Robert Remini’s Andrew Jackson and His Indian Wars is a book that makes you question Jackson's character. Remini addresses the long-standing debate of historians and scholars over whether or not Jackson was barbaric or whether he was a merciful savior that prevented the Native Americans from going extinct. Remini instead argues the opinion that Jackson was simply a man of his time. Despite this, Remini does show Jackson's inexcusable cruelty towards the Native Americans. He learned to fear and hate Indians from an early age.
In the article “Abuse of Power: Andrew Jackson and the Indian Removal Act of 1830,” the author, Alfred A. Cave, writes about President Jackson’s abuse of power. He is arguing that Jackson abused his power when he was enforcing the Indian Removal Act. He argues that Jackson broke guarantees he made to the Indians. He uses a political methodology and uses secondary sources.
He believed Jackson needed a reality check. The Indians were there first, it was their land. He force the Natives to move away from their homeland, with brute force. He believes Jackson could not justify his actions just because it was for America’s benefit. He also stated Jackson refused to listen to many people, and he refused to let Indians live.
Andrew Jackson’s sentiment towards the Native Americans was certainly not a kind one. Manifest destiny was a popular belief among Americans, including Jackson, and he would go to the extent of forcing Native Americans out of their homes to reach their “ordained goal”. He believed in the expansion of southern slavery which is why he pushed for removing the Indians west of the Mississippi, which makes it the more disgraceful. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 said that it will allow American government to offer in-state territories to the Indian’s for their western land. This wasn’t the case when the U.S. went in and drove the Indians out by force.
Many Native Americans tried to fit in with American culture, by learning to write and read, establishing governments similar to those of the United States, develop their own written languages, and start a plantation system with slavery. However, it was not sufficient. The New American still did not like the Native Americans, and wanted them to go. President Andrew Jackson was the one who thought of immediate solutions to the problem. Indian threaten westward expansion in the mid-nineteenth century with Second Seminole War, Treaty of New Echota, and Trail of Tears, To begin with, the Second Seminole War started after the passage of the Indian Removal Act in 1830.
The government tried to force assimilation on Native Americans as well as an attempt to “kill the indian, save the man.” These ideas and policies are similar to those popular during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. Jackson developed a sense of ‘paternalism’ towards indians and believed he was saving them by forcing them to live out west of the Mississippi river away from white culture. The difference was that Jackson did not believe in assimilation of indians into white culture, he believed they should be kept separate. With the help of the Federal government removing indians from land west of the Mississippi, Americans were
Although Jackson was important, he was part of many terrible things. Around the 1820s there were many major indian tribes in eastern United States such as Cherokee, Chickasaw, Creek and Seminole. This soon came to a change. Andrew Jackson thought these Indians were in the way of eastern development, using the Indian Removal Act which the congress had approved he decided to kick them out and send them west. In 1831 the Supreme Court ruled that the Cherokee Indians had the right to self government and the United States could not interfere with that.
Lily Thomas Ms. Scott Honors US History Period 4 15 November 2016 A Demagogue in Disguise Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States, was undoubtedly an immoral demagogue who abused his position of power to promote his own selfish interests and disregard the rights of many. One of the most notable moments during his time of leadership was the “Trail of Tears”, or forced removal and relocation of all Cherokee tribes on American soil. The Indian Removal Act, passed in 1830, ultimately caused the death of 4,000+ Cherokee people (Doc 4, par. 3).
Jackson’s Native American policies were very undemocratic because they decreased the power of the people. Document 9 states that the Native Americans have reasons to stay on their land, one being that the land west of the Arkansas Territory is unknown to them. Another is that the region is poorly supplied with food and water and that the new neighbors have different customs and a totally different language. Finally, they wish to remain on the land in which their ancestors died and where they were buried. The evidence helps explain that Andrew Jackson’s Native American policy was very undemocratic because the Native Americans had four very good reasons for staying on their homeland.
When Andrew Jackson stated that the the manifest destiny was a right to the citizens of America he created the national thought on whether or not to take the land that rightfully belonged to the indians. Even when he was talking about the manifest destiny, he called the indians uncivilized and savages. That sentence was untrue, The Indian wanted peace not war. One of their strategies were to adopt american
The president during the enforcement of the Indian removal act, Andrew Jackson, thought that the indigenous people were less civilized and moral than the settlers, although many of the tribes had adapted to the European lifestyle. He did not believe that the more “civilized” people should live alongside the indigenous people. When congress passed the Indian removal act in 1830 that stated that it was legal to force indigenous people off of their land, he fully enforced it, pushing tribes west. When there was an auction of Cherokee land, he claimed he couldn 't do anything to stop it, but he didn 't truly want to. The indigenous people wanted to coexist in peace, as Red Jacket stated, “‘You have got our country but are not satisfied; you want to force your religion upon us….
Andrew Jackson is known for being a major advocate for the superfluous removal of the Native American tribes. Jackson was being oblivious when he decided that he should ignore the treaties signed with the natives. The president was exhibiting selfishness and naïveté by confiscating the lands of the natives, to which they rightfully owned. Jackson had forced the “five civilized tribes,” which were natives who had adopted their neighbor’s ideas. These tribes were forced to make a long and perilous journey to the west of the Mississippi River.
Many people, including some historians, portray Andrew Jackson as an “Indian Hater.” Jackson frequently fought against Native Americans, but why did he fight these people? In Pruchas article she talked about many different ways Jackson fought against Native Americans and what his reasoning was. In 1808, Jackson had believed there were a group of settlers that were killed by the creeks. He believed that Great Britain ordered the creeks to come over and kill the settlers.
Andrew Jackson disobeyed a direct order from the Supreme Court, which it means he was above the law. I really wonder how Americans tolerated him, at that time, he was cruel to the Indian common man. Because of him, the Native Americans have the worst end of the Trail of Tears. They are the ones who are forced out of their traditional homes and sent away on a journey of pain and death. Those who had fallen ill, most of the time died, and those who had the will to move on were able to make it to the end and start new lives.
This source has significant value to historians but, like any other source, has its limitations. Andrew Jackson’s motivation to remove the Cherokee from their homeland originated from an avid persona to benefit the Americans. The speech analyzes Jackson’s motivation, and specific plans to remove the Cherokee. In consideration of the speech being written in 1830, the audience can learn how Jackson was rather harsh towards the natives in order to benefit himself and others. This is evident with Andrew Jackson’s actions and his presumptions of the Natives.