Cherokees and the Trail of Tears - Essay Example

Cherokees and the Trail of Tears The Cherokee was a tribal nation that was found in North America and thrived from 1794 to 1907. The Cherokee was one of the most advanced native tribes in terms of social and cultural activities. They assisted the European settlers with food and supplies; taught them how to hunt and farm in their new environments; introduced the early settlers to a variety of crops such as corn and potatoes; and also taught them how to cure illnesses through the use of herbal medicine (Perdue and Green, 14). However, the comfortable relationship between the Cherokees and the whites did not last long. Since the early sixteenth century, the Cherokee nation had been challenged by the white settlers and the federal government through a series of an unkind process. The Removal Act of 1830 in the United States was the most significant process that greatly denied the Cherokees’ access to their legal rights and freedoms. This law consequently paved a way for the later “Trail of Tears” where the Cherokees were pushed out of their ancestral land and forced to remove to the west of the Mississippi River (Sturgis & Amy, 219). Since the removal act of 1830, the Cherokee had received a lot of mistreatment due to the whites’ great desire for their land. During the trail of tears, experience a lot of sufferings and pains, and also responded differently to the federal government (Housman, P. 137). Before the tragedy that saw the formulation of the Indian Removal Act and relocation of thousands of the Cherokees’ communities, the Cherokee had regarded the Western Georgia as home (Sturgis & Amy, 219). By the 1820s, the Cherokees had assimilated the different European-style customs such as the mode of dressing by the Cherokees women and the economic patterns. The Cherokees had ventured their lives in building schools, roads, and churches and had a distinctive government representation enjoying all forms of freedoms, human rights, and justice (Perdue & Green, 186). The Congress passed the Removal Act on May 28, 1830 during the reign of President Andrew Jackson, which ruled the 5 civilized tribes--Cherokee, Seminole, Chickasaw, Muscogee, and the Choctaw to relocate to the west of the Mississippi River. There were so many reasons that caused the Removal Act to be enacted. During the 19th century, the number of white settlers was highly increasing in many eastern states. The rapid growth of population urged those residents to expand more territories where the Native Americans had already lived. The white Americans also had consistent fear for the Native people who appeared to be unfamiliar residents occurring the lands that were regarded as deserved to be owned by the whites. Moreover, with the discovery of gold deposits on the Cherokee tribal lands in Georgia, the white fortune seekers started to consider the native people as their biggest obstacle. Failing to force against Indians by their own, the white residents lived in Georgia sought for help from the federal government and pressured the government to use political power to push the Cherokees out of their territory (Perdue and Green, 62). The Trail of Tears started as a long-term crisis not only during the Jackson time to remove the tribes to the west, but also it had begun since the time of George Washington. Therefore, the escalation was never a new issue but a long-term crisis that needed a long-term resolution. With the discovery of gold deposits on the Cherokee tribal lands, the crisis worsens demanding an immediate intervention for a long-term solution. Similarly, the declaration of the Cherokee government as an independent and sovereign state provoked the Georgia to conduct multiple attempts to rein the Cherokee tribes under the jurisdiction and sovereignty laws but fails in court challenge by the Cherokee government (Fitzgerald and King, P. 94). However, since the resolution of the crisis could not be resolved in the court, the American government was forced to take judge while favoring the Georgians goals. The white Americans who lived in the western frontier had consistent fear for the Native Americans who appeared to be unfamiliar residents occurring the lands that were regarded as deserved to be owned by the whites. The white Americans, the American federal government and the Georgian militia conducted civilization campaign with aims of converting the southern United States Cherokee, Seminole and the Chickasaw to Christian as well as adopt the European Economic styles (Perdue & Green, P. 124). Most of the white settlers needed land from the native settlers that were valuable with gold mines as well as plenty for large-scale cotton plantation provoking multiple wars that could see the Native Americans leave their lands. Most of the white settler yearned to get fortunes from the native lands compared to their flooded lands for growing cotton and other activities. Therefore, they had to encroach on the Cherokee fields to steal livestock, lost cities, and houses while taking the native tribal lands forcefully (Perdue & Green, P. 116). After the formulation of the Removal Act in 1830, the Cherokee people experienced the unfair treatment from the federal government and the Georgians themselves. Robert V. Rimini’s writings in the Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Empire, 1768-1820. Vol. 1, regard President Jackson unfavorably treated the Cherokee tribe unfavorably. The removal Act had a significant impact on both American whites, black Africans and the Indians depending on whether they had left, or they had chosen to stay. The valuable lands that were likely to be found with the gold mines were obtained by the whites from the departing Indians leaving the Cherokees homeless (Perdue & Green, P. 95). As native land were squatted, house and cities looted, livestock stolen and exposed to torture and sufferings. The state government joins the effort with the aims driving the Cherokee and other Native America out of the south. Several other American states passed laws the limited the native America from their rights and sovereignty of encroaching on the white American territories. After the formulation and pass of the Indian Removal Act and the winter of 1831 U.S. Army threats, the Choctaw American natives were forced and expelled from their lands only to move to the Indian territories by foot where some were marched with double file and chains by the federal government (Housman, P. 137). In addition, the Native American was isolated from the government support, denied food deaths and suffering referred as the ‘’Trail of tears and death.’’ Most of the Native American could not survive the trip out of their tribal lands. The natives were exposed to diseases, psychological trauma, slavery and loss of property in conjunction with abuse of human rights and justice caused by the effects of the Manifest Destiny and Indian Removal Act (Amy, P. 179). The Cherokees response to mistreatment and remove of the discriminative act and the strategies to handle the government hand on its territories was divided. As some of the Cherokee individuals and activists found it good to look for the ways of handling the government and the Georgian militia, some wanted to stay in their native lands and fight backs. Some of the Cherokee people thought it was wise for them to accept to leave in exchange for money and other gifts or concessions without resisting (Sturgis & Amy, P.85). For example, some of the Cherokee self-appointed representatives negotiated the 1835 Treaty of New Echota that could trade the Cherokee land in the Mississippi region while allowing compensation for the loss of property, as well as relocation assistance. In this regard, the federal government considered the treaty as a favorable deal promising to keep the newly relocated Indian Territory unmolested forever. Some of the Cherokee felt betrayed by the formulators and negotiators of the Treaty of New Echota. For example, John Ross, the principal chief of the Cherokee government wrote to the United States government in protest of the treaty and seeking petition against the treaty that was not considered representative of the Cherokee people (Sturgis & Amy, P.68). Similarly, some of the Cherokee responded to their mistreatment by kill all the betrayers of their freedom and rights. The Cherokee National Council passed laws that were directed at eliminating anyone that could be found selling or agreeing to give out the tribal lands. For example, Major Ridge and his son as well as Elias Boudinot as the treat were regarded as a death warrant that was against the Cherokee Nation Council (Sturgis & Amy, P.57). Exceptional Cherokee evaded the United States soldiers evacuating them from some areas while some private Cherokee, who chooses not to live in communal lands, were not subjected to the removal Act. However, some Cherokee were organized by Ross into smaller groups under the agreement with General Scott through the wildness for forage of food. Some of the Cherokee activist and Self-appointed representative choice to challenge the removal of the Indian Removal Act in court and Senate enabling relieve of certain oppressive elements in the formulated laws and policies (Cornelissen, P. 134). Works Cited Cornelissen, Cornelia. Soft Rain : a story of the Cherokee Trail of Tears. New York : Random House Childrens Books, 2009. David Fitzgerald and Duane H King. The Cherokee Trail of Tears. Portland : Graphic Arts Books, 2008. Hausman, Blake M. Riding the Trail of Tears. Lincoln: UNP - Nebraska, 2011. Sturgis, Amy H. The trail of tears and Indian removal. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2007. Theda Perdue and Michael D Green. The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears. New York : Penguin Books, 2007. Read More