Introduction
The topic of the contemporary reservation within the context of poverty and education is very actual for our times, because there is a certain connection between the histories of the Indians reservation and our today life. So, this topic should be regarded in the deliberate research.
Main text
The issues of the contemporary reservation life have a 150-year history. The Euro-Americans ignored reservation boundaries; they used the weakness of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which was not able to defend the sanctity of the reservations.
Usually, the reservation land was very poor and least desirable, such as Californian land. Most reservations were in a ruff situation. The cultural values of its people were under attack. The assimilation policies were implemented against them. They did not have possibility to reconstruct or to raise their economy. Their position was hopeless. Such things as: alcoholism, increasing lack of medical care and of educational facilities, high level of crimes and suicide, was not unusual for that period of time.
It is necessary to mention that reservations came to California much later then to some other places of the United States. One of the biggest and sharp problems in that land was the cultural isolation and, of course, the lack of specialized support of adequates.
We are challenged by the question of what had been done to change the conditions of the Indian’s livelihood. Native Americans understood that they have to join their efforts together in order to defend their rights. In the early beginning of the 20th Century they started working together, but Californian Indians were much slower in doing this. There were problems with respect to the certain legal status of Indians in California. One of them was the problem of the recognition of full rights for Native tribal organizations. Nowadays there are some other critical and sharp issues still remain. One of them is the urgent need to rescue Native languages, which are actually regarded as the keys to the Indian cultural integrity. Another problem is connected with social services to the Native population: education, health care and employment counseling. And, of course, California’s reservations indeed need to negotiate with each other in order to protect their own environments.
The issue of government in tribes is very complicated in California, because of traditions. The chief always remained like a cultural icon, but not a legislator. Here we can regard the example with California’s northwest. There were big problems because the Federal government actually placed a land grant for the Yurok into the whole jurisdiction of the Hupa reservation. The Hupa had met the special Federal standard for their tribal organization, but the Yurok had not met these standards. Only a decade ago these reservations were separated and are able now to be self-governed. Such way the Yurok were given right not to be pursued federally and to defend themselves in legal cases.
Californian Native Americans remain trying to preserve their culture, but California’s amazing art – basketry – almost died, because of lack of transfer to the young generations. The situation was fixed by some enthusiasts with the help of California Indian Basketweavers Association. Today, the indigenous cultures are reviving in California. You can find a great variety of exhibitions and meetings through which Native Indian people and other people can communicate and learn Native Indian language, their stories and songs, dances and the art technology. There is a calendar of upcoming events that are published in “News from Native California”, and this is powerful evidence to this.
Conclusion
In the conclusion we must admit that Native Americans had hard times in their lives and they had to suffer a lot of harassment on their side. But they remained fighting for their rights. That is why, today, we must support them and help in their striving to preserve their culture.
Works Cited
Prucha, Francis Paul, ed. Documents of United States Indian Policy. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2000.