We Shall Remain: Trail Of Tears

What is the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution? How did trade and the need for more land cause regional differences toward states’ rights, and how did this affect Native peoples? Who had jurisdiction over them? What were the pros and cons of states’ rights vs. federalism? United States supremacy clause in the constitution (Article 5, Clause 2) states that federal law and treaties made under the structure are the supreme law of the land.

Thus, federal laws and state laws are bound by the structure. The Constitution further states that whatever federal and state governments wish to partake in, they have to follow the Constitution. A person should not ignore the priority of the federal government, which is underlying, especially when the constitution itself expresses that authority. The need for more land for the federal government and the state of Georgia drives them to go against the Constitution. The federal government needs to grow more cotton in the native soil, causing them to be forcefully evacuated. Trade of cotton in America is yielding good money for the government and getting more money, the Indians land is the best place to plant more cotton. (Conley and Robert, 2014)

President Jackson pushed Congress to pass the Removal Act bill, which forced Cherokees out of the United States to settle west of the Mississippi River in Indian Territory. Some Indians signed a migration treaty granting the federal government authority to assist migrants to Indian territory. Americans hunt India on their journey, imprison them, rape and murder others. The Supreme Court has the jurisdiction to order Indians to vacate the United States and move back to Indian territory. Advantages- federalism is local autonomy of a greater degree while the states try different policies and copy the successful system from other countries. Federalism gives citizens the opportunity to participate while the state makes decisions that are close to the people affected. In federalism, there are contractions of power regarding more checks and balances, while the country is more responsive to the wishes of the people governed. Disadvantages are that different levels of government legal disputes increase, and the complexity of government comes up with duplication and inefficiency.

Before the American Revolution, Thomas Jefferson had believed that Native people were capable of integration into the American system if they adopted white culture. Several decades later, however, Andrew Jackson leaned towards the removal of Indian people. What forces caused a shift in attitude and federal government policy toward the Native Americans? What role did the invention of the cotton gin play? Native Americans are peaceful people who assimilate into American culture. At first, the president, during his inauguration in 1829, where empathised with the need to pay attention to an Indian tribe in the United States, giving them a humane liberal policy and considering their right, which is the will of the people and the government at large (Coates and Julia, 2014 ). After a few months, President Jackson’s inauguration address statements changed to push a bill for native migration, which surprised many people. Jackson’s statement meaning is to get Indians away from white settlers and local authority, thus no mistreatment. Indians work on white men’s farms in cotton fields. The land cultivated by Indians belonged to their ancestors for many centuries. The cotton gin invention in America makes the removal of seeds from the cotton bolls. More cotton is planted and also becomes easy to grow by the farmers.

How did the concept of land ownership differ on Cherokee land from white settlers’ farms? The idea of property did not have much meaning to the Cherokees, as some of them willingly signed the treaty to relocate. To the white man, the land is everything as they grow cotton and source more space to cultivate.

Why was it more difficult for Native Americans to move from their traditional homelands than for many other Americans who regularly moved west looking for opportunity? Did the Cherokees have any particular specialities with their homes that discouraged their removal? What were these ties? The land that belongs to the Indians is where they have been brought up. Cherokee land has been inherited from their ancestors for many centuries. It is difficult for Native Americans to live because this is their home, and India, to them, is a strange land. Leaving America means abandoning their ancestors and forgetting the history of their origin. Cherokees are afraid of a new settlement as they don’t know what they are going to find. Despite Cherokees being foreigners, they have rights like everyone else in the country, and they believe those rights should be respected. Indians earn a good living from the white man’s farm payment as they did not complain. (Coates and Julia, 2014)

The removal of Cherokees from their eastern homelands led to the “Trail of Tears” and numerous deaths and much suffering for the Cherokee people. Who was at fault for this misery? Did the government intend for the Cherokees to suffer on their trek, or was it a matter of government inefficiency and lack of care? President Jackson is to blame for the many deaths of the Cherokee. Cherokee people do their best and try to adapt to the American culture so that they can get along well. The state wants their land despite living in peace and harmony with the Americans. Supreme Court ruled that the removal of the Cherokee from their area was unconstitutional, but despite that, the state of Georgia and the president proceeded ahead to remove Indians from their land forcefully. Cherokee is forced to match on a heavy winter with no food, medicine or water, resulting in too many deaths as a result of starvation and diseases. The Cherokee are confined in the land of Oklahoma. (Conley and Robert, 2014)

Works Cited

Coates, Julia. Trail of tears. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2014.
Conley, Robert J. Mountain Windsong: A Novel of the Trail of Tears. University of Oklahoma Press, 2014.