The Native American Community: A Comparative Analysis

Chapter four of Double Victory: A Multicultural History of America in World War II written by Ronald Takaki describes the struggles of Native Americans before World War II and during the war. On the homefront Native Americans were treated poorly, but gradually white Americans began to tolerate them more as time went on. When they first arrived on the reservations after the Long Walk, they felt ashamed and were treated as if they were scum. They were losing their land to foreigners. Yet as time went on, the living situation on the reservation began to improve. For example, schools were improving, white people were training to be traders and farmers, and their rights were respected by the government. As the war, went on, Native Americans started

Native Americans have existed in the different regions-the plains, mountains, marshes- of the North American continent- long before the United States existed. Yet, most were not treated with the respect and dignity that the white American settlers were given. Viewed as outlandish and savage by white settlers, series of negotiations to “correct” the Indian way of life were implemented- through forced relocation, war, and assimilation into white culture. Those who stood up against the American government were viewed as beacons of hope by their fellow Native Americans. Many Native American traditions still exist today, but unfortunately most of them have been lost along with their people.

By 1940, Native Americans had experienced many changes and counter-changes in their legal status in the United States. Over the course of the nineteenth century, most tribes lost part or all of their ancestral lands and were forced to live on reservations. Following the American Civil War, the federal government abrogated most of the tribes’ remaining sovereignty and required communal lands to be allotted to individuals. The twentieth century also saw great changes for Native Americans, such as the Citizenship Act and the Indian New Deal. Alison R. Bernstein examines how the Second World War affected the status and lives of Native Americans in American Indians and World War II: Toward a New Era in Indian Affairs. Bernstein argues

Current American society is constantly affected by events from the past, but sometimes what society thinks is in the past is not so far behind. The way Native Americans were treated historically continually plays a part in current American society. Due to the racism and stereotypes carried throughout society the Native American cultural circle is constantly under fire.

The 1960’s and 70’s were a turbulent time in the United States, as many minority groups took to the streets to voice their displeasure with policies that affected them. During this time period a large movement for civil rights, including Native American’s, would seek to find their voices, as largely urbanized groups sought ways in which they could reconnect with their tribe and their cultural history. In their book, Like A Hurricane: The Indian Movement from Alcatraz to Wounded Knee, Paul Chaat Smith, and Robert Allen Warrior take an extensive look at the events leading up to the three of the largest civil rights movements carried out by Native Americans. Beginning with the takeover of Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay by Indians of All Tribes in 1969; the authors tell in a vivid fashion of the Bay Area activism and Clyde Warrior 's National Indian Youth Council, Vine Deloria Jr.’s leadership of the National Congress of Indians, the Trail of Broken Treaties and the Bureau of Indian Affairs takeover, the Wounded Knee Occupation and the rise of the American Indian Movement.

Knowing some of the issues that Native Americans and the U.S. Government faced back in the 1800’s, believe it or not, there is still some that arise today, along with a lot of other issues that Native Americans have within themselves.

The Native Americans have faced tremendous discrimination in the early 1900s, and with the enactment of the Indian Termination policies in the 1940s-1950s, the coercion grew stronger (CITE). However, as the beat downs increased, so did the resistance.

THESIS STATEMENT: The Native Americans were historically doomed because of the Europeans inability to accept elements of Native American culture that they felt were savage, the natives inability to acknowledge the Europeans threat to their lifestyle and land, and the far superior European army used to defeat Indian tribes.

For several hundred years people have sought answers to the Indian problems, who are the Indians, and what rights do they have? These questions may seem simple, but the answers themselves present a difficult number of further questions and answers. State and Federal governments have tried to provide some order with a number of laws and policies, sometimes resulting in state and federal conflicts. The Federal Government's attempt to deal with Indian tribes can be easily understood by following the history of Federal Indian Policy. Indians all over the United States fought policies which threatened to destroy their familial bonds and traditions. The Passamaquoddy Indian Tribe of Maine, resisted no less

Our nation’s history has been deep rooted in the conflict involving Native Americans, ever since the beginning of America and it is one hard to get rid of even as the days go by. The impact of colonialism can be seen in Native American communities even today, and it can only be understood through a cultural perspective once you experience it. Aaron Huey, who is a photographer, went to Pine Ridge reservation and it led him to document the poverty and issues that the Sioux Indians go through as a result of the United States government’s long term actions and policies against them. One must question all sources regarding these topics because there is a lot of biased and misinformation about Native American struggles, and sometimes schools do not thoroughly teach the truth so students can get an insight. There are also different sociological perspectives in this conflict, along with many differing opinions on how to approach the problem and deal with it. This is where ideas clash because people believe their views are right regarding how to handle it.

Native Americans have felt distress from societal and governmental interactions for hundreds of years. American Indian protests against these pressures date back to the colonial period. Broken treaties, removal policies, acculturation, and assimilation have scarred the indigenous societies of the United States. These policies and the continued oppression of the native communities produced an atmosphere of heightened tension. Governmental pressure for assimilation and their apparent aim to destroy cultures, communities, and identities through policies gave the native people a reason to fight. The unanticipated consequence was the subsequent creation of a pan-American Indian identity

The most important issues were those of social rights, self-autonomy, and cultural freedom. These were, however, more difficult tasks. Congress played the primary role in these situations because of its legislature regarding Native American tribes. Public Law 280, passed in August of 1953, gave power to the states to take over civil and criminal jurisdiction. Because of this, the tribes were at a loss in authority to regulate themselves. In addition, President Lyndon B. Johnson urged for the termination of Indian programs for “self-determination” during his term in 1968. Despite these setbacks, legislature was passed that was beneficial to Native Americans. In June of 1924, Congress granted citizenship to all Native Americans who were not yet citizens. This was a step towards social equality for all Native

During the late 1970’s the American Indian community acquired its greatest achievements in the battle for equal rights. But it would not have been possible to achieve without the following three major events, which gave growth and prosperity to the American Indian Nation, the Occupation of Alcatraz Island, the Siege of Wounded Knee, and the BIA take-over. These events instigated the up rise of aboriginal peoples in the quest for fair treatment. Ultimately resulting in the sovereignty of Indigenous people.

The political, economic, and religious systems of the Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans were all relatively similar, and the lives of those lower in their prospective societies were more changed than those with higher status. In the Americas, the Native Americans had a few empires in which an Emperor or Empress ruled over the people and the land. In Europe, there was a monarchy who ruled the people.

Long ago on the great plains, the buffalo roamed and the Native Americans lived amongst each other. They were able to move freely across the lands until the white men came and concentrated them into certain areas. Today there are more than five-hundred different tribes with different beliefs and history. Native Americans still face problems about the horrific history they went through and today 's discrimination. The removal of American Indian tribes is one of the most tragic events in American history. There are many treaties that have been signed by American representatives and people of Indian tribes that guaranteed peace and the values of the Indian territories. The treaties were to assure that fur trade would continue without interruption. The American people wanting Indian land has led to violent conflict between the two. Succeeding treaties usually forced the tribes to give up their land to the United States government. There were laws made for Native American Displacement that didn’t benefit the Native Americans, these laws still have long lasting effects on them today, and there was a huge number of Native Americans killed for many reasons.