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Seth Odland

Whipple/Cooper

AP History/English

May 24, 2017

The Effects of Cultural Diffusion Upon Native American Society

The question posed is a common one. A question that is answerable by many,

but to what extent? How has the forced integration of white culture in Native American

society changed the lives of Native Americans. This is a question that can be answered

using evidence tracing all the way back to 1492, when the first white European settler

stepped foot onto the land of the Americas, as well as evidence that is being created in

modern day societal changes and pressures enforced up American Indian society and

culture. As I said before, the answer to this question is an easy one, however it takes in

depth knowledge to address the question with regards to the extent at which the forced

diffusion of culture took place, as well as the effects on modern Native American society.

The extent to how effected the Native American people by forceful cultural diffusion

coming from a society infected by primarily white culture is tremendous, for since 1492,

to modern day, Native Americans have felt the societal pressures to conform to a white

society, as well as abandon the culture that makes them who they are as individual

tribes spanning from coast to coast of the continental United States.

Evidence supporting the claim that I made in my thesis can be found throughout

a majority of my school assignments during my junior year in the Academy for Global
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Studies. Through projects spanning from LEQ essays in preparation for the U.S. History

AP, to informative lessons delivered to eager middle school students regarding modern

life on reservations, the question posed was answered in many different ways and

through many different media. During the summer leading up to my junior year in high

school, my classmates and I were tasked with reading and analyzing a book by the

name of Like a Hurricane written by Paul Chatt Smith. This piece of non-fiction tells the

story of the American Indian civil rights movement that is a commonly ignored section of

United States history. This analysis assisted me with answering my overarching ques-

tion by exposing the hardships and speed bumps faced by American Indians to gain

simple civil rights granted to many other American citizens during that time period. The

lack of press and exposure this movement gained during its peak is simply depressing,

and shows the ignorance expressed by the United States government, as well as the

persistence of the Native American people. Another example of educational media that

assisted with answering my overarching question was a project that required taking

steps towards a goal of informing students who were previously uneducated on the top-

ic of modern Native American society. My group and I decided to travel to O.Henry Mid-

dle School and teach the students of a seventh grade history class the impacts of

wrongful treatment of Native Americans and their land. My group and I went into depth

on the fact surrounding unemployment and the sense of dependency from the United

States government that takes place on Native American reservations. This helps answer

my overarching question because it shows the effects of dependency that exist today

due to the United States stripping the Native Americans of their land, culture, language

and religion.
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While seeking further answers to the question that I asked myself regarding the

effects of white cultural diffusion upon Native American society, i was fortunate enough

to travel on a school trip to New Mexico in search of further evidence. Once we reached

New Mexico the answer was obvious. Upon arrival we visited the Tohajiilee High school

located on the outskirts of Albuquerque. One of the first things that I noticed when I

stepped into the high school was a teacher wearing a T-shirt protesting the celebration

of Columbus Day in the United States. As our trip continued, we encountered many oth-

er Native American members of the Pueblo tribe located in southwestern New Mexico.

One of those Native Americans was a man named Ay-ey, a member of the Pueblo tribe

who accompanied us on our river float down the Rio Grande. Ay-ey spoke his native

tongue to us in the form of a ceremonial prayer, and after he had finished, my class-

mates and I bombarded him with questions about his language. He answered our ques-

tion with a sense of sadness. This somber tone rooted from the slow decay of his tribes

culture throughout time. He informed us that his language was purely spoken, with no

written components, and that because of that fact, it was up to the parents and grand-

parents to teach their children and grandchildren the language passed down from their

ancestors before them. The sadness came when he informed us that his sons genera-

tion was one of the first where the majority of the children did not speak, nor understand

their own native language due to the overtaking of english in their society. This en-

counter showed me a truly depressing and resentful reaction to the cultural diffusion

and forced assimilation to white culture throughout Native Americans as a people, for

this dilemma has not only rippled through New Mexico and the tribes that inhabit it, but

throughout a majority of the tribes throughout the U.S. and their native tongues.
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In conclusion, through my studies during my junior year, where global awareness

is encouraged, as well as through my own experiences through an eye opening expedi-

tion to Native American reservations in New Mexico, I have discovered the answer to

my question. The extent to how effected the Native American people by forceful cultural

diffusion coming from a society infected by primarily white culture is tremendous, for

since 1492, to modern day, Native Americans have felt the societal pressures to con-

form to a white society, as well as abandon the culture that makes them who they are as

individual tribes spanning from coast to coast of the continental United States. The im-

portance of the preservation of Native American culture is monumental, for if the history,

language, and way of life of Native Americans is lost, then the entire section of history

that previously made up the Americas will be lost forever. It is up to us and the members

of the new generation to work to preserve the culture of those who have been sup-

pressed by our infectious society for decades upon decades, and if this does not hap-

pen, the rich history of American Indians will be lost forever.

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Works Cited

Smith, Paul Chaat, and Robert Allen. Warrior. Like a Hurricane: The Indian Movement
from Alcatraz to Wounded Knee. New Press. 1996.