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 Should Native Americans Be Given Independence from America? (7)

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Pantagruel(984) pic



Should Native Americans Be Given Independence from America?

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2 points

Well, they sort of already have it. Reservations have a great deal of autonomy from the federal govern, while not entirely sovereign. I'm not certain that these lands could survive without assistance form the surrounding state land.

1 point

Hell no.

For one thing, most of them would not want it.

And for another...a great deal of them could not survive it.

So.....How would Freedom from Uncle help them? Please tell us?

Are you aware that most Natives living on Reservations receive monthly checks for the government? For which they are required to do absolutely nothing?

Are you aware that Natives receive a p!ethora of federally mandated benefits?

Like FREE healthcare and college education?

Are you aware that Natives are exempt from many laws that you and I have to abide by?

No.

I doubt you know any of this.

Or you would not asked this question.

Because......release from US government for your Natives = No more monthly booze money checks for your Natives.

PS...I lived on the Pine Ridge Reservation for three months. It's in South Dakota, in the Black Hills. Doing an undergrad Bio study on pathologies of illnesses and diseases that are peculiar to Native Americans.

Hope this helps. You see! Interested in the Native culture?

I would be happy to talk about me Pine Ridge times.

Thanks.

J-Roc77(70) Disputed
1 point

Free money, healthcare, education...certain laws don't apply to native americans?

Bullshit. To claim that most Native Americans recieve these benefits is a huge generalization and certainly shows a lack of undertsanding of the scope of these supposed benefits.

For instance;

IHS gives free healthcare in the same way other free clinics do. The aim of these climics is to provide service to underserved communites however in a limited scope. If Natives need anything more than medicine for a kids sore throat they have to take the same route everyone else does.

Native americans pay for college and apply for grants and scholarships just like everyone else. To say Natives get free college because there are Native American scolarships then it is the same fro Blacks, hell there is even scholarships for short people.

Native Americans on reservatiosn are subject to Federal laws and not state, this isn't better by any means. For instance in WA state where pot is legal, it remains illegal on reservations. This disallows reservations from participating in a prospering market.

Free money? The idea that 'most' Natives get money is unfounded. People sometimes see things like the Cobell case and stretch it out over all Natives. One could not call this 'free money' either without ignoring that the payment are for mismanaging land held in trust for many decades.

But I do agree that Native Americans shouldn't be given independence from America (I assume this means the US) nor would most tribes want this. Tribes already operate with limited sovereignty wihtin the US government but entities within the US are too financially entangled to seperate without adverse effects to each group.

And this doesn't mean no 'booze' money as you say. I know you say you take some of these ridiculous positions regarding racisim/homophobic etc. to incite debate but you do so while being protected from any negative fallout that those groups are subjected to. Saying you don't mean these things is hardly a fair tradeoff for those groups, they get the brunt of the negative stereo types you prop up and you get amusment while continuing the spread of detrimental myths.

Living on a reservation for three months hardly qualifies anyone for having a good grasp of these situations. For anyone interested here are a few resources with a broader scope of information to pull from to start with.

http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~oliver/soc220/Lectures220/AmerInds/AmerInd%20FAQs%20from%20BIA.htm

http://www.narf.org/frequently-asked-questions/

SlapShot(2608) Disputed
0 points

Everything I said is true.

I lived on a Rez for three months. Spoke with and knew dozens of Natives.

What's your Rez experience?

http://kfor.com/2014/09/18/native-americans-line-up-to-cash-government-settlement-checks/

1 point

It's simply too late. The lands they currently have are too small and scattered throughout the USA to give them a cohesive country. Nor is it realistic to expect the population of non-Natives to get off all the land which was taken and to go somewhere else. It is simply a crime of history that they were treated as they were and that has created challenges they live with today.

The world is full of subgroup populations which would like independence or their own contiguous autonomous land grab but which aren't allowed it. The Basques in Spain, the Kurds in the Middle East, etc. Native Americans are among that batch. Should have - once upon a time - but can't now - because they're too embedded in larger entities.