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If you want to know why American Indians have the highest rates of poverty of any racial group, why suicide is the leading cause of death among Indian men, why native women are two and a half times more likely to be raped than the national average and why gang violence affects American Indian youth more than any other group, do not look to history. There is no doubt that white settlers devastated Indian communities in the 19th, and early 20th centuries. But it is our policies today-denying Indians ownership of their land, refusing them access to the free market and failing to provide the police and legal protections due to them as American citizens-that have turned reservations into small third-world countries in the middle of the richest and freest nation on earth.
The tragedy of our Indian policies demands reexamination immediately-not only because they make the lives of millions of American citizens harder and more dangerous-but also because they represent a microcosm of everything that has gone wrong with modern liberalism. They are the result of decades of politicians and bureaucrats showering a victimized people with money and cultural sensitivity instead of what they truly need-the education, the legal protections and the autonomy to improve their own situation.
If we are really ready to have a conversation about American Indians, it is time to stop bickering about the names of football teams and institute real reforms that will bring to an end this ongoing national shame.
About the author
Naomi Schaefer Riley is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, focusing on issues of child welfare, as well as a senior fellow at the Independent Women's Forum. A former
New York Post columnist and a former
Wall Street Journaleditor and writer, she is the author of several books on education, religion and family.
Ms. Riley's writings have appeared in the
Wall Street Journal, the
New York Times, the
Boston Globe, the
LA Times, and the
Washington Post, among other publications. She appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business and CNBC. She has also appeared on
Q&A with Brian Lamb as well as the
Today Show.
She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with degrees in English and Government. She lives in the suburbs of New York City with her husband, Jason, and their three children.
Summary
If you want to know why American Indians have the highest rates of poverty of any racial group, why suicide is the leading cause of death among Indian men, why native women are two and a half times more likely to be raped than the national average and why gang violence affects American Indian youth more than any other group, do not look to history. There is no doubt that white settlers devastated Indian communities in the 19th, and early 20th centuries. But it is our policies todaydenying Indians ownership of their land, refusing them access to the free market and failing to provide the police and legal protections due to them as American citizensthat have turned reservations into small third-world countries in the middle of the richest and freest nation on earth.
The tragedy of our Indian policies demands reexamination immediatelynot only because they make the lives of millions of American citizens harder and more dangerousbut also because they represent a microcosm of everything that has gone wrong with modern liberalism. They are the result of decades of politicians and bureaucrats showering a victimized people with money and cultural sensitivity instead of what they truly needthe education, the legal protections and the autonomy to improve their own situation.
If we are really ready to have a conversation about American Indians, it is time to stop bickering about the names of football teams and institute real reforms that will bring to an end this ongoing national shame.
