FREE Slavery in the Cherokee Nation and the Freedmen Controversy Essay (original) (raw)

Throughout the years, slavery has played a dominant role within the Cherokee Nation, inevitably affecting thousands of African Americans, American Indians, and Europeans alike. Within the last decade, a vicious battle has come alive between the Cherokee people and freedmen. These freedmen, who have been denied their right to remain within the Cherokee nation, are descendants of slaves held by the Native American tribe. The purpose of this research is to outline a brief history of slavery within the Cherokee Nation, key conflicts, and the resulting outcomes. .
Before Europeans journeyed to North America and brought African slaves with them, Africans and Native Americans actually had a lot in common. Slavery existed, but in a much different context. Peace and diversity were commonalities: "Diverse societies flourished in Africa and the Americas for thousands of years before Europeans colonized them. In this hemisphere, there were hundreds of Native nations, each with its own spirituality, language, system of government, and land base. In Africa, societies ranged from complex kingdoms to hunter-gatherer communities, with many tribal, religious, and linguistic differences. But the peoples of these continents had many things in common. Many considered themselves stewards of their ancestral homelands. African and Native groups also held similar ideas about animal spirits, the guiding presence of ancestors, oral traditions, a living world, and extended family relationships" (IndiVisible).
Today, the world only thinks of slavery as it pertains to Europeans selling or holding captive African Americans. Also, it is widely taught that white Europeans introduced slavery to North America upon their arrival since certain more violent types of slavery were introduced. However, there is a history of slavery long before white men stumbled upon the Americas. Forms of slavery that existed before Europeans arrived in North America were quite different than the form of chattel slavery developed elsewhere (Gilio-Whitaker).

1. Freedmen's Lives During 1865-1896

For many years, they didn't know what life was like outside of slavery. ... Not only was voting a big leap for Freedmen, but, as show in Document B, Freedmen could also now run for Congress. ... This was the closest thing Southern whites could have to slavery. ... Because slavery was banned, some whites needed some form of treating African Americans as second class citizens, without necessarily being illegal. ... Although it was great that slavery ended, the freedmen in the South had a hard time trying to stay away from poverty. ...

2. The Cherokee Removal

This obstacle were the Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, Seminole and, Cherokee nations that called the land their home. ... The Cherokee nation was located near the Tennessee River. ... Another motive for the Cherokee removal was that Georgians were looking for ways to defend and preserve the institution of slavery, which embedded in their everyday lives. ... Jackson responded to a Cherokee Nation council cry for help by openly defending Georgia's claim to sovereignty and offered Cherokees only two options; accept Georgia law or move out." ... Army into the Cherokee Nation. ...

3. The Removal of the Cherokee Nation

Eventually Indian removal entered a new stage, especially with the Cherokee nation, the most dramatic example of the Indian policy of the U.S. government and its motivations. ... Thw whites saw themselves as the leading nation and the smarter ones because they began making money owning businesses. ... The Cherokees were a big nation of about 25,000 people occupying a large territory from central Georgia into Tennesse and North Carolina. ... Back in 1823 the Cherokee national Council pronounced, that they had a fixed determination to never again give up one foot more of their land, but h...

4. The Cherokee

The Cherokee Phoenix was printed in both Cherokee and English. ... In 1828 gold was discovered in the center of the Cherokee Nation, many greedy white men invaded their homeland. ... The state of Georgia past laws to the Cherokee, first they proclaimed that the Cherokee Nation was a county of Georgia so it had to obey the laws, second they said no Cherokee could testify against the white men, and third they announced that they couldn't even mine in their own homeland. ... The removal of the Cherokees didn't move all the Cherokee out of their land. ... When oil was discovered in 1904 ...

5. Cherokee Indains

"In 1838, the Cherokee Nation thrived in Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina. The 18,000 Indians had their own newspaper The Cherokee Phoenix, published in by English and Cherokee. ... Once the Cherokees establish their complete reservation by singing treaties with the government in 1866 and 1868 they set out to mend ties between the two bands of the tribe as well as establish a new flourishing Cherokee nation (Holm, 196:74). ... The center of the Cherokee nation is Tahlequah, OK. ... This is a truly wonderful way to learn about the Cherokee nation and have fun whole learning. ...

6. The Degradation and Elimination of the Cherokee Culture

The Degradation and Elimination of the Cherokee Culture The Christian missions that were used to civilize, or, in my opinion cultivate and conform Cherokees were nothing but detrimental. ... We had used education against them in a twisted way, and had killed the glamour and allure of the United States and the spirits of the Cherokee nation at the same time. ... What the United States did to the Cherokees, and every other Native American nation was worse than anything we had done to any other culture in history. ... To me, there was no reason; is no reason; to do anything that would interf...

7. Cherokee people and their problems in texas

They call themselves the Ani-Yunwiya which translated in English means the "principal people", the reason for that is that they are one of the principal Indian nations in the southeastern United States. ... This war was called the "Cherokee war". ... The Cherokee still became one of the largest nations in the native world and is known as one of the five largest nations in the United States. The Cherokee nation was treated very unfairly when it came to their land rights in Texas. ... Even though the Cherokee was a strong nation they could not overpower the strategies and the strength of th...

8. chereokee removal

The Cherokee's considered them a nation. ... The situation went to court in the Cherokee Nation V. ... (A People and A Nation, Various Authors P.228-229) The state of Georgia thought it was necessary to remove the Cherokee's. ... He thought it wasn't justified to have a nation within a nation. ... Andrew Jackson felt that the Cherokees nation should be given land west of the Mississippi entitled to them, (Document B). ...

9. Slavery and Freedom in the South

The abolition of slavery was not an immediate action that freed every single slave at one exact moment in time. ... In the same way, the integration of the Freedmen's Bureau, to alleviate some of the hardships and tribulations of the South, was not a means for immediate calming of the social and political situations. ... On Oct. 13, 1866 Davis, M.E. of Brenham, Texas wrote a letter to one of his commanding officers telling of the "murders and outrages committed upon Union men and Freedmen in this country". ... This was not the case for these freedmen who were getting no politica...

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