Emilio Siaz
Professor Macmillian
Professor Macmillian
History 17B
23 March 2015
Assimilation Through Cultural Extermination
In the eyes of the dominant culture, the idea of assimilation is to help the underdeveloped race of people to prosper along with the dominant population. But in the eyes of the victim, the act of assimilation is an act of cultural genocide. It is this attempt of assimilation that resulted in the development of unresolved grief among the Native American people. Instead of allowing them to prosper and succeed, the unresolved grief that was inflicted upon the Native Americans is the reason why they cannot live up to the American dream today.
When developing unresolved grief, there has to be a devastating loss …show more content…
The significance of reservations was to “allow Indians to become more civilized and assimilate into the larger society” (Alvarez 143). This attempt of assimilation initially caused more damage than improvement by taking a toll on their spiritual connection to their land. Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart states, “land, plants and animals are considered sacred relatives far beyond the concept of property,” while the European settlers take land as a sign of higher classification (Brave Heart, DeBruyn 62). Even when Native Americans agreed to move to their designated reservations, the journey there would also take a devastating toll upon their population. This deliberate act of population transfers may not be a direct act of genocide to the Native Americans, but this type of colonization is very similar to the situation of moving the European Jews to concentration camps. The most distinctive difference between the two abused populations would be the differences between the intentions of the perpetrators of the holocausts. While the Jews in European countries were deliberately slaughtered, America saw the decimation and assimilation of Native Americans as the greater good for their future. Although there were two different intentions, Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart “suggests that similar patterns of grief have emerged,” among both the Jewish and Native American …show more content…
By raising children in schools that were known for physical and sexual abuse, the majority of this generation resort to alcohol and drugs to numb the pain. When raising their own children, they inflict upon them the only experiences of parenting that they went through. This eventually becomes an intergenerational issue that is very difficult to stop. By having no way to grief upon their loss of culture and loved ones, this is only one of the elements that accumulate to historical trauma; resulting into unresolved
Professor Macmillian
Professor Macmillian
History 17B
23 March 2015
Assimilation Through Cultural Extermination
In the eyes of the dominant culture, the idea of assimilation is to help the underdeveloped race of people to prosper along with the dominant population. But in the eyes of the victim, the act of assimilation is an act of cultural genocide. It is this attempt of assimilation that resulted in the development of unresolved grief among the Native American people. Instead of allowing them to prosper and succeed, the unresolved grief that was inflicted upon the Native Americans is the reason why they cannot live up to the American dream today.
When developing unresolved grief, there has to be a devastating loss …show more content…
The significance of reservations was to “allow Indians to become more civilized and assimilate into the larger society” (Alvarez 143). This attempt of assimilation initially caused more damage than improvement by taking a toll on their spiritual connection to their land. Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart states, “land, plants and animals are considered sacred relatives far beyond the concept of property,” while the European settlers take land as a sign of higher classification (Brave Heart, DeBruyn 62). Even when Native Americans agreed to move to their designated reservations, the journey there would also take a devastating toll upon their population. This deliberate act of population transfers may not be a direct act of genocide to the Native Americans, but this type of colonization is very similar to the situation of moving the European Jews to concentration camps. The most distinctive difference between the two abused populations would be the differences between the intentions of the perpetrators of the holocausts. While the Jews in European countries were deliberately slaughtered, America saw the decimation and assimilation of Native Americans as the greater good for their future. Although there were two different intentions, Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart “suggests that similar patterns of grief have emerged,” among both the Jewish and Native American …show more content…
By raising children in schools that were known for physical and sexual abuse, the majority of this generation resort to alcohol and drugs to numb the pain. When raising their own children, they inflict upon them the only experiences of parenting that they went through. This eventually becomes an intergenerational issue that is very difficult to stop. By having no way to grief upon their loss of culture and loved ones, this is only one of the elements that accumulate to historical trauma; resulting into unresolved