Indian War

During the late 1800s while the United States were making advancements into the west, the United States Government had to enforce certain policies towards the Native Americans that they came across. These policies although made the movement to the west easier for the United States, it did not serve the Native American population very well. The purpose of these policies was to assist the federal government in the formation of the transcontinental railway that would be traveling through the Native American land, also known as the “Great American Desert”. Even though the government policies were necessary, the harsh attacks and reservations towards the Native Americans were not. Though these treaties harmed the Indian’s, they served to be beneficial to the United States Government, because it allowed them to hold some control over the Indians and was effective in having them do what they needed them to do. Part of the policies that the federal government put into place included separating the Indians into reservations, interfering with their ability to roam freely. This caused the Native Americans to face suppression and poverty. Not only did their population have to deal with being divided amongst themselves, but also their land, the White settlers brought with them diseases that the Indians had no immunity to, and the availability of buffalo herds were diminished. These White settlers used the hides of the buffalo and left the meat to rot which evidentially hurt the Indians because they were unable have the meat to eat. These policies not only had an effect on the land that the Indians lived on, but had a major and detrimental effect on the livelihood of this population, making them sick and taking away one of their only sources of nutrition. Even though the federal government needed some of the land that the Indian’s had settled on, there could have been a more effective and progressive way of going about it that could have benefited both parties involved.