Native Americans And The United States - 1443 Words

Many people think that the African-Americans are the most oppressed group of people ever in the United States. That may be true based on the quality of oppression, but not the length of this type of treatment. The Native Americans have been the most oppressed group of people ever in the United States, and even in the colonies that preceded the US. From the early 16th century until even today, the Native Americans were and are being oppressed in this country. The cause was because of colonization. The Europeans colonization of what is now America led the Natives to despair and destruction. Before Christopher Columbus came to the Americas unintentionally and started to colonize, there was a â€Å"belief that the Americas in 1491 were an almost†¦show more content†¦Through the Europeans’ diseases, increased welfare, and introduction of new technologies, the old life that the Natives had known was all but gone (American History). The Europeans had different views on how to deal with the Natives. Significant European contact with the Natives didn’t start until the 17th Century. It would start when some Europeans would go dry fish on the shores; a small fur trade began with the Natives that were local to the area. This was the beginning of the French-Indian fur trade that helped the two nations become allies for a long time. The way this trade worked was fueled by the French desire for beaver fur. They heavily relied on the Native Americans to hunt and trap beavers in order to fulfill this desire. In return, the Natives received many European goods, including firearms, which would put fear into the enemies (American History). All in all, this was one of the greatest European-Native American relationships to ever arise, as many colonist groups would degrade them and fight them. The English were the only other group to somewhat match the peace with the Natives. This was because they depended on them for food, trade, and technology. The English w ould not last very long, as the English settlement patterns were destructive to the Natives. The English desire for land ripped this relationship apart, and would eventually lead to war. The Pequot tribe, for example, were hit hard by European