The loss of right to free movement across the country was difficult for Native Americans, especially since many tribes traditionally traveled to hunt, fish and visit other tribes. The passage of the Indian Citizenship Act in 1924 granted citizenship to all Indians born in America. As a result, American Indians were finally granted free travel in the United States. At the present time, Native Americans who live on reservations are free to travel as they wish. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 states “That all persons born in the United States, and not subject to any foreign power, excluding Indians not taxed, are hereby declared to be citizens of the United States”. Senator Jacob Howard of Michigan commented, “I am not yet prepared to pass a sweeping act of naturalization by which all the Indian savages, wild or tame, belonging to a tribal relation, are to become my fellow-citizens and go to the polls and vote with me....” One of his other concerns was that because of the substantial number of Indians at the time, their numbers could swing an election. Sound familiar?
Christopher Cha’vez
Cortez
