Happy Native American Citizenship Day
June 2, 1924 - 102 years ago - gads - in our own country.
INDIAN CITIZENSHIP ACT of 1924
And who else will help us through this mess of being an "outsider" to the country you have lived in for over 20.000 years???
June 2, 1924 - 102 years ago - gads - in our own country.
The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 (also known as the Snyder Act) is a landmark piece of U.S. legislation signed by President Calvin Coolidge on June 2, 1924. It granted full U.S. citizenship to all Native Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States.
Universal Birthright: Prior to this act, citizenship was only available to Native Americans through specific circumstances, such as military service, marriage, or abandoning tribal affiliations through land allotment. This act made citizenship universal for all Indigenous people born in the U.S.
Dual Citizenship: Crucially, the act declared that granting U.S. citizenship did not impair or affect an individual's rights to tribal or other property. Native Americans became citizens of the United States, their respective states, and their sovereign tribal nations.
The legislation was largely pushed through Congress in recognition of the thousands of Native Americans who voluntarily served in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War I.
The Right to Vote: While the 1924 Act granted citizenship, it did not automatically guarantee the right to vote. Voting was governed by state law. Several states actively barred Native Americans from voting through discriminatory measures, literacy tests, or claims that individuals living on reservations were not "residents."
It took decades for all states to comply. For instance, states like Arizona and New Mexico did not grant Native Americans the right to vote until lawsuits overturned their restrictions in 1948. It was not until 1957 that Maine, the last holdout state, allowed Native Americans on reservations to vote.
Today, American Indians and Alaska Natives hold triple citizenship: they are citizens of the United States, the states where they reside, and the federally recognized sovereign tribes to which they belong. The ongoing legal and civic implications of this act are monitored by organizations like the Native American Rights Fund, which advocates for Indigenous voting rights and political representation.
And you thought you have it rough.
I'm celebrating.
Glad to see that I don't have to "Flag/tag" anyone today on this important story.
I'll wait a 'bit longer.
I've always been of the opinion that Native Americans (in Canada The First Nations) were more entitled to citizenship than anyone else.
Especially with the courts ruling that the nations/tribes hold "Aboriginal Title" to their lands - which can only be abrogated by Congress - redundancy, eh?
Compare with Canada
LINK - Enfranchisement of First Nations peoples | Library and Archives Canada Blog
1876 - ALL of Canada
In the lower 48, it is/was called "Assimilation" - mostly "you don't and you will die - and remember we own you".
Congratulations, I guess? I mean, it sucks that it took so long or that it was ever a question to begin with. Simply bewildering that Maine held out so long.
Great. I wish to say more. . . and to be honest, I do not know what to say other than Happy Native American Citizenship. (I do have more to say. . . just not sure if this is the right occasion to do so!)
This makes for a unique citizenship in the United States; how does this work in practice (versus theory)? What are the benefits to Native Americans? What are the limitations or 'side issues' discovered?
Short recap from the American Indian College Fund
Indian Nations Sovereignty 101
How many federally recognized Indian Tribes/Alaska Native Nations are there?
As of 2023, the federal government recognizes 574 Indian Tribes and Alaska Native entities in the United States, according to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Federal recognition acknowledges the government-to-government status a Tribe has with the United States and provides for federal services resulting from treaties signed with those Nations.
In addition to holding citizenship in their Native Nations, American Indians are also citizens of the United States. Native Americans achieved citizenship status in 1924.
Are Indigenous Nations similar? Native Tribes are culturally distinct. The best comparison would be contiguous European or African nations with different cultures, languages, and traditions.
What is the definition of Indian nation sovereignty? Federally recognized Tribes (also called Indian or Native nations) are self-governing—or sovereign nations—by Congress. Because Indian tribes are recognized by the federal government as political entities with sovereign political status in the U.S. Constitution; they are not seen as persons of a particular race. The relevant section of the Constitution is Article I, which deals with the legislative powers granted to Congress. Article I Section 8 of the Constitution affords Congress the power “… to regulate commerce with foreign nations…and with the Indian tribes.”
Can any Tribe be federally recognized? Many Native Nations were recognized by treaty-making in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today, there is a rigorous application process to attain federal recognition. The federal agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the U.S. Department of the Interior maintains a directory of federally recognized Tribes.
How does tribal sovereignty work? Three Supreme Court rulings in the 1800s affirmed the doctrine of tribal sovereignty. It recognizes the right of Native nations to self-govern and run their internal affairs as so-called “domestic, dependent nations.” It also prevents states from interfering with these rights while allowing Congress to override Native nations’ authority.
Sovereignty is a fundamental principle of the U.S. Constitution with increasing legal significance for Native nations. The United States recognizes the Tribes’ rights to form their own governments, determine membership criteria for their nations, administer justice, levy taxes, establish businesses, and regulate the use of Indian land (reservations), resources, and the conduct of tribal members on their territory.
Do states have jurisdiction over American Indians on reservation lands located within their borders? States do not have civil or criminal jurisdiction in Indian country unless Congress delegates it, or the federal courts determine it exists. A recent example would be the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, adopted by Congress, which requires tribes and states to enter compacts or agreements before gambling operations can open on Indian land.
Are Indians American citizens? Yes. American Indians have dual citizenship as tribal members and as American citizens. Congress extended citizenship to American Indians in 1924.
Can American Indians vote? American Indians and Alaska Natives have the same right to vote as other American citizens. They vote in local, state, federal, and tribal elections. Each Native Nation has the right to determine its criteria for eligible voters in tribal elections.
Do Native Americans pay state or federal taxes? Native people pay the same taxes as other American citizens, with these exceptions:
What are treaties? From 1777 to 1871, U.S. relations and Indian Nations negotiated legally binding agreements called treaties. These treaties, or agreements, between tribal governments and the United States, transferred and created property rights and service obligations. The United States signed 371 treaties with American Indian Tribes, usually to gain land rights.
What agreements did the treaties contain? The treaties often promised Indians protection, goods, services, self-governing rights, and a tribal homeland in exchange for their cooperation and retained interest in acres of their homelands.
Why did European settlers sign treaties with the Tribes? Tribes were powerful because of their military strength and knowledge of the land. Colonists also knew that under European law, land transactions required legal documentation.
Why did Tribes agree to enter treaties with the federal government? Indian Nations entered into agreements rather than losing more tribal members to war and disease.
Were the treaties broken? The federal government has broken all treaties signed with Native nations. Conflicting federal policy and court rulings resulted in Native people losing some of their civil rights and lands. An early example of a broken treaty resulted in the Trail of Tears, the forced march of 14,000 Cherokees from Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee, to Oklahoma, despite a 1791 treaty granting the Cherokee a permanent homeland. About 4,000 Cherokee people —mostly babies, children, and elders — died from starvation, exposure, and disease.
What is a trust responsibility? The federal Indian trust responsibility is one of the more important principles in federal Indian law. The United States has a legally enforceable, fiduciary obligation to protect tribal lands, assets, resources, and treaty rights of Indian Nations.
Are treaties still valid? The federal government stopped entering treaties with Indian Tribes in 1871, however, signed treaties stay in effect unless superseded by acts of Congress or other treaties.
Do treaties grant Native Americans special rights today? In the Pacific Northwest, treaties grant Tribes the right to hunt, fish, and gather food as their ancestors did. On all reservations, treaties stipulate the federal government must grant Tribes access to K-12 education and medical care.
good information
Best condensation (condensing??) I could come up with
John - as you know, there is so much out there that folks have little to no knowledge regarding Native Americans and most of them haven't a clue about the resources that are available - if they were just given guidance and assistance.
I totally agree - Native Americans are the most neglected group in the country.
Good information. . . not sure that it answered my 'concern' though. For example: In practice, if I visit an Indian casino. . . it's on a reservation. . . even though I never (feel) or even discern that I have entered a reservation. (No noticeable identifying signage or cultural reference seen). . . if I would be stopped for say, speeding. . . who would be doing the stoppage? Indian "police" or state police?
Though I have never had such an 'encounter,' I would imagine if I saw some vehicle attempting to pull me over that was unfamiliar to me (even with appropriate lightning) I might balk at stopping for it.
Just one of many things that I do not understand in a practical sense about Native American citizenship and its. . .uniqueness.
Nevermind, I will read your 7 below.
Hate to bring it up to you, but you will always be unable to use "practical sense" with Native American issues - too many varieties of law prevent that.
Short explanation of your example - the incident "could be" covered by three legal jurisdictions - Nation/Tribal - Federal - State.
Casinos don't have to be on reservations, so there is no signage to advise you that you are now on "Indian Trust Land" where the casino was built. However, even without the signage, most people realize they are on tribal "Trust" lands which, for the most part, are under the legal jurisdiction of the Nation/Tribe.
Nation/Tribal law enforcement would "normally" have jurisdiction within the parameters of the "Trust Lands" properties. However, since the property is still "owned" by the Feds, the BIA/FBI there would be jurisdiction concerns on some potential issues - but speeding on the properties aren't one of them.
Under the "Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010", some states are authorized to "work with" the Nations/Tribes on their jurisdictional issues. On the casino property, for the most part, there is no state involvement UNLESS the offending individual had been speeding on state property prior to entering the casino property. In that case, the Nation/Tribe would assist the state by stopping and retaining until the state authorities arrived.
Even though the Feds have ultimate "control" there is/would be a very small chance of them being involved in a speeding issue.
Believe me, regarding the lighting, when a Nation/Tribal LEO were to pull you over for speeding, you would definitely be aware that they are Nation/Tribal and the they have every legal right to issue tickets and even detain you as required by their jurisdictional authority..
Okay. I think if we are to understand our brethren in this unique set of circumstances in which they find themselves. More discussion is definitely needed. I applaud your sharing where our dear friend Kavika was required to leave off! Stand on his shoulders now and be great (we need this).
Education is the key, but it takes others than just Native Americans to get that information out.
True. Help us understand where you can. Support our understanding where you can. Report about tribes where you can. For example, when I started learning about Native Americans a few years ago, it was a 'revelation' to me that this people are not "ONE" people, and are in fact. . . hundreds of differing nations. . . and still to this day I am not 'aware' of how they manage being so. I do not mean to insult Native Americans by any sort of implication that they should be a monolith. . .it just never crossed my mind (no matter how I heard it in American lore) that one type of people can and are independent of themselves in the same sphere of existence—and still make it work!
I am grateful for it. I am not privileged to an understanding of what 'triple-citizenship'-means, especially in practice (quirks, oddities, peculiarities, hits and misses, serendipitous happenings, and etceteras).