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105-555: Stereotypes of Indigenous peoples of Canada and the United States of America include many ethnic stereotypes found worldwide which include historical misrepresentations and the oversimplification of hundreds of Indigenous cultures. Negative stereotypes are associated with prejudice and discrimination that continue to affect the lives of Indigenous peoples . Indigenous peoples of the Americas are commonly called Native Americans in
210-441: A slave state , culminating in the 1846 Mexican–American War . In contrast, the large majority of Whigs and prominent Republicans (such as Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant ) rejected the concept and campaigned against these actions. By 1843, former U.S. President John Quincy Adams , originally a major supporter of the concept underlying manifest destiny, had changed his mind and repudiated expansionism because it meant
315-517: A Hill " sermon of 1630, in which he called for the establishment of a virtuous community that would be a shining example to the Old World . In his influential 1776 pamphlet Common Sense , Thomas Paine echoed this notion, arguing that the American Revolution provided an opportunity to create a new, better society: We have it in our power to begin the world over again. A situation, similar to
420-608: A closely related nexus of principles: historian Walter McDougall calls manifest destiny a corollary of the Monroe Doctrine, because while the Monroe Doctrine did not specify expansion, expansion was necessary in order to enforce the doctrine. Concerns in the United States that European powers were seeking to acquire colonies or greater influence in North America led to calls for expansion in order to prevent this. In his influential 1935 study of manifest destiny, done in conjunction with
525-518: A collective relatability to a trait or characteristic, referred to as national character . According to an article by The Guardian titled "European Stereotypes: What Do We Think of Each Other and Are We Right?", the Europe stereotype towards Britain is as " drunken , semi-clad hooligans or else snobbish, stiff free marketers", their view towards France is "cowardly, arrogant, chauvinistic, erotomaniacs", and they see Germany as "ruddy-faced [and]subsist on
630-401: A diet of beer and sausage". To Europe, Italy is "tax-dodging, Berlusconi -style Latin lovers and mama's boys , incapable of bravery", Poland is "heavy-drinking ultracatholics with a whiff of antisemitism ", and Spain is " macho men and fiery women prone to regular siestas and fiestas". While some countries such as Germany proudly own their stereotype, others like Spain argue that theirs is
735-545: A different minority group. A study was first done at the University of Illinois and then replicated at The College of New Jersey with the same results. Students were given a paragraph to read about Chief Illiniwek adapted from the University of Illinois' official website, while the control group was given a description of an arts center. In both studies, the students exposed to the sports mascot were more likely to express stereotypical views of Asian-Americans. Although Chief Illiniwek
840-427: A given ethnic group , their status , societal and cultural norms . A national stereotype does the same for a given nationality . The stereotyping may be used for humor in jokes , and/or may be associated with racism . National stereotypes may relate either to one's own ethnicity/nationality or to a foreign/differing one. Stereotypes about one's own nation may aid in maintaining a national identity due to
945-763: A historical rather than modern context. There is also the outdated stereotype that American Indians and Alaskan Natives live on reservations when in fact only about 25% do, and a slight majority now live in urban areas. There is an assumption that Indians somehow have an intuitive knowledge of their culture and history when the degree of such knowledge varies greatly depending upon the family and community connections of each individual. Native American and First Nations women are frequently sexually objectified and are often stereotyped as being promiscuous. Such misconceptions lead to murder, rape, and violence against Native American or First Nations women and girls by mostly Native men and sometimes non-Native settlers. An Algonquin word,
1050-418: A measure of respect and integrity undermined by images that flatten complex tribal, historical and personal experience into one-dimensional representations that tells us more about the depicters than about the depicted. Carter Meland (Anishinaabe heritage) and David E. Wilkins (Lumbee), professors of Native American Studies at the University of Minnesota. Myths about American Indians can be understood in
1155-728: A relationship of violence and hatred, which justifies the treatment of First Nations peoples to this day. The mainstream media makes a lot of money-making movies that play along with stereotypes; while accurate portrayals may be critically acclaimed they are not often made or widely distributed. In the 1980s and 1990s, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) made efforts to improve the portrayals of Aboriginal people in its television dramas. Spirit Bay , The Beachcombers , North of 60 and The Rez used Native actors to portray their own people, living real lives and earning believable livelihoods in identifiable parts of
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#17328986154111260-556: A vital role in our ability to perceive different ethnicities and construct various racial and ethnic stereotypes. Most of these portrayals are seen through media platforms such as televisions, social media and commercials create a convenient sketch of how they want a certain group of people to be represented. For example, White Americans are always overly presented in positions of prestige and power in comparison to their counterparts such as Latinos or African Americans that are usually represented around themes of criminality and subservience. On
1365-463: A warped view based on experiences while on holiday instead of having actually lived there. A Pew Global survey of the European countries United Kingdom , France , Germany , Spain , Italy , Greece , Poland , and Czechia found that European stereotypes found Germany to be both the most hardworking and least corrupt, Greece to be the least hardworking, and Italy to be the most corrupt. Five out of
1470-435: A whole, Media can never be assumed to an insignificant oulet of information but are culturally effective conduits that can drive our personal narrative on specific ethnic stereotyping. Since minorities are not adequately represented in the media it can lead to a negative misinterpretation and limited media diversity. According the J. Stanley Lemons, a stereotype for African-American men in the United States, specifically during
1575-615: Is a 2009 Canadian documentary film directed by Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond , Catherine Bainbridge, and Jeremiah Hayes that explores the portrayal of American Indians in film. Reel Injun is illustrated with excerpts from classic and contemporary portrayals of Native people in Hollywood movies and interviews with filmmakers, actors and film historians, while director Diamond travels across the United States to visit iconic locations in motion picture as well as American Indian history. Reel Injun explores many stereotypes about natives in film, from
1680-519: Is a cultural misunderstanding. In 1626 the director of the Dutch settlement, Peter Minuit , traded sixty guilders worth of goods with the Lenni Lenape people, which they would have accepted as gifts in exchange for allowing the settlers to occupy the land. Though Native Americans had a communal conception of property, they had no conception of a fee simple . The story told by John Smith of his rescue by
1785-600: Is community-based, and addresses the issues of cultural identification. One named stereotype with affiliation to ecology is the "Noble Savage" stereotype. When referring to American Indians as "Noble Savages", it is implied that these individuals have acquired a special kinship with their "land, water, and wildlife". Furthermore, this stereotype implicitly states that American Indians do not allow themselves or their environment to be corrupted by commercialization or industrialization and that they strive to preserve their environment and keep it untouched. This stereotype has stemmed from
1890-669: Is indispensable that they should be associated in one federal Union. Adams did much to further this idea. He orchestrated the Treaty of 1818 , which established the border between British North America and the United States as far west as the Rocky Mountains, and provided for the joint occupation of the region known in American history as the Oregon Country and in British and Canadian history as
1995-440: Is the myth that Indians are a dying race, i.e. "The Vanishing Red Man", when in fact census data shows an increase in the number of individuals who were American Indians and Alaska Natives or American Indian and Alaska Native in combination with one or more other races. There is an assumption that Indians lost possession of their land because they were inferior, when the reality is: The "purchase" of Manhattan island from Indians
2100-407: Is used in the United States. It is believed that some portrayals of Natives, such as their depiction as bloodthirsty savages have disappeared . However, most portrayals are oversimplified and inaccurate; these stereotypes are found particularly in popular media which is the main source of mainstream images of Indigenous peoples worldwide. The stereotyping of American Indians must be understood in
2205-547: The American Civil War as a struggle to determine if any nation with democratic ideals could survive; this has been called by historian Robert Johannsen "the most enduring statement of America's Manifest Destiny and mission". The third theme can be viewed as a natural outgrowth of the belief that God had a direct influence in the foundation and further actions of the United States. Political scientist and historian Clinton Rossiter described this view as summing "that God, at
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#17328986154112310-545: The Democratic Review , in which he first used the phrase manifest destiny . In this article he urged the U.S. to annex the Republic of Texas , not only because Texas desired this, but because it was "our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions". Overcoming Whig opposition, Democrats annexed Texas in 1845. O'Sullivan's first usage of
2415-638: The Fighting Sioux nickname and logo was resolved in 2012. There have been issues with the continuation of professional team names and mascots especially in the Washington Redskins name controversy . In 2013, President Obama and NBC sportscaster Bob Costas voiced their objection to the name. After a petition, the Trademark and Trial Appeal Board ordered the cancellation of six federal trademark registrations in 2014. The Redskins appealed this ruling. The team
2520-575: The Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the Polk administration in the 1840s. In 1811, Adams wrote to his father : The whole continent of North America appears to be destined by Divine Providence to be peopled by one nation , speaking one language, professing one general system of religious and political principles, and accustomed to one general tenor of social usages and customs. For the common happiness of them all, for their peace and prosperity, I believe it
2625-726: The New Caledonia and Columbia Districts . He negotiated the Transcontinental Treaty in 1819, transferring Florida from Spain to the United States and extending the U.S. border with Spanish Mexico all the way to the Pacific Ocean. And he formulated the Monroe Doctrine of 1823, which warned Europe that the Western Hemisphere was no longer open for European colonization. The Monroe Doctrine and "manifest destiny" formed
2730-439: The Polk administration . Whigs denounced manifest destiny, arguing, "that the designers and supporters of schemes of conquest, to be carried on by this government, are engaged in treason to our Constitution and Declaration of Rights, giving aid and comfort to the enemies of republicanism, in that they are advocating and preaching the doctrine of the right of conquest ". On January 3, 1846, Representative Robert Winthrop ridiculed
2835-581: The Treaty of Ghent in 1814 with Britain. They rejected the British plan to set up an Indian state in U.S. territory south of the Great Lakes. They explained the American policy toward acquisition of Indian lands: The United States, while intending never to acquire lands from the Indians otherwise than peaceably, and with their free consent, are fully determined, in that manner, progressively, and in proportion as their growing population may require, to reclaim from
2940-618: The United States (excluding Alaskan and Hawaiian Natives ) or First Nations people (in Canada ). The Circumpolar peoples of the Americas , often referred to by the English term Eskimo , have a distinct set of stereotypes. Eskimo itself is an exonym , deriving from phrases that Algonquin tribes used for their northern neighbors, in Canada the term Inuit is generally preferred, while Alaska Natives
3045-659: The Walter Hines Page School of International Relations , Albert Weinberg wrote: "the expansionism of the [1830s] arose as a defensive effort to forestall the encroachment of Europe in North America". Manifest destiny played an important role in the development of the transcontinental railroad . The transcontinental railroad system is often used in manifest destiny imagery like John Gast's painting, American Progress where multiple locomotives are seen traveling west. According to academic Dina Gilio-Whitaker , "the transcontinental railroads not only enabled [U.S. control over
3150-466: The annexation of lands to the west of the United States borders at the time on the continent. The concept became one of several major campaign issues during the 1844 presidential election , where the Democratic Party won and the phrase "Manifest Destiny" was coined within a year. The concept was used by Democrats to justify the 1846 Oregon boundary dispute and the 1845 annexation of Texas as
3255-677: The 1940s, was popularized through the use of comics and minstrel shows. African-American men were portrayed as having more animalistic features that alluded to the believe of their lack of knowledge and being considered second-class citizens during this time period. These features include oversized ear and mouths to indicate a monkey-like appearance. Portraying African-Americans as monkeys alludes to them being perceived as having limited intelligence. To convey that idea further, African-Americans were made not able to speak proper English. The white impersonators often used Black English Vernacular (BEV). The impersonators over exaggerated and misused BEV so that
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3360-415: The British refused the offer, American expansionists responded with slogans such as "The whole of Oregon or none" and "Fifty-four forty or fight", referring to the northern border of the region. (The latter slogan is often mistakenly described as having been a part of the 1844 presidential campaign.) When Polk moved to terminate the joint occupation agreement, the British finally agreed in early 1846 to divide
3465-598: The Indian is a 2012 BBC documentary first broadcast on 28 October on BBC 4 exploring the stereotypical view of Native Americans in the United States in cinema and literature. The American animated series Molly of Denali , which premiered in 2019, features protagonists, actors, and co-creators who are Alaskan Native , with the goal of educating children about informational text as well as debunking Native stereotypes. The show has been celebrated as "the nation's first widely distributed children's program featuring an Alaska Native as
3570-413: The Indians' land: Till I came here, I had no idea of the fixed determination which there is in the heart of every American to extirpate the Indians and appropriate their territory. The 19th-century belief that the United States would eventually encompass all of North America is known as "continentalism". An early proponent of this idea, John Quincy Adams became a leading figure in U.S. expansion between
3675-552: The Noble savage to the Drunken Indian. It profiles such figures as Iron Eyes Cody , an Italian American who reinvented himself as a Native American on-screen. The film also explores Hollywood's practice of using Italian Americans and American Jews to portray Indians in the movies and reveals how some Native American actors made jokes in their native tongue on screen when the director thought they were simply speaking gibberish. Inventing
3780-534: The Oregon Treaty was popular in the United States and was easily ratified by the Senate. The most fervent advocates of manifest destiny had not prevailed along the northern border because, according to Reginald Stuart , "the compass of manifest destiny pointed west and southwest, not north, despite the use of the term 'continentalism ' ". In 1869, American historian Frances Fuller Victor published Manifest Destiny in
3885-512: The Pacific as less unruly and dominated by Old World conflicts than the Atlantic and therefore a more inviting area for the new nation to expand its influence in. With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, which doubled the size of the United States, Thomas Jefferson set the stage for the continental expansion of the United States. Many began to see this as the beginning of a new providential mission: If
3990-493: The Pacific, others saw the term as a call to example. Without an agreed-upon interpretation, much less an elaborated political philosophy, these conflicting views of America's destiny were never resolved. This variety of possible meanings was summed up by Ernest Lee Tuveson: "A vast complex of ideas, policies, and actions is comprehended under the phrase 'Manifest Destiny'. They are not, as we should expect, all compatible, nor do they come from any one source." Most historians credit
4095-458: The United States was successful as a " shining city upon a hill ", people in other countries would seek to establish their own democratic republics. Not all Americans or their political leaders believed that the United States was a divinely favored nation, or thought that it ought to expand. For example, many Whigs opposed territorial expansion based on the Democratic claim that the United States
4200-484: The United States, as Texas had done. In 1845, O'Sullivan predicted that California would follow this pattern next, and that even Canada would eventually request annexation as well. He was critical of the Mexican–American War in 1846, although he came to believe that the outcome would be beneficial to both countries. Ironically, O'Sullivan's term became popular only after it was criticized by Whig opponents of
4305-523: The United States, but " comunidad " (Spanish for "community") in South America. All global terminology must be used with an awareness of the stereotype that "Indians" are a single people, when in fact there are hundreds of individual ethnic groups , who are all native to the Americas , just as the term " Europeans " carries an understanding that there are some similarities but also many differences between
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4410-511: The West in the Overland Monthly , arguing that the efforts of early American fur traders and missionaries presaged American control of Oregon. She concluded the article as follows: It was an oversight on the part of the United States, the giving up the island of Quadra and Vancouver, on the settlement of the boundary question. Yet, "what is to be, will be", as some realist has it; and we look for
4515-548: The annexation of the entire Oregon Country up to the Alaska line ( 54°40ʹ N ). Presidential candidate Polk used this popular outcry to his advantage, and the Democrats called for the annexation of "All Oregon" in the 1844 U.S. presidential election . As president, Polk sought compromise and renewed the earlier offer to divide the territory in half along the 49th parallel, to the dismay of the most ardent advocates of manifest destiny. When
4620-400: The benefits in the same way that non-Indians do, such as obtaining credit. For those that maintain them, stereotypes prevent a more accurate view of Indians and the history of the United States. Research also demonstrates the harm done to society by stereotyping of any kind. Two studies examined the effect of exposure to an American Indian sports mascot on the tendency to endorse stereotypes of
4725-539: The borders of the continental United States as they are today. One of the goals of the War of 1812 was to threaten to annex the British colony of Lower Canada as a bargaining chip to force the British to abandon their fortifications in the Northwestern United States and support for the various Native American tribes residing there. The result of this overoptimism was a series of defeats in 1812 in part due to
4830-476: The concept in Congress, saying "I suppose the right of a manifest destiny to spread will not be admitted to exist in any nation except the universal Yankee nation." Winthrop was the first in a long line of critics who suggested that advocates of manifest destiny were citing "Divine Providence" for justification of actions that were motivated by chauvinism and self-interest. Despite this criticism, expansionists embraced
4935-530: The concept of manifest destiny was born out of "a sense of mission to redeem the Old World by high example ... generated by the potentialities of a new earth for building a new heaven". Merk also states that manifest destiny was a heavily contested concept within the nation: From the outset Manifest Destiny—vast in program, in its sense of continentalism —was slight in support. It lacked national, sectional, or party following commensurate with its magnitude. The reason
5040-590: The conservative newspaper editor and future propagandist for the Confederacy, John O'Sullivan with coining the term manifest destiny in 1845. However, other historians suggest the unsigned editorial titled "Annexation" in which it first appeared was written by journalist and annexation advocate Jane Cazneau . O'Sullivan was an influential advocate for Jacksonian democracy , described by Julian Hawthorne as "always full of grand and world-embracing schemes". O'Sullivan wrote an article in 1839 that, while not using
5145-453: The context of history which includes conquest , forced displacement , and organized efforts to eradicate native cultures, such as the boarding schools of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which separated young Native Americans from their families to educate and to assimilate them as European Americans . There are also many examples of seemingly positive stereotypes which rely on European " noble savage " imagery, but also contribute to
5250-613: The context of the metanarrative of the United States, which was originally " manifest destiny " and has now become " American exceptionalism ". Myths and stereotypes persist because they fit into these narratives, which Americans use to understand their own history. This history includes the description of Native Americans in the Declaration of Independence as "merciless Indian savages". These stereotypes have historical, cultural, and racial characteristics. There are numerous distortions of history, many of which continue as stereotypes. There
5355-501: The continent] but also accelerated it exponentially." Historian Boyd Cothran says that "modern transportation development and abundant resource exploitation gave rise to an appropriation of indigenous land, [and] resources." Manifest destiny played its most important role in the Oregon boundary dispute between the United States and Britain, when the phrase "manifest destiny" originated. The Anglo-American Convention of 1818 had provided for
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#17328986154115460-503: The correlation between manifest destiny and Doctrine of Christian Discovery by using the statement made by Chief Justice John Marshall during the case, as he "spelled out the rights of the United states to Indigenous lands" and drew upon the Doctrine of Christian Discovery for his statement. Marshall ruled that "indigenous peoples possess 'occupancy' rights, meaning their lands could be taken by
5565-540: The country's existing boundaries; they feared (correctly) that expansion raised a contentious issue, the extension of slavery to the territories. On the other hand, many Democrats feared industrialization the Whigs welcomed... For many Democrats, the answer to the nation's social ills was to continue to follow Thomas Jefferson's vision of establishing agriculture in the new territories to counterbalance industrialization. Two Native American writers have recently tried to link some of
5670-483: The country. Imagining Indians is a 1992 documentary film produced and directed by American Indian filmmaker Victor Masayesva, Jr. (Hopi). The documentary attempts to reveal the misrepresentation of Indigenous American Indian culture and tradition in Classical Hollywood films by interviews with different Indigenous Native American actors and extras from various tribes throughout the United States. Reel Injun
5775-426: The daughter of Chief Powhatan , Pocahontas , is generally thought by historians to be a fabrication. Pocahontas was most likely eleven or twelve at the time, and this popular tale of the " Indian princess " and Smith's story changed over many retellings. The Media Awareness Network of Canada (MNet) has prepared several statements about the portrayals of American Indians, First Nations of Canada, and Alaskan Natives in
5880-538: The destiny God had provided the United States. Faragher 's 1997 analysis of the political polarization between the Democratic Party and the Whig Party is that: Most Democrats were wholehearted supporters of expansion, whereas many Whigs (especially in the North) were opposed. Whigs welcomed most of the changes wrought by industrialization but advocated strong government policies that would guide growth and development within
5985-751: The documentary Nanook of the North . Eskimo children may have a seal for a best friend. Eskimos are sometimes shown rubbing noses together in greeting ritual, referred to as Eskimo kissing in Western culture, and only loosely based on an authentic Inuit practice known as kunik . They are also often depicted surrounded by polar bears or walruses . Stereotypes harm both the victims and those that perpetuate them, with effects on society at large. Victims suffer emotional distress: anger, frustration, insecurity, and feelings of hopelessness. Most of all, Indian children exposed at an early age to these mainstream images internalize
6090-424: The earliest expressions of American imperialism in the United States of America. According to historian William Earl Weeks, there were three basic tenets behind the concept: Manifest destiny remained heavily divisive in politics, causing constant conflict with regards to slavery in these new states and territories . It is also associated with the settler-colonial displacement of Indigenous Americans and
6195-400: The eight countries thought their own country was the most corrupt. Yanko Tsvetkov has designed many maps which serve as pictorial representations of such stereotypes, giving an impression of how certain regions of the world may view others. They have named such as "The Arab Winter" and "Crystal Ball View Of Europe In 2022". According to Dana E. Maestro, media images and depictions play
6300-480: The expansion of slavery in Texas. Ulysses S. Grant served in and condemned the Mexican–American War , declaring it "one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation". Historian Daniel Walker Howe summarizes that "American imperialism did not represent an American consensus; it provoked bitter dissent within the national polity". There was never a set of principles defining manifest destiny; it
6405-496: The global economy, use a variant of the " You have two cows " joke to illustrate the concept of cultural differences: They write that such jokes are considered funny because they are realistic caricatures of various cultures, and the pervasiveness of such jokes stems from the significant cultural differences. Steers and Nardon also state that others believe that cultural stereotypes in jokes of that kind must be viewed with caution. Manifest destiny " Manifest destiny "
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#17328986154116510-475: The historical records show that they were a part of expeditions, resided and worked on the frontier, founded towns, and were educators and entrepreneurs. In short, people of color were very important actors in westward expansion." The desire for trade with China and other Asian countries was another ground for expansionism, with Americans seeing prospects of westward contact with Asia as fulfilling long-held Western hopes of finding new routes to Asia, and perceiving
6615-454: The impact these groups have had on surrounding wildlife areas. Inuit , often referred to as Eskimos (which many see as derogatory), are usually depicted dressed in parkas , paddling kayaks, which the Inuit invented, carving out trinkets, living in igloos , fishing with a harpoon , hunting whales , traveling by sleigh and huskies , eating cod liver oil , and the men are called Nanook from
6720-452: The imperialism of manifest destiny as both unjust and unreasonable. He objected to the Mexican war and believed each of these disordered forms of patriotism threatened the inseparable moral and fraternal bonds of liberty and union that he sought to perpetuate through a patriotic love of country guided by wisdom and critical self-awareness. Lincoln's " Eulogy to Henry Clay ", June 6, 1852, provides
6825-597: The infantilization of Indigenous cultures. The first difficulty in addressing stereotypes is the terminology to use when referring to Indigenous peoples, which is an ongoing controversy. The truly stereotype-free names would be those of individual nations. A practical reference to Indigenous peoples, in general, is "American Indian" in the United States and "First Nations" or "Indigenous" in Canada. The peoples collectively referred to as Inuit have their own unique stereotypes. The communities to which Indigenous peoples belong also have various names, typically "nation" or "tribe" in
6930-799: The influence of Jean-Jacques Rousseau 's idea of the noble savage , Native American men were portrayed by European sources as fierce warriors that Euro-American writers called braves. Berkhofer summarizes this idea as follows: The word "brave" often appeared in school sports teams' names until such team names fell into disfavor in the later 20th century. Many school team names have been revised to reflect current sensibilities, though professional teams such as American football's Kansas City Chiefs , baseball's Atlanta Braves , and ice hockey's Chicago Blackhawks continue. Some controversial upper-level Native American team mascots such as Chief Noc-A-Homa and Chief Illiniwek have been discontinued, while some such as Chief Osceola and Renegade remain. A controversy over
7035-620: The joint occupation of the Oregon Country , and thousands of Americans migrated there in the 1840s over the Oregon Trail . The British rejected a proposal by U.S. President John Tyler (in office 1841–1845) to divide the region along the 49th parallel , and instead proposed a boundary line farther south, along the Columbia River , which would have made most of what later became the state of Washington part of their colonies in North America . Advocates of manifest destiny protested and called for
7140-598: The latter team displayed a banner using a disparaging reference to the Trail of Tears for which the principal of the school apologized to Native Americans, stated that the cheerleader squad responsible would be disciplined and that all students would be given a lesson on the actual history of the Trail of Tears. Native Americans responded that it was an example of the continuing insensitivity and stereotyping of Indians in America. A similar sign
7245-452: The lead character." The other animated series Spirit Rangers , which premiered on Netflix in 2022, also features all-Native American protagonists, casts and writers, aiming to educate children about the culture of both Chumash and Cowlitz peoples and debunking ethnic stereotypes. Ethnic stereotype An ethnic stereotype or racial stereotype involves part of a system of beliefs about typical characteristics of members of
7350-546: The long-term enthrallment many non-natives have had with this particular minority group, causing American Indians to be viewed as "objects of reverence and fascination". Kat Anderson's book, Tending the wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of California's Natural Resources , delves into the "hunter-gatherer" stereotype which describes survival solely on hunting animals and gathering of berries and other plants. The author attempts to break this stereotype by illustrating
7455-451: The media. Westerns and documentaries have tended to portray Natives in stereotypical terms: the wise elder, the aggressive drunk, the Indian princess , the loyal sidekick, the obese and impoverished. These images have become known across North America. Stereotyped issues include simplistic characterizations, romanticizing of Native culture, and stereotyping by omission—showing American Indians in
7560-511: The mid to late twentieth century when alcoholism became the number one cause of death according to the Indian Health Services (IHS). Reports from the mid-1980s state that this was the time period when the IHS began to primarily target the treatment of alcoholism over its past treatments of infectious diseases. Treatment for substance use disorders by Native Americans is more effective when it
7665-518: The most cogent expression of his reflective patriotism. The phrase "manifest destiny" is most often associated with the territorial expansion of the United States from 1812 to 1867. This era, from the War of 1812 to the acquisition of Alaska in 1867, has been called the "age of manifest destiny". During this time, the United States expanded to the Pacific Ocean—"from sea to shining sea"—largely defining
7770-413: The nation's budding sense of Romantic self-identity, and its expansion. Yet Jackson was not the only president to elaborate on the principles underlying manifest destiny. Owing in part to the lack of a definitive narrative outlining its rationale, proponents offered divergent or seemingly conflicting viewpoints. While many writers focused primarily upon American expansionism, be it into Mexico or across
7875-498: The peoples of an entire continent. Since the first Europeans made landfall in North America, Native peoples have suffered under a weltering array of stereotypes, misconceptions and caricatures. Whether portrayed as noble savages , ignoble savages , teary-eyed environmentalists, drunken, living off the Government, Indian princess / Squaw or most recently, simply as casino-rich , native peoples find their efforts to be treated with
7980-498: The phrase "manifest destiny" attracted little attention. O'Sullivan's second use of the phrase became extremely influential. On December 27, 1845, in his newspaper the New York Morning News , O'Sullivan addressed the ongoing boundary dispute with Britain. O'Sullivan argued that the United States had the right to claim "the whole of Oregon": And that claim is by the right of our manifest destiny to overspread and to possess
8085-552: The phrase, which caught on so quickly that its origin was soon forgotten. The concept and the term are also used by scholars in discussing the push to into the Amazon—the west—in Brazil. According to J. P. Dickenson, "There is an implicit identification in this Brazilian geopolitical writing of a manifest destiny....Brazil's 'Marcha para oeste' is as legitimate as America's Manifest Destiny." Historian Frederick Merk wrote in 1963 that
8190-414: The possession of lands more than they can cultivate, and more than adequate to their subsistence, comfort, and enjoyment, by cultivation. If this be a spirit of aggrandizement, the undersigned are prepared to admit, in that sense, its existence; but they must deny that it affords the slightest proof of an intention not to respect the boundaries between them and European nations, or of a desire to encroach upon
8295-530: The powers of 'discovery'". Frichner explains that "The newly formed United States needed to manufacture an American Indian political identity and concept of Indian land that would open the way for united states and westward colonial expansion." In this way, manifest destiny was inspired by the original European colonization of the Americas, and it excuses U.S. violence against Indigenous Nations. According to historian Dorceta Taylor : "Minorities are not usually chronicled as explorers or environmental activists, yet
8400-450: The present, hath not happened since the days of Noah until now. The birthday of a new world is at hand... Many Americans agreed with Paine, and came to believe that the United States' virtue was a result of its special experiment in freedom and democracy. Thomas Jefferson , in a letter to James Monroe , wrote, "it is impossible not to look forward to distant times when our rapid multiplication will expand itself beyond those limits, and cover
8505-596: The proper stage in the march of history, called forth certain hardy souls from the old and privilege-ridden nations ... and that in bestowing his grace He also bestowed a peculiar responsibility". Americans presupposed that they were not only divinely elected to maintain the North American continent, but also to "spread abroad the fundamental principles stated in the Bill of Rights". In many cases this meant neighboring colonial holdings and countries were seen as obstacles rather than
8610-492: The region along the 49th parallel, leaving the lower Columbia basin as part of the United States. The Oregon Treaty of 1846 formally settled the dispute; Polk's administration succeeded in selling the treaty to Congress because the United States was about to begin the Mexican–American War , and the president and others argued it would be foolish to also fight the British Empire . Despite the earlier clamor for "All Oregon",
8715-683: The speech barely made sense, which furthered the notion of African Americans being unintelligent. It is sometimes held that such stereotypes often contain a "grain of truth". However, an extensive study by the personality psychologist Robert R. McCrae of the National Institute on Aging and colleagues found that they are generally untrustworthy. Various anti-national phobias and prejudices operate with ethnic stereotypes. Ethnic stereotypes are commonly portrayed in ethnic jokes , some of which some consider to be offensive to varying degrees. Richard M. Steers and Luciara Nardon, in their book about
8820-424: The state of nature, and to bring into cultivation every portion of the territory contained within their acknowledged boundaries. In thus providing for the support of millions of civilized beings, they will not violate any dictate of justice or of humanity; for they will not only give to the few thousand savages scattered over that territory an ample equivalent for any right they may surrender, but will always leave them
8925-407: The stereotypes paired with the images, resulting in lower self-esteem, contributing to all of the other problems faced by American Indians. Stereotypes become discrimination when the assumptions of being more prone to violence and alcoholism limit job opportunities. This leads directly to Indians being viewed less stable economically, making it more difficult for those that have succeeded to fully enjoy
9030-433: The term " squaw " is now widely deemed offensive due to its use for hundreds of years in a derogatory context. However, there remain more than a thousand locations in the U.S. that incorporate the term in its name. In early colonial writings, the most common portrayal of Native men came in the form of what Robert Berkhofer calls "savage images of the Indian as not only hostile but depraved.". In later times, particularly under
9135-475: The term "manifest destiny", did predict a "divine destiny" for the United States based upon values such as equality, rights of conscience, and personal enfranchisement "to establish on earth the moral dignity and salvation of man". This destiny was not explicitly territorial, but O'Sullivan predicted that the United States would be one of a "Union of many Republics" sharing those values. Six years later, in 1845, O'Sullivan wrote another essay titled "Annexation" in
9240-416: The territories of Great Britain... They will not suppose that that Government will avow, as the basis of their policy towards the United States a system of arresting their natural growth within their own territories, for the sake of preserving a perpetual desert for savages. A shocked Henry Goulburn , one of the British negotiators at Ghent, remarked, after coming to understand the American position on taking
9345-518: The territory should be overruled. O'Sullivan believed that manifest destiny was a moral ideal (a "higher law") that superseded other considerations. O'Sullivan's original conception of manifest destiny was not a call for territorial expansion by force. He believed that the expansion of the United States would happen without the direction of the U.S. government or the involvement of the military. After Americans immigrated to new regions, they would set up new democratic governments, and then seek admission to
9450-507: The themes of manifest destiny to the original ideology of the 15th-century decree of the Doctrine of Christian Discovery. Nick Estes (a Lakota) links the 15th-century Catholic doctrine of distinguishing Christians from non-Christians in the expansion of European nations. Estes and international jurist Tonya Gonnella Frichner (of the Onondaga Nation) further link the doctrine of discovery to Johnson v. McIntosh and frame their arguments on
9555-415: The varied ways Indigenous peoples of California tended and supported their environment. California Natives have utilized methods, such as effective harvesting, controlled burning, and selectively pruning, in order to maintain their environment and keep many plant and animal species flourishing. Through the book, Anderson wanted to accurately spread the ecological knowledge of California natives to shed light on
9660-561: The war with Mexico and later wrote: I was bitterly opposed to the measure [to annex Texas], and to this day regard the war [with Mexico] which resulted as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory. In the mid‑19th century, expansionism, especially southward toward Cuba, also faced opposition from those Americans who were trying to abolish slavery. As more territory
9765-463: The whole northern, if not the southern continent." To Americans in the decades that followed their proclaimed freedom for mankind, embodied in the Declaration of Independence, could only be described as the inauguration of "a new time scale" because the world would look back and define history as events that took place before, and after, the Declaration of Independence. It followed that Americans owed to
9870-461: The whole of the continent which Providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty and federated self-government entrusted to us. That is, O'Sullivan believed that Providence had given the United States a mission to spread republican democracy ("the great experiment of liberty"). Because the British government would not spread democracy, thought O'Sullivan, British claims to
9975-525: The wide use of poorly-trained state militias rather than regular troops. The American victories at the Battle of Lake Erie and the Battle of the Thames in 1813 ended the Indian raids and removed the main reason for threatening annexation. To end the War of 1812 John Quincy Adams , Henry Clay and Albert Gallatin (former treasury secretary and a leading expert on Indians) and the other American diplomats negotiated
10080-445: The world an obligation to expand and preserve these beliefs. The second theme's origination is less precise. A popular expression of America's mission was elaborated by President Abraham Lincoln's description in his December 1, 1862, message to Congress. He described the United States as "the last, best hope of Earth". The "mission" of the United States was further elaborated during Lincoln's Gettysburg Address , in which he interpreted
10185-444: The world". Author Reginald Horsman wrote in 1981, this view also held that "inferior races were doomed to subordinate status or extinction." and that this was used to justify "the enslavement of the blacks and the expulsion and possible extermination of the Indians". The origin of the first theme, later known as American exceptionalism , was often traced to America's Puritan heritage, particularly John Winthrop 's famous " City upon
10290-501: Was a phrase that represented the belief in the 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand westward across North America , and that this belief was both obvious ("manifest") and certain ("destiny"). The belief was rooted in American exceptionalism and Romantic nationalism , implying the inevitable spread of the Republican form of governance . It was one of
10395-492: Was added to the United States in the following decades, "extending the area of freedom" in the minds of southerners also meant extending the institution of slavery. That is why slavery became one of the central issues in the continental expansion of the United States before the Civil War. Before and during the Civil War both sides claimed that America's destiny was rightfully their own. Lincoln opposed anti-immigrant nativism , and
10500-430: Was always a general idea rather than a specific policy made with a motto. Ill-defined but keenly felt, manifest destiny was an expression of conviction in the morality and value of expansionism that complemented other popular ideas of the era, including American exceptionalism and Romantic nationalism . Andrew Jackson , who spoke of "extending the area of freedom", typified the conflation of America's potential greatness,
10605-489: Was described only in terms of positive characteristics (as a respectful symbol, not a mascot), the stereotyping of Asian-Americans included negative characteristics, such as being "socially inept". This was indicative of a spreading effect; exposure to any stereotypes increased the likelihood of stereotypical thinking. In Alabama, at a game between the Pinson Valley High School "Indians" and McAdory High School ,
10710-559: Was destined to serve as a virtuous example to the rest of the world, and also had a divine obligation to spread its superordinate political system and a way of life throughout North American continent. Many in the Whig party "were fearful of spreading out too widely", and they "adhered to the concentration of national authority in a limited area". In July 1848, Alexander Stephens denounced President Polk 's expansionist interpretation of America's future as "mendacious". Ulysses S. Grant served in
10815-786: Was displayed in Tennessee by the Dyersburg Trojans when they played the Jackson Northside Indians . The effect that stereotyping has had on Indigenous women is one of the main reasons why non-Indigenous people commit violent crimes of hate towards First Nations women and girls. Because Aboriginal women have been associated with images of the " Indian princess " and " Squaw " some non-Indigenous people believe that Aboriginal women are dirty, promiscuous, overtly sexualized, which makes these women vulnerable to violent assaults. Colonial culture has been foundation of these stereotypes creating
10920-470: Was it did not reflect the national spirit. The thesis that it embodied nationalism, found in much historical writing, is backed by little real supporting evidence. A possible influence is racial predominance, namely the idea that the American Anglo-Saxon race was "separate, innately superior" and "destined to bring good government, commercial prosperity and Christianity to the American continents and
11025-605: Was renamed the Washington Football Team in 2020, and in 2022 was renamed again as the Washington Commanders . Because of the high frequency of American Indian alcoholism , it is sometimes used stereotypically when portraying them. As with most groups, the incidence of substance use is related to issues of poverty and mental distress, both of which may sometimes be in part the result of racial stereotyping and discrimination. This stereotype became most prominent in
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