Word - Reflection on the treatment of Native Americans

After watching the videos in class on the Native American tribes, I have new feelings about them. We grow up learning a very watered down version of what happened to Native Americans. Yes, we do learn about the trail of tears and the taking of their land. But we do not learn the full extent of what happened. The Europeans came in and basically slaughtered them because they thought that they weren't civilized people. They thought the Native Americans were just savages. It's incredibly disturbing to know that happened to them. I cannot imagine the actual pain those people felt, having their homes, languages, and heritage stripped from them all because these new people come in and don't take the time to learn about their cultures. If the settlers had actually spent time with the Native Americans and learned their customs, maybe things would have turned out differently. Or maybe nothing would have changed at all. Thinking that things could have been different could just be wishful thinking. However, things certainly should have changed between then and now but it still doesn't seem like much change has actually happened. Native Americans are still having their land and heritages stripped from them because most Americans don't want to recognize the Native American religions as valid. Their religion is tied to nature. They worship at particular spots in nature that are being defaced and destroyed because the government, or at the very least other American citizens, do not understand and do not seem to want to understand the importance of these locations to the Native American people. They are losing all the places of importance to their cultures due to what seems to be stubborn ignorance. That just isn't right. Things should be different but unfortunately the hundreds of years of oppression is something that cannot be reversed.

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