Indigenous History and the relationship with the expansion to the North American west: the case “Cherokee Nation v. State of Georgia” (1831)

O caso “Cherokee Nation v. State of Georgia” (1831)

Abstract

This work addresses the theme of Indigenous History in order to discuss theoretical and methodological issues involving the study of native peoples and cultures of the American continent. The proposal consists of presenting an initial discussion on the subject to then understand the case of the Cherokee people, native to North America, based on documentation from the American justice system obtained from a digital collection aimed at study of Native American history. Thus, the intention is to highlight that the study of Indigenous peoples can be conducted from different types of sources. However, in the case at hand, given its 19^th century origins and its involvement with legislation responsible for displacing populations from their lands, we primarily rely on written sources originating from the justice system. Furthermore, we seek to emphasize the active agency of original peoples, situating them within their own dynamics rather than within a Eurocentric narrative.