Cherokee removal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cherokee removal - Essay Example The removal has been regarded as a tragic incident in the history of Cherokee nation. They called it Nu Na da ul Tsum yi in their own language that mans a place where they cried. During the Indian removal efforts there were several other nations also removed from the American South and other regions including Choctaws, Chickasaws and Creek Indians etc. The Cherokee nation resisted against the removal efforts and also hired some lawyers to combat with this forces relocation but eventually they had to leave their homes in South and were forcefully moved towards North America. The removal of Cherokees was result of passage of Indian Removal Act by Congress in 1830 in which the federal government was given the power to forcefully relocate any Native American nation from east to west side of the country. The act also affirms that the Native Americans have to be compensated for the removal but in practical the process was not undertook very fairly and the most of the eastern tribes had to face high level of ethnic discrimination from the authorities that eventually caused decline in their numbers (Perdue and Green, p127). The Cherokees were inhabited in Georgia since the 1791 treaty with the U.S government but after the discovery of gold in that place, the government decided to reside white people in Georgia. In 1830, the whites reclaimed their lands but they had to face strong protest from the Cherokees who took the case of the U.S Supreme Court where the decision came out in their favour. In 1838, the U.S. President and Congress forced Native Americans to leave their lands and settle down in their new homes in Indian Territory. Almost one third population of Cherokee nation was died during this process due to which this incident is also referred as Trail of Tears in the history of United States. The efforts of Indian removal were backed by the thought that the Native Americans including Cherokees settled in Georgia and other south states are barrier in the way of p rogress of the nation and it is imperative to remove these people from these lands to carry on the process of development and progression. The government of U.S negotiated with some tribes and convinced them to leave their lands and move towards the other territory however, the Cherokee nation refused and condemn the policy of U.S government and announced their strong opposition for this decision. In 1823, there was a decision made by Supreme Court in which it was decided that the Indians only have the right to occupy lands in US but they don’t have right to hold the title for these lands because their right of occupancy is not powerful as the US right of discovery. It was a great threat to the Indians and the Cherokees responded towards this policy with great concern and worried. They formulated the policies of restricting the sale of the land to the government so that they could protect it from going into the hands of the government and white people. \ The Cherokees adopted several nonviolent policies in response to the US Indian removal policies. They has several options in front of them however they adopted Anglo American practice and got involved in some constructive activities and developments like large scale farming, seeking western education and slave holding etc. As a result of these efforts they were regarded as the civilized Indian tribe however, these steps made the whites indignant