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American History

35 Times the US Trampled on Native American Rights

Plimoth Patuxet Museums - Thanksgiving
Jennie A. Brownscombe's "The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth" from 1914. Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain.

29. This Recognition Legitimized Land Grabs

Native sovereignty was a ploy for land grabs. Pinterest.

Because the United States recognized the sovereignty of the tribes, it could engage in land grabs by buying the land from them to help them pay off the debts that they owed to the US. Keep in mind that the US expanded through this kind of practice with European countries, as well. European countries could not protest against the American treatment of the natives because the tribes were being dealt with as if they were “sovereign.”

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