University:
Middlesex Community College
Course:
HIS-131 | World History I
Academic year:

2024
Views:

49

Pages:

1
Author:

Kayley M.

In History, The Columbian Exchange was one of the most important events ever, but it wasn’t a good one. The three main points that lead to that conclusion is the diseases that was spread during the encounter, how the Europeans enslaved the natives, and how the Europeans forcibly made the Natives become Christian. With these points, I believe that the Columbian exchange was a Negative Experience and here is why. During the exchange, the Europeans brought many diseases that haven’t reached the Natives. Some of these diseases that ultimately killed over 90% of the Native population were smallpox, measles, bubonic plague, etc. In the PBS Article it states, "When the Europeans arrived, carrying germs which thrived in dense, semiurban populations, the indigenous people of the Americas were effectively doomed. They had never experienced smallpox, measles or flu before, and the viruses tore through the continent, killing an estimate 90% of Native Americans.” This piece of evidence explains how the Natives never experienced this much sickness till the Europeans arrived. The next negative problem that the Natives experienced being enslaved. The Natives were enslaved in small numbers while being referred to as Savages. In the text it states, “Between 1492 and 1880, between 2 and 5.5 million Native Americans were enslaved in the Americas…” This piece of evidence shows how some of the Native population was either enslaved or they died of diseases by the Europeans. The last negative experience was how the Europeans forcibly converted the Natives into their own beliefs. Since the Europeans believe in the Christian faith, they would ultimately force the Natives into conversion. In the document it states, “We perceived that this people migh very easily be converted to our Religion”. This piece of evidence shows how the Europeans believed that the Natives were the easiest to covert whether it being by force or not. In conclusion, I believe that the Natives had the worst experience due to all the terror that the exchange causes. There were some positive sides to the exchange like how the Natives would exchange their ideas, but most of the time, it wasn’t a good time for them which is very upsetting.