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Dawes Act

Definition

The Dawes Act, also known as the General Allotment Act of 1887, was a U.S. law that aimed to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American society by dividing tribal lands into individual plots.

Analogy

Think of the Dawes Act like a school teacher breaking up a group project and assigning individual tasks instead. The idea was to make everyone work independently, but in reality, it disrupted the team's (or tribe's) cohesion and traditional ways of working together.

Related terms

Homestead Act: This was an 1862 law that offered 160 acres of public land free to any family that would farm it for five years. It encouraged westward migration and settlement.

Indian Removal Act: Passed in 1830, this act authorized the president to negotiate with southern Native American tribes for their removal to federal territory west of the Mississippi River in exchange for their ancestral homelands.

Cultural Assimilation: This is a process where individuals or groups adopt the culture of another group, often losing aspects of their original cultural identity in the process.