While I would like to say that the genocide of the Indians surprises me, it really doesn't. Considering that there wasn't racial equality in the U.S. until about 50 years ago, it is not a stretch to believe what happened. Latin America wanted "To be like you," meaning the U.S., and if problems still continued for hundreds of years after the genocide in the "leading country", then the elites would follow their example.
It does really make me think about who the real "civilized" people were at the time. Just like in the time of the conquest, the indians were looked down on as inferior because of their differences. The Europeans didn't understand the indigenous culture and thus declared the people to be less intelligent and below them. During this time, the same is happening because the elite still don't completely understand the indigenous. The natives in both situations did little, if anything, to deserve their treatment. So why are they the barbarians?
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