The document summarizes the oppression and human rights violations faced by Native Americans throughout history. It describes how they were robbed of their lands and resources, forcibly removed from their homes, subjected to slavery, violence, massacres and diseases introduced by European settlers. It discusses various laws and acts such as the Major Crimes Act, Indian Removal Act, and Allotment Act that undermined Native American self-governance and cultural identities. Specific tragic events like the Trail of Tears, Sand Creek Massacre and Wounded Knee are also mentioned. It outlines the ongoing issues Native Americans face such as poverty, lack of healthcare, substance abuse, and cultural oppression.

2.  Robbed of land & resources.
 Societies were removed &
relocated.
 Forced to work as slaves.
 Warred upon, massacred, sterilized
& undermined ecologically &
economically (Thornton, R., 2005).
 Genocide: explicit and frequently
brutal physical violence perpetrated
against Native Americans in an
effort to eliminate them as a whole.
 European settlers brought over
numerous diseases that took the
lives of many Native Americans.
(Perry, B., 2002).

3.  The Major Crimes Act of 1885: An attempt to
eliminate Native dominion by extending U.S.
government jurisdiction over Indian
territories. This was followed by more than
5000 additional statues which extended
federal control to Native American authority
(Perry, B., 2002).
 Indian Removal Act (May 28th, 1830):
Called for the relocation of eastern Native
American tribes to land west of the
Mississippi River, in order to open new
land for settlement (ourdocuments.gov).
 The Navajo’s Long Walk (1864): More than
8,500 men, women & children were forced
to leave their homes in northeastern
Arizona and northwestern New Mexico in
the dead of winter (crowcanyon.org).

4.  This occurred when the United States government
established The Major Crimes Act of 1885 &
disregarded Native American traditions and self-directed
rights
 The Allotment Act (1887): Helped fragment cultural
identities, first by interspersing non-Native
allotments among those coded to Native Americans
&, second, by requiring Natives to become U.S.
Citizens as an condition of allotment (Perry, B,
2002).

5.  Pequot War (1637): Pequot
village was destroyed and over
500 Native Americans were killed
(colonialwarsct.org).
 Trail of Tears (1836): Many tribes
refused to relocate and were
forcibly removed by U.S.
government. Diseases were
acquired & starvation occurred
during the journey, resulting in
the death of more than 5,000
Native Americans (history.com).
 The Plains Wars (1861-1890):
Contained episodes of deliberate,
systematic extermination of Native
Americans (Thornton, R., 2005).
 Sand Creek Massacre (1864): 105
Southern Cheyenne & Arapaho women
& children and 28 men were
slaughtered by 700 armed U.S. soldiers
(Perry, B, 2002).
 Wounded Knee (1973): Religious
oppression ; massacre occurred after
Native Americans had already
surrendered from war (Thornton, R.,
2005).

6.  Slavery (1492-1501):
After the new world was
discovered, many Native
Americans were forced
into slavery.

7.  More so than any other
minority groups, Native
Americans have been
geographically
marginalized, first through
forcible expulsion into the
“frontier” and
subsequently by
relocation onto
reservations (Perry, B.,
2002).
 Racialized job
segregation
 Low paying jobs
 Felt powerless after
colonialism; stripped of
their right to control
their destinies (Perry, B.,
2002).

8.  Hate crimes
 Discrimination
 Poverty
 Lack of resources
 Lack of access to care

9.  Lyng v. Northwest Indian Cemetery Protection Association (1988):
The Supreme Court allowed the construction of a Forest Service
road through an ancient site that held sacred by several tribes. In a
setback for Native Americans' religious freedoms, the Court ruled
that such intrusion did not violate the Indians' First Amendment
rights.
 Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith (1991): This Supreme Court
case determined that a state could deny unemployment benefits to
a person fired for violating a state prohibition on the use of peyote,
even though the use of the drug was part of a religious ritual. This
was eventually overturned in 1993 when President Clinton signed
the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which aimed to prevent laws
that significantly weigh down a person’s free exercise of religion.
However, this didn’t exactly stick and similar situations like Smith’s
have occurred (civilrights.org).

10. Seattle Swaps Columbus
Day For 'Indigenous
Peoples' Day'
 This year's Columbus Day
holiday will have more Native
American flavor in the city of
Seattle. Thanks to a unanimous
vote this summer by the city
council, the federal holiday will
now be known by a different
name: Indigenous Peoples' Day.
Organizers say Columbus
should not be credited with
discovering the Western
Hemisphere at a time when it
was already inhabited by Native
Americans (Antone, T., 2014).

11. Kiki’s Story
 We decided to ask one of our Native
American classmates if he had any
stories that he would be willing to
share with us.
 He said that when he lived in
Flagstaff, AZ and was in high school,
both the football & basketball teams
(same coach) would bench Native
American players. The principal and
the administration had to get
involved. It turns out that the coach
was a bit racially prejudiced against
Native Americans and once it was all
over he had to play ALL team
members.
 Offensive use of mascots by
schools and professional sports
teams (civilrights.org).

12. Hate Crimes in Our
Backyard
 Farmington, NM (2012): 3 men were
sentenced in federal hate crime charges
related to an assault on a 22-year-old
developmentally disabled man of
Navajo descent.
 Victim was taken to men’s home, they
waited till he fell asleep and began
defacing the victim’s body by drawing
white supremacist and anti-Native
American symbols on him. Once the
victim awoke, he was branded by
heating a wire hanger on a stove and
burning the victim’s flesh, causing a
permanent deep impression of a
swastika in his skin (justice.gov).
Violence Statistics
 According to the National
Crime Victimization Survey, in
2010, U.S. residents ages 12 or
older experienced an estimated
20 million violent & property
victimizations.
 Native Americans are 2.5 times
more likely to experience sexual
assault crimes compared to all
other races.
 1 in 3 Indian women reports
having been raped during their
lifetime (justice.gov).

13. Employment Information &
homelessness on the
reservation
 The unemployment rate is between
83 and 85%.
 As of 2006, 97% of the Native
American population lives below the
federal poverty level.
 Lack of access to employment: Cities
are miles away from reservations.
 Overcrowded & scarce living
conditions.
 There is an estimated average of 17
people living in each family home.
 Lack of insulation or central heating
& water.
Lack of resources/access to
care for reservation
residents
 Many live without health care due to
travel distances involved in accessing
that care. Additional factors include
under-funded, under-staffed medical
facilities & outdated or non-existent
medical equipment.
 Leads to a much lower life expectancy.
 Life expectancy is an average of 45
years for folks on the reservation, when
it is 77.5 years in the U.S. as a whole.
 Teenage suicide rates are roughly 150%
higher than they are for the rest of the
country.
 The infant mortality rate is the highest
on this continent & is about 300%
higher than the U.S. national average
(Frank, K., 2010).

14.  Spirituality plays a
central role in health
and wellness of the
Native American culture.
 “A lack of wellness
results from an
imbalance in one’s
spirit, mind & body.”
 Spiritual histories
(storytelling) are widespread
in the Native American
population and identify
personal, tribal & community
assets and resources (Hodge,
D.R. & Limb, G.E., 2010).

15.  There are over 550 federally
recognized tribes that have
their own distinct set of
spiritual beliefs, values &
traditions.
 These traditions include
dances, death ceremonies,
healing rituals, pow-wows,
vision quests, animal totems,
sweat lodges & dream
catchers.
 Designated elders are
groomed in the healing arts
and serve as herbalists,
healers & spirit
communicators (Hodge, D.R.
& Limb, G.E., 2010).

16. Pow-wows
 Word derived from
“Narragansett” word
powwaw, meaning
“spiritual leader.”
 Meant for socializing,
dancing, singing &
honoring the Native
American culture.
 Can be planned or called
for special occasions
(Hodge, D.R. & Limb, G.E.,
2010).
Traditions
 Animal totems: Birds &
animals (reality or dreams)
are considered to be
totem messengers
offering spiritual
guidance.
 Sweat lodges: Purification
rituals that clean & heal
the body, mind and spirit
(about.com).

17. Dream Catchers
 Intended to protect the
sleeping individual from
negative dreams, while
letting positive dreams
through.
 The positive dreams slip
through the hole in the
center and glide down the
feathers to the sleeping
person below.
 The negative dreams are
caught up in the web and
expire when the first rays of
the sun struck them.
 An element of the Native
Americans of North America relates
to the tradition of the hoop, which
symbolizes strength & unity
(dreamcatchers.org).

20. Self-sufficiency
 Native Americans were
able to build their own
communities & work
together as a team.
 Strong leadership and
respect for families &
each other.
 Acculturation-Native
Americans have been able
to adapt to the ways of
the dominant group.
Entrepreneurship
 Many Native Americans have
found entrepreneurship to be a
way to get back on their feet &
get out of poverty.
 An increasing number of tribes
are taking the entrepreneurial
path of development to
prosperity.
 A number of tribes have
constructed casinos & have
opened their own businesses,
such as vacation resorts,
apparel companies, auto
dealerships, etc. that generate
thousands of dollars a year
(Bandow, D., 1998).

21. Spirituality
 Because of Native
American spirituality,
this is now part of
mental health
assessments and
treatment plans.
Development of natural
resources
 Produce oil & gas
(Bandow, D., 1998)

22. Empathy
 After doing our project &
cultural experience
portion of the project, we
were able to develop
much empathy for this
culture. Europeans put
Native Americans through
so much that they did not
deserve. They have also
never gotten credit for all
of their many
achievements &
successes.
Education
 Through our research &
newfound learning on
the Native American
culture, we feel as
though we can now
understand them on a
deeper level & take the
best therapeutic
approach for our clients.

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