Displacement and Mistreatment of Native Americans

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The removal of Indian tribes was one of the tragic times in America’s history. Native Americans endured hard times when immigrants came to the New World. Their land was stolen, people were treated poorly, tricked, harassed, bullied, and much more. The mistreatment was caused mostly by the white settlers, who wanted the Indians land. The Indians removal was pushed to benefit the settlers, which in turn, caused the Indians to be treated as less than a person and pushed off of their lands. MOREEE The first Indians to set foot in the western hemisphere were the Paleo-Indians. The Paleo-Indians crossed the land bridge called the Beringia (Roark 6). They are estimated to have arrived at least by 14,000 BP (Roark 6). Research shows that the Paleo-Indians …show more content…

There was one obstacle to the settlers to expand into the lower South. The obstacle was the Indian tribes such as the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chicasaw, and Seminole nations (Indian Removal 1). According to the white settlers, the nations were in the way of the white’s progress. The whites wanted this land because they needed it to grow cotton, which was making a huge profit (Indian Removal 1). With money on the settler’s minds, the settlers asked the government to gain the Indian Territory. Andrew Jackson agreed with the settlers and pushed for the Indians removal (Indian Removal 1). For instance, in 1814, Andrew Jackson made military forces defeat parts of the Creek nation (Indian Removal 1). The Creek nation lost twenty-two million acres in Georgia and Alabama (Indian Removal 1). When the United States found out that the Seminoles were holding fugitive slaves, the United States decided to take more land as the Seminoles punishment (Indian Removal …show more content…

By enforcing the Indian Removal Act, America was questioned as a democratic country. Was independence a top priority in America or was it for a select group? Americans thought of independence as for certain people and this included the white settlers. Not the Native Americans or the blacks. It also questions what America would pay for human expansion. The answer ended up being any cost except a cost that would have included the settlers. Native Americans, Blacks, and whoever else could pay the price for the expansion. Native Americans did by being forced from their lands. Blacks did by them being used for labor and put into slavery. The United States forced and tricked tribes to sell their lands and move west. Another effect includes strengthening the mistrust between the Native Americans and the United States government. Political corruption was shown with the broken treaties and unfair doing to the Native Americans. The Indian Removal Act had drawbacks and benefits for the United States and Native Americans. This would suggest that the Indian Removal act was unjustifiable because both side were at a

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