#19 "The Philippine American War and the Myth of Democracy"
- Podcast Teaser Trailer
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Episode Preview -- "The Philippine American War and the Myth of Democracy"
- Episode Number
- Students Podcasting History Episode #19
- Episode Title
- #19 "The Philippine American War and the Myth of Democracy"
- Episode Date
- April 25, 2025
- Key Words
- Philippine-American War, U.S. imperialism, White Man’s Burden, Emilio Aguinaldo, American exceptionalism, Mark Twain, Chief Joseph, U.S. foreign policy, colonial violence, Theodore Roosevelt, Frederick Jackson Turner, democracy abroad
- Episode Introduction
- In this episode of Echoes of Empire, host Beau Burnette explores the Philippine-American War through the lens of American imperialism, unearthing the hypocrisy behind the U.S. claim to be spreading democracy in the early 20th century. The episode examines how the war was justified through racist ideologies like the “White Man’s Burden” and frontier expansion, and reveals how U.S. actions in the Philippines paralleled domestic racial injustices, especially toward Native Americans. With excerpts from primary sources, including Rudyard Kipling’s controversial poem and Mark Twain’s biting satire, The War Prayer, this episode challenges listeners to reckon with the contradictions of American history.
- Hosted By
- Beau Burnette
- Host Biography
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I am Beau Burnette, a student historian and podcast host who uses storytelling and digital media to explore themes of justice, empire, and identity in American history. I am currently a
sophomore studying at the University of the South under Dr. Andrew Maginn in the History of the United States II course. My work aims to bring historical moments to broader audiences through creative platforms like podcasting. Today's episode is part of Students Podcasting History, a collaborative project created by students in Dr. Maginn’s class to examine pivotal movements in U.S. history since 1865. The
show blends primary source research with narrative interpretation to make history morecaccessible, engaging, and relevant to today’s listeners. - The Show
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Beau explores the ideological framework behind U.S. imperialism, focusing on Rudyard
Kipling’s White Man’s Burden, Roosevelt’s Monroe Doctrine Corollary, and Turner’s frontier
thesis. A clip from Kipling’s poem (via LibriVox) is included to highlight how racism and paternalism shaped imperial logic. The episode details violent practices used by American troops during the Philippine-American War, including the “water cure” and indiscriminate civilian killings. This section draws on soldier reports and features a mention of Mark Twain’s The War Prayer as a satirical response to wartime hypocrisy. Beau connects the U.S. refusal to recognize Filipino independence to similar patterns in its treatment of Native Americans, referencing Chief Joseph’s speeches. He argues that the U.S. betrayed its stated ideals of self-determination. - Source
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Kipling, Rudyard. The White Man’s Burden (LibriVox) –
https://librivox.org/the-white-mans-burden-by-rudyard-kipling/
● Twain, Mark. The War Prayer (Archive.org) –
https://archive.org/details/war_prayer_librivox
● Chief Joseph’s speeches – National Park Service:
https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=40888C8B-94B1-44B6-B20F-F79D14D7
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● Paul Kramer, “Race-Making and Colonial Violence in the U.S. Empire”
● The American Yawp Reader: Soldier reports and documents on the Philippines
Tindall & Shi, America: A Narrative History, Ch. 22 - Contact Information
- Burnewr0@sewanee.edu