Ambiguous Justice: Native Americans and the Law in Southern California, 1848-1890 (American Indian Studies)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.14 (596 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0870137794 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 191 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-11-24 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
She has published Ambiguous Justice: Native Americans and the Law in Southern California, 1848-1890, and has contributed to several compilations on the American West and Native American history.. About the AuthorVanessa Ann Gunther is adjunct professor of history, California State University, Fullerton
Vanessa Ann Gunther is adjunct professor of history, California State University, Fullerton. She has published Ambiguous Justice: Native Americans and the Law in Southern California, 1848-1890, and has contributed to several compilations on the American West and Native American history.
While many aspects of their traditional culture have been irreparably lost, the people of southern California are, nevertheless, attempting to recreate the cultures that were challenged by the influx of Europeans and later Americans to their lands.. Nineteenth-century American society had little sympathy for the plight of Indians or for the destruction of their culture. To populate these remote establishments, the Spanish crown relied on Franciscan priests, whose role it was to convince the Native Californian population to abandon their traditional religious practices and adopt Catholicism. Additionally, courts chronicled the decline of the once flourishing native populations with each case of drunkenness, assault, or rape that appeared before the bench. Following the Mexican-American War and the 1849 Gold Rush, as California property values increased and transportation corridors were established, Native Americans remained a sharply declining presence in many communities, and were likely to be charged with crimes. The sentences they received were lighter than those given to Anglo offenders, indicating that the legal system was used as a means of harassment. Many believed that the Indians of Souther
"how legal system was used to control Native Americans by early California settlers" according to Henry Berry. Whereas the Spaniards and the Mexicans aimed to control the Native Americans of California by converting them to Catholicism, the Americans when they took over the territory in the 18how legal system was used to control Native Americans by early California settlers Henry Berry Whereas the Spaniards and the Mexicans aimed to control the Native Americans of California by converting them to Catholicism, the Americans when they took over the territory in the 1840s after the Mexican War and the Gold Rush aimed to control them by cynical use of the law and related means of incrimination and enforcement. Gunther sees the lighter sentences Native Americans were frequently given in the numerous legal cases she reviewed (cited both in the notes and the bibliography) as an indication that the law was used primarily . 0s after the Mexican War and the Gold Rush aimed to control them by cynical use of the law and related means of incrimination and enforcement. Gunther sees the lighter sentences Native Americans were frequently given in the numerous legal cases she reviewed (cited both in the notes and the bibliography) as an indication that the law was used primarily