Indians and Manifest Destiny

    In the wake of Indian Removal, California's first legislature passed the Act for the Government and Protection of Indians on April 22, 1850. This Act allowed the removal of "California Indians from their traditional lands, separating at least a generation of children and adults from their families, languages, and cultures (1850 to 1865), and indenturing Indian children and adults to Whites," (6). 

   This act primarily focused on the indenture of Native American children and "troubled" adults, but it also created laws within that would allow the Indians to be continually taken advantage of, specifically with alcohol. 

   Specifically, in Section 15 of the Act for the Government and Protection of Indians, it stated that: Anyone convicted of providing intoxicating liquors to an Indian was fined not less than 20 dollars. (6)

   Why was this important? The Act was primarily aimed at "corralling" the Native Americans in California, and part of that intent was to allow indentured labor services, and so a clause system was introduced. The Act made it illegal to sell alcohol to any Native American's, but it also meant that "any Indian found strolling, loitering where alcohol was sold, begging, or leading a "profligate course of life" would be liable to arrest," (7). That meant that upon arrest, "officials would then turn the Indians over to the ranchers and other people who needed laborers. After four months, the employer would return the Indians to the city, usually to a place where alcohol was served. Shortly after their return, the Indians would be picked up once again as vagrants, and returned to the labor force," (7).

  Time and time again, alcohol was used to manipulate Native Americans in order to further the interests of the settlers. Indians needed to be controlled during trade arrangements, so alcohol was introduced. Upon the decision that Native Americans were simply no longer welcome and were needed to be moved, Acts were created to use Indians efficiently, and alcohol was still used to control and manipulate them further.