The primary documents ‘Christian Missionaries Oppose Removal’ from 1830 and the extract from ‘The Letters and Journals of Samuel Marsden’ from 1814/15 provide crucial insight into the attitudes that the missionaries held towards both Maori and Native Americans (specifically the Cherokees.) In doing this, they successfully reveal some aspects of constructions of ‘race’ in the early nineteenth century. Both documents expose the view that the missionaries held of the indigenous people as ‘savages’ needing civilizing, a predominantly ‘white’ lens with an ethnocentric bias. Though this was the case, the missionaries did view the Maori and Native Americans in a more favourable light than others at the time. It can be discerned that ‘race’ was built
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Both articles talk of trade and habits of industry as methods of assimilation to accompany civilization efforts, along with religion. The authors both speak optimistically about the potential, though ‘savages’, that the indigenous people of the USA and Aotearoa have for civilization and assimilation. However, the events that preceded ‘Christian Missionaries Oppose Removal’ were markedly different to the events leading to Samuel Marsden’s journal entry – the Cherokee were in danger of being forcibly removed from their land, and the missionaries were in support of them staying because of their great potential for ‘becoming white.’ This ethnocentric view worked in favour of the Cherokee people, however ultimately did not change their fate and their efforts of assimilation were disregarded. The racial biases existing previous to the humanitarian approach existed could not be ignored, resulting in the ‘Trail of Tears’. The documents both tell us about the ideas of ‘race’ that existed during this time, and the events that followed in America are a clear result of pre-existing notions of racial hierarchies. Samuel Marsden’s document does hold the red lens view of Maori, calling them a ‘savage race’, however the religious viewpoint and optimism that they can be civilized outweighs the racial prejudices he may have
Both articles talk of trade and habits of industry as methods of assimilation to accompany civilization efforts, along with religion. The authors both speak optimistically about the potential, though ‘savages’, that the indigenous people of the USA and Aotearoa have for civilization and assimilation. However, the events that preceded ‘Christian Missionaries Oppose Removal’ were markedly different to the events leading to Samuel Marsden’s journal entry – the Cherokee were in danger of being forcibly removed from their land, and the missionaries were in support of them staying because of their great potential for ‘becoming white.’ This ethnocentric view worked in favour of the Cherokee people, however ultimately did not change their fate and their efforts of assimilation were disregarded. The racial biases existing previous to the humanitarian approach existed could not be ignored, resulting in the ‘Trail of Tears’. The documents both tell us about the ideas of ‘race’ that existed during this time, and the events that followed in America are a clear result of pre-existing notions of racial hierarchies. Samuel Marsden’s document does hold the red lens view of Maori, calling them a ‘savage race’, however the religious viewpoint and optimism that they can be civilized outweighs the racial prejudices he may have