Mason (Post 1) - "Satanization" and the Imposition of Christianity on American Natives

Of course, we're familiar with colonialism, right? I truly hope you are. Sometimes I wonder about how Christianity, and specifically concepts like Satan and the ideals of avoiding Hell, were imposed on Native Americans during the colonization of the modern United States. Ultimately, that's the topic of my first post. During the colonization of the Americas, the idea of a "Satanic people" (i.e., those against or without Christianity) came as both English and Spanish colonizers conquered the continent. An article I read to further my understanding of the concept, "Satanizing the American Indian" by David Lovejoy, argues that "[a]ssigning the Indians to Satan began almost with the first encounter, and it made no difference whether the assigners were Spanish Catholics or British Protestants" (p. 606). Lovejoy also remarks that "[i]n much the same way that European settlers imposed their God and Christ upon the Indians, they thrust on them, too, the Christian Devil, for the traditional scheme was incomplete without him" (p. 612). Ultimately, this haunting obligation for Catholics and Protestants to thrust their religious traditions on Native Americans would be the "Godly European's" justification for unfettered conquest of the Americans, and would continually be the functional "poison" to both Native American sovereignty and their own cultures, religious experiences, and languages. We continue to see, even in the big 2026, the imposition of Christianity on Native Americans (60%+ are Christian-affiliated), especially as a large chunk of the enrolled population of tribes/bands have been relegated to so-called "reservations" in Oklahoma and other states, like Arizona.

What do you guys think? Has Christianity demonized the Native American (broadly speaking) into submission?