Was it right or wrong for Andrew Jackson to make the trail of tears?

Answer 1

This question can only lead to debate, and there are as many opinions on the matter as there are people willing to give them. Given in this answer are at least two of the popular opinions behind why it was wrong, and why it was not wrong - in no particular order:

Not Wrong:

Andrew Jackson didn't "make" the Trail of Tears, but he set into motion the factors that allowed it to happen. President Jackson was a veteran Indian fighter and was against allowing the tribes as separate nations within individual states. When GA tried to gain control over the Cherokees the Supreme Court upheld the rights of the Native Americans. For Jackson, the only solution seemed to be the removal of the Eastern Indians to the Great Plains West. He pushed the scheme as the most just and humane alternative. The Native Americans were to exchange their lands for tracts in the "wilds" beyond the Mississippi in what is now OK. There they would assured that they could live with no further encroachment by the white men. In 1830 Congress made this policy into law, but new permanent frontier would only last 15 years before more settlers came. More than 100,000 Native Americans were moved in the 1830's and part of that was when the "Trail of Tears" took place.

Wrong:

Andrew Jackson first committed an act of Treason by violating a treaty taken under Article 6 of the US Constitution (all Indian treaties are made a part of the US Constitution by this article, and also requires an oath to support that same constitution by the same article) such treaties promised that the natives holding the lands taken would not be taken; Jackson ignored these and forced the removal.

Andrew Jackson was no different than Hitler in responsibility for acts of his juniors, under laws he passed, policies he put in place, acts he condoned, and public incitement to commit such acts; The International Court of Justice has said such during the war crimes trials of WWII and this was not a new law, it was a very old law. It is a rule of law that a Senior Officer is guilty of the same crime committed by a junior officer, if the senior learns of the crime and fails to prosecute the junior - this is the very nature of a conspiracy to commit an act, or condoning an act. The Indian Removal Act and the Trail of Tears started in 1831 and lasted till 1838, Jackson was president from 1829 - 1837, so 7 of the 8 years was under his command.

Jackson also called for "Ethnic Cleansing" (Genocide), and openly supported this policy of genocide against native Americans. In modern law, modeled after ancient international law, Genocide is: any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy in whole, or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

(a) Killing members of the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; (e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. Acts punishable include: (a) Genocide; (b) Conspiracy to commit genocide; (c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide; (d) Attempt to commit genocide; (e) Complicity in genocide.

It was wrong and an injustice to the Native American population. It violated every treaty and promise of the United States to Native Americans. It was genocide in it's truest form.