In November of 1972, members from the activist American Indian group AIM (American Indian Movement) led the "Trail
of Broken Treaties" caravan to protest the Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters in Washington D.C.
The protest was an attempt to convince the government to renew the treaty
relationship that had once existed. However, the demonstration was halted and it
transformed into a week-long takeover of the BIA office by the American Indian
protesters.
In all the media excitement that surrounded the occupation, a document known as
The Twenty Points was misplaced. This document had been the foundation of
American Indians demands which called for a return to the term of treaties.
AIM brought thousands of people to Washington D.C. for the protest. However,
they did not convince the government to renew the treaty. As a result of this,
further steps had to be made by AIM to insure the civil rights of their Native
American Peoples.
The Occupation of the BIA was historically significant because it brought the
struggles of these American Indians into the spotlight of the media.
Since 1972 there has been a greater amount of media coverage in the forms of documentaries, news programs, and feature
films: all of which allow more people to understand what the American Indians have been struggling with.
