The Trail of Tears: They Knew It Was Wrong

The Trail of Tears shouldn't have happened. People at the time knew that it was wrong, that it was illegal, and that it was unconstitutional, but they did it anyway. Historian Amy Sturgis explains why the forced removal of the Cherokee Nation to "Indian Territory" (modern-day Oklahoma) was wrong on both moral and legal grounds. How can the Trail of Tears provide lessons to us today? We can't look aside and ignore the Trail of Tears as an example of something that was just part of the mid-19th century mindset. It is a story about how a group that had power gained at the expense of a minority unable to defend itself. The Trail of Tears set precedents we can only hope to avoid repeating.

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[anitainmo]

It was genocide. A crime against humanity. This was deliberate, rob their land and then banish them to reservations. How cruel and inhumane. Not only was their land taken, they also lost their culture, their religion, their language, their everything. And no one has paid for this atrocity nor has anyone been held accountable nor has the truth been told.

[RoxxyBoxxy]

I love how in school we are taught how amazing America is then once you gain more knowledge you learn how fucked up America is.

[HiLifeEwa]

This reminds me of the 21, 000+ native Hawaiians that petitioned in 1897 against the annexation the Hawaii to the US, and went largely ignored by the US because US business interests were all that mattered.

[hakim]

"I have fought through civil war and have seen men shot to pieces and slaughtered by the thousands, but the Cherokees removal was the cruelest work i ever knew" young army, from the book The enduring vision.

[coffeelvnwmn]

This nation was founded on blood—people sacrificed for being “different”. The Native American were people that had made their own system of living AND knew AND respected the land.
What the U.S. government did to all the Natives of the land, not only is it atrocious, unconstitutional and murderous, but a lesson for us all to know what they’re really about.

[elleyonaspg]

The Trail of Tears; AKA The first American Gentrification and annihilation.

[kingsoren]

Thank you, as an 70 year old African American, I never knew about The Trail of Tears, so glad I found your channel. It's sad and disturbing how cruel man can be toward others not like him.. History as taught in schools, avoid the truth and hide the evil done by greed. My heart aches because there is still corruption, genocide and hatred going on today.

[billbates]

This whole nation is drenched in BLOOD

[caregirl]

This woman communicated this piece of history so clearly, this short video was so well put together

[moslte]

This behavior continues till this day.

[tresiacutright]

My great great grandfather adopted a young Cherokee boy about 2 or 3 wondering lost on the trail of tears in Kentucky they named him Moses . He married and had my grandma I wish I could of met my great grandfather . I'm proud of my native American heritage.

[sano]

My mother and father both of Cherokee ancestry told me that Cherokees refused to carry a $20 bill because of the image of the "Indian Hater" Andrew Jackson.

[debwoods]

I remember "learning" about this is school. They made it sound like it was a good thing and the indians agreed. Another LIE taught in school. It wasn't until I was an adult that I learned the truth of the story. Makes me cry every time. It's just not right.

[tylermorton]

The horrific tale of how my people were murdered and taken from their land. Honestly one of the best videos I’ve watched in a while, being a Georgian and a Cherokee native this is accurately told. My grandmother told me stories of what she saw and what my great grandparents faced.

[ecm]

To those Americans who attempt to excuse this by suggesting that every race throughout history has done things like this, therefore it's ok, (the premise of which is not true, but neither is it the point), take a step back for a moment and look around you. This is still going on today, with Tribal sovereignty being undermined at every turn by the US government, and indigenous populations being blamed by the dominant culture for a state of poverty and dysfunction inflicted upon them by generations of mistreatment, displacement and abuse at the hands of that government. Genocide is not a thing of the past. If anything, it has evolved to become slyer and more insidious than it ever was.

[terrimcwilliams]

They have been doing this all around the word for centuries 😭

[wbptr]

This is the story of my ancestors ... which for most of my life, I was unaware because I was not raised by Native Americans. The same excuse for carrying out an injustice has been used for thousands of years to deny people their rights. When will we ever learn ...?

[apricotautumn]

I found out my great great grandma was forced during the trail of tears. She told my aunt she was left in Alabama bc she was sick. Its horrible knowing what she and many others went though

[mchillbilly]

If she had not left out the other tribes, the death toll would have been more like a millions

[ErnestHiggs]

I heard nothing about the Choctaw Tribe or Africans that were apart of The Trail of Tears. What's that about?