Raical Oppression and categorization in US historym 1776-1940 continued

Categorization of American Indians in ealry US history Lecture 3 part 3

Categorization of American Indians in ealry US history (1776-1940)

what reading relates to this?

• Cornell and Hartmann

• Out group categorization as “indians”

  • at the time the term indian was used to describe all indigenous people in N.A

  • later int eh 20th century the word american was added to specify people who claim ancestry in north america and not from india

  • not a category that native tribes identified with

• Tribes and Tribal identity

  • how ingroup categorized themselves was centered around tribes

  • native people had more localized tribal or location based identity

  • indigenous peoples retained distinct tribal identities during this period

how did white people gain land?

• white people gained land by expelling tribes from lands and killing indigenous inhabitants

  • contrast with the exploitation of black people

  • white people wer enot interested int heir labor but rather their land

  • in some cases, these expulsions were given legal legitimacy by creating treaties between the US government and the tribes

  • however these treated were usually under the threat of violence

  • they signed removal policies

  • Trial of Tears: forced deportation where people died.

  • use of violence to get the land

what happened in 1778-1871

• The treaty period (1778 - 1871) 

  • treaties formally recognized existence of (some) tribes

    • over 300 treaties signed

    • by making these treaties with leaders of tribes they formally recognized their existence

  • treaties provided legal means of expelling tribes from land

    • the government was able to claim that the tribe legally agreed to go somewhere else

  • citizenship granted to only a small number of indians

    • this was true even after the passing of the 14th amendment (birthright citizenship)

    • even after this point american indians were not eligable for citizenship because they were treated as a foreign nation

    • some found no interest in ebcoming citizens because doing so involved assimilation and the distruction of indigenous culture

  • the reservation system

    • developmet of reservations

    • they could not leave these reservations or travel outside in some cases

    • in some cases they were forced to move to reservations far from their native lands

what happened in the period of 1887-1934? what was the goal?

what act was passed in 1934?

What occured in the period of 1887-1940?

• The Allotment Period (1887-1934)

  • Divided reservations into family plots

    • previously reservations were seen as belonging to a collective groups

    • congress attempted to break down the reservations and convert them into individual private property

    • groups owned specific plots of land

  • intended to break up tribes and transfer even more land to white owners

    • oriented around the notion that indians should be forcibly assimilated

    • along with this policy comes the US government support for indian bording schools

    • more oppertunities for people to buy land because it belongs to individuals and not the whole tribes

• 1934 indian recognition act

  • ended allotment policy and empowered tribal governments

    • shift back to policies that are more favorable to maintaining the existing of tribes

    • where they can pass constitutions and have legal recognition from federal government as having authority

• gradual extension of citizenship to all American Indians 1887 - 1940

  • grant citizenship to those who meet the specific criteria

    • there were then disputes of citizenship status born after 1924

    • however they pass the naitonality act in 1940

    • birthright citizenship isnt fully in affect until 1940 even though the 14th amendment was already passed

Official Categorization of People with American Indian Ancestry

Was there an official definition in early US history? Why?

What Was the allotment period?

What did tribes begin to do?

what act was passed in 1934? what were the criteria

What is the contrast with the one drop rule?

• early US history - no consistent definition

  • there wasnt a process description that legally and specifically said who mounted as memmers of tribes

  • in the later 19th century as congress gets to regulate indian land ownership and sales is used the notion of blood quantum in its sales to deliniate who got an allotment

• allotment period : congress began to use blood quantum minimums in its indian policies

  • you have to have a certain amount to qualify

  • in this period one of the things they want to do is ensure that only “true” indians got allotments

  • this was because there were adopted members of tribes

  • tribal identity was not always about ancestry

  • they didnt want white people from being part of tribes

  • therefore to get an allotment you had to prove that you were part of this tribe

  • they also used it as a way to determine who can sell allotments because at this time they were seen as not civilized or smart enough to sell their lands

  • about restricting eligibility to restrict them from some claim to resources

• most tribes also set blood quantum minimums

  • done under influence of the US government

  • they had some say of the rules to determine membership

  • cultural influence to identify identity on a biological term and not culutral terms

• Indian reorganization Act (1934): defined who counted as “indian”

• blood quantum rule came in

• had 3 different criterion

  • One criterion: having ½ or more “indian blood”

    • therefore they have the ability to deny indian status/identitiy to various people

    • this policy has the power to say that a certain population that defines themselves as native american arent actually native american

  • contrast with the one drop rule

    • it is different from the one drop rule for black people because in this rule they just needed ANY amount of African ancestry

    • but to define someone as indian they created standards

    • probably : these difefrent racial classification rules are reflectvive of the interest of white people 

    • Because inthis time period white people have a disproportionaete amount of power and propose their ideas of race 

    • Think back to differences between the relationships between black and white peopel vs. white amdericans and indian americnas 

    • White peple initially had an interest in exploitng black poeple 

    • Even after raical slavery becomes ilegal you still have the shareroping system and segregated economic arrangements 

    • In this arrangement of one group benefiting from another group the group thats expoloiting has an interests in maintaining the existence of the exploited group

    • This interest in maintaining a large supply of exploitable laborers goes along with the development of the one drop rule 

    • Created as a way of ensuring that the offspring of slave owners were considered black and enslaved 

    • About prevening people without mixed ancestry from moving out of the exploited category 

    • In contrast 

    • White americans never are dependent on the labor of indigenous people to the extent of black people 

    • Partially cause theres fewer and more difficult to enslave 

    • They wanted their land not their labor 

    • In the process of seizing the land they made treaties and agreed to recognize some of their claims 

    • Later on in lat 19th century the government thinks of themselves as playing the role of a protective parent nurturing people that are wild and uncivilized 

    • But theres also a notion that native people have claims to the land 

    • Because of that the american state had an incentive to minimize th enumber of people who can claim the land 

    • They find ways to count fewer people as indian 

    • Helped tranfering more landpower to white people