Identity

“Identity is created by the development of the ‘self’ (our self concept), in spurts, through communications over a long period of time” (Martin, & Nakayama, 2018). A person has multiple identities in their ‘self’ such as age identity, gender identity, sexual identity, racial identity, ethnic identity, physical ability identity, religious identity, class identity, national identity, regional identity, and personal identity. A person has multiple identities because everyone belongs to various groups, and each identity comes into play at different times (Martin & Nakayama, 2018).

One major influence on a Native American’s cultural identity is the blood quantum. In order to be considered a citizen of a tribe, one must contain a certain amount of “Indian Blood” in their system. The “Indian Blood” amount is determined by how many Native ancestors a person has. For example, a person with a fully Native parent, and a non-Native parent, would be considered half Native. The federal government issues a “certified degree of Indian blood” which is similar to an I.D. card (Chow, 2018). This influences the racial identity of Native Americans because the blood quantum “emerged as a way to measure “Indian-ness” through a construct of race. So that over time, Indians would literally breed themselves out and rid the federal government of their legal duties to uphold treaty obligations” (Chow, 2018).

Another influence on Native American’s identity are the reservations, which over one million Native Americans still reside today. The Native Americans were removed from their land and forced to live on reservations with qualities that are comparable to third world countries. The reservations were meant to be prisons, the Native Americans were supposed to move to the reservations to disappear and eventually die (Marlot, 2013). “Not only had tribes lost their native lands, but it was almost impossible to maintain their culture and traditions inside a confined area” (A&E Television Networks LLC, 2018).  The places in which the government established reservations were far from fertile land, water supply, and population centers which is essentially forcing them to live in isolation (Running Strong for the American Indian Youth, 2018). This affects their regional identity. A Native American man who experienced being forced from his land said, “Our identity as Native people – my identity as a native person – is tied intimately to the land” (Eagles, 2011).

When it comes to their class identity, the Native American race is the poorest of all races. 27% of Native Americans live in poverty according to the U.S. Census Bureau which does not include residents on reservations. “Native Americans have the lowest employment rate of any racial or ethnic group in the United States” (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012). Native American students were the only population of students without improvements to their math and reading scores between 2005 and 2011, and less than 50% of Native American teens graduate high school (Running Strong for the American Indian Youth, 2018).

The article “A Fight Over Identity: Native American Sports Mascots” examines both sides of the argument about Native American sports mascots. “Each side of the dispute makes a passionate claim to an identity, which is why these debates are often highly contentious and intractable” (Young, 2018). The opposing side argues that the mascots promote harsh stereotypes which is offensive to all of the Native American population, but especially for the students of Native American descent. It creates an unwelcome and hostile learning environment and which directly results in low self esteem (Young, 2018). The argument in favor of the Native American mascot is that it generates collective identity. “Sports is one of the most significant shapers of collective or group identity in the contemporary world” (Young, 2018). Another argument in favor of the mascot is that they do not view the Native mascot to be racist. Young concludes by acknowledging that as long as this is an issue of identity for both sides, the issue is likely to stay controversial.