Back when he was alive, the Europeans had thought that Columbus had ‘discovered’ the Americas. So everyone was very happy with this “new” discovery, well, everyone except the Native Americans. Columbus discovering the Americas was the beginning of a long, tense history between the natives and the settlers, who would eventually take over the country to become the American people.

This feud intensified after the American Revolution, as the United States became a nation. Over time, the government began to deal with the country’s “Indian problem”, a term they coined, and started approaching the native tribes, looking to sign treaties to take control of the natives’ land.

The treaties were seen as unfair by the natives back then, and by many historians now. The problem was that the American government didn’t see the Native peoples as human beings, President Jackon describing them as “children in need of guidance”, and therefore didn’t grant them the same respect that they would to other people while making the treaties.

This patronizing attitude was unfortunately present in many presidents, and the settlers as well. By the late 1800s, tensions between the tribes and the government had escalated nationwide. The Seminole Wars erupted in the Florida Everglades between the Seminole tribe and the American military. Meanwhile, the Cherokees were forced to march the infamous ‘Trail of Tears,’ a deadly journey from their native lands to a government-owned reservation

Now, almost 100 years later, Native peoples are finally starting to reclaim their rights to their land. The Seminole tribes have mostly recovered from their wars, and have started running one of the biggest gambling empires in the United States, owning hotels and casinos like the Hard Rock hotels. Many natives forced off their land to make room for the national parks to be created have just recently been let back onto their ancestral lands, and have started reclaiming them.

America has always had a problem with the Native peoples, while the natives never had a problem with us. Way back to the times of Columbus, all the way until now, the Natives have been treated horribly by the American people. After years of lying and bloodshed, progress has finally been made.