The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and Its Impact on Apache Tribe - Essay Example

The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and Its Impact on Apache Tribe First and College First andLast Name, Department., University of. [Student’s First and Last Name] is now at Department of., University of. This research was in part supported by the grant awarded to [Student’s First and Last Name] by [Sample Grant Programme]. Correspondence concerning this research paper should be addressed to [Student’s First and Last Name], Department., University of., [Address] Contact: The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and Its Impact on Apache Tribe The U.S. Government policies towards the Native American tribal groups until the second half of the 20th century was specifically aimed at their assimilation.

For instance, in the 1880s such political luminaries as Senator Dawes, went as far as presuming that the main purpose of the U.S. policy efforts in this respect should be the achievement of the situation where “the Indian…is to disappear” (Niiska, 2001, p.1). Nonetheless, by the 1930s the perception of the ‘Indian problem’ has become more liberal, which found its expression in the adoption of the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) in 1934. The IRA may be considered to be one of the first changes in the previously rigid and discriminative policies of the Federal Government with respect to Native Americans, and it is therefore worth specific discussion.

In the context of the present essay, the overall impact of the IRA shall be compared and contrasted with its influence on social life and political situation of the Apache tribal group, so that both general and specific features of the IRA policy framework may be established. The IRA was a product of the efforts of the reform movement that aimed at ameliorating the situation of the various Indian tribes that had been previously targeted for assimilation and/or displacement. It formed an integral part of the so-called ‘Indian New Deal’ that was the result of the spectacular initiatives by John Collier, a man who headed the Bureau for Indian Affairs (BIA) for twelve years, from 1933 to 1945 (Taylor, 1980, p.17). Unlike the majority of his predecessors at this position, Collier has always dreamed of assisting the Indians in restoration of their ancient customs and sense of identity.

While the previous policy of the U.S. Government centered on forceful assimilation of the Indian tribes and the allotment of their communal lands to the individual members of the tribe which then may sell them at will to non-Indian private proprietors and state institutions, Collier moved energetically to reverse this trend. After many obstacles from the side of the more conservative forces had been overcome, his efforts were crystallized in the form of the Indian Reorganization Act. The essence of the IRA lied in the recognition of the principle of self-government of Indian tribes.

Its main idea was the transition from the previously dominant strict oversight and domination of the BIA and the Indian Service over the reservations where the tribal groups were forced to live, towards the recognition of the principle of majority rule and the supposedly equal negotiation between the tribal councils the decisions whereof were subject to majority vote, and the Federal and state governments. The tribal councils were to be responsible for making decisions on such things as lands transactions, being liable to censure from the side of the tribal majority if such decision were to be found contrary to the tribe’s general will.

Each tribal group was to draft its own constitutional charter, with the tribal council playing a role of the While in the 1920s some first efforts at forming the Indian tribal councils were made (e.g. in Apache and Navajo reservations), the latter remained isolated entities completely subordinate to the government-appointed superintendents of reservations. For instance, the Navajo tribal council was formed in 1923 in order to create legal facade for the possible attempt by oil companies to lease mineral prospecting rights on the Navajo lands (Taylor, 1980, p.71). Nonetheless, it was with the introduction of the IRA that such councils became formalized and were granted the rights of legal counsel that had until then rested in superintendents’ hands.

In the economic sphere, the IRA stopped the allotments of communal lands to individual tribespeople, thus cementing old communal forms of property and economic activities. The practice of forced ‘checkerboarding’, i.e. the splitting of communal lands into individual allotments for cultivation, was discouraged, and the integrated development of economic structure of the tribes was to become the principal objective of the reformed Indian Service. The practice of shared reservations, where representatives of several different and sometimes hostile tribes were forced to dwell together, was likewise dropped, and the Federal Government generally moved to protect the specific identity of this or another tribal community.

The impact of the IRA on the Apache people was manifold. Already in the 1920s the Apache tribe became one of the first where a tribal council with the members elected by the majority was established. However, at the same time, it had been functioning more like a business committee (that was actually its official name (Taylor, 1980). The adoption of the IRA enabled the Apache to start forming their own political institutions. The former business committee members at San Carlos reservation set about the regulation of Apache economic infrastructure.

The new grazing and stock regulations were established, while from 1946 the Tribal Council started managing two tribal stores, negotiating with non-Native-owned businesses for leasing the parts of tribal lands for asbestos mining, etc. By 1955, the San Carlos Apache reservation became a profitable corporation, run by the managers of Apache descent (Spicer, 2006, p.259). The same situation eventually developed with other major Apache settlements. In the political sense, the institution of the new tribal constitutional charters made the Apache closer to the Anglo-American system of governance, while preserving the elements of direct democracy inherent in the tribal structure.

It both made the Apache more ‘modern’ and gor them conform with the U.S. political standards. In total, therefore, the impact of the IRA upon the Apache people was controversial. On the one hand, it gave them the political instruments necessary for resisting the attempts at cultural assimilation and allowed them to determine their economic policies themselves. On the other hand, the IRA provided for the smoother transformation of the Indian communities, including the Apache ones, in accordance with consumerist standards of their White neighbors.

The Native American reservations became commercialized, with the tribes being turned into the joint-stock businesses. While profitable in the short-term, such developments may have some adverse consequences for the traditional cultures of the Apache and other Native Americans. References Niiska, C. (2001, June 22). Indian courts: A brief history. The Ojibwe News, p.1. Spicer, E.H. (2006). Cycles of conquest: The impact of Spain, Mexico and the United States on the Indians of the Southwest, 1533-1960 (12th ed.). Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press.

Taylor, G.D. (1980). The New Deal and American Indian tribalism: The administration of the Indian Reorganization Act, 1934-45. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.