This part of the story has always been brutal and sad. The Cherokee Tribe has always been a major tribe that has faced discrimination from Americans and The Trail of Tears has always been an ugly part of our history. What is interesting about this part of our story is the fact that two groups of people wanted to be rulers. One group got it while the other continued to get it but never got it. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Watching the episode, the thing that struck me the most was the interaction between the Cherokee Nation and the Americans. I never knew they had that kind of alliance and I never knew how much the Cherokee Nation had adapted to a way of life outside of their own. The Cherokee began building towns, practicing religion, and intermarrying. As the Native Americans fought for their freedom, so did the Americans. I noticed that the Americans were so concerned with trying to force the Native Americans, the Cherokees, to adapt and adapt to their way of life. Isn't this why England left? Isn't this why they fought for independence? I can never fully understand the fact that they turned away to escape persecution, but they inflicted the same pain and suffering on the Cherokee and many other Native Americans. What surprised me the most while watching the video was the interaction between the two different people. Intermarriage between Cherokee and Americans was very common and almost expected. The marriage of an American man to a Cherokee woman was deemed appropriate, but as soon as John Ridge, a Cherokee man, married Sarah Bird Northrup, an American woman, it was deemed inappropriate. Once something deemed correct in the eyes of Americans was done, hostility increased and the relationship ended. I'm not surprised by this reaction because in all the readings it always seemed to end this way. The Trail of Tears has always been a sad part of our history, causing not an extreme, but more difficult emotional reaction at home after learning the details that led to the removal. I think Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Act of 1830 was not an appropriate action by the US government. I think it is considered an inhumane act by our government. Why would you force the tribes in the area to abandon their tribal customs, become US citizens to stay in their homes and lives they have built for themselves. The Cherokee had to sign a treaty to ensure that they would forcibly (or some voluntarily) enter the reservations. In 1838 they were forced to move to the reservations, where they endured the worst conditions. What I learned from this video were the two points from the previous paragraphs. I never knew about the alliance not only between the Cherokees but also between the Five Civilized Tribes and how it operated and functioned. The intermarriage, schooling, and lifestyle adopted by the Cherokee to fit the American mold were interesting. I also learned that each separate tribe had their own different way of moving away from their home and into Oklahoma. I also learned that it took a while for the removal to happen for the Cherokee as well. In 1831 the first tribe was removed and in the following years until 1838 when the Cherokee were forced to leave. I think something that would have been more helpful would have been to touch in more detail on why the Cherokee wanted to behave like Americans. I can understand it to help them survive the post-Civil War era with the.