Never really wrote about termination, that I remember:
Beginning in 1900 with Charles Curtis (Kaw/Osage) who was named to chair the U.S. House Committee on Indian Affairs (he later served as a Congressman and Senator before being elected as Vice- President of the United States under President Herbert Hoover), there was a concerted effort to do away with American Indian Tribes and pursue a policy of assimilation that proved to be so destructive to Tribes. Later, the U.S. Congress would formally apologize for its errors in judgement. The efforts made it very difficult for Tribes to maintain their traditional governments and sovereignty, but they did. This was especially true in Oregon where Tribes were formally terminated by the U.S. government as a means to disband them. These and other efforts were difficult times for the Tribes since most reservations were either abolished or severely shrunk in size using the Dawes General Allotment Act to legitimatize those efforts.
Probably because it would seem too negative compared to the things I do normally write about.
Anyway, from today's Indianz.com: News > Judge says law terminated all Indian claims in R.I.
A federal judge in Rhode Island has dismissed the land claim of the unrecognized Seaconke Wampanoag Tribe.U.S. District Court Judge William Smith said that the 1978 federal law that settled the Narragansett Tribe's land claim also extinguished all other Indian claims in the state.
Would write something about how it's all well and good contemporary 'Mercan society continually risks breaking its metaphorical arm patting itself on the back for being so much more tolerant than in the distant -- and not-so-distant -- past, while not actually, you know, rectifying the shitty things done in those less tolerant days.
But, again, negative. And, again, working.
Gunna have to do some disagreein'.
1) Congress did not apologize-(I', sure I would have gotten somthing in the mail if they had) they just admitted they went about destroying the indian to save the indian all wrong. However, the BIA formally apologized just a couple years back when that one indian guy was in charge.
2)Why the mentioning of Oregon as "especially true" when the policy was nationwide (some folks call it a blanket policy, I calls it a sling blade). Many bands (BIA talk for descendants of individual villages moved to a reservation)were outright eliminated even if whole tribes were not. Immediate come-to-minders are the Menominee in Wisconsin (they made a comeback), the Brotherton's (formerly of NY-no comeback), and the Lumbee of North Carolina (raise up!).
True the Lumbees weren't so much terminated with the act as provisions were included in it to block and any future moves at Fed recognition. (scan the official doublespeak chombatta?)
3) Also worth mentioning... the Fed will still recognize you as an individual indian even if you have no enrollment. Last I heard, you only had to prove a sixteenth blood quantum to get on board the descendancy train. No resrevation and you pay taxes, but you get access to juicy educational, personal improvement, and cultural development grants. Comparable (but not similar much) with the Metis in Canada.
See, this is why I like having you around here. Not only do you fact-check my ass (only, you know, with actual facts, unlike when the warbloggers do it), you manage to make me sound hopelessly optimistic and naive.
Back to work.