Native Americans 1900-1945 Flashcards
What was Lone Wolf vs Hitchcock 1903?
Lone Wolf was a chief who had made the Medicine Lodge Treaty in 1867 that established reservation lands for the use of the tribes. Congress ignored the agreement and allotted several millions of acres of this land. The decision from the Supreme Court established Congress the right to revoke all treaties and led to the further acquisition of Indian lands.
What did it mean that in Lone Wolf vs Hitchcock 1903 that Natives were ‘wards of the state’?
It said that they were ‘wards of the state’ and were not citizens and therefore had no rights.
What was the Society of American Indians (SAI)?
It was set up in 1911, a group of 50 educated Indian men and women. It was the first attempt at establishing an inter-tribal pressure group with the purpose of campaigning for improvement in education and better health care.
Why did the SAI collapse in the 1920s?
A shortage of funds, internal divisions on matters of assimilation vs self-determination meant. It faced a lack of support from Indians themselves.
How did NAs contribute to WW1 and what was the impact of this?
More than 100k NAs participated in WW1. This elevated urbanisation via the government’s sponsor of NAs to work in the defence industry in cities, especially women.
Consequently, many started moving out of the reservations into urban cities, assimilation was becoming more appealing to NAs.
What was the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924?
It was part of the relentless drive to assimilate Native Americans. It gave all Natives citizenship. But this wasn’t what NAs wanted, they just want self-determination, not citizenship.
Before the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, how many NAs could vote?
More than 2/3 had the right to vote via the DA and interracial marriages.
What was Harrison vs Laveen 1948?
Regarded as one of the most important legal cases in Native American history. Two natives claimed that their rights had been violated when they were not allowed to register to vote. The courts decided in their favour.
However, many states still refuse.
By the 1920s, how much reservation land had been lost?
80% lost to white settlers.
What was the Bursum Bill of 1922?
It authorised the acquisition of Pueblo lands.
What was the Dance order / Leavitt Bill of 1926?
It threatened to remove the rights of the Pueblos to perform some of their traditional dances.
Who was John Collier and what did he do?
He was a white man who defended Natives. He was the executive secretary of AIDA (American Indian Defense Association). He wanted to preserve the Indian culture and rigorously pursued the restoration of Natives rights. Him and AIDA were successful at blocking the Bursum and Leavitt Bills.
What and when was the Merriam Report?
- It presented the bleak impact that assimilation had on NAs. The report condemned allotment policy for depriving NAs of their land and failing to provide them with sufficient support.
It also described the dreadful conditions that NAs on reservations lived in, deprived of the basic needs by corrupt officials.
How was Presidents like Hoover sympathetic to Natives?
He supported the Meriam report by appointing Charles Rhoads as Commissioner of Indian Affairs in 1928, adopting reforms like the closure of unpopular boarding schools and increased federal funding for medical facilities. However, these reforms didn’t challenge allotment policy and didn’t last past the depression in 1929.
Was Roosevelt’s New Deal a turning point for NAs?
The period from 1933-45 did bring some relief to NAs but it cannot entirely be seen as a turning point as improvement was not sustained as the change of administration in 1945 precipitated not only a change of attitude to the Native American population, but also to policy. It did however, lay the foundation for further reform in the 1970s.
What was the Wheeler-Howard Act / Indian Reorganisation Act of 1934 in the New Deal?
It was central to the New Deal for NAs. It was largely attributable to John Collier who was appointed by Roosevelt as Commissioner for Indian Affairs.
It was intended to recognise and preserve the culture of Indian tribes.
It was a pretty significant reversal of government policy.
Not only were they given more influence and involvement in administration of reservations but also given more religious freedom. For example it overthrew a law made in 1883 that banned ceremonial dances and celebrations. Most importantly, it curtailed the sale of Indian lands to individual buyers
How was John Collier able to make more of a change as the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, what did he do?
He made NAs more involved in the BIA, offered vocational skills to NA women (arts and crafts), encouraged economic venture and employment opportunities, women were encouraged to aspire to higher education, he built hospitals, schools and irrigation systems on reservations to improve their dire situation.
What made the Wheeler-Howard Act so significant in a summary?
It signalled the end of allotment policy and further loss of Indian land.
The 1938 census also showed a dramatic improvement in life expectancy.
it ensured that NAs influenced future government policy.
How many Indians left reservations to go to the army or urban areas?
More than 100k for the armed forces and more than 75k to urban areas for work. More NAs left reservations than ever before.
Did the gains from leaving reservations stay after WW2 and why?
Not particularly, when the war ended Indian soldiers had to go back to reservations because of discrimination and couldn’t take advantage of educational opportunities given to white veterans after the war for jobs. Similarly, prejudice and discrimination forced NA factory workers back to reservations.
How was the Wheeler-Howard Act limited?
By the time congress passed it in 1934 it was modified so that funding was limited and short-term, preventing land from being bought back for tribes by white settlers, limiting self-determination to economic matters which meant that assimilation continued.
Collier himself lost support as he failed to appreciate that not every Indian wanted self-determination, the policy of assimilation had been around so long that lots were already assimilated, were on the way or wanted to be. Lots were also worried that a reorganisation of land would mean losing the land they built up and made into farming.
What was the most lasting and significant outcome of WW2?
It was the National Congress of American Indians formation in 1944.
It was set up in response to the moves to end reservations.
It worked through the courts to campaign against things like discrimination and the breaking of treaties. It showed the first signs of unified protest, one that would be increasingly more powerful in the 1960s-70s.
How were things different in 1945 to in the first period up to 1900?
Although the policy of assimilation continues throughout the period, there were examples of change from the degradation of culture and land seen in the beginning.
Extension of citizenship in 1924 can be seen as good but plenty still denied rights.
Horrific treatment of NAs is now acknowledged on a federal level by individuals like Collier.
Presidents like Hoover and Roosevelt are sympathetic, most importantly with the WHA in 1934.
NCAI shows a unified pressure group.
