Comparsion Of The Relationship Between The Indians And The United States

The Indians and the United States government had a very conflicting relationship. White encroachment and western expansion caused many Indians to lose their native land. Many tribes such as the Nez Perce and the Cheyennes were forced to give up tribal lands to the government and in the process concentrated on Indian reservations. On these reservations Indians experienced white intervention with treaties being broken by the federal government. These interactions included stripping Indians of their culture and way of life. 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
Lastly, in the film “Reel Injun” directed by Neil Diamond he explores the portrayal of Indians by HollyWood. Thus, the Indians people's treatment includes great injustice/inequality, violence, and inaccurate representation from the media.
To begin, the federal government treated the Indians very harshly and not to mention unfairly. They broke several negotiated treaties as well as stripped native land from many Indian nations. Through these acts is displays how Indians were regarded with little to no respect by the government not honoring treaties of land succession. For example, in the source “An Indian’s perspective” the chief of the Nez Perce tribe states that “we gave up some of our country to the white men, thinking that then we could have peace. The white men would not let us alone” and continued to take our land by breaking treaties (46). This treatment of the Indians is also seen in Out of Many that says how the “federal government had long regarded Indians Tribes as autonomous nations residing within American boundaries and had negotiated many treaties… with land hungry whites violating treaties” (608). In these sources it shows the paradigm shift of the
In the film “Reel Injun” it shows how Native Americans were mistreated not only by white encroachment and loss of land but also through the depictions Indians had on screen. The film uses several examples of Hollywood movies that incorporated Indians as primitive peoples and being blood thirsty. In many western films this was a common trend of making Indians seem crazy and barbaric. They would add characters of the John Wayne type that embodied American values of being unstoppable and almighty hunky man. This contrast between Indians and the white cowboy made the Indian culture very misrepresented. Indian culture as seen in the film “Dance with Wolves” properly showcased Indian life of being more than fighters and at its core as a splendorous nation of people who had strong kinships, brotherhood, and free spirited. It showed the true story of Indians being mystic peoples who were noble, spiritual, and wise not brutal peoples. The treatment of Indians on film can also be seen with the Sacheen Littlefeather. The film industry did not treat her fairly and tried to hide her culture. When she spoke against this mistreatment at her awards ceremony it caused public outrage who many at the time did not accept Indians. America tried to shove her in the dark and keep her voice that was a symbol of realization that Indians are more than what they