Courtney+C.+-+FRQ1+-+SP12

Genocide Courtney Crowley Wimmer APUSH 1/26/12

When the Europeans first settled in America in the 1600s, they discovered a land that was inhabited by thousands of Native Americans. The colonists did not know anything about the land or the people already living on it. They were unaware of the problems they were eventually going to be forced to face. Native Americans and Europeans came across difficulties from the moment they encountered each other. As soon as the number of Englishmen in the New World increased, the number of Native Americans decreased (Tutorial-1). It became apparent that the loss of the indigenous people was the result of the settlers who colonized in their homelands. The combination of uncertainty and scarcity in the settlers lead to disputes with the Native Americans (GENOCIDE). These disputes are what argumentatively cause the English settlers to be guilty of genocide. The controversy lies at where the blame upon the Englishmen rest. The dictionary defines genocide as the deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group. The disputes between the two groups primarily revolved around their various differences in their cultures, religions, and ways of life (Tutorial-1). The Englishmen did not view the Indians the way they viewed people from their own culture. They did not appreciate their language, music, art, religion, agriculture or social life (GENOCIDE). The settlers thought their “species” was superior over the Natives and did not respect their race. The Europeans saw themselves as the superior culture, bringing civilization to an inferior culture (GENOCIDE). For these reasons, it is believed the act of genocide was committed.

In Virginia, there was a plan of genocide from the very beginning. It was said to have been proposed by the Governor of the colony, William Berkeley (Tutorial-1). It was decided that the Native American had to be eliminated, which meant capturing and killing them. The men would be killed while the women and children would be sent to Spain and sold as slaves (Tutorial-1). This meant sacrificing lives and tearing families apart. Some Natives were shoot and even burnt alive in their huts or cut into pieces (Tutorial-1). Burning down their crops and villages was referred to as “barbequing” (Tutorial-1). There have been writings of numerous accounts of horrendous acts that the settlers inflicted upon the Indians. This included hanging them, roasting them, and even chopping their children into pieces in order to be used as dog food (GENOCIDE). The various ways the Englishmen executed the Natives were extremely inhuman.

The killings had gotten to the point where the colonists would entertain themselves by tormenting the Natives and doing things like cutting off their heads (Tutorial-1). Their actions became a popular sport in New England at the time (Tutorial-1). This was exactly the type of extermination the settlers had planned for. They thanked God for giving them the land they inherited and proclaimed that it was God’s will for all of this to happen. In the process they had successfully reduced the number of the Native American population. Within three years after the arrival of Christopher Columbus, five million were dead (GENOCIDE).

This information convinces one that the Europeans actions were intended to destroy an entire ethnic group. They had imposed measures in order to make sure they could expand their empire in the New World, while destroying the life that was previously there. Their drive had reached extreme measures for selfish reasons. These reasons give the assumption that the English settlers were without question guilty of genocide.

Some feel the actions taken by the colonists were justified because they did not have strait forward intentions to murder every Indian. In order to get what they wanted, they did everything they could and that it had just happened that way. They had the desperate desire to colonize in the New World and were willing to do whatever they could in order to obtain this. It was said that some leaders tried to restrain some of the settlers and militias from unnecessary conflict with the Natives. Although the Massachusetts Bay Colony dispatched an officer who reported to have ordered “to kill every Indian male he found” (Reject). It seems the attitude and actions of the Englishmen were not only destructive but unnecessary as well.

It is also argued that the real reason for the decrease in the Native American population is due to the infectious diseases the white settlers brought with them when they set foot in America. A UCLA professor writes “The main killers were the Old World germs to which Indians had never been exposed, and against which they therefore had neither immune not genetic resistance. Smallpox, measles, influenza, and typhus rank top among the killers” (Reject). Indians were infected with these diseases before they even made direct contact with the Europeans. Other Indians that had already been exposed to the germ carried them with them to every corner of North America (Reject). Many explorers found empty villages and greatly reduced populations when they first arrived (Reject).

From this perspective it seems the English settlers were not guilty of genocide. The death of the Indians was not intended but worked in the favor of the colonists in order to colonize. Although, the mass destruction of Native American people described earlier implies the colonists are guilty of genocide. By killing these people it was a deliberate act of genocide. The question that needs to be agreed upon is whether or not the English colonists intentionally wanted to exterminate an entire racial group or did it just happen beneficially? Work Cited "GENOCIDE OF NATIVE AMERICANS." //Operation Morning Star//. 26 Jan. 2012. []. "Reject the Lie of White "Genocide" Against Native Americans - Michael Medved - Townhall Conservative." //Conservative news, politics, opinion, breaking news analysis, political cartoons and commentary – Townhall//. 26 Jan. 2012. [].

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Tutorial 1 - Were the English Colonists Guilty of Genocide." //Markville Secondary School//. 26 Jan. 2012. []