The History Behind "No One is Illegal On Stolen Land"- Elementary School

To understand modern phrases about immigration and land, it helps to look back at how the United States grew and changed over the last few centuries.

Long before European explorers arrived, millions of Indigenous peoples (Native Americans) lived across North America. Different tribes—such as the Cherokee, Navajo, Haudenosaunee, and Tongva—had their own distinct cultures, languages, and ways of governing. They lived on and cared for these lands for thousands of years.

Starting in the late 1400s and 1500s, explorers and settlers from European countries like Spain, France, and Great Britain sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas. Many settlers came seeking new opportunities, trade, farmland, or religious freedom.

As European countries claimed land to build colonies and later form the United States, they pushed Native American communities off their ancestral lands. Over time, through wars, forced movements, and broken legal agreements (treaties), Indigenous populations lost most of their land and suffered severe harm.

As the United States grew into an independent nation, millions of people from all around the world began moving to America.

• Settlers and immigrants came from Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America over different centuries.

• Many arrived looking for safety, jobs, or a fresh start for their families.

Because most families living in the U.S. today can trace their family roots back to people who traveled here from other countries, America is often nicknamed "a nation of immigrants."

Today, when people discuss immigration and history, you might hear two common phrases:

"We are all immigrants"

• This saying highlights that almost everyone (except for Native Americans) living in the U.S. today has ancestors who moved here from somewhere else in the world. It is often used to remind people to be welcoming and empathetic toward new immigrants, showing that immigration has always been a key part of the country's story. Without immigration, you might not be a U.S. citizen!

"No one is illegal on stolen land"

• This phrase is used to point out the deeper history of the land. It argues that because we originally took land from Native Americans through force or unfair treaties, it is unfair to call new immigrants or asylum seekers "illegal" for moving across those same borders.