Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Heidi Wyman
Part One

The Native American culture thrived in America for many years before the Americans came. In the first six chapters of Dee Brown’s book, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, he describes how the Americans treated the Native Americans and how the Native Americans reacted to this treatment. He tells of treaties the Native Americans had with the Americans and how well these treaties were kept by the Native Americans but not respected by the new Americans. Dee Brown provides many examples of how the United States of America has failed in its treatment of Native Americans.

Dee Brown addresses the Navahos relationship with the Americans in the first part of his book. The Navahos’ were a group of Indian farmers who grew plants and raised animals. The Navahos entered into various peace treaties with the Americans, including one in January of 1861 that stated that both sides would be peaceful to each other. The peace treaty was successful for two years with both the Indians and Americans keeping peace. In 1863, Carleton came across the Navahos land with his army and decided that he wanted to have the land. In June of 1863, the Americans broke the peace treaty by starting a campaign, destroying the Indian troops, burning the Indian homes and capturing their animals. After four months, two parts of the Navahos tribe came to Carleton asking for a peace treaty. Carlton told them they could move to the Bosque Redondo reservation. Three months pass and more Navahos came to ask for peace. Carleton denied them and when the whole tribe came back to ask for peace he told them they could go to the reservation and he would transport them there. The journey to Bosque Redondo was three hundred miles, Carleton sent the first group with enough supplies to get to the reservation with the least amount of people dieing so the rest of the tribe would feel comfortable to leave. Two thousand four hundred Navahos were sent on the second trip to the reservation without all the supplies sufficient for the journey. One hundred ninety seven Navahos died on this trip to the reservation. The third group of Navahos had nine hundred forty six travelers and one hundred and ten died. Once the Navahos got to the camp it did not provide them with the land they needed to grow their crops, keep their animals and survive. The Americans again failed to keep their end of the peace treaty.

The next group of Indians that the Americans made a treaty with were the Santee Sioux. The Sioux had four divisions, the Mdewkantons, Wahpentons, Wahpekutes and Sissetons. Before the civil war, the Americans made a treaty with the Indians promising them annuities for the land they were taking from the Indians. In the ten years after the war, the Americans refused to give the Indians annuities, they took their hunting ground and killed off all of the game and buffalos the Sioux needed for food. The Indians were unhappy and responded to this treatment by fighting the Americans under the leadership of Little Crow. The Sioux were not successful and they were placed on trial by Sibley the leader of the American troop. Six hundred Indian Warriors were placed in jail, three hundred and three Indians were sentenced to death and sixteen Indians were sentenced to long-term prison. After the sentences, there were seventeen hundred Indian women and children that would be transferred to Fort Snelling These Indians were assaulted, stoned and clubbed. When the Indians got to Fort Snelling they were underfed and poorly treated. The Americans used the Santee Sioux’s uprising as and excuse to take their land without any payment, exterminate their military leaders and move the Santee’s to a reservation in Dakota. The Americans again failed to keep their end of the treaty with the Indians.

The American set another peace treaty with the Cheyennes that gave them right to build one road on the Cheyennes land, but the Cheyennes did not surrender any rights to land, fishing and hunting over the road and tracks. There was peace from both sides until the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush. Thousands of Americans fled to the Cheyenne land building forts and then Cities. The Cheyennes came back to the Americans trying to keep peace and give them some of their land but nothing more then they were already on. Again the Americans actions broke treaties they had signed with the Cheyennes.

Another treaty is made with the Cheyennes, stating that both sides will be peaceful. The Indians worked to avoid the American soldiers and keep peace. The Americans attacked Lean Bear as he approached in peace. The Cheyennes move from Fort Lyon and the Americans chase after them attacking them. The Americans attack the Cheyennes at Sand Creek and even though they had a peace flag. The Native Americans at Sand Creek were butchered and mutilated, women and children included. The Indians that were left signed a treaty that gave the Americans their land and agreed to live south of the Arkansas. Again, the Americans forced the Indians to give up their land by repeatedly breaking treaties and violent attacks.

The next American treaty made was with the Plains Indians for peace. An American military leader Connor stated that there would be no chance of peace with the Indians and that he would kill all Indians in his way. Connor came into the Indians land without permission, breaking the treaty, and started to build forts. Connor did not stop with one fort but instead pushed into the Native American territory to build a second, he pushed into the Indians land and eventually attacked the Arapaho camp in the Battle of Tongue River. Indian men, women and children were slaughtered and the village was destroyed. The Indians were able to regroup and push Connor from their land for a short time.

The Americans attempt to make another treaty with the Plains Indians and ask them to come to Fort Laramie. This treaty would be for peace and passage through their territory. The Indians agree to go to Fort Laramie and sign the treaty but when Red Bull gets there and is waiting for the American representatives, they discover that while they are waiting to sign a treaty American soldiers are trying to take their land (the Cheyennes last hunting ground) by force and thus they back out of the treaty. At this point Red Cloud and the Cheyennes join with the leaders from the Arapahos and Sioux to work together against the Americans. They attack repeatedly on the Americans railroads, wagons and anyone who entered their territory. The Indians were successful and when Sherman came they got their hunting grounds back from the Americans for a short period of time.

The Americans repeatedly made treaties with the Indians to make them feel safe and then attacked them to get their land, animals or just to kill them. The Americans justified their action with a term created by Americans Manifest Destiny. This meant that the dominant race would rule the land. The Americans believed that they were the dominant race so they would be able to rule the Indians and all of the land the Indians owned. America has failed in its treatment of Indians, they over and over again made treaties with the Indians and never kept them. Americans fought the Indians when all they wanted was peace, they destroyed them when the Indians never had the proper equipment to protect themselves and fight back. The Americans destroyed their race out of greed, this is complete failure of proper treatment of Native Americans.