Although the Sioux people have changed since the 1890’s, they are still faced with many hardships. Today, 97 percent of the Sioux population live below the federal poverty line. Most have household incomes ranging between $2,600 and $3,500 per year. One of the main reasons for this is because of the white man taking their land and forcing them onto reservations. Dwight Jon Zimmerman in his book, the Saga of the Sioux, describes the plight the natives faced when the white man decided they needed the land more than them. The author does this through his description of conflicts and themes.
The conflicts between the Sioux and the U.S. representatives were many. Four of the major conflicts were between the natives and the government, the Bluecoats, …show more content…
They are to keep one’s word and to stand up for your rights. The first theme is about keeping one’s word. This is something the Bluecoats did not do. One example, the Indians, “ … were guaranteed reservation land was theirs forever and would receive cash and annual payments…but promised annuities not arrive on time.” The white men knew most Indians could not read or write, so they drew up treaties that took advantage of them. Then even the things they did promise them, they did not follow through with. The author mentions “broken treaties and promises” as the reasons for many of the hardships of the Natives. Finally, many of the Sioux had enough of the broken promises and stood up for themselves. Red Cloud had been trying to see the white man’s side and had believed their word, yet even he finally saw the light. At one point, he was in a meeting when he found out the soldiers were there to open a road in the Powder Country, that was supposed to be off limits. Red Cloud had enough and accused the Bluecoats of “pretending to negotiate for a country while they prepared to take it by force”. Another example of this theme is toward the end of the novel when the Bluecoats were disarming the Natives. Black Coyote did not want to give up his rifle that he had paid a lot of money for. So he protested, saying that it wasn’t right. Unfortunately, standing up for his right cost him his life. Even in
The conflicts between the Sioux and the U.S. representatives were many. Four of the major conflicts were between the natives and the government, the Bluecoats, …show more content…
They are to keep one’s word and to stand up for your rights. The first theme is about keeping one’s word. This is something the Bluecoats did not do. One example, the Indians, “ … were guaranteed reservation land was theirs forever and would receive cash and annual payments…but promised annuities not arrive on time.” The white men knew most Indians could not read or write, so they drew up treaties that took advantage of them. Then even the things they did promise them, they did not follow through with. The author mentions “broken treaties and promises” as the reasons for many of the hardships of the Natives. Finally, many of the Sioux had enough of the broken promises and stood up for themselves. Red Cloud had been trying to see the white man’s side and had believed their word, yet even he finally saw the light. At one point, he was in a meeting when he found out the soldiers were there to open a road in the Powder Country, that was supposed to be off limits. Red Cloud had enough and accused the Bluecoats of “pretending to negotiate for a country while they prepared to take it by force”. Another example of this theme is toward the end of the novel when the Bluecoats were disarming the Natives. Black Coyote did not want to give up his rifle that he had paid a lot of money for. So he protested, saying that it wasn’t right. Unfortunately, standing up for his right cost him his life. Even in