13. Impact on Women and Children
Women and children bore an especially heavy burden during the Trail of Tears. Separated from family supports, they were more vulnerable to abuse by soldiers and others overseeing the removal. Malnutrition, exhaustion, and exposure struck the youngest and most vulnerable first, leading to tragically high mortality rates among children. According to PBS, many mothers watched helplessly as their children grew weak and perished, deepening the anguish of an already devastating ordeal.
