The Termination Act and Relocation Program Explained: Crash Course Native American History

Federal Indian Policy Shifts

• 💡 The US federal government's policies towards Native Nations have historically oscillated between supporting their existence and attempting to erase them.
• 🎯 The 1950s marked a return to assimilation tactics with the Relocation and Termination Era, aiming to absorb distinct Native cultures into the dominant American culture.

Urban Indian Relocation Program

• 🚀 The Urban Indian Relocation Program of 1952 encouraged tribal members to move to major cities, promising jobs, housing, and education.
• 🏠 The Indian Relocation Act later offered financial assistance for moving costs, job training, and health insurance, but often led to Native Americans leaving their communities and cultures.
• 🏙️ This program was seen as assimilation 2.0, with the government hoping Native people would disappear into urban populations.

The Termination Act

• 📜 In 1953, Congress passed the Termination Act, declaring Native Americans subject to the same laws and privileges as other US citizens.
• ⚠️ In practice, this meant the end of federally recognized sovereignty, the dissolution of reservations, the termination of tribal governments, and the cessation of federal support.
• 💰 The government sought to cut costs by ending its nation-to-nation relationship with tribes and avoiding treaty obligations.

Impact on the Menominee Tribe

• 🎯 The Menominee tribe was one of the first targeted for termination in 1954, despite having recently won a legal battle and receiving a significant settlement.
• 🗳️ A vote on accepting their settlement money was manipulated by Senator Arthur V. Watkins, attaching a provision that led to termination.
• 📉 Termination resulted in the transfer of tribal property to Monomony Enterprises, Inc., and the reservation became Monomin County, leading to the closure of its hospital, deterioration of services, and financial ruin.

Broader Effects and Resistance

• 💔 The termination policy affected 109 nations, impacting 1.3 million acres of land and cutting off 11,000 people from federal recognition and support.
• 🚶 Between 1950 and 1968, over 200,000 Native Americans relocated to cities, often facing scarce jobs, discrimination, and social isolation.
• 💪 Despite devastating effects, Native-led efforts led to the restoration of the Menominee tribe in 1973, a policy innovation termed "restoration."
• ✊ Other tribes, like the Klamath and Gabina Tongba, have also fought for and regained recognition, though many remain unrecognized.