Native American Education Analysis

The article examines United States policies that affect Native American people, in particular their educational issues. The author connects the government assimilating of Native Americans into “main stream society” and the current issues Native American’s face such as violence and drug abuse. Cherokee people are the primary focus in the article, but even though every tribe is different, many are faced with the same problems. General information on the development and reasoning of assimilation, as well as the use of boarding schools are thoroughly explained. An easy read and eye opener that highlights how the government typically prioritize the economy and gathering resources over particular groups of people. The author stated that, the research
“aims to investigate the impact of educational policy of the U.S. government on the Native American population and culture”; although there wasn’t much discussed about the current issues and policies that are in effect presently. Most of the content is very dated information, and even though it is informative as a history lesson, there is little evidence provided on how the Educational Policies affect Native Americans today, or even what the current policies are. i. What policy is being discussed? Give a brief description of issue that prompted the policy response. The Indians Treaties and Removal Act of 1830 resulted from early settlers wanting to attain more land. The first method was to kill the people native to the land and become the new owners. This cost the settlers a lot of money and they lost a lot of people in war with the Native Americans. Lawmakers than determined that they can make a deal to obtain land from Native Americans and in exchange the tools to become their lower class citizen. The government’s tactic was to manipulate them with religion and education. Stripping away all their traditional identities (name, language, clothing, culture), Native Americans became inferior to the government system and easily controlled. ii.
Discuss the particulars of the policy? In other words, what is contained in the legislation? Educating Native American children was a primary part of the negotiation of treaties between tribes and the federal government. “American policymakers considered that it would accelerate the incorporation and assimilation of Native children into the dominate society” (pp 19-20). The system the government used for American Indian education was boarding schools, set up similarly like military camps, but controlled by the church. In the 19th and 20th century, the state policy forced Native children to leave their families and homes and study in government and church operated boarding schools (Knepler, 1942). President Ulysses S. Grant (1869 –1877), initiated the Peace Policy which “rested on the belief that Americans had the right to dispossess Native peoples of their lands, take away freedoms, and send them to reservations, where missionaries would teach them how to farm, read and write, wear Euro-American clothing, and embrace Christianity. If Indians refused to move to reservations, they would be forced off their homelands by soldiers” (Trafzer, 2009). iii. What are the research questions that the article answers? What role did education play in assimilating Native Americans? What was the purpose of assimilating Native Americans? How did assimilating affect Native Americans? How did colonialist acquire the United States of
America? iv. How do the researchers answer the questions? This is contained in the methodology section or some equivalent. The author has a historical methodology. The research is based on past legislations, and a review of journal articles and books. The author analyze methods and reasons used for assimilation and delivers a compelling reconstruction of past government legislation to explain the catastrophe that was placed on Native Americans. v. What are the answers to the questions? Education was used to structure Native Americans to think and live differently. The author states, “The fundamental reasons for choosing cultural rather than physical genocide was connected to economic factors.” Policy makers determined that it would cost millions of dollars to go to war with Native Americans, opposed to thousands of dollars to educate them. The boarding schools were brutal and ran very inexpensively; many American Indians suffered malnutrition, physical/ sexual abuse, and fatalities. The United States government was established through bribery, enforced supremacy, manipulation and abolishing the original Americans. vi.
Discuss the stakeholders, organizations, and people who are impacted by the public policy as well as how the different levels of government interact as a result of the legislation (federal, state, and local)? This has been an issue every presidential administration has been apart of since the birth of our constitution. Native Americans have prevalent impacts from past and present education policies placed on them. Education has been used as a weapon to teach them everything they knew was wrong, and to be ashamed of their culture. This damaged self esteem and placed challenges on Native Americans that is still apparent in present day. There are 4 levels of government involved, as treaties allows tribes to be sovereign and maintain self governance. The article’s content explains when American Indian’s education was in the hands of the federal government and enforced by the church. Present day, Native American education is primarily in the tribe’s hands. Although, because many tribes still rely on federal assistance for educational funding, this still makes them under federal regulations. “Neocolonialism shows us; we cannot achieve political sovereignty without economic sovereignty” (p
23). vii. Does the article fit into an existing theoretical framework? In other words, what theory(ies) does the article address that was discussed in class or in the text? As, the author points out, “The issue of boarding school abuses forces us to see the connections between state violence and interpersonal violence”(p 23). It’s important to understand in policy making, that certain rules implemented will cause emotional damage that can be passed down through generations. We discuss in class the poor government services and the infrastructures placed in primary black communities and how many policymaker's decisions are found to be the reason for these problems. It allows us to question all of the government’s intentions and place a distrust between minorities and government officials. With the constitution written in general terms, it allows policy makers the ability to rationalize how they intend to use certain policies in their favor. Just because people can change a policy, doesn’t mean we change the view and intentions on policy makers. viii. What are the strengths/weaknesses of the article? The article would have been stronger if there were more current research on the affect of Native American education policies and their aims for culture revitalization. Many educational challenges are still in existence for Native Americans and the article kind of make it seem like they are mostly prehistoric. The author also puts the issue of reparation on people of African descent and Native Americans, when we believe it should be the U.S. government’s responsibility.
The author did well at highlighting the policies and legislation that triggered educational problems for Native Americas. The article is filled with the people who contributed to their policy making, and the intentions behind it. The author presented the true intentions of the policies and real effects they caused to Native Americans. ix. What future implications or policy trends/precedents does the policy set if any in your opinion? Fortunately, more federal programs are supporting revitalizing Native American Culture and movements are demanding reparations. With government “secrets” and schemes coming into light, righteousness will be done. Policies will start to be implemented more for the concern of humanity rather than the concern of the economy. More and more policy makers will be replaced by citizens of different skin colors, and backgrounds for better representation. x. What could the researchers have done differently? Relate to more current issues and polices that affect Native Americans. Stay consistent and focus more on education, as the article seems to generalize many problems with little details on the outcomes or how it’s related to education. There was some discussion and comparison with African Americans that should have either been left out or further explained; as the little provided was only showing a negative connection between the two ethnic groups. xi. Contributions to the field of public policy. The policies discussed in the article are a reminder of how our constitution was originated. The intentions of some policymakers may only be for their benefits, rather than who the policy is intended for. The article explains how harsh policies came into affect and the economic reasoning behind it. It shows why people lose trust in the government and why public policies need to be thoroughly examined and explained before implemented. It teaches us that to find the problems within American policy is to concentrate on who profits from the policy, rather than ponder who is suffering from it.