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In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Indian Rights Act. This act gave Native Americans more protections under the United States Constitution and was similar to the Bill of Rights. The Indian Rights Act was controversial, and it is still discussed today. Why were people upset about this act? What was its impact? Let's look at those questions and more!
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Team Indian Civil Rights Act Teachers
The term "Indian" will be used in this article only regarding the Indian Civil Rights Act or historical organizations. While some Indigenous people identify with this term, this is not so for every person. The way that Native Americans chose to identify is a personal choice unique to each individual.
To understand the Indian Civil Rights Act's Impact, we need to understand how Indigenous sovereignty worked. According to Frances Paul Prucha, Native American sovereignty allowed the Indigenous nations to have specific roles outside the United States government. While Native Americans were citizens of the United States of America, they were also citizens of their tribes. Let's break that down even further.
Fig 1: Native American Territory in 1774 compared to their territory in 2022
Native American tribes could form their own governments within their territories. This meant that an Indigenous tribe could tax its members, create corporations, and determine who could and couldn't become a member. More importantly to the Indian Civil Rights Act, Indigenous nations could regulate their relationships with the United States government and were responsible for their own justice system. 1
Indigenous tribes were able to enact justice for crimes committed in their territory when the people involved were members of the tribe. This excluded the seven major crimes. The seven major crimes are murder, arson, burglary, sexual assault, assault (to kill), manslaughter, and larceny.
An Indigenous woman named Marry gets into a fight with another Indigenous woman named Sarah. Both Mary and Sarah belong to the same tribe, so the court case is within the jurisdiction of their tribe. Now let's say that Mary is from one tribe and Sarah is from a different one, but the fight is still on Mary's reservation. This court case would go through the American judiciary system because the women are from different tribes. If Sarah was not an Indigenous person but got into a fight with Mary, the case would still go through the American judiciary system because Sarah isn't from Mary's tribe.
The American government heard the cases of Indigenous people who went through their tribe's justice system. These were cases that were mishandled. In some cases, it was negligence and in others the systems were corrupt. Even though some tribal justice systems failed, others ensured that people were brought to justice properly. In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Indian Civil Rights Act to correct this. The act was similar to the Bill of Rights and gave Native Americans specific guaranteed rights.
Fig 2: Lyndon B Johnson with Native American Chiefs
Under the Civil Rights Act, Native Americans had freedom of religion. There couldn't be unlawful search and seizures or prosecution for a crime that they were already prosecuted for. An Indigenous person couldn't testify against themselves in court or have their property taken for communal use without being paid for it.
Bail had to be a reasonable amount, and fees couldn't be higher than $5,000. Someone could only be imprisoned for a year, and they only receive a trial by jury if the crime was punishable by prison.
The Indian Civil Rights Act was different from the Bill of Rights for two reasons. An Indigenous person was only entitled to a lawyer if they could afford one. It wasn't the tribe's responsibility to provide a lawyer if the person couldn't afford one. Religion wasn't separated from the government. Native American judicial systems could be based on religious practices, but the individual members could practice whatever religion they chose.
Fig 3: Indigenous Dancers
The goal of the Indian Civil Rights Act was to protect Indigenous people within their tribes and to hold their governments accountable. Another goal of the act was forced assimilation. By removing power from Indigenous governments, Native Americans would have to rely on the American government more. It understood the issues with the Native American judiciary system but didn't protect Indigenous people from the American government.1
Forced Assimilation:
Removing someone from their culture and language to replace it with one's own culture and language
In Santa Clara Pueblo Vs. Martinez, the Supreme Court ruled that the American government couldn't control Indigenous governments. Though, the government could enforce the Indian Civil Rights Act. This meant that the government could directly interfere with the tribal judiciary system if it violated the act.
Many Indigenous people felt that this was another overstep by the United States government. They believed that the government shouldn't interfere with their traditional judiciary methods and that this was just another form of assimilation.
The Indian Civil Rights Act changed the judiciary system for Native Americans. Before the act, Native American tribes had judiciary rights over the members of the tribe if they committed crimes on tribal territory against another member. After the act, Native American courts could still prosecute their members, but the members had different rights defined by the American government.
The American government could interfere with the courts if they didn't follow the new act. While some Native Americans approved of their new Bill of Rights, others thought it interfered too heavily with tribal sovereignty.
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What led to the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968?
After hearing the cases of indigenous people whose tribal justices system mishandled their cases, the United States government sought to give indigenous people their own bill of rights. While Native Americans were citizens of both their indigenous nation and America, they were subject to the laws and rights of their tribe within tribal territory.
Who does the Indian Civil Rights Act apply to?
The Indian Civil Rights Act applies to indigenous people who are in federally recognized tribes.
What is the Indian Civil Rights Act known for?
The Indian Civil Rights Act is known for being the Native American Bill of Rights. It limited the authority of tribal government while accelerating forced assimilation.
What supreme court case affected tribes and gaming?
In California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, the Supreme Court made a ruling that affected the gaming industry on indigenous land.
Why was the Indian Civil Rights Act controversial?
The Indian Civil Rights Act was controversial because it limited the power of the tribal government while giving the federal government more control over indigenous people. It also accelerated forced assimilation.
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