Native American History “ Sacred Sisters” by Dawn Dark Mountain , Wisconsin Oneida artist. Dawn Dark Mountain's "Sacred Sisters" blends the mystical with the historical: Three Indian women nurture three sacred Iroquois plants – corn, beans and squash. Beneath them dance images of animals such as the heron, representing the many Iroquois clans. In Iroquois tradition, mothers owned both the land and the crops and chose the clan leaders; myth has it that "First Mother" gave her body so that the people might live. From her grew the corn, beans and squash that sustained the people. Planted together on small hills, the beans twined round the cornstalks, and the squash's broad leaves stifled weeds. These were the "sacred sisters."

History Today Native American History isn’t just about the past. Issues we are studying continue to be in the news, as struggles over Native and tribal treaty rights, or Indian gaming, or lake spear fishing, or history curriculums for schools, for example, persist. See Native Web Home Page

Native American History isn’t just about the past. Issues we are studying continue to be in the news, as struggles over Native and tribal treaty rights, or Indian gaming, or lake spear fishing, or history curriculums for schools, for example, persist.

See Native Web Home Page

“ Having been honest about the holocaust of the past, I want to make sure that people understand first that the main point to remember is that we [Native Americans] are still here, right now, 30 to 40 million of us strong throughout the hemisphere, and second that we will insist on a kind of cultural future that we are not willing to leave behind. We have fought hard to stay here. We are not leaving anytime soon. . . . But I also want people to understand that that 500 year holocaust, as horrible as it was, constitutes exactly 5% of the total time that we have been here. . . . Native American history went back thousands of years before that and will continue thousands of years into the future, and we want to make sure that we capture that complete picture in interpreting Native America.” Rick West, Director, Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian

Native American History: Terms to Know ( American Mosaic p.76-83) Assimilation Cultural pluralism Culture stereotypes Treaties Acculturation Cultural identity Land/property rights Tribe/nation Indian Removal Act of 1830 (p. 84-85) Trail of Tears Manifest Destiny Reservation Dawes Act of 1887 Allotment policy Curtis Act of 1898 Boarding schools Termination policy of 1953 Myth of the “vanishing Indian”

Assimilation

Cultural pluralism

Culture stereotypes

Treaties

Acculturation

Cultural identity

Land/property rights

Tribe/nation

Indian Removal Act of 1830 (p. 84-85)

Trail of Tears

Manifest Destiny

Reservation

Dawes Act of 1887

Allotment policy

Curtis Act of 1898

Boarding schools

Termination policy of 1953

Myth of the “vanishing Indian”

Wisconsin Indian Nations 2005

http:// www.mpm.edu/wirp /

Virgin Land? White accounts often describe America during the early period of contact (17 th through 19 th centuries) as a “virgin land” or “empty” or a “desert.” Maps showing the many tribes in the Americas demonstrate the fallacy of these descriptions.

White accounts often describe America during the early period of contact (17 th through 19 th centuries) as a “virgin land” or “empty” or a “desert.” Maps showing the many tribes in the Americas demonstrate the fallacy of these descriptions.

Native Numbers Population estimates show how Native peoples widely inhabited and settled the Americas.

Population estimates show how Native peoples widely inhabited and settled the Americas.

Population Estimates at Time of Contact 10-18 Million in North America 5+ Million in what is now the United States Number of Tribes More than 600 Tribes in what is now the United States Each with Distinct Language or Dialect, Form of Government, Set of Beliefs and Traditions

10-18 Million in North America

5+ Million in what is now the United States

More than 600 Tribes in what is now the

United States

Each with Distinct Language or Dialect,

Form of Government, Set of Beliefs and

Traditions

Indian Removal The following graphic shows some of the patterns of Indian Removal, in which tribes from many areas were forcibly resettled, in this example into the Indian Territory that eventually became Oklahoma.

The following graphic shows some of the patterns of Indian Removal, in which tribes from many areas were forcibly resettled, in this example into the Indian Territory that eventually became Oklahoma.

Removal to Indian Territory

Sovereignty “ It may be regarded as certain, that not a foot of land will ever be taken from the Indians, without their consent. The sacredness of their rights is felt by all thinking persons in American as much as in Europe.” Thomas Jefferson, 1786 “ So long as a tribe exists and remains in possession of its lands, its title and possession are sovereign and exclusive; and there exists no authority to enter upon their lands, for any purpose whatever, without their consent.” U. S. Attorney General’s Opinion, 1821

“ It may be regarded as certain, that not a foot of land will ever be taken from the Indians, without their consent. The sacredness of their rights is felt by all thinking persons in American as much as in Europe.” Thomas Jefferson, 1786

“ So long as a tribe exists and remains in possession of its lands, its title and possession are sovereign and exclusive; and there exists no authority to enter upon their lands, for any purpose whatever, without their consent.” U. S. Attorney General’s Opinion, 1821

Indian Nations Lost Their Lands in “Treaties” with the U.S. Government

Treaties September 17, 1778: First Indian treaty made between the United States and the Delaware Nation. The U.S. promised military aid and admission of the Delaware Nation as a state in exchange for access of U.S. troops to Delaware lands. March 3, 1871: Congress passes a law formally ending treaty making with Indian tribes. Most reservations established after 1871 were created by executive order. At least 389 Treaties were entered into with Indian Tribes by the U.S. Government. (Deloria uses the estimate of “over 400.”)

September 17, 1778: First Indian treaty made between the United States and the Delaware Nation. The U.S. promised military aid and admission of the Delaware Nation as a state in exchange for access of U.S. troops to Delaware lands.

March 3, 1871: Congress passes a law formally ending treaty making with Indian tribes. Most reservations established after 1871 were created by executive order.

At least 389 Treaties were entered into with Indian Tribes by the U.S. Government. (Deloria uses the estimate of “over 400.”)

Rationale for Dispossession “ This great continent could not have been kept as nothing but a game preserve for squalid savages.” Theodore Roosevelt

“ This great continent could not have been kept as nothing but a game preserve for squalid savages.” Theodore Roosevelt

Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt “Chief Joseph”

Boarding Schools A major weapon in the White effort at Indian assimilation were the boarding schools established by the government at the end of the 19 th century. Indian children were forcibly taken from their tribes and parents for removal to these schools, often a great distance from their families. At these schools they were forbidden to speak their native languages, wear native clothing, or practice their native religions. See Brainwashing and Boarding Schools

A major weapon in the White effort at Indian assimilation were the boarding schools established by the government at the end of the 19 th century. Indian children were forcibly taken from their tribes and parents for removal to these schools, often a great distance from their families. At these schools they were forbidden to speak their native languages, wear native clothing, or practice their native religions.

See Brainwashing and Boarding Schools

Apache Children Removed to a Boarding School

The Same Children--Acculturation

This poignant photograph, “Haskell Babies,” depicts that youngest group of children enrolled at the boarding school. Homesickness was common among students, but it must have been particularly hard for the very young children and their families to be separated for extended periods. Courtesy Kansas State Historical Society.

Tom Torlino

D’Arcy McNickle’s “Train Time” --train symbolism recalls white technological conquest of the American West --“Major Miles”…compare General Miles in Chief Joseph’s speech --“A man driving cattle through timber had it easy, he was thinking” (91)…passages in story see through Major Miles’ point of view, give fictional representation of his train of thought, and dramatize the limits of his consciousness and ideology

--train symbolism recalls white technological conquest of the American West

--“Major Miles”…compare General Miles in Chief Joseph’s speech

--“A man driving cattle through timber had it easy, he was thinking” (91)…passages in story see through Major Miles’ point of view, give fictional representation of his train of thought, and dramatize the limits of his consciousness and ideology

“ Train Time” II --“Eneas”…allusion to Aeneas, the heroic protagonist of Virgil’s epic The Aeneid . A hero of the Trojan war, he wanders in exile until establishing the foundations of the Roman Empire. --“the Agency”…name for the federal government office and lands used to supervise a Reservation and headed up by the U. S. Agent for local Indian affairs (92) --Eneas’s “loyalty to the old people” (93) a feature of Indian culture

--“Eneas”…allusion to Aeneas, the heroic protagonist of Virgil’s epic The Aeneid . A hero of the Trojan war, he wanders in exile until establishing the foundations of the Roman Empire.

--“the Agency”…name for the federal government office and lands used to supervise a Reservation and headed up by the U. S. Agent for local Indian affairs (92)

--Eneas’s “loyalty to the old people” (93) a feature of Indian culture

“ Train Time” III --“there was nothing to do” (92) vs. “he wanted to help him” (93): structural oppression vs. individual charity --“whether the boy understood what was good for him or not” (93): example of paternalism . Symbolizes how “the Great White Father” treats all Indians as children

--“there was nothing to do” (92) vs. “he wanted to help him” (93): structural oppression vs. individual charity

--“whether the boy understood what was good for him or not” (93): example of paternalism . Symbolizes how “the Great White Father” treats all Indians as children