Termination, Relocation, & PL280

Background:
After the Indian Reorganization Act in 1934 had ended allotment, tribal self-governance
began to be emphasized in federal policy. It seemed that tribes and the US government
were finally making progress towards the genuine promotion of tribal self-determination and
sovereignty.

However, many in the federal government were still under the impression that the progress
of Native Americans meant their assimilation into mainstream society. This persistent idea,
combined with concerns about reducing federal spending and land claims payouts, resulted
in a push Congress to withdraw the federal government from the affairs of Indian tribes
beginning in 1946.

However, to withdraw the federal government from Indian affairs did not just necessitate the
withdrawal of paternalistic supervision over tribes. To �set the Indians free� (in the words of
some termination supporters) required the termination of their tribal status, or, to put it
another way, dissolve their identity as Indian tribes in the eyes of the federal government
and end the federal-tribal trust relationship. This meant cutting social services to tribes and
authorizing the sale and lease of restricted Indian lands to non-Indian individuals and
corporations.

Approximately 109 tribes and bands were terminated and 1,365,801 acres of Indian land
was taken by the time the policy officially died in 1970 when President Nixon asked for its
repeal. In the Pacific Northwest, the Klamath, then a tribe of 2,133 people, lost 862,662
acres, the single largest amount of land lost during termination.

In this lesson, students will study the termination and restoration of the Klamath as a case
study of assimilationist policies in the 20th century. Learning about the Klamath will also
help students realize the importance of a land base to the strength of a tribe and the wellbeing
of its members.

(Indian Land Tenure Curriculum: Standard 2 - Lesson 4)