Indian Removal and the Trail of Tears

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Aim How does the Indian Removal and the Trail of
Tears portray U.S. treatment of Native Americans?
Do Now Copy Vocabulary Below

• Indian Removal Act of 1830- Federal government
  forced Native Americans to move west. Most moved
  to Texas and Oklahoma
• Worcester v. Georgia (1832) Supreme Court, still
  led by Chief Justice John Marshall, ruled that
  Cherokee land could not be invaded
• Trail of Tears- In 1838, U.S. Army troops forced
  the 20,000 remaining Cherokee were to move. Most
  of the 800-mile trip was made on foot. Their
  money and livestock was stolen along the way.
  More than one-quarter died during the journey

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Task 1 Read the poem, Trail of Tears and
complete questions 1-3
TRAIL OF TEARS There's a trail of tearsFlowing
from our homelandWashing out the yearsDrowning
out the red man.There's a broken heartbeating
like a funeral drum,A nation torn apart,So one
can be born. There's a memoryThat the eagle
holds highWhen we were freeAs the wind in the
sky.There's a feeling insideThat stirs our
madnessTo have a chosen lifeIn the fields of
sadness. There are some empty teepeesFalling
into dustLike an endangered speciesWe're losing
way too muchWe are a world forgottenPushed
aside and left aloneBut comes a time when we
will rise again.Oh Great One, hear our prayers
and our song.
QUESTIONS 1. What is the tone of this poem? What
examples can you use to show your point of
view? 2. What inference can you make about the
identity of the author? 3. What story is the
author telling the reader?
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Copy notes into your notebook

• Attitudes toward Native Americans
• Convert them to Christianity, turn them into
  farmers, and absorb them into white culture
• Force them to move off their land so white
  settlers could have it
• Southeastern Tribes
• Cherokee, Choctaw, Seminole, Creek, and Chicksaw
• Called five civilized tribes because
• they adopted European culture
• White farmers and miners wanted
• their land

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Colonists Move West
As the population grew, the colonists pushed
farther west into the territories occupied by the
American Indians.
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Inevitably, this movement led to clashes over
land.
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Indian Removal, 1920 -1840
Jackson saw Indian Removal as an opportunity to
provide for the needs of the white farmers and
businessmen. He also claimed that removal was
also in the best interest of the Indians. Why?
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Congress forces Indians to move west of the
Mississippi
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Indian Removal Act

• President Jackson pushes Congress to force
  Indians to move west of the Mississippi
• Congress established Indian Territory (now
  Oklahoma) as the new Indian homeland
• US govt creates Bureau of Indian Affairs

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U.S. Quick Quiz
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Read, Trail of Tears The Cherokee Are Forced
West and complete questions 1-4

1. Why did the U.S government decide to remove the
   Native Americans in 1830, as to opposed before
   that date?
2. What do you think the government meant when it
   called the Cherokees one of the five civilized
   tribes?
3. Explain why some of the Cherokee wanted to sign
   the treaty and move to Oklahoma.
4. Once the Cherokee arrived in Oklahoma, why do you
   think they suffered internal turmoil?

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Watch Short Video Clip

• Video on Andrew Jacksons Controversial Decisions
  
• Indian Removal Act and South Carolina
  Nullification

• Answer Questions as best you can, using your
  prior knowledge, readings, notes and the video

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(No Transcript)
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(No Transcript)
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Ross
Jackson
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- John C. Calhoun
One of the greatest evils to which they
(Indians) are subject is the incessant (constant)
pressure of our population.

1. According to John C. Calhoun, why is the US
   government forcing the Native Americans to move
   off of their homelands?
2. What is wrong with this statement?

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Cherokee Indians

• Lived peacefully in the Appalachian Mountains of
  Georgia and Tennessee
• Adopted culture of whites - wrote and spoke
  English
• Had own written language and newspaper
• Based their government on the U.S. Constitution

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Cherokee Sue For Land

• Cherokee sued the government of Georgia for
  taking their land
• Worcester vs. Georgia - Supreme Court rules
  Georgias actions are illegal and that the
  Cherokee can stay

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President Andrew Jackson
Chief Justice John Marshall has made his
decision. Now let him enforce it.

1. What is the job of the Supreme Court?
2. What is the job of the President?
3. What should happen if a government official
   refuses to do his job?

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• US troops move 18,000 Cherokee at gunpoint 800
  miles from 1838-1839
• 25 of Cherokee died - most elderly and children

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U.S. troops force Cherokee west at gunpoint
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Summary

•  Reflection Journal Writing
• Imagine you are a Native American on the Trail of
  Tears. Write a 1-2 paragraph journal entry
  describing how you feel about the removal and
  describing your experiences during your journey.
  
• Be sure to include the name of your tribe, where
  your native lands are, and where you are being
  relocated to.

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Class work

• Working in groups of 3, read Documents 1-3
• Read Question FIRST
• Answer questions in complete sentences.

• Student A Read Document
• Student B Answer Questions as partner is reading
• Take turns switching roles for each document
  Student A?B