The Navajo Indians in Utah reside on a reservation of more than 1,155,000 acres in the
southeastern corner of the state. According to the 1990 census, more than half of the population of San
Juan County is comprised of Navajo people, the majority of whom live south of the San Juan River. Most
anthropologists concur that the Navajo tribe migrated from Canada and spread throughout Northern
New Mexico. Spaniards and Mexicans occasionally pursued Navajos into the northern part of their
territory, but it was not until the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo at the end of the Mexican War in 1848
that Americans were prompted to take action against Navajo raiders and settlements. The relationship
between the Navajo and the United States government reinforces the pattern of removal, resistance,
and relocation.
Indian removal from their homeland becomes prominent after the passing Indian Removal Act,
likewise, the Navajo removal becomes prominent as American settlers begin to move into their territory.
After the signing of Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico sold 1.2 million acres of land to the US which
the Navajo resided in. American settlers rapidly began settling in the Navajo region and the settlers
began to exert control over the Southwest. A violent dispute between American settlers and Navajo
leaders on August 31, 1849 initiated tension between American settlers and the Navajo Nation. One
Navajo leader named Narbona was killed and this outraged Manuelito, who was Narbona's son-in-law,
and Barboncito, another influential Navajo leader. As tensions rose between both parties, factors of
removal began to come into play. According to Peter Iverson, The US constructed Fort Defiance in the
1850s and in the heart of the Navajo country. The name of the fort suggests the antagonism the Navajo
and the US soldiers felt for each other. The Navajo internalized much of their angry towards the white
settlers. Evidence of this can be seen in Manuelito, Barboncito, and the thousand warriors who
attempted to raid Fort Defiance. The Navajo were not being treated equally and there were little to no
retributions for the death of Narbona. However, Fort Defiance's commanding officer demanded
retributions for a slave killing and ended slaughtering more Navajo for not meeting their demands. The
US soldiers were quick to kill Navajos because they saw them as unequal and treated them as such.
General Carleton personifies the perception of inequality American settlers had on the Navajo. General
Carleton has his own vested interest in relocating the Navajo to seek gold in Navajo territory. General
Carleton’s public intention for removing the Navajo was to help them "assimilate" with mainstream
American ideas. This suggests that Navajo culture was inadequate and inferior in General Carleton’s
perspective. US officials found it in their best interest to subdue the Navajo out of fear their settlements
would be raided by them. Evidence of this fear traces back to the raids of Fort Defiance and other
incidents involving both parties disputing against each other. Evidence of Navajo removal existed in the
rapid growth of American settlement in Navajo territory, the construction of Fort Defiance in the heart
of Navajo country, the Fort Defiance raid, and cultural differences which included General Carleton’s
desire to assimilate the Navajo into American culture.
The Navajo were treated as prisoners of war with US soldiers showing little sympathy to them
especially during the period of The Long Walk. There was resistance such as Navajos fleeing and armed
rebellion. Evidence of this is the Navajos fleeing for northern Arizona or the Black Mesa and Manuelito's
rebellion. Commander Carleton is responsible for the campaign that allowed him to ravage the Navajo
countryside. This isolated Navajo of food and forced them to surrender. Manuelito and other Navajo
leaders surrendered and arrived at Fort Sumner in 1866. There were prior encounters of resistance, but
the greatest act of resistance was the raid on Fort Defiance which resulted in several Navajo casualties
while only one US official was killed and a few wounded. On May 28, 1868 Barboncito spoke to General
Sherman about the injustices he and his people have endured. In response, Sherman responded with
the federal policy to remove Indians and relocate them to Oklahoma. The interactions between
Barboncito and Sherman emphasizes that the US was more inclined to value their interests over the
interests of the Navajo.
Navajo relocation was forced and unjustified through the mistreatment of Navajo. The
relocation of the Navajo included a 400 mile march from their homeland to Fort Sumner. This was
known as The Long Walk. Navajo were punished for not being able to walk a certain pace, even
pregnant women and children were beaten. As a result, many Navajo died before reaching the
reservation. The reservations Navajos were held in had terrible living conditions and were treated as
subhuman. Navajo life expectancy decreased in reservations due to the lack of healthy soil and water.
General Carleton’s original reasoning behind the reservations was to assimilate the Navajo into
American culture which wasn’t his real reason and ended up failing as well. Commander Carleton’s true
purpose for the Navajos was never fulfilled because his interest was truly in the development of Navajo
territory.
The Navajo people were removed from their homeland through the construction of Fort
Defiance and American settlement. The Navajo resisted by attempting to raid Fort Defiance and by
continuing to dispute the land American settlers were taking from them. The Navajo were relocated to
Fort Sumner and then placed onto reservations and Americans continued to relocate them. The
paradigm of removal, resistance, and relocation regarding the Navajo was present through their
interactions with American settlers.