What was President Jackson's policy towards Native Americans?
Not to be contrite, but some might say that Jackson's policy toward Native Americans was "Kill 'em all and let God sort 'em out." Next to Custer, Jackson is probably the best known anti-Indian historic figure.
While he spoke of his love and respect for the American Indian officially, his...
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actions did not reflect his words. Jackson was a main mover and shaker in the trend toward "reservations" and other areas that isolated the Native Americans in the same way that segregation kept African-Americans isolated pre-1960s. In fact, it was Jackson who passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830. These facts combined with his personal beliefs make him one of the most notorious anti-Indian presidents in American history.
What was President Jackson's policy towards Native Americans?
Although Andrew Jackson professed love for the "Indian people," they did not fare well under his administration. He had been intimately involved in Native American issues for the ten years before his election in 1828, and after being elected, he passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830. This focused on moving the "Five Civilized Tribes" from the Southeast part of the US west of the Mississippi. The lands that these tribes occupied were coveted by white Americans living in the Southeast (especially Georgia). Native Americans who were supposed to be able to choose to remove themselves to new reservations, were instead pressured to go. The areas set aside for Native American use were mainly in Oklahoma, which has a very different environment than the lands these people traditionally occupied.
More than 45,000 Native Americans were forced to remove themselves from their tribal lands under Jackson's administration.
What was President Andrew Jackson's policy towards Indians?
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President Jackson's Indian policy is typically seen as a rather immoral policy that was based solely on the needs of white people and not at all on the rights of the Native Americans. President Jackson supported the white people of the Southeast who wanted to remove the Indians from land that they (the white people) wanted. The Indian Removal took no notice of the fact that the tribes in this area were "civilized" and sedentary. This lifestyle (unlike a nomadic, hunting lifestyle) would have made it possible for whites and Native Americans to coexist. However, the whites were not interested in coexistence. Jackson's policy (not surprisingly) took the side of the whites without regard for the rights of the Indians.