Putting Indians on reservations was a part of the Progressive movement.
At the time, there was a belief. “THE NOBLE SAVAGE”.
People really believed it. Reminents of it exist in culture. Tarzan, The Jungle Book, and a lot of anthropology still hold to it.
At the time, it was considered to be humane. “We’re invading their space. let’s put them where they will be happiest”.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs was first established in a form in 1775. It wasn’t until 1869 that an American Indian was assigned the post of head. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ely_S._Parker where he successfully reduced the number of military campaigns against the Indians.
At the time of the progressive movement, the reservations were related to the conservationist movement which protected large amounts of lands and started the public parks systems.
http://www.museumca.org/picturethis/timeline/progressive-era-1890-1920s/native-americans-fight-land-identity-education/info
Does this answer your question yet? I can’t legitmize it as right or wrong. I wasn’t there. I don’t have the same cultural assumptions of either the white americans *or* the various Native American tribes at the time to give you an accurate answer.
But brushing up on history might be beneficial as well as cultural relativism. “Look, they’re in reservations, therefore white americans are bad” is modernistic and excessively simplistic. Real things happened to real people and the whole thing is complicated.
Not a criticism just a suggestion. You don’t have to of course, but I’ve noticed my perspective on things tends towards more a Librarian’s point of view rather than a “True Defender of…” any kind.