Government Policy to Plains Indians

• Government's actions towards Plains Indians

  1. Move Plains Indians onto reservations

  2. Promise Plains Indians would not lose any more land

  3. Promise Plains Indians would be protected from attack by whites

  4. Promise Plains Indians would be given yearly payments (money/food/equipment)
• Some tribes moved because they had no other choice – it was the only way for them to survive
• The government's promises sounded good, but tribes soon realised they were rarely carried out
• Many had to be forced onto reservations by the US Army
• The government thought reservations would be good for Plains Indians, because they could learn about farming, Christianity and white American values
• They showed no understanding of Indian culture. Indians were taken a long way from their sacred places, and often put with their enemies.
• White settlers complained about the size of reservations. The government used any excuse to reduce their size.
• The agents who ran reservations (on behalf of the Bureau of Indian Affairs) were often corrupt.
• Indians were given the poor land that whites didn’t want. Farming was very difficult. They often relied on food from the government.