Changes

Some Cherokee leaders signed a relocation treaty in 1833, and in 1836 the Cherokees were given two years to move voluntarily. In 1838, President [[Martin Van Buren]]'s administration forced about 17,000 Cherokee Indian to move to Oklahoma. Between 2,000 and 4,000 died on the trip, mostly the elderly and small children due to disease, malnutrition, and fatigue.  The Trail of Tears became a national historical site in 1987.<ref>The exact number is debated. On the official lists, 13,169 left home and 11,504 arrived in Oklahoma. Russell Thornton et al. ''The Cherokees: A Population History'' (University of Nebraska Press, 1992).</ref>

Some Cherokee leaders signed a relocation treaty in 1833, and in 1836 the Cherokees were given two years to move voluntarily. In 1838, President [[Martin Van Buren]]'s administration forced about 17,000 Cherokee Indian to move to Oklahoma. Between 2,000 and 4,000 died on the trip, mostly the elderly and small children due to disease, malnutrition, and fatigue.  The Trail of Tears became a national historical site in 1987.<ref>The exact number is debated. On the official lists, 13,169 left home and 11,504 arrived in Oklahoma. Russell Thornton et al. ''The Cherokees: A Population History'' (University of Nebraska Press, 1992).</ref>

Jackson had expressed the opinion that the relocation was a generous offer to the Indians, and that they would be very much better off with the freedom and autonomy of their new territories. Jackson was an advocate of strong military rule that would overwhelm people (like [[John C. Calhoun]]) who disagreed with his liberal policies. Jackson rejected the pleas of the evangelical ministers because he did not feel religious motives should dictate his policies.  He rejected the Supreme Court decision on the matter because he saw the preisdency as the superior interpreter of the Constitution.  Liberal historians have celebrated Jackson's actions.

Jackson had expressed the opinion that the relocation was a generous offer to the Indians, and that they would be very much better off with the freedom and autonomy of their new territories. Jackson was an advocate of strong military rule that would overwhelm people (like [[John C. Calhoun]]) who disagreed with his liberal policies. Jackson rejected the pleas of the evangelical ministers because he did not feel religious motives should dictate his policies.  He rejected the Supreme Court decision on the matter because he saw the preisdency as the superior interpreter of the Constitution.  Liberal historians have celebrated Jackson's stong presidency. Robert Remini, Jackson's most fervent defender, admits that the Trail of Tears had horrors that "beggar the imagination," noting the Indians were "American citizens who were denied their basic civil rights as well as their property because of the nation's perceived need and fear."  But Remini goes on to argue it was better for the Indians in the long run because it saved many of the eastern Indian nations from almost certain annihilation.<ref> Robert Remini, ''Andrew Jackson and His Indian Wars'' (2002), pp. viii, 55, 228, 236</ref> 

Private John G. Burnett participated in the forced relocation, and wrote about the great suffering that the Cherokees endured.

Private John G. Burnett participated in the forced relocation, and wrote about the great suffering that the Cherokees endured.