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Fishing and hunting have been at the core of many American Indian cultures like the Nisqually since precontact. Indian hunting, fishing and gathering were conducted then—as they are now—not for sport, but for food and for a livelihood. This was well understood by the early colonists and later by the U.S. government. Thus, many of the treaties (e.g., Medicine Creek, 1854) negotiated between the federal government and Indian tribes in the nineteenth century contained provisions guaranteeing rights to hunt and fish. In the trea¬ty negotiated by Isaac Stevens, the tribe ceded to the U.S. some of the Nisqually vil¬lages and prairies, but Article Three reserved the tribe’s right to fish “at all usual and accustomed grounds and stations…in common with all citizens of the Territory.” (FL 12) But the growth of the European American population, and with it the proliferation of fenced lands, the destruction of natural habitat, and often the destruction of wildlife itself, drastically curtailed the Indians' ability to carry on these activities. Charles Wilkinson’s thesis declares that the “messages from Frank’s Landing” are “messages about ourselves, about the natural world, about societies past, about this society, and about societies to come.” (FL 6)
Although the English and Native Americans were both every different in how they viewed the land, there were some similarities between the two cultures. First of all, both agreed to the terms of a monarchy- the idea that a monarch that ruled over the land was more a symbolic figure of a whole people rather than a rich and wealthy land owner. Even though the English called their monarch a King, and the Indians’ a Sachem, the ideas behind the two were virtually the same. Secondly, if hunters were in pursuit of game, both cultures agreed to the fact that they could cross otherwise strict borders in attainment of the game. This shows that even though both were fairly precise in drawing village borders, food superseded otherwise legal boundaries. Lastly, the English and the Native Americans both were little different in their sense of how land could be bought or sold. Now, this does not mean that they thought viewed property the same or that they us...
The Frontier Thesis has been very influential in people’s understanding of American values, government and culture until fairly recently. Frederick Jackson Turner outlines the frontier thesis in his essay “The Significance of the Frontier in American History”. He argues that expansion of society at the frontier is what explains America’s individuality and ruggedness. Furthermore, he argues that the communitarian values experienced on the frontier carry over to America’s unique perspective on democracy. This idea has been pervasive in studies of American History until fairly recently when it has come under scrutiny for numerous reasons. In his essay “The Trouble with Wilderness; or, Getting Back to the Wrong Nature”, William Cronon argues that many scholars, Turner included, fall victim to the false notion that a pristine, untouched wilderness existed before European intervention. Turner’s argument does indeed rely on the idea of pristine wilderness, especially because he fails to notice the serious impact that Native Americans had on the landscape of the Americas before Europeans set foot in America.
In this essay, McFarland discusses Native American poetry and Sherman Alexie’s works. He provides an overview of Alexie’s writing in both his poems and short stories. A brief analysis of Alexie’s use of humor is also included.
The author starts the chapter by briefly introducing the source in which this chapter is based. He makes the introduction about the essay he wrote for the conference given in at Vanderbilt University. This essay is based about the events and problems both Native Americans and Europeans had to encounter and lived since the discovery of America.
In the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 is a policy that was created by the United States Congress because the country was expanding westward and the constitution didn’t provide guidance on claiming and settling on new Northwest Territories. The United Constitution advocated for the newly found promise land to white settlers but nonconizance of the Northwest Territory (north and west of the Ohio River) expansion, which also had little consideration towards the Indians homelands. It was the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 that references “a clear policy with activities in dealing with Indians and Indian matters that is to reflect high moral standards in accordance in this Indian policy”. (Pg. 31)
In 1803, during the Presidency of Thomas Jefferson, the Louisiana Purchase was conducted as history’s greatest real-estate deals. The United States paid 15 million for the vast territory ranging from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada and from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. Because Jefferson believed that artisans and farmers were the backbone of the economy he advocated for the western expansion. Thomas Jefferson envisioned what he termed as the “Empire of Liberty,” the uniting of territories as states, each having equal political rights. The western expansion was met with a number of controversies. There was controversy over the expansion of slavery into the Western territories entered political debates. What about the Indians
Grinde, Donald, and Bruce Johansen. Ecocide of Native America: Environmental Destruction of Indian Lands and Peoples. Santa Fe, NM: Clear Light Publishers, 1995. Print.
Fishing is a common hobby for all types of people. Native Americans can fish but deserve different fishing rights, rather than the ones they have now. When American settlers immigrated, Indians were reassured they would be compensated. Isaac I Stevens was then appointed as the Superintendent of Indian Affairs, he began to create treaties which included talking about fishing grounds. It was then signed to confirm the fishing rights and other agreed rights. Native Americans should have different fishing rights because they are their own sovereign nation, it’s part of their culture, and it was confirmed in the treaty.
One of the critical tasks that faced the new nation of the United States was establishing a healthy relationship with the Native Americans (Indians). “The most serious obstacle to peaceful relations between the United States and the Indians was the steady encroachment of white settlers on the Indian lands. The Continental Congress, following [George] Washington’s suggestion, issued a proclamation prohibiting unauthorized settlement or purchase of Indian land.” (Prucha, 3) Many of the Indian tribes had entered into treaties with the French and British and still posed a military threat to the new nation.
Born in Home, Pennsylvania in 1927, Abbey worked as a forest ranger and fire look-out for the National Forest Service after graduating from the University of New Mexico. An author of numerous essays and novels, he died in 1989 leaving behind a legacy of popular environmental literature. His credibility as a forest ranger, fire look- out, and graduate of the University of New Mexico lend credibility to his knowledge of America’s wilderness and deserts. Readers develop the sense that Abbey has invested both time and emotion in the vast deserts of America.
The history of the relationship between Indigenous Peoples of the North America and European settlers represents a doubtlessly tragic succession of events, which resulted in a drastic decline in Indigenous population leading to the complete annihilation of some Native groups, and bringing others to the brink of extinction. This disastrous development left the Indigenous community devastated, shaking their society to its very pillars. From the 1492 Incident and up to the 19th century the European invasion to the North America heavily impacted the social development of the Indigenous civilization: apart from contributing to their physical extermination by waging incessant war on the Indian tribes, Anglo-Americans irreversibly changed the Native lifestyle discrediting their entire set of moral guidelines. Using the most disreputable inventions of the European diplomacy, the colonizers and later the United States’ government not only turned separate Indigenous tribes against each other but have also sown discord among the members of the same tribe. One of the most vivid examples of the Anglo-American detrimental influence on the Native groups is the history of the Cherokee Nation and the U.S. Indian Removal Policy. The Cherokee removal from Georgia (along with many other Indian nations) was definitely an on-going conflict that did not start at any moment in time, but developed in layers of history between the Native Americans, settlers of various cultures, and the early U.S. government. This rich and intricate history does not allow for easy and quick judgments as to who was responsible for the near demise of the Cherokee Nation. In 1838, eight thousand Cherokees perished on a forced march out of Georgia, which came to be called the T...
The Native American Indians are a vital piece of the society of the United States. While their kin have existed on this land for many years, today their numbers are reducing. Once, the Native Americans lived on this continent with little discourse and disturbance. They were overall nourished, content, and established. Truth be told, the men and women generally were set in regular parts. The men were seekers, warriors, and defenders, while the women watched out for the youngsters, their homes, and cultivated. It relied on upon the tribe when it came to craftsmanship. In a few tribes, the men would really weave baskets and blankets. Common nourishments were expended and chased. Deer, wild ox, fish, and different feathered birds were the wildlife of decision. Corn, beans, squash, berries, nuts, and melons were the leafy foods that were expended. Berries were additionally frequently utilized as a characteristic color for fabrics. While the late 1800’s into the 1900’s and past started to bring battle to the Native American Indians, they battled an intense...
Native Americans in particular were abused by white people in the States. From the 16th century and on, European nations rushed into the “New World,” claiming terrain that Native Americans had lived on for hundreds of years. Treaties were repeatedly made with the United States government and Native American ethnic groups. These treaties generally brutally kicked the “Indians” out of their land and pushed them farther and farther west. The Indian Removal act of 1830 encompassed more than five tribes and pressing all of them out of the southern United States. While some Natives fought back, many were forced to comply in order to save themselves from the Americans’ wrath. Eventually the white people themselves went so far west that there was no longer anywhere to put the Native Americans. In order to deal with this conundrum, the American army forced most tribes to abide on reservations in hopes that they would gradually become civilized and assimilate to the American culture. These reservations were often iniquitous and atrocious places. It was almost unfeasible for the Indians to hunt the w...
Prior to the 1830’s, the United States government did not make it’s aspirations of attaining Indian lands, but rather Indians were given rights to be treated as nations, and protected their rights according to the Constitution. According to the letter to President George Washington from Henry Knox, “The Indians being the prior occupants, possess the right of the soil. It cannot be taken from them unless by their free consent, or by the right of conquest in case of a just war” (Doc B). To add on, the United States believed that “intrusions upon the lands of the friendly Indian tribes, is not only a violation of law, but in direct opposition to the policy for the government towards its savage neighbor” (Doc G) was considerate of the Indians’ territories. Therefore, this indicates that the government of the United States did not want to take any risk and was rather cautious against having the desire to obtain the Natives’ land.
The debate over the legality of sovereignty and acquired lands from the native Americans, specifically the Cherokee, has long been debated. The issues involved have included treaties, land sold, and the right of the Government to physically enforce their rules on Indian land "sovereignty". This paper will examine the strategy used by the Federal Governments, the State Governments as well as those of the Cherokee Indians. The three-way relationship as well as the issues will examine how the interpretation of the Constitution changed society prior to the year of 1840.