Indian Citizenship Act of 1924

Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, also known as the Snyder Act, granted full U.S. citizenship to Native Americans. While the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1868, had bestowed citizenship on all persons born in the United States- including former slaves- the amendment had been interpreted as not applying to indigenous native people. Enacted partially in recognition of the Native Americans who had served in World War I, the act was signed into law by President Calvin Coolidge on June 2, 1924. Though the act granted Native Americans U.S. citizenship, it did not ensure them the right to vote. Key Takeaways: Indian Citizenship Act The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, signed into law by President Calvin Coolidge on June 2, 1924, granted U.S. citizenship to all Native American Indians.The Fourteenth Amendment had been interpreted as not granting citizenship to indigenous native people. The Indian Citizenship Act was enacted partly as a tribute to American Indians who had fought in World War I.While it granted Native Americans citizenship, it did not grant them the right to vote. Historical Background Ratified in 1868, the 14th Amendment had declared that all persons â€Å"born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof† were American citizens. However, the â€Å"jurisdiction thereof† clause was interpreted to exclude most Native Americans. In 1870, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee declared â€Å"the 14th amendment to the Constitution has no effect whatever upon the status of the Indian tribes within the limits of the United States.† By the late 1800s, about 8% of Native people had qualified for U.S. citizenship due to being â€Å"taxed,† serving in the military, marrying whites, or accepting land allotments offered by the Dawes Act.   Enacted in 1887, the Dawes Act was intended to encourage Native Americans to abandon their Indian culture and â€Å"fit in† to mainstream American society. The act offered full citizenship to those Native Americans who agreed to leave their tribal lands to live on and farm free â€Å"allotments† of land. However, the Dawes Act had a negative effect on Native Americans on and off the reservations. Native Americans who had not already done so by other means won the right to full citizenship in 1924 when President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act. While the stated purpose was to reward the thousands of Indians who had served in World War I, Congress and Coolidge hoped the act would break apart the remaining Native nations and force Native Americans to assimilate into white American society. Text of the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 â€Å"BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and house of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That all non-citizen Indians born within the territorial limits of the United States be, and they are hereby, declared to be citizens of the United States: Provided That the granting of such citizenship shall not in any manner impair or otherwise affect the right of any Indian to tribal or other property.† Native American Voting Rights For whatever reasons it was enacted, the Indian Citizenship Act did not grant Native people voting rights. Except for the 15th and 19th Amendments, which ensure African Americans and women the right to vote in all states, the Constitution grants the states the power to determine voting rights and requirements. At the time, many states opposed allowing Native people to vote in their states. As a result, Native Americans were forced to secure the right to vote by winning it in the individual state legislatures. Not until 1962 did New Mexico become the last state to guarantee voting rights for Native Americans. However, like black voters, many Native Americans were still prevented from voting by poll taxes, literacy tests, and physical intimidation. In 1915, the U.S. Supreme Court, in the case of Guinn v. United States, declared literacy tests unconstitutional and in 1965, the Voting Rights Act helped protect the voting rights of Native people in all states. However, the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder dismantled a key provision of the Voting Rights Act requiring states with a history of racial bias in voting to get the permission of the U.S. Department of Justice before enacting new voter qualification laws. Weeks before the 2018 midterm elections, the North Dakota Supreme Court upheld a voting requirement that may have prevented many of the state’s Native American residents from voting. Native American Opposition to Citizenship Not all Native people wanted U.S. citizenship. As members of their individual tribal nations, many worried that U.S. citizenship might endanger their tribal sovereignty and citizenship. Particularly outspoken against the act, leaders of the Onondaga Indian Nation felt that forcing U.S. citizenship on all Indians without their consent was â€Å"treason.† Others hesitated to trust a government that had taken their land by force, separated their families, and brutally discriminated against them. Others remained adamantly opposed to being assimilated into white American society at the cost of their Indian culture and identity. Tribal leaders who supported act considered it a path to establishing a national political identity that would give their people a more influential voice in issues affecting them. Many Native Americans felt the government now had an obligation to protect them. They believed that, as U.S. citizens, the government would be required to protect them from white businessmen trying to steal their government-granted land. Sources and Further Reference NCC Staff. On this day, all Indians made United States citizens. National Constitution Center: Constitution Daily.. 1924 Indian Citizenship ActNational Park Service.Hass, Theodore H. (1957). The Legal Aspects of Indian Affairs from 1887 to 1957. American Academy of Political and Social Science.Bruyneel, Kevin. Challenging American Boundaries: Indigenous People and the Gift of U.S. Citizenship. Studies in American Political Development. . Letter of Onondaga Nation to Calvin CoolidgeThe Onondaga Nation and the Haudenosaunee.