The actions of the United States government toward Native tribes have changed drastically over the course of American history. The pre-Civil War (1776-1860) period was characterized by a policy of displacement, removal, and assimilation of Native tribes as the United States sought to expand its territories. After the Civil War (1864-1890), the government adopted a policy of reservation-based Native self-determination, which allowed Native tribes to retain their autonomy and cultural identity. In the pre-Civil War period, the government’s treatment of Native tribes was largely based on the Doctrine of Discovery. This doctrine stated that the European settlers had the right to claim and settle on lands inhabited by Native tribes, and the tribes …show more content…
For example, both periods saw the government attempting to control Native tribes and their lands. In the pre-Civil War period, this was done through forced removal and assimilation. In the post-Civil War period, this was done through the establishment of reservations and the negotiation of treaties. Additionally, both periods saw the government attempting to gain control of valuable resources in Native lands. In the pre-Civil War period, this was done through the displacement of Native tribes. In the post-Civil War period, this was done through the negotiation of treaties that ceded Native lands to the United States in exchange for cash payments and other considerations. In conclusion, the actions of the United States government towards Native tribes have changed drastically from the pre-Civil War period to the post-Civil War period. In the pre-Civil War period, the government attempted to assimilate and remove Native tribes, whereas, in the post-Civil War period, the government adopted a policy of reservation-based self-determination. Despite these differences, there are still some similarities between these two periods, such as the government’s control of Native tribes and their
“The settler colonial logic of elimination in its crudest form, a violent rejection of all things Indian, was transformed into a paternalistic mode of governmentality which, though still sanctioned by state violence, came to focus on assimilation rather than rejection.” –Patrick Wolfe, After the Frontier: Separation and Absorption in US Indian Policy, 13 Wolfe’s statement illustrates how the US government put more emphasis on legalized absorption of Indians into the White society rather than using forceful and violent methods to acquire the Natives’ land. After the colonization of the westward land and the end of the Frontier era, the US government’s method of assimilation of the Indians started revolving around allotment and blood quanta. With no place to further push the Natives away, the established Bureau of Indian Affairs and the government took action to eliminate the Natives culturally and spiritually instead of physically.
The relationship between the United States and the Native American tribes has never been a supportive one, challenging at best. In the past 200 years the relationship between the two has put pressure on Congress’ claim of a world power over tribes and tribal nation’s natural sovereignty, one that is even older than that of the United States of America. This tension, which comes from a sense of where the status of the Tribe fits into the United States Constitution, is creating a slippery slope for the Native American people. But in the book, the biggest question Pommersheim raises in the introduction is: can the modern Indian people escape their federally forced dependence, to become truly self-defining?
Although friction between Native Americans and settlers existed from the moment the first Europeans arrived in North America, the moment of the forced relocation of the Native American population in 1830 marked the lowest point in. Conflict arose especially in Andrew Jackson's presidency, as Jackson influenced the American population to turn against their native peers. The forced removal of Native Americans from their native lands triggered one of the greatest human migrations in North American history. American western expansion, the ideology of manifest destiny, and racist conceptions during the mid 19th century onward permanently impacted many native American tribes through cultural, economic, social, political, and environmental ideologies because of the American’s view of Manifest Destiny and the need to conquer land.
government towards Native Americans during the Progressive Era were not implemented in the best interests of Native Americans, but rather in the interests of the U.S. government and white settlers. These policies were motivated by a belief that Native Americans were "primitive" and in need of "civilizing," which led to the loss of Native American land and resources, as well as cultural genocide and trauma for generations of Native Americans. It is important to acknowledge and address the harm caused by these policies in order to move towards a more just and equitable
Indians were seen as a part of the citizen ship of the country as they were given the opportunity to enjoy the rights of all Americans. One such right was the ability to join the armed forces to defend the country in World War Two which gave the Native American a sense of belonging. Furthermore the Federal government through congress in 1946 acknowledged the fact that they had mistreated Native Americans and offered compensation to the tune of 800 million dollars which did more harm than good as it caused unwanted internal conflicts within tribes. Another development to improve life for Native Americans and its relationship with the government was the reintroduction of self governance which aimed to preserve the cultural predilection of Native Americans to tribal governance in which they are able to make and adhere to their own rules and
Struggling to advance in society while being driven out of their culture, their lands, and their once made promises. Prior to the Louisiana Purchase, Native Americans received a proposal to unknowingly deny their identity and form part of a new identity, the white settlers. “President of the United States, Jefferson developed what he considered to be a rather generous policy to encourage native peoples to assimilate” (Kubic 6). Assimilating that the Native Americans would take in and embrace the white settlers culture, language, and
The Civil War was over and Slavery was no longer, more people started immigrating to the colonies. The population in the colonies increased, living conditions started to dwindle. The government knew they needed to find land for farming and to house their growing populations. They focused on expanding toward the West, this region was already occupied by the Native American’s. The Government thought the Native American’s were savages and incapable of becoming civilized.
Due to Westward Expansion in the late 1800s, the Native American's land was taken away by the U.S. government. The U.S. government made the wrong decision to take Native American land and give it to the settlers. Native Americans had the land first. However, people who disagree say the U.S. had a growing population and they needed a place to live and farm. The government’s decision to take Native American’s land was an atrocity.
These tribes no longer had a say in their freedom, they were considered property of the government. Native became
Marshall ruled that tribes only have the right to occupancy, but no ownership of the land, so therefore they couldn’t sell land to another (O’Brien
Introduction In 1855, the United States government negotiated a treaty with Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation that ceded 6.4 million acres of tribal ground. The treaty allowed the tribes to maintain hunting and fishing rights on some of these lands. This paper explains the Treaty of 1855 and what it led to (CTUIR Tribal Hunting Rights Reserved in 1855 Treaty).
Losing one’s cultural knowledge, and therefore the reality of their culture, allows others to have control over their collective and individual consciousness as well as their destiny. In this case, it is clear that the United States government has had the dominant relationship over the Native
The Native American removal was the process of evicting approximately 100,000 Indians from their homeland in the United States during the 1830s, resulting in the deaths of approximately 15,000 indigenous people (Britannica). At the time, President Andrew Jackson wanted to populate the Indian tribes’ home territories in the eastern United States with American citizens by forcing Native Americans to move west of the Mississippi River (Doc 6). Out of the tribes, only some followed the President’s orders voluntarily. Others, such as the Seminole tribe, resisted. The Native American removal was not justifiable given the tribes were trying to assimilate, they had already surrendered land to the US, the process was a waste of American time and resources, and the method of removal was inhumane.
There is no doubt that an immense number of Native Americans died at the hands of United States citizens and were slaughtered for trying to protect themselves from persecution allotted by the Indian Removal Act. The amount spiritual and physical damage done to the tribes that were forced to leave their homelands is simply incomprehensible. It is terrifying to see and realize that this country’s economic and geographical growth came at an awful price: the happiness and safety of thousands of innocent
Throughout the 19th century Native Americans were treated far less than respectful by the United States’ government. This was the time when the United States wanted to expand and grow rapidly as a land, and to achieve this goal, the Native Americans were “pushed” westward. It was a memorable and tricky time in the Natives’ history, and the US government made many treatments with the Native Americans, making big changes on the Indian nation. Native Americans wanted to live peacefully with the white men, but the result of treatments and agreements was not quite peaceful. This precedent of mistreatment of minorities began with Andrew Jackson’s indian removal policies to the tribes of Oklahoma (specifically the Cherokee indians) in 1829 because of the lack of respect given to the indians during the removal laws.