Their attitudes towards the Indians were similar in a way, except for Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was more compassionate towards the Natives than the rest of the presidents. He considered the Natives, the intellectual equals of whites. On the contrary, George Washington, “Compared the Indian to the wolf as ‘both beasts of prey.’” Though their thoughts about the Indians were not the same, the presidents, wasted them out. Jefferson “actively sought the passage of a constitutional amendment to provide, among other things, for the transporting of the Eastern Indians to the newly acquired territory.” President Monroe wanted a legislature that encouraged the voluntary removal of the Indians. John Adams went as far as to send “a proposal for a removal bill to the House Committee on Indian affairs that envisioned Indian territory… maintained by the U.S.” No president, no matter how good they were, they still wanted the Natives gone from “their …show more content…
Congress thought that by signing the bill, they were saving the Natives from extinction. The general public, however, was opposed to Indian Removal. Religious groups and benevolent societies help town meetings in the Northern states “demanding justice for the Native Americans.” In addition, they also submitted hundreds of petitions and memorials as a form of demanding justice for the Native Americans. Jackson started the process of removal, “By personally negotiating immigration agreements with the southern tribes…” When the Natives decided to move, they set way to the West. The Choctaws were only accompanied by two missionaries. Natives traveled during the winter, which had disastrous outcomes. Indians traveling during the winter endured the coldest winter ever recorded in the country. “those who emigrated during the summer were engulfed by the cholera epidemic…” meaning that even if they wanted to scape the winter, they still had problems when traveling during the summer. After these experiences, Congress issued new regulations. Officers were appointed to supervise the removal of tribes. In my opinion, the Removal Act was not meant to be that