Definition Essay On Conflict

During Westward Expansion, white settlers saw the Indians as a hindrance to civilization. Therefore the mindset of settlers were to convert Native Americans into white culture. To begin assimilating, the government should, “cease to recognize the Indians as political bodies,” adult male Indians should become a citizen to the government, Indian children shall be taken away and “be trained in industrial schools,” and Indians should be, “placed in the same position before the law.” Assimilating Indians wasn’t a simple teaching of a new culture instead, it was brutal. The boarding schools were merciless towards the Indians, mainly because they wanted to force Indians to drop their culture. Native Americans were obligated to change and lost their

Another reason this was more direct was the direct loss of land. This loss was disastrous for tribes that solely relied on the resources. The boarding schools’ policy of this era had a longer lasting legacy on the tribes. Ultimately this is because the assimilation process took a greater amount of time to fully come into effect and really factor into the lives of the Indians. The culture loss and language loss is still in effect to some extent today, however there are methods of trying to reverse this.

Ethnic cleansing and nationalism were two influences that most likely affected native resettlement and native assimilation. Ethnic cleansing is the forced removal of ethnic or religious groups from a given territory by a more

They often lost their Native language and culture, and they felt a sense of shame about their Native community and culture. All of these things add up to cause a major immediate impact on the lives of Native

The government made it almost impossible for the Native Americans to sustain their culture under the circumstances they provided with their various acts. In efforts to pass white beliefs and values to Indian children, the Europeans created boarding schools. Children had to leave their families because they were influencing them by teaching the native culture.

Native American’s greeted the new colonists in a friendly, welcoming manner from the start. The new colonists considered this a sign of weakness, stating how easy it would be to dominate the native people. When Columbus arrived, there were 12-15 million Native Americans in the Americas, in 1890 there was under 250,000, with 98% of the population gone. With the belief in Manifest Destiny, the colonists forced the Native American’s off their own land, farther and farther from where they originated from, and eventually onto reservations, removing them from their way of life and their culture. During the transition from their homeland to reservations, many of the Native American’s died due to disease, cold, hunger, and the hardships of travel. Along with the annexation, the colonists demanded assimilation.

Assimilation negatively impacted Native American life and culture from 1790 to the 1920s. American Indians were forced to abide by white cultural norms through Grant’s Peace Policy, the Dawes Act, Indian boarding schools, and the Indian Citizenship Act, along with many other policies and forms of legislation. They were considered to be savages who needed to be civilized and properly integrated into white society. Indian affairs commissioner William Jones once said:

From a conflict theorist lens, it’s simple to see the tensions between Native Americans and whites was their need to change what’s foreign and maintain their position in society. It’s clear that these two groups are experiencing struggle for limited resources such as land. First, whites reacted by forcing Indians westward out of their way. When their presence began to get in the way of white’s expansion they found assimilation to be most effective. This was the most efficient way for whites to maintain their status without compromising more land in the process. As a conflict theorist, analyzing the behaviors of these two groups with their actions there is a relationship between who’s stronger and weaker. Whites were able to forcibly remove

Assimilation of the native Indians occurred in different phases. The United States in the early years adopted an Indian policy that they used to build good relations with the bordering tribes which helped politically and in trading with the natives. However, they reserved to stop the good relationships in order for them to acquire more land as the moved west to expand their territory. (Keller,1983)

The US government adopted a number of policies towards the American Indians. These policies had some bad impacts on them. Some of the policies were a form of war against their culture, traditions, and way of life. Some of the policies were meant to alienate them. The policy of Assimilation, which is to make the American Indians act and live the way the whites live, was there, immediately after the formation of European settlements in America. The European

The process of Indian assimilation by the government started by sending Indian children to schools on and off of the reservations. At these school Indian students were forced to learn skilled trades and farming. They were also forced to go to church on Sundays regardless of their religion. Students had to learn English and abandon their native languages. This system failed because the students (mostly girls) became so used to the way of life at the school that going back to the reservations was almost impossible for them so many moved to the cities where they couldn’t find jobs that would hire them leading most to become prostitutes and dance hall girls.

The Native Americans (Indians) found themselves pushed from their homelands and trapped into treaty after treaty with the American government. “The 1851 For Laramie Treaty [stated] the chiefs of the Plains tribes agreed to accept definite tribal borders and allow white immigrants to travel on their trails unmolested” (Tindall 804). Although it’s fair to say that when these treaties were signed both parties intended to abide by them; however greed always seems to get the best of society. The desire to expand westward would result in the dismissal of the treaties causing fights between settlers and Indians. The “Great Sioux War” is a prime example of just how ruthless things got for Indians during the westward expansion. The war lasted one year and three months across 4 (present day) states (Tindall 805). Ultimately, a lack of understanding of how settlers fought their wars would result in Indians losing the war and being subjected to reservations. Once there they were usually stripped of their traditions, culture and basic way of life. They were then forced to adapt to an “Anglo-Saxon” way of life. This meant anything from wearing the same clothes as settlers, to learning to read and write English instead of their native tongues. Once the Indians had reached a reservation they themselves were “conquered” right along with the

With waves of the American population moving westward, government attempted to assimilate, or integrate, Native Americans into American society. Their goal was for Native Americans to live and behave like white Americans, and for them “to cast off their savage habits and become an interesting, civilized, and Christian community” (Doc 9). Children were sent to boarding schools where they were given new clothes and haircuts, and taught English, Christianity, and American ways of life (Doc 13). While many Americans believed this would be good for the Native Americans, it effectively destroyed their culture and identity. By forcing them to learn English, they were unable to communicate the concepts, beliefs, and ideas their languages were based on. Americans did not consider the fact that English could not substitute for Native languages, because they are based on different realities, histories, and cultures (Doc 3). Assimilation turned the lives of Native Americans upside-down, forcing them to give up ideas and beliefs they had been practicing their whole lives, without any say. Slowly, Native American culture and lifestyle faded until it was nearly

Between 1790 and 1920 it was a tough time for the Indians. During that period Native Americans were forced to convert to the European-American Culture. Their whole life changed, the way of living, religion, and especially their children’s future. It was wrong of Americans to convert natives into a different society that they saw fit and not letting them express their own culture and treating them as an unworthy society.

While growing up, I did not have to deal with much conflict. The little conflict I had to adhere to was usually constricted within my household. In meaning, if something happened within my household, it was to be kept in my household. My mother did not and still do not like for everyone to be “all in her business.” As I got older, I realized how much I did not like how situations was resolved. Keeping the conflict constricted only made the problem grow larger within the household. Everyone in my household was very strong and opinionated. Therefore, they would stick to their side of the story. There wasn’t any outside voice to settle the disputes. If one would agree with the other side, then the other person would just walk around the house