| America has always been a pluralistic society, broken | | | | Indians just wanted to continue with the tribal |
| into small groups with symbolic boundaries separating | | | | pluralism that they practiced in the time before the |
| different sects. Positively, the pluralistic society | | | | white man's arrival. The Native Americans wished to |
| allowed certain immigrant groups to remain | | | | remain self-governing, independent nations. As tragic |
| affectionate and loyal to their ancestral religions and | | | | as the story of Native Americans is, there is another |
| cultures, and also to actively participate in American | | | | story: that of African Americans (blacks), that some |
| political life. A civic culture developed in America, | | | | would consider even more tragic. While Indians were |
| under the guidelines of republicanism: "Government | | | | constantly being encouraged to assimilate against |
| through elected officials, the eligibility of all citizens to | | | | their will, black: who often believed in American ideals, |
| participate in public life, and the freedom to differ in | | | | were forced to live in a segregated society. Blacks |
| religious and individual life "(Miljkovic-Gacic & Ferrell, | | | | were never believed to be equals of the white man. |
| 129-133) European immigrants could become | | | | From the time the first twenty blacks were brought |
| members of the polity on a basis of equal rights with | | | | to the United States as indentured servants in the |
| native born citizens regardless of the country they | | | | 1600's; until the 1970's, blacks were considered to be |
| came from or the religion they believed in. While | | | | inferior to whites (some would argue that this belief |
| European immigrants were enveloped in the American | | | | still prevails). Many believed, as did our great leader: |
| myth, and all this vast land had to offer, two other | | | | Thomas Jefferson that blacks were intellectually, |
| groups: blacks and Native Americans were not | | | | spiritually, and physically inferior to whites. |
| allowed the same opportunities. The myth did not | | | | Accordingly, the majority of our nation's history is |
| apply to Native Americans (Indians). Indians were not | | | | plagued with pluralism caste. This pluralism has been |
| encouraged to remain in touch with their cultural and | | | | accompanied by all the aspects of a caste system: |
| religious roots the way other groups were. The | | | | social indignity, physical brutality, educational |
| American government did not want the heathens to | | | | deprivation, and political exclusion. Unlike the Indians, |
| continue with their uncivilized lifestyle. Consequently, | | | | however, the torment and exclusion of blacks only |
| several programs were developed to help the Indians | | | | strengthened their belief in the ideals of the |
| assimilate to the American way of life. Once the | | | | Constitution and the American myth. |
| Indians were pushed onto the least fertile land in the | | | | African-Americans and Native Americans were all |
| country, tribes were divided up and individuals were | | | | affected by laws passed between 1865 and 1900. |
| given their own plots of land in order to become | | | | Some, like the child labor laws, were beneficial to |
| self-sufficient. Indian children were taken away from | | | | these groups, but mostly the laws were unfair and |
| their parents to be educated about the civilized life | | | | unbeneficial. Whether they were federal, state, or |
| and the white man's' laws. This separation was | | | | local laws, they all had a big impact on the lives of |
| another attempt, by the white man, to discourage | | | | these people. Works Cited Miljkovic-Gacic I, Ferrell |
| the continuation of the heathen traditions. Unlike the | | | | RE, Patrick AL. Estimates of African, European and |
| European immigrants, the majority of the Native | | | | Native American ancestry in Afro-Caribbean men on |
| Americans did not care to assimilate, nor did they | | | | the island of Tobago. ISSN: 0001-5652, 2005; Vol. 60 |
| wish to participate in the American government. The | | | | (3), pp. |