by Phil Wilkes Fixico
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the Chairman of the National Democratic Convention for 2012, said in a television interview, recently on Fox News, that, the GOP’s platform on immigration abortion and healthcare “looks like the platform of 1812”.
Many of the people that I talked to have said that the difference between the two Party’s conventions are that the Democratic Convention is obviously more reflective of today’s true demographics. The year 1812 was a very scary time for anyone who was not a White-Anglo-Saxon-Protestant. The Underground Rail Road was still going South during 1812. Blacks continued to escape U.S. Slavery by fleeing to Catholic Spanish Florida. Even though George Washington’s Administration in 1790 had forced Spain to repeal it’s “Edict of 1693” which gave asylum to all Blacks who reached Florida for over 100 years. The Seminole Indians became escaped Blacks last hope for freedom, however, they would have to fight for their freedom along side of Indians who were resisting Removal.
On Janurary 15th, 1811 the U.S. Congress during President James Madison’s Administration passed a secret act for the acquisition and occupation of the Spanish Floridas. Gen. George Matthews was appointed a U.S. Commissioner assigned to carry out the take-over. James Cusick, Author of “The Other War of 1812”, The Patriot War and the American Invasion of Spanish East Florida, writes this “in 1812, a former governor of Georgia, George Matthews tries to spark a revolt against Spanish rule in East Florida. Instead of a revolt he set off a rather vicious bloodbath between the settlers of southern Georgia and those of northeast Florida. And thus a shooting war began”. The American filibusters, called themselves the : “Patriots”. Cusick, points out , that in, March of 1812 after the “Patriots” reached St. Augustine, Fl. the Madison Administration due to International outrage rescinds George Matthews commission and public ally repudiates the seizure of East Florida but in April continuing a secret policy, they appoint Gov. David Mitchell of Geo. to replace George Matthews.
In June the U.S. declares war on Great Britain. That same year the Red and Black Seminoles enter into the war.
They eventually, ambush and kill the covert filibusters final commander General Buckner Harris which led to the ultimate collapse of the Patriot army. It is believed by some authorities that their Patriot war victories convinced the U.S. to send it’s military to do the job. Therefore, General Andrew Jackson’s service were required.