Beginning tomorrow, October 19, Indigenous Peoples Movement launches The Treatie Files a powerful new series examining the promises the United States made to Indigenous Nations—and the history of what happened to those promises. For generations, Tribal Nations entered into treaties with the United States. These were not symbolic agreements. They were legally binding commitments between sovereign nations, promising protection of lands, recognition of rights, and respect for sovereignty.

Yet throughout American history, treaty-protected lands were taken, commitments went unfulfilled, and promises made to our ancestors were broken. Here is what every American should understand:

Article VI of the United States Constitution declares that treaties made under the authority of the United States are part of the supreme law of the land. Think about that, The very Constitution that Americans swear to defend recognizes the legal authority of these treaties.

So what happens when a nation fails to honor the promises it made under its own Constitution?



Episode 1: The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868