Pine Ridge Reservation Case Study
The American dream contends that all who persevere and strive for success will achieve it. This is not always the reality however. Many people live in a state of marked poverty throughout the United States. Not because they are lazy or indifferent but simply due to a wide variety of circumstances that are often beyond their ability to control. Such a situation exists on the Pine Ridge Reservation in southwestern South Dakota, the home of the Lakota Sioux [see map on pg. 7]. This is not an inviable place to live. Isolated, impoverished, underdeveloped, rife with extensive problems, the reason why anyone would remain there is far from apparent.
The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is the site of one of the 565 federally recognized Indian Nations within the United States. There are approximately 30,000 to 40,000 people on Pine Ridge, most of whom identify as Oglala Lakota Sioux. The reservation spans 2.2 million acres, roughly the equivalent of Connecticut (A Hidden America, 2011). The topography of Pine Ridge comprises badlands, rolling grassland hills, dryland prairie, and areas dotted with pine trees (Pine Ridge Statistics). In spite of the large area and
…show more content…
In seemingly every area there is a desperate and critical need. Unemployment rates are excessively high, alcoholism is rampant, housing is inadequate, health care is insufficient, and education is underfunded. Faced with all these extreme hardships, the answer as to why Pine Ridge still has thousands of people is confusing. They are not prisoners anymore, they can leave if they wish, and yet they stay. They may stay for a variety of reasons: they cannot afford to move, they have nowhere else to go, they are too beaten down in spirit to try for anything more. These could all certainly apply, but the more crucial reason for their continued presence in such an unenviable place is that for the Lakota, Pine Ridge Reservation is
Forest Acres Research Paper
329 Words | 2 PagesForest Acres is a community located in Richland County of Columbia, South Carolina. It is a community that was incorporated in the year 1935 near the waters of Dent’s Pond, now known as Forest Lake, due to John Hughes Cooper and James Henry Hammond both having real estate interests in the area. After Cooper purchased Dent’s Pond (Forest Lake) and 1,700 acres of land, Hammond purchased 67 acres from Cooper on Quinine Hill; developing it into a suburban area for local businessmen who worked in the downtown area. In order for Cooper and Hammond to name this location, a petition was signed by residents; voting on whether to name the area Forest Acres or Quinine Hill. As a result, the name Forest Acres won majority votes; making it the official
Mississippi Band Of Choctaw Indians Case Study
313 Words | 2 PagesThe United States Government formally recognizes over five hundred tribes within the fifty states. These recognized tribes are qualified for funding and other various services through grants and contracts with the government along with other sources. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians represents one of the federally recognized tribes in the United States. Located in eight reservation communities throughout Mississippi, it consists of almost 10,000 registered members. Throughout the past couple of years, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians has faced several financial burdens regarding funding for the tribe.
Indian Termination Pros And Cons
276 Words | 2 PagesHello Tamara Thank you for the insight on the federal Indian termination policies durning the 1950’s,and our selfish acts in attempting to move Indians off reservations and into subruban areas, I feel that justice could never be made for the todays native americans simply because the suffering we put their ansestors through could never take away the tears or pain we inflicted on them ,even though our federal government had even initiated a policy of removal as well as termination of the native americans under this particular policy that was souly created so the Native American people would no longer be government wards on reservations which todays era they are entiltled for the most psrt “subject to the same laws and entitled to the same privileges
A Comparison Of The Lewis And Clark Expedition
1887 Words | 8 PagesThe migration of Americans to the west was a good thing for innovation and building up the United States as a country, but the Native Americans who lived in these lands were changed forever. Any Native Americans found in lands where United States citizens wanted land was immediately excavated from their land and brought to an Indian reservation of some kind. Overtime though, these Indian reservations began to limit due to the rising population in Americans during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. “They [Lewis and Clark] provided valuable information about the topography, the biological sciences, the ecology, and ethnic and linguistic studies of the American Indian. The mysteries of
Oka Crisis: Controversial Disputes Between Government And Aboriginal People
1248 Words | 5 PagesIn the end it limits the Mohawk people to roughly 6 kilometers. (They had once occupied 165 kilometers) The municipality of Oka rents out part of the Pines to the Club de Golf Oka. A 9-hole golf course is built in the Pines without Mohawk consent. The Kanehsatà:ke Band filed another official land claim with the federal Office of Native Claims regarding land which includes the Pines (the “Commons”).
Pros And Cons Of The Indian Removal Act Of 1790
1501 Words | 7 PagesNative Americans who emigrated from Europe perceived the Indians as a friendly society with whom they dwelt with in harmony. While Native Americans were largely intensive agriculturalists and entrepreneurial in nature, the Indians were hunters and gatherers who earned a livelihood predominantly as nomads. By the 19th century, irrefutable territories i.e. the areas around River Mississippi were under exclusive occupation by the Indians. At the time, different Indian tribes such as the Chickasaws, Creeks, and Cherokees had adapted a sedentary lifestyle and practiced small-scale agriculture. According to the proponents of removal, the Indians were to move westwards into forested lands in order to generate additional space for development through agricultural production (Memorial of the Cherokee Indians).
Indian Removal Act Dbq Essay
552 Words | 3 PagesIn Document 3, Cherokee Nation, a cherokee tribal member gave a speech that one part states, “This is the land of our Nativity; the land of our birth. We cannot consent to abandon it for another far inferior [place]”. Meaning they will not give up there land that they were born on, for somewhere else. Theodore Frelinghuysen’s speech, (Document 5, Theodore Frelinghuysen) mentions that a long, long time ago, God placed the tribes where he wanted them, which means they were here way before us, and we should not force them to move. Both documents infer that their land is important and sacred to them.
Reservation Lives Matter In Ian Frazier's On The Rez
525 Words | 3 PagesReservation Lives Matter The Indian reservations and communities discussed in Ian Frazier’s book, On The Rez, are not being aided like they should be. Poverty and alcoholism are consuming the reservation like a plague. The United States government is not supporting the reservation as it should. People are dying or living in sufferable conditions while everyone turns a blind eye.
Why Is Frederick Douglass Taking Valuable Lessons
1153 Words | 5 PagesThis article explains how the tribe’s island is slowly eroding away, and they need to relocate in order to preserve their cultural identities. Many members of the tribe are troubled by this decision because they don’t want to leave the only home they’ve ever known for years and go somewhere new. This obviously doesn’t make them feel very ecstatic. This risk has some pros and some cons. The positive things that could happen are every tribe member being safe, with new homes, and the culture still being alive for younger generations.
Was The Westward Expansion Justified
391 Words | 2 PagesWhat our government didn’t realize was that the indians lived in decentralized societies. This meant that it was really up to the individual to decide to move. Also those who did move often did
Compare And Contrast The Cherokee Removal Of American Indians
919 Words | 4 PagesCherokee, Cheyenne, Seminoles Option #2 During the nineteenth-century, the federal Indian policy changed and it forced the removal or relocation of many different Indian tribes. The federal government sought to expand its control of territory and resources across America. The one big problem the U.S. faced were the Indians who resisted their removal. Georgia signed the Compact of 1802 which stated that if Georgia were to give up their western claims, the U.S. would eradicate American Indian land titles in Georgia and remove them (Lecture 14).
Of Mice And Men American Dream Essay
600 Words | 3 PagesThis story can be greatly discouraging to those who carry dreams that they wish to attain. The American Dream is what one enacts on. If one lives life with a pessimistic mindset, they will never achieve what they crave in life or be content with the season they are living in. The people on the ranch dreamed of a better life, but constantly complained about where they were at in life then, rather than being content with the life they were living.
Dawes Act Essay
459 Words | 2 PagesThe Sioux described how depressed the man came, and how many white men ridiculed him for it. Some Native Americans tried to escape allotment. One Cheyenne man and his family decide to leave the reservation and its new allotment for the mountains to stay away from white people, who could not be trusted. Most however were forced to allow their lands to be cut smaller and smaller, like the Northern Ute, until there was almost nothing left to live on. These particularly tragic tales continue into today, as Native Americans live in overcrowded reservations that have high rates of poverty, alcoholism and drug abuse, and even suicide, as tribes in Canada have recently
Poverty In Native Americans Essay
638 Words | 3 PagesPeople express their concern as to how they are going to get food or pay their essential bills. Even though the United States doesn’t experience poverty regarding starvation, it has poverty issues that lead to diseases and malnutrition. There are many factors and causes for poverty in the US. This paper will discuss the causes and the effects of the poverty in the Native American Reservations. Unemployment is the main cause of poverty in the Native Reservations in the US.
The American Dream Materialism Analysis
179 Words | 1 PagesThe picture perfect life that the American Dream promotes is unrealistic and superficial because money is unable to fill the void of happiness or love. Contrary to earlier days, we now life in a time when even a strong work-ethic does not guarantee money, success or opportunities. While many are so ensorcelled by the illusions of the American Dream, we often fail to realize its falsity and constraints. Whether financially or socially, the society coaxes in the unsuspecting American dreamer, only to then spit them out in a wave of despair, failure and hopelessness. As demonstrated by numerous non-conformist individuals, the Dream lies not in the realm of materialism but rather in that of the intangible; often requiring an extreme leap of faith
More about Pine Ridge Reservation Case Study
Forest Acres Research Paper
329 Words | 2 PagesMississippi Band Of Choctaw Indians Case Study
313 Words | 2 PagesIndian Termination Pros And Cons
276 Words | 2 PagesA Comparison Of The Lewis And Clark Expedition
1887 Words | 8 PagesOka Crisis: Controversial Disputes Between Government And Aboriginal People
1248 Words | 5 PagesPros And Cons Of The Indian Removal Act Of 1790
1501 Words | 7 PagesIndian Removal Act Dbq Essay
552 Words | 3 PagesReservation Lives Matter In Ian Frazier's On The Rez
525 Words | 3 PagesWhy Is Frederick Douglass Taking Valuable Lessons
1153 Words | 5 PagesWas The Westward Expansion Justified
391 Words | 2 PagesCompare And Contrast The Cherokee Removal Of American Indians
919 Words | 4 PagesOf Mice And Men American Dream Essay
600 Words | 3 PagesDawes Act Essay
459 Words | 2 PagesPoverty In Native Americans Essay
638 Words | 3 PagesThe American Dream Materialism Analysis
179 Words | 1 Pages