Native American Assimilation

The assimilation of the Native Americans began in the late 18th century, and changed the lives of Native Americans forever. Today, Native American’s make up about 2 percent of our current population (census.org), and chances are if you ask a crowded classroom how many students know of any Natives, less than 10 will raise their hand and the majority will give a stereotypical description of how they have viewed Native American’s in their lifetime. It’s almost as if the assimilation never occurred if this is our lasting memory of the Natives.
The Native Americans faced many problems in adjusting to “The American Way of Life” in “Luther Standing Bear Recalls Carlisle” the narrator named, Plenty Kill, later renamed Luther, recalls his time as

a young eleven-year-old who left his home in South Dakota to enroll at Captain Richard Pratt’s new school for Indians at Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Luther describes the assimilation process, not only was their lifestyle taken away but so were the very clothes on their backs and all individuality that went along with it. “The task before us was not only that of accepting new ideas and adopting new manners, but actual physical changes and discomfort had to be borne uncomplainingly until the body adjusted itself to new tastes and habits. Our accustomed dress was taken and replaced with clothing that felt cumbersome and awkward.” Not only is this process demeaning but Luther describes the clothing itself as unsanitary and caused physical suffering. Luther recalls selecting his name from a list on a blackboard and being forbidden to speak his native language. Of all the forced adjustments, Luther describes the diet bestowed upon his people as one of the worst, it included: white bread, coffee, and sugar, which unfortunately lead to the demise of many, children.
In our second source, we hear from a man given the name Rafael, who shares his experiences in Carlisle as well. In his time at the “Indian School” Rafael was taught many things, including English, how to read, math, and that Indian ways were “bad”. “They said we must get civilized. I remember that word too. It means “be like the white man.”” Rafael describes how they were taught how badly Indians had treated the white man through books and stories. After years of living like a white man, Rafael says they began to say Indians were bad and even laughed at their own people. Rafael returned home after 7 years where he was met with even more obstacles and felt out of place in his own home. He describes being shunned and leaving home to find a white man’s job in a white man’s town. Eventually Rafael returned to his home, many years later where he lived on his family’s land and found a girl to marry, upon marrying her Rafael became Indian again.
In both stories we read about the suffering the Native American people went through, and while this is only the story of two boys recalling their times in school being assimilated to the white mans ways, the stories reveal the mental and physical abuse forced upon the Natives. In the film “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” we see the bloodshed of those who did not wish to assimilate, and the lives of those who were forced to live on reserved lands, was just as defeating as war. The Natives were placed in much colder climates as they were evacuated out of their lands and forced to farm on their once known sacred lands.
It has always been interesting to me that as we refer to Native Americans as Native Americans, yet we felt the need to make them assimilate to our ways. In the title Native American you are literally saying this person is a Native to America, they were here long before us yet we felt the need to change their lifestyle and traditions all for what? Not only to profit off the lands but to make ourselves feel more comfortable around what is different to us.