Dbq Cherokee Removal

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The issue of Cherokee removal was complex, with many different viewpoints. Many Cherokees were opposed to leaving their ancestral lands. Their voices were facets of this debate that are meaningful, especially looking back after their forced removal. The Cherokees had lived on their land for generations and were clearly attached to their homeland. In 1827, the Cherokee people adopted a constitution much like the United States. In Article 1 Section 1, the Cherokees wrote out the full lands under the ownership of the Cherokee Nation. In this section, they stated, “The boundaries of this Nation, embracing the lands solemnly guarantied [sic] and reserved forever to the Cherokee Nation by the Treaties concluded with the United States, are as follows, …show more content…

Many in Georgia desired the Cherokee land and began to pressure them off their land. This tension was covered in the Cherokee Phoenix several times from 1829 to 1831. In the editorial for July 17, 1829, Elias Boudinot discussed Georgia’s policies against the Cherokee people. He wrote, “…After being fostered by the U. States, and advised by great and good men to establish a government of regular law…when we…have established for ourselves a government of regular law; when everything looks so promising around us, that a storm is raised by the extension of tyrannical and unchristian laws, which threatens to blast all our rising hopes and expectations.” The disillusioned editor expressed his disappointment and anger over the backlash the Cherokee people received. This backlash stemmed, according to Perdue and Green, from the realization that the Cherokee people were not, in fact, considering giving up the rest of their land.
Shortly after, the Supreme Court ruled against Georgia in the “Worcester v. Georgia” in 1832. In this decision, the Supreme Court stated, “The Cherokee nation …is a distinct community, occupying its own territory, with boundaries accurately described, in which the laws of Georgia can have no force.” This is notable to the viewpoint of the Cherokees against removal because their sovereignty and rights as a nation …show more content…

It was ugly and unwarranted. For too many Cherokees, it was deadly. The worst part of our holocaust was that it also meant the continued loss of tribal knowledge and traditions. ... We regarded the removal as something that happened to our family—something very bad that happened to our family. It was a tragedy. It brought us pain that never seemed to leave.

Many Cherokees had to be forcibly removed via the Trail of Tears. Being forced from their ancestral homeland, along with the horrible treatment and high death toll, greatly affected the Cherokee people. Numerous Cherokees desired to remain and resist removal until the end. In conclusion, throughout the time period of removal, Cherokees resisted and asserted their control over their land. By the end, the people were unjustly forced from their homeland. In the debate of removal, the voices of the Cherokee people opposed to removal were incredibly

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