Research Reports
Reflections on Traditional American Indian Ways, 1998
Threats to Tribal Sovereignty, 1998
Traditional American Indian Leadership: A Comparison with U.S. Governance, 1997
Yesterday's Promise -- Today's Challenge
Challenges to the legal tenets of tribal sovereignty are not entirely new, but they are of increasing intensity. With the fervor of media attention focused on Indian gaming and the potential wealth it presents, many interest groups have formed and are embarking on new tactics to promote an anti-Indian sentiment. Perceptions by these interest groups about Indian policy, such as hunting and fishing rights negotiated in treaties, are misconstrued into statements of "rights" granted to a "special" population (Indians) that are not afforded to all citizens. These misperceptions about the true legal and political status of American Indians fuel the fire to use the courts as a problem solver.
In addition, there is increased interaction between tribes and state governments that has a similar "chipping away" effect on the trust relationship between tribes and the U.S. Congress. This increased interaction follows years of disinterest on the part of state and local governments about the tribal people living on reservations; a disinterest that extended to American Indians living in urban areas as well. An example of the intensified relationships between tribal governments and state and local governments is the recent emphasis on taxing tribal governments for roads leading to and within Indian reservations or for funding other recreational activities, such as sports stadiums.
The federal government is reducing or attempting to eliminate its trust relationship with American Indian tribes through the devolution of social and economic support guaranteed to tribes. For example, the most recent welfare reform policies will cause tribes to deal with the state governments to access and acquire welfare benefits and other forms of social services for tribal members that were once funded under authority of the federal government. This pressure to forge relationships between tribes and state governments has the potential to critically alter the historical, legal, and sovereign relationship between tribes and the federal government both presently and in the future.
Challenges facing tribal governments from both internal and external forces remain a constant struggle for Indian leaders. In many ways, these challenges have changed little over time. Struggles over how tribes should be governed and by whom have been present since the inception of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. External pressures to reduce reservation land or to forfeit hunting and fishing rights have been a constant threat from state and local governments and non-Indian citizens.
These attacks on tribes and tribal sovereignty are propelled forward and are becoming increasingly more subtle. These threats seem to rely on the changing nature of internal tribal relations and tribal members' relationships to their reservations. Tribal leaders must return to or continue to utilize the strong foundation of traditional ways for governing their tribes. At the same time, tribal leaders and tribal members must possess an understanding of these current challenges, driven both internally and externally, and how these actions pose a tremendous threat to tribal sovereignty and American Indian tribes of the future.
Use of this Report
The purpose of this report is to provide information that will help tribal leaders focus on and defend the sovereign status of Indian tribes. This report identifies key findings from research conducted by the American Indian Research and Policy Institute during the past year and a half. AIRPI's mission to provide accurate information about issues facing American Indians as described and defined by American Indians flows throughout this report. The information presented was drawn from numerous conversations with tribal leaders and their members and Indian professionals practicing within legal and political arenas. This information is supported by a thorough review of historical and current legal documentation of court decisions, Congressional actions, and state and local policy efforts.
The purpose of gathering information about the current and potential threats to Indian tribes and tribal sovereignty is twofold:
- To document the current reality of American Indian tribes and the
policy changes and court decisions affecting that reality, and
- To provide a concise description of these current actions for use and referral by tribal leaders as they engage in their day-to-day activities and broader actions with respect to tribal responsibilities.
To initiate this project AIRPI hosted a forum for Indian leaders in the spring of 1996 entitled "The Threatened State of Tribal Sovereignty." The forum discussed major concerns regarding sovereignty. The basic message offered by participants was that a common front is needed to address threats to sovereignty. Greg Bourland, tribal chairman of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe stated at the forum:
I'd like to see this Forum as writing a sheet of music. We are writing policy. For example, the gaming commission case. Everyone went running in each direction stating 'the sky is falling,' 'tribes lost, states won.' I suggest that we write a single sheet of music. We must assess the impact for the seventh generation to come and acknowledge the seventh generation behind us--the blood and tears they shed for us.
This report provides information necessary to begin such an effort by identifying legislative and judicial trends that impact tribal governments. The focus of this report is on threats to sovereignty that affect tribes in the four state area of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana. Resolutions in support of this research were passed by the Dakota Territory Tribal Chairmen's Association, the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council and the Billings Area Tribal Leaders Council which represent 29 diverse Indian tribes. This broad representation is consistent with AIRPI efforts to solicit tribal participation in the formation and implementation of policy research.
Threats to tribal sovereignty are:
- Increasingly more subtle
- Linked to economic and cultural survival of Indian tribes
- Court and policy decisions often transcending individual tribes thus
impacting all of Indian Country
- Our responsibility to address for future generations of American Indians
The
Well-Being of American Indian Children in Minnesota: Economic Conditions,
1994
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Tuesday November 1, 2005