Removal
By Sara Serrano
CNHI Oklahoma
TAHLEQUAH – After pedaling nearly 1,000 miles across the Southeast in memory of their ancestors, the Cherokee Nation’s 2023 Remember the Removal cyclists returned to cheers from communities and tribes.
The cyclists began their 950-mile journey in New Echota, Ga., the former capital of the Cherokee Nation, and traveled through Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma before finishing June 23 in Tahlequah, the CN’s current capital.
The annual RTR has participants follow the northern route of the Trail of Tears and retrace the forced trek the Cherokee people made almost 200 years ago. The CN recounts an estimated 16,000 Cherokees were removed from their homelands in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina in 1838, with almost 4,000 of them dying on the way. RTR honors their memory and commemorate those hardships. The cyclists visited several historic landmarks and Cherokee grave sites.
“There’s a feeling you get visiting the places that you know your ancestors have been that’s pretty indescribable, knowing you’re walking in the footsteps of family members,” Snell said.
Snell said the team has learned so much about their ancestors through the ride.
“We’re thankful that we had an opportunity to honor them and just help the world remember what they went through and everything tat they accomplished,” she said.
As they pulled into the Cherokee Nation Peace Pavilion, the cyclists were greeted by a crowd of supporters and tribal officials.
