Indian Influence & Contributions - Issues of Native Circle

During the 60's & 70's, human & civil rights activism was peaking.
African-American people were most visible in their fight for their
human and civil rights, therefore they are more often identified
with it. However, it is important to understand that during those
years, many 'minority' groups were rising up and making a stand
for their rights, including American Indian people. We have a very
long and complex history with the United States. Over the short
life of this country, our ancient Indigenous Nations have made 371
legal, binding, nation-to-nation Treaties with the U.S. Government.
370 of these official Treaties have been legally dishonored and
broken by the United States government. This does not mean that
these Treaties are no longer valid, it means the United States has
broken, and continues to break, its very own international laws.

During the 1960's, American Indian people as a collective whole
decided we had had enough of being mistreated, insulted, and
just plain kicked to the curb by the United States of America. For
decades, we had existed in this land we have called home for time
immemorial as invisible people. Mainstream Americans considered
us all dead and gone. Countless books were written about the
'Vanishing Peoples of North America'. Meanwhile, during all the
changes America was going through - the first light bulb, the first
telephone, the first automobile - we, the First People remained.
We were regarded by many as not much more than a dream of
the not-so-distant past. Most Americans had either forgotten or not
learned that we Indians were still here, or they had relegated us to
a dreamlike, romantisized fantasy character like Santa Claus or the
Easter Bunny. This is where the sports team names and mascots
began, during this time when we were considered as mere objects
for America's play and amusement. We were not regarded as real
people. We were seen as 'noble savages', 'fierce warriors' and/or
'stoic chiefs'. Thus many sports teams of the day, with this concept
that 'Indians' were not real people, but make-believe characters,
decided to give their teams 'Indian' names & mascots. Then came
the countless American products which were given 'Indian' names
and faces, such as: Land O Lakes Butter, Dakota Trucks, Navajo
Trucking Lines, Mohawk Carpets, Tecumseh Motors, Pontiac Cars,
Winnebago RVs, Seneca Sauerkraut, Big Chief Potatoes and many
more. All these trivial images of 'Indians' everywhere, yet the real
Indian people were barely acknowledged. The U.S. government
had developed many 'Acts' which were ultimately designed to
undermine and destroy our ancient, complex societies. This
continued government policy of 'Indian extermination' combined
with the trivialization of our beautiful cultures by mainstream
America culminated with the rising up of the Indian voice in the
1960's. We were sick and tired of the way America mistreated us,
abused and insulted us, and just plain ignored us as if we, the
original people of this land, did not even exist. A new voice rose
out of the silence of Indian country and gave many Americans
their first look at the real Indian face. That voice, was AIM....

The American Indian Movement was just that - a movement. It was
organized, politically empowered, and radical when necessary.
For generations, American Indian people had been made to be
ashamed of being Indian. AIM helped to change that. Indian pride
began to resurface. AIM was the spark that lit the fire, but it was
the fire in the hearts of Indian people that was truly at work during
the great changes of the 60's & 70's. No longer were we content to
sit by and watch our Treaties be dishonored. No longer would we
silently tolerate the trivialization of our race in American sports,
media, entertainment and industry. We were fed up, and so we
stood up, and spoke up. We continue to do so. There is way too
much history on the American Indian civil rights movement to be
able to include even a small portion of it adequately on this page.
The fight for civil and human rights for all minority groups in this
country continues today. May we all continue to learn.............