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Indian Removal was a policy of the US Government to move the Native Americans of the Five Civilized
Tribes from their homelands in the southeastern United States to
Indian Territory, far to the west of the Mississippi River. This was a distance of from a few hundred to 1000
miles depending on the starting location of the tribe. Indian Removal occurred largely during the 1830s under president Andrew Jackson, who had been a
notable military campaigner in a war against the Creek.
The number who died during forced relocations is estimated at around 4,000. Some, such as the Seminoles, engaged in lengthy warfare to resist removal. Especially
vulnerable were the old, the sick, and the young. This forced movement became known as the Trail of Tears. There are horrifying stories carried down to this day by the descendants of the trailwalkers
about brutal treatment by government soldiers, the horrible starvation and cold, and disease and death.
Strangely enough, some escaped removal. For example, the Choctaw Nation of Mississippi is one of the
state's largest employers in its gaming casinos. Many individuals and
small groups escaped from the process, forming, among others, the Eastern Band Cherokee, based in North Carolina.
The Indian Removal was declared illegal by the United States Supreme Court, but the US government ignored the court's decision. After
the decision was handed down by Chief Justice John Marshall,
President Andrew Jackson famously said:
"John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it!"
The horrible mistreatment of the indigenous population and the practice of slavery
are considered two of the largest stains on the history of the United
States.
Big Mountain 1996 - 2004
- It is generally believed that the abuse and Genocide of Americian Indians is something that happened long ago [1]
[2] . However, between 1996 and
2004 there have been thousands of Indian deaths [3] [4] [5] as a result of a forced relocation
from an area the size of Rhode Island. These deaths are the result of three factors:
- Many Indian peoples are spritually connected to their land to such an extent that relocation causes them severe psychological
harm.[6] They simply give up the will to live.
- The land to which they are being forced to relocate is contaminated from a massive radioactive spill.[7] The land is extremely toxic with
radiation levels as much as 100 times [8] what is considered safe.
- Starvation; many of the people are subsistence farmers, wholly dependent upon their animals and crops. In many cases, their
animals [9] have been confiscated and they have been moved onto land that is
not amenable to farming.[10]
- This great travesty and miscarriage of justice is all happening for the purpose of a British owned coal mine.[11]
- 1996 - Short History of Big Mountain - Black Mesa ("Genocide For Profit") [12]
See also
External Links
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