The Cherokee Nation A History

The Cherokee Nation A History BY ROBERT J. CONLEY UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO PRESS 2005, 265 PAGES, $24.95

Ordinarily, one does not think of the U.S. as having within its borders a number of other nations. Yet, the fact is, it does, and these are Indian nations, of which the Cherokee, with 240,000 registered members, is the second largest. (The Navajo is the largest.) The political reality of these as nations originally was an "accommodation," but it stuck. Present-day Americans ought to know about their fellow Native American citizens and this book provides that kind of knowledge.

The author is well qualified to teach readers, as he is a member of the Cherokee tribe as well as an accomplished author of 34 novels. He begins with myths and legends of the tribe's origins, evaluating the historical truth of each. No one is quite sure what those origins are, but one theory is that, after coming over the Bering Strait, they migrated to the southern tip of South America, making their way back to settle in the Southeast section of the U.S. As with many Indian tribes, they are matrilinear and, like many, see themselves as a kind of Chosen People--in their language, "the real people." They mostly were farmers, hunters, and parttime warriors.

Their culture underwent many changes throughout history. Some of these were caused by their interface with the Spanish and French, as well as conflict with the early colonists. Another was a result of the "Trail of Tears," in which they forcibly were relocated in the West to an area designated as Indian Territory by Pres. Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Policy. This unjust action was protested by prominent persons such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry Clay, but to no avail. (Later, the Navajo had their own Trail of Tears, known to them as "The Long Walk." They were "rounded up by Kit Carson and sent to ... New Mexico.")

As a group, the Cherokee tended to imitate the white men's ways, earning the description of a "civilized tribe" Since their attitude toward women was fairly liberal, they were teased as a "petticoat tribe" Indeed, a woman, Wilma Mankiller, was the head chief from 1985-95. She was an activist and even partook in the debacle of the Indian invasion of Alcatraz.

The Cherokee nation was divided into seven clans and, as can be expected, there were considerable differences among them. Jurisdictional issues remained controversial for decades. During the Civil War, some fought for the North and others for the South. One Cherokee even was designated a general by the Rebels.

When Native American Shawnee Tecumseh saw the Indian culture disintegrating because of increasing dependence on whites, he began a movement to wean them away from Caucasian influence. He approached the Cherokee with this proposal, but the majority rejected it, as did other tribes. The movement died out when Tecumseh was killed in the Battle of the Thames in 1813 in Canada.

A progressive people, one of them by the name of Sequoyah invented a syllabary of 87 characters--one for each syllable in the Cherokee language. In 1821, he gave a public demonstration of his efforts and the tribal members learned to read and write their language. In 1828, the tribe put out a newspaper printed in Cherokee and English, The Cherokee Phoenix. It was an immense success. Sequoyah was recognized for his contribution by having his name given to a giant redwood forest tract in California. Cherokee John Ross, a well-known political expert, directed the tribe through its great trials with the government and was Principal Chief from 1828-66. Prominent also was social commentator Will Rogers (of Cherokee heritage), probably the world's greatest lariat artist.

This fascinating book, comprised of 31 short chapters, deserves a careful reading.

Reviewed by

GERALD F. KREYCHE

American Thought Editor

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