Indian Removal Dbq

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Imagine waking up one day only to find that you cannot live there anymore. You are being required to move because the government wishes to isolate your race, or religion, in a certain zone. You would probably not be very happy at all, but this exact instance is what happened to the Native Americans. In 1830, President Andrew Jackson passed the Indian Removal Act. This law made it so that all Native Americans must relocate their entire tribes to what is now known as Oklahoma. Some tribes moved with no debate, but some put up a fight, for the land was rightfully theirs. Some scholars believe the forced migration of the Native Americans was justified due to the colonists belief in Manifest Destiny (the desire to expand westward). Although American settlers wish to pursue their country’s destiny, the historic actions taken are not the way to go about it. The Colonists should have never taken the …show more content…

According to William E. Huntziker in his article Indian Removal Act from Edscohost, “Whites wanted their land not their assimilation…”(Huntziker 1) says it perfectly. Huntziker’s quote demonstrates that the settlers only wanted their land. The colonists did not care for the Native’s lives. The united States settlers should have been more considerate. If something is not yours, then do not touch it; it is simple common sense. In the website Historymatters.gmu.edu, Angela Darrenkamp states, “In 1828, not only did whites for settlement purposes desire their land, but gold was discovered… The court decided in favor of the Cherokee, however, the president and congress forced the Native Americans to give up their lands”(Darrenkamp 1). This quote proves two things. The American colonists only wanted the Native’s land for settlement and gold. The quote also enlightens the fact that the colonists were disobeying a judges verdict to let the Natives stay by removing them from their own

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