Reservations

 

“Civilization has been thrust upon me… and

it has not added one whit to my love for truth,

honesty, and generosity…”

-Chief Luther Standing Bear

Oglala Sioux

By 1880, the most powerful and hostile Native Americans were thrown into complete helplessness at the mercy of the government and confined to reservations. A hunter and gatherer society had their demise declared. The passage of the Indian Appropriations Act of 1851 authorized the establishment of reservations in the U.S. An Indian Reservation was a piece of land that Native Americans could reside on and the premise of the reservation policy was supposed to be temporary. They would only have to rely on government support for a short time. They were expected to pick up a hoe and farm to provide for their communities. However, reservations were inclined to be on land that whites did not want and it was impossible to grow anything. Even though the soil tended to not be suitable to agriculture, the laziness of the Indian people was blamed for their inability to farm.  The white agents believed their mission involved the complete transformation of the Indian way of life without consideration or appreciation of traditional native cultures. Tribal religious practices and beliefs, considered as superstition, forced white agents to convert Indians to Christianity. Tribal people’s lives, altered significantly, changed a nomadic people to one of submission (Thernstrom, 1989).

            “Since its creation, the U.S. government had forced Indians to cede entire tribal territories in exchanged for treaty-based guarantees, of personal safety, sovereignty, and rights to water and other resources on small, reserved tracts of land. As the so-called frontier opened up to settlers, the government negotiated more treaties with Indians…” (Green, 1992, pg. 53).

            “Since 1492, European military traditions have twisted around and through American Indian lives like a corkscrew. Tribes not only fought traditional enemies but also every imperial power that arrived on the North American shores. And every imperial power eventually sought Native American allies in their struggle to wrest the land from its indigenous owners. Native confederacies were formed to fight the European interlopers and their tribal allies. Many of these confederacies were formed primarily for military purposes. The long conflict with the Europeans turned several tribes into virtual military states, always under the threat of attack and annihilation. When many of the tribal nations came onto the reservations, they lived under what amounted to as martial law” (Holm, 1996, pg. 22).  As a result of this unyielding rule and constant conflict, the Indian people ended up feeling exhausted and lived in a continuous state of unrest.

 

            The Indian Removal Act signed on May 28, 1830 by President Jackson paved the way for the removal of Native Americans from their homelands and placement on land west of the Mississippi River. The land west of the Mississippi was given to them in exchange for the homelands they had given up from the eastern portion of the country. The government picked up the cost of relocation and resettlement. Jackson argued that the act was the best option since the white settlers had the desire to reside on the Indians’ homelands. Land, not being farmed, was considered open for takeover (History.comEditors, 2019).

 

To enhance assimilation efforts in 1887, the General Allotment Act, also referred to as the Dawes Act, was passed by Congress. It was determined by U.S. government officials to separate Native American people and place individual families on small tracts of land. Natives Americans were considered to be too incompetent to handle their own affairs. The small plots of land were held in trust for 25 years. The Indian people could not sell or lease the land without the government’s permission. Corrupt federal officials sold and leased the land to non-Indian people at bargain prices, which amounted to millions of acres of prime land. The land was withheld from tribal people and some of the lands were still held in trust for over 100 years (Green, 1992). The act failed miserably because of federal corruption so reservations became the only viable solution in the effort to solve the “Indian problem.”

            Having an area in which a number of people were forced to live, mostly due to their lower social economic status and racial ethnicity, can lead to an underclass mentality. This mentality was drawn from self-fulfilling prophesies associated with negative stereotypes, such as “drunken Indians” (New World Encyclopedia, 2018). Reservations had become war zones filled with domestic violence, substance abuse, child abuse and child neglect, which had served as constant reminders of the unresolved issues from the past.

 

“A people without knowledge of their past history, origin, and culture is like a

tree without roots,” Unknown Author.

 

While in the twenty-first century reservation travel was unrestricted, at the time of establishment Native Americans were not allowed to travel outside the reservation boundaries. Many tribes were nomadic and they lost their means of survival by being constricted to a confined area. Hunting and fishing were not always adequate options for providing food for the tribal communities on reservations. The game and fish in many of these locations was often scarce. Indian people, who farmed, often found themselves on land that was unsuitable for agriculture. The land was oftentimes arid, rocky and/or sandy. As a result, the people living on the reservations had to rely on the government for food.

            Housing on the reservations was substandard until the Department of Housing and Urban Development began providing funding for the building of the housing units. Associated to the funding were standards to which the homes were to be built including quality windows, roofing, insulation and other requirements. These homes were provided to the Indian families on a sliding fee scale: the lower a family’s income, the lower the cost of rent.  

           

            “There are 539,616 AI/AN individuals living on a reservation or off-reservation trust land who self-identified as being affiliated with at least one federally recognized tribe.

 

            “Reservations and off-reservation trust lands with the highest percentage of these individuals –

1.      Navajo Nation Reservation and off-reservation trust land, Arizona-New Mexico-Utah (30.48% or 164,473 individuals)

2.      Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota (3.09% or 16,471 individuals)

3.      For Apache Reservation, Arizona (2.46% or 13,260 individuals)

4.      Gila River Reservation, Arizona (2.16% or 11, 672 individuals)” (US Census Bureau, 2010).

 

Approximately three hundred Indian Reservations were located in various locations in the United States. Not every state in the U.S. has had an Indian reservation, and not every Indian tribe was assigned a reservation. The end results of the reservation legislation were catastrophic (History.com Editors, 2019). Approximately 22% of 5.2 million Native Americans, who live in the United States, live on reservations and off-reservation trust lands (US Census Bureau, 2010). Living conditions on some of the reservations resemble Third World Countries. Many factors have contributed to the challenges faced by Native Americans today including health, economics, and housing problems.

 

“Alcoholism remains a severe health risk for people on the reservations, but the perceived stereotype that all Natives are alcoholics has likewise created damage for Natives socially, economically, and emotionally. In fact, ‘stereotypes held by Euro-Americans of the Indigenous peoples were persistently condescending and dismissive at best’ which has created numerous persistently condescending and dismissive at best’ which has created numerous barriers in the mainstream job market. Unfortunately, this stereotype has existed since the colonists presented alcohol to the Indians of the Americas” (Ponstein, N.D.,para. 9). A strong correlation exists between the socioeconomic conditions and historical trauma and use and abuse of alcohol for Native Americans.

            “…it is far more likely that the socioeconomic conditions and historical trauma play a direct correlation to the use and abuse of alcohol for Native people. To further understand the complexities of the historical loss, research by Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart provides ample connection between loss, trauma, and substance abuse as a tactic to numb this pain,” (Ponstein, N.D., para. 13).

When the Europeans first came to this country, money was a foreign concept for the Native Americans.  Many tribal people still have difficulty managing their money. Poverty has been commonplace in the past and still continued to be a problem for many Indian people today. The Pine Ridge reservation, for example, was noted by President Clinton as resembling a third-world country. Indian people who received a windfall would often overspend as a result of going without for so long. A multitude of Native Americans do not possess budgeting skills and fall behind on their bills.   

            The job market and educational opportunities were usually scarce due to the rural locations of many of the reservations. Usually, Tribal and Federal governments were the largest employers on and near reservations. However, many households have been overcrowded and the typical source of income has been social security, disability insurance or veterans’ income. From four to eight out of ten have been unemployed. Many of the Native Americans, who happened to be employed, earn below poverty wages. The percentage of Native Americans living below the poverty line was 28.2%, while Native Americans who live in poverty on reservations range from 38% to 63%. Oftentimes, head of households need to leave the reservation to seek employment and grandparents end up raising their grandchildren (Partnership with Native Americans, 2015).

In order to pursue a degree from a college or university, tribal members usually have to travel to another community. Transportation was another issue. Without adequate transportation it is difficult for these individuals to seek advancement of any kind.

A housing crisis exists in many Indian country locations. The Indian Housing Authority has made an effort to counteract the problem, however, the need for sufficient housing on reservations remains to be a serious issue. It was reported that there were 90,000 homeless or underhoused Indian families and 30% of Indian housing was overcrowded.  Less than 50% was connected to a public sewage system. Approximately 40% of their housing was considered substandard. The waiting lists for tribal housing was usually long with up to three or more years to wait for housing. Overcrowding has been a serious problem. Most family members will not turn away other family members if they need a place to live.

At the Crow Creek Reservation in South Dakota, there are approximately 2500 residents on this reservation and 220 available homes which means each home houses 12+ people with families doubling and tripling up in order to have housing. “Living in a multigenerational home can be a blessing to some, but to others and even at the same time, it can be suffocating to say the least. It often causes familial problems because different generations can bring different rules and expectations of cleanliness, etc… As a result of the lack of housing, many people lack the privacy and space a family needs in order to thrive” (Ponstein, 2020, para. 20).

“Reservations began as prisoner of war camps. Life on these reservations was dismal and destructive for the people and their way of life. Foundational needs were not met… Indians on the reservations suffered from poverty, malnutrition, and very low standards of living and rates of economic development” (Ponstein, 2020, para. 21). Refer to Appendix One for a complete list of statistics covering health, transportation, education, depression, suicide, alcohol and substance abuse for today’s Native Americans.

The purpose of reservations was to establish tracts of land where Native Americans could live while white settlers took their homelands. One of the main goals of reservations was to place Native Americans under governmental control and to minimize conflict between other tribes and white settlers. The Native Americans were to take on the ways of the white man. However, many Native Americans, who were forced onto reservations or ended up on reservations due to a lack of choices, ended up with devastating, long-lasting effects such as alcoholism and poverty (History.com Editors, 2019).