Indian Suffrage
Indian Suffrage
Before the English arrived in the New world and began creating colonies, the American Indians lived in harmony and peace with natures. The American
Indians were skilled hunters, farmers and used everything in their environment for survival or for essential necessities. They shared the land together and moved about freely in search of food. The American Indians never considered the lands their property because it's belong to God and no one have the right to buy, sell, nor own it. However, Europeans has an opposite view of Indians beliefs, cultures, and use of lands. They viewed Indians as children, savage- uncivilized people in need of their protection and salvation (Carroll and Noble:
30). Therefore, they felt it is their responsibility to civilize the Indian and put their lands into good uses. Hence, American Indians suffrages and nightmares began. The impact of American expansion has turned upon the Indians and confronted them with social and economic crises never before experienced.
As a result, many tribes torn apart, in many cases extinct, and their identity was lost. Indians also lost their original lands as a result of direct and indirect contact with the Europeans. The whites wanted more lands for their developments, and because of this greed, they created direct policies to clear the Indians off their lands. For example, one form of direct policy that the whites used to rob Indians of their lands was by signing treaties. Then later the whites broke these treaties and forced Indian off their lands by the Removal policy and claimed the lands as their property (Lowy: Lecture 11/96). There were many indirect methods that white used to rob Indians' lands. They use bribery, threats, and among countless other things to trick Indians into giving up their lands. They were often tricked into signing the land cession treaties that they did not understand the negotiation and the language (Lowy: Lecture
11/6).
In many ways, the United
Before the English arrived in the New world and began creating colonies, the American Indians lived in harmony and peace with natures. The American
Indians were skilled hunters, farmers and used everything in their environment for survival or for essential necessities. They shared the land together and moved about freely in search of food. The American Indians never considered the lands their property because it's belong to God and no one have the right to buy, sell, nor own it. However, Europeans has an opposite view of Indians beliefs, cultures, and use of lands. They viewed Indians as children, savage- uncivilized people in need of their protection and salvation (Carroll and Noble:
30). Therefore, they felt it is their responsibility to civilize the Indian and put their lands into good uses. Hence, American Indians suffrages and nightmares began. The impact of American expansion has turned upon the Indians and confronted them with social and economic crises never before experienced.
As a result, many tribes torn apart, in many cases extinct, and their identity was lost. Indians also lost their original lands as a result of direct and indirect contact with the Europeans. The whites wanted more lands for their developments, and because of this greed, they created direct policies to clear the Indians off their lands. For example, one form of direct policy that the whites used to rob Indians of their lands was by signing treaties. Then later the whites broke these treaties and forced Indian off their lands by the Removal policy and claimed the lands as their property (Lowy: Lecture 11/96). There were many indirect methods that white used to rob Indians' lands. They use bribery, threats, and among countless other things to trick Indians into giving up their lands. They were often tricked into signing the land cession treaties that they did not understand the negotiation and the language (Lowy: Lecture
11/6).
In many ways, the United