Chapter 8American Indians
Symbol – American Indian Woman
Symbol – American Indian Man
SAA 8.2 What do you know about American Indians?1. Sports team mascots and logos pay
tribute to their place in history2. All who enroll get a monthly check from
the government3. Population is decreasing rapidly4. Have been on continent nearly 5,000
years5. Were great mathematicians &
architects
What do you know (cont)?6. U.S. always accorded Indian
nations the rights of independent nations
7. Tribal system was run by warrior-chiefs
8. Basic worldview: all things in natural world are connected
9. Planning tends to be short-range and in-the-moment
10. Key value: maintaining lifelong relationships
Myths & StereotypesMyth #1. Vanishing relics of the past—
redskin savages, warriors, squaws Expanding population. Younger, faster-growing than total American
population terms offensive to most American Indians perpetuate media stereotypes
Myth #2. Sports-team mascots & logos honor American Indians’ place in history
Mock and trivialize American Indian culture. Not accurate representations of American Indians
Myths & Stereotypes
Myth #3. Indian theme programs pay homage to American Indian traditions
Who controls how a culture is displayed and perceived?
Distilling a complex culture into superficial images
Encouraging stereotypes
Myth #4: Lazy and won’t work
Myth #5: An expert on Indian lore
American Indian Demographics
Mainland population - almost 1 percent Mainland and Alaskan - 1.5 percent
One of youngest ethnic groups
Household income= $32,100 All Americans = $42,200 Poverty rate = 26% All Americans = 10%
Number of Tribes = 558 Largest tribes: Cherokee and Navajo
States where they live: all states
Most populous: California Oklahoma Arizona
% of Population 15% (628,000) 10% (392,000) 7% (293,000)
American Indian Worldview Nature: Live in harmony, preserve human-nature balance
Who We Are: A stable people, build homes, identify with land
Role of Tradition: Conservative, remember the past
Knowledge is holistic: Focus on the whole first, parts secondweb of life means all is connected, related
Truth is relative: Many possible truths, grounded in experience, which evolves, is multi-dimensional
Holistic Worldview - Experience and relate to a living universeweb of life where humans must participate
Time: Multi-focus, nature’s cycles
American Indian Values Education: For wisdom in the “why” of things
Planning: Consider decision’s impact on 7th generation Future, present equally important & greater than past
Expressing Self: Doing first, then becoming, then being
Relationships: Collectivist sharing, helping relatives comes firstlifelong relationships are common
Use of Space - People more important than privacy Borrow and lend things often and easily
American Indian Contributions
Architecture unexcelled Astronomy - calendar extremely accurate Math - used the zero before Arabs, Europeans Languages 500 to 1,000 spoken in No. America
more than in all of “Old World” Agriculture – world’s greatest farmers, pharmacists
Their plants now feed much of world, allowed population expansion
Medical system - far superior to European systemsNatural pharmaceuticals, sanitation, surgery, otherMade possible many modern medicines, drugs
Political system - primary model for the U.S. democratic political system in turn influenced U.N. and the world
30,000 years of living in the Americas
Skill Builder Cases8.1. To Cut or Not to Cut8.2 Matt, a Chippewa Clerk
Teams Select a reporter (rotate this
over time) Report: write names of team
members Take notes Report highlights to class Turn in notes to professor –
don’t put in stack of homework