Native American's Marginalized

Many Native Americans had been marginalized in several ways by white people. In the article it tells the readers how the U.S. government went in and took many Native Americans and put them into schools without reason. In these schools the idea was to sort of get rid of the Native American culture and their ways of life. The article states how they had changed the attire and looks of the Native Americans. Carlisle had changed their clothes from traditional Native American wear to more proper clothing. They had also done things like primp the Native Americans, and make them have to have shorter hair and take care of their hygiene more. The goals of the Carlisle school was to turn the Native Americans from the people that they had been into more "proper" people. "Pratt was deeply troubled by their plight and poor education offered at reservation schools." This line from the text tried to make 
it seem like the schools were a good and helpful idea, thought that wasn't the case. Later in the text it states that Pratt's plan was to make them into more civil people and to get rid of their past ways of life, their traditions. The article also says how they had changed Ota Kte's name into Luther Standing Bear, and how Carlisle school had taken away things like his leggings, and moccasins. They had replaced it with an itchy wool uniform and leather boots. Carlisle school had forced the English language and the Christian faith upon those who had attended school there. Making them learn English had made them have to stop using their traditional language and changing their faith meant taking away culture from them as well.

I believe that the purpose behind Shanice Britton writing her essay was to inform us on how the times have changed. The article shows us many points about how much closer and less marginalized our society that we live in today is. Shanice also tells us in the article how "We live in houses with electricity and running water. I take showers, watch Finding Carter on MTV, and wear jeans, just like any other teen." It shows us how much closer we've become and that many of the stereotypes that we had thought of as true for Native Americans. She wants to know that the Native American's living today are just as normal people as anybody else, that they just live on a different place separate from other communities.