Role Of American Indian Women

Many Native American women held upstanding and high positions within their tribes and made very important decisions for the entire tribe within it. While the Natives valued women as warriors and decision makers, the Europeans did not view women as someone to be in a position of power. They instead chose to subject their women to bearing children and staying in the home.

Women have long been looked down upon as beings inferior to men. Women voted late, were not recognized as full citizens with ownership privileges until many years in the future, and many more matters. In Native American society, however, women were much more prevalent in society. They were warriors, farmers, and craftswomen. Though they usually were not leaders, they were still very important to the construction of a family and tribe. European and Native American cultures vary greatly in their views of women in the home, in societal structure, and in mythology.

The book First Generations: Women in Colonial America written by Carol Berkin shares the power of control of a women’s role in the early part of American society was linked to her race and where she lived. In the book Berkin does a great job of giving examples of the life of the colonists. For example, we know that women white women had more freedom than slaves African Americans especially when it came to marriage. If a African American would want to get married to a white man it would be considered a “criminal offensive” ( Berkin 109).

Colonial New England women did not benefit from autonomy because they did not have the freedom associated. The husbands of colonial women had full control and their wives were dependent on them financially, occupationally, spiritually and even mentally: the women counted on the men for funds to keep the household fulfilled, took on their husbands religious and spiritual views, and also were told the right and wrong things they should be thinking about. In addition to not being independent in ways aforementioned, women in this era were not legally and politically autonomous which they would not get that right until later on in American history.

Women in colonial America played revolutionary roles. They played roles that were always changing. “All men are created equal.” It’s the basis in which America was built, but what about the women? Without women, men wouldn’t have been nearly as successful. But what exactly did women do? Well, different races had different roles to play within their population(WiseGEEK).

Cherokee women played an extremely important role in their tribe’s society especially compared to women in America during the time period. In the 1800s, Cherokee women played a much more influential role, impacting the tribe on a daily basis. For example, they were farmers, craftswomen, builders, and in some cases, even warriors. Women were essential to the survival of the tribe. In many cases, the women of the tribes were in charge of gathering materials and building homes for their family to live in. In addition, women would often help men hunt deer, then would skin, cut, and cook the animal. Women also served important purposes in medical circumstances in the tribe. There were plenty of medicine women in the tribes; in fact, many tribes believed that women had more healing power than men.

Though not their white contemporaries held such high-caliber positions, Cherokee women however did. The Cherokee’s women were head of their households. Cherokee women were allowed to vote. They could own their own property. They had a voice in the government.

They had a great understanding and equal roles. The men were the chiefs, they made all the political decisions for the tribe, and they were in charge of hunting, war and peacekeeping. The women made social decisions for the clans, they were the landowners and they were in charge of farming, property, and family. Both genders took part in storytelling, artwork , music, and traditional medicine. In their villages, they lived in houses made of rivercane and plaster, with thatched roofs , located near the river. The men wore breechcloths and leggings and the women wore wraparound skirts and poncho-style blouses made out of woven fiber or deerskin. They were moccasin on their feet. There were always polite, and they listen to one another speak. It has been said that “they never bow to any other creature”. Unlike the European settlers, Cherokee women had just as much say in their culture than the European women’s.

Today, women are believed to be equal to men however this was not always the case. During colonial times, women did not have the same roles as women do today; men and women had fixed roles in society. Roles between men and women do not exchange due to strict gender roles. Additionally, married women were not exactly considered as companions instead, as the husband’s property. Although gender roles were a significant issue among women in early America, another issue was the background of these women. Factors such as race, religion, geography/region, and social class were substantial to the extent of control a woman had over her own life. These factors significantly shaped the lives of these women. For instance, white women had differences

I did not know that Indian American tribes today have a special status, but after I read the chapter, reservation on page, 86-89 I know that they have a special status.

Federation of Indigenous women of Nepal in America (FIWNA) discussed empowering the migrated Indigenous women of Nepal in America. The discussion happened during a meeting which was organized to honor the United Nation Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) global Vice President Phulman Chaudhry and indigenous women Activist and Vice President of National Indigenous women forum (NIWF) of Nepal Yasokanti Bhattachan along with the Kamala Thapa coordinator of NIWF (National Indigenous Women's Federation) who attended the 17th session of UNPFII meeting which was held in the United Nation headquarters New York.

A large proportion of American Indian women will probably demonstrate their level of acculturation/assimilation through typical communication, for instance eye contact and detached non-verbal conversation behavior,(Chee et al, 2006).

Throughout this paper I will be discussing the role of women in the American society. I will reference the importance of gender and gender inequality. The definition of gender aims to clarify for of all the historical framework of the topic, the role of women in the American society. The paper will lead from the role women were given around World War II and then transition into the role women can now choose in the American society today. Addition to the role of women I will also discuss the differences of how the genders are treated in the same places, for example work place. Men and women are culturally molded when referring to gender in the American society. The gender roles play a lead part into how the model family, education, and liberty are. The reason I chose to write about this topic is due to my strong belief that although I don’t agree with the characteristics society gave to gender, I do believe in gender equality.

I learned many aspects of traditional American Indian life that I had not known previously, such as their customs and traditions. In the Andes, ethnic identity and place of origin was often expressed by hats. The unique colors and designs could help distinguish a person, as the patterns were unique to the groups that made them. I also learned interesting facts like the Andean people knowing for thousands of years that the bark of a quina tree cures malaria, yet catholic missionaries did not learn this until the 1600s resulting in quinine to become a very valuable export to Europe right after its discovery, saving countless lives. Beads were also a prominent part of the American Indian life. Native people saw brightly colored beads as prized

What examples suggest that the status of women in India declined after the Vedic Age?