AMIND 141 test 1 Study Guide
Lincoln's Free Soilers
(CIVIL WAR) -lincoln's campaign for presidency appealed to vote of land-poor settlers who wanted government to "open" indigenous lands west of mississippi for settlement -"free-sailers" wanted cheap land free of slavery -*new gold rushes brought waves of settlers to squat on more indigenous lands* -some indigenous people preferred confederate victory (in hopes of dividing/weakening US ) RESULTS: -Minnesota became a non-slavery state for "free-soilers" in 1859 -Led to Dakota Sioux on verge of starvation by 1862 -When Dakota Sioux mounts an uprising to drive out settlers, Union Army troops crushed revolt, slaughtered Dakota civilians, and rounded up several hundred men -300 prisoners were sentenced to death, but under Lincoln's orders to reduce numbers, 38 were selected at random to die in the largest mass hanging in history -The revered Dakota leader, Little Crow, was not among those hanged, but was assassinated the following summer with his son by a settler-farmer who collected a $500 bounty -Heightening "settler law and order" and anti-Indian hysteria -Lincoln didn't forget his free soilers throughout civil war: -homestead act of 1862: encouraged western migration by providing settlers with 160 acres of "public land", in exchange settlers paid small filing fee and agreed to live on land for at least 5 years to establish ownership. 1.5 million homesteads were granted to settlers west of the Mississippi, nearly 300 million acres taken from Indian estates and privatized for market -Morrill Act 1862: transferred large tracts of Indian land to states to establish land grant universities specializing in agriculture and mechanic arts -The pacific railroad act 1862: Provided private companies with nearly 200 million acres of Indian land -US government broke multiple treaties with land grabs in order to achieve statehood that had been delayed in Colorado, N and S Dakota, Montana, Washington Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona; colonization plan for westward expansion carried out over next 30 years.
Context
- THERE IS NO TEXT WITHOUT CONTEXT. When interpreting history, its important to analyze the context, in which we should consider: -what is the time period? -where is the event occuring/the writing being published? -who is the intended audience? -who is involved in the creation of the event or the document? -what is the social/political/religious climate? -what is at stake?
The Gold Rush
-1848-1855 in West -Sparked by gold nuggets found in Sacramento Valley at Sutter's Mill in early 1848, just days after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed ending Mexican-American War -News of gold discovery spread, leading to thousands of would-be gold miners traveling overland across mountains or by sea (through panama or around Cape Horn) -new gold rushes brought waves of settlers to squat on more indigenous lands
Civil War
-1860-1865 in East (5 years after the ending of the Gold Rush) -Military roots to American institutional development runs deep -President Lincoln inaugurated 1861-2 months after South ceded from Union -Many argue that South's secession and Civil War based on "states rights" not slavery- but every settler in southern states aspired to own land + slaves or more land + slaves -*wealth and status depended on property owned* -Most non-slave-owning settlers supposed and fought for confederacy -5 civilized tribes relocated to Oklahoma during Jackson administration: cherokees, muskogee/creeks, seminoles, choctaws, and chickasaws. -after forced removal and trail of terrors, they rebuilt their towns, farms, ranches, institutions, newspapers, schools, and orphanages -tiny group of elite in each nation owned slaves and private estates, but most continued collective agrarian practices -however, all 5 civilized tribes signed treaties with confederacy -conflict between "mixed bloods" and "full bloods" emerged: wealthy, assimilated, slave-owning minority who dominated politics favored confederacy and non-slave owning poor and traditional majority wanted to stay out of Anglo-American war -John Ross, Cherokee chief, first called for neutrality, but later agreed to negotiate treaty with confederacy -Nearly 7000 men of the 5 nations went to battle for the confederacy -during war, however, many indigenous soldiers went over to the union forces with enslaved African Americans who fled to freedom RESULTS: rapid industrialization -instead of land granted to single-family homesteaders, much of land was passed to large operators or land speculators -industrialization quickened=land as commodity "real estate" remained basis of US economy -1863-1864 federal banking its and national currency established -civil war set template for rapid "ameriicanizaton"- connection to oarding schools -federal land grants to railroad barons were not limited to the width of the railroad tracks- formed a checkerboard of square-mile sections stretching for miles on both sides, carving out more indian land -1871 indian appropration act: declared that no indian nation or tribe would be recognized as an independent nation, tribe, or power with whom the us may contract by treaty 3. Indian wars after civil war -Military campaigns against Indigenous nations constituted foreign wars during the Civil War, but the end of Civil War did not mark end of wars against Indigenous peoples -carried on to the end of the century -added more killing technology and seasoned soldiers -demobilized officers and soldiers without jobs after Civil War ended joined "army of the west" -Prominent Civil War generals led army of the West including: Generals Philip Sheridan (only good indian is dead one) and George Armstrong Custer
Resistance Against Confederacy
-A few months after war broke out, 10,000 men in Indian Territory (volunteers, African Americans who freed themselves, and some Anglo-Americans) engaged in guerrilla warfare against confederate army -fought from Oklahoma to Kansas, where many joined unofficial Union units -Mutliethnic battle force and self-liberation by African Americans (happening all over the south) lead to Lincoln's eventual 1863 Emancipation Proclamation: allowed freed Africans to serve in combat
Sand Creek Massacre
-Most infamous incident involving militias: sand creek massacre -occured at dawn, November 1864, on Sand Creek in southeastern Colorado territory-after civil war -over 700 1st and 3rd Cavalry and other troops slaughtered over 150 displaced and captive Cheyenne and Arapaho men, women, and children -leadership under great peace keeper Black Kettle -camped under truce flag and had federal permission to hunt buffalo to feed themselves -in early 1864, Colorado territorial governor informed them that they could no longer leave reservation to hunt -despite compliance with order, John Chivington led 700 Colorado Volunteers to attack Cheyenne and Arapaho people without warning -carried off body parts in rejoice
Firsting and Lasting
-Phrase coined by Ojibwa historian Jean O'Brien to describe what happens to American Indians in mainstream United States history -The practice of "writing Indians out of existence" -Over-writing of Indigenous peoples' stories, histories, experiences, presence, and even existence EX: "founding" fathers and and "first" school in the US
The Bering Strait Theory
-Proposes that people and animals migrated from modern-day Siberia to modern-day Alaska via the Bering Strait ice bridge around 5,000 years ago -First proposed by early naturalist Jose de Acosta in 1590 and later protected by anthropologist Ales Hrdlicka from the 1920s-1940s -The first people to populate the Americas were believed to have migrated across the Bering Strait while tracking large animal herds after the ice age -Eventually the theory becomes debunked from an American Indian perspective -controversies surrounded are based on: religion, science, and dogma. -scientific evidence that Indians came here earlier, but Hrdlika and others denounced them due to beliefs.
Gold Hungry Settlers
-Settler population went from 800 in 1848 to estimated 100,000 in 1849 -Sped up process of CA achieving statehood -Gold Seekers from all over the world -Devastating effects on California Native people: torture, rape, starvation, and disease in sought-after goldfields while wiping out food sources and natural resources -US occupation and settlement exterminated more than 100,000 California Native people over gold by 1870
Historical Thinking
-Thinking critically about history instead of memorizing "facts" -Understanding that in order to become "history," there must be ample evidence; evidence can change history -History often associated with power: who tells the stories, how often, good guys vs bad guys -History from American Indian perspective often conflicts with mainstream/popular US narrative -How does this change the way we understand/previously understood history? HOW TO ENGAGE IN HISTORICAL THINKING: 1. investigate multiple accounts and perspectives 2. interpret primary sources 3. sourcing- research further 4. analyze context
The Dawes Act
-also known as general allotment act Tried to give individual land to Indians (reservation) so they could take away their communal lands and try to make Indians more like Americans -allotment -designed to detribalize indians by destroying the idea of communal land ownership on reservations -authorized president of US to survey American Indian tribal land and divide it into allotments for individual indians, those who accepted allotments lived separately from tribe and was granted US citizenship -The assumption about the importance of individual ownership underlying the Dawes Act was that the Indians would own individual land instead of communal land like they had previously. Essentially, if the Indians joined the US government accepted the individual ownership, they could purchase land just like other settlers and become US citizens. The American Indians wanted to keep their land because it was part of their culture and they did not want their tribes and culture to be torn apart. -The lasting effect of the Dawes Act on tribes is that it took land away from the them and also took away from their culture by splitting them apart. -Objectives: stimulate assimilation of American Indians into mainstream society, European-American model of land ownership and maintenance seen as essential step, individual ownership of land and subsistence farming instead of communal lands, act also provided that un-alloted lands be deemed as "excess" for the government to sell on open market, allowing purchase and settlement by non-Native Americans -Goals: break up tribes as a social unit, encourage individual initiates over communal, further progress of native farmers in Euro-American model, reduce costs of native administration, secure parts of reservations as Indian lands, separate from dominant society, and open the remainder of land to white settlers for profit -Effects (negative): for some tribes it ended communal holding of property, which previously ensured everyone had a place in the tribe. 2. Act symbolized a culmination of american attempts to destroy tribes and their government, and to open the remainder of land to white people (settlers), land owned by indians decreased from 138 million acres in 1887 to 48 million acres in 1934.
Roosevelt's New Deal
-only bright spot in the administrations treatment of minorities -It was a series of ambitious social programs designed to reform federal policy and help the nation recover from the great depression. -Also known as Wheeler-Howard Act or Indian Reorganization Act (1934) -It was a sweeping legislation that proposed comprehensive restructuring of Indian policies while addressing poverty and substandard education on Indian reservations. -Under the act, participating tribes could organize their own governments -It established the civilian conservation corps- which included special indian division that employed nearly 15,000 Indians -John Collier was appointed as commissioner of Indian affairs -At colliers request, congress created the Indian Emergency Conservation Program (IECP): A CCC type project for the reservations which employed more than 85,000 Indians -Collier also made sure that various organizations hired Indians -Collier was opponent of allotment program which distributed tribal lands so we passed the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA- part of new deal) which terminated the allotment program of the Dawes Severalty Act (1887) and provided funds for tribes to purchase new land, offered government recognition of tribal constitutions, and repealed prohibitions on native americans languages and customs. -Federal grants were also provided to local school districts, hospitals, and social welfare agencies to assist Native Americans -John Collier toured Navajo nation and proposed an aggressive livestock reduction program where government agents purchased and removed half of livestock. It was designed to preserve the land and save the Navajo from a wastage of resources that was happening fast. The range had to be saved otherwise they would have to disperse into white world, which would lost Navajo spirit and culture. This program devastated Navajo economy, stripped the tribe of its financial independence, and subjected the Navajo to spiritual and cultural genocide. -granted the Interior Security authority to make rules restricting the # of livestock grazing on Indian land and any other regulations necessary to protect the range from deteroriation, to prevent soil erosion, to assure full utilization of the range, and like purposes -Roosevelt felt that the act provided overdue justice to Indians and signaled a positive change in federal indian relations. -174 native communities agreed to it and 78 tribes rejected it -provided relief to some tribes, and devastated others -The policies introduced by the new deal continued to influence federal-indian relations for several decades -didnt allow for diversity in the Indian world -For some, IRA provided money and benefits, for others it increased bureaucracy and government control -On one hand, it was innovative and helped in a lot of places, on the other hand, it led congress to believe that they had authority 10 years later to terminate treaties because the Indians were freed under the new deal -Although its roosevelt most important contribution to Indian policy, much of its programs were dwarfed by war efforts and reversed by early 1950s -By beginning of WWII, congress was already slashing funds from new deal and relocated office of indian affairs to Chicago.
Genocidal Armies of the West
-to get professional soldiers in the east to help fight confederate army, Lincoln called for volunteer fighters in the West- settlers responded -without few confederates to fight, the volunteers fought Indigenous people instead -Land speculators in trans-mississippi West sought statehood for occupied former Mexican territories -Generated strong anti-Indian hysteria and violence -Eagerness to undertake ethnic cleansing of Indigenous residents to achieve necessary population balance in order to attain statehood -Lincoln administration did little to prevent genocidal actions by territorial authorities because of preoccupation with *civil war* in the east -settler"law and order" set pattern for post war genocide 1. Carleton's -US army colonel James Carleton formed Volunteer Army of the Pacific 1861, based in CA -In nevada and Utah, Colonel Patrick Connor, commanded a militia of a thousand CA volunteers who spent civil war years massacring hundreds of unarmed shoshone, bannock, and Ute people -Carleton led another contingent of militias to Arizona to suppress the Apaches, who were resisting colonization under their great leader Cochise -following campaign against Apaches, Carleton was promoted to brigadier general and placed in command of the Department of New Mexico -Brought in seasoned Colorado Volunteers to attack Navajos-decared total war -enlisted infamous Indian killer Kit Carson as principal commander -Unlimited authority and the government's preoccupation with the *civil war* allowed Carleton to engage in a series of search-and-destroy missions against Navajos 2. Carleton's War against Navajos -Culminated in 1864- 300 miles forced march of 8,000 Navajo civilians to military concentration camp at Bosque Redondo in Southeastern New Mexico desert -recalled in Navajo oral history as the "long walk" -1/4 of incarcerated died of starvation -Navajos weren't released and allowed to return home until 1868 -Permission not based on deadly conditions- rather because congress determined the camp too expensive to maintain -Carleton appointed as major general in US army in 1865 for these "noble deeds" -Carleton now led fourth cavalry against Plain Indians 3. Genocidal Campaigns continued -genocidal campaigns against Indigenous civilizations during President Grant administration 1869-1877 -Black troops out west- governments way of getting rid of "black and indian problem" (buffalo soldiers) -US policy directed army to destroy economy base of Plains Indians- the buffalo -buffalos killed to near extinction-only a few hundred left by 1880s -commercial hunters only wanted skins: bone shipped to East for various uses -often referred to as buffalo soldiers
Allotment
Allot means to give -remaining land would be given to settlers EX: Dawes act of 1887 was this - allowed government to give or allot portions of certain reservation land to individual indians to establish private farms.
Colonization
An ongoing process of control by which a central system of power dominates the surrounding land and its components (people, animals etc.)"
Boarding Schools
Established in late 19th century and early 20th century in attempt to educate or civilize Indian children according to Euro-Aerican standards (goal) -first established by christian ministries on reservations for children who didn't have schools nearby, later the government paid religious societies to provide education to american indian children based on the assimilation model of carlisle indian industrial school -many native children were immersed into Euro-American culture, children separated from their families and encouraged to abandon identities and ties to cultures -assimilation -*Carlisle Indian Industrial School*: Pratt says, "kill indian save man"- became guidelines for these boarding schools with assimilation through total immersion Pratt's social experiment: cut their hair, put them in uniforms, forced them to speak english, and subjected them to strict military routine/protocols -This experiment made Pratt believe that removing Indians from their native culture would result in successful assimilation -Carlisle Indian Industrial school was modeled and founded after this experiment in 1879- became model for Bureau of Indian Affairs -Indian people resisted boarding schools in various ways -Indian agents on reservations resorted to withholding rations or sending police to enforce school policy -Indian Child Welfare Act (1978)- Native American parents gained legal right to deny children placement in off-reservation schools Lasting effects: -loss of culture/language -separating tribes -people ashamed of tribes -not close to family bc separated -they were beaten so many family members brought that home -added to stress -took home unpredictability, made their kids vulnerable, lots of fear and terror that carried for generations -kids of these people committed suicide -now they want to become a team (decolonization)
The Danger of a Single Story
Only hearing one side of story (negative) -its generalizing, stops us from knowing the truth -To create a single story, show a people as one thing over and over again and that is what they become -creates incomplete stereotypes Consequences of single story: robs people of dignity, makes our recognition of humanity difficult, emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar. -Theres never a single story- even though we only knew one side of story with what happened with Natives and Settlers/ US government
Assimilation
Process by which a person or a groups language and/or culture comes to resemble those of another group, typically a dominant society -may involve quick or gradual change depending on circumstances EX: Indian boarding school and dawes act were forced assimilation
Manifest Destiny
The 19th century belief that American settlers were destined, with the God-given right, to expand settlements from coast-to-coast of North America in order for the United States to reach its full potential -Connected to American Exceptionalism: the idea that Americans were doing what was right for the greater good of the country.
Buffalo Soldiers
The army in charge of killing buffalo were referred to is this -Name given to African American soldiers who served in the U.S. Army on the western frontier and fought in the Indian Wars (1854-1890). -To gain control of Plain Indians' lands, US policy direct the army to destroy their basic economy base, the buffalo -governments way of getting rid of black and indian problem -Buffalo were killed nearly to extinction- only a few hundred left by 1880s. -Happened after civil war when many freed black troops were sent out west to get rid of "black and indian problem" -Bob Marley has song about: stolen from Africa, brought to America, fought on arrival, fought for survival
Decolonization
The goal of undoing/removing/reversing the presence of colonization in order to regenerate Indigenous knowledge, epistemologies, culture, and ways of life -Decolonization can be the removal of colonialism not only physically and politically on a large scale, but also on a personal/community level.
Indian Country
The three texts we read were written by Alexander Ewen and published fairly recently in June of 2014. Alexander Ewen has written many articles on American Indians, so he is probably very knowledgeable on the subject and can be considered a credible author. The website the articles were published on is called Indian Country Media Network. These variables imply that his intended audience is probably people who have previously heard of the Bering Strait Theory and are looking to become more informed on the topic. It is important to analyze the texts because it will help us have an open mind which can lead to finding the true story. -any of the many self-governing Native American communities throughout the United States. (sovereign) -At the end of the Twentieth Century, American Indians had clearly rebounded from the past centuries of colonization, forced assimilation, and cultural genocide. However, non-Indians still know very little about the over 2 million people who in the 1990 census, proclaimed themselves of Native American heritage. Following are just some of the questions - derived, in part, from Jack Utter's book (1993) - most often asked about Indians in today's world.
Indian Problem
relationship between settlers and natives is called this because Indians refused to give up land that settlers felt they deserved -natives made it hard for settlers to take land