On the Indian Policy of the United States"The utmost good faith shall at all times be observed towards the Indians, their lands and property shall not be taken from them without their consent, and within their rights of property and liberty, they shall never be invaded or disturbed." Thus Thomas Jefferson describes US policy towards the native peoples concisely and with the grace typical of a gentleman from Virginia. There appears to be no ambiguity or contradiction in Jefferson's words, and only good will toward Native Americans appears to be instilled in Jefferson's rhetoric. But observing Jefferson's abrupt follow-up to the above statement, "unless they are just and legitimate wars authorized by Congress", a reversal of trend appears, which leaves one perplexed regarding the tangible position of the United States towards the native peoples. American policy toward the Indians has been consistently inconsistent. By evoking the inalienable rights of man, the American government has denied native peoples the right to their own land, their own culture, their own way of life. While Jefferson lamented the death of the Indian race, he simultaneously rejected Indians who refused to integrate into white society. Jefferson attempted to present a broad program that supported Indian assimilation into broader American society, always keeping in mind the interests of the romanticized frontier farmer. In the end, US policy ended up being a unilateral decision: the native peoples were in fact not worthy or capable of being assimilated into the white world, and were therefore unacceptable. A policy of removal would soon follow, condoned by President Andrew Jackson. To justify such removal, the United States emphasized the disparity between white society and Indian society, regardless of the Cherokee effect... at the center of the card... worthy of being taken at whim. However, the Native peoples who populated the lands east of the Mississippi were astonished as any effort to maintain their home was firmly and repeatedly rebuked. As one Cherokee woman lamented, "we will remember that our country was once very large, but through repeated sales it has been confined to the very narrow limits we now have. Our Father, the President, advised us to become farmers... we participated in everything in this council as much as we could. Now the thought of being forced to move to the other side of the Mississippi is terrible for us." Works Cited1. Perdue, Theda. Michael D. Green. The removal of the Cherokee. Boston: Bedford, 20052. Wallace, Anthony J. C. Jefferson and the Indians. London: Belknap Press, 1999. Pg.2243. Ellis, Joseph J. American Sphinx. New York: Vintage, 1996. Pg. 238