Trail of Tears

The Trail of Tears affected five
tribes: the Cherokee, the Choctaw,
the Chickasaw, the Creek, and the
Seminole.

They were known as the “Five
Civilized Tribes” because they
had adopted some aspects of
white culture, such as farming,
education, and written
language.

However, white settlers
wanted their lands for
agriculture, mining, and trade,
and pressured the
government to remove the
Indians.

President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian
Removal Act in 1830, which authorized the
government to negotiate treaties with the tribes to
exchange their lands in the east for lands in the
Indian Territory, which is now Oklahoma.

Many Indians resisted the removal,
but most of them eventually agreed
to the treaties, hoping to avoid
further conflict and violence.

However, the
removal
process was
harsh and
brutal.
They faced disease, starvation, and attacks
by bandits and hostile tribes.

Many of them died along the way,
especially the elderly, the sick, and the
children.

The Indians had to walk hundreds of miles,
often without adequate food, clothing, or
shelter.

About 16,000 Cherokees were forced to march
from Georgia to Oklahoma in the winter.

About 4,000 of them died on the journey, which
became known as the “Trail of Tears”.

The Cherokee removal in 1838
was the last and the most
devastating.

The Trail of Tears is considered
an act of ethnic cleansing and
genocide by some historians,
and a violation of human rights
by others.

It is a dark and shameful chapter in
American history, and a source of
sorrow and trauma for the Native
American people.