On this day, June 11, in 1971

The American government regained control of Alcatraz Island, ending the nineteen-month occupation of the island by thousands of Native American activists from 20 North American tribes. Intending to reclaim the land and demand recognition, the activists had set up a pirate radio station to publicly voice their concerns about issues such as the government's Relocation policies, which lured Native Americans off tribal lands and into big cities where poverty and unemployment usually increased. They also protested the government's intention to end the federal recognition of tribes, effectively nullifying century-old treaties that promised thousands of acres of land to specific tribes.