Native American History and Contemporary Issues

Native American history is a rich and complex tapestry, often overshadowed by narratives that depict indigenous peoples as a "Vanishing Race." This perspective, prevalent in Western culture, suggested Native Americans were unable to adapt to "civilization" and thus doomed to extinction. However, contemporary movements and increasing visibility challenge this outdated leitmotif, highlighting resilience, activism, and a vibrant presence. This article provides a comprehensive overview of Native American history and contemporary issues, exploring the journey from the "Vanishing Race" narrative to one of "Vanishing into Visibility."

The “Vanishing Race” Narrative in Native American History

The concept of the "Vanishing Race" permeated various aspects of Western society, including fine arts, literature, scholarship, photography, political and military spheres, and popular culture. This idea was deeply intertwined with the European images of "discovery" of the Americas, often portraying indigenous peoples as passive figures in the face of European arrival. Iconic artworks like Jan van der Staet's "America" (1598) and John Vanderlyn's "Landing of Columbus" (1847) depict Europeans "taking possession" of a "New World," largely ignoring the thriving societies already present.

Historical Attempts at Eliminating Indigenous Cultures

By the second half of the 19th century, American leaders viewed Native Americans as an "insurmountable barrier" to the "civilizing" of the continent. This led to military conflicts and policies aimed at eliminating indigenous peoples, both physically and culturally.

The Ghost Dance Movement and Wounded Knee

In 1889, the Paiute prophet Wovoka (Jack Wilson) initiated the Ghost Dance movement. He prophesied that if Native Americans abandoned white ways and performed specific rituals, the Earth would be restored, the dead would rise, and white colonizers would be driven away. Ghost Dance shirts, adorned with magical symbols, were believed to protect warriors from bullets. This spiritual revival, however, was met with brutal suppression.

The tragic culmination was the Wounded Knee Massacre on December 29, 1890. The U.S. Army's 7th Cavalry surrounded a band of Lakota Sioux Ghost Dancers under Chief Big Foot near Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota. A scuffle ensued, a shot was fired, and between 150 and 300 Lakota—half of them women and children—were killed and buried in a mass grave. This event is widely considered the final major military conflict of the American Indian Wars.

Cultural Assimilation through Boarding Schools

Another significant effort to eliminate indigenous cultures was through forced assimilation policies. Richard Henry Pratt, founder of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School (1879), famously articulated the philosophy: "Kill the Indian in him, and save the man." This sentiment guided the establishment of numerous Indian boarding schools, where Native children were forcibly removed from their families, forbidden to speak their languages, practice their religions, or wear traditional clothing. The goal was to erase their indigenous identity and integrate them into white American society.

The "Vanishing Race" in Art and Literature

The theme of the "Vanishing Race" also found expression in popular culture and the arts. Edward S. Curtis's monumental twenty-volume series, "The North American Indian" (1907-1930), while intending to document Native cultures, explicitly framed them as "passing into the darkness of an unknown future." Similarly, James Earle Fraser's "End of the Trail" sculpture (1915) depicts an exhausted Native American on an equally weary horse, symbolizing the perceived decline of indigenous peoples.

Nineteenth-century American literature, such as James Fennimore Cooper's "The Last of the Mohicans" (1826), popularized the archetypes of the "Noble Savage" (like Chingachgook and Uncas) and the "Ignoble Savage" (like Magua), further entrenching stereotypical representations rather than nuanced portrayals of Native life. The Google Books Ngram Viewer shows the phrase "Vanishing Race" gaining acceptance, reflecting its widespread presence in discourse.

Museums also played a role in perpetuating this narrative. The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, for example, once displayed a Northwest Coast Native American totem pole alongside a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton and an African bush elephant, implicitly categorizing indigenous cultures as part of a past, fading world. Even in 20th-century literature, film, and advertising, indigenous peoples were often depicted in stereotypical or romanticized ways, often signifying an idealized past rather than a living, evolving present.

Shifting Narratives: Native American Visibility and Resilience

Despite historical attempts at elimination and assimilation, Native American populations have shown remarkable resilience and are increasingly asserting their visibility in political, economic, and cultural spheres. From a low of 291,014 (0.3% of the population) in the 1910 U.S. Census, the American Indian and Alaska Native population (alone or in combination) rose to 9.7 million (2.9%) by 2020.

Early Activism and Organizational Growth

Starting in the mid-20th century, Native American communities began to organize nationally to preserve treaty rights, protect cultural and religious practices, and address systemic injustices.

• National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) (1944): Established in Denver by delegates from nearly 80 tribes, the NCAI became the first national organization dedicated to promoting tribal self-government and advocating for Native rights.
• National Indian Youth Council (NIYC) (1961): Inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, the NIYC focused on direct action and youth engagement.
• American Indian Movement (AIM) (1968): Founded in Minneapolis, AIM became highly visible through its assertive protests and advocacy for Native American rights, sovereignty, and religious freedom.

These organizations shared common goals: to preserve treaty, cultural, and religious rights; seek equitable services; increase political participation; and educate the public on issues vital to Native Americans.

Key Moments of Activism

Native American activism took various forms, from peaceful protests to occupations, bringing national and international attention to their struggles.

• "Fish-ins" (1940s-1970s): In the American Northwest, indigenous communities, led by figures like Billy Frank, Jr., exercised their treaty-guaranteed fishing rights, often leading to arrests and confrontations. The 1974 Boldt Decision eventually affirmed these rights.
• Occupation of Alcatraz (1969-1971): A group of Native American activists occupied Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay for 19 months, reclaiming the land "by right of discovery" and highlighting the harsh conditions on reservations, which they compared to the abandoned prison.
• Trail of Broken Treaties (1972): Activists converged on Washington D.C., occupying the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) headquarters to protest treaty violations and present their "Twenty Points Position Paper." This event underscored federal mismanagement of Native American affairs.
• Wounded Knee (1973): Following the 1972 protest, approximately 200 Oglala Lakota and AIM activists occupied Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Reservation for 71 days. They demanded investigations into the BIA and the federal government's broken treaties. The siege ended with arrests, injuries, and two AIM members killed.
• Standing Rock DAPL Protests (2016-2017): The protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline, led by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, brought global attention to issues of tribal sovereignty, environmental protection, and the sacredness of land and water.

Repatriation and Cultural Preservation

A pivotal aspect of asserting visibility and honoring ancestors has been the repatriation movement. Maria Darlene Pearson (Hai-Mecha Eunka) played a crucial role, advocating for the reburial of Native American remains in Iowa in the 1970s. Her efforts led to the passage of the Iowa Burials Protection Act in 1976, earning her the title "Founding Mother of the modern Indian repatriation movement."

Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)

In 1990, the federal Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was enacted. This law requires federal agencies and federally funded institutions to return Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony to lineal descendants and culturally affiliated tribes. Since its passage, tens of thousands of human remains and hundreds of thousands of cultural items have been returned, although more than 100,000 human remains are still in collections. New regulations issued in 2024 aim to strengthen these efforts.

Institutions like the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) on the National Mall in Washington D.C., founded in the early 1990s, have taken proactive steps, committing to repatriate all human remains in their collection. International repatriation efforts are also gaining traction, as seen with the Karl May Museum in Germany returning an Ojibwa scalp in 2020 and the National Museum of Scotland returning a Nisga’a memorial pole in 2023.

Economic Empowerment through Gaming and Resources

For many federally recognized tribes, economic development, particularly through gaming, has become a significant source of revenue and a means to fund essential services.

• Tribal Gaming: As of 2015, 242 tribal governments operated over 494 gaming facilities in 28 states, generating over $30.5 billion in revenue. Large operations like Foxwoods Resort Casino (Mashantucket Pequot Nation) and the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino (Seminole Tribe of Florida) are economic powerhouses. However, most tribal casinos are smaller, with 57% generating less than $25 million annually. Net gaming revenues are allocated to education, healthcare, economic development, infrastructure, and housing.
• Energy Resources: Many tribes, such as the Navajo, Hopi, and Crow, possess significant energy resources including coal, oil, gas, and uranium, offering potential for further economic growth.

Increasing Political Visibility

Native Americans are achieving greater representation in the political arena.

• In 2018, Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) and Sharice Davis (Ho-Chunk Nation) became the first indigenous women elected to Congress. In 2021, Deb Haaland made history again as the first indigenous person to serve as a U.S. Cabinet Secretary, heading the Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
• As of 2024, there are 4 indigenous representatives in Congress, signaling a growing Native voice in national policy-making. Only a few sitting presidents, starting with Calvin Coolidge in 1927, have visited Indian reservations, highlighting the historical political neglect that is slowly changing.

Visibility in the Arts and Challenging Stereotypes

Contemporary Native American artists and creators are challenging long-standing stereotypes and cultural appropriation, creating authentic representations of their cultures.

The Native American Renaissance

The mid-20th century saw the emergence of the "Native American Renaissance," a term coined by scholar Kenneth Lincoln. Authors like N. Scott Momaday, whose novel "House Made of Dawn" (1968) won a Pulitzer Prize, paved the way. Other influential writers include Vine Deloria, Jr., James Welch, Leslie Marmon Silko, Louise Erdrich, and Sherman Alexie. Their works explore diverse Native American experiences, set in both urban and reservation contexts, and notably reject the "Noble Savage" and other stereotypical portrayals.

Film and Television Representation

While Hollywood was slow to feature authentic Native voices—often casting non-Native actors in indigenous roles (e.g., Johnny Depp as Tonto in 2013)—the last decade has seen significant change. Films like "Bones of Crows" (2022) and "Killers of the Flower Moon" (2023), and television series such as "Rutherford Falls" and "Reservation Dogs" (both starting in 2021), now offer nuanced and self-determined narratives.

Challenging Cultural Appropriation

Public institutions, businesses, and sports teams have faced increasing pressure to cease using Native American symbolism and mascots, which are often considered disparaging and contribute to harmful stereotypes. Notable examples of changes include:

• Universities like Dartmouth (1969) and Stanford (1972) dropping their Native American mascots.
• The Cleveland baseball team phasing out its "Chief Wahoo" logo by 2018 and changing its name to the Guardians in 2022.
• The Washington professional football team, after decades of protest and significant financial pressure, abandoning its "Redskins" name and logo in 2020, becoming the Washington Commanders in 2022.

Protests, often organized by groups like the American Indian Movement and the NCAI (e.g., their "Proud to Be" video campaign), highlight that Native peoples are not mascots and their cultures are not commodities for appropriation.

Native American Populations Today: Demographics and Contemporary Challenges

Today, Native Americans constitute a significant and growing demographic. While only 22% of indigenous people live on reservations or other Indian lands (down from over 95% in 1900), the concept of "Indian Country" extends to anywhere with a sizeable Native American community, including major urban centers like New York City, Los Angeles, and Phoenix. The 2020 Census reported over 574 federally recognized tribes and more than 200 unrecognized tribes in the U.S. The largest tribes include the Cherokee, Navajo, and Choctaw.

However, significant disparities and challenges persist:

• Poverty: Native Americans face some of the highest rates of poverty, with 47% of households and 33.8% of children living in poverty (2016 data), significantly higher than other racial/ethnic groups.
• Unemployment: Unemployment rates on many reservations remain extremely high, often exceeding 50%, with some reaching 89% (e.g., Pine Ridge Reservation).
• Health Disparities: Native Americans experience disproportionately higher mortality rates from accidents, diabetes, chronic liver disease, suicide, and homicide compared to the U.S. all-races rate.
• Education: Educational attainment, particularly high school completion, lags behind the national average on many reservations.

These contemporary issues highlight the ongoing need for policies and initiatives that support tribal sovereignty, economic development, and cultural well-being. The journey from "Vanishing Race" to "Vanishing into Visibility" is a testament to the enduring strength and adaptability of Native American peoples, who continue to shape the cultural and political landscape of the United States.

FAQ: Native American History and Contemporary Issues

What is the "Vanishing Race" concept in Native American history?

The "Vanishing Race" concept is a historical narrative in Western culture that depicted indigenous peoples as unable to adapt to "civilization" and therefore destined for extinction. This idea influenced art, literature, and policy, often erasing the active presence and resilience of Native Americans.

How did Native American boarding schools impact indigenous cultures?

Native American boarding schools, like the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, aimed to culturally assimilate Native children by forcibly removing them from their families and traditions. The motto "Kill the Indian in him, and save the man" reflected the goal to eradicate indigenous languages, religions, and customs.

What is NAGPRA and why is it important for Native American communities?

NAGPRA, the Native American Graves and Repatriation Act of 1990, is a federal law that requires institutions receiving federal funding to return Native American human remains and cultural items (funerary objects, sacred objects, objects of cultural patrimony) to lineal descendants and culturally affiliated tribes. It is crucial for respecting ancestors, preserving cultural heritage, and correcting historical injustices.

How has Native American political visibility increased in recent years?

Native American political visibility has increased through the rise of national organizations like NCAI and AIM, significant moments of activism such as the Standing Rock protests, and the election of Native individuals to Congress and Cabinet positions, like Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior, ensuring indigenous voices are heard in national policy-making.

What are some ongoing challenges faced by Native American communities today?

Despite increased visibility, Native American communities still face significant challenges, including high rates of poverty and unemployment, disparities in education and healthcare, and ongoing struggles for environmental justice and the protection of treaty rights. These issues underscore the need for continued advocacy and support for tribal self-determination.