John Ross

In my nearly forty years as a Cherokee and an American, my eyes have seen much. I witnessed much brutality in the early years of the American frontier, as constant raids raged between the American Armies and Cherokees. I have had the benefit of an education comparable to that of my white counterparts in Washington, yet I have still kept a firm grasp on my native roots and heritage. In the long memory of my tribe, there has been pestilence, famine, oppression, loss of land, and war all due to the emergence of settlers and colonies. While these men and their ways have again and again mistreated our people, we have maintained a diplomatic stance and made many compromises with the peoples who brought such strife. President Jackson has typified us as savages and uncivilized, it is unfortunate that such a misjudgment of our society has occurred. As I have lived and experienced both worlds, that of the tribes and that of cities and towns, I am a witness that we are not savages. It is a simple difficulty of perspective. As a culture based heavily on tradition and tribal life, Americans view us as a people without culture or civilization. This assumption is easy to make for outsiders,

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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1321
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)