African American Freedom Analysis

To What Extent was the Exclusion or Inclusion of Freedom Perceived in Capitalists, Native Americans, and African Americans?

In 1890, the population of the United States of America was 62 million, causing a shift in the balance of order and power within society.1 For the purpose of this essay, “freedom” will be defined as the combination of economic independence, social equality, and political equality. After 1776, the series of events including the Civil War and expansion of the United States economy caused a shift in social system.1 During the Civil War, a new group of Americans (African Americans) had risen from oppression and attempted to utilize the rights given to every American-born citizen during the Reconstruction Era. After the …show more content…
With an increase in population and damaged farmlands as a result of the Civil War, the nation was looking into Native American territory as part of the country’s expansion.2 After several thousands of years of economic and political independence, Native Americans were facing the “onslaught of European civilization”.6 In 1880, the Native American population was less than “300,000 which was much less than than the original number of a couple million”.5 The government had placed Native Americans living near European Americans in reservations which “brought diseases and also posed a threat to native American culture”.5 The reservations transformed the political, economical, and social structure between European Americans and Native Americans. Native Americans had little political power as they had to defer from traditional chief conferences and refer to non-Native Americans (Bureau of Indian Affairs).5 Tribes were considered “independent nations”5; each tribe may have a conflict with another but according to the federal government there were all equal.5 This caused tribes to resolve internal conflict and move towards the “agenda of the American government”.5 This is an example of the exclusion of freedom in terms of political inequality. Although these are people living in America, they were not given the right to political …show more content…
Capitalists had funded these mining camps to bring in profits and boost the American economy, but at the expense of the freedom of Native Americans. The inability to live free and have political power to prevent the mining camps led to an exclusion of freedom for Native Americans. Reservations also harmed the cultural heritage of Native Americans, forcing them to “transform their culture”6 and to “divest Native Americans of their cultural heritage.”6 This is an example of oppression and the loss of identity of Native Americans who were once the leaders of the Americas prior to European colonization. The conforming of Native Americans amplifies social inequality in society as the Native Americans were not allowed to be an independent group. The Nez Percé chief also asserts “we ask to be recognized as men. We ask that the same law shall work alike on all men”.6 This magnifies the social inequality between Native Americans and non-Native Americans. The evidence supports the claim that Native American people have been excluded from freedoms that are to be granted to every