The Impacts Of A Cherokee Story Trail Of Tears - 920 Words

A Cherokee Story: Trail of Tears One of the major atrocities early in the United States (US) expansion came after President Andrew Jackson approved of and signed the Indian Removal Act in 1830. This document set the foundation for what would be known as the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears was the forceful relocation of give main Native American tribes from their eastern lands, to newly established territories located west of the Mississippi River (Dwyer, 2014, p. 33). After researching the Trail of Tears’ impact to the five major Native American tribes, it is easy to see themes such as assimilation, racism, poverty, ethnocentrism, bias, cultural relativity and prejudice within this event. Early in America’s history, interactions†¦show more content†¦35). This document’s intentions showed how little the US government valued the importance of Native Americans. While the government set its bias plan in motion, it was up to tribes to resist forceful e vacuations. US soldiers fueled by racism and prejudice, forced the Cherokee west (Dwyer, 2014, p. 37). This began the final tribe’s relocation, the Cherokee. The Cherokee explained that it was common to see US soldiers sacking graves and removing objects of financial value from corpses along what they called, â€Å"The Place Where We Cried† (Dwyer, 2014, p. 37). This was the most blatant form of bias, racism and prejudice during the Trail of Tears. This behavior continued, but eventually created additional pain and suffering for Native Americans making this death defying journey. Extreme conditions of poverty were created. Prior to relocation, Native Americans thrived by living off of the land and traded goods within their tribes. They had their own local government which had rules based on their beliefs. This created the best possible chance of survival and was the cultural norm for many years prior to European settlers’ influence in the 1600’s. Native Americans departed their lands with promises of ample clothing, food and shelter prior to the Trail of Tears. Immediately upon departure, these promises were not honored. Sadly, there were not enough horses, suitable boats or wagons provided to ensure safe travels (Dwyer, 2014, p.Show MoreRelatedThe Trail Of Tears : The Rise And Fall Of The Cherokee Nation1106 Words   |  5 PagesAmericans have at least some vague image of the Trail of Tears, but not very many know of the events that led to that tragic removal of several thousand Indians from their homeland. Indian lands were held hostage by the states and the federal government, and Indians had to agree to removal to preserve their identity as tribes. 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