Essay On Native American Reservation

Native American tribal communities are one of the most disadvantaged and socially vulnerable groups in the United States. Widespread poverty, alcoholism and lack of services are common throughout Native American tribal lands, leading to high social vulnerability on many levels. In addition, tribes and their indigenous traditions may be particularly vulnerable to damage caused by environmental change, as “tribal cultural practices and religious beliefs are rooted in the

When most people hear of Native Americans, they cannot help but think of elaborate headdresses, red skinned warriors, and lively dancing. Although these aspects of Native American culture are fascinating, more important is where they fare in our society 's past and present. Restrictive laws and acts such as the Indian Removal Act, the Indian Reorganization Act, Fort Laramie treaties, and the Trail of Tears forced Native Americans from their lands. When settlers and the American government saw the resistance of Native Americans to forced assimilation, they resorted to racial discrimination and relocation to reservations. This history of discrimination has fueled calls for the United States government to pay reparations and the return of Native Americans to their indigenous lands.

From its birth, America was a place of inequality and privilege. Since Columbus 's arrival and up until present day, Native American tribes have been victim of white men 's persecution and tyranny. This was first expressed in the 1800’s, when Native Americans were driven off their land and forced to embark on the Trail of Tears, and again during the Western American- Indian War where white Americans massacred millions of Native Americans in hatred. Today, much of the Indian Territory that was once a refuge for Native Americans has since been taken over by white men, and the major tribes that once called these reservations home are all but gone. These events show the discrimination and oppression the Native Americans faced. They were, and continue to be, pushed onto reservations,

My argument uses the umbrella term of systematic oppression to allow me to describe the many side effects that violence and misrepresentation has had on Native Americans. It involves suicide rates, alcoholism and how this has pushed Native Americans into the cycle of poverty that is giving rise to more stereotypes. The thesis later focuses on my counter-argument of how Native Americans denounced the two main stereotypes of “The Drunken Indian” and “The Poor Indian” because of their entrepreneurial skills and creativity. These characteristics have allowed them to come out of this intergenerational grief pattern and become more confident in their culture and identity.

Some may argue that Native Americans live a decent life with the aid that the United States has given them. Americans feel that the reservations that Native Americans are given is the proper way to respect their lands and culture, by allowing them to have a small portion of what was once all of their territory. According to USA.gov, there is the National Tribal Preservation Program to help tribes protect resources and traditions important to them. This provides Native American tribes with the assistance that they need to maintain their way of life and cultural ideals. Yet Blackfoot Indians have been forcibly migrated and partially integrated into society without any aid. The United States government has neglected the Blackfoot Indians by degrading their culture and subjecting them into bitter

On the Cheyenne River Reservation, there are on average 3-7 suicides per week, including children as young as seven years old. A recent study showed that nearly 50% of girls in 9th grade at Red Lake Reservation High School have attempted suicide at least once and those rates are only rising every year. In addition to depression, alcoholism, and suicide, Native Americans are also expected to live in such poor living conditions that most reservations don't have access to a safe and adequate supply of water. Waste disposal facilities aren't available in 12% of American Indian and Alaskan Native homes as opposed to the 1% throughout the rest of the nation. Without the acknowledgment, funding, and compassion by not only the government but the general public the livelihood for Native Americans isn't expected to get better anytime soon. All of the denial, ignorance, and uneducated assumptions toward Native Americans isn't going to help them and instead of ignoring the problems we need to address them so that all Americans, especially the Native Americans, have access to the most basic necessities of life: clean drinking water, adequate healthcare, education, access to healthy foods and supermarkets, and better living

Native Americans had lived in North America long before European settlers. They had free reign of its natural resources and beauty. However, as we all know, this changed. According to the Britannica article, “United States”, “The expansion of agricultural settlement crowded the Native Americans into reservations.” After being taking away from their land, they were forced into reservations. The government now provides benefits for them, but in the past years the government has failed to live up to that expectations. Sadly, reservations are now reportedly being the poorest communities in United States. No, the government should not manage Native American Reservations due to the history of mismanaging

Though the Indian Reservations were created so long ago, the quality of life has barely changed. It is extremely poor. So poor, in fact, that they are likened to developing countries. 60% of children are born out of wedlock and Native Americans are the third highest group in the country for teenage pregnancy. The suicide rate of Native American teenagers is three times that of the rest of America.

Historically, the Native American Indians were taken advantage of, not because they lacked innate human intelligence, but because their culture was initially one of a trusting people who believed negotiating a fair peace would benefit their tribe. As they negotiated from a position of a disestablished legal structure, a position of forced poverty, a position of disenfranchised rights, a position of assigned inferiority, a position of dependent “children”, the Federal Government brought about grave disregard for the tribes’ rights to even exist if they stood in the path of the Manifest Destiny of White Americans. If the Native Americans stood in the way of exploitation of land, timber, or mineral resources, their existence was deemed dispensable.

Native Americans have felt distress from societal and governmental interactions for hundreds of years. American Indian protests against these pressures date back to the colonial period. Broken treaties, removal policies, acculturation, and assimilation have scarred the indigenous societies of the United States. These policies and the continued oppression of the native communities produced an atmosphere of heightened tension. Governmental pressure for assimilation and their apparent aim to destroy cultures, communities, and identities through policies gave the native people a reason to fight. The unanticipated consequence was the subsequent creation of a pan-American Indian identity

The Lakota Indians are a tribal Native America group that resides in the northern part of the United States. Although a large number of Indians have immersed themselves into American culture, several tribal groups carry out their daily affairs on Indian reservations. The Lakota Indian 's primary location is in South Dakota and North Dakota. Native American’s have been victims of historical trauma, sometimes referred to as multi-generational trauma. There is a sense of powerlessness and hopelessness associated with historical trauma that contributes to high rates of alcoholism, substance abuse, suicide, and other health issues (Birchfield, 2000). The Lakota Sioux is one such group that has suffered greatly due to trauma. Lakota people are marginalized and stereotyped and live in poverty because

The future of Native Americans is unstable. With a lot of their social legacy destroyed forever, many have totally relinquished their authentic roots and have absorbed totally into American culture. The number of inhabitants in Native Americans is consistently declining, with their numbers falling according to registration taken in the course of recent years. younger generations of Native Americans end up moving out of reservations in bigger numbers each year. These youthful Natives are the minority in any community through out the world and they enter outside of a reservation, and they regularly wed non-native American

Traditional tribal policies have most often been in favor of the white man and their push for new western land. In 1787, The Northwest Ordinance stated “their lands and property shall never be taken away from them without their consent.” Yet when settlers pushed west they received military protection. The uprisings against them by the Indians were quickly shut down as if the ordinance wasn't there. Actions like this showed the disregard of the Indian culture as less of a nation of people but more of an obstacle in the way of them gaining more land. This also happened when when they tried to erect a permanent frontier for the natives by putting them in reservations. The reservations were under

The United States government has tried to push the Native American people off of their land reserves for years, they resisted and the United States government forced them out. Tribal land only accounts for 2% of the land owned in America. Henry David

Alcoholism is the leading health and social problem of American Indians than any other race. Native Americans who end up leaving the reservation to pursue education or employment opportunities express a high degree of discomfort and anxiety as a result of “feeling caught in two worlds.” By leaving the reservation they are abandoning their traditions, however temporarily, and suffering a sense of personal loss and insecurity. In entering a new world, this sense of loss and insecurity is heightened and becomes exacerbated, particularly if they do not experience success or acceptance in the new environment (Major, A.K. A 2003). However, if success and acceptance in the new world occurs, these individuals will still suffer the pangs of abandonment since they can never fully return to the reservation. In some cases, forced assimilation has extinguished the culture from many Indians as their grandparents and parents were forced to abandon the old ways in order to become more American. Thomas Jefferson, as well as many others believed that Native Americans can be just as ‘White’ Americans. In an attempt to increase local employment opportunities, many tribes have turned to gambling casinos and the collateral business which support these ventures. Illegal activities would certainly increase among Indians because of the simple fact that they need to survive by any means necessary. This can all