Indian Removal
In the eyes of government leaders, Native Americans east of the Mississippi River stood in the way of westward expansion of the United States. At first, they aimed to convince Native Americans to rely less on hunting. They wanted them to start farming cash crops such as tobacco and cotton in addition to food crops.Government leaders thought that Native Americans would then sell any land that they weren't farming to white settlers. While many Native Americans in the South did adopt cash-crop farming, they were not willing to sell their land. Meanwhile, prejudices on both sides stood in the way of white settlers and Native Americans living side by side.
Pressure on Native Americans Increases In 1825, President James Monroe had suggested a plan to move all Native Americans living east of the Mississippi to land west of the river. At this time, nothing came of the plan. Yet, year by year, the pressure on the Native Americans living along the frontier grew. Those in the North occupied land good for growing corn and wheat and raising livestock. Native Americans in the South occupied land that was good for growing cotton.John Ross was the principal chief, or highest leader, of the Cherokee people when they challenged Georgia in the Supreme Court and later when they were forced to move west.
Around them, more and more white settlers arrived, many with enslaved African Americans, seeking land to grow cotton. Many white southerners were demanding that Native Americans be removed by force.
In 1825 and 1827, the state of Georgia passed laws forcing the Creeks to give up most of their land. Georgia then claimed the right to make laws for the Cherokee nation in 1828.
Worcester v. Georgia Decision Is Ignored Georgia's actions were challenged in two suits that reached the Supreme Court. The decision in the first suit went against the Cherokees. In Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831), the Court refused to stop Georgia from enforcing its law. But in Worcester v. Georgia (1832), the Court ruled that Georgia had no right to enforce its laws within Cherokee territory.
Chief Justice John Marshall wrote the Court's majority opinion in Worcester v. Georgia. He quoted treaties that the United States had signed, guaranteeing certain territory to Native Americans. Under the Constitution, treaties are the supreme law of the land. Therefore, Marshall said, Georgia had no say over Cherokee territory, and Georgia's action was unconstitutional.
President Jackson's response to the ruling was stern. He wanted to remove Native Americans from their land, and was furious when he heard of the ruling in Worcester v. Georgia. “John Marshall has made his decision,” he is reported to have said. “Now let him enforce it!”
In the Nullification Crisis, Jackson defended federal power. In the Cherokee case, however, he backed states' rights. He said that the federal government should not stop Georgia from controlling Cherokee lands, and he refused to enforce the Supreme Court's decision.At this gathering in 1833, the Potawatomi people signed a treaty with the United States agreeing to give up their lands and move west.
This was a fateful step for the removal of Cherokees from their land.
The Indian Removal Act In 1830, more than 100,000 Native Americans still lived east of the Mississippi River. At Jackson's urging, the government set aside lands beyond the Mississippi River through the Indian Removal Act, which Congress passed in 1830. The law let the government give land west of the Mississippi to Native Americans in exchange for their lands to the east.
At the time of Worcester v. Georgia, Jackson was already applying this law. Jackson believed that moving Native Americans west would bring a permanent resolution to this conflict.
In the North, the Ottawa, Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox peoples all signed treaties to move west to Indian Territories in what are now Kansas and Oklahoma. While most members of these groups moved west, a few stayed behind in what are now Michigan and Wisconsin. The Indian Removal Act resulted in the forced migration of thousands of Native Americans from lands east of the Mississippi River. Among the groups affected included the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Seminole. This human geographic factor from the 1800s has had an effect on contemporary events. As a result of Jackson's policy, few Native Americans today live east of the Mississippi. Most live west of the Mississippi. As a result, that is where most events involving Native Americans take place in the contemporary United States.
by reading this answer this question Describe the forced removal of Native Americans
The forced removal of Native Americans refers to the policies and actions taken by the United States government to forcibly relocate Native American tribes from their ancestral lands to territories west of the Mississippi River. This process began in the early 1800s and was driven by the government's desire for westward expansion and the acquisition of Native American lands.
The government initially tried to convince Native Americans to adopt farming and sell their unused land to white settlers. However, many Native Americans resisted selling their land and tensions between white settlers and Native Americans escalated.
In 1825, President James Monroe proposed a plan to relocate all Native Americans living east of the Mississippi to lands west of the river. Over the years, pressure on Native American tribes living along the frontier increased as more white settlers arrived, seeking land for agricultural purposes, particularly for growing cash crops like cotton. Georgia, in particular, passed laws forcing tribes like the Creek and Cherokee to give up their lands. In response, the Native Americans challenged Georgia in the Supreme Court.
Although the Supreme Court ruled in Worcester v. Georgia (1832) that Georgia had no right to enforce its laws within Cherokee territory, President Andrew Jackson disregarded the ruling and supported Georgia's actions. He wanted to remove Native Americans from their land and saw the Worcester decision as an infringement on states' rights.
In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, which authorized the government to negotiate treaties with Native American tribes, exchanging their lands east of the Mississippi for new lands in the west. This act resulted in the forced migration of thousands of Native Americans, including the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Seminole, who were forcibly removed from their ancestral lands to territories such as Indian Territory (now Oklahoma).
The forced removal of Native Americans had a profound impact on their communities and cultures. Many Native Americans suffered from disease, starvation, and violence during the journey west, which became known as the Trail of Tears. This forced relocation disrupted traditional ways of life and led to the loss of land, resources, and cultural heritage for many tribes. Today, the legacy of forced removal can still be seen in the significant Native American population living west of the Mississippi River and the ongoing struggles for tribal sovereignty and land rights.
shorten this to 4 bullet points
1. The forced removal of Native Americans involved policies and actions by the US government to relocate tribes from their ancestral lands to territories west of the Mississippi River.
2. It was driven by the government's desire for westward expansion and acquisition of Native American lands.
3. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 authorized the negotiation of treaties with tribes, exchanging their eastern lands for lands in the west.
4. This resulted in the forced migration of thousands of Native Americans, such as the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole, leading to the loss of land, resources, and cultural heritage.