Bartolome De Las Casas Summary

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Recommended: Effects of European exploration of the new world

A Two Man War As children growing up, they are taught that Thanksgiving is this wonderful celebration of how the Indians and the colonists came together in peace and harmony to share a meal. This gives the impression that everything was all ease and simple. Educators teach that Columbus and those in the beginning were great people just seeking an adventure and new land. There is some truth to these stories, however they fail to teach young ones about the horrible ways that the Indians were treated. “The Very Brief Relation of the Devastation of the Indies” by Bartolome De Las Casas and “The Relation of Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca” by Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca shine a whole new light on this subject. Las Casas and de Vaca used their writings …show more content…

He noted in his “History of the Indies” the he “went about his concerns like the others, sending his share of Indians to work fields and gold mines, taking advantage of them as much as he could” (Baym Ed. 39), which caused him great grief and guilt. He went as far as to suggest that African slaves be sent to Hispaniola to compensate for his error. After very little thought he concluded that this would be a bad idea, because he would be treating the Africans no different than he had the Indians. This is where his fight begins. In his text “The Very Brief Relation of the Devastation of the Indies” he goes into great detail about the horrible treatment that the Indian’s received from the colonists. He starts out the text with “This was the first land in the New World to be destroyed and depopulated by the Christians, and here they began their subjection of the women and children, taking them away from the Indians to use them and ill use them” (Baym Ed. 40). This is just the beginning of the descriptive memories of Las Casas. The reader cannot read this without feeling absolutely repulsed at these colonists. Learning that they were not great peacemakers but horrible devils opens the eyes of those who were once ignorant. Las Casas continued his studies until he became a priest in the meantime. According to David Orique, who wrote Bartolome De Las Casas, a Brief Outline of His Life and Labor, “Friar Anton Montesino delivered the first speech on behalf of the Indians”. “Along with Dominican confreres he denounced as a mortal sin the encomienda system of forced labor” (Orique). Las Casas continued to observe and take notes of the horrendous dealings with the Indians. Eventually this lead him to denounce any ownership of Indians or businesses associated with them. Here is where he chose to take a stand. He began to

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