Native American and European Americans Could Not Coexist

I find it hard to look back and say that given the proper circumstances traditional Native American cultures couldn’t have co-existed alongside European American cultures. The Americas have come a long way in their intercultural acceptance and interactions. Looking back at the relationship between African Americans and Caucasians one would have never believed that we would have a African American President. Though we have made amazing progress I do not think that the European American culture and the traditional Native American cultures could have co-existed together.

The European American’s were on a roll of discoveries. From learning there is more to life than the ruling of the king and adopting Enlightenment and democracy to taking the lead in the trading industry with the first landings on the Americas. Their minds then and still today are forward thinking. The English settlement in the Americas was to further their economical growth and commercial industries, not just to have natural land. The Native Americans on the other hand had a strong belief in the natural land as many of their religious beliefs are founded on the magic of mother nature and what it provides. The natural elements of mother nature such as the animals, the sticks, the stars were often brought into religious beliefs and ceremonies.

Christianity was spreading through European Americans and was a great influence in the coming to the Americas. It was derived from the theories of the end of time. It doesn’t matter what religion you believe or practice, it will have a large influence on your interactions, beliefs, and acquaintances. With two very different religious views and the European Americans drive to industrialize the conflict over land was inevitable. The Protestant believed that the Native Americans were instruments of the evil. Today and then Protestant sects do not solely agree on the sequence of events at the end of time. Though they do believe that the Ordeal and the final battle will occur in the Americas. The Protestants believed that the right place for the Ordeal to take place would be in the wild lands of America. The Native Americans were then viewed as the instruments of the Ordeal and the Ordeal was to take place in the wild or the home lands of the Native Americans, therefore labeling them as evil. With these views, the conflict of religion once again is a very strong dividing factor. I do not see how the two could have looked past this to move forward.

With these combined beliefs of Christianity and Protestant, those who believed that the Ordeal would be a physical battle then started attacks against the Native Americans. It seemed as if no one noticed that adaptation of the western civilization of the Cherokee tribes as they were relieved to have the Europeans assistance and guidance. The Cherokee tribes were on board with the vision and growth of the Americas. Still the battles continued well into the twentieth century and still exist in some areas today over land and money.

Though all Americans have come a long way, the different beliefs on religion and mother nature are too strong to co-exist in the early days of civilization. The Handbook of American Indians, 1906
Clearly defines the beliefs and views of the Native Americans from adoption to tribal structure. “Besides those manifestations of religious belief that relate to the individual, religion has become closely associated with the social structure of the tribes; so that the ritualistic side of religion can be understood only in connection with the social organization of the Indian tribes. Even the fundamental traits of their social organization possess a religious import.” This is a statement on their religious structure today. The conflict still is present when you put the beliefs of a Protestant or a Christian next to the beliefs of the Native Americans. We are all entitled to our own freedom to believe and practice our chosen religion, thanks to the great enlightenment that America has adopted, though with this comes many dividing issues, some to strong to overcome.