The Indian Removal Act: The Negative Impact On The Native Americans

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When the Europeans began colonizing the New World, they had a problematic relationship with the Native Americans. The Europeans sought to control a land that the Natives inhabited all their lives. They came and decided to take whatever they wanted regardless of how it affected the Native Americans. They legislated several laws, such as the Indian Removal Act, to establish their authority. The Indian Removal Act had a negative impact on the Native Americans because they were driven away from their ancestral homes, forced to adopt a different lifestyle, and their journey westwards caused the deaths of many Native Americans. The Indian Removal Act forced the Native Americans to move away from their ancestral homes. Gabrielle Tayac, Edwin Schupman, and Genevieve Simermeyer noted, “Native peoples have created thriving societies along the shores of numerous rivers that feed into the beautiful and environmentally rich Chesapeake Bay. They lived in connection to the seasons and the natural resources of the region” (“Chesapeake Natives: Three Major Chiefdoms”). Prior to the arrival of the colonists, the Native Americans built and maintained successful communities in their ancestral homes for generations. Many tribes had cultural ties to the environment itself. When the Americans established the Indian Removal Act, the Native Americans were forced to leave these cultural grounds. Those who refused to leave their original homeland had to conform to the ways of colonial life instead
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