Termination

Definition

Termination refers to the process of ending or discontinuing a relationship, agreement, or program, often in the context of indigenous rights and agency. It involves the cessation of government support, recognition, or protection for indigenous populations, which can have significant impacts on their autonomy, cultural preservation, and access to resources.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Termination policies in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s aimed to end the federal government's recognition of and obligations to Native American tribes, leading to the loss of tribal lands and resources.
2. Termination was seen by the U.S. government as a way to assimilate indigenous populations into mainstream American society, denying them their distinct cultural identities and political autonomy.
3. The termination of indigenous rights and recognition can have severe consequences, including the loss of access to healthcare, education, and other social services provided by the government.
4. Termination policies often led to the dissolution of tribal governments and the transfer of communal lands to private ownership, undermining the economic and social foundations of indigenous communities.
5. The legacy of termination policies continues to impact indigenous populations today, as they struggle to regain their rights, lands, and self-determination.

Review Questions

• Explain how termination policies in the United States aimed to assimilate indigenous populations and undermine their autonomy.
  • Termination policies in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s were designed to end the federal government's recognition of and obligations to Native American tribes. This process involved the loss of tribal lands and resources, as well as the dissolution of tribal governments. The goal was to assimilate indigenous populations into mainstream American society, denying them their distinct cultural identities and political autonomy. By terminating the government's relationship with Native American tribes, the U.S. government sought to strip them of their rights, resources, and self-determination, forcing them to abandon their traditional ways of life and integrate into the dominant culture.
• Describe the consequences of termination policies for indigenous communities.
  • The termination of indigenous rights and recognition can have severe consequences for affected communities. This includes the loss of access to healthcare, education, and other social services provided by the government, as well as the undermining of the economic and social foundations of indigenous communities. The transfer of communal lands to private ownership can disrupt traditional land-use practices and erode the cultural and spiritual connections that indigenous peoples have with their ancestral territories. Additionally, the legacy of termination policies continues to impact indigenous populations today, as they struggle to regain their rights, lands, and self-determination.
• Analyze the relationship between termination policies and the principle of self-determination for indigenous peoples.
  • Termination policies directly contradict the principle of self-determination, which is the right of a people to decide their own political, economic, social, and cultural future, free from outside influence or control. By unilaterally ending the government's recognition of and obligations to indigenous tribes, termination policies stripped these communities of their sovereignty and autonomy, denying them the ability to govern themselves and determine their own path. This undermined the fundamental human rights of indigenous peoples, including their right to maintain their distinct cultural identities and to freely pursue their own development. The legacy of termination continues to challenge indigenous struggles for self-determination, as they work to regain the rights and resources that were taken from them through these assimilationist policies.

Related terms

Assimilation:

The process by which a minority group or culture comes to resemble a dominant group or adopt the values, behaviors, and beliefs of the dominant group.

Sovereignty:

The supreme power or authority of a state or community to govern itself independently, without external control or interference.

Self-Determination: The right of a people to decide their own political, economic, social, and cultural future, free from outside influence or control.