Examples Of Native Americans In The Age Of White Oppression

The Plight of Native Americans in the Age of White Oppression Through the years that White Americans expanded to the west, Native Americans faced much discrimination and oppression on their culture and way of life. Native Americans were pushed further west from their homelands as Whites continued to expand and take over the North American continent. In this time, many Whites came to the realization that they were mistreating Native Americans. As a result, they established reserved lands for Native Americans called reservations. Additionally, they established boarding schools for young Native American children to teach the ways of White culture and to assimilate them into their society. Whites believed that what they were doing was beneficial

Forced assimilation was a product of the good intentions from White Americans, which ended with negative effects heaped upon Native Americans. White Americans believed that in teaching Native Americans their own culture, they would secure a better future for when the United States became more modern. In doing so, they forcefully took away the unique culture of Native Americans and replaced it with that of Whites’. The way they achieved assimilation was very forceful and oppressive. Whites used boarding schools as a place to teach school children the culture and ways of Whites. They taught these children the English language, how to farm, and to forget and disregard their native culture through mentally abusive methods which included the restriction of their own thinking. They were governed in their time at the school and resulted in the extinction of independent thinkers. (Marr, Carolyn J) Many children ran from these institutions in fear of forced assimilation and oppression. The others ended with having a drastically changed lifestyle that did not resemble that of their parents. The Native people at the time saw the actions of the Whites as imperious, however, Whites saw themselves as saviors of the Native American culture. With the forceful assimilation of White culture, they dismantled the unique Native American

In this time, they were mistreated by westerners, boarding school educators, and the government. Native Americans faced physical and social mistreatment which included the forced cutting of hair, replacement of traditional clothing, forced English speaking, and the stripping of their Indian names, cultural pride and identity. (Reese, Debby) Most often, there was little health care on both the reservations and schools, which led to the deaths of countless Native Americans. The Native Americans faced several European diseases such as tuberculosis and small pox, which the Whites did not treat them for. In addition, many suffered from sever stress caused by the separation of their family. Many often escaped, but countless others died at the schools. (Landis, Barbara) Native Americans faced social and physical mistreatment by whites in this time due to the feel of superiority and supremacy. Whites saw no injustice for causing the deaths of Native Americans because their ultimate goal was to remove them from the