Plains Indians Assimilation

The end of the Plains Indians was caused by many factors, including the rising tension between the Indians and the settlers, decline of the Buffalo population, and the assimilation of the Indian people. The most important factor in the decline of the Plains Indians culture was the assimilation of the Indians. The tension between the Indians and the settlers had been built over many years. The settlement of the white men brought disease and death to the Indians and they were not equipped to handle because of their lack of knowledge of the new diseases. This lack of knowledge wiped out some of their population early on. They tried to coexist peacefully, but the settlers forced them to sign treaties for their land and rights. The Indians came to realize that the power of the Chief only existed inside their tribes. The settlers also forced them to give up their land which …show more content…
They tried their best to comply with how the white men lived. The settlers taught them how to farm their land and build their homes. Plains people even applied for statehood, going through all the levels of the justice system to do so. But the settlers wanted to control them. Along with that control came "taming them". This meant that the Indian children had to cut their hair because the long hair that was respected in Indian culture, was seen as savage to whites. They were forced to change their names and go to the school on the reservation, to the Carlisle Indian School, which was funded by the government. This school removed their pride and made them feel ashamed of their native culture. Boys were dragged away from their families against their will. At school they had a philosophy about taking the “savage” out of the boy and making him “normal”. With this policy of “ from savage to normal” came a loss of identity and loss of