California Indians and European colonization's impact

California History- Indians

The history of Californian Indians is not much different from the history of Indians in other parts of America. Unfortunately the Native Americans had a primitive life style and were no match for the European who discovered America. The Australian aborigines were also in a similar position and they too suffered a similar fate. The civilized Europeans brought untold misery, death and destruction to a society that was no match for the knowledge-wise superior, technically advanced, militarily more powerful and well armed Europeans.

As a result of the superiority of the colonizing European, the Native Americans were pushed gradually to lands that were of no commercial value to the new masters of the land. Diseases introduced into Americas by Europeans annihilated large population of Native Indians and alcohol, sexual exploitation and STD damaged their lifestyle and lives [Natives, 2004].

This exploitation continued well into the twentieth century and displacement of Native Indian from reserves continued with little or no compensation until the early twentieth century. The enlightened society of the twentieth century began to apply the laws which have been on the statutes for centuries to all Americans. Discrimination on the grounds of race, color, religion and sex can not be legally justified anymore. This important factor now provides legal rights and new protection to Native Indians.

On Native Americans part, a desire to protect antiquated culture, economic activities fit for the societies of the tenth or twelfth centuries and failure to adapt to the changing times also spelled disaster for them. The apartheid introduced by allocation of Indian reserves isolated the natives and prevented them from becoming a normal productive citizen of United States.

California Indians

It is believed that Native Americans discovered North America some 25,000 years ago. Anthropologists agree that they entered into the Western hemisphere from Asia over the land bridge connecting the two continents during the glaciations near Bering Strait and along the North Pacific coast. These aborigines spread from Alaska to south and east [Natives, 2004].

It appears that migrations from Asia occurred in many waves over thousands of years accounting for the many native languages. Despite vast variation in languages, the Native Americans appear to have come from a single race explaining the common physical features; straight black hair, sparse body hair, skin color varying from yellow-brown to reddish brown and Mongoloid features all point to a common race. It is believed that California Indians arrived here some fifteen thousand years before the arrival of Europeans explorers.

Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo was the first European to 'discover' California in 1542. He claimed this new found land for Spain. In 1579, Sir Frances Drake came to California and claimed the whole territory for English Crown. Thus the territories were claimed by two countries within a period of 50 years. Drake based his claim on the "right of discovery." In all this debate rights of natives were not even considered, although they had 'discovered' America well before the Europeans. As the Europeans were not affected by the diseases brought into America by them, it appears likely that the diseases were deliberately introduced among the Indians to annihilate the population. "Acknowledgment of the rights of the Indians was overshadowed in practical reality by the introduction of disease. It cannot be determined at this time exactly what effects early explorers and the introduction of their diseases had on California Indians during the early exploration periods. It is certain, however, is that European diseases eventually devastated the Indian population [Five Views, 2004]"

Indian Plight since Columbian Period

European colonization since the 16th century, generally brought misery and exploitation to the colonized people. In many colonized countries this resulted in behavior that was unjustifiable even by the standards of that period, the opium wars against China; where the British colonizers were defending their rights to trade in opium, the slave trade from Africa, subjugation of people of Africa, where white minority rule continued till the end of twentieth century and thousands of other acts which would put these countries in International Criminal Courts today were committed against the colonized people and justified by the history of the victors.

In the case of Australia and America the colonized people were fewer in numbers, had a primitive lifestyle and were an obstruction in the way of the progress of the new settlers. These natives could be easily suppressed and indeed they were. The Indian history in California is normally divided into several periods each marking a major change in rules applicable during the period [Five Views, 2004].

American Indians in California Pre-1769

American Indians in California 1769-1848

American Indians in California 1849-1879

American Indians in California 1880-1904

American Indians in California 1905-1933

American Indians in California 1934-1964

American Indians in California 1965-1980

During the 1769-1848 period California was under the control of Spanish Colonizers. Franciscan missionaries established first of their 21 coastal missions in 1769. These missionary camps were basically labor camps where the Spanish soldiers intimidated the local Indians into seeking the protection of the mission supplying free labor to mission economic activities. The missionaries forcibly separated Indian children from their parents and kept them in crowded dormitories resulting in quick spread of epidemics.

The spread of epidemics strengthened the missionaries' power as the diseases only killed Indians. Sherburne Cook, a well-known demographer of the time estimated that 60% of the population of Indians kept in missions perished because of the introduced diseases [Short Overview, 1998]. With all the resources of normal use for Indians in missionary control, Indians began to attack the missions and military forces to steal animal and take revenge of sexual assaults on Indian women. Continuous demand of laborers for the missions impacted the Indian tribes greatly and finally in 1836, the Mexican Republic who officially took over from Spain in 1823, took away the missions powers of obtaining forced labor from Indian and the missions collapsed.

One third of the California Indian population, over 100,000 Indians perished to deaths attributable to missions of California. The 1824 constitution of Mexican Republic promised Indians voting rights as citizens but they continued to be treated as slaves.

The discovery of Gold in California in 1848 subjected the Indians to the most horrible period of their history. California was seized by U.S. military from Mexico in 1846 and sufferings of the Indians multiplied by the rush to get rich quickly. Bancroft aptly summed the treatment of Indians in these words. "That part of the early intercourse between aboriginal Americans and European which belongs to history may be briefly given; short work was made of it in California. The savages were in the way; the miners and settlers were arrogant and impatient; there were no missionaries or others present with even the poor pretense of soul saying or civilizing. It was one of the last human hunts of civilization, and the basest and most brutal of them al. [Cited in Five Views, 2004]."

Heizer, 1993] collected early records of the 1846-1879 period which show documentary records from military documents and news media of the time how Indians were subjected to systematic annihilation, rape, transmission of sexual diseases and turning Indians into alcoholics by selling alcohol to even ten years old children. Heizer shows that the white settlers expected the Federal troops to clear the area of all Indians. "Federal forces often came under extreme pressure by the local settlers to kill as many Indians as possible, and conflicts between federal and state laws were common. It is clear that the white settlers in California wanted the Indians to be wholly eliminated because they were considered a danger to peace and security [Heizer, 1993]."

The California Legislature eliminated the Indians Right to Vote. The 1850 Act of Governing and Protecting Indians makes it clear how the constitution treated the Indians. The act barred evidence of an Indian or Indians against a white man, allowed whites to take control of Indian children, permitted handing over of Indians found loitering to the highest bidder for a period of up to four months, an a white abusing Indian children could be fined an amount not exceeding $10 while an Indian stealing a horse, a cow or mule could be subjected to 25 lashes and a fine not exceeding $200. The 1860 amendment to the 1850 Act allowed whites to take custody Indian children and vagrant Indians to take control of them and retain their services until 40 years of age for men and 35 years for women. This law was repealed 14th Amendment became a part of U.S. constitution in 1866.

In 1852 U.S. government negotiated 18 treaties with Indians promising 7,466,000 acres of California land. In return the signatory tribes promised to forever quit claim to the United States for their lands. The California state Senate and the governor, however, decided to oppose any law that gave Indians the right to land that might be of value and the treaties were silently shelved by the Congress.

By 1880, the United States Government recognized the suffering of Indians and slowly began to take steps to make Indian full citizens of United States. Helen Hunt's book 'A century of dishonor' prompted the Congress to appoint her on a commission to investigate the state of California Indians. Education was recognized as the main corrective mechanism to right the wrongs but Indians were not entitled to send their children to public schools till 1920. Bureau of Indian Affairs and other organizations like Indian Board of Cooperation were established to help Indians develop themselves. United States Supreme Court recognized Indians as full citizens of United States in 1917 and allowed them to vote.

The period since then till today has been a story of gradual assimilation of Indians in United States while allowing those who want to retain their old life style to continue to live as they wish on lands allotted by Federal and State governments.

The history of Native Indians has lessons for us all. Unfortunately we have still not learnt that lesson and superpowers of today are still willing and eager to push their will on smaller countries and societies to subdue nations and races. The history of Native Indians in California and the rest of the United States may perhaps keep the freedom loving people raise their voices against the injustices of the past and present to ensure a peaceful future for the world.