Critical Thinking Activity

This activity is intended to promote critical thinking about historical events and the influence
they have on future generations.
After familiarizing yourself with the information available on daniellecaldwell.weebly.com,
review the following quotes and consider the effect that not acknowledging all of the people
forced to suffer on the Trail of Tears has on Black Indians.
A few years ago, I spoke on the subject of Blacks in the Cherokee removal at a
conference of the National Trail of Tears Association. One member of the audience, a
Cherokee instructor of Cherokee history, insisted that this was an historical event only for
Cherokees, a story that rightfully belonged to them alone. This is a view shared by a
former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, who reportedly implied in a published
remark that descendants of Freedpeople do not deserve tribal rights because they did not
suffer the collective trauma of removal. The Trail of Tears is a sacred story to the
Cherokees, as in special and set apart (Miles).
Cherokee Freedmen descendant Kenneth Cooper comments on his great-great-great
grandfathers walk:
At least one of my ancestors was on the Trail of Tearsby double compulsion. The U.S.
troops compelled his mixed-white Cherokee owner, who compelled my ancestor to come
and, presumably, provide for his needs (Miles).
Eleanor "Gypsy" Wyatt, chairman of the Freedman Descendents of the Five Civilized Tribes
describes her struggles as a Black Indian:
"Though my complexion is of a dark hue, my African brothers dont claim me for my
hair is too straight or wavy, my nose is not broad, my lips are not full. My Choctaw and
Chickasaw brothers wont claim me, although my features are much like their own. I am
a reminder of the inhumane treatment against a people" (Shabazz).
Construct a response statement explaining why there is so much controversy surrounding the
Trail of Tears and why some descendents refuse to acknowledge the other injured parties. Are
there personal reasons that contribute to this denial? What effect does it have on the party that is
denied? How is this historical information affected by subjunctive framing? How would you
choose to go forward with this information to the public?
Be sure to consider the viewpoint of each speaker based on their description. Can these sources
be trusted? Are they leaving out a part of the story? What more information, if any, is needed?

Oklahoma Academic Standards English Language Arts

High School, Grade 11
Standard 4: Research and Information
2. Interpreting Information - Analyze and evaluate information from a variety of sources.
A. Summarize, paraphrase, and/or quote relevant information.
B. Determine the author's viewpoint to evaluate source credibility and reliability.
C. Synthesize information from multiple sources to draw conclusions that go beyond
those found in any of the individual studies.
D. Identify complexities and inconsistencies in the information and the different
perspectives found in each medium, including almanacs, microfiche, news sources, indepth field studies, speeches, journals, technical documents, or Internet sources.
E. Develop presentations by using clear research questions and creative and critical
research strategies, such as field studies, oral histories, interviews, experiments, and
Internet sources.

Works Cited
Miles, Tiya. Pain of Trail of Tears Shared by Blacks as well as Native Americans. CNN.com.
Cable News Network, 25 Feb. 2012. Web. 4 May 2015.
Shabazz, Saeed. The Trail of Tears Continues for Black Indians. BlackCommentator.com. The
Black Commentator, 27 Nov. 2003. Web. 3 May 2015.