This language was generally taken to mean members of various tribes that were treated as separate sovereignties: they were citizens of their tribal nations.

The act was proposed by U.S. Representative Homer P. Snyder (R-N.Y.), and signed into law by President Calvin Coolidge on June 2, 1924.

222, Certificates of Citizenship to Indians, 68th Congress, 1st Session, Feb. 22, 1924.The act has been codified in the United States Code at Title 8, Sec.

At the time of the adoption of the US Constitution under Article One, Native Americans, who were classified as "Indians not taxed", were not considered to be eligible for US citizenship because they were governed by distinct tribes, which functioned in a political capacity.

[citation needed] In the Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) decision, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Roger B. Taney stated that even if a Native American gave up his tribal membership and paid taxes, the only path to citizenship was through naturalization, legislation, or provisions of a treaty:[2]: 30 They [the Indian tribes] may without doubt, like the subjects of any foreign government, be naturalized by the authority of Congress and become citizens of a state and of the United States, and if an individual should leave his nation or tribe, and take up his abode among the white population, he would be entitled to all the rights and privileges which would belong to an emigrant from any other foreign people.

However, the "jurisdiction" requirement was interpreted to exclude most Native Americans, and in 1870, the Senate Judiciary Committee further clarified the matter: "the 14th amendment to the Constitution has no effect whatever upon the status of the Indian tribes within the limits of the United States".

[6] Others obtained citizenship by serving in the military, marrying whites, or accepting land allotments[7] such as those granted under the Dawes Act.

[6] The exclusion of Native Americans from US citizenship was further established by Elk v. Wilkins (1884),[8] when the Supreme Court held that a Native person born a citizen of a recognized tribal nation was not born an American citizen and did not become one simply by voluntarily leaving his tribe and settling among whites.

Although the Dawes Act did not apply to citizens of the Five Civilized Tribes, the Osage, Miami, the Peoria, nor the Sac and Fox Nations of Indian Territory,[9]: 20, 24  the Curtis Act of 1898 extended its provisions to their citizens, requiring allotment of their lands and making their tribal members eligible to vote in local elections.

The Indigenous people not included had already become citizens by other means, such as by entering the armed forces, giving up tribal affiliations, and assimilating into mainstream American life.

[16]: 121  By 1947, all states with large Indian populations, except Arizona and New Mexico, had extended voting rights to Native Americans who qualified under the 1924 Act.

They believed acceptance of this act was "treason" because the United States Senate was forcing citizenship on all Indians without their consent.

[18] On May 19, 1924, Snyder said on the House floor, "The New York Indians are very much opposed to this, but I am perfectly willing to take the responsibility if the committee sees fit to agree to this."

[19] On December 30, 1924, the Chiefs of the Onondaga sent a letter to President Calvin Coolidge:[20] With little lobbying effort from Native Americans themselves, two primarily white groups shaped the law: Progressive senators and activists, like the "Friends of the Indians."

[17] Other groups for Native American citizenship supported it because of the "guardianship" status they felt the US government should take to protect Indigenous people.

The Indian Rights Association, a key group in the development of this legislation, advocated that federal guardianship was a necessary component of citizenship.