Blackfoot Indian Tribe - Case Study Example

Blackfoot Indian Tribe The history of the Blackfoot Indian tribe is not unlike the experience of other Indian tribes in that they were forced from their nomadic lifestyle into a more sedentary existence on a reservation with the advent of the white man on their land. Indian tribes were decimated by the foreign diseases such as smallpox brought by the European immigrants who also slaughtered the Native Americans so as to steal the lands they occupied. The Europeans went further in spreading misery amongst the Indians by eradicating what once were millions of buffalo that provided food, clothing, shelter and weapons for the tribal peoples. The Blackfoot tribes consisted of an association between several individual tribes such as the Pikuni, Kainai, South North Piegan and Siksika. The various tribes spoke the same language, intermarried, fought similar enemies and shared the same cultural traits. As a group, these tribes referred to each other as the Nizitapi, meaning the ‘Real People.’ The Blackfoot name originated from the first contacts with Europeans who derived it from the dyed black moccasins that members of the tribe wore. The range of the Blackfoot tribes was from southern Canada to Texas and consisted of what became the center of the United States. The bulk of the Blackfoot Nation was located in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Montana. During the 1800’s the Blackfoot tribes were “the most powerful of the Northern Plains Native groups” (Ewers, 2003). Collectively, they impeded European westward expansion to a certain extent. Fur-trappers were the first person’s of European descent to explore the Blackfoot Nation occupied regions of the west. During the late 1700’s, the trappers established trading posts which initiated business relationships with the natives population. This new relationship introduced tribal members to firearms which aided them while hunting or defending themselves. The association also brought smallpox which devastated the Blackfoot tribes’ population. The trading posts offered provisions outside of what was supplied in nature and enhanced the tribal economies which were previously tied directly to following the buffalo herds. Buffalo provided almost everything the Blackfoot needed including food, clothes, weapons and shelter until they were nearly hunted into extinction in the 1880’s. The Blackfoot used several methods to hunt buffalo prior to the introduction of the horse in the America’s. One method included surrounding a small group of buffalo, forcing them into an ever-tightening circle, then attacking or chasing them over a cliff. After the Blackfoot acquired horses, they mastered riding skills and hunted buffalo on horseback. Whether roasted, dried or boiled, buffalo meat was the primary food for the Blackfoot although moose, deer, elk and antelope was also part of their diet when available as were foods collected from the land such as grains and berries. Blackfoot tribes would not eat reptiles, bears or fish. “The Blackfoot avoid eating fish or using canoes because they believe that rivers and lakes hold special power through habitation of underwater people called the Suyitapis” (Ewers, 1988). Suyitapis were considered a source of power that permeated sacred symbols of the tribes. Despite the numerous rivers and streams containing large numbers of fish that run throughout Blackfoot territories and the fisheries found today on reservations, the tribal ancestors still have a disdain for eating or catching fish. Similar to other Indian Nations, the tipi was the Blackfoot tribe’s traditional housing which generally sheltered a family containing up to eight people. The design of the tipi allowed for it to be relatively easily disassembled, transported then reassembled. The well engineered tipi were a necessity given the nomadic, hunting lifestyle of the Blackfoot. The log cabin took the place of the tipi following the eradication of the buffalo herds in the late 1800’s. These cabins became symbolic of the sedentary existence Blackfoot tribes were forced into. Farming and ranching replaced hunting buffalo as the primary instrument of sustenance (Ewers, 1988). The males of Blackfoot tribes used mountain sheep or antelope skins for pants, shirts and moccasins. Elaborately decorated buffalo coats were worn during the winter. Porcupine quills and dyes made from plants often decorated these coats. Necklaces constructed from braided grass and bear teeth or claws were also commonly worn. Blackfoot males dressed in this way until about the turn of the nineteenth century when they began dressing more like the white men due to coercive techniques from missionaries and the vanquished buffalo herds. However, the Blackfoot men continued to wear moccasins because they were much more comfortable than white men’s shoes. The main activity for women of the tribe was tanning hides. Additionally, women were expected to butcher, cure and prepare the meat. They also made and built the tipis. Dancing was an important part of Blackfoot spiritual and social life. Traditional dances were usually conducted at summertime social functions usually reflecting the Blackfoot emphasis on war and hunting. Through some of the particular movements of the dances, males were honored for brave acts during battles or for their generosity displayed from the sharing of meat. The most important dance of the Blackfoot, the Sun Dance, was an annual event which involved males praying and fasting. The people of the Blackfoot tribes believed the spiritual world was an integral part in every aspect of their lives. They therefore viewed sickness as an evil presence incarnate which required the knowledge and healing powers present within a medicine man, the spiritual leader of a tribe. The medicine man attempted to cure illnesses by removing the evil presence within the afflicted person. They called upon a power of a supernatural nature to guide then in the healing process (Ewers, 1988). The entirety of the Blackfoot universe “was invested with a pervasive supernatural power that could be met with in the natural environment” (Farr, 1986). In recent times, the Blackfoot Indian Hospital, located in Browning, Montana, provides health care services to the people living on the Blackfoot Reservation. Browning is considered the home of the Blackfoot and borders Glacier National Park. The Blackfoot sought after powers of the supernatural believing that the land, animals, sky and their life were inherently intertwined. Dreams were important in a physical as well as spiritual nature. For example, the power of an animal or element in nature could be bequeathed to a person by way of a dream. If an animal appeared in the dream, it usually took the form of a person and provided information to the recipient regarding the powers it was bestowing and the methods by which to use them. Tangible items such as songs, familiar objects and certain dances would unlock the spiritual powers. The Sun Dance is an illustration of a dream-induced ceremony. The mid-summer performance was a sacred observance giving gratitude for the sun. Missionaries attempted to stifle the Sun Dance but the tradition endured and has become the most important ceremony in the Blackfoot Nation (Farr, 1986). In an attempt to socialize the Blackfoot tribes, they were introduced to ‘white man’ education in the late 1800’s when the tribes were at their lowest emotional, spiritual and physical point as their lands and food source had recently been taken. In addition, they were not acclimated to farming or working for someone else. The white man’s culture was very different and those in the Blackfoot, as well as other Indian tribes, did not integrate well. This is a prevalent issue arguably still present for inhabitants of reservations today. The first educational facilities on the Blackfoot Reservation was a Catholic boarding school, the Holy Family Mission. Another boarding school sponsored by the U.S. government was built later which was followed by day schools. “These schools strongly focused on assimilating Blackfoot students into American society, forbidding the practice of traditional customs, including native language use” (Ewers, 1988). During the 1930’s, the government provided residents of the Blackfoot Reservation with grants for vocational and college education. Within 20 years of this program’s inception, more than Blackfoot possessed college degrees. The Blackfoot lost much of its land due to treaties signed with the government who initiated these treaties in an effort to protect settlers and acquire lands. The tribes were well known for their aggressive tenacity directed at those headed west including those planning to man trading posts within their territory. The agreements and treaties led to the Blackfoot relinquishing a majority of their previously held territories. The Blackfoot signed the Lame Bull’s Treaty 1855. This first agreement with the government resulted in the secession of a majority of the 26 million acres Blackfoot tribes occupied within the borders of the U.S. Another treaty signed in 1868 further reduced Blackfoot lands in the south of the territory. The great loss of lands resulted from agreements made by tribal elders but not all members of the tribes were as gracious. Many resisted the plundering of their ancestral territory and reacted violently toward settlers. Settlements continued to expand throughout former Blackfoot territories which instigated further resistance. The U.S. Cavalry retaliated against the Blackfoot by indiscriminately slaughtering 173 tribal members including women and children who were camped on the Marias River in 1870 (Grinnell, 1892). This deplorable act was hardly an isolated incident. Many other such occurrences involving the massacre of innocent Indians by the Cavalry were recorded. Another example was the massacre of a Cheyenne encampment on the Washita River in Oklahoma which was, at the time, located within Indian territory. In 1874, an Act defined the Great Northern Reservation which partially comprised territory allocated to the Blackfoot tribes in the 1855 Treaty. However, the government relocated the reservation’s southern border 200 miles to the north. This opened additional territory to settlers but no compensation was paid to the tribe. The growth of new settlers in the area necessitated the need for more lands. The government succumbed to increasing pressures from ranchers and negotiated an additional treaty with some tribal leaders in 1887. These negotiations were conducted in winter, a time when most Blackfoot representatives could not be present. A slight majority of the Blackfoot leadership accepted an agreement that divided the Reservation and relinquished all except 45 square miles within the U.S. border. The government paid the tribes $1,250,000 for 17 million acres of Blackfoot territory. Another cession of land was by order of a 1895 Act which condensed the reservation by an additional 800,000 acres. The final loss of territory for the Blackfoot occurred in 1912 when the government bought land that is now Glacier National Park and the Lewis and Clark Forest for the price of $1.5 million. As part of this action, the government partitioned one and a half million acres to 2500 Blackfoot which left 800,000 acres open for settlement to whites (Samek, 1987). The Blackfoot, as did other Indian tribes, thought of the land as sacred. The continual loss of territory throughout the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries was much more than a loss of property. It was the loss of the Blackfoot spiritual realm which, added to the slaughter of the tribal peoples and buffalo, led to strong feelings of resentment toward the European invaders, a sentiment that is prevalent among those descendents living on the reservations today. These feelings are partially responsible for the Indians of today resisting the idea of conforming to the white culture which has not been beneficial either financially or socially for Indians in general. Those living on reservations experience higher unemployment rates and survive on much smaller incomes than average. Though statistics prove the economic calamity that Indians have suffered from the late 1800’s to today, one would only have to visit a reservation to be convinced of the impoverished circumstances. Another perpetual problem among people living on reservations is alcoholism. The depressive life conditions combined with lamenting for times past could be considered justification enough for Indians to drink as a tonic to dull their misery. Those of Indian descent have another handicap regarding alcohol consumption. Indians were introduced to alcohol by the European descendents who, unlike tribal peoples, had built-up a tolerance for the effects. Indians were more susceptible to drunkenness and the related problems caused by alcohol. In addition some would argue that those of Indian descent are thus physiologically more prone to alcoholism. Even today in the state of Oklahoma, which has a large Indian population, only beer that contains half the alcohol content of regular beer is sold in locations other than liquor stores. Three Blackfoot reservations are located in Canada, one in the U.S. In the late 1980’s, it has been estimated that a total of 15,000 Blackfoot lived on Canadian reservations, 10,000 on the U.S. reservation. (Ewers, 1988). There exists today the Blackfoot Tribal Business Council, a governmental body representing the active citizens of the U.S. Blackfoot Reservation. The Blackfoot Nation which consists of people living on the reservation is recognized by the U.S. government through laws, executive orders, treaties and agreements as a sovereign nation unto itself. Many reservation residents are involved in the oil and natural gas or farming industry and continue to honor traditional cultural ideals which include environmental concerns in the pursuit of their livelihood (McFee, 1972). The Blackfoot were never compensated for more than 50 percent of the territory ceded to the U.S. about a century ago. Even in recent times, the Blackfoot claim to have been inadequately compensated for their dealing with the U.S. government. Presently the Blackfoot Nation is involved in a legal battle that has lasted for more than a decade. They claim the government owes $137 billion in royalties resulting from overdue lease payments for timber, grazing and oil rights (Ryter, 2005). Though the Blackfoot Nation still exists, both the number of individuals and range of territory they once dominated have been greatly reduced from what was a mighty collection of tribal peoples. The once nomadic tribes, which had roamed the plains for thousands of years, were forced from their lands and into a sedentary way of life to which they have yet to adapt. The Blackfoot were not farmers, had little knowledge of tools, did not speak English and were not acquainted with the way of life in permanent housing or of white man laws and customs. It is little wonder they historically have struggled to become acclimated in a new culture, a culture that could not be more different than the natural environment in which their ancestors thrived. Works Cited Ewers, John Canfield. Indian Life on the Upper Missouri. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988. Ewers, John Canfield. The Blackfeet Raiders on the Northwestern Plains. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2003. Farr, William E. Reservation Blackfeet 1882-1945. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 1986. Grinnell, George Bird. Blackfoot Lodge Tales: The Story of a Prairie People. New York: Scribner’s, 1892. McFee, Malcolm. Modern Blackfeet: Montanans on a Reservation. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1972. Ryter, Jon Christian. “Government Betrays the Indians Again.” News with Views. (September 18, 2005). November 29, 2006 Samek, Hanna. The Blackfoot Confederacy, 1880-1920: A Comparative Study of Canadian and U.S. Indian Policy. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1987. Read More