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Chris Rogers

Professor Rioux

US History 1302

12 December 2014

Chapter 17 Discussion

The Contested West

There were many developmental changes in the West during the early periods of 1865-

1900. It defined an era of vast territorial advancement, even to the disadvantage of minority

races, such as the Native Americans, or known as the Indians. The West was neither free nor

open. The story of the country was a story of fierce and violent contest for land and resources.

(Page 491) After the Civil War, there was a level of fierce opposition to people already

occupying the West, such as the Indians, African-Americans, Hispanics, and Asian-Americans.

The most appalling case of discrimination was towards the Indians. It was forced upon

them to leave their lands, which rightfully belonged to them, and to try to inhibit white culture.

With plenty of land open in the West, the army removed eastern tribes often against their will

to territory west of the Mississippi. (Page 493) When that wasnt enough, there was

compromising which led to reservations. (Page 493) These compromises didnt always work

out because the Indians didnt always want to leave their territory so the whites drove them out.

However, this wasnt done through military force but through strategic means such as killing off

their food supply. With their food supply gone, Indians had to choose between starvation and

reservation. (Page 495) Ultimately, through this, it led to the forced relocation of Indians and

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the destruction of their society. As before noted, with them leaving their lands, it was brought

upon them to change their ways to that of the white man. Issued stiff new uniforms, shoes, and

what one boy recalled as the torture of woolen long underwear, the children often lost not only

their possessions but also their names: Hekakaavita (Yellow Oak) became Thomas Goldwood.

(Page 499)

African-Americans faced hatred in the West. There was a mentality that it was supposed

to be for whites only. (Page 506) Similar to the Indians, they kept to themselves in reserved

places. However, in difference, they had choice and wasnt directed to live in certain areas. In

response, they formed all-black communities such as Nicodemas, Kansas. (Page 506) Often,

they worked as settlers.

Hispanics had occupied Texas and the Southwest since 1598. They welcomed white rule

as they thought of it as economic opportunity new markets for their livestock and buyers for

their lands. (Page 507) However, they were greatly discouraged after they experienced racial

prejudice. Californios, Mexican residents of California, often were the butt of this nature. Whites

would illegally squad over their land. Even though they would take this to court, they eventually

gave up. It took too long, often seventeen years, to have a result while they still had financial

burdens to work out. Whites illegally squatted on rancho land while protracted litigation over

Spanish and Mexican land grants forced the Californios into court... it took so longseventeen

years on average. (Page 507) Greatly discouraged, they often left their residents and were

segregated into impoverished urban areas. There were countless skirmishes over land rights

between the whites and themselves. Skirmishes between Hispanics and whites in northern New

Mexico over the fencing of the open range lasted for decades. (Page 507)

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Lastly, Asian-Americans, often Chinese, faced brutality in the face of their employer.

They were drawn to America by the promise of gold. However, the whites were determined to

keep California for Americans. They passed prohibitive foreign license laws to keep them out

of the mines. That didnt stop them though. Even though they werent able to do what they came

for, they took jobs that the whites abandoned after they moved on. These jobs were often railroad

laborers, cooks, servants, and farmhands. But Chinese immigration continued. In the 1860s,

when white workers moved on to find riches in the bonanza mines of Nevada, Chinese laborers

took jobs abandoned by the whites. (Page 507) Often, they were a scapegoat to blame for when

things turned sour. This was because the whites felt threatened by them, perhaps by jealously.

In the 1870s, when California and the rest of the nation weathered a major economic

depression, the Chinese became easy scapegoats. (Page 508) Due to this, Congress passed the

Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882 which effectively limited Chinese immigration. (Page 508)

In conclusion, The Contested West was a racial stain on this nation. Whites exploited the

land which belonged to the Indians, corrupted their society, and racial tensions, beyond that of

Indians, were flamed on. While there was much progress in terms of civilization and the

expansion of it, it under shadows the negative impact that was brought upon many people that

werent of the white majority. After the Civil War, there was a level of fierce opposition to

people already occupying the West, such as the Indians, African-Americans, Hispanics, and

Asian-Americans.

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Works Cited

Roark, James L. The American Promise: A History of the United States.Boston: Bedford/St.

Martin's, 2002. Print.