The first chapter lays out the historical context of Native Americans from the beginning. There is not much recognition of these Indian tribes and leaders, but this book from the first chapter portrays the heroic events of the Native Americans. The book was published in 1970 and was one of the first stories to defend the Native Americans and tell their side of the story, unlike many other stories which were always from the white man's point of view. Brown wrote this book to show the mistreatment of Native Americans and supported this idea with many fact-based historical documents. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In the first chapter, Brown tells the Europeans' first thoughts about Native Americans. Columbus wrote to the king and queen of Spain describing the Native Americans as peaceful, gentle, and kind. The Americans interpreted this as a sign of weakness. Columbus saw them as slaves and thought they should be “made to work” and should neglect their culture and adopt American ways, and after about four centuries the other Europeans tried to impose their ways on the Native Americans as well. Numerous treaties or agreements were made with Native Americans over the centuries. The Native Americans compromised and made deals with the Europeans and the United States government. These treaties and promises were almost always broken. In my opinion, the Europeans made the Native Americans believe they were making good deals and compromises when in reality they always had their best interest in mind. They made treaties to temporarily end wars and conflicts, just to get what they wanted. Many leaders of the native tribes are mentioned in the first chapter. Some of these leaders include; wahunsonacook, Metacom (King Philip), Tecumeseh, Black Hawk, Little Crow, Wabasha, Red Cloud, Spotted Tail, Dull Knife, Satank, Quanah Parker, Mangas Colorado, Manuelito, Kintpuash (Captain Jack), Wovoka, Chief Joseph and many more Moreover. Brown speaks of these leaders as legends and an important part of history. He claimed that their names would become as famous as the men who tried to destroy them. Most of these men would be long gone by the time Indian freedom arrived at Wounded Knee in December 1890. Brown called them "the most heroic of all Americans." These men sacrificed their lives for their tribe. They fought for Indian freedom and led their tribes to war to gain that freedom. It was a long battle, which involved many deaths and losses. Entire Native American societies were razed, including mothers and children. No matter how many times they failed, they didn't give up. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Before starting this book, I had no idea about many of these courageous Native American leaders. I think this book is similar to the textbook. Brown accurately describes their sacrifice and courage over the centuries and all the tragedy they had to overcome. Brown demonstrates the injustice that the Europeans have meted out to them and on this aspect I very much agree with him. I also agree that these Native American leaders, as well as all of their tribes, are an important part of history and are heroes. I don't think they are recognized as they should be.