Holocaust vs. Native American Genocide Essay -- nazis, weapon, european

The term genocide brings awful things to mind. For most, it probably directs their attention towards the Holocaust; this was definitely a gruesome and obvious example of genocide, but there are many others with great similarities that are not very well known. One of these is the decimation of the Native American population by the European settlers and the atrocious things that were done to them such as the trail of tears following the Indian Removal Act of 1830 during the settling of North America. The Holocaust might be the most well known but there have been many other incidents in history just as abhorrent. The Holocaust and Native American Genocide are different in weapons used and the motives for killing but similar in intent, effects and selection of the persecuted. The weapons used by the Nazis and European Settlers were very different. The Nazis directly stated the outcome they thought necessary, which was what they called the â€Å"final solution† (â€Å"Holocaust†). This was the termination of all of the races they believed inferior to themselves. This â€Å"final solution† was administered through concentration camps, extermination camps and â€Å"Einsatzgruppen† which were military units sent to mass exterminate groups of people persecuted under the Nazi Regime (â€Å"Holocaust†). The soldiers of these camps and extermination groups used firearms and other weaponry to do their jobs, while European settlers were usually more indirect in the way they killed Native Americans. The largest contribution to the deaths of the natives is known as a â€Å"virgin soil epidemic†, where a disease spreads especially quickly the first time it is introduced to an area (Lewy). One of the diseases that clai med the most lives was small pox, which was distri... ...locaust." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 13 Apr. 2014. . "Victims of the Nazi Era: Nazi Racial Ideology." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 05 May 2014. Lewy, Guenter. "Were American Indians the Victims of Genocide?" History News Network. History News Network, Sept. 2004. Web. 14 Apr. 2014. . Stanton, Gregory H. "Genocides and Conflicts." World Without Genocide. World Without Genocide, 7 May 2013. Web. 14 Apr. 2014. . "Settlement." Settlement. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.