During the last Ice Age, people from Asia used a temporary land bridge to cross into North America. This occurred between 25,000 and 40,000 years ago (Schaefer, 1990, p. 167). Therefore when the Europeans reached the North American continent, not only did they find rich natural resources, but they also came in contact with hundreds of tribes. These tribes had developed cultures that were not accepted as civilized by those who colonized. The Europeans did not respect the rights of the Native Americans ownership to land or their cultural differences. They used advanced weapons and updated war strategies to gain control the land.
Many Native American cultures were eliminated by the end of the American Revolution. In 1783, when the Treaty of Paris was signed, the new nation of the United States claimed a vast amount of North America. This agreement did not include the Native Americans who lived on the land. By the early 1800’s, most Native Americans from the northeast had either been killed or forced from their lands. The rest had been confined to small settlements. In their quest to move west, the American settlers of European descent wanted more land.
In 1830, the United States began the largest relocation program in history. Congress passed the Indian Removal Act. The government began to force the eastern tribes to sign treaties giving up ownership of their ancestral land and relocate to land west of the Mississippi River. If treaty negotiations failed, the military was used to remove the Native Americans. This forced relocation opened up more land for the white settlers.
Among the largest tribes forced to relocate to present-day Oklahoma were the Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole. Realizing that continued resistance would bring on more deaths, these tribes agreed to move. They were promised food and transportation for their removal West. Instead, they were forced to leave their ancestral homelands with inadequate supplies or transportation (Wissler,1989, p. 80). This forced walk, “Trail of Tears” caused the deaths of more than 4,000 Native Americans.
Earlier, the United States government established the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). This agency was a part of the U.S. War Department. The BIA was given the task of maintaining peace in the west. As the white Americans continued to move west, they took possession of land that had been occupied by Native Americans. Regardless of the situation, the white settlers were successful in homesteading the land, creating loss and hardships to the Native Americans.
From 1863 to 1946, the northeastern Native Americans could do little to keep their land or their culture. During this time, the United States Congress had reviewed only 142 land-claim violations. Instead of including the Native Americans as part of America, the government by isolating Native Americans on reservations, establishing schools for Indian children that separated the students from homes, and setting up policies of allotment for individual ownership of land not tribal ownership believed that overtime the Native Americans would adopt aspects to the white culture. Also, this would save the government money that was being spent to provide for Native Americans living on reservations and give the government more control over Indian land.
“Assimilate or starve! This has been the choice offered the Native American by the dominant (white) society, a choice based on the fundamental misunderstanding of Indians, their needs, and aspirations. . .pressure to assimilate is a threat to the Indian’s identity. He lives on generally poor land, and this economic base is decreasing as a result of governmental policies. . .Every time the Indian discovers a resource worth developing, it is taken away from him. He is, once again, faced with the choice-assimilate or starve” (Civil Rights Digest, 1972, pp. 27-29).
In 1924, all Native Americans were granted citizenship. Therefore, Indian men were drafted into World War II. More than 25,000 men and women enlisted in the armed forces during the war. For their valor, many received praise and respect. Ernest Childers and Jack Montgomery were awarded the congressional medals of honor for their heroic actions.
Native American civilians also contributed much to the war effort. Many men and women were employed to manufacture supplies needed for wartime. While some of them traveled back and forth from the reservations to factories, some novel to nonNative American communities to work.
WWII initiated the first time that many Native Americans left their cultural community to fight or to work. This allowed them to experience a world outside of the reservation. For a group of people who practiced tribal traditions, this exposure to different values, viewpoints, ideologies, and philosophies was a culture shock. Even those Native Americans who stayed on the reservations were indirectly affected. Those who left the reservations returned to share what they leamed form working in American cities or what they experience while in the armed forces in Europe and Japan.
Near the end of WWII, Native Americans began to organize. The purpose of organizing was to identify concerns and problems facing the Native Americans. The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) was established in Colorado. The organization’s main objective was to address injustices and the federal government’s treatment of Native Americans.
At the end of WWII, many of those who had left the reservation during the war returned. Their experiences had changed them and placed them in conflict with the culture on the reservation. No longer did they feel as if they belonged on the reservation, but neither did they feel accepted off the reservation. Many of them moved to large urban communities to begin new lives. Since there were few economic opportunities on the reservation, veterans and those who had worked in factories during the war felt that they could compete and obtain jobs in the cities.
During the war, Americans of all racial and socioeconomic backgrounds worked together. At the end of the war, many Americans still distrustful of anything foreign did not accept anything different form the customs or values of mainstream “white” America. Some Native Americans assimilated with ease into urban life. Those who had little education or skills were usually unable to find jobs or adequate housing. For some Native Americans, the traditional ways they were taught as children made life in the city hard. In mainstream America, competition and aggressiveness are valued. Native Americans value cooperation and generosity. Non-Native Americans also stress the individual rights, whereas Native Americans are more concerned with community rights. Some Native Americans learned to act non-Indian. Those who did not were labeled as “un-American” and considered a threat.
Children of Native Americans who relocated to urban communities had some of the same problems as their parents. Not being accepted because of their customs and values, many were unsuccessful in school. Their tendency to be non-aggressive and quiet brought on criticisms from their peers and teachers. Material in textbooks offered negative stereotypes and untruths about Native Americans. This atmosphere pushed many to drop out of school. This in turn continued the cycle of not being hired or being hired in unskilled low paying jobs.
In 1969, Kiowa Indian N. Scott Momaday won the Pulitzer prize for fiction for his novel
House Made of Dawn
. Momaday uses his writing to explore the lives of contemporary Native Americans. One theme that is especially important to Momaday and other Native Americans is the struggle to keep their traditions alive and be successful in a predominantly non-Native American society. Native Americans have not had an easy life in the United States. Through hard work and careful planning, they have improved their living conditions and continue to make contributions to the growth and development of the United States. Today there are more than 500 Native American nations in the United States with governing documents recognized by Congress. Native American citizens are significant in politics (Robert Eastman), sports (Jim Thorpe and Billy Mills), and the arts (Maria Martinez, Oscar Howe, Louise Erdrich), N. Scott Momaday, and Simon Ortiz). By recognizing their contributions and the living legacy of Native American cultures, the United States history and future can be put into perspective.