Slavery, Reconstruction, and Reparations, But in Indian Territory

We the (Black) People

It turns out that the history of slavery and Reconstruction played out differently in Oklahoma because Oklahoma was not American, but Indian Territory. One of the biggest differences was that former Black slaves (Indian Freedpeople) received land reparations. Yet, that land redistribution was part of a larger American project to take over Indian Territory. Professor Alaina Roberts, author of I've Been Here All the While: Black Freedom on Native Land, joins me to discuss the Black, White, and Native people who fought to hold land and freedom in Oklahoma.

This is a story of displacement that starts with the Indian Removal Act and ends with the Tulsa Massacre. The Native Americans (and their Black slaves) forced into Oklahoma by the Indian Removal Act displaced the Native Americans already there. Then, the Dawes Act used slavery in Indian Territory to displace the tribes living in Oklahoma in favor of Indian Freedpeople and both Black and White settlers. Both Native Americans and Black people appealed to the American government to protect their land. For a time, this worked. Ultimately, though, when White Americans wanted the land, American institutions worked to give it to them. The Tulsa Massacre, then, stands as the end of Black dreams of a racial paradise in Oklahoma under tribal jurisdiction.

To learn more check out I've Been Here All the While: Black Freedom on Native Land by Dr. Alaina Roberts!

Music Credit

PeaceLoveSoul by Jeris (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/VJ_Memes/35859 Ft: KungFu (KungFuFrijters)