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| It is perhaps well that added to what has already been said, the representative of a race that has suffered more from the evil effects of liquor than any on this continent should give some expression encouraging you in the good work ‘that you have so steadily and heroically undertaken. | It is perhaps good that an Indigenous person is speaking to you about this topic. No other race on this continent has suffered as much from the evil effects of alcohol. |
| When I say my race, the Indians, have suffered more from intemperance than any others, it does not necessarily imply that they have been the hardest drinkers. Too often the innocent among them have suffered, because some lawless white, regardless of consequences has sold or given liquor to the wild Indian, and while both were intoxicated, they have come to blows and perhaps a deadly conflict. Then friends of both parties have joined in the fray, and from that a rush to the frontier post with an alarm that “The Indians are on the War-path” has caused a hasty parade of troops which has been met by an ambitious chief with his warriors. So without proper inquiry on either side, a war has followed. … | I am not saying that Indigenous people drink more than any other race. In the past there have been incidents where a drunk white person and a drunk Indigenous person fight, and people assume this means all Indigenous people are declaring war against white settlers. US troops get sent in, and an Indigenous war chief has to respond. And so, without anyone stopping to ask why, a war is happening. |
| These things led Congress to make it a penal offense to introduce ardent spirits and spirituous liquors into the Indian country. It is also against law for anyone to give or sell them to an Indian under the charge of an Indian agent, which means any Indian who has not severed himself from his tribe. The laws punish these things by fine or imprisonment or both. … | These incidents led Congress to make it a crime to bring alcohol into Indian Territory. It is also illegal to give or sell alcohol to any Indigenous person who has not severed all ties with their nation. The punishment for breaking these laws is a fine or imprisonment or both. |
| Yet they have not entirely suppressed the use of liquor there. …And why? Because in Missouri, Texas and Arkansas there is not any law against the licensed liquor traffic made by a State. …That is, on one side of the Arkansas river, to give or sell an Indian a drink means fine and imprisonment; and on the other side the licensed barkeeper can sell barrels of it to the same men. | But these laws have not entirely stopped the consumption of alcohol by Indigenous people. Why? Because Missouri, Texas, and Arkansas follow a different set of laws. On one side of the Arkansas River selling alcohol to an Indigenous person leads to a fine or imprisonment. On the other, bars can sell barrels of alcohol to Indigenous people with no consequences. |
| Recently a useful man among his own people, an Indian sheriff, who was also a United States policeman became intoxicated. He had his pistol and the city police and he became involved in a dispute. He was killed. This was in Fort Smith in sight of the Federal Court. … | Recently, an Indigenous sheriff got drunk in Fort Smith, Arkansas and was killed in a fight with the city police, all within sight of the federal court. |
| This convention has it in its power to compel every barroom in Fort Smith, Ark., and Paris, Tex., and all along our borders to either refuse to sell liquor to Indians or suffer the penalties of the law. … | The people gathered here today have the power to force every bar along the Indian Territory borders to stop selling alcohol to Indigenous people. |
| The sentiment among the Indian statesmen and people is in favor of prohibition strictly enforced. The whites who live among us coincide. …I am glad both white and red races there unite in favor of prohibition. … | Indigenous leaders want prohibition strictly enforced. So do white settlers in Indian Territory. I am glad that both Indigenous and white people are united in this cause. |
| The Convention has my ideas. I trust in its wisdom appropriate resolutions will be passed that will at least secure the enforcement of laws which will prevent sale of liquors to Indians anywhere. You have the laws written. See that the machinery to enforce them is kept running smoothly, impartially and rapidly everywhere. | You have heard my ideas. I trust you will pass resolutions calling for the enforcement of prohibition along the borders of Indian Territory. You have written the laws. See that they are enforced. |
| The strict enforcement of these laws will diminish the number of barrooms in Paris, Tex., Ft. Smith, Ark., and all along the lines dividing the States and Indian Territory. Thus in saving the Indians from temptation thousands of whites will be less frequently tempted. | If these laws are strictly enforced, bars will close all along the borders of Indian Territory. By saving thousands of Indigenous people from temptation, we will also lessen the temptations for thousands of white people. |
Jane Stapler, “Address of President of Indian Territory to National Convention,” Minutes of the National Woman’s Christian Temperance Union at the… annual meeting in … with addresses, reports, and constitutions, November 14-18, 1890. Via HathiTrust.
Background
By the late 1800s many Indigenous communities in the United States struggled with a particularly complicated relationship with alcohol. The federal government had been controlling and limiting the sale of alcohol to Indigenous communities since the 1830s. Such laws were problematic and ineffective. They severely encroached on the sovereignty of Indigenous communities and perpetuated racist stereotypes of “drunken Indians.” They also did little to control alcohol consumption in Indian territories. Indigenous community members were still buying and selling alcohol illegally. Just like in the general population, alcoholism was a challenge for many Indigenous families and communities.
While Indigenous communities were grappling with federal laws and increased alcohol consumption, the national temperance movement was regaining momentum. Indigenous women, as community caretakers, were eager to be a part of it. They joined groups like the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) to petition local leaders and authorities to enforce bans on the sale of alcohol within and around Indigenous communities.
But Indigenous temperance activists faced racism within the movement. Many white women members of the WCTU perpetuated stereotypes when visiting Indian territories and advocating for Indigenous communities. In response, Indigenous temperance activists looked for opportunities for their own voices to be heard.
About the Documents
This speech was made by L. Jane Stapler (Cherokee). She was born in Georgia, the daughter of a chief of the Eastern Cherokees. Jane was forced to walk the Trail of Tears as a young girl and was taught by Christian missionaries in Indian Territory. She remained a devoted Christian throughout her life. In 1884 she became President of the WCTU in Indian Territory.
In her speech, L. Jane Stapler asks the National Convention of the WCTU to support the ongoing prohibition of alcohol in Indian Territory. She describes how destructive alcohol has been in her community and reminds the audience that alcohol cannot legally be sold to those living in Indian Territory. She wants assurance that the law prohibiting the sale of alcohol will be enforced. She believes that if the ban is enforced, Indigenous people will no longer drink and that this will be better for both them and the white community.
Vocabulary
- Cherokee: An Indigenous community that originally inhabited the area now known as the American Southeast. Today the Cherokee Nation is headquartered in Oklahoma.
- Eastern Cherokee: The name for the band of Cherokee that resisted Indian Removal until they were forced to relocate to Indian Territory in 1838-1839.
- Indian Territory: Land in the US that was reserved for the Indigenous communities that were forced to move west by the US government. By the 1830s Indian Territory had been restricted to the area that is today Oklahoma.
- prohibition: Legal prevention of the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol.
- temperance movement: A broad social movement popular during the Progressive Era that called for moderation or abstinence regarding the consumption of alcoholic beverages
- Trail of Tears: Name for the route the Eastern Cherokee were forced to walk during their relocation to Indian Territory in 1838-1839.
- Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU): A women’s social reform organization devoted to the cause of prohibiting the consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Discussion Questions
- Why did L. Jane Stapler give this speech? What was she hoping to accomplish?
- According to L. Jane Stapler, how will Indigenous communities like the Cherokee benefit from an enforced alcohol ban?
- Why do you think L. Jane Stapler felt she needed to ask the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union to remember Indigenous communities? What does this reveal about the larger temperance movement?
Suggested Activities
- Consider this resource alongside Mexican Women Unionize, Mink Brigade, and The Silent Protest to discuss different modes of advocacy and activism during this era.
- Pair this resource with Princess Dawn Mist, Life Story: Zitkala-Ša, Zitkala-Ša Advocates for Indigenous Rights, and Life Story: Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin to consider how Indigenous people were perceived and treated in this period.
- To consider the ongoing legacy of Indigenous activism, pair this resource with:
Themes
POLITICS AND SOCIETY; ACTIVISM AND SOCIAL CHANGE
