ALCATRAZ ISLAND
2025
In 2025, ESJF organized a local study tour exploring the history and legacy of the Alcatraz Occupation (1969–1971), a pivotal chapter in the modern Native American sovereignty movement. To honor this legacy, ESJF participants attended the Indigenous Peoples Day Sunrise Gathering on Alcatraz, organized by the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC).
The occupation began in November 1969, when Native American activists landed on Alcatraz Island and called attention to the long history of federal policies that had dispossessed Indigenous peoples of their lands, rights, and sovereignty. The occupiers invoked the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie, which recognized lands reserved for the Sioux and included provisions concerning the return of certain federal lands to Native people. Although the treaty did not specifically designate Alcatraz as land to be returned, the activists drew on its provisions to challenge federal policies and assert Indigenous rights to abandoned federal land.
Led by activists including Richard Oakes and John Trudell, the occupiers invoked the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie and transformed Alcatraz into a center for Indigenous activism, education, and community organizing. During the 19-month occupation, activists established a school, a community center, and Radio Free Alcatraz, using education and media to share Indigenous history and advocate for Native rights. The occupation brought national attention to Indigenous demands for sovereignty, self-determination, and greater control over their communities.
For ESJF, the Alcatraz Occupation offers an important example of how civic engagement, collective action, and community-led education can challenge systems of injustice and create lasting social change. Its legacy continues to resonate in contemporary movements for Indigenous rights and tribal sovereignty.
The study tour also connected this history to contemporary issues in California, including efforts to address Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) and support tribal-led solutions. Through place-based learning, ESJF seeks to connect historical movements for justice with today's civic engagement and social justice work.
The occupation began in November 1969, when Native American activists landed on Alcatraz Island and called attention to the long history of federal policies that had dispossessed Indigenous peoples of their lands, rights, and sovereignty. The occupiers invoked the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie, which recognized lands reserved for the Sioux and included provisions concerning the return of certain federal lands to Native people. Although the treaty did not specifically designate Alcatraz as land to be returned, the activists drew on its provisions to challenge federal policies and assert Indigenous rights to abandoned federal land.
Led by activists including Richard Oakes and John Trudell, the occupiers invoked the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie and transformed Alcatraz into a center for Indigenous activism, education, and community organizing. During the 19-month occupation, activists established a school, a community center, and Radio Free Alcatraz, using education and media to share Indigenous history and advocate for Native rights. The occupation brought national attention to Indigenous demands for sovereignty, self-determination, and greater control over their communities.
For ESJF, the Alcatraz Occupation offers an important example of how civic engagement, collective action, and community-led education can challenge systems of injustice and create lasting social change. Its legacy continues to resonate in contemporary movements for Indigenous rights and tribal sovereignty.
The study tour also connected this history to contemporary issues in California, including efforts to address Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) and support tribal-led solutions. Through place-based learning, ESJF seeks to connect historical movements for justice with today's civic engagement and social justice work.
