The Dedman College Interdisciplinary Institute invites you to a lecture by Dr. Kacy Hollenback, SMU Department of Anthropology, marking the 100th anniversary of the passage of the Indian Citizenship Act. This is the third event in the 2024 Godbey Anniversary Lecture Series.

Passed in 1866 to extend rights granted by the Bill of Rights to formerly enslaved inviduals, the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution defined any person born or naturalized within the United States as a citizen. Both, however, excluded Native Americans. It was not until June 2, 1924 that Congress granted these same rights to Indigenous peoples via the Indian Citizenship Act. Motivations for the passage of the law were to recognize the service of over 23,000 Native Americans who fought and served the country in World War I. Yet not all tribal members welcomed this "gesture." For those that did, many did not receive full citizenship and suffrage rights until 1948, as some states denied such access. For tribal members who opposed the bill, they feared it would weaken the sovereignty of Native Nations. Some of these tensions have continued to the present. This lecture will explore the complicated legacies of the Indian Citizenship Act, reflecting back on a century of shifting federal legislation, Native resistance, and Indigenous persistence and sovereignty.