Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep interviews President Obama in the Oval Office on Dec. 17. Inskeep's new book is called "Jacksonland" and it explores a 19th century political battle by focusing on its two principals: President Andrew Jackson and Cherokee chief John Ross.; Credit: /Kainaz Amaria/NPR
Tens of thousands of Native Americans were removed from their homelands following the Indian Removal Act of 1830. The episode is often referred to as the “Trail of Tears.”
In his new book “Jacksonland: President Andrew Jackson, Chief John Ross, and a Great American Land Grab” Morning Edition co-host Steve Inskeep explores the political battle by focusing on its two principals: President Andrew Jackson and Cherokee chief John Ross.
Inskeep details the two men’s struggle over the land of the Five Civilized Tribes and how later as president, Jackson seized tens of millions of acres known as “Jacksonland” located today in the America’s Deep South. It also gives readers a glimpse into the less reported on John Ross who was a politician and diplomat who used the United States’ legal system to oppose Jackson.
Inskeep joins us to discuss the story behind “Jacksonland” and how early Native-American relations in the U.S. set the tone for events like the Civil War as well as modern-day politics.
Guest:
Steve Inskeep, co-host of NPR’s Morning Edition and author of the book, “Jacksonland: President Andrew Jackson, Chief John Ross, and a Great American Land Grab” (Penguin Press, 2015)