Forgotten History: The Native American occupation of Alcatraz

 

On this day in 1969 79 Indigenous Activists began an occupation of the federal facilities on Alcatraz Island. Calling themselves Indians of All Tribes (IAT) they elected a council, set up a school and distributed tasks amongst the whole group, voting on all major decisions. They choose Alcatraz because the fact I t was basically a rock without electricity or running water meant that it was representative of the reservations that most tribes had been given by the federal government.

“We moved onto Alcatraz Island because we feel that Indian people need a cultural center of their own. For several decades, Indian people have not had enough control of training their young people. And without a cultural center of their own, we are afraid that the old Indian ways may be lost. We believe that the only way to keep them alive is for Indian people to do it themselves.” —Letter from Indians of All Tribes, December 16, 1969

The occupiers began broadcasting an unlicensed radio station Radio Free Alcatraz in December of 1969 and their story became worldwide news until June of 1971 when federal law enforcement removed them, however, this incident began a modern Native American Rights movement

Sources:

https://workingclasshistory.tumblr.com/post/701453440807845888/on-this-day-20-november-1969-a-group-of-78

https://books.google.com/books?id=3M6Nhi5Pu1EC&pg=PA223#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices/timeline/520.html