American Indians are one of the first groups facing prejudice and discrimination in the United States and likely the world. The first acts of violence against them date back to the 15th century (source) With the Spanish colonization of the Americas. This was just the beginning of the plethora of discrimination that Native Americans faced, including the Trail of Tears, the urban relocation program, not to mention the current issues that Native Americans face, such as poverty, alcoholism and depression. Historically, Native Americans have been subject to discrimination and prejudice since the colonization of the Americas in the 15th century, when the Spanish colonized the Americas. Native Americans were actually the first people to live in America and even North America. Europeans brought with them a multitude of things detrimental to Native American peoples. The first was unintentional but extremely deadly. Native Americans did not have the same immunities against certain diseases as Europeans. Many Native Americans died from smallpox, measles, influenza, sexually transmitted diseases, and more. Some of the most dangerous diseases (smallpox, measles, influenza) killed approximately 90% of the Native American population. (source) Along with the spread of disease, the Spanish attempted to spread the Holy Spirit. With the arrival of Spanish missionaries on the West Coast in the late 1700s, slavery and the massacre of Native Americans began. The combination of abuse and disease took a toll on the population, from 300,000 before Spanish involvement, California Indians reached a low of 16,000 by the 1900s. One of the most notable atrocities committed by Native Americans...... middle of paper ...... Working in extreme conditions, being beaten, and being exposed to disease drastically reduced the Indian population in a short time. The Trail of Tears is also an example of the final blow of prejudice against them, as it was ethnic cleansing. History has taken its toll on the Native American people. Native Americans were victims of physical, psychological and spiritual violence. Today, many Native Americans face problems with drug and alcohol addiction as well as poverty and violence. One explanation is offered through historical or intergenerational trauma (source), it might be understandable that a race of people who were massacred, enslaved, forced from their homes, and forced to abandon their religious beliefs , and retaining only 4% of their own land, would have lasting psychological damage on the Native American people.