Thesis: The author posits that the derivative of a tragically unsuccessful colonization effort results with an epic ten-year odyssey of survival, assimilation, and revelation as the first Old World outsiders to athwart and live in the interior of North America. The culmination of the experiences of Cabeza de Vaca, man of influence, stranded in unexplored lands, encountering and existing with countless Native American tribes as guest, slave, trader, and healer engenders an atypical ideal of humane colonization and coexistence.…
"In examining the question how the disturbances on the frontiers are to be quieted, two modes present themselves, by which the object might perhaps be effected; the first of which is by raising an army, and (destroying the resisting] tribes entirely, or 2ndly by forming treaties of peace with them, in which their rights and limits should be explicitly defined, and the treaties observed on the part of the United States with the most rigid justice, by punishing the whites, who should violate the same. In considering the first mode, an inquiry would arise, whether, under the existing circumstances of affairs, the United States have a clear right, consistently with the principles of justice and the laws of nature, to proceed to the destruction or expulsion of the savages.... The Indians being the prior occupants, possess the right of the soil. It cannot be taken from them unless by their free consent, or by the right of conquest in case of a. just war. To dispossess them on any other principle, would be a gross violation of the fundamental laws of nature, and of that distributive justice which is the glory of a nation. But if it should be decided, on an abstract view of the situation, to remove by force the ... Indians from the territory they occupy, the finances of the United States would not at present…
In 1992, David Stannard published a book that depicted the struggles of the American Natives from the time Christopher Columbus landed. His book, American Holocaust- the Conquest of the New World, is a story of ruthless countries trying to gain land in the Americas at any and all cost. The story takes place in North America from the late 1400’s forward. Stannard’s book raised many questions of what exactly took place during this time period and where it actually stands in the over brutality of conquering land for the sake of a king.…
The myth is that the conquistadors conquered the America’s relatively quickly in a sovereign effort but Restall explains that the Spaniards had a lot of help from the Natives and African’s and the “completion” of conquest was anything but; as mass portions of the land remained unscathed by the conquest. Restall effortlessly explains how the conquistador myths of superior communication between the Spaniards and Natives were just as fabricated as the modern misconception of inferior communication by historians. The communication between the two, or lack thereof, fell somewhere between both myths. Restall uses his concise writing style to explain the resilience of the Natives, debunking the myth of Native desolation and how the myth of superiority derives from Eurocentric beliefs of racial dominance which lead to racist ideologies that “underpinned colonial expansion from the late fifteenth to early twentieth centuries.”…
With the annihilation of the Arawaks, came the wave of European and eventual English settlement. The foundation of dead bodies that early America was built upon allowed a great power to rise up. As immaculate as the United States can be, its glories do not forgive the atrocities the pursuit of American advancement left behind. A long-lasting and powerful country, it is easy to argue that while what happened was horrible, what has risen from the ashes of natives makes better for its past. Paul Johnson admits himself that “such grievous wrongs must be balanced by the erection of a society dedicated to justice and fairness” (Johnson 4).…
He recounts the devastations that the Americas have faced, such as “the Spaniards” imposition of their Old World culture to the New World, and “the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.” When Spain colonized the New World, they brought with them their European culture that clashed with the Native Americans. With history as our evidence, the destruction is well known. The Dust Bowl was the fault of applying old traditions to new lands. Scientifically proven, readers can see that by migrating and bringing their own ways without adaptation results in disaster. Together, readers can logically conclude that the outcome of moving ended up in a…
The author leaves readers with the inspiration to learn more about Native Americans and their role in the history of the west. Brown’s narrative provides the reader with a Native American account of the West. Based on his…
In 1850 and later on, several transcontinental railroads were built for easier transportation. The government also granted federal land for the laissez-faire ideologists for building the railroad (Doc. A). However, the process was slower than it’s planned. “More than 800 petitions were presents to Land Commission, and already 10 years of delays have elapsed and only some 50 patents have been granted” (Doc. B). The petitioners eventually have to sell their possessions little by little. Richest landholders ended up “living as objects of charity” (Doc. B). Red Cloud was also upset by the poor work of the government. He believed that “commissioners are sent out there to do nothing but to rob [us] and get the riches of this world away from us” (Doc. C). As the chief of Oglala Sioux, the Native American felt that the new American had come to kick them out of their lands and to steal their properties and possessions. In addition, Native American was suppressed by the colonists. “White man a teacher who tortured an ambitious Indian youth by frequently reminding the brave changeling that he was nothing but a “government pauper” (Doc.J). They lost trust and faith in the new government of the United States. Furthermore, the freight rates had done more injuries to the Western region than anything else. “The railroads have retarded its growth as they first hastened it” (Doc. I). F.B. Tracy…
Unit 4 Essay - The Trail of Tears/Indian Removal 1815-1860 was a busy time for the United States of America. The country was still fairly new and everything was changing. The country had to deal with new land areas, Indian removal, nullification, a national bank, and everything in between. Whoever was elected as president had a large task ahead of them, not one president had it very easy. Ever since this country was founded, there was one substantial problem that lay ahead of them; the Native Americans.…
Throughout all of American history, minorities have been plagued with ill treatment and discrimination. In every corner of the nation’s history, it is very easy to find example after example of the cruel treatment brought upon those who did not fit into society, or rather got in the way of where it was heading. The Native Americans were among the earliest to fall into this misunderstood category, and were immediately looked down upon. Due to misconceptions about their culture and people, and the desperate need and greed of the early Europeans, the Native Americans fell victim to a long-time precedent of unfair discrimination and brutal treatment. Even for centuries following the first explorers, the thoughts towards Native Americans were seemingly unchanged, and these people were seen only as huge obstacles for the ever-growing United States.…
The Unites States of America is renowed by the battles fought for freedom, human rights, and pursuit of happiness. Even though part of the battles fought were against our own nation, such as the Civil War, those challenges were made in order to build a stronger, more equal, and better nation for all. Some significant events, which were studied during this class, were the Revolutionary War, the Louisiana Purchase, and the Trail of Tears. However, as every other nation at some point of their history, we have committed the evil to our own people in order to achieve our own greed, such as the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears was the violent and inhuman removal of the Cherokee tribe from their own land, and moved to the West of the Mississippi…
When the government constantly issues tiny borders for the Cherokee Indians, they do not take into account the reality that the Cherokee Indians don’t have anywhere to go. The land the government wants is the only home of the Indians. The government swiftly annihilates rebels and sticks to its plan to gain more land (Carnes, 1996). Although this might seem like a plan of perseverance, it is selfish, ensnares, and abuses others. The Indians have lost their kin and home because of wrong control. This piece of evidence is important because it reveals the personal desires of the government and its cruel ways to get what it wants (Carnes, 1996). This system of law keeps people powerless and dependent on the government. While the Indian’s homes are to be abandoned, they offer no solution to the problem, and depend on their leader, Sitting Bull. Sitting Bull proposes and leads an idea of peace with the Americans, but this all comes to an end when he is accidentally killed by a policeman. The Indians seek a new leader [a strange farmer], and rely on the miraculous Ghost Dance (Carnes, 1996). Their enemy views the dance as a superstitious, and then massacres all of the Indians. Because of the selfish control of the government, led by fear of the Indians and greed, the Indians have no freedom; this shows how much people shouldn’t have ultimate control over…
The expansion from East to West in America that occurred during 1840’s through 1890’s triggered imperative change in the lives of indigenous people. This expansion is also known as the Manifest Destiny in which, Europeans claimed to have the God given right expand the United States from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. During this expansion Americans forced their economic, political, social and religious ways onto the Native Americans. These Indigenous people fought endlessly against this massive and rapid expansion.…
Americans attempted greatly to americanized these peoples and integrate them into society. Through these trends many Indian nations faced this process of being coerced to leave land and identity. This is depicted in Chief Joseph’s…
To begin with, colonists were certainly in disagreement with Native Americans. While native, the colonists claimed that they achieve real estate fairly; it was absolutely the Native Americans that were ahead of the game, Native Americans at the beginning were abused in the midst of the process to selling or buying land. In the meantime, colonists made use of the opportunity they were given, to give the Native Americans’ flammable liquid, knowing that the Native Americans’ would be intoxicated. Colonists said that they had mislaid many square miles of property through mediation, colonists said they have done they Native Americans’ no wrong at all.…