The Disappearance of Native Americans in California

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“To discover, understand, and encounter the cultures and intricate natures of the California Indian people, it is necessary to search the past” –Nancy Wahl. Tracing back in California history, Spanish explorers, commanded by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, found the tip of what is now Baja California in the year 1533 and named it "California" after a mythical island in a popular Spanish novel. It is evident that from the time Spanish monarchs set foot in California, the world as Native Americans knew it was never the same again. The late 1700s initiated and marked the colonization of Spaniards in the “Golden State” which in turn provoked the massive persecution and extermination of Native American population as well as the disappearance of Native heritage and culture. As a result, the recurring despairs and adversities of the Indian population began. Professor Edward D. Castillo expresses in his article “California Indian History” that California Indians have been the most unfortunate and the least understood of all the Native American tribes in the nation. “They were once probably the most contented and happy race on the continent, in proportion to their capacities for enjoyment, and they have been more miserably corrupted and destroyed than any other tribes within the union” (Castillo, www.nahc.ca.gov/califindian). They had the largest population, and resided in the most pleasant and naturally productive lands but as we have learned, they were swept away with a most vile and cruel extermination. Epidemic diseases brought to the state by Spanish colonists and missionaries in the late 1700s to the early 1800s, turned out to be the most powerful and discreet method to surmount Native American population. The impact of the missionarie... ... middle of paper ... ...populated state in the nation and is recognized as one of the wealthiest states, Native Americans are still marginalized in a third world existence, becoming the most underprivileged and miserable minority living in California. Works Cited Castillo, Edward D. “Short Overview of California Indian History.” California Native Americans Heritage Commission. April 12, 2012. Paddison, Joshua. “Native Americans.” Calisphere University of California. April 12, 2012. Viola, Herman. California Studies: History-Social Science, Grade 4. “Californio Lands.” Houghton Mifflin, ©2007. 214-217. Wahl, Nancy "Hodges". “Native Americans Travel through Time…on Hwy 49.” Historic Hwy 49. April 14, 2012.

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