The Taio Native Americans: The Fall Of The Taino Native Americans

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Many people know of the rhyme, “Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492,” and as a result of his discoveries, he was considered a historic hero worthy of having a holiday dedicated to him. Little did he know at the time, however, that he would find a preexisting civilization built by the Taino Native Americans that he would catalyze the fall of – returning their initial friendliness with labor and suffering. The loss of the Taino population was the result of harsh conditions, disease, and exploitation under Spanish colonization. The first voyage to the New World was met with success and the beginnings of Spanish colonization. Landing on Hispaniola and meeting a local tribe that greeted him with friendship, Columbus sought wealth, …show more content…

In fact, some Spaniards campaigned for their protection. Works calling for justice though would not be published until several years after there was no longer a population to protect. This included Friar Bartolome de las Casa’s Apologetic History of the Indies that was published in 1566 AD. Recalling his experiences in the New World on attempting to convert the natives, he attempted to persuade readers that Native Americans were naturally good and under God. He highlighted their civilization as well-developed with both political and social lives. By nature, the Taino people were peaceful; they had initially greeted the colonists with friendship and assisted Columbus with his endeavors. Regardless, the Spanish colonists that had been replaced by the Tainos turned a blind eye. Experienced with the circumstances within the mines, they had no qualms with subjecting the Native Americans to the same conditions. When the colonists first began forcing labor and conversion upon the tribes, the tribe chiefs had even allowed it and tried their hand at adjusting to the Spanish lifestyle in search of compromise, only to be ignored with the Spanish preference of complete subjugation. Furthermore, the Tainos were labeled as barbarians due to their lack of faith in the Christian god. Consequently, the Spaniards, also greatly influenced by their desires for gold, lacked the compassion needed to take wholehearted action against the cruelties placed onto the

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