Spanish Conquistadors Against Native Americans

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. I am writing to you, because I believe that the European explorers, conquistadors, and settlers from the Age of Exploration should no longer be glorified and celebrated in modern times. I do not deem it appropriate, considering the wrongs that were committed against the Native Americans during that time.

Let us state how the Spanish benefitted from the harsh treatment of Native Americans. The encomienda system, for example, “granted colonists the right to collect payments from [the] Indians.” In exchange, the Spanish were to “give their workers protection and a Christian education.” However, the Spanish “forced the Indians to farm the land or work in mines. Eventually, the colonists claimed to own the land. Thousands of Indians died from overwork and harsh treatment.” In conclusion, the Spanish enslaved the Indians, overworking them to the point of death, while preaching that their religion would set them free.
Let us state how the “atrocities of the Spanish conquistadors against the Taino Indians [had caused them to flee] to another island.” The Taino Indians were chased off of their own land and Chief Hatuey was “captured and sentenced to burn at the stake for having organized an uprising against the

“Europeans simply assumed that if representatives of Christian nations discovered previously unknown lands and peoples, they had the right—and the responsibility—to take charge of them.” The Spanish actually “created a class structure based on race…The Spaniards and their children were the highest class. Mestizos (people of Indian and Spanish descent) and mulattoes (people of Indian and Spanish ancestry) for the next class. The lowest class was made up of African slaves and Indians.” I believe that it is narcissistic of the Spanish to simply assume that they are above the