Sport and the American Occupation of the Philippines - Bats, Balls, and Bayonets

This interdisciplinary case study invokes historical, sociological, and anthropological means to examine the ascendance of the United States to a world power in its first imperial venture. In the aftermath of the Spanish-American War of 1898 the U.S. acquired and occupied the Philippine Islands for nearly a half century in an attempt to install a democratic form of government, a capitalist economy, the Protestant religion, and a particular value system. Sport became a primary means to achieve such goals, fostered initially by the military, and then widely promoted in the schools and the YMCA. Competitive programs, including international athletic spectacles, channeled Filipino nationalism against Asian rivals rather than the American occupiers as guerrilla warfare ensued in the islands. The strategies learned in the Philippines, now known as "soft power" remain prominent factors in current American foreign policy.

List of contents

Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Social Darwinism
Chapter 3: Military
Chapter 4: Politics
Chapter 5: Religion
Chapter 6: American Capitalism in the Philippines
Chapter 7: Education
Chapter 8: Sport
Chapter 9: The Legacy of the American Occupation

About the author

Gerald R. Gems is professor at North Central College.

Product details

• Authors: Gems Gerald R.
• Publisher: Bloomsbury
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Release: 11.12.2025
• EAN: 9798216396277
• ISBN: 979-8-216-39627-7
• No. of pages: 210
• Subjects: Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; USA, POLITICAL SCIENCE / International Relations / General, 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000, HISTORY / United States / 20th Century, POLITICAL SCIENCE / World / Asian, HISTORY / Asia / Southeast Asia, International Relations, 20th century, c 1900 to c 1999, United States of America, USA, Philippines, Asian History, History of the Americas