Indian Civil Rights Act

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Since the founding of the United States, natives of the Americas have found it difficult to find solutions for their grievances in the American court system.
Their primary reason had to do with the law.
The law did not care that Native American tribes were considered separate nations, or that the citizens of the tribes were not citizens of the United States.

The ICRA authorized federal courts to enforce the protection of those rights.
Some American Indians resent that aspect of the law because they see it as an infringement on tribal sovereignty.

In the 1960s, the United States Congress decided to review the nature and authority of tribal governments.
To aid tribal members in seeking equal representation and equality under the law, the Indian Civil Rights Act was passed in 1968.
The law grants certain rights to all persons under tribal jurisdiction.
Another provision protected tribal members from improper search and seizure of property.
There were also several provisions that provided tribal members with a quick and speedy trial, a trial by their peers, due process of the law, and no double jeopardy.

The Indian Civil Rights Act (ICRA)

They occupied the prison island of Alcatraz in San Francisco to protest the conditions on American Indian reservations.
The incident raised tensions between American Indian activists and the federal government.

From 1969 through 1973, clashes again erupted between Native Americans and the white establishment.
A politically and socially active group emerged that called itself the American Indian Movement.
AIM members began demanding equal rights for all Native Americans in the United States.
After centuries of trying to attain equal status through legal and political means, this faction of American Indians became more radical.
In 1969, AIM activists rallied against the second-class status of American Indians in the United States.

AIM

Some AIM activities involved violence, which soured public opinion.
Even considering some of the brutal protests in AIM's history, the organization shows the powerful impact that collective action can have on current politics.

On Thanksgiving Day in 1970, as Boston was marking the 350th anniversary of the Pilgrims arriving in North America, activists from AIM seized a replica of the Mayflower.
The following year, AIM members briefly occupied Mount Rushmore.
In 1973, AIM took control of the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota for 71 days.
AIM activists were threatened with violence by other Sioux living on Pine Ridge.
Through AIM, individuals such as Dennis Banks, Russell Means, Leonard Peltier, and numerous others came to national and international prominence as they worked for equality.

AIM (continued)

The protest would be called the "Trail of Broken Treaties," referring to both the Trail of Tears and the government's broken promises.
The group included influential AIM members Dennis Banks and Russell Means, as well as representatives from Indian rights organizations like the National Indian Youth Council, the National Indian Lutheran Board, and the American Indians Rights Fund.

In the summer of 1972 at the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, a powerful protest began during a gathering of the tribes for the Sun Dance ritual.
Leonard Crow Dog, the meeting's host, was the spiritual leader of the American Indian Movement.
Robert Burnette, a leader of the Rosebud Sioux tribe, presented his idea of staging a protest.
Burnette wanted to use the 1972 presidential election to spotlight American Indian concerns.
The presidential candidates would have to address their situation-if the protesters could grab their attention.

Trail of Broken Treaties

They were joined by hundreds of other protesters along the way.
Since 1824, the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) had been the source of much grief and frustration for the tribes.
A few isolated incidents on the road had shown the mood of the protesters was becoming volatile.
The caravan's vehicles jammed the streets around the BIA building, and hundreds of protesters crowded at its doors.
The protesters filled the seats, and a tense dialogue with BIA officials ensued.
After hours of discussion that went nowhere, the American Indians became frustrated and then angry.
Finally, at the 5 p.m. closing time, security guards requested they vacate the building.
The demonstrators took over the BIA building and renamed it the American Indian Embassy.

In early October 1972, the Trail of Broken Treaties caravan set out from three sites on the West Coast.
Three leaders, each bearing a sacred pipe and accompanied by drummers, were to meet on October 23 in Minnesota.
The paper explained AIM's philosophy of land reform, the proposed modification of the treaty process, and a list of long-unaddressed grievances.
The paper demanded the government recognize the sovereignty of individual tribes and honor the treaties it had violated.
With this document in hand, the three groups united in one caravan and headed east.

Trail of Broken Treaties (continued)

AIM leaders negotiated an agreement with government officials, who promised to appoint a task force.
Government officials also agreed not to take legal action against the demonstrators for the felony crime of seizing a federal building.
BIA officials found later that angry vandals had destroyed its records department.
Its breakdown of control during the BIA occupation gave AIM bad publicity and embarrassed its members.

Trail of Broken Treaties (continued)

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