Groups and organizations promoting racial equality - Essay Example

However, efforts made by numerous players gradually allowed the incorporation of the Native Americans into the civilized American society. Over the years, federal legislations and other amendments have allowed the establishment of greater racial equality for the Native Americans and other minority groups. By doing so, the government institutions have been successful in implementing equal rights for all citizens of America. While many historical texts have been produced from a White perspective, the Native Indian perspective has rarely been produced until recently.

The revived interpretation has allowed the world to vie Native Americans as being oppressed individuals who have been enslaved in their own home land while the invaders and colonialists have formed an imperialist government over them. The perspective of viewing the Native Indian as a “good man” was the result of various historical products including films. The civil rights movements allowed the Native Americans to raise their voices for their own rights as equal citizens of America. Native Americans have experienced America from a time of colonial rule to civil rights as US citizens.

Although the Native Americans still inhabited the same land, the fact that there were cultural differences between them and the White Americans could not be ignored. The first question which the reformers faced was about incorporating the highly distinct Native Americans in the American society thereby forming a national identity rather than a horde of uncivilized people. Attempts to assimilate the Native Indians as part of the American society involved recruiting young Native American boys into boarding schools so as to enable them to gradually lose out their native cultural essence and adopt an American way of living (Flavin, 4).

US history saw a series of laws, rules, regulations, tribal laws, treaties, and other jurisdictions. The United States Constitution as well as the Trade and Intercourse Act regulated any economic activity carried out with Native Indian tribes and granted power to the President along with the Senate to make agreements with the tribes (Stancel, n.pag.). By the end of the French-Indian War, the Constitution was adopted and this brought the Indian tribes under the government’s rule. Three departments were set up including Northern, Southern, and Middle, each being headed by a commissioner whose duty was to maintain harmonious terms with the Indians (Cohen & Ickes et al., 9). This was also done so as to discourage the local Indians to participate in the revolt against the Whites.

Passed in 1887, the Dawes Act or the Allotment Act gave the President the power to break the reservation land which was being held by tribal members (‘Dawes Act”, n.pag.). According to the law, land which had not been allotted to Native Americans would have to be sold to the government which would then be opened for farming. However, this resulted in Native Americans being dispossessed of their lands. Apparently, the law was meant to provide greater property rights to the Native Indians however many Native Indians saw a reduction in their land holdings.

Further laws limited their rights and economic dealings by giving more power to the President and Senate to regulate treaties with tribal Indians. The Indian Bill of Rights also