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Note: By American Indians is meant Native Americans, indigenous to North America, and not the many migrants from India, who increasingly arrive on H1B visas, displacing educated American workers [1], and who are also disproportionately represented as US State governors. Traditionally people from India are called East Indians and the US Census Bureau has settled on Asian Indians.[2]
Native Americans must fight lengthy uphill legal battles, even to protect their water against foreign uranium (and other) mining companies, whether Cameco uranium mining giant (Crow Butte) or Powertech-Azarga penny stock (Dewey Burdock). See for instance: https://miningawareness.wordpress.com/2015/08/24/cameco-uranium-mining-vs-clean-water-lakota-people/ (Also do searches within this blog).
Not only are Native Americans outnumbered in their own land (2% of the population), often living in poverty, but they can’t always even easily have the vote: “today, I am calling on Congress to help remove the significant and unnecessary barriers that for too long have confronted American Indians and Alaska Natives attempting to cast their ballots.” (US Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, May 2015)
“Native Americans have faced unacceptable barriers to participating in the franchise, a situation aggravated by a history of discrimination, poverty and — significantly — great distances from polling places,” (Acting Assoc. Attorney General Stuart Delery, May 2015).
Unfortunately, it won’t do them much good as impoverished, outnumbered, peoples. The US government only cares for those with money, and who represent large voting blocks, as has been the case for over a century and a half.
American Indians were moved – by (European) immigrants- to permanent refugee (or POW) camps, in their own land, in the form of Indian Reservations. There seems to be a lesson here to be learned about immigration policy. The late Russell Means argued that Americans were already living on one big reservation, due to loss of their rights. In 2011, he stated “Your leaders have forgotten all about you, so welcome to the Res“. See 21 min 19 sec of his “Welcome to the Reservation” interview http://youtu.be/-LA-S64QY3o
“$36,252: The median household income of single-race American Indian and Alaska Native households in 2013. This compares with $52,176 for the nation as a whole.” (Notice that this is household, meaning there may be multiple, multigenerational, workers.)
“29.2% : The percent of single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives that were in poverty in 2013, the highest rate of any race group. For the nation as a whole, the poverty rate was 15.9 percent.”
“5.2 million: The nation’s population of American Indians and Alaska Natives, including those of more than one race. They made up about 2 percent of the total population in 2013.” (US Census Bureau, see more statistics below US DOJ Press Release)
Newer immigrants tend to have a leg up in voting because they often arrive in large numbers and vote as a block. That’s one reason why politicians pander to new immigrants, going back, at least, to the Irish political machines of the 1800s. The other reason is probably that many new immigrants come from countries where bribery is a way of life. Most people born in America would be clueless as to how to give a bribe. There is, of course, legal bribery in the form of political contributions, which favors those with money. Most black Americans arrived from the early 1600s to early 1800s, and they are the second poorest group. Many whites whose ancestors fought in the American Revolution aren’t faring too well, but this is easier to hide. However, the states where large numbers identify themselves as American, in the US Census, tend to be poorer. While it is believed that these are mostly early arrivals, they may also be recent arrivals who wish to integrate. Notice that the West Texas nuclear dump, and the leaking plutonium-americium WIPP “transuranic” waste dump are in areas which are predominantly Mexican American, at least some of whom have been in what is now the US for hundreds of years. Many are actually ethnically American Indians. A look at this map suggests that America is currently a mosaic, rather than a melting pot.
Shortly before his death, Martin Luther King pointed out in a radio interview that the western lands taken from the American Indians were mostly given to new migrants from Europe, rather than to black Americans, who had been freed from slavery. Yet, those who oppose new immigrants, from outside of the Americas, having the right to compete equally with Americans for jobs, or even getting preference over Americans, are accused of racism or xenophobia. It’s not politically correct. Of course, it’s convenient to qualify those who wish to work, in the only country which they have, as racists or xenophobes! “Most people believe that employers are supposed to recruit Americans before they petition for an H-1B worker. Yet, under the law, most employers are not required to prove to the Department of Labor that they tried to find an American to fill the job first. And, if there is an equally or even better qualified U.S. worker available, the company does not have to offer him or her the job. Over the years the program has become a government-assisted way for employers to bring in cheaper foreign labor, and now it appears these foreign workers take over – rather than complement – the U.S. workforce./ Even though the annual H-1B cap is 65,000, the actual number of foreign workers coming in through the program is much more because of numerous exemptions. For example, in Fiscal Year 2014, the agency in charge approved 315,857 H-1B petitions.” [1]
We aren’t talking here about so-called “Mexicans” most of whom are indigenous peoples of the Americas, and may thus arguably have a right to be in the US, (although indigenous peoples of Latin America should also have the right to stay at home and not have lands grabbed by mining companies), but other places who continue to dump their excess populations upon the Americas, even while the US government isn’t taking care of its own (e.g. H1B visas). Like the Native Americans, those who identify themselves as Americans mostly don’t have secondary citizenships to fall back upon. Along with African Americans, most have been in America for 250 to 400 years. Where are they supposed to seek employment? Where are they to go? It’s rather convenient to call these people racists or xenophobes. The government is, in fact, turning people into racists and xenophobes, who were never racists or xenophobes before. People seem to forget that it was high levels of immigration, in the context of economic crisis, which set the stage for the rise of Hitler.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed a new policy, which will be genocide against everyone in America – 100 mSv per year, guaranteeing cancer for all. http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NRC-2011-0012 One of the people spear-heading this extermination protocol (what else can it be called?), named Mark Miller, works for Sandia US Government Nuclear Lab, under contract to Lockheed Martin: https://miningawareness.wordpress.com/2015/08/18/sandia-us-nuclear-lab-found-quick-easy-solution-for-radiation-at-fukushima-chernobyl-other-contaminated-zones/ What else to expect of Lockheed Martin, the largest death merchant “defense constractor”, and maker of Trident nuclear missile?
Should it be surprising that a country, like the United States, who has killed and stolen the land of the Natives, and who continues to mistreat and kill them off (e.g. contaminated drinking water at Pine Ridge Reservation), would not respect the lives of anyone else? If someone killed their first spouse would you wish to marry them?
From the US DOJ:
“JUSTICE NEWS
Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Department of Justice Proposes Legislation to Improve Access to Voting for American Indians and Alaska Natives
Today the Department of Justice proposed legislation that would require states or localities whose territory includes part or all of an Indian reservation, an Alaska Native village, or other tribal lands to locate at least one polling place in a venue selected by the tribal government.
“The Department of Justice is deeply committed to ensuring that every eligible individual is able to exercise his or her fundamental right to vote,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch. “That’s why, today, I am calling on Congress to help remove the significant and unnecessary barriers that for too long have confronted American Indians and Alaska Natives attempting to cast their ballots. The legislation we recommend today will make this nation stronger by extending meaningful voting opportunities to native populations, by encouraging full participation in our democratic institutions, and by bringing us closer to our most cherished ideals.”
“As citizens of a nation founded upon the principles of liberty and equality, Native Americans have faced unacceptable barriers to participating in the franchise, a situation aggravated by a history of discrimination, poverty and — significantly — great distances from polling places,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart Delery. “In spite of many reforms made possible by the Voting Rights Act and other measures, voting rates among Native Americans remain disproportionately low. The legislation proposed today would address this unacceptable gap and we look forward to working with Congress to see it enacted.”
American Indians and Alaska Natives have faced significant obstacles that have prevented them from enjoying equal access to polling places and equal opportunities to cast a ballot. In addition to suffering from a long history of discrimination, the distance many American Indian and Alaska Native citizens must travel to reach a polling place presents a substantial and ongoing barrier to full voter participation. Following formal consultations with Indian tribes, the Department of Justice believes that there is a pressing need for federal legislation to ensure equal access to voting by Native American voters.
Today, the Department of Justice sent a letter to Congress with a legislative proposal, which would ensure that American Indian and Alaska Natives have access to at least one polling place in their communities to cast their ballots and require a number of additional obligations to ensure parity with other polling places.
This legislative proposal, a stand-alone bill, would:
Enable Native Americans to vote on or near tribal lands, by requiring any state or local election administrator whose territory includes part or all of an Indian reservation, an Alaska Native village, or other tribal lands to locate at least one polling place in a venue selected, and made available for the purpose of conducting elections, by the tribal government.
Require states to make voting machines, ballots, and other voting materials and equipment available at these tribally located polling places to the same extent that they are available at other polling places in the state.
Require states to provide compensation and other benefits to election officials and poll workers at these polling places to the same extent as at other polling places in the state.
Require states to use the same voting procedures at these polling places as at other polling places in the state — potentially including election-day voting, early voting, the hours during which polling places are open, the operation of voting mechanisms or systems, and same-day registration.
Allow states to meet their obligations by either creating new polling places or relocating existing ones.
Allow tribes with larger populations or land bases to request more than one polling place.
Make the states’ obligations contingent on the tribe filing a timely request and certifying that it has arranged for access to, and appropriate staffing for, the polling facility.”
[Isn’t saying they have to make “a timely” request a loophole to deny voter rights?]
“Require the tribe to ensure that the staffers for the polling place are properly trained.
Require the tribe to ensure that the polling place will be open and accessible to all eligible citizens who reside in the precinct, regardless of whether they are Indians or non-Indians.
The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring equal access to voting for Native American voters. This proposal would address serious voting obstacles faced by citizens who are members of Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages; provide equal access to polling places for all eligible citizens, including members of tribes and villages; reinforce our nation’s commitment to the fundamental right to vote; and strengthen the government-to-government relationship between the United States and tribal nations.
In 1975, recognizing the barriers to full participation that Native Americans continued to confront, Congress expressly included American Indians and Alaska Natives as protected groups under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act. Sections 4 and 5 of the Voting Rights Act prohibited many jurisdictions with large American Indian or Alaska Native populations from changing their voting laws until they could prove that the change would not create new barriers to effective participation. A number of jurisdictions with large Native American populations that have limited English proficiency — in six states, including Alaska — are also covered by Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires bilingual election materials and assistance.
Despite these reforms, participation rates among American Indians and Alaska Natives continue to lag behind turnout rates among non-Native voters. For example, in Alaska, turnout among Alaska Natives often falls 15 to 20 or more percentage points below the non-Native turnout rate. The causes of these disparities are complex, but the reality is that political participation by Native Americans consistently trails that of non-Natives and unequal access to polling places is a significant contributing factor.
Review the legislation at http://www.justice.gov/tribal/department-justice-proposes-legislation-improve-access-voting-american-indians-and-alaska.
15-657 Office of the Attorney General Tribal Justice Updated May 21, 2015 ” http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-proposes-legislation-improve-access-voting-american-indians-and-alaska (Didn’t this part of the voting rights act just get overturned by Judge Scalia, whose grandfather arrived less than 100 years ago, along with other blinkered judges?_
US Census Bureau News-Profile:
“CB14-FF.26 Nov. 12, 2014
American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month: November 2014
The first American Indian Day was celebrated in May 1916 in New York. Red Fox James, a Blackfeet Indian, rode horseback from state to state, getting endorsements from 24 state governments, to have a day to honor American Indians. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed a joint congressional resolution designating November 1990 as “National American Indian Heritage Month.” Similar proclamations have been issued every year since 1994. This Facts for Features presents statistics for American Indians and Alaska Natives, as this is one of the six major Office of Management and Budget race categories.
Note: Unless otherwise specified, the statistics in the “Population” section refer to the population who reported a race alone or in combination with one or more other races.
Population
5.2 million The nation’s population of American Indians and Alaska Natives, including those of more than one race. They made up about 2 percent of the total population in 2013. Of this total, about 49 percent were American Indian and Alaska Native only, and about 51 percent were American Indian and Alaska Native in combination with one or more other races. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
11.2 million The projected population of American Indians and Alaska Natives, alone or in combination, on July 1, 2060. They would comprise 2.7 percent of the total population. Source: Population projections
432,343 The American Indian and Alaska Native population, alone or in combination, 65 and over. Source: 2013 American Community Survey
14 Number of states with more than 100,000 American Indian and Alaska Native residents, alone or in combination, in 2013. These states were California, Oklahoma, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, Washington, New York, North Carolina, Florida, Alaska, Michigan, Oregon, Colorado and Minnesota. Source: 2013 American Community Survey
14.3% The proportion of Alaska’s population identified as American Indian and Alaska Native, alone or in combination, in 2013, the highest share for this race group of any state. Alaska was followed by Oklahoma (7.5 percent), New Mexico (9.1), South Dakota (8.5 percent) and Montana (6.8 percent). Source: 2013 American Community Survey
30.8 Median age for those who were American Indian and Alaska Native, alone or in combination, in 2013. This compares with a median age of 37.5 for the U.S. population as a whole. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Reservations
325 Number of federally recognized American Indian reservations in 2012. All in all, excluding Hawaiian Home Lands, there are 630 American Indian and Alaska Native legal and statistical areas for which the Census Bureau provides statistics. Source: Census Bureau Geography Division
Tribes
566 Number of federally recognized Indian tribes. Data courtesy of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, 2013
Families
1,698,815 The number of American Indian and Alaska Native family households in 2013 (households with a householder who was American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination with another race). Of these, 38.5 percent were married-couple families, including those with children. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
6.1 % The percentage of American Indian and Alaska Natives, alone or in combination with other races, who were grandparents living with at least one of their grandchildren in 2013. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Housing
53.9% The percentage of single-race American Indian and Alaska Native householders who owned their own home in 2013. This is compared with 64.0 percent of the overall population. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Languages
20.0% Percentage of American Indians and Alaska Natives, alone or in combination. age 5 and older who spoke a language other than English at home in 2011-2013, compared with 21 percent for the nation as a whole. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey” [In short, Native Americans are more likely to speak only English at home than the rest of the people in the US!]
“Education
82.2% The percentage of American Indians and Alaska Natives 25 and older who had at least a high school diploma, GED certificate or alternative credential. In addition, 17.6 percent obtained a bachelor’s degree or higher. In comparison, 86.3 percent of the overall population had a high school diploma or higher and 29.1 percent had a bachelor’s degree or higher. Source: 2011-2013, American Community Survey
39.8% Single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives 25 and older whose bachelor’s degree or higher was in science and engineering, or science and engineering-related fields in 2013. This compares with 43.7 percent for all people 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher. Source: 2013 American Community Survey Source: 2001-2013 American Community Survey
13.5% Percentage of single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives 25 and older who had a bachelor’s degree, graduate or professional degree in 2013. Source: 2013 American Community Survey
Jobs 25.9% The percentage of civilian-employed single-race American Indian and Alaska Native people 16 and older who worked in management, business, science and arts occupations in 2013. In addition, 25.2 percent worked in service occupations and 22.7 percent in sales and office occupations. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Veterans
152,897 The number of single-race American Indian and Alaska Native veterans of the U.S. armed forces in 2011-2013. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Income and Poverty
$36,252 The median household income of single-race American Indian and Alaska Native households in 2013. This compares with $52,176 for the nation as a whole. Source: 2013 American Community Survey
29.2%
The percent of single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives that were in poverty in 2013, the highest rate of any race group. For the nation as a whole, the poverty rate was 15.9 percent. Source: 2011-2013 American Community Survey
Health Insurance
26.9% The percentage of single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives who lacked health insurance coverage in 2013. For the nation as a whole, the corresponding percentage was 14.5 percent. Source: 2013 Current Population Survey
[…]
Editor’s note: The preceding data were collected from a variety of sources and may be subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Facts for Features are customarily released about two months before an observance in order to accommodate magazine production timelines.”
Click to access cb14ff-26_aian_heritage_month.pdf
[1] “in Fiscal Year 2014, the agency in charge approved 315,857 H-1B petitions.” http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/03-17-15%20Grassley%20Statement1.pdf
“During the depths of the Great Recession, employment of computer skilled workers dropped 24,310 workers in 2008 and 2009, while American colleges were graduating 131,296 new bachelor and associates degree holders in computer science. Yet, in those two years, while jobs were shrinking and new graduates were desperately looking for work, the Department of Homeland Security granted more than 130,000 new H1-B visas to do computer work.”
Click to access Trumka%20Testimony.pdf
[2] “The U.S. Census Bureau uses the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with the indigenous peoples of the Americas commonly referred to as American Indians.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_American
Mining Awareness + 
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