Occupying Alcatraz: Native American Activists Demand Change

Occupying Alcatraz: Native American Activists Demand Change — page 9
civil they saw a boatload of disgruntled federal marshals speeding toward the island in the other direction The next morning a headline in the San Francisco Examiner read Wacky Invasion Nearly three weeks later on March 27 McKenzie and the other Sioux leaders tried another approach They filed a written petition with the government In it they stated their intentions to establish a university for Native American students on the island But the government denied their petition In July 1964 Alcatraz became the property of the General Services Administration GSA a federal agency tasked with among other duties managing government buildings and land The first takeover of Alcatraz had apparently failed But it wouldn't be the last Following the example of McKenzie and his crew and emboldened by rights protests breaking out throughout the country other Native Americans would soon take up the cause Members of various tribes would try twice more to occupy Alcatraz Their third attempt on November 20 1969 was the most successful and lasted more than 19 months As were many other periods in US history the 1960s and 1970s were a time of great upheaval for Native Americans Most were determined to set the record straight about the injustices that had befallen them for