I. Introduction: Racism in the United States of America in general has been very widespread since the colonial era of our country and since has been focused on specific minority groups.
Background: Since the beginning, starting at the ‘discovery’ of America by Christopher Columbus there has been one pattern within our history of the U.S.A. and that is the subjugation of all others not to be believed equal, whether it be other societies or races, it's always been basically about, ‘who's the best’.
Thesis: An example of Racism is a comparison of the racism inflicted upon African Americans in The United States of America and the Racism inflicted upon Native Americans in The United States of America until 1877. The comparison of these two groups demonstrates the impossible challenges they had to face within this up and coming country.
II. Body:
A. Reason One.
Genocide of Native Americans
a. evidence #1
According to Lemkin, colonization was in itself "intrinsically genocidal". He saw this genocide as a two-stage process, the first being the destruction of the indigenous population's way of life. In the second stage, the newcomers impose their way of life on the indigenous group. (forge 2012, p. 77.) (moses 2004, p. 27.)
b. evidence #2
According to David Maybury-Lewis, imperial and colonial forms of genocide are enacted in two main ways, either through the deliberate clearing of territories of their original inhabitants in order to make them exploitable for purposes of resource extraction or colonial settlements, or through enlisting indigenous peoples as forced laborers in colonial or imperialist projects of resource extraction. (Maybury-Lewis 2002, p. 48.)
c. evidence #3
Some scholars, among them Lemkin, have argued that cultural genocide, sometimes called ethnocide, should also be recognized. A people may continue to exist, but if they are prevented from perpetuating their group identity by prohibitions against cultural and religious practices that are the basis of that identity, this may also be considered a form of genocide. Examples include the treatment of Tibetans by the Chinese government and Native Americans by the US government. (Mehta 2008, p. 19.) (Attar 2010, p. 20.) (Sautman 2003, pp.174-240.)
B. Reason Two
Reservations for Native Americans and The assimilation of Native Americans
a. evidence #1
From the beginning of the European colonization of the Americas, Europeans often removed native peoples from lands they wished to occupy. The means varied, including treaties made under considerable duress, forceful ejection, and violence, and in a few cases voluntary moves based on mutual agreement. The removal caused many problems such as tribes losing means of livelihood by being subjected to a defined area, farmers having inadmissible land for agriculture, and hostility between tribes. ("Native American reservation background". Retrieved September 13, 2016.)
b. evidence #2
In 1764 the "Plan for the Future Management of Indian Affairs" was proposed by the Board of Trade. Although never adopted formally, the plan established the imperial government's expectation that land would only be bought by colonial governments, not individuals, and that land would only be purchased at public meetings. Additionally, this plan dictated that the Indians would be properly consulted when ascertaining and defining the boundaries of colonial settlement. The private contracts that once characterized the sale of Indian land to various individuals and groups—from farmers to towns—were replaced by treaties between sovereigns. This protocol was adopted by the United States Government after the American Revolution. (Remarks on the Plan for Regulating the Indian Trade, September 1766-October 1766, Founders Online)
c. evidence #3
The passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 marked the systematization of a U.S. federal government policy of forcibly moving Native populations away from European-populated areas.
One example was the Five Civilized Tribes, who were removed from their native lands in the southern United States and moved to modern-day Oklahoma, in a mass migration that came to be known as the Trail of Tears. Some of the lands these tribes were given to inhabit following the removals eventually became Indian reservations.
In 1851, the United States Congress passed the Indian Appropriations Actwhich authorized the creation of Indian reservations in modern-day Oklahoma. Relations between settlers and natives had grown increasingly worse as the settlers encroached on territory and natural resources in the West. (Bennett, Elmer (2008). Federal Indian Law. The Lawbook Exchange. pp. 201–203. ISBN 9781584777762.)
d. evidence #4
In 1868, President Ulysses S. Grant pursued a "Peace Policy" as an attempt to avoid violence. The policy included a reorganization of the Indian Service, with the goal of relocating various tribes from their ancestral homes to parcels of lands established specifically for their inhabitation. The policy called for the replacement of government officials by religious men, nominated by churches, to oversee the Indian agencies on reservations in order to teach Christianity to the native tribes. The Quakers were especially active in this policy on reservations. ( "President Grant advances "Peace Policy" with tribes". US National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 15 Nov 2014.) ( Miller Center, University of Virginia Archived 2014-04-08 at the Wayback Machine., Retrieved April 7, 2014.)
C. Reason Three.
Slavery is a huge step towards major racially and ethnically structured institutions in The United States of America
a. evidence #1
In 1619, the first African slaves were brought to Point Comfort, today's Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia, 30 miles downstream from Jamestown, Virginia. The English settlers treated these captives as indentured servantsand released them after a number of years. This practice was gradually replaced by the system of race-based slavery used in the Caribbean. As servants were freed, they became competition for resources. Additionally, released servants had to be replaced. ( "New World Exploration and English Ambition". The Terrible Transformation. PBS. Archived from the original on June 14, 2007. Retrieved June 14, 2007.) ("From Indentured Servitude to Racial Slavery". The Terrible Transformation. PBS. Archived from the original on June 4, 2007. Retrieved June 14, 2007.)
b. evidence #2
By 1700 there were 25,000 black slaves in the North American mainland colonies, about 10% of the population. Some had been shipped directly from Africa (most of them were from 1518-1850s), but initially, very often they had been shipped via the West Indies in small cargoes after spending time working on the islands (John Murrin, Paul Johnson, James McPherson, Alice Fahs, Gary Gerstle, "Expansion, Immigration, and Regional Differentiation", in Liberty, Equality, Power: A History of the American People, Volume 1: To 1877, Cengage Learning, 2011, p. 108.)
c. evidence #3
This did not deter Blacks, free and slave, from participating in the Revolution. Crispus Attucks, a free Black tradesman, was the first casualty of the Boston Massacre and of the ensuing American Revolutionary War. 5,000 Blacks, including Prince Hall, fought in the Continental Army. Many fought side by side with White soldiers at the battles of Lexington and Concord and at Bunker Hill. But when George Washington took command in 1775, he barred any further recruitment of Blacks.
Approximately 5000 free African-American men helped the American Colonists in their struggle for freedom. One of these men, Agrippa Hull, fought in the American Revolution for over six years. He and the other African-American soldiers fought in order to improve their white neighbor's views of them and advance their own fight of freedom. (Nash, Gary B. (Summer 2006). "African-American". Phi Kappa Phi Forum. 83 (3): 1–2.)
III. Conclusion:
In conclusion with all documents and historical events both parties, African Americans and Native Americans suffered a great deal in very similar ways throughout their history in the united states.