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The effects of colonialism on indigenous people
Effect of colonization on indigenous culture
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The year of 1142 marked the formation of the Haudenosaunee; A year when the group of alliances was exempt of all the tangible social, political and economic legacies that historical globalization would later impose on their collective identity. Centuries before Europeans arrived, the area now called upper New York State was occupied by five First Nation tribes comprised of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca. Prior to the proposal of creating a Confederacy, these nations had their own separate territories, and they were often at war with each other. The Great Law of Peace was a political piece of constitution that shaped the basis of the Haudenosaunee society, and was enhanced by the longhouse symbol, which described their political …show more content…
The Europeans called them the Iroquois Confederacy, since they had successfully woven together sophisticated concepts of culture, spirituality, government, and land - something that they fataized for centuries. However, the Haudenosaunee way of life was changed forever through historical globalization as imperialistic endeavors by the French, British, and Dutch, slowly began to unravel the vast progression the confederacy made economically, politically and socially. Due to the economic impairment, loss of culture through assimilation, and displacement along with territorial loss, it has become evident that imperialism/colonization improved the lives of the Haudenosaunee to no …show more content…
In terms of the economic impact, the Iroquois were forced to adapt to European economic systems in which they became dependant on and resorted to extreme measures such as war in order to sustain their wealth. Moreover, they suffered from a lack of agency that prevented them from opposing policies or influential actors - such as missionaries - that aimed to assimilate their culture. Lastly, their land was heavily altered and many iroquois people were displaced to accommodate the imperialistic European land claims. Many of the problems that the Iroquois people face today are reminiscent of the atrocities from the past, seeing that there are many controversial issues concerning the poor conditions of reserves that the Iroquois people are living on, and the manifestation of the difficulties involved in practicing or studying the culture and traditions of the Iroquois. All in all, the lives of the Iroquois improved to no extent with all the detrimental legacies and effects of European
The United States has had a long relationship with the Haudenosaunee people. When Europeans invaded North America, beginning in the end of the 15th century, they found a land already inhabited by a large group of people, who they called Indians. Although their subsequent relationship was plagued by disease, wars and fights for domination, there was, inevitably, some exchange of goods, like crops, and ideas between the two peoples. Most notably, even the “Founding Fathers” of the U.S. were influenced by the Haudenosaunee Confederacy’s ideas about democracy and government. One aspect of the relationship, however, is rarely mentioned: the impact that Haudenosaunee women had on early feminists in the U.S. The two groups of women interacted very closely during the 19th century, and prominent feminist voices in the U.S., like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage, and Lucretia Mott, were heavily influenced by the native women’s many freedoms.
Document 4 explains how the system was to work, “the Indians should work on the Christians’ building, mind the gold, till the fields, and produce food for the Christian’s.” This system benefited the Europeans immensely. On the other hand, many Native’s working were treated very poorly and faced brutal punishment and labor. The enslavement of Native people was another cause of the great decrease in population. The disappearance of Native people leads to the disappearance of their customs, beliefs, and way of life.
As the relationship grew between the French and Iroquois, Jesuit missionaries would be allowed within their camps thus picking up European lifestyle. The Iroquois would exploit the French’s need for more fur to gain more in trade rather than just trade with English colonists. However, because of the relationship the French had with the Huron, the Iroquois would eventually side with the English, thus resulting in the French and Indian War. With the help of the Iroquois the British would later help defeat and drive out the French from their colonies by
It has long been taught that the first constitution and the idea of a representative government first came into existence with the creation of the United States’ constitution. However, six hundred years prior to that creation, a group of native tribes came together and forged the America’s true first constitution. Through this creation, a powerful nation, known as the Haudenosaunee, or known to Europeans as the Iroquois Nation, became an important part in the shaping of the Americas. The creation of this constitution would serve as a model for the need and creation of the United States’ own constitution. By examining the “why” it was created, the principles held within
The literary analysis essay for A Separate Peace entitled Chapter 7: After the Fall notes that Gene’s brawl with Cliff Quackenbush occurs for two reasons: the first reason being that Gene was fighting to defend Finny, and the second reason being that Quackenbush is the antithesis of Finny. Cliff Quackenbush calls Gene a “maimed son-of-a-bitch”, since Gene holds a position on the team that is usually reserved for physically disabled students, and Gene reacts by hitting him in the face (Knowles, 79). At first, Gene remarks that he didn’t know why he reacted this way, then he says, “it was almost as though I were maimed. Then the realization that there was someone who was flashed over me”, referring to Finny (Knowles, 79). Quackenbush is “the adult world of punitive authority personified”, his voice mature, his convictions militaristic (Chapter, 76). Quackenbush reminds Gene of the adult world and all of the things that Finny and Devon protected him from, such as war.
1.Iroquois Confederacy— confederation of five indigenous North American peoples, or nations, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca; founded c.1570.
In the 1830's the Plains Indians were sent to the Great American Deserts in the west because the white men did not think they deserved the land. Afterwards, they were able to live peacefully, and to follow their traditions and customs, but when the white men found out the land they were on were still good for agricultural, or even for railroad land they took it back. Thus, the white man movement westward quickly begun. This prospect to expand westward caused the government to become thoroughly involved in the lives of the Plains Indians. These intrusions by the white men had caused spoilage of the Plains Indians buffalo hunting styles, damaged their social and cultural lives, and hurt their overall lives. The lives of the Plains Indians in the second half of the nineteenth century were greatly affected by the technological development and government actions.
The Iroquois tribe was part of an alliance with five other tribes throughout New York that banded together against enemies, talked about land, and traded with each other. These peaceful people operated in a democracy, one of the first seen in the early world. Much is known about these tribes due to the missionaries which were sent out in the 1600’s. The Jesuits, an order of the Catholic Church devoted to teaching, spent the time to move out into the unknown world, live with these people, and teach them the ways of Catholicism. In doing this, they documented everything they saw and provided accurate accounts of the building of these structures.
The Algonquians on the other hand had tried to take over the Iroquoian territory. The Iroquois had fought and won a battle with the Algonquians for the territory they had lost for 20 years. Other than these two main groups, the Iroquois people were well rounded. All of the many families in a clan, many clans in a tribe, and many tribes make what is known as the one Iroquois Confederacy. Some of the famous people who were a big part of the Iroquoian culture were Deganawida and Hiawatha. Deganawida along with Hiawatha were the two founders of the Iroquoian Confederacy. They both organized a few of the Native American tribes and made it into a political and cultural confederacy. Another famous Iroquoian person is Dina A. John, who was a resident of the Onondaga tribe and survived the Van Shaik Expedition. She had also served in the War of 1812 and became an artist and entrepreneur in New York. These famous people are representing for what the Iroquois Confederacy has become. Contrary to what many historians believed, based on the narratives of this essay one would unequivocally conclude that indeed Native-Americans were never impoverish nor culturally
During the 16th and 17th centuries, when the Europeans started to come over to the new world, they discovered a society of Indians that was strikingly different to their own. To understand how different, one must first compare and contrast some of the very important differences between them, such as how the Europeans considered the Indians to be extremely primitive and basic, while, considering themselves civilized. The Europeans considered that they were model societies, and they thought that the Indians society and culture should be changed to be very similar to their own.
Native Americans had inherited the land now called America and eventually their lives were destroyed due to European Colonization. When the Europeans arrived and settled, they changed the Native American way of life for the worst. These changes were caused by a number of factors including disease, loss of land, attempts to export religion, and laws, which violated Native American culture.
They were warlike and went out on expeditions to places in New Brunswick, Massachusetts, parts of Maine, and the north shore of Lake Huron. Excursions have been documented all the way to Ohio-Mississippi valley. “’The character of all these [Iroquois] Nations is warlike and cruel,’ wrote Jesuit missionary Paul Le Jeune in 1657.” (Richter, 528) They had different purposes for war than Europeans did. Thus, since the Europeans did not understand the similarities and differences, they were called savage. The Iroquois did not wage war all the time though. The Hudson Bay Company and the Northwestern Fur Company employed Iroquois as canoe men; they were also employed by private enterprises connected with the fur trade or exploration. The Iroquois employed by the Hudson Bay Company “are reputed to have been the most expert in the country, and many stories are told of their skill and spirit of adventure.” (Chamberlain, 460) They also hunted beaver for corporations, sometimes with their families with them. Iroquois were employed as “canoe men, guides, carriers, and voyagers in the service of the Hudson Bay Company.” (Chamberlain, 460) Some of the Iroquois went as far as the Rocky Mountains, where they stayed and brought their culture with them. As time passed though, they mixed cultures until one could hardly tell they were part Iroquois. They did bring dug-outs, the crossbow, and teaching of the Jesuit fathers to
Colonists believed in “private property” (Cronon page 1179) and individual ownership of possessions. On the other hand, the Indians had a nomadic lifestyle that included “move[ing] from habitat to habitat” (Cronon page 911), and not taking ownership of the land they resided in, and instead living as guests of the area they happened to habituate at the time. On the contrary, after European settlement, according to Cronon: “Indians were living in fixed locations on a more permanent basis. Earlier subsistence practices which had depended on seasonal dispersal were gradually being abandoned, with important social and ecological effects” (Cronon pages 1739-1740). Cronon states that the Indians adapted to the changes brought upon by the colonists and adopted the lifestyle of owning and settling in a specific portion of land. This major change in the Indians’ lifestyle also had consequences with the environment. Permanently settling into the densely populated forts aided the “spread of infectious diseases” (Cronon page 1740). Similarly the dense population also affected nearby “hunting and planting areas” (Cronon page 1741), which the Indians used as their source of food and resources once they were pushed into the heavily populated areas. The overpopulation of the Indians in specific areas also had a huge contribution to the depletion of that area 's resources. This was also a direct fault of the
The continent of North America is 200 million years old. Since that period, many diverse groups of people have developed and flourished on this continent. Over time, these groups have diversified and become very distinctive in their traits. Perhaps one of the most interesting groups of people was the Iroquois, which included the fascinating tribe of the Mohawk. The Mohawk tribe is incredibly unique in many ways.
Project, Harvard. The State of the Native Nations. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. 221-222.