Indigenous Populace or Local Community
In the heart of North America, where Indigenous peoples have lived for a minimum of 23,000 years, the concept of citizenship has been a complex and evolving journey.
Before the arrival of Europeans, Indigenous peoples operated trade routes throughout the Western hemisphere, and membership within a Native Nation was not solely based on blood, but on culture, language, and active participation in Tribal society. This pre-colonial understanding of citizenship was markedly different from the system that would later take root.
The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 granted U.S. citizenship to Indigenous peoples born in the USA. However, this act was not universally accepted within Native circles. The question of U.S. citizenship for Natives has been a controversial topic, with some viewing it as an attempt to assimilate them into the colonial society while stripping them of their Indigeneity.
The Supreme Court of the United States has concluded that Tribal membership is not a racial classification, but a political one. This decision, while significant, did little to address the controversy surrounding citizenship for Indigenous peoples.
One of the most contentious aspects of the citizenship debate has been the implementation of blood quantum laws. These laws, a federal government invention, define Native identity by blood ancestry and were implemented to mathematically guarantee Native extinction. However, in recent years, some Tribes, such as the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe, have amended their blood quantum laws to be more inclusive of members with multiple indigenous heritages, aiming to promote inclusion and dignity among all its members.
The journey of Indigenous citizenship in the USA has been marked by power, dehumanization, theft, and genocide. Colonization has left a lasting impact, with many Native people, such as my grandfather who fought for the USA in World War I, seeing U.S. citizenship as valuable, offering a voice in the system surrounding their ancestral homelands and potential influence within it.
However, it wasn't until the 1960s that most Tribal members would be able to vote, with New Mexico, which has a sizeable Native population, being the last state to confer voting rights to Native peoples in 1962.
In more recent times, Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, made history as the first Native woman to serve as Secretary of the Department of Interior. Haaland has launched an investigation into boarding schools that the federal government ran with churches to assimilate Native children, preserved public lands, saved sacred sites, and protected water resources.
Today, more than five million Americans claim Indigenous heritage. However, many Native individuals alive today possess bloodlines from multiple Tribes, but may lack enough of any one group to receive Tribal membership due to blood quantum laws.
The author, a Native woman with dual citizenship in the United States of America and the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe, implores fellow American citizens to expand their understanding of citizenship to include pre-colonial Native citizenship standards. By doing so, we can better acknowledge and honour the rich history and continuous presence of Indigenous peoples in North America.
