FREE ESSAY ON DBQ - JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY

DBQ - JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY

DBQ - Jacksonian Democracy
Between the years of 1775 and 1825, the United States government was hypocritical with
respect to their Native American policy. The government, at most times, claimed to be
acting in the best interest of the Native Americans. They claimed that their actions were
for the benefit of not only their own citizens, but for the Native Americans, too. These
beneficial actions included relocation from their homeland, murder in great numbers,
rape, and a complete disregard for the various cultures represented by the Native
Americans. 
While the nation was still very young, it issued the Northwest Ordinance. This document
told the Native Americans that they should not feel threatened by this new nation because
...good faith shall always be observed toward the Indians. The United States told the
Native Americans, with this document, that they were dealing with a just and humane
country. Despite these humane intentions, in 1790, Native Americans pleaded with
President Washington about the cruel treatment they were receiving. The Indian chiefs
wrote to Washington to inquire as to why they were being punished. They referred to the
American army as the town destroyer. Obviously the Untied States was not acting in the
good hearted manner and just way it had declared it would in 1787.
Americans, as they moved westward, tried to rationalize its brutal treatment of the
Native Americans. In 1803, Jefferson set two goals in regard to dealing with the Native
Americans. His first goal was to convince them to abandon hunting and become educated in
the ways of the white man (i.e. agriculture or raising stock). He said that they would
see the advantages of this better life. In reality, Jackson wanted to control the amount
of land the Native Americans occupied. He also spoke of leading them to civilization and
to the benefits of the United States government. Jefferson presented these goals as being
advantageous for them. In actuality, these goals put the Native Americans at a sizable
disadvantage. In 1811, an Indian cheif explained that, by being forced to sell their
lands, they could not survive. They would be thrust upon a land where they did not know
the terrain, the people that had already occupied it, or even where to find shelter and
food. He explained that they could not be expected to just give up their land and way of
life for the advancing of the white people. 
By declaring that the Native Americans would benefit from participating in the United
States government and by stating that the United States would civilize them, Jefferson
touched on a major attitude that was common in U.S. policy toward Native Americans, that
of white superiority. White Americans felt that, as they moved westward, they deserved
the land they came across. They felt they had the right to throw these savages off their
homelands because they were Americans and they were superior. Another slant on this same
attitude was the idea of civilizing the natives. The white Americans completely
disregarded the rich culture of the many native tribes. Many missionaries and other white
settlers forcibly infused American culture into their lives. They regarded the Native
Americans as brutal and ruthless warriors and saw themselves as the saviors who had to
instill morals and goodness into these wild people. This perception was invalid and, at
times, ironic because it was often the white man who used ruthless tactics against the
Native Americans. 
For example, in 1779, General John Sullivan led raids into Iroquois Country, in revenge
for the Iroquois siding with the British. In these raids, Sullivan and his men burned and
pillaged villages, killed men, women, and children. As a result, both Andrew Jackson and
Secretary of War Crawford called for the humane treatment of the Native Americans.
Jackson stated that the only way to obtain peaceful treaties was to treat them well. This
statement coming from Jackson was truly ironic. He, like General Sullivan, used merciless
tactics against the Native Americans. After defeating the Creeks in the War of 1812, and
forcing them to give up two-thirds of their land, Jackson preceded to build Ft. Jackson
on the Hickory Ground, the most sacred Creek land.
In reality, the Native Americans were the civilized people In 1803, Jefferson sent Lewis
and Clark to explore the new Louisiana Territory. The two explorers were aided by
Sacajawea, a Shoshoni Indian. The notable accomplishments of Lewis and Clark would never
have been attained without the help of Sacajawea. She and her people promised never to
wage war against the white man and in the 1880's the white man would slaughter the
Shoshoni people. Also, in the 1820's, when faced with violence from the white population
in Tennessee, the Cherokee Indians chose peace. The Cherokee leaders decided against
fighting and chose to accommodate the whites and white culture.
The United States tried to present itself as working for the universal good. Its words
presented the notion of a righteous and honest nation that only wanted peace from its
native neighbors. In reality, the United States government allowed for the forced
relocation of innumerable tribes and did little to defend the Native Americans from the
always encroaching white population. It allowed for the brutal treatment and genocide of
countless peoples and cultures who occupied the lands of the United States peacefully for
thousands of years.
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