Oppression of Native Americans in the United States

Oppression in the United States of America for the native citizens is an issue that has affected the nation for quite a while, affecting even the reputation of the state. As a result, there is need for research on this issue for future use. The internet and other sources have taken the lead in providing the relevant information about this issue. Thus, this paper is a review of ten sources that covers this topic, and a reflection of the factors I considered in selecting them. It also outlines the entire process, covering every aspect of the search like the tools and outcomes of the search.

Why did you choose these particular sources?

            Although there were a number of factors to consider when selecting the sources about the oppression of the Native Americans, I opted to settle on the most relevant ones among them. Hus, I chose these particular sources at the expense of the others because they were the most recent about this topic, they were peer reviewed and they elaborated evidence of extensive research on the topic. All of these sources were 5 years or less in age and thus were among the most relevant in terms of the timeliness. They were also scholarly approved as references for researches concerning the state of the original Americans. Nonetheless, they offered a vast scope of information.

Where and how did you find your sources?

            Research was vital in finding my sources. I used a number of platforms including the internet to search for my sources and other secondary research materials like the journals and articles. Learning has revolutionized fast enough, making it easier to access all the information over the internet. Hence, I visited some of the official scholarly websites and databases like the Google scholar, Google books and research journalli. I searched for the key words like “Oppression of Native Americans” through these sites for the results. Moreover, I used the school library in finding the books that addressed the entire issue of history and sociology, after which I narrowed down to those covering the issue of oppression in the States.

What process or strategies did you use to determine whether you choose a specific source for the list?

            However, I did not just include any source I came across into the list of my sources. I used a well outlaid strategy to ensure that I only select quality, credible and reliable sources for my paper. My strategy included guidelines like evaluation of the sources and eliminating them on the basis of the scope of my research question, and identifying my information needs against the concepts available in the research databases. In the library, it was easier by going through the Table of Contents list to check my key words, after which I would read through the most important ones. I eliminated the sources that did not qualify to these criteria, leaving me with the best out of the rest.

What terms were successful and unsuccessful when you searched this topic/issue?

            The entire phase as is, ”Oppression of Native Americans” proved very useful throughout the search. It brought about very viable results as the sources were direct to the point and accurate in the type of information they offered. In cases where the where the sources were not enough in the internet, I inter-changed the phrases to use text like ”Native Americans oppressions” to get a wider scope of information on the same topic. However, some searches were unsuccessful or brought irrelevant sources. For instance, the use of oppression in America resulted in the general oppression within the United States.

What tools did you use to aid you in your search?

            I used the online databases and relevant scholarly sites as the tools to aid the search. Some of these tools include the EndNote, Todoist, EduGeeksClub, DataElixir, Paperpile, DeepDyve and ContentMine. I also used the library books and additional content resources to supplement the quality information that I got from the databases and scholarly sites. All of these sources proved helpful in the gathering of the information and compilation of the final list of the most relevant sources.

How much time did this whole process take (to find, read and understand your sources)?

            The whole process took about a whole week as I had to read through a lot of materials before coming up with an accurate piece of information. Nonetheless, the library was the most consuming part because I had to go through the books physically to check where there was the most accurate information, unlike the use of the internet in which accurate key words resulted into accurate information that was confined to the search. Also, the bigger portion of the time was wasted on reading and elimination of the sources, after which the compilation of the list was easier.

What did you learn through this process? What would you do differently if given the chance?

            I learned that the issue of oppression is a bigger issue than we have always perceived it in the United States of America. I also learned that, research through the scholarly databases and sites is one of the best ways to collect vast information. Given the chance, I would make the content on the online platforms more categorical, to avoid waste of time during the searching. That is to say, instead of wasting time to come up with key words and searching from general sites before elimination, I would isolate the information in all the sites covering this topic and place them in one site, where the user would just visit and read.

            Conclusively, these sources are among the most relevant, with the highest level of quality. That is because the step-to-step process that I used to gather them was to the point and accurate. The elimination procedures were good and the tools used were relevant. It is also right that oppression for the Native Americans is a big deal issue that needs extensive research and addressing.

Works cited

Grande, Sandy. Red pedagogy: Native American social and political thought. Rowman & Littlefield, 2015.

Spring, Joel. Deculturalization and the struggle for equality: A brief history of the education of dominated cultures in the United States. Routledge, 2016.

Bell, Lee Anne, and Maurianne Adams. ”Theoretical foundations for social justice education.“Teaching for diversity and social justice. Routledge, 2016. 21-44.

Dill, Bonnie Thornton, and Maxine Baca Zinn. ”Theorizing difference from multiracial feminism.“Race, Gender and Class. Routledge, 2016. 76-82.

May, Katja. African Americans and Native Americans in the Cherokee and Creek Nations, 1830s-1920s: Collision and Collusion. Routledge, 2016.

Grayshield, Lisa, et al. ”Understanding and healing historical trauma: The perspectives of Native American elders.“Journal of Mental Health Counseling 37.4 (2015): 295-307.

Ross, Jeffrey Ian, and Larry Gould. Native Americans and the Criminal Justice System: Theoretical and Policy Directions. Routledge, 2015.

Wright, Richard. Native son. Random House, 2016.

Lobo, Susan, Steve Talbot, and Traci Morris Carlston. Native American voices. Routledge, 2016.

Gill, Sam. ”Mother earth: an american myth.“The Invented Indian. Routledge, 2017. 129-144.