Elk v. Wilkins
Elk v. Wilkins is a significant U.S. Supreme Court case from 1884 that addressed the voting rights of American Indians. The case involved John Elk, an American Indian who sought to register to vote in Omaha, Nebraska, yet was repeatedly denied on the grounds of his ethnic identity. Elk contended that he met all necessary residency requirements and argued that, as an American Indian born in the U.S., he should be considered both a United States citizen and a citizen of Nebraska under the Fourteenth Amendment. However, the Nebraska courts ruled against him, leading to a Supreme Court decision that upheld this ruling. The Court concluded that Elk, being a member of a tribal nation, was not automatically a U.S. citizen and that explicit Congressional action would be necessary to grant citizenship to American Indians. This case highlights the complexities surrounding citizenship and voting rights for indigenous peoples in the United States, reflecting broader issues of legal recognition and sovereignty that continue to resonate today. Elk v. Wilkins set a precedent that underscored the legal distinctions made between tribal membership and U.S. citizenship, influencing subsequent discussions and legislation regarding Native American rights.
Elk v. Wilkins
In 1884, John Elk, an American Indian, was refused permission to register to vote in a local election in Omaha, Nebraska. When he later appeared at the polls, he was again refused the right to vote. Elk lived apart from his tribe and met all residence and other requirements of the city of Omaha and the state of Nebraska but was turned away on the basis that he was an Indian and, therefore, not a United States citizen. Elk filed a lawsuit charging the state of Nebraska with violation of his Fourteenth Amendment rights by denying his right to vote.
As an Indian born in the United States, Elk argued he was a United States citizen as well as a state citizen. Nebraska courts ruled Elk ineligible to vote, and on November 3, 1884, the U.S. Supreme Court found Nebraska correct in denying Elk’s right to vote. The majority of the Court determined that an Indian who was born a member of a tribe was not a United States citizen but a member of a distinct nation that was separate and apart from the United States. Therefore, the Court determined, a specific act of Congress would be required to make Indian people citizens of the United States.