actions made him a terrorist while still also highlighting his reasons.
ReplyDelete-Stephen Agnatovech
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