-
First Reservation for Native Americans
In 1786, the United States created the first reservation for American Indians. By establishing the first reservation the United States hoped to treat each tribe as an independent nation. The intent was to preserve sovereignty by separating the American Indians. Also, the reservations began due to the United States government aspiring more land to hold power over. This policy remained intact for more than one hundred years. -
The Indian Removal Act of 1830
The act was signed into law by president Andrew Jackson. It empowered the president the right to eradicate southern Indian tribes from their ancestral homelands to areas west of the Mississippi River. The government then took over their former homelands. -
The Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was a string of involuntary relocations of southern Indian nations to lands west of the Mississippi river (present-day Oklahoma). The Cherokee people called the journey the “Trail of Tears”. The American Indians who endured the punishing relocation suffered from disease, starvation, and exhaustion. More than 4,000 of the 15,000 Cherokee perished along the way. -
Carlisle Indian Industrial School
The Carlisle Indian Industrial School is a crucial example of a policy endorsing assimilation. In 1867, the commissioner for Indian Affairs advocated for the forced removal of Native children. Richard Pratt, the first director is coined with the slogan “Kill the Indian, Save the Man”. Native youth were taken from their homelands to boarding schools far from their families. They were stripped of their Native beliefs and values, educated in Christian morals instead. They existed until the 1960’s. -
Wounded Knee Incident
In 1973, the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota was seized by followers of the American Indian Movement. The protest was due to the failure to impeach tribal president Richard Wilson and the failure of the US federal government to fulfill treaty negotiations. They held the town for 71 days resulting in two individuals dying and one seriously injured. The protest ended with AIM surrendering and US Marshals taking the town over. -
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975
The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 had federal government agencies such as health, education, and welfare to form contracts with Indian tribes. The act let American Indians regulate their own schools by continuing their own languages, values, and beliefs. The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act ended the era of termination and reorganization acts. -
Indian Child Welfare Act
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was enacted due to the high rate of removal of Indian children from their families and communities. ICWA works to keep American Indian children with American Indian families. Its goal is to protect the best interests of Indian children and to endorse solidity within American Indian tribes. It recognizes the important role that tribal governments play in supporting tribal families and land.
