The Treaty Era and Reservation Era: Crash Course Native American History Ep. 11

The Wounded Knee Occupation and Treaty Rights

• 🎯 In 1973, 200 indigenous protesters occupied Wounded Knee, demanding the US government honor its treaty obligations with native nations.
• ✊ The occupation, lasting 71 days, brought significant attention to the cause of treaty rights and native sovereignty.

The Treaty Era: Coercion and Broken Promises

• 📜 Between the mid-18th and mid-19th centuries, the US entered into nearly 400 treaties with native nations, often under coercion.
• 🗺️ These treaties frequently involved changing tribal borders and removing Native Americans from their lands as colonists expanded westward.
• 💔 When treaties did not favor the US, the government often disregarded them, leading to a pattern of broken promises.

The Reservation Era: Land Allocation and Control

• 🏠 The period between 1850 and 1887, known as the Reservation Era, saw the formation and scaling up of reservations.
• 🏞️ Tribes were often forced to relocate to these specific, allocated portions of land.
• 🚫 In 1871, Congress officially ended the treaty-making process, making it harder for native nations to enforce existing agreements.

Historical Context: Land, Revolution, and Removal

• 💡 Early interactions, like the sale of Manhattan, highlight cultural misunderstandings regarding land ownership, with Europeans viewing it as permanent sale and native cultures often seeing it as communal use or lease.
• ⚔️ During and after the American Revolution, treaties often focused on peace and land exchange, but the US frequently failed to uphold its end of the bargain.
• 🚶 The Indian Removal Act of 1830 led to the forced relocation of approximately 100,000 Native Americans, most notably the Trail of Tears, resulting in thousands of deaths.

The Legacy of Wounded Knee and Ongoing Struggles

• 📉 The US government's discovery of natural resources on treaty lands led to the reduction of reservation territories, as seen with the Great Sioux Reservation.
• 🌾 Life on reservations was challenging due to factors like drought, difficult farming conditions, the near extinction of the buffalo, and restrictions on traditional practices.
• 💥 The 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, where US forces killed over 300 Lakota, underscored the violent suppression of native peoples.
• ✊ The 1973 Wounded Knee occupation reignited the fight for recognition of native treaty rights, which remains a crucial strategy for native nations seeking land return and justice.