Question

what was the short-term consequence of the native american occupation of alcatraz in 1969?

they were forcibly removed from the island by government officials.
they were allowed to purchase the island for the sum of 24 dollars in glass beads and red cloth.
they were given the island as a result of a supreme court decision on a 19th-century treaty.
they were all imprisoned in alcatraz for unlawful protests and not allowed to leave.

Explanation:

🆕 New Concept Discovered: Red Power movement and indigenous activism
Protests and occupations to assert tribal sovereignty.

Step 1: Understand the Occupation of Alcatraz

In November 1969, a group of Native American activists known as the Indians of All Tribes (IAT) occupied Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. They cited the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie, which stated that retired, abandoned, or out-of-use federal land should be returned to the Native peoples from whom it was taken. Since the Alcatraz penitentiary had been closed in 1963, they claimed the island.

Step 2: Analyze the Short-Term Outcome

The occupation lasted for 19 months, during which the activists established a community on the island. However, over time, the federal government cut off electrical power and telephone service to the island. By June 1971, support and numbers on the island had dwindled. On June 11, 1971, federal marshals, GSA Special Forces, and FBI agents entered the island and forcibly removed the remaining 15 occupiers, ending the occupation.

Step 3: Evaluate the Options

• They were forcibly removed from the island by government officials. This is historically accurate. Armed federal officers removed the remaining occupiers in June 1971.
• They were allowed to purchase the island for the sum of 24 dollars in glass beads and red cloth. This is incorrect. While the occupiers famously offered to buy the island for this amount (mocking the historical purchase of Manhattan), the U.S. government did not accept the offer.
• They were given the island as a result of a Supreme Court decision on a 19th-century treaty. This is incorrect. The federal government did not cede ownership of Alcatraz to the activists.
• They were all imprisoned in Alcatraz for unlawful protests and not allowed to leave. This is incorrect. Alcatraz was no longer an active prison, and the occupiers were removed from the island, not imprisoned inside it.

Answer:

They were forcibly removed from the island by government officials.