IA 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. J. RES. 46 
To acknowledge a long history of official depredations and ill-conceived policies 
by the United States Government regarding Indian tribes and offer 
an apology to all Native Peoples on behalf of the United States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 30, 2009 
Mr. BOREN (for himself, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. COLE, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. 
SHULER, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. KIND, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 
PETERSON, Ms. HERSETH SANDLIN, Mr. STARK, Mrs. MYRICK, Ms. 
MCCOLLUM, Mr. BACA, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Ms. 
FALLIN, Mr. KENNEDY, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. WALZ, Mr. HONDA, Mr. 
PALLONE, and Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan) introduced the following 
joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Re-
sources 
JOINT RESOLUTION 
To acknowledge a long history of official depredations and 
ill-conceived policies by the United States Government 
regarding Indian tribes and offer an apology to all Native 
Peoples on behalf of the United States. 
Whereas the ancestors of today’s Native Peoples inhabited 
the land of the present-day United States since time im-
memorial and for thousands of years before the arrival of 
peoples of European descent; 
Whereas the Native Peoples have for millennia honored, pro-
tected, and stewarded this land we cherish; 
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•HJ 46 IH 
Whereas the Native Peoples are spiritual peoples with a deep 
and abiding belief in the Creator, and for millennia their 
peoples have maintained a powerful spiritual connection 
to this land, as is evidenced by their customs and leg-
ends; 
Whereas the arrival of Europeans in North America opened 
a new chapter in the histories of the Native Peoples; 
Whereas, while establishment of permanent European settle-
ments in North America did stir conflict with nearby In-
dian tribes, peaceful and mutually beneficial interactions 
also took place; 
Whereas the foundational English settlements in Jamestown, 
Virginia, and Plymouth, Massachusetts, owed their sur-
vival in large measure to the compassion and aid of the 
Native Peoples in their vicinities; 
Whereas in the infancy of the United States, the founders of 
the Republic expressed their desire for a just relationship 
with the Indian tribes, as evidenced by the Northwest Or-
dinance enacted by Congress in 1787, which begins with 
the phrase, ‘‘The utmost good faith shall always be ob-
served toward the Indians’’; 
Whereas Indian tribes provided great assistance to the fledg-
ling Republic as it strengthened and grew, including in-
valuable help to Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on 
their epic journey from St. Louis, Missouri, to the Pacific 
Coast; 
Whereas Native Peoples and non-Native settlers engaged in 
numerous armed conflicts; 
Whereas the United States Government violated many of the 
treaties ratified by Congress and other diplomatic agree-
ments with Indian tribes; 
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•HJ 46 IH 
Whereas this Nation should address the broken treaties and 
many of the more ill-conceived Federal policies that fol-
lowed, such as extermination, termination, forced removal 
and relocation, the outlawing of traditional religions, and 
the destruction of sacred places; 
Whereas the United States forced Indian tribes and their citi-
zens to move away from their traditional homelands and 
onto federally established and controlled reservations, in 
accordance with such Acts as the Indian Removal Act of 
1830; 
Whereas many Native Peoples suffered and perished— 
(1) during the execution of the official United States 
Government policy of forced removal, including the infa-
mous Trail of Tears and Long Walk; 
(2) during bloody armed confrontations and mas-
sacres, such as the Sand Creek Massacre in 1864 and the 
Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890; and 
(3) on numerous Indian reservations; 
Whereas the United States Government condemned the tradi-
tions, beliefs, and customs of the Native Peoples and en-
deavored to assimilate them by such policies as the redis-
tribution of land under the General Allotment Act of 
1887 and the forcible removal of Native children from 
their families to faraway boarding schools where their 
Native practices and languages were degraded and for-
bidden; 
Whereas officials of the United States Government and pri-
vate United States citizens harmed Native Peoples by the 
unlawful acquisition of recognized tribal land and the 
theft of tribal resources and assets from recognized tribal 
land; 
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•HJ 46 IH 
Whereas the policies of the United States Government toward 
Indian tribes and the breaking of covenants with Indian 
tribes have contributed to the severe social ills and eco-
nomic troubles in many Native communities today; 
Whereas, despite the wrongs committed against Native Peo-
ples by the United States, the Native Peoples have re-
mained committed to the protection of this great land, as 
evidenced by the fact that, on a per capita basis, more 
Native people have served in the United States Armed 
Forces and placed themselves in harm’s way in defense 
of the United States in every major military conflict than 
any other ethnic group; 
Whereas Indian tribes have actively influenced the public life 
of the United States by continued cooperation with Con-
gress and the Department of the Interior, through the in-
volvement of Native individuals in official United States 
Government positions, and by leadership of their own 
sovereign Indian tribes; 
Whereas Indian tribes are resilient and determined to pre-
serve, develop, and transmit to future generations their 
unique cultural identities; 
Whereas the National Museum of the American Indian was 
established within the Smithsonian Institution as a living 
memorial to the Native Peoples and their traditions; and 
Whereas Native Peoples are endowed by their Creator with 
certain unalienable rights, and that among those are life, 
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness: Now, therefore, be 
it 
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
That the United States, acting through Congress— 
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•HJ 46 IH 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND POLICY 
SECTION 1. 
The United States, acting through Congress— 
(1) recognizes the special legal and political relation-
ship the Indian tribes have with the United States and 
the solemn covenant with the land we share; 
(2) commends and honors the Native Peoples for the 
thousands of years that they have stewarded and protected 
this land; 
(3) recognizes that there have been years of official 
depredations, ill-conceived policies, and the breaking of 
covenants by the United States Government regarding In-
dian tribes; 
(4) apologizes on behalf of the people of the United 
States to all Native Peoples for the many instances of vio-
lence, maltreatment, and neglect inflicted on Native Peo-
ples by citizens of the United States; 
(5) expresses its regret for the ramifications of 
former wrongs and its commitment to build on the positive 
relationships of the past and present to move toward a 
brighter future where all the people of this land live rec-
onciled as brothers and sisters, and harmoniously steward 
and protect this land together; 
(6) urges the President to acknowledge the wrongs 
of the United States against Indian tribes in the history 
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