As Long as the Grass Grows · Episode 1 of 15 · 42 min
How the U.S. Broke Nearly 370 Treaties With Native Nations
Between 1778 and 1871 the United States ratified roughly 370 treaties with Native nations and broke essentially all of them. The opening episode sets the scale through the as-long-as-the-grass-grows language of permanence, the Doctrine of Discovery and the law that made breaking lawful. It starts with a boy's visit to the Sand Lake community of the St. Croix Chippewa, left out of the treaties.
Who's who
- John Marshall+7 more episodesChief Justice whose Johnson v. McIntosh made the Doctrine of Discovery American law
- Pope Nicholas V+1 more episodeIssued the Dum Diversas and Romanus Pontifex bulls
- Pope Alexander VI+1 more episodeIssued the Inter Caetera bull of 1493
- Andrew Jackson+7 more episodesPresident whose belief in inevitable removal the series traces across administrations
Where it happens
- Sand Lake, Burnett County, Wisconsin+1 more episodeCommunity of the St. Croix Chippewa, called the lost tribe
- Fort Pitt, Pennsylvania+1 more episodeSite of the first U.S.-Native treaty in 1778
- Big Sandy Lake, Minnesota+1 more episodeSite of the 1850 Sandy Lake Tragedy
Timeline
- 1452-1493Papal bulls articulate the discovery and domination framework
- 1778The Treaty of Fort Pitt begins the treaty era
- 1823Johnson v. McIntosh makes the Doctrine of Discovery American law
- March 3, 1871A rider in the Indian Appropriations Act ends treaty-making
- 1903Lone Wolf v. Hitchcock holds Congress may abrogate treaties unilaterally
- 1934The Indian Reorganization Act finally gives the St. Croix Chippewa a land base
Still debated
The treaty count depends on what is counted, with about 370 ratified and over 500 negotiated. Broken covers a spectrum, and whether the record amounts to genocide is deferred. A fair counter holds that many actors believed they acted lawfully or benevolently.
Connected episodes in other series
The Courts of the Conqueror: How the Marshall Trilogy Legalized the Taking of Native LandThe Least Dangerous Branch? · Episode 13Also features Andrew Jackson, John Marshall
The Highland Clearances and the Trail of Tears: Removal by LawEmpty the Land · Episode 2Also features Andrew Jackson, John Marshall
The Supremacy Clause: Why Every Nullification Theory Has Lost in Court for 200 YearsHomemade Sovereignty · Episode 7Also features Andrew Jackson, John Marshall
The Great MisunderstandingThe Ground Rules · Episode 6Also features John Marshall