Why has the conflict between the Americans and Native Americans become so bias?

Question

Now, I'm not saying that what the Americans did was great, but isn't there a bias in our history here? We teach our children about the trail of tears and such, but rarely do we discuss the natives rushing villages and scalping innocent men, women, and children for no reason. Weren't there autrocities on both sides? Can we really say that one side was any better than the other when both frequently attacked innocent people? Also, am I wrong for seeing this as a typical war over land? To me, it is no different than most wars in history. Two groups of people wanted a land for themselves and couldn't find a way to share it peacefully. War occurs and one group wins, as typically happens. Should white americans really feel bad for winning this war and keeping the land we fought for?

Answer 1

Matt, who exactly lives on reservations in the middle of the absolutely crappiest placest in the USA?

It wasn't a typical war - typical wars aren't supposed to include murder of entire peoples. That's called genocide. The Indian Nations never declared war on America but America and the settlers certainly didn't stop from taking what wasn't theirs.

I'm American and proud of my heritage but you are being absolutely blind if you think that this boiled down to a simple war over a land two peoples wanted. Have you read any of the books on the subject?

I think if you looked at the deaths caused by both sides you'll see an incredibly lopsided number.

Answer 2

Okay. I think that your knowledge on the subject shows there is a bias. But not in favor of Native people. In favor of Europeans.

First of all, Native history, or should I say True Native History, isn't taught in High Schools. And Most of the History you learn is White American History. Even what you learn about other cultures wasn't written by people from that culture.

Now, Native people scalped in retaliation. They didn't start this, Europeans did. If Natives scalped before colonization it was as a death rite. It became a war prize after colonizers starting paying for the scalps of Native men, women, and children (yeah they paid for children's scalps).

What else were they retaliating against? Genocide of Native tribes, Rape, Torture, Land Theft, Kidnapping, Sterilization, Cultural Genocide, etc.. Yeah they had a right to be mad. How many of the things I listed above did you really learn about? So if atrocities were committed on both parts, do you know who started them? It wasn't Native people, and That is a Fact.

And yes you are wrong, since you asked. Who is fighting for land always??? Think about it. One Culture has the fight over most land. And the main difference is that they fight Brutally. Many Indigenous culutures have more respectable war practices (if you can call war respectable). For example in Native culture there is something called "Counting Coop (coo)". This is when one gets close enough to basically tag someone from the enemies side. The is more honorable than killing the other person, and the enemy who got "tagged" would feel ashamed and retreat.

Yes Americans should feel bad for STEALING the land, for fighting and unfair war. Natives welcomed the first settlers, they taught them how to live off this land. They weren't struggling for land rights, they were prepared to live in peace With these people. Colonizers came and felt the need to own All of the Land and faught an unfair war complete with all the brutalities I listed above. Anyone should feel bad for such atrocities. And people like you who don't acknowledge these things is what keeps the negativity alive. If Americans would acknowledge their past then we could work towards healing, until that happens not much will be accomplished...

Answer 3

It is not bias.

Genocide - the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular ethnic group or nation.

That i what happened when the Native Americans, the FIRST ones here, were attacked. Giving blankets infected with small pox under the guise of wanting peace is not comparable to scalpings.

Any group that is oppressed eventually fights back and the oppressors will ALWAYS go down in history as being in the wrong. It may not be remembered that way at first but history ALWAYS corrects itself.

Yes there were "atrocities" on both side but only because the new immigrants started a war and the natives rebelled.

White Americans shouldn't feel bad per se, they should simply understand why Native Americans are couped up on reservations, why they might dislike Americans and why they love creating casinos for Americans to spend their money in

Answer 4

The "Americans" couldn't exactly be blamed for their coexistence with native Americans after the Independence war. But, they could be blamed for the expansion to the west! When you are in your country, you can not accept any discussions for your land with any foreigner.

If the Chinese would come to your country and said: "We want to stay here, in peace and we are going to tell you were the streets are going to pass and who 's gonna get electricity first" would you accept it? No you would not!

The native Americans should be approached in a better way that they did. They show very much appreciation for the technologically "evolved" aliens. This could be a very good opportunity to bring the native Americans closer to the rebels and evolve in a new nation "with justice for all". Since this opportunity was lost, the white Americans should feel bad about it.

Off course we must admit that people generally at that time didn't know very much about civilization approaches and "that kind of stuff". Gun powder had the first word in this sort of conversation. But, what is right is right! I would fight for my country no matter what! So, they did. Fighting could have been avoided. Many, of this kind of reasoning reflects to the civil war in the northern 's side. Events after that proved that what I am saying is correct. You could be the same nation without the killing. But the initial approach was bad!

Answer 5

White Americans should be aware of how their ancestors originally came to the America and took out tons of villages of innocent people. In a lot of cases, these villages couldn't protect themselves, and were also killed by germ warfare (small poxed infected blankets).

The whites could have left the natives alone, maybe even traded with them more. A great book to read is a People's History of America. Look at Geronimo, they could have just given him the land that he was already on, but instead they moved him and his entire tribe to non-fertile land. After that they shipped him off to Florida to die in prison.

Sure it happened a while ago(but not too long ago) and yet we still see the major cases such as the Abramoff scandal stealing millions from the Indian reservations.

So what angers a lot of people here in California when white americans say go home to mexicans and native indians, when really, it was their land to begin with. It was a war about land sure, but it was also mass genocide of a race. Hitler saw this as a great example to apply to his form of genocide towards the jews as stated in his second book historians just proved he wrote.

Answer 6

Matt you are so stereo typical
I don’t know if your shield would allow you any more knowledge on the subject. Did you learn on your own or were you conditioned through association. Would you if put in the situation sit back and watch your women and children be raped and murdered while your home was stolen. Or would you fight and continue to fight to the death to protect the way you and your ancestors lived. Indigenous peoples of this land lived for thousands of years before the Euro invaders came in the name of God and did what they did. My question will you stand before Creator and make statements that I feel this way but I wasn’t there. Therefore to hell with my relatives that are really my ancestors. They came long ago to make it good for me and I have washed my hands of the big picture even though I feel but act out my true feelings in a different fashion. Therefore I’m not connected, no not me.
All races of Americans still practice the ways of their real homelands, that is ancestry, that is connection. Many Americans carry the same bloodline that ran through the veins of the invaders of the past, Therefore you cannot disconnect from who you are, weather you realize it you carry the same genes that make you act the same but with a different approach with the same results.
Treaties were signed to allow Indigenous people to live freely but as we all know treaties are made to be broken. The practice continues to this day with different players and many are tracing their family tree back two three hundred years. In all races you are who you are in the scope of 500 years. There are lands that have the same families as owners from 250 300 years ago. There is much healing to accomplish to right the ship of beliefs from all races involved

Answer 7

we did us wrong

(i am part indian but all american)

dont act like they rushed our villages and didnt have a reason.

those WERE their villages we took,or we built em and said dont come round hear no more.

we are blowing the piss outta iraq and you dont ask why are those insurgents blowing us up?...do you!


alot of history gets lost with time,dont assume what we know is all there is to know.

i dont know the whole deal and i doubt anyone still alive has a clue what they went through.

go to a reservation and speak to any of the elders,they are usually more than willing to teach us about the history you wont get in a public school

Answer 8

i could be the fact that the US government broke every treaty the signed with the indians. once the white uropeans found out the indians were living on land of value,they falsely accused them of crimes and raid. it could be the genocide. it could be the women and children massacred while living under the American flag. the indians were taught to scalp by whites. the indians were willing to share as it was not their land to give or sell,the land belonged to no one,the people belonged to the land.

Answer 9

what do you mean, what Americans did was not so great. The Native Americans got crapped on. The got cheated every step of the way. They owned this country. We took it. In the process , we nearly wiped them out of existence. They were either out right killed or they died as a result of disease brought to this country. They were called savages and treated as less than human. These guys got the shaft. Period.

Answer 10

I met a 100% Native American, Cherokee and Black Foot. BIG GUY, but yeah he wasn't predjudice at all.

It was def. over land ownership, like the US always does, we tried to simply trick or fool the opponent to get what we wanted. Obviously this land wasn't big enough for the both of us and we had to slaughter majority of the natives and send them to Arizona with the Nevajos.