We must know and teach the cruel history of America’s foundation in order to appreciate and educate ourselves about the struggle and genocide of Native Americans. We need to embrace multiculturalism instead of assimalation. In the end, Americans have forgotten about how this nation started, which has created ignorance and hatred. America needs to remember its history and be better because of it.
Christopher Columbus received an allowance from Queen Isabella and a group of Catholic monarchs to proceed with his journey to North America. In his contract, if he were to be successful in finding new lands in the name of the Crown, he would be entitled to 10 percent of all revenue that came from the new land. He would also be appointed Governor.
Columbus came to America in 1492 where he claimed land and set forth to build a new colony. Word spread of the new land and many other European countries arrived to colonize. The biggest problem they faced were the natives that already lived on this land. With no hesitation, Columbus began assimilating these natives to Christianity. If they fought against him, they were killed. ‘Good’ land already growing food and able to be harvested was stolen from the natives.
Historical trauma of this magnitude continued for Native Americans for hundreds of years. In 1864, the United States government forced the Navajos and other tribes out of their land. The military marched the Native Americans to a deserted camp, known as ‘The Long Walk.’ The American men pillaged and raided their lands and stole their livestock and goods. Those who rebelled were killed immediately. Some were taken as hostages. The women were raped and children taken away from them. The American Government propogated cultural genocide.
As time went on, the U.S. government made treaties with Native Americans promising them land and sovereignty. Most of these treaties were broken. Native Americans were forced to lands on which it was harder to grow crops and survive. The government took away their children and put them in boarding schools, stating it was in the ‘best interest’ of the children. Native Americans weren’t considered U.S. citizens until the year 1924.
Known as the “land of the free and the home of the brave,” America’s history embodies neither of these attributes. We still celebrate a holiday dedicated to the man who claimed to discover America, but in reality Columbus moved his way from east to west killing Native Americans and claiming land in the name of Christianity. In his mind and his orders from the king and queen, he was manifested from God to take any land he came across. That is what he did. He conquered America.
There are currently 562 tribes in America. They were our original founders, here for thousands of years before white colonizers. Until very recently, Columbus was largely considered a hero for “sailing the ocean blue in 1492.” We are taught in school little of the genocide that occurred at the foundation of this country. There are often stigmatizations attached to what it means to be a Native American. Our history shows how oppressed these people were; how “we” attempted to assimilate them to what Columbus and his royals believed, but “we” have ignored this.