Cherokee Removal Analysis

During the Cherokee removal period, many Cherokees stood up to express their opinions on this conflict. Most of the Cherokee members were against this act and furiously fought back against Congress’s decision. However, there were some who have other ideas about the Cherokee Nation’s future – they believed it was better for them to move. Regardless of different opinions, the Cherokees never stopped to advocate for themselves. Throughout the removal period, political leaders of the United States sometimes used the word “savage” to describe American Indians. This term was intended to describe their outdated lifestyles and choices. Despite this accusation, the Cherokees stood up for themselves and their fellow American Indians. They frequently
When Albert Gallatin, a statesman in Jefferson’s cabinet, expressed interest in learning more of Cherokee’s history, Ridge immediately wrote him a letter disclosing his vision of the future of the Cherokee Nation and describing their culture in great detail. Ridge attempted to display a different image than simply “savages”: “They [Cherokees] have their regular meals as the whites … tables are usually covered with a clean cloth and furnished with the usual plates, knives, and forks…” Indeed, this might seem like an obvious claim, but many people believed that Cherokees only ate when they were hungry and labelled them as savages. By simply stating all of the daily routines, Ridge advocated for the Cherokees in an attempt to change the misconceptions about
In the treaty, it states that the American government would give five million dollars to Cherokees to help them settle in the new territory. Even more, the treaty promised that doctors, medicine, food would be provided during the route to the new Indian territory. As the supporters of this treaty believe that the removal was inevitable, they attempt to receive a deal for the American Indians. They hope to at least provide sufficient resources on the way to the new land. However, the action of this treaty provoked angry Cherokees because they viewed this as a betrayal of the nation. As most of the Cherokees continued to fight against the removal, the supporters of the treaty were deeply detested. Even though Boudinot had a different insight of the removal, his advocacy is another example of American Indians speaking up for themselves. He strived to seek for a better solution of this forced removal and aimed to lower the harm to American Indians to the minimum. Despite all efforts, at the end, the Treaty of the Echota did not live up to its expectation. There was around 16,000 Cherokees that were forcibly removed and 4,000 of them died. One fourth of the Cherokees during the removal died because of starvation and various diseases. This shows that even though the Cherokee advocated for a harmless and