Key events Flashcards
What rights did the NAs want?
-rights to their culture and nomadic lifestyle->self determination
What was the policy of the US government towards NAs?
-isolate them (1830s-1850s so don’t need to know but helpful)
-control through reservations (1850s-1880s) and assimilation
-Americanisation 1887->Dawes Act
What did the Dawes Severalty Act do?
-NAs given allotted land to farm->given American citizenship so the government no longer responsible
How much opposition was there to US government policy? (2)
-some eg the Plains Wars 1862-1568 and Little Bighorn
-ghost dance->seen as a form of opposition even though it was just them trying to get the dead buffalo and NAs back
Which president was the American Civil War under? When?
-Lincoln
-1861-1865
What was the positive impact of the American Civil War on NAs?
-relations between soldiers and NA were uneasy at times, but some trading took place
What were the negative impacts of the American Civil War on NAs?
-much of the war was fought on the plains and many forts were built to support the soldiers
-officials responsible for ensuring aid reached the reservations were corrupt, meaning their lives were not protected
-failed to provide aid to NA as funding was stretched due to the Civil War
What impact did the American Civil War have? (progress/regress etc)
Brought the NA into more conflict with the US army and white settlers as the war took place on the Plains but there were some incidences of the army and NA working together which suggests that the relationship between the groups was fractious but they could work together
Which president did the Homestead Act happen under? When?
-Lincoln
-1962
What was the Homestead Act?
Offered 160 acres of land to any American citizen over the age of 21 years. The act aimed to aid the fufillment of the Manifest Destiny principle to ‘civilise’ the plains
What was the negative impact of the Homestead Act on NAs?
-encouraged settlement of NA land and increased conflict with white settlers
What impact did the Homestead Act have? (progress/regress etc)
Sparks the process of removal of NA land but NA can continue their traditional way of life at this point
Which president was the Indian Appropriation Act? When?
-Grant
-1871
What was the Indian Appropriation Act?
-Was allowed to determine how Native American tribes were organised on the reservations.
It ended any treaties between individual tribes and the government
What were the negative impacts of the Indian Appropriation Act on NAs?
-NAs made wards of the state and no independent Indian nation was recognised
-confine Indians to undesired land and restrict their movement, subdue them, and make them essentially dependent on the US
-restricted NA lifestyle
Why was the Indian Appropriation Act important?
-it was a turning point in the governments treatment/attitudes towards NAs
What impact did the Indian Appropriations Act have? (progress/regress etc)
Significant turning point due to NAs having their lives restricted by the US government and they became fully dependent on them but they were still allowed to continue some cultural traditions within the reservations
Which president was the Dawes Severalty Act? When?
-Cleveland
-1887
What were the negative impacts of the Dawes Severalty Act?
-the result of the failure of the reservations policy led to the allocation of allotments for NA to farm
-land-owning NA were granted citizenship rights->NAs didn’t want this
What impact did the Dawes Severalty Act have? (progress/regress etc)
Initially did not apply to the ‘Five Civilised Tribes’ who had adapted more white American culture->this was amended after 1898
Which president was WW1 under?
Wilson
What was the negative impact of WW1?
-sparked the first stage of urbanisation of NA
What impact did the WW1 have? (progress/regress etc)
Stereotypes about Native Americans as natural “warriors” led to dangerous combat assignments that resulted in higher casualty rates than those for white soldiers. On the home front, the government justified increased loss of tribal land as a “war measure.”
Which president was the Indian Citizenship Act? When?
-Coolidge
-1924
How many NAs had the vote by 1928?
2/3
What was the negative impact on the Indian Citizenship Act?
-the act intended to promote assimilation and did not guarantee state voting rights->and government policy did not lend itself to increasing the number of NA voters
What impact did the Indian Citizenship Act have? (progress/regress etc)
Their right to vote was often denied however, they did not want the vote->government policy was misunderstanding what NAs wanted
Which president was the Leavitt Bill? When?
-Coolidge
-1926
Was the Leavitt Bill passed?
no
What is another name for the Leavitt Bill?
Dance Order
What was the negative impacts of the Leavitt Bill?
-NA were banned from traditional rituals and dances
-was seen as an attack on their civil and religious rights
What impact did the Leavitt Bill have? (progress/regress etc)
This bill led to the creation of the American Indian Defense Association (AIDA) which prevented the passing of the act. But it still threatened the culture and self determination and shows the governments wants
Which president was the Meriam Report? When?
-Coolidge
-1928
What was the Meriam Report the equivalent to?
‘To secure these rights’
What was the positive impact of the Meriam Report?
-it condemned the allotment policy which had failed to provide economic support for the NA
What impact did the Meriam Report have? (progress/regress etc)
-the report did not condemn assimilation but it helped conserve their culture and self-determination
Which president was the Indian Reorganisation Act? When?
-FDR
-1934
What was another name for the Indian Reorganisation Act?
Wheeler-Howard Act
What was the Indian Reorganisation Act considered as? Who changed that?
-considered part of the ‘Indian New Deal’
-largely brought in after John Collier was appointed Commissioner for Indian Affairs
What were the positive impacts of the Indian Reorganisation Act? (4)
-the act is seen as a significant step in allowing NA more control over the administration of reservations
-it cemented their rights to practice their own religion, assert cultural heritage and overturned a ban on ceremonial dances and celebrations
-it also curtailed the sale of unallocated Indian land
-the act granted a new degree of autonomy to Native Americans in the United States, giving them greater control over their lands and allowing them to form legally recognized tribal governments
What impact did the Indian Reorganisation Act have? (progress/regress etc)
-many now believe that the IRA failed to improve economic conditions for Native Americans
-but John Collier, a white American, perhaps didn’t truly understand the needs of the Native American community
Which president was WW2 under?
FDR
What was the negative impact of WW2 on NAs?
-many veterans to advocate for a new day, when America would honour tribal treaty rights and allow Indians to live in their own way
What was the positive impacts of WW2 on NAs?
-NAs were used extensively during WWII as messengers, utilising their native languages
-100,000 left the reservations with 75,000 moving to urban areas and 25,000 served in the army
What impact did WW2 have? (progress/regress etc)
-NA war veterans were not granted the same privileges as white soldiers and were forced back onto the reservations
-Japanese Americans were also relocated onto reservation land post-1945
-however, NAs were empowered by WW2
Which presidents was the Indian Claims Commission? When?
-Truman - Carter
-1946-1978
Why was the Indian Claims Commission put in place?
-put in place to recognise the achievements of the NA war veterans
What was the positive impact of the Indian Claims Commission?
-appeared to provide an opportunity to claim land that had been lost by treaties in the 19th century
What impact did the Indian Claims Commission have? (progress/regress etc)
-370 petitions were filed but most received financial compensation rather than the land they had hoped for
-but ICC did little to support NA, working slowly and aided the assimilation process by removing government responsibility for reservation Indians
When was Eisenhower president? What happened under his presidency, when?
-1953-1961
-Policy of Termination 1953
-Indian Vocational Training Act 1956
Which president was the Policy of Termination? When?
-Eisenhower
-1953
What was the Policy of Termination an attempt to?
-attempt to fast track the assimilation of NAs
What was the Policy of Termination?
-voluntary relocation away from reservations was offered in a bid to end the reservation system
What was the negative impact of the Policy of Termination on NAs?
-it no longer recognised them as wards of the state and it aimed to end federal control of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (office controlling money for the development of NA, and responsible for their education and reservations)
What impact did the Policy of Termination have? (progress/regress etc)
The government wanted to stop supporting NAs, leaving them to fend for themselves and essentially removing their ability to support themselves. But they still had their self-determination
Which president was the Indian Vocational Training Act under? When?
-Eisenhower
-1956
What was the Indian Vocational Training Act established alongside?
-the Policy of Determination to provide vocational training for NAs
What was the negative impact of the Indian Vocational Training Act for NAs?
-established to provide vocational training for Native Americans
What was the positive impact of the Indian Vocational Training Act for NAs?
-increased population of urban Indians
Which president was Affirmative Action under? When?
-LBJ
-1968
Who did the Affirmative Action policy continue under?
Nixon
What did the Affirmative Action policy sought to offer?
-sought to offer enhanced economic opportunities for minorities, particularly African Americans but included Native Americans too
What was clear about the Affirmative Action policy by the late 1960s?
By the late 1960s the negative effects of the policy were clear. Nixon continued this policy when he took office
Which president was the siege of Alcatraz? When?
-Nixon
-1969-1971
What was the Siege of Alcatraz inspired by and what was it?
-the Red Power movement of the 1960s inspired the Black Power progress and led 14 men and women representing all tribes to seize control of the island prison
-the NA took control of Alcatraz which had once belonged to the Ohlone Indians
Who led the Siege of Alcatraz?
Richard Oakes
What was the positive impacts of the Siege of Alcatraz? (3)
-it was carefully planned and orchestrated to highlight the plight of the Native Americans and utilised media interest
-symbolic of the life imprisonment of NAs in poverty on reservations and urban areas
-the US government later returned millions of acres of ancestral Indian land and passed more than 50 legislative proposals supporting tribal self rule
