Tobacco was found to be increasing in popularity, pushing European expansion in the Americas. In 1493, Pope Alexander the Sixth created an international law that related indigenous people to a lower status based on their non-Christian beliefs. This law, known as the doctrine of discovery, allowed European colonizers to claim land inhabited by non-Christian peoples under the idea that Christianity can save their souls. This law was a legal pretext for the assimilation of the Native Americans into European culture and lifestyle. During 1838 and 1839, the Cherokee tribe was moved from the eastern side of the Mississippi River to present-day Oklahoma. This was due to President Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, which was to clear Native Americans from valuable land for white settlement. The Cherokee people were the most exploited, as they were taken from their homes and forced to travel on a dangerous journey of 5,045 miles (Pauls, 2024) known as the "Trail of Tears." The name came from the pain and suffering the Cherokee people experienced. Over six thousand people died from exhaustion, abuse, diseases, and malnourishment during the