Through the first half of this semester I have examined the undeniable truths of how Westward Expansion has affected Indians. It has encouraged me even more so to explore both sides of the story. I did not know how horrible Indians lives were when the outsiders invaded their land. I have been enlightened through this material concerning the mental and physical aspects of the westward expansion. The poor treatment towards Indians are shown immensely through the removal, and the stripping of their culture. The outsiders came across the ocean, saw the land as a gold mine, and sought to establish the new world as their own. With little notice, Indians were expected to pack up everything and leave. Sometimes they were not able to even pack all …show more content…
“His legs wobbled as he tried to stand but could not. The soldiers beat him harder with the whip to make him get up.” Beyond being rushed out of their homes, they had to endure through hazardous and sometimes fatal conditions. Indians who were slow to follow were severally punished like the man above. Other times, the ones that lagged behind were shot. I believe some Indians chose to react rather than give up their freedoms. Another reason rage increased was from the outsider’s unfaithful agreements. They proved to be ruthless and unrelenting. “From Yellow Wolf His Own Story” This story solidifies the malicious ways the outsiders used to solidify their unethical territorial domination. An ongoing battle broke out when Nez Perce Indians tried to escape the inevitable removal of their homes. Both sides decided to come to an accord. “We expected to be returned …show more content…
Many locations held their most precious and most passed on rituals. Without these religious ceremonies, the Indians would be spiritually depleted. The items used in these rituals saw a similar fate. Many items were made from buffalo, but they were killed by the masses at the hands of the outsiders. “As participants sing, pray, and meditate, they believe that the ritual sweat bath purges their impurities and brings both spiritual and physical health.” This was an impactful place that connected them with the world around them and the spiritual realm. “Alone on a Hilltop” is one of many stories that describes the correlation between objects and the spirit realm. “That smoke from the peace pipe, it goes straight up to the spirit world. But this is a two-way thing. Power flows down to us through that smoke, through the pipe stem.” The Indians lost connection to their rituals because the land resembled much more than a place to live. The land breathed life into the people who lived on its nourishing surface. The spiritual items utilized for the rituals most likely seemed like junk to the outsiders. The reservations in my opinion resembled the end to the beginning. Most of their ties to their ancestral traditions slowly diminished. For example, “The Sun Dance,” the most important religious event for the Sioux was seen unfit in the outsider’s eyes, and they did not want
Ceremony and rituals have played a vital and essential role in Native American culture for a long time. Often referred to as “religion,” most Native Americans did not think their spirituality, ceremonies, and rituals as “religion,” the same way that Christians do. Instead, their beliefs and practices form an integral and seamless part of their being. Like other aboriginal people around the world, their beliefs were heavily influenced by their ways of getting food, – from hunting to agriculture. They also did ceremonies and rituals that gave power to conquer the difficulties of life, as wells as events and milestones, such as puberty, marriage, and death.
In the Fools Crow novel, I have learned, again, that the Pikuni, even all Native American tribes, were in fear for their traditions, land, and lives, because of the white people’s greed for land and power. Throughout the years, the majority of American schools have taught their classes about Native Americans. Most students understand that the immigrants from Europe were greedy for land and resources, providing constant treaties to relocate Native American reservations. If one tribe decided against the colonists’ wishes, they were brutally removed or depleted, typically in massacres. In Fools Crow, the author James Welch gives a better understanding of how the Native Americans, specifically the Pikuni, felt.
The Act led to an array of legal and moral arguments for and against the need to relocate the Indians westward from the agriculturally productive lands of the Mississippi in Georgia and parts of Alabama. This paper compares and contrasts the major arguments for and against the
Indians have always had their things taken from them by whites. However, the U.S. Government may have gone too far on this one. After being taken from their original lands and put on small reservations, some Indians have been wanting all whites to suffer. These people of the Sioux tribe were called Ghost Dancers. They believed if they did a certain dance, their gods would destroy the U.S. and similar establishments.
Many of them moved to their cities to take advantage of their technological innovations. Many natives sent their sons to study the white man’s ways: this was considered very prestigious, for many Indians were completely illiterate. Some of them even willingly converted to Christianity in order to become more spiritually enlightened. Such peace, however, did not last long: Axtell finishes his essay by mentioning the prophets that appeared among the natives and tried to persuade them to fight the whites’ domination and to return to their old ways. Unfortunately, such way did not bring the locals freedom but worsened their situation with the newcomers.
The foundation of the New World bought many troubles to Native Americans. Europeans posed a threat to many of the Indians. A significant amount of conflict was brought upon the early World as the Europeans invaded the territory the Native Americans had already claimed. The goal of “settling” was far from easy.
The land was seen as a way to a greater nation because people believed God gave them the right. However, while they believed this and tried to make it happened, they had a conflict. Native American stood in their way and the only way to get what the people wanted the Natives needed to leave. This brings on the Indian Removal Act that occurred in 1830 leaded by Andrew Jackson. This can be seen in the article written by Jackson on the Removal Act on the lines, “It will place a dense and civilized population in large tracts of occupied by a few savage hunters.”
They chased the cattle off the ranges. The buffalo loved their people as much as the Kiowas loved them.” (Marriott and Rachlin 1968) In conclusion, the Indian Story in the conquest of the American West was not simple.
White settlers became to take Indian land for themselves. Many tribes resisted and fought back for what they had while others tempted to corporate. Over the next century native
The Cherokee Removal The Americans of European ancestry often have described Native Americans as primitive, savage, and even and uncivilized. In this this paper I will provide primary evidence that supports what the Americans believed about the Natives, along with their few false accusations. I will also discuss how the Cherokee removal affected the natives during their journey along with afterwards. Before the removal was enforced, an upper class Cherokee, son of a warrior, John Ridge gave details on the Cherokee nation and how they are changing their lifestyles because of Americans.
For the Sioux tribe, American expansion caused many problems and hardships, primarily derived from Americans’ dislike for Natives. This is evident in an excerpt from the book Sioux by D. L. Birchfield. One can see from this excerpt that when streams of American expansion moved west because of the California Gold Rush, they brought various illnesses and sickness to the Sioux. The spread of smallpox, measles, and other contagious diseases killed off an estimated ½ of their population (Birchfield). Settlers were not sad because of this news, and a lot were actually glad that so many Native Americans had died.
Many explorers were sent to and from the Americas in hopes of bringing back resources to further improve life and economy in their countries. The Native Americans were stripped of their own culture
Native Americans flourished in North America, but over time white settlers came and started invading their territory. Native Americans were constantly being thrown and pushed off their land. Sorrowfully this continued as the Americans looked for new opportunities and land in the West. When the whites came to the west, it changed the Native American’s lives forever. The Native Americans had to adapt to the whites, which was difficult for them.
Merrell’s article proves the point that the lives of the Native Americans drastically changed just as the Europeans had. In order to survive, the Native Americans and Europeans had to work for the greater good. Throughout the article, these ideas are explained in more detail and uncover that the Indians were put into a new world just as the Europeans were, whether they wanted change or
As the Shawnees were attempting to reunite in the Ohio Valley, they found themselves displaced and had to defend their territory from western expansion. The Shawnees placed all their trust in the British, which didn’t turn out positive for them, for when the British ceded all lands west of the Appalachian Mountains, which endangered the lives of the Natives. “For the