USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Dawes Act, approved by Congress in 1887, granted small plots of land to individual tribal members. The aim was to encourage Native Americans to become farmers or ranchers, thus helping them to assimilate. In some cases, the allotted land was then further reduced by opening the excess to white settlers.

Detailed explanation-2: -In the 1950s, the United States came up with a plan to solve what it called the “Indian Problem.” It would assimilate Native Americans by moving them to cities and eliminating reservations. The 20-year campaign failed to erase Native Americans, but its effects on Indian Country are still felt today.

Detailed explanation-3: -The policy of assimilation was an attempt to destroy traditional Indian cultural identities. Many historians have argued that the U.S. government believed that if American Indians did not adopt European-American culture they would become extinct as a people.

Detailed explanation-4: -What is assimilation? Assimilation was a major goal of Native American policies in the late 19th century. Assimilation is the process of taking individuals or social groups and absorbing them into mainstream culture. After families claimed their allotments, any remaining tribal lands were declared “surplus” land.

Detailed explanation-5: -The ancestors of the American Indians were nomadic hunters of northeast Asia who migrated over the Bering Strait land bridge into North America probably during the last glacial period (11, 500–30, 000 years ago).