Indian
Removal
I chose Jackson's Indian Removal as the subject of my
first Response Essay. I think that while
most Americans are fairly knowledgeable about the evil of slavery, few are
cognizant of the near extinction of an entire race of people. The Native
American people still suffer from treatment that began with the landing of the white man in
the Caribbeanin 1492. Most Americans
have not even heard of the Indian Removal and few of those that have realize
that it was conducted for nearly the entire decade of the 1830s. It was not just a single march of 80 miles, like
the brutal Bataan Death March. The
Trail of Tears, the final portion of the Cherokee removal, was arguably the most barbaric of the atrocities visited
on the tribes in our history. It crossed
nine states and hundreds of miles. This
dark period was certainly not taught in the history classes of my youth.
I am in no way saying that slavery was not an
abomination, but I believe that the Native Americans that were uprooted and
moved west across the Mississippi River experienced an even more horrific existence. Slaves were considered a valuable commodity so they were housed,
fed, and clothed. They were provided
medical care. Many slaveholders were cruel, but they valued
their slaves as they did their livestock.
Also, many slaves lived on the same land for generations and as a result
had some stability in their wretched lives.
These tribes were forcibly removed from their land and everything
they knew. Thousands died from disease, starvation, and exposure to the
elements. These "savages" were not even valued as highly as
slaves. The government just wanted them
to go away and they nearly did.
The United States
has never been the melting pot that it advertises itself as. Throughout our history, each ethnic group,
nationality, and race has been victimized and exploited by the white, primarily
British, male, "ruling" class.
While it is mainly people of color that experienced the most prejudicial
treatment, "lesser" white people, such as Irish, Polish, and Italian immigrants
have been victims. The Americans,
following the British imperialist model, have colonized and exploited many
other countries, expanding the reach of political and military power and desire
for resources. But none of this even
approaches the evil it has
exercised on the Native
Americans. Most immigrant groups have
eventually been accepted, if not welcomed, and allowed to share in the quality
of life afforded an American citizen The "American Dream" has been primarily a nightmare to the American
Indian.
My mother's grandfather was a full-blooded Native
American. He died long before I was born,
and was never talked about. My mother's
grandmother was disgraced by having "been with" an Indian. I only found out about him by accident. That is a part of my ancestry that I will
never know about. A philosophy lost to
me.
I lived in Wyoming for six years in the town of Riverton,
in the middle of the Wind River Reservation.
I got a firsthand look at the hopelessness of these people. I even substitute taught in one of the Indian
schools. Abject poverty; alcohol, drug,
and physical abuse are a way of life. Unlike
the African Americans, the Native Americans have scant positive role models to encourage
expectations of a better life. They have
no Michael Jordans, Martin Luther Kings, or Barack Obamas to inspire them. They have casinos. However, the income from those often does not
trickle down below tribal "leaders."
Though the American government has
always lacked respect for people of color, I believe the Native American has
received the poorest treatment for the longest time.
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