Trail of Broken Treaties

Trail of Broken Treaties
Name	Trail of Broken Treaties
Date	October 1972
Place	United States (United States Capitol, Washington, D.C., Bureau of Indian Affairs)
Participants	American Indian Movement; Coalition of Indian Organizations; various Tribal Nations
Result	Submission of Twenty Points; temporary occupation of Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters; heightened national attention to Indigenous rights

Trail of Broken Treaties

The Trail of Broken Treaties was a 1972 cross-country protest caravan and occupation that brought together activists from the American Indian Movement, representatives of numerous Tribal Nations, and allied organizations to press for redress of historical grievances and federal treaty obligations. The caravan culminated in a high-profile occupation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters in Washington, D.C., producing the "Twenty Points" agenda and provoking negotiations with officials from the Nixon administration, while sparking debate involving entities such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, and tribal leaders across the United States.

Background and Causes

The protest emerged from longstanding disputes rooted in treaties like the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868), the Medicine Lodge Treaty, and the Fort Bridger Treaty, amplified by events including the Wounded Knee Occupation (1973) precursor tensions and the activities of organizations such as the National Congress of American Indians and the Indigenous Rights Movement. Activists cited violations of agreements, land dispossession following cases such as Lone Wolf v. Hitchcock and Johnson v. M'Intosh, and policies shaped by acts including the Indian Reorganization Act and termination-era legislation. Economic and social conditions on reservations, highlighted by leaders from the Pine Ridge Reservation, the Navajo Nation, and the Lakota communities, intersected with influences from the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War era dissent, and legal work by attorneys associated with the Native American Rights Fund.

Objectives and Organizers

Organizers included the American Indian Movement, leaders such as Russell Means and Dennis Banks, tribal council representatives, and coalitions involving groups tied to the National Indian Youth Council and the Ojibwe leadership. Their objectives combined demands for restoration of treaty rights affirmed in cases like United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians and statutory reforms involving the Indian Reorganization Act and federal trust responsibilities. The published "Twenty Points" agenda sought recognition of tribal sovereignty akin to documents referenced in Chief Joseph's appeals and asserted rights traced through instruments like the Fort Laramie Treaty (1868). Organizers coordinated with activists from urban missions connected to the American Friends Service Committee and legal advocates who had worked on matters before the Supreme Court of the United States.

The Caravan and Cross-country March

The caravan mobilized vehicles from hubs such as Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, and Portland, converging on Washington, D.C. and passing through symbolic sites including Pine Ridge Reservation, Alcatraz Island resonant communities, and urban centers with significant Native populations like New York City and Minneapolis. Participants numbered in the hundreds to thousands and included members of Sioux, Navajo, Lakota, Cherokee, Akimel O'odham and other Tribal Nations, as well as allies from groups like the Black Panther Party sympathetic to Indigenous struggles. The route echoed earlier protest itineraries such as the marches to the United Nations by Indigenous delegations and shared tactics with the Selma to Montgomery marches in terms of media strategy, civil disobedience planning, and coalition-building.

Occupation of the BIA Offices in Washington, D.C.

On arrival, protesters occupied the Bureau of Indian Affairs building and presented the Twenty Points to federal officials, paralleling occupations such as the Alcatraz occupation (1969–1971). The occupation involved negotiations, sit-ins, and the requisitioning of office space across multiple floors; it attracted coverage from outlets in Washington, D.C. and national press and drew scrutiny from agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice. Leaders such as Aquila Manuel and spokespeople from the American Indian Movement framed demands around restitution for land, jurisdictional authority over tribal courts, and the repeal of policies perceived as assimilationist. The occupation lasted several days, during which protestors engaged with representatives from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and visitors from tribal delegations.

Government Response and Negotiations

The Nixon administration responded by dispatching officials from the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and envoys tied to the Presidency to negotiate. Discussions referenced legal precedents including United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians and policy instruments such as the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act debates that would surface later in the decade. Federal law enforcement monitored the action; tensions arose over property damage allegations and allegations of document removal. Negotiations produced partial agreements and the formal receipt of the Twenty Points, but also exposed rifts between tribal representatives, national organizations like the National Congress of American Indians, and federal agencies such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Aftermath, Impact, and Legacy

The protest reshaped public discourse on Indigenous rights, influencing subsequent events including the Wounded Knee Occupation (1973), federal policy shifts toward Indian self-determination, and litigation outcomes in venues such as the United States Court of Claims. The Twenty Points served as a touchstone for activists advocating for treaty enforcement, and the occupation affected leaders like Russell Means and Dennis Banks in national prominence. Institutions such as the National Indian Education Association and the Native American Rights Fund drew on the Trail's visibility to press legislative and legal reforms, while historians connected the action to broader movements represented by figures like Cesar Chavez and organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union. The event endures in scholarship, oral histories held by tribal archives, and commemorations by Tribal Nations, marking a turning point in twentieth-century Indigenous activism in the United States.

Category:Indigenous rights protests