The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 - A Momentous Shift in National Diplomacy

     For most of the history of the United States of America or at least since the time of Jamestown being first established in 1607, nationalized American citizens often have referred to themselves as the first American people. However, this has been an outright fallacy, as many individuals have forgotten about the legacy of the Native American tribes that had inhabited the Americas for thousands upon thousands of years undisturbed while cultivating their own unique cultures. Unfortunately, with the arrival of European ships in the late fifteenth century meant the imminent departure of these groups of people, and those who survived endured even worse pain. Even prior to the nation's inception, hundreds of Native American tribes have been forced off of their land to expand westward escaping the punishing hand of the incoming settlers, eventually being subjected to the confines of the reservation system beginning in the nineteenth century. To the eyes of the colonists and pioneers, the native Americans were obstacles impeding their journey westward to arrive at the Pacific Ocean, and such a strong desire would shape the thinking of such individuals for years to come. Being identified as alien to the American nation, the Native Americans have been subjected to the cruel realities of reservations, severe racism, and loss of cultural legacy. Despite many of these occurrences, some Native American individuals had participated in fighting for the American people during World War I in hopes of ensuring an official and lasting peace. These selfless actions of these people provided them with positive recognition from the American government. 

     In 1924, Congress had proposed the idea of the Meriam Survey whose purpose was to examine and evaluate the conditions of the provided reservations. When the tests resulted in pointing out the terrible conditions of the reservations and the dangers of forced assimilation issued by the Dawes General Allotment Act of 1887, the idea of reform quickly brewed into a larger movement. This was largely a part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's movement of the New Deal with the hope of extending its public works program and conservation measures to the Native American people as well as all American residents. during the difficult time of the Great Depression. Survival became much more of a possibility with these new measures taken by the government, and in 1934, the Indian reorganization Act was officially released, giving Native Americans the provisions of protection of tribal lands from possible speculators and more acreage to expand their living conditions. There was further funding to resolve financial issues and public health programs to provide medical assistance services to the Native American people. After almost arriving at the brink of extinction, over 160 tribes had been granted the ability to craft their own constitutions and the option of managing their own tribal affairs with such a document. 

     In sum, the Indian Reorganization was a large stepping stone toward the improvement of Native American and American relations together. It allowed for the harsh assimilation plan of the Dawes General Allotment Act to be reversed, and the Great Depression as well as the current harsh conditions of the reservations to be reduced substantially. However, this was not the end to naive cruelty, as during the 1930s until the time of about the 1970s, Native Americans were portrayed in popular culture as savages, as demonstrated by companies like Disney and movies like Custer of the West. Unpopular stereotypes, attempts at indoctrination by the new reservation schoolteachers provided by the reorganization act, and the derogatory names were still plaguing the tribes. Although conditions improved for most of these Native Americans, to what extend did their life conditions actually improve?

Resources:

http://www.nebraskastudies.org/0700/frameset_reset.html?http://www.nebraskastudies.org/0700/stories/0701_0142.html

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indian-Reorganization-Act

http://www.ndstudies.org/resources/IndianStudies/standingrock/historical_reorganization.html