Chapters 1-4 Summary and Analysis

American Indians were an important part of the country's domestic affairs until 1890. From the 1890s through to the 1960s, American Indians became "Vanishing Americans" and most of the populace believed that the majority of the tribes had been exterminated. There were always token Indians represented at key celebrations such as Thanksgiving and Columbus Day gatherings, but for the majority of Americans, Indians were no longer part of the culture.

The 1960s saw numerous Indian protests and the American public began to realize that there were still a significant number of American Indians living in the West, in the areas surrounding the Great Lakes, and the southeastern United States. By and large, people did not understand why the Indians were angry until they discovered that many of the Indian treaties that had been in effect for nearly 100 years were being...