Who were forced to leave their ancestral lands resulting in the Trail of Tears?

The Trail of Tears refers to the forced removal of several Native American tribes from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States during the 1830s, primarily due to the implementation of the Indian Removal Act signed by President Andrew Jackson. The Cherokee tribe is especially notable in this context, as they were one of the primary groups affected. The removal involved a difficult journey on foot, where thousands of Cherokee suffered from exposure, disease, and starvation, leading to a significant loss of life.

While the Muskogee (Creek) tribe also experienced forced removal, the Cherokee are often most prominently associated with this tragic event. The hardships endured during the Trail of Tears have since become emblematic of the injustices faced by Indigenous peoples in the U.S. The other tribes mentioned—while they too faced removal at various times—are not the ones most closely linked historically and symbolically to the Trail of Tears event itself, reinforcing why the choice that includes both the Cherokee and Muskogee is considered correct.