In the winter of 1838, thousands of Cherokee men, women, and children were forced from their homelands in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, and the Carolinas.
What followed was one of the darkest chapters in American history:
The Trail of Tears — a government-mandated journey of more than 1,000 miles to unfamiliar lands, marked by death, disease, hunger, and heartbreak.

💔 By the Numbers, Beyond the Numbers

• Over 16,000 Cherokee were rounded up at gunpoint.
  

• At least 4,000 died on the journey due to cold, starvation, and illness.
  

• Entire families were separated, elders were buried in unmarked ground, and sacred lands were left behind forever.
  

But beyond the numbers lies something deeper:
💬 "We cried... we cried so much the rivers ran red." – remembered by descendants.

🌿 A People Torn, A Spirit Unbroken

Despite the cruelty, the Cherokee Nation endured.

• Their language survived.
  

• Their ceremonies were kept in secret and then revived.
  

Their descendants now lead nations, write books, teach history, and carry the memory of those who walked before them.

Why We Must Remember

To honor Indigenous voices today,
we must listen to the silence left behind yesterday.

The Trail of Tears is not only a history lesson—it is a moral memory.
It reminds us of what happens when land is valued more than people.
When sovereignty is ignored.
When promises are broken.

And yet, the story is not only sorrow—it is survival.
 It is the quiet power of a people who still sing, still gather, still walk.

💬 “They tried to bury us—but they didn’t know we were seeds.”

Let us walk more mindfully.
Speak more truthfully.
And honor more fully.

🕯️ In remembrance of those who walked the Trail of Tears — and those who still carry the weight.