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Of Thomas Jefferson's Policies On American Indians

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Thomas Jefferson and the American Indians With the election of Thomas Jefferson’s, often referred to as “The revolution of 1800”, was a pivotal moment for Americans and Indians alike. Now in power he wanted to expand borders into Indian territory to the west but did not want to go into war. Thomas Jefferson's policies on Indian diplomacy had major negative effects on Indian culture and resulted in a plague of land loss to the Americans. The life of Indian tribes in the territory would be altered forever. Early in his presidency Jefferson sent ambassadors to France to discuss the issue of New Orleans and it being the “cork” plugging the Mississippi river. In order to promote farming and transportation of goods from the region use of the Mississippi …show more content…

Indian tribes now found themselves less self sufficient and were pushed into agriculture, weaving, and other fields to generate money to afford the new American dependence. A people who were recently fierce warriors and hunters now led a more sedentary agricultural lifestyle and had lost their free standing position. Indian chiefs found their tribes economically heavily dependent on trade with white Americans unlike their independence, and would be willing to give up their land holdings that they would otherwise not be willing to part with, in exchange for goods or to pay up outstanding debts. The effectiveness of this plan also sparked a resistance among natives, spearheaded by Tecumseh, creating new ideas about unification against the white man and the dependence from them. In summation, Thomas Jefferson’s policies on American Indian relations majorly affected native populations. A culture of people originally separated in tribes constantly at war and isolated in self sufficiency were transformed to something entirely new and increasingly agrarian. The dependent Indian was easy to oppress and manipulate into giving up their land. American Indians slowly were accommodated and assimilated into American society dissolving their culture and land ownership giving Jefferson exactly what he

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1. Pratt opposed reservations because Jefferson’s treaty agreement meant the Great River would be the border between them and the whites. Indians would be isolated and not a part of the American life. 2. Schools would “kill the Indian and save the man” by introducing them to the life of an American.

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Jackson’s Native American policies were very undemocratic because they decreased the power of the people. Document 9 states that the Native Americans have reasons to stay on their land, one being that the land west of the Arkansas Territory is unknown to them. Another is that the region is poorly supplied with food and water and that the new neighbors have different customs and a totally different language. Finally, they wish to remain on the land in which their ancestors died and where they were buried. The evidence helps explain that Andrew Jackson’s Native American policy was very undemocratic because the Native Americans had four very good reasons for staying on their homeland.

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Due to the Northwest Ordinance there wasn’t “slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory” (Doc. H) showing how people were starting to realize how slavery was wrong and inhumane. The relationship between the Indians and the Americans had also shifted due to the revolution. The Native Americans were concerned about their relationship with the Americans due to the fighting with the British, but “it [made] [their] hearts rejoice to find out that [their] great father, and his children the Americans have at length made peace”(Doc. C). The Chickasaw Indians were happy to see that their relationship with the Americans was improving due to the American Revolution.

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When Andrew Jackson became president in 1829, the Native American condition worsened. Congress allowed the president to solve the "Indian problem" with the Indian Removal Act of 1830 (O’Neill 11). This act gave President Jackson permission to offer tribes land west of the Mississippi River in exchange for their tribal lands east of the Mississippi. Politicians of the day considered this a generous offer, (O’Neil 11) but the Native American population would not surrender their homes so easily. So the federal government used some shady tactics in order to get many tribes to accept the agreement.

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Jefferson’s dilemma in the Louisiana Purchase In April of 1803 Thomas Jefferson was faced with many moral dilemmas in the process of buying the Louisiana territory. Though the price for the territory was beyond generous, Jefferson felt that by purchasing the territory he would be going against his beliefs that the constitution should be followed word for word. The constitution said nothing of the president having the power to purchase land from another government, or to use money of the states for the same purpose (“the moral dilemma”). Another problem was once the land was purchased, there was a fear that it could have been a waste since they had no way to know the layout of the land, and what it would be useful for.

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Thomas Jefferson viewed western expansion as an opportunity to open trade with Indians of the west and find a water route to the Pacific ocean. Jefferson was fascinated with the discovery of the west and wanted to map out the new acquired territory before any European nation could claim it as their own. Not only was Jefferson interested in the territory, he wanted to build relations with the Indian tribes of the west and help them develop their agricultural methods and way of life. He sought to expand America to the west as a way to benefit both the Americans and the Native Americans. Jefferson wanted to learn from the Natives of the west, as well as influencing their way of living in efforts to build a working relationship between the

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