Abstract
Excerpted From: Katlin Bowers, Why Lack of Tribal Self-determination Rights Promote the Native American and Alaska Native Poverty Crisis and Why These Rights Should Be Expanded, 32 Cornell Journal of Law & Public Policy 325 (Winter 2022) (161 Footnotes) (Full Document)
Native Americans and Alaska Natives have the highest poverty rate among all minority groups in the United States. According to 2018 U.S. Census Data, the national poverty rate for Natives is at 25.4%, while the White population has a national poverty rate of 10.1%, the Black population poverty rate is 20.8%, and the Hispanic population is 17.6%. There are numerous causes for this disparity, however, one substantial reason is lack of self-determination by tribes to implement policies, programs, and establish businesses under the U.S. federal government. This is based on the theory that the current self-determination policies regarding tribal nations are not enough to solve this crisis.
In this Note, I will analyze and explain why the Native American and Alaska Native poverty rate remains constant amongst tribal nations despite an increase in the implementation of tribal and federal policies and programs created to address the crisis. I will make the argument that a substantial cause that promotes this crisis is lack of self-determination by tribes to implement policies, programs, and establish businesses under the U.S. federal government. I will demonstrate by analyzing the historical developments of the tribal right of self-determination and how development of the current federal self-determination policy, the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, impacted it. However, I will further argue that the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act is not enough to solve the poverty crisis and that many of the U.S. Supreme Court's previous Native American law decisions are harmful to tribal self-determination rights. Finally, I will recommend that a solution for decreasing the poverty rate for the federal government is to expand self-determination rights for tribal nations under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act. I will also advocate that the U.S. Supreme Court should overturn harmful precedent and affirm the rights of tribal governments in all aspects of self-determination.
[. . .]
Native American and Alaska Native communities throughout the United States are suffering from the poverty crisis more than any other racial group. Additionally, this crisis has only become more severe due to the COVID-19 pandemic and changing economic conditions depending on the location of the tribe. As data emerge, it is clear that tribal nations and their members have suffered economically. Thus, how can the poverty crisis for Indigenous peoples be addressed and solved?
One important solution to this crisis is for the federal government to promote uphold and permit the self-determination rights of tribal nations. This can be accomplished through expanding and amending the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act and overturing harmful Supreme Court precedent. These initiatives may incentivize more tribes to contract with programs under the ISDEAA and allow Indigenous leaders to properly direct investments into building their communities' economies.
Socio-economic improvement among Indigenous peoples comes not from a paternalistic approach of funding control by the federal government, but rather through greater self-determination by tribes in determining the distribution of funds. While centrally designed programs can provide vital resources and expertise, ultimately it is the people themselves who know best what their communities need in order to develop institutions of governance. They are themselves best placed to build sustainable economies and social programs that work for the people they are to help.
Tribal Citizen of Cherokee Nation
