Richard Oakes (activist) - Alcatraz Occupation

Alcatraz Occupation

In 1969, Oakes led a group of students and urban Bay Area Indians in an occupation of Alcatraz Island that would last until 1971. He also recruited 80 UCLA students from the American Indian Studies Center.

Many other tribes had already attempted to circle the island by boats but all were unsuccessful. Oakes chose to swim through the Bay and directly took control of the island. Indians of various tribes joined Oakes and staged the longest occupation of a federal facility by Indian people.

The historic occupation was made up initially of young Indian college students. Described as a handsome, charismatic, talented, and natural leader, Oakes was identified as "chief" of the island.

Oakes had control of the island from the very beginning, with an organizational council put into effect immediately. Everyone had a job, including security, sanitation, day care, schooling, cooking, and laundry. All decisions were made by the unanimous consent of the people.

The goals of the Indian inhabitants were to gain a deed to the island, establish an Indian university, cultural center, and museum.

In 1970 the island began to fall into disarray once Oakes' 13-year-old stepdaughter,Yvonne, fell to her death off of concrete steps. After the fatality, Oakes left the island, along with numerous students who went back to school.

Conflicts over leadership and the influx of non-Indians diminished the important stance of the original occupants.

In June 1971 the United States government removed the remaining 15 occupants from the island.

While Oakes and his followers did not succeed in obtaining the island, they did affect U.S. policy and the treatment of Indians. As a result of the occupation, the official U.S. government policy of termination of Indian tribes was ended and replaced by a policy of Indian self-determination.