The Indian Removal Act of 1830, championed by President Andrew Jackson, called for the relocation of numerous native American tribes to lands west of the Mississippi River to land for white settlers. Although the bill was extremely controversial, it was passed, and entire Indian tribes were forced to move. Due to the hardship and suffering the Indian Removal Act of 1830 caused Indian peoples, as well as the fact that it was unnecessary, unconstitutional, and immoral, it should not have been passed. Firstly, the negative effects of the bill on native Americans far outweighed the benefits it might have had for second people. Secondly, the bill violated numerous treaties between the U.S. government and Indian tribes and was thus unconstitutional. Lastly, the bill was immoral due to the fact that Indian leaders were not allowed a voice in their own future and the inherent racism involved in the decision.
One of the main arguments opponents of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 voiced was that, at its most basic level, the removal bill was not necessary. The main purpose of the act was to provide more land for an increasing population of white American citizens; more land, the government believed, would help expand the American economy. Proponents of the bill, such as President Andrew Jackson (who ratified the act), claimed that the land occupied by the Indians would be put to better use as part of “our extensive Republic, studded with cities, towns, and all the improvements which art can devise…”. However, while those who supported the bill used nationalistic attitudes to justify their position, others found that removing the Indian peoples was not necessary to achieve economic growth. As Massachusetts Congressman Edward Everett and others emphasized, it was possible for white settlers to thrive while leaving Cherokee peoples on the land that was rightfully theirs; it was greed, not necessity, that motivated the people to demand more land. The removal bill should not have been passed because although the white population benefitted from the removal of the Indians, this benefit was not worth the hardship the Indians endured as a result. The benefit of white citizens should not have been prioritized over the well-being
One of Andrew Jackson’s reason behind the Indian Removal Act was so that the United States could achieve their goal of Manifest Destiny, which is the belief Americans had that God meant for their country to be expanded from east to west coast.
The Indian Removal has long been a debated issue. The two sides had radically different viewpoints on the ordeal that helped shape America. The Indians, naturally, were against their removal from their homelands, and they had two major protest against their removal. The first reason was the fact that they were there first by thousands of years only for white men to invade and tell them to live somewhere else because the white men were superior to the natives. The second reason was that the U.S government kept breaking treaties and was forcing out tribes that had gone through the proper channels for their land.
Historically, the people of the United States and the Native tribes couldn’t live together, they fought because the two sides competed for superiority. The United States Government sought to put an end to the violent clashes with the American people and the Natives tribes. A resolution was the Indian Removal Act, with this, the United States became safer, wealthier, and stronger; And the Natives, which they saw as inferior, would leave. This Act wasn’t easy for the Native tribes, they left the land their ancestors had built them, and experienced a long road ahead of them to rebuild again.
When he gained power, Jackson encouraged Congress to pass the 1830 Indian Removal Act. He argued that the legislation would provide land for white invaders, improve security against foreign invaders and encourage the civilization of the Native Americans. He argued that the measure will separate the Indians from immediate contact with settlements of whites.
In the years leading up to the Indian Removal Act, which was the initial cause of the Trail of Tears, the United States was in a shift. The country was seeing an unrivaled influx of European settlers looking for careers and land. This caused population to skyrocket, in fact in the years 1790-1840, the United States saw a 350% increase in population. In other words, the need for fertile land and viable property was high. At the same time, attempts at assimilation of Indians into American society were proving to be futile. Americans saw the Indians as “noble savages”, who were uncivilized but able to be fit for society if they were converted to Christianity and adopted Anglo-European culture and behavior. With the growing need for land and the rise in tension between Natives and fearful white settlers, something needed to be done in the eyes of the American people. These two things combined is what really set up the foreground for what would become the Indian Removal Act. President Andrew Jackson, in
The Indian Removal Act was very controversial during its time, receiving influence from individuals, local, state and mostly by the federal government. This act gave the president, Andrew Jackson, the authority to make transactions with Indian tribes in the Southern region of the United States. The Indian Removal Act was a deal made by President Andrew Jackson with the Indian tribes, forcing them to leave their occupied land, which happened to be federal territories west of the Mississippi River. President Andrew Jackson’s primary method in Indian Removal was his speech to Congress regarding his opinions on the act, which included many positive outcomes that would happen if the Indians were to leave the territory. He claimed that this act would not only benefit the United States as a whole, but it would also benefit the Indian people. This benefit was called “Manifest Destiny” or the idea of the United States expanding its territories from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. This expansion would benefit the country not just economically, but agriculturally as well. However, “Manifest Destiny” was only an idea, and in order for this idea to become a reality, the governments had to take action. This action in entirety was the removal of the Indian tribes from the southern regions, making them travel through very harsh conditions so that Americans could settle in their former homeland. Overall, the American government wanted to rid the
The Indian Removal act of 1830 was passed by President Jackson. President Jackson wanted the Natives land so he made false treaties with them in order to speed up the process of taking their land. Some of the Natives agreed to go to Indian territory on their own but, the majority of them didn’t like the idea of leaving their home. Many of the natives fought and raided the settlers many of the natives tried to make peace with the white men. Soon many of the Natives grew weary and finally decided to cede their land and move to Indian Territory. Still many Natives had to be forced to make the journey. Many of the natives didn’t survive the journey. The Five Tribes that were removed were the Choctaw,Creek,Chickasaw,Cherokee, and the Seminole.
While the government may have been thinking for the betterment of their people, the Indian Removal Act of 1830 was not a justified action. The settlers bullied and attacked the original inhabitants, the Indians, into giving up their land. Perhaps to the government this may have seemed justified considering it was beneficial to them, but they essentially stole land that was not theirs to take. In an attempt to feign compassion for these original inhabitants, President Andrew Jackson states in his 1829 case to congress that this Act will help the Indians, “…to cast off their savage habits and become an interesting, civilized, and Christian community” (Jackson, First Annual Message to Congress, 2).
The Indian Removal Act signed by the president of the United States, Andrew Jackson, caused controversy and the brutal and merciless suffering of the Native Americans during The Trail of Tears. The beginning of the 1830’s was a time when the Native Americans occupied The Deep South. This, however, was problematic for the white farmers who were in need of farmland in order to increase their production of cotton. Nevertheless, Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, coerced the Native Americans to relocate their civilizations to lands west of the Mississippi. A close examination at the tribes that were compelled to move west would show that they were civilized. Thus, Andrew Jackson was not justified in his policy towards
There were several motives for the removal of the Indians from their lands, to include racism and land lust. Since they first arrived, the white Americans hadn’t been too fond of the Native Americans. They were thought to be highly uncivilized and they had to go. In his letter to Congress addressing the removal of the Indian tribes, President Jackson
The Indian Removal Act, inspired by Andrew Jackson; the 7th president of the US and the enhanced ambition for American settlers to find more land in the southwestern regions of North America. The Indian Removal Act enabled Jackson the power of negotiating removal treaties with Indian tribes east of the Mississippi. Among these tribes were: Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaws and Seminoles. Very few authenticated traits were signed. The Choctaws were the only tribe to agree without any issues. All other attempts resulted in War and blood shed for both white settlers and Indians. The conflict with the U.S. and Indians lasted up until 1837. In 1838 & 1839 Jackson forced the relocation of the remaining Cherokee Indians;
Robert V. Remini argues that Andrew Jackson’s Indian Removal Act of 1830 was socially motivated by humanitarian impulses, and that Jackson’s actions where driven by the desire to save the culture and populace of the Native
One of the defining moments of President Andrew Jackson’s career, if not the most significant, was the Indian Removal Act of 1830. This was a controversial bill at the time and the impact from it is still felt today. The Indian Removal Act directly led to the displacement of thousands of Native Americans; including four thousand deaths during the Trail of Tears, the forced march from Georgia to Oklahoma. While overt racism played a clear role in relocating Native Americans past the Mississippi, it is possible that other factors were at play. The living conditions in many of the states were poor for Natives and Jackson hoped that giving them a new location to live could remedy these problems while opening the land up for white settlers.
In 1830, congress passed The Indian Removal Act, which became a law 2 days later by President Andrew Jackson. The law was to reach a fairly, voluntarily, and peacefully agreement for the Indians to move. It didn’t permit the president to persuade them unwillingly to give up their land by using force. But, “President Jackson and his government
The Indian Removal Act was supposed to give Native Americans the option to stay on their sacred land, but they were driven out involuntarily anyway. Jackson did not abide by the Indian Removal Act passed through congress, which exemplified absolute abuse of his power as president. “ In both houses of Congress, a substantial block of legislators