Dark times of the Native American Indians The foundation of the United States is based on the belief of peace, freedom and equality, which is enjoyed and practiced by most of the people in this “Country of Liberty.” However, the idea of equality and freedom does not apply to every person living in the U.S. Luis Valdez, an American writer, once said: “No Statue of Liberty ever greeted our arrival in this country. We did not, in fact, come to the United States at all. The United States came to us.” Growing up, children in the U.S. learn little of what has truly happened to the vast population of the Indigenous people on the continent? What has led to such a drastic decease of their culture and tradition? The answer lies in a dark part of the …show more content…
The Spanish were the first European country to establish large settlements in the Americas, and perhaps, the most brutal and aggressive nation out of the three colonizing powers. The Spanish came to America with a clear purpose to conquer the land and force the people to submit to the government. According to Render, the Spanish sent armies of men to subdue and conquer the land, extract its resources, and spread Christianity to its Indigenous inhabitants who were enslaved in the process (25). In order to make the subjugation process easier, the Spanish established what they call the mission system. Missions were built across Turtle Island, not serving as places for people who waned to learn about the glory of Christ, but to imprison the Indigenous inhabitants on the island. Cruelly, the Native Americans were enslaved and forced to build their own prison camps. Once being captivated, the prisoners were “separated by sex and age in order to ensure control over the growth of the population” (Render, 26). Throughout the time that the Spanish governed the area, the population of Native people on Turtle Island decreases dramatically, due to disease, poor living standard, or