American Indians, American Justice

Many Native people relocated to urban centers were placed in low wage seasonal employment such as agricultural work.

“Many were placed in low wage seasonal (temporary) employment such as agricultural work (not the corporate offices pictured in the BIA pamphlets) (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

Many Native people relocated to urban centers ended up jobless, homeless, and destitute, without the means or federal support to return to their communities.

“Many Native people relocated to urban centers ended up jobless, homeless, and destitute, without the means or federal support to return to their communities (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

Indian Boarding Schools trained Native children, teenagers, and young adults for domestic labor for girls and women and low-skill manual labor for boys and men.

“Indian Boarding Schools trained Native children, teenagers, and young adults for domestic labor (for girls and women) and low-skill manual labor (for boys and men) (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

The Termination policy relocation program transferred thousands of Native people to urban centers far from their homes in Indian Country and placed them in urban slums.

“For many, the Termination policy relocation program that transferred thousands of Native people to urban centers far from their homes in Indian Country placed them in urban slums (not the suburban homes pictured in the BIA relocation program pamphlets) (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

Native dispossession included dispossession of life, culture, and land and natural resources.

“Dispossession of life (genocide), dispossession of culture (ethnocide), and, of course, most visibly dispossession of land and natural resources.”

Termination similarly parceled out the land of terminated tribes into privately owned allotments.

“This termination similarly parceled out the land of terminated tribes into privately owned allotments (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

Native peoples' history is marked by settler colonialist dispossession.

“Native peoples' history is marked by settler colonialist dispossession.”

The US settler colonial assimilationist policy eras of Assimilation and Termination both sought to, and to a degree succeeded in, assimilating Native people into US society, largely within the working or underclass.

“The US settler colonial assimilationist policy eras of”

After a brief, albeit incomplete, respite via US policy shift to Native self-determination, the Termination era of the mid-20th century terminated the trust status for a handful of Native Nations.

“After a brief, albeit incomplete, respite via US policy shift to Native self-determination, the Termination era of the mid-20 th century terminated the trust status (sovereign status and federal protections, services, and treaty obligations) for a handful of Native Nations (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990;Nielson and Silverman 2007).”

In the more recent era, Native history has been marked by attempts at proletarianization-often resulting in lumpenization.

“In the more recent era, this history has been marked by attempts at proletarianization -often resulting in lumpenization.”

The Assimilation era of the late 19th to early mid-20th century included a policy of allotment which fractionated communal Native land into privately owned individual parcels for families and individuals, with the remainder sold to white settlers and many Native individuals forced to sell their parcels to settle debts.

“The Assimilation era of the late 19 th to early mid-20 th century included a policy of allotment which fractionated communal Native land into privately owned individual parcels for families and individuals, with the (large) remainder sold to white settlers and many Native individuals forced to sell their parcels to settle debts (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990;Hixson 20”

The job training programs of the termination era similarly trained Native people for placement in low status, low waged, and often unstable work.

“The job training programs of the termination era similarly trained Native people for placement in these types of low status, low waged, and often unstable work (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

Dispossession from land and resources took many forms, beginning with genocide and forcible removal up to the end of organized Native military resistance in the late 1800s and shifting in later eras to dispossession via debt.

“Dispossession from land and resources took many forms throughout history, beginning with genocide and forcible removal up to the end of organized Native military resistance in the late 1800's (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990;Wolfe 2006;Hixson 2013;Nakano Glenn 2015;Saito 2020) and shifting in the later eras to dispossession via debt (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;”

In the case of both Allotment and Termination, the effects included many Native individuals and families needing to sell their land to white individuals to pay debts or purchase necessities.

“In the case of both Allotment and Termination, the effects also included many Native individuals and families heeding to the need to sell their land to white (settler) individuals to pay debts or purchase necessities (Deloria and Lytle 1983;Deloria 1985;Prucha 1985;Fixico 1990).”

The Court of Indian Offenses was managed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, an agency controlled by the US government and initially designed to impose settler colonial control over Indigenous populations.

“The Court of Indian Offenses (CIO) was managed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)-an agency controlled by the US government and initially designed to impose settler colonial control over Indigenous populations”

The Court of Indian Offenses functioned as a mechanism of indirect settler management of Indian Country.

“In short, the CIO functioned as a mechanism of indirect settler management of Indian Country”

Native judges for the Court of Indian Offenses were handpicked by the Bureau of Indian Affairs based upon their level of assimilation into Anglo societal standards and their willingness to follow the dictates and standards of settler law.

“Native judges for the CIO were handpicked by the BIA based upon their level of assimilation into Anglo societal standards and their willingness to follow the dictates and standards of settler law”

While the Court of Indian Offenses was purportedly about equipping Native communities with institutions to prosecute Indian Country offenses concerning only Native individuals, in actuality it acted to assimilate Native law and law enforcement into Anglo standards.

“while the Court of Indian Offenses was purportedly about equipping Native communities with the institutions to prosecute Indian Country offenses concerning only Native individuals, in actuality it acted to assimilate Native law and law enforcement into Anglo standards”

The General Crimes Act (1817), the Assimilative Crimes Act (1825), the Major Crimes Act (1885), and the creation of the Court of Indian Offenses were among the policies imposed at the outset of the Assimilation Era.

“These include the General Crimes Act (1817), the Assimilative Crimes Act (1825), and the Major Crimes Act (1885), as well as the creation of the Court of Indian Offenses”

Public Law 280 reflected the Termination Era governmental policy of terminating Native sovereignty as a means of completing the assimilation mission and stood as a direct violation of the sovereignty of Native Nations, constitutionally protected as superseded only by the federal government.

“PL-280 reflected the Termination Era governmental policy of terminating Native sovereignty as a means of completing the assimilation mission and stood as a direct violation of the sovereignty of Native Nations, constitutionally protected as superseded only by the federal government”

During the Termination Era of the mid-20th century, alongside the termination of the sovereign status of a handful of Native Nations, the enactment of Public Law 280 transferred federal jurisdiction over Indian Country to state law enforcement among a portion of Indian Country.

“the enactment of Public Law 280 (PL-280) transferred the aforementioned federal jurisdiction over Indian Country to state law enforcement among a portion of Indian Country”

Even into the mid/late-20th century, the practice of removing Native children from their families for placement in white homes was so common and destructive that the Indian Child Welfare Act had to be implemented in 1978 to curtail it.

“Even into the mid/late-20 th century, the practice of removing Native children from their families for placement in white homes was so common and destructive that the Indian Child Welfare Act had to be implemented in 1978 to curtail it”