The purpose of the Dawes Act, passed in 1887, was to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American society by breaking up tribal communal land ownership and encouraging individual land ownership and farming. The federal government aimed to transform Native Americans into independent farmers, similar to white homesteaders, by allotting parcels of tribal land to individual Native Americans. Those who accepted allotments and adopted "civilized" habits were granted U.S. citizenship. The Act sought to dissolve tribal social cohesion, eliminate communal landholding, and promote assimilation into white American culture. Additionally, "surplus" lands remaining after allotments were sold to non-Native settlers, significantly reducing Native landholdings. This policy was intended to end the government's paternalistic oversight of Native Americans and integrate them into American society, but it resulted in the loss of about two-thirds of Native-held lands and had devastating cultural and social effects on Native communities