Jackson vs. Constitution/Ideal Democracy

Jackson greatly defied the Constitution and the American idea of democracy in the interaction with Native Americans in the 1830s. Although Jackson harbored protective feelings towards Native Americans and was a “common man,” one who reflected the individualism, versatility, opportunism, directness, and prejudices of the everyday American, his policy of emigration of Indians to the west proceeded anyway. This Indian Removal Act of 1830 was a result of Jackson’s desire to open Indian lands to white settlement and a refusal to recognize the Supreme Court’s decisions, which was an act of defiance against the Constitution. Furthermore, although Jackson sympathized with the Natives, the Act was a violation of their rights, which did not conform to the ideas of democracy. Overall, Jackson greatly defied the Constitution by refusing the Supreme Court’s decisions and twisted the ideals of democracy, leaving the Native Americans, who were uprooted and sent west on the Trail of Tears, to be considered an exception to the democratic system.