In “Indigenous Women, Climate Change Impacts, and Collective Action,” Kyle Whyte targets the idea that the indigenous women’s roles in their communities provide them with responsibilities and motivate them to pursue leadership positions. This concept is important in a way that it frames their actual and potential experiences of climate change impacts. Whyte explains that climate-induced variations are caused by “political orders rooted in colonialism, industrialization, imperialism, and globalization to which many indigenous people are subject.” (p. 604) Because society holds indigenous women in a certain position which labels their cultural understandings as responsibilities to the earth’s living, nonliving, and spiritual beings and, more …show more content…
She claims these violations occurred due to the “sexist and racist views of federal agencies, remnants of eugenics, population-control measures, and family-planning programs that drew large subsidies from the federal government.” (p. 72) The indigenous women victimized by these policies are oppressed by a specific ultimatum which states they must refrain from reproducing or else they will lose their health care benefits and financial support from the federal government. In addition, the federal government began to prey on those who were mentally ill, poor, criminal, retarded, or simply unsuccessful, deeming them socially, as well as biologically inferior. The concept of eugenics followed up on this governmental belief, assuming that by controlling minorities and “their breeding practices” (p.74) they could improve society. Due to this unethical American mentality, Native Americans lost their independence, experienced dramatic population losses, and were forced to depend on government subsidies and health care to survive. (p. 77) Because the government maintains the responsibility of providing services and allocations for the Indian women, they would prefer to limit that number rather than increase it. Ralston-Lewis offers solutions pertinent to the consent of the indigenous women, specifically Indian women who are considered to have high fertility rates, such as restating the rules and guidelines of medical contracts, simplifying the medical jargon for those whose first language is not English, enforcing their sobriety during the signing of these contracts, and eschewing coercion, fraud, and threats by the medical
Her book focuses on the myriads of issues and struggles that Indigenous men and women have faced and will continue to face because of colonialism. During her speech, Palmater addressed the grave effects of the cultural assimilation that permeated in Indigenous communities, particularly the Indian Residential School System and the Indian Act, which has been extensively discussed in both lectures and readings. Such policies were created by European settlers to institutionalize colonialism and maintain the social and cultural hierarchy that established Aboriginals as the inferior group. Palmater also discussed that according to news reports, an Aboriginal baby from Manitoba is taken away every single day by the government and is put in social care (CTVNews.ca Staff, 2015). This echoes Andrea Smith’s argument in “Heteropatriarchy and the Three Pillars of White Supremacy: Rethinking Women of Color Organizing” that colonialism continues to affect Aboriginals through genocide (2006, p. 68). Although such actions by the government are not physical acts of genocide, where 90% of Aboriginal population was annihilated, it is this modern day cultural assimilation that succeeded the Indigenous Residential School System and the Indian Act embodies colonialism and genocide (Larkin, November 4,
Another damaging power play between Native women and their oppressors is the issue of land claims.(cite?) Sacred ancestral land faces “desecration by the federal government and commercial interests” (page 225). Such desecration includes healers like Flora Jones being unable to collect medicine from the land (page 225). By blocking healers
Though the event occurred almost twenty-one years ago, the Rwandan genocide of 1994 has prompted much discussion about what truly caused the deaths of an estimated 800,000 civilians. Scott Straus, a political scientist and author of The Order of Genocide: Race, Power, and War in Rwanda, makes the claim that it is very difficult to precisely identify what began the genocide in Rwanda for a number of reasons, and also comments that many of the beliefs in regards to the causes and evolution of genocide in Rwanda are incomplete. In his book, Straus focuses on three main aspects: to look closely at the local dynamics of the genocide, to produce an assessment of explanations, and finally to develop a theory that would explain the genocide in Rwanda.
The history of Indian Child Welfare Act derived from the need to address the problems with the removal of Indian children from their communities. Native American tribes identified the problem of Native American children being raised by non-native families when there were alarming numbers of children being removed from their h...
In this proposal our team seeks to explore the injustices within the Indian Act. To achieve this our proposed research will examine the target population being the aboriginal woman. The paper will further explore the oppressions faced by the aboriginal women within the Indian Act. In conclusion, this proposal will sum up the negative impact that the Indian Act had on aboriginal women and how it continues to oppress this population within the Canadian National discourse.
Two twin girls were in the foster care of a woman in North Dakota from the ages of 9 mo. to 3 years-old. When they turned three, the woman attempted to adopt them, but the ICWA prevented her from doing so. The girls were sent to live with their grandfather at a reservation. His wife later threw one of the girls down a ditch, killing her, and it was later discovered that she had a history of abusing her own kids. (Will “Kids”). The act allows tribes to stop adoptions and remove kids from homes for no other reason than the fact that they have Native-American blood. They’re taken away from loving homes only to be hurt. 5-year-old Declan Stewart was removed from his mother’s home after his skull was fractured and he was sexually abused by his mother’s boyfriend. The Cherokee Nation objected the removal and he was sent back to live with his mother; he was beaten to death a month later. This young, little boy was being abused and justly taken from his mother’s custody because his safety was in danger. The Cherokee Nation didn’t want to lose a member so they objected, not taking into consideration the child’s well-being. Not even a month later the boy was beaten to death. “They were victims of the Indian Child Welfare Act which as constituted and applied
Many Indigenous women are craving for a change in our society and it is time for a change. The women being interviewed came up with a few statements that they would like to see changes too. Firstly, women would love to see the return of Indigenous women’s positions in Indigenous societies. Regarding the equality of women and men. In Indigenous cultural women were viewed as life-givers and care givers of life. This gave women a great reasonability of the children and the future generations. “Women figured centrally in almost all Aboriginal creation legends. In Ojibway and Cree legends, it was a woman who came to earth through a hole in the sky to care for the earth.” Women were treated as an essential part of life, unlike how they felt after the Indian Act. Secondly, Indigenous women would like to set differences aside and work together with other races in making our society much more bearable for women. Thirdly, they want to set focus in Indigenous youth and creating a better education and guidance program for those who are new to urban areas. Granted, they are the next
Genocide: The deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular group or nationality. When people think of this forbidding word, their mind immediately flashes to images of concentration camps and Adolf Hitler’s army raising their arms, saluting to swastikas used during the Holocaust in WWII. But what people don’t realize is that genocide is not such a rarity. Thousands, even millions of civilians die each time genocide strikes. Genocides have been committed since the beginning of humanity, but three massacres since Hitler’s reign left the world shocked again at its own cruelty.
The biggest war the world has ever seen was World War II. What was one factor that led to such a quick escalation? Genocide. Over 45 million people were murdered during this tragic time. The question is: was it the allies responsibility to intervene? The answer: No. The Global Community has no responsibility to intervene in states committing genocide.
As a result, identity plays a role in articulating. According to Smith, “racism can be seen as a form of sexual violence against indigenous peoples” (Smith 2005, 3). The faith of the Native American’s empire lies in the hands of the U.S. Congress. For that reason, “indigenous people do not have full authority to decide because, under U.S. law […], it is the U.S. Congress that has full ‘plenary power’ to decide the fate of indigenous peoples and lands” (Smith 2005, 60). This explains the reason for their suffrage, and also the reason why they as portrayed as a target for sexual violence. Native American organizations have continued to demand the U. S. to disburse their land as compensation, due to its history of racial oppression. For this purpose, “one of the reason for tensions between Native and main stream environmentalists’ use of rhetoric – usually concern for the well-being of the earth – that obfuscates colonialism and racism” (Smith 2005, 62). Which explains why, “many women and men of color do not want to have any dealings with white people” (Anzaldúa 1987, 107). As Smith explains, reparations will only be effective if we “continue the legacy of these pioneers, remembering that white supremacy is a global problem that
The United States Government was founded on the basis that it would protect the rights and liberties of every American citizen. The Equal Protection Clause, a part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, provides that “no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws”. Yet for hundreds of years, the US government and society have distressed the Native American people through broken treaties, removal policies, and attempts of assimilation. From the Trail of Tears in the 1830s to the Termination Policy in 1953, the continued oppression of American Indian communities produced an atmosphere of heightened tension and gave the native peoples a reason to fight back. In 1968, Clyde Bellecourt, Dennis Banks, and Russell Means founded the American Indian Movement to address issues concerning the Native American community and tackle the situation and position of Native Americans in society. Over the next few decades, the movement led to a series of radical protests, which were designed to raise awareness to the American Indians’ issues and to pressure the federal government to act on their behalf. After all of the unfair and unjust policies enacted by the U.S. government and society, all of the American Indian Movement’s actions can be justified as legitimate reactions to the United States’ democratic society that had promised to respect and protect their people and had failed to do so.
The analysis of tribal and federal law is complex, confusing, and does not offer a “catch-all” answer to the issues at hand. To reiterate my research questions from the beginning, I hope by discussion and critical thought, we are able to come up with practical and reasonable solutions to our problems. “How can we reduce the instances of sexual violence and streamline prosecution, creating a safe and supportive environment for American Indian women?” My question probes at an area that seems to be lacking in the research. What are some of the possible explanations to the high rates of sex crimes on reservations and how can we create changes to lower these rates?
The United States needs to look more into the perspectives of other genocides in the past. The past genocides will make people understand why genocides needs put to an end and never happens again. There were many events that made people understand to stop genocides and to prevent them. America can look back on the the Holocaust, end Japanese Aggression in 1937, and how the U.S. should treat genocides in the future more better. The United States should be responsible for stopping future genocide
Genocide is the intentional killing of groups with the purpose of eliminating the existence of the group. The term "genocide" was created in 1944 to describe the systematic elimination of Jews under the Nazi regime. The word combines the Greek suffix, "geno-", meaning race, and "-cide", meaning "killing". According to Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide, genocide refers to the following acts that are meant to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group by causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group (directly or through actions causing death), deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group (e.g. forced sterilization), or forcibly transferring children (persons under the age of 14 years) of the group to another group. Article III of the convention defines "genocide, the conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, attempt to commit genocide, and complicity in genocide" as punishable acts. The United Nations General Assembly adopted the he Genocide Convention on 9 December 1948, and the Convention was commenced on 12 January 1951. The Genocide Convention has been ratified by over 130 nations and over 70 nations have made provisions for the punishment of genocide in domestic criminal law. Article 6 of the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court includes the content of Article II of the Genocide Convention as a crime. (http://www.genocidewatch.org/genocide/whatisit.html)
In Gender and Climate Change, Nagel brings up “the incremental, almost invisible nature of delayed destruction” or what one researcher calls “slow violence” (103). It is interesting that the word “invisible” has been used by feminists and scholars to describe both gendered care work and the slow violence of climate change. I would argue that this is indicative of how interrelated the two topics are, as discussed above. If women’s issues are largely ignored and deemed unimportant by society, it is no wonder that climate change, in many ways a women’s issue, also so often goes unnoticed. Additionally, in Neoliberalism, Globalization, and the International Division of Care, Joya Misra and Sabine N. Merz bring up how work done by immigrant workers “remains invisible to the outside world” (114). Therefore, I think it would be interesting to look into how nationality and gender intersect in an analysis of the unequal effects of climate change, for it is at the intersection of those things that largely go unseen by the majority of society that true understanding of inequality and difference