Native Americans’ Long Journey to US Citizenship and Voting Rights

https://www.history.com ^ | Published: November 06, 2018; Last Updated: June 30, 2025 | Becky Little

[thinden]

Native Americans won U.S. citizenship in 1924, but the struggle for voting rights stretched on for much longer.

Native Americans couldn’t be U.S. citizens when the country ratified its Constitution in 1788, and wouldn’t win the right to be for 136 years. When Black Americans won citizenship with the 14th Amendment in 1868, the government specifically interpreted the law so it didn’t apply to Native people.

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TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: birthright; calvincoolidge; citizenship; constitution; natives; snyderact

[thinden]

In 1924, Native people won the right to full citizenship when President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, also known as the Snyder Act. But many saw the act as a way to break up Native nations and forcibly assimilate them into American society.

[thinden]

heads up

[Resolute Conservative]

As an ex-father-in-law once said, “Indians had garbage dumps too”. He was half Indian.

[escapefromboston]

Odd that the 14th amendment wouldn’t apply to them

[thinden]

Odd that the 14th amendment wouldn't apply to them

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it may be that each tribe was considered to be its own sovereign nation therefore no allegiance to the USA

[generally]

Thanks for the heads up.

Can you interpret a bit? Does this mean there are still places where American Indians do not have full voting rights?

I remember Trump on several occasions specifically calling out “American Indians” or “Native Americans”. Don’t remember the specific term he used. But clearly there was something significant he was getting at.

[PGR88]

When our local Indian Tribes signed their monopolistic casino-gambling compact with our state, they sold themselves as completely free and independent nations.

They even want to charge the state a toll for a highway which runs along the border of their “sovereign land.”

So which is it?

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

The real question is ... why didn’t SCOTUS bring in the debate of Indian citizenship in light of the 14th Amendment.

Did Thomas or Alito mention this in there dissent?

[thinden]

In 1924, Native people won the right to full citizenship when President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, also known as the Snyder Act.

<> snip

Native Americans were only able to win the right to vote by fighting for it state by state. In fact, efforts to disenfranchise Native Americans, particularly those who lived on reservations, continued through the early 1960s.

In 1957, after a challenge by an Indigenous voter, Utah repealed a law that had denied Native Americans living on reservations the right to vote. And in 1962, the Supreme Court of New Mexico struck down a challenge that claimed Navajos living on a reservation in the state should not have been allowed to vote in a 1960 election.

Despite these victories, Native people were still prevented from voting with poll taxes, literacy tests and intimidation—the same tactics used against Black voters. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 helped strengthen the voting rights that Native people had won in every state. However, in 2013, the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder eliminated the Justice Department’s authority to block changes to voting laws in states with histories of discrimination. In 2019, a federal commission found that at least 23 states had enacted “newly restrictive statewide voter laws.”

[thinden]

The real question is ... why didn’t SCOTUS bring in the debate of Indian citizenship in light of the 14th Amendment.

Did Thomas or Alito mention this in there dissent?

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I don’t think thomas, alito or anyone else referred to the native indian’s “alliegence to their tribal nation” as one of the reasons to DENY Native American chillum born in America to be declared American citizens

[Vaduz]

When Black Americans won citizenship with the 14th Amendment in 1868, the government specifically interpreted the law so it didn’t apply to Native people.

Or women

[ProgressingAmerica]

Nothing odd about it at all. It’s on the plain face of the 14th in simple language.

Indians were never originally subject to the jurisdiction therof of the US government.

The Indiansy were subjects of tribal councils. The Indians were foreigners. The Civil War was not a war fought over tribal foreigners, it was fought over black slaves. The 14th was designed to address that very specific and narrow problem.

This is a tad bit easier to understand conceptually that British subjects are subject to the jurisdiction therof of the British government. But its all the same.

[ProgressingAmerica]

Not bringing this up during consideration was a huge mistake.

[little jeremiah]

Or women

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Source?

[Vaduz]

The 19th Amendment makes it illegal to deny the right to vote to any citizen based on their sex, which effectively granted women the right to vote. It was first introduced to Congress in 1878 and was finally certified 42 years later in 1920.

Source

[little jeremiah]

So women were prevented from boting before 1920, I didn’t know that. And how has that worked out, hmmm

[Paal Gulli]

There are NO natives to the Americas.

We all of us are immigrants. The Indians just got here earlier is all.