The Doctrine of Discovery

The Doctrine of Discovery had been used for centuries to expropriate indigenous lands and facilitate their transfer to colonizing or dominating nations, speakers in the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues stressed today, urging the expert body to study the creation of a special mechanism, under United Nations auspices, to investigate historical land claims.
Taken from:  http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2012/hr5088.doc.htm

The Doctrine of Discovery is the legitimated notion that the first European country that discovered lands unknown to other Europeans could claim property and sovereign rights over Indigenous Peoples and their homelands. The Doctrine has been applied in countries around the world, including the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Brazil, and many African countries. All nations and peoples need to understand how this law developed; how it was used to denigrate Indigenous Peoples as human beings and then was used to steal their lands, assets, and rights; and how it has impacted Indigenous Peoples from the onset of colonization right up to 2012.
Taken from:  http://blog.oup.com/2012/08/doctrine-discovery-indigenous-peoples/

In the video link provided below, Chief Oren Lyons discusses how the Doctrine of Discovery came about in 1493 after Columbus's return to Europe and how it was inserted into US policy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVZDbqh7WgM&playnext=1&list=PL96969160AE4881A5&feature=results_main