Cherokees lived on the same land for years inhabited by their ancestors. To them it could be compared to the Garden of Edan.
The one below is titled “Trail of Tears” Robert Lindneux, 1942. Granger Collection New York, NY.http://www.patheos.com/blogs/warrenthrockmorton/2011/03/01/the-trail-of-tears-remembered/#ixzz3WSidWDYc
The Cherokees would do anything for their land, even die for it if that’s what it took to preserve it and it’s beauty for generations to come. Soon the American Revolution began, and the Cherokees picked the wrong side unlike what they hoped. Ridge a powerful Cherokee himself was dedicated to saving the homeland they lived on, which had been untouched by anyone other than the natives for centries. In doing so the Cherokees made an alliance with the United States. With this agreement American Anglo Saxons tried to teach the Cherokees their ways and what Anglo Saxons thought to be a civilized life.
Even the president Thomas Jefferson believed the Native Cherokees could successfully unite with the American people. Intermarriages begun and some Cherokees started adapting to American ways and cultures. However this was not enough. John Ridge a half Cherokee boy was made fun of by other Cherokee peers when he arrived in an American suite rather than traditional clothes to a Cherokee event. Although he was half American, his Cherokee tribe was unaccepting of his differences an the American ways of dress.
John’s father, Ridge was a smart mad. He wanted to outsmart federal negotiators and gain back control of their homeland. Obeying the laws and trying to assimilate into American life Ridge and his wife sent their son off to school. John was reminded by his mother to learn a different way but not forget the old. He did as told, learning the bible and U.S. constitution.
As described by his teachers John was cold and aloof, but a good student. He was one of the top Cherokee students and even selected to write a essay for president Monroe himself. Just like the whites, many Cherokee families wanted their children educated.
During his wedding day John and his wife were followed by others shouting after them, unhappy with the biracial marriage. Things started getting harder for the Cherokees and even if when they did all they could to fit in to American life, they were still teated badly and sometimes unwelcome. As a result of this some tribes stated selling their food and provisions to the christians and giving up their land to move further east.
The Cherokees would not sit aside while the Americans took away their rights and land. Sakoya a fellow Cherokee created a reading and writing system, making the Cherokee nation for the first time literate. Now the natives were able to write down family stories, formulas and more. Shortly after John Ross came about creating a constitution for his people, revolutionizing the Cherokee government. This document held the power to protect all the Cherokee land, drawing borders around the Cherokee nation.
The Americans were outraged, stating the land named Cherokee was in fact some of their own. Then there was the discovery of gold in Cherokee land heading a new political movement and even more the reason to move the Cherokees away from their homeland. With this Andrew Jackson intended to move the tribes away even further through the passing of the Indian removal bill. Here if agreed the Indians would be sent further along the Mississippi river. If not they would face consequences like jail time and even death. The ethnic cleansing had begun and the Indians were no longer considered people. Instead they were treated as inferiors.
The Cherokees fought back to the American authority. New laws were put in place as the Cherokees stood their ground and tried to fight for what was rightfully theirs. Any Cherokee who want to sell their land would have to of other fellow Cherokees under Ross’s rule. Anyone who did not follow would be punished, perhaps killed. Growing stronger the Cherokees took measures into their own hands in order to preserve their nation and land they have lived on thousands of years prior.
For Cherokees removal was not an option. However they were given a deadline by the white people. Not adhering to the Americans wishes many Indians were stabbed, beaten and killed all over fighting for territory. In the Cherokees eyes they were sacrificing what needed to be done for their sacred land.
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