Contemporary Connections: Who Decides Who Counts as Native American? and Native American Identities

Who Decides Who Counts as Native Americans?

          This article begins by highlighting the specific issues one man is facing to enroll his children as members of the Nooksack tribe. Four years ago, he applied for his children's enrollment and was told that there wasn't sufficient evidence to substantiate their tribal claims. The tribal chairman explains that he is at war, a war he is fighting to protect his people from an invasion of people he claims are not even Native American. Many Native Americans face difficulties when attempting to trace their ancestry because of governments efforts to extinguish, assimilate, and relocate tribes and by a scarcity of historical documents. The article goes on to explain that to federally recognized tribes, the ability to determine who is and who is not a part of the tribe is essential to what makes tribes sovereign entities. But to individuals, membership means citizenship in the tribe and all the emotional ties and treaty rights that come with enrollment. To these individuals, losing their enrollment means losing part of their identity, because for many Native Americans recognition by a tribe is the most accepted way for a person to prove they are Indian. 

          This article shows the continuous struggles Native Americans face in establishing their identities in an ever changing, modern world. In Tracks, we constantly see Pauline struggling to establish her identity, as well as her place in the world. Pauline states early on that "she was made for better" than the Native American life. From that point on, we primarily see Pauline struggling to distance herself from her heritage. However, we also see Nanapush and Fleur struggling to hold on to their ties to their people, primarily by passing on knowledge and by holding onto their land. However, this book does not depict instances of tribe enrollment and belonging, which to many Native Americans is a key component of their identity. This book shows how much Native Americans have lost: their land, their children, their way of life. But, I think that we sometimes forget Native Americans are still losing aspects of their cultures and are still struggling with their identities. Many tribes are losing their languages and now people are even losing their ability to claim their heritage and their belonging to their tribe. 

     

         Furthermore, this article highlights the lasting damage that the government has caused the Native American people. Most people are aware that Native Americans were relocated to reservations and that this deeply impacted their lives.In the book, we see the damage losing her land has on Fleur. However, I believe it is safe to assume that few people are aware of how hard the government worked to erase the Native Americans history and culture. By relocating and working to extinguishing tribes, the government created issues for modern Native Americans trying to establish their heritage. The governments actions years ago caused issues for modern Native Americans who are simply trying to belong to their communities and embrace an important aspect of their identities.