-
The Constitution
the 10th amendment ( sovereignty) is in the Bill of RIghts and was created to allow some laws to be left up to the states, where the federal government would have no power over their decision making. This is important because even though this amendment is present many states ignored it when it came to Native Americans. Article 1 section 2 of the constituion, as it was originally written, also says that Native Americans are not included in the number of representatives to a state or to be taxed. -
1790 Indian Trade and intercourse act
This act made it illegal for people to trade with native tribes without a permit from the federal government. It also says that only the federal government can purchase lands from Indians excluding the states and private citizens. This limits the trade that Native Americans can make between themselves and the non-native inhabitants of the United States. While this does not directly affect the sovereignty of Native Americans, it does affect their economic abilities. -
Johnson v. M’Intosh
Cont.Johnson v. M’Intosh was a supreme court case that ruled on the ownership of land. It said that only the federal government can make deals with native groups over land, not private citizens. However, it upholds the idea that once a european power 'discovers' some land it has ownership over it despite native groups already living there. This is an important decision becuase it means that first, the federal government is the only body that can make decisions about land rights of Native... -
Cherokee Nation vs. Georgia
Cont.The Cherokee nation took the state of Georgia to the Supreme Court because of a dispute over land ownership. The state of Georgia wished to expedite the process of native removal from the state. However, The Cherokee tried to hold onto their land arguing that the laws of Georgia do not apply to them because they are a sovereign and foreign nation. In terms of sovereignty, the important part of this ruling was that the Cherokee, and other native tribes, were deemed by the Supreme Court to be... -
Worcester v. Georgia
This is the last Marshall Trilogy where a missionary illegally went to Georgia and preached without a license and was imprisoned for his doings. He then filed a lawsuit against the state claiming that they did not have control activity over the lands of Cherokee. The courts agreed with the missionary and agreed that the Cherokee Nation is a distinct community where they occupy their own territory and the laws of Georgia could not force anything upon them. -
Indian appropriations act of 1871
After March 3, 1871 no more Native American tribes would be recognized by the federal government. No other tribes would be recognized as a power that the United States could make treaties with. This is important because tribes that were not officially recognized by the federal government would not be subject to federal laws or interefered with, but this also means that they would not recieve any federal support. Some tribes would be recognized as independent entites and others as non-existent. -
United states v Kagama
The ruling in this case upheld a law that said the federal government could charge Native Americans with crimes committed on reservations. This means that the federal government had sway in the disciplinary process as well as the policing process on reservations. It also means that tribes did not have complete sovereignty in criminal proceedings on reservations. It also meant that people were subject to federal law on reservations. -
Dawes Act
This was a new policy that treated Native Americans as individuals rather than as a tribe when it came to land. This act gave the president the power to break up reservations and grant small parcles of land to individuals formely on the reservation. It was an attempt to assimilate Native Americans. The impact of the Daws was that, outside of a few tribes that were originally exempt from the act, it disregarded their soviergnty, and broke up communities politically and socially. -
-
Indian Reorganization Act
The Indian Reorganization Act reversered some of what the Dawes act did by stopping the allotment of bits of land to Native Americans as well as restored power to tribal governments that had be lost when the land was parcelled out. This restored some of the soverignty of tribal communities. It was a step in the direction of giving tribes control of themselves throught the economic assets of their land. It's a slight move away from a highly paternalistic relationship with the federal government. -
Public Law 280
Public Law 280 was a mandatroty law where Indian Nations had to deal with state authority that had control over a lot of reservation activities without tribal consenting. This is important because even if some tribes are "free" from the U.S. there still remains some enforcement of power from the government. -
Iron Crow v. Oglala Sioux Tribe
Cont.This case was brought by a member of the Oglala Sioux against the Oglala Sioux. Iron Crow and two others wanted to challenge the courts over their authority to make rulings. An appellate court found that although the authority of tribal courts is not recognized by the constitution or any other law, congress does recognize the authority of tribal government agencies because judges and police are funded by the federal government. They ruled that they had inherent sovereignty outside of sovereignty -
1973, in McClanahan v. Arizona, 411 U.S. 164
The state of Arizona cannot tax Native Americans living on reservations that earn all their income on the reservation. This is important because it also means that Native Americans cannot be taxed by the state on their own reservations if they are not actually receiving income off the reservation. This leaves taxes on tribes and individuals on reservations solely to the federal government, allowing the natives a bit more sovereignty within the states that they live. -
1978 American Indian Religious Freedom Act
This act allows native americans to practice their traditional religions freely. This is important to their sovereignty because it allows native groups to determine what they see fit in their religious practices. They have control over what they can do as well as control of what they deem legal in terms of religious practice with respect to sacred sites and wildlife. -
Indian Tribal Governmental Tax Status Act of 1982
This act states that most tribal governments will be treated as states when it comes to takes. This offers some autonomy to tribal governments, but it also places them under the control of the federal government. Tribes are still part of the federal government’s tax systems and still subject to some of the laws that guide them. This leaves native groups in a place in between being a sovereign state and part of the United States. There are parts of the act itself that are both favorable, but also
