how the government intentionally keeps native americans in poverty and why - a thread

In 1803, Chief Justice John Marshall said that Natives weren’t capable of managing their own land, and since then the federal government has owned all “Indian County” land and assets. Natives cannot mortgage assets for loans and have difficulty starting businesses. (1/7)

All development projects on Native land must undergo federal scrutiny, which is an incredibly slow process. Companies must go through 4 federal agencies and 49 steps to get a permit for energy development. Off of the reservation, it only takes 4 steps. (2/7)

Federal law required Native land to be passed down in equal parts to all heirs. As a result, over time, the land has become fractioned to the extent that there are hundreds of owners per parcel. Management is near impossible, so most of the land is unusable. (3/7)

Over 20% of Native households on the reservation have annual incomes below $5000, compared to 6% of the entire U.S. pop., and are 400% more likely to report not having enough to eat. The gov. tries to bury this under the racist narrative that Natives are lazy & incapable. (4/7)

It’s no secret that the government has tried to erase the Native population in order to avoid land allotment and any additional costs. Keeping Indigenous peoples in poverty not only keeps them too busy to focus on taking back their land and rights, but also (5/7)

directly results in the murder of Indigenous women (who experience a murder rate that’s 10x the national average), the lack of access to healthcare, the increase in diabetes, ect. The sicker and more at risk Native peoples are, the more control the federal gov. has (6/7)

and the smaller their population becomes. If this is no longer the intent of our representatives, such as President Biden, then it is time for decisive action to be taken, including reparations to all Indigenous peoples and the abolishment of blood quantum requirements. (7/7)