Question

What beliefs do you think may have motivated Las Casas to take the stand that he does?

Answer 1

Bartolomé de Las Casas was motivated by his belief in fair treatment and advocating for the rights of Native Americans. His writings and advocacy led to the implementation of the New Laws of 1542, which sought to end the encomienda system. However, his reforms faced opposition from Spanish settlers.

Step-by-step explanation:

Bartolomé de Las Casas was motivated by his belief in fair treatment and advocating for the rights of Native Americans. After witnessing the brutality of the encomienda system during his travels in Latin America, Las Casas became an ardent critic of the Spanish treatment of Native Americans. His book, A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, described the violence and suffering inflicted upon the indigenous population by the Spanish settlers.

Las Casas' beliefs were rooted in his religious convictions as a Dominican friar, which emphasized compassion and the moral duty to protect the weak and oppressed. He saw the Native Americans as fellow human beings deserving of dignity and respect, rather than as inferior beings to be exploited for labor and resources.

Las Casas' writings and advocacy eventually led to the implementation of the New Laws of 1542, which sought to end the encomienda system. However, his reforms faced opposition from the Spanish settlers who benefited from the system, and the mistreatment of Native Americans persisted.

Answer 2

He was relevant in defending indigenous peoples in Latin America.

The defense assumes that they are free and in their freedom enjoy the natural right.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the middle of the year 1502-1510 - Friar Bartolomeu de Las Casas leaves for America where he lands with twelve other friars. In this period, Spain is at the beginning of an empire of magnificence, as discussed above, the Arabs are being expelled by the Catholic kings.

Arriving in the land of the natives, the friar Las Casas is enchanted by the kind reception of the Indigenous, but little by little, Bartolomeu realizes the dark side of the Spaniards subsidized only by the greed of gold and silver or other means that could generate precious goods. In the midst of the shadows of greed, however, is a young man full of vitality and with a right intention to evangelize the natives.

The defense assumes that they are free and in their freedom enjoy natural law.

From his point of view, Las Casas would see exceptional indigenous docility as a way of showing human possibilities and qualities, moving from the wild to the civilized way, so evangelizing in the eyes of the religious would not be a process of domination but rather a means of domination. for liberation. In other words, the interplay between two cultures or between two peoples would bring the sum of vast and ennobling experiences to both sides. Therefore, the exchange of experiences would only be possible if there was a mutual adherence of respect, dialogue and otherness that would converge on justice.