Evening star., 1939-12-05


Commission Tells Of
Governments Efforts
To Help Tribesmen
John Collier, commissioner Of In
dian affairs. Interior Department,
spoke on Americas Handling OF
It's Indigenous Indian Minority" last
night in the National Radio Forum,
arranged by The Star and broadcast
over q Nationwide network Of the
National Broadcasting Co. The text
OF his address follows:
In q world strained by wars and
fear Of wars 1t is a privilege and
challenge to be an American and
to view from our vantage point Of
peace and progress q few Of the
facts upon which our growth and
our hope Of growth are founded.
Living as we do in one Of the
greatest democracies Of the world,
1t is proper from time to time to
study and to evaluate some Of the
elements that constitute democracy
in the abstract and to ask ourselves
how well in practice we have up
held the principles set down by the
founding fathers.
Because one of the basic elements
in q true democracy is the treat
ment accorded to minorities, I think
it is fitting that we consider the
manner in which the Government
Of the United States has handled
its indigenous Indian minority.
From the standpoint Of numbers,
the native population is by no
means great, for In all the 4S States
and Alaska there are living today no
more than 100000 Indians and Es-
kimos and Aleuts. But from the
standpoint Of our national honor,
our self-respect and the standpoint
Of our national future, the record
Of our treatment of Indians is vastly
more important than mere numbers
indicate.
Almost every one knows that from
the beginning Of time minorities
have been prosecuted. Many Of our
ancestors fed to the New World to
escape just such persecution.
We know, too, that in many ages
and In many lands, strong groups
Of men have in one way and another
overcome these weaker groups, who
have continued to struggle and to
die for the freedom that was denied
them. We know also, or at least
some Of us know, that these minori-
ties have sometimes by a turn of
fate become majorities and unhappi-
~ have become oppressors, Just As
they were once oppressed.
Look at the Record.
These things were we'll known to
the founding fathers of our country,
who in their wisdom sought to create
q form of government that would
provide for all peoples that freedom
OF thought, of speech, of culture,
politics, religion and race that has
in so many places in so many ages
been denied.
Let us see how their vision insofar
as our native Indians are concerned,
has come down to us in practice.
Or, in different words, let's take a
look at the record.
We find In December, 1899, that
the Indians, often viewed as q dying
race, are actually increasing in num-
bers and at a rate faster than any
other population group in the coun-
tW. We find the Indian is being
educated in excellent schools, some
times Indian schools and sometimes
institutions In which Indians and
whites are pupils.
Indians live in all the 4S States
and have extensive land holdings In
~ States. Their lands, though
greatly shrunken during the last 100
years, still amount to more than
$4,000 900 acres, and under a sympa-
thetic Government are now slowly
increasing. Indians are citizens of
the United States, with all the
rights Of citizenship. On their reser-
vations they enjoy, by reason of new
laws and administrative actions, q
high degree OF self-government.
They are being employed increas-
ingly In their own Indian Service, in
other Government agencies and,
through Federal employment coun-
sci, In work outside the Government.
More than half Of all the regular
Indian Service employees are Indians
and the percentage is growing
rapidly. Indian arts and crafts are
being stimulated for economic, as
well as cultural. development. In
dian health, housing, education,
irrigation and soil conservation are
all being improved.
Better, perhaps, than any of
these things, but yet part of the
whole program, is the increasingly
successful Government effort to
make the Indian a self-supporting
member of his community.
Attack on Minority.
Before telling in detail the things
that have been won by and for the
American Indian minority, I want
to read something of a different
sort. The words that follow are
those of a member of a racial
minority whose lands had been over
run by a powerful and alien ma
jority. AS survivor he tells what
he witnessed in one violent episode
Of this domination. From an official
document containing testimony of
the witnesses, quote:
'"The men were separated from
the women. and they were sur
rounded by the soldiers. Then came
next the village, and that was en-
tirely surrounded by THE soldiers
also. When the firing began, of
course. the people who were stand
ing Immediately around the young
man who fired the first shot were
killed right together, and then they
turned their guns upon the women
who were standing there under a
flag Of truce and, of course, as
soon as they were fired upon they
dAA d.