Thao Luong
Instructor: Christopher Collins
History 17A
January 9, 2014
Legislating Women's Sexuality: Cherokee Marriage Laws in the Nineteenth Century
Nineteenth century was a time of social upheaval and enormous political in the Cherokee Nation. Most readers will probably be familiar with the tragedy of the “Trail of Tears " when federal troops Cherokee Indians forced to give up land in Georgia , Alabama , Tennessee and North Caroiina settled in India Territory ( present day Oklahoma ) in 1838-1839 . What may not be widely is known to kill just one of a number of significant changes are experienced by Cherokee Nation in the nineteenth century. The Cherokees radical transformation of political institutions and their legal at the beginning of the century; survivors internal conflicts, which verged on civil war, as a result of the removal policy of the 1830; beyond the American Civil War and its reconstruction as they struggled to combine their slaves into society, and face federal efforts to dismantle the sovereignty of India as the century drew to a close. In many respects, the legal institutions of the nineteenth century Cherokee Nation like those of the United States. The Cherokees split their government into three branches: an executive expressed by the Minister, a judicial body with district and supreme courts and legislatures have created laws for the nation. This article will review some of the laws passed by the legislature of Cherokee governments, especially those related to marriage and sex.
In the first half of the nineteenth century, the Cherokee adopted a series of laws to regulate marriage and sex. This article first contemplate the gender aspects of that law by exploring the importance of Cherokee women choose marriage and the official response to those choices. In particular , the choice of women who are not Cherokee Cherokee marriage partners , most often white, and simultaneously introduced into countries outside the legislature Cherokee forced to restructure relationships Cherokee women to produce new citizens in the country. Then, the essay turns to a more explicitly racist impact of legislation and considers who might get married in Cherokee Nation and why the first test by adjusting Cherokee marriage law people with African origin. Cherokees increasingly exclude people from membership in the African nation passed a law banning legal marriage between Cherokees and African people. Finally, the article examines Cherokee legislation to include whites as marriage partners and the people in the Cherokee Nation. Finally, this article points out that officials were determining the Cherokee Indian and racist marriage laws used to write and consolidate this new definition. Organizations traditionally matrilineal Cherokee Nation of emphasizing the role of women in Cherokee continuously create and sustain not want tribe. Cherokee lawmakers to recognize the Cherokee men and black women free charge as Cherokee citizens reflect a larger trend in racial thinking Nation. In 1839, the same year in which the Cherokee legislature passed a law banning strengthened against most of the union between Indian or white people and people of African, Cherokee authorities also pointed out more clearly the conditions under which whites could legally married Cherokee women and became citizens of the Cherokee. Racism is an example of how this article supports or contradicts the textbook Give Me Liberty. I do like this article because through it I can understand more about Cherokee ‘s marriage law that I have no idea before. Marriage and especially marriage, then, is not merely personal interest, but also the public issue with potential consequences for the entire Cherokee Nation. In these terms, the choice of a marriage partner is at once a personal choice and a political action. Cherokee legislative recognition the importance of women to the Cherokee nation as manufacturers of legitimate members of society, therefore, the effort to regulate marriage choices of women. Through behavior of men married Cherokee, Cherokee women can display their not satisfied with and modify the behavior of Cherokee men.