Howard McNear and Native American identity in the United States: Difference between pages

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[[Image:Amerikanska folk, Nordisk familjebok.jpg|thumb|250 px|right|In the United States, there are over 560 federally recognized tribes, and over 1.8 million Native Americans.]]
[[Image:Gunsmoke52.jpg|right|350px|thumb|Howard McNear (top right) in 1952 with ''Gunsmoke'' cast members (clockwise) Parley Baer, Georgia Ellis and William Conrad]]
'''Native American identity in the United States''' is an issue which seeks to define "[[Native American]]" or "(American) Indian" both for people who consider themselves Native American and for people who do not. An [[Identity (social science)|identity]] is sought which will provide for a stable definition for legal, social, and personal purposes. There are a number of different factors which have been used to define "Indianness," and the source and potential use of the definition play a role in what definition is used. Facets which characterize "Indianness" include [[culture]], [[society]], [[genes]]/[[biology]], [[law]], and [[self-identity]].<ref>Garroutte (2003), Paredes (1995)</ref> An important question is whether the definition should be dynamic and changeable across time and situation, or whether it is possible to define "Indianness" in a static way.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref> The dynamic definitions may be based in how Indians adapt and adjust to dominant society, which may be called an "oppositional process" by which the boundaries between Indians and the dominant groups are maintained. Another reason for dynamic definitions is the process of "[[ethnogenesis]]," which is the process by which the ethnic identity of the group is developed and renewed as social organizations and cultures evolve.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref> The question of identity, especially [[Indigenous peoples|aboriginal]] identity is common in many societies worldwide.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref>
'''Howard T. McNear''' ([[January 27]], [[1905]] &ndash; [[January 3]], [[1969]]) was an [[United States|American]] film, television and radio character actor.
 
The future of their identity is extremely important to [[Native American]]s. Activist [[Russell Means]] bemoans the crumbling Indian way of life, the loss of traditions, languages, and sacred places. He remarks that there may soon be no more Native Americans, only "Native American-Americans, like [[Polish-American]]s and [[Italian American]]s." As the number of Indians has grown (ten times as many today as in 1890), the number who carry on tribal traditions shrinks (one fifth as many as in 1890): "we might speak our language, we might look like Indians and sound like Indians, but we won’t be Indians."<ref>Peroff (1997) p492</ref>
McNear was born in [[Los Angeles, California]] to Luzetta M. Spencer and Franklin E. McNear.<ref>http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~battle/celeb/mcnear.htm</ref> He died in the [[San Fernando Valley]] from the effects of a stroke.
 
==Definitions==
He was best known for his performance as [[Floyd Lawson]] on ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]''. The role was played through the years to adapt to his initial stroke. In early episodes, he is seen standing and working in his barber shop. After he was unable to walk, he was always seen sitting in his barber chair when the action took place in his shop.
 
===Blood quantum===
In an episode of the American sitcom, [[Leave It to Beaver]], Howard McNear made one appearance as a barber named Andy, a character practically the same as Floyd.
{{main|Blood quantum}}
A common source of definition for an individual being Indian is based on their blood quantum (often one-fourth) or documented Indian heritage. Almost two thirds of all Indian federally recognized Indian tribes in the United States require a certain blood quantum for membership.<ref>Garroutte (2003) p16</ref> Indian heritage is a requirement for membership in most American Indian Tribes.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref> The [[Indian Reorganization Act]] of 1934 used three criteria: tribal membership, ancestral descent, and blood quantum (one half). This was very influential in using blood quantum to restrict the definition of Indian.<ref>Brownell (2001) p284</ref> The use of blood quantum is problematic as Indians [[interracial marriage|interracially marry]] at a higher rater than any other [[demography of the United States|United States ethnic or racial category]], which ultimately could lead to absorption into the rest of American society.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487 gives the rate of interracial marriage for Native Americans as 75%, whites as 5% and blacks as 8%</ref>
 
===Traditional===
He also portrayed Doc Charles Adams on CBS Radio's ''[[Gunsmoke]]'' (1952-1961) as well as International Secret Police ace operator Clint Barlow in the 1938-1940 radio serial ''Speed Gibson of the International Secret Police''.
[[Image:teepee-logcabin.jpg|thumb|Reservation life has often been a blend of the traditional and the contemporary. In 1877, this Lakota family living at South Dakota's Rose Bud Agency had both teepees and log cabins.]]
Traditional definitions of "Indianness" are also important. There is a sense of "peoplehood" which links Indianness to sacred traditions, places, and shared history as indigenous people.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref> This definition transcends academic and legal terminology.<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref> Language is also seen as an important part of identity, and learning [[Indigenous languages of the Americas|Native languages]], especially for youth in a community, is an important part in tribal survival.<ref>Etheridge (2007)</ref>
 
Some Indian artists find traditional definitions especially important. [[Crow Nation|Crow]] poet [[Henry Real Bird]] offers his own definition, "An Indian is one who offers tobacco to the ground, feeds the water, and prays to the four winds in his own language," Pulitzer Prize winning [[Kiowa]] author [[N. Scott Momaday]] gives a definition that is less supernatural but still based in the traditions and experience of a person and their family, "An Indian is someone who thinks of themselves as an Indian. But that's not so easy to do and one has to earn the entitlement somehow. You have to have a certain experience of the world in order to formulate this idea. I consider myself an Indian; I've had the experience of an Indian. I know how my father saw the world, and his father before him."<ref>Bordewich (1996) p67</ref>
On his passing in 1969, Howard McNear was interred in the [[Los Angeles National Cemetery]], a former [[U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Veterans Administration]] cemetery in Los Angeles.
 
====Residence on tribal lands====
==Filmography==
[[Image:Bia-map-indian-reservations-usa.png|left|thumb|300px|BIA map of reservations in the United States]]
{{listdev}}
Related to the remembrance and practice of traditions is the residence on tribal lands and [[Indian reservation]]s. Peroff (2002) emphasizes the role proximity to other Native Americans (and ultimately proximity to tribal lands) plays in ones identity as a Native American.<ref>Peroff (2002) uses complexity theory methods to model the maintenance of traditions and self-identity based on proximity</ref>
*''[[The Fortune Cookie]]'' (1966) .... Mr. Cimoli
 
*''[[Love and Kisses (film)|Love and Kisses]]'' (1965) .... Mr. Frisby
===Unknown===
*''[[My Blood Runs Cold]]'' (1965) .... Henry
American Indians were perhaps clearly identifiable at the turn of the 20th century, but today the concept is contested. Malcolm Margolin, co-editor of News From Native California muses, "I don’t know what an Indian is... [but] Some people are clearly Indian, and some are clearly not."<ref>Peroff (1997) p489 quoting Fost (1991) p. 28</ref>
*''[[Kiss Me, Stupid]]'' (1964) .... Mr. Pettibone
 
*''[[Fun in Acapulco]]'' (1963) (uncredited) .... Dr John Stevers
Further, it is difficult to know what might be meant by any Native American ''racial'' identity. Race is a disputed term, but is often said to be a social (or political) rather than biological construct. The issue of Native American racial identity is discussed in Russell (2002, p68), "American Indians have always had the theoretical option of removing themselves from a tribal community and becoming legally white. American law has made it easy for Indians to disappear because that disappearance has always been necessary to the '[[manifest destiny]]' that the United States span the continent that was, after all, occupied." Russell contrasts this with the reminder that Native Americans are "members of communities before members of a race"<ref>Russell (2002) p68 is quoting López (1994) p55</ref>.
*''[[The Wheeler Dealers]]'' (1963) .... Mr. Wilson
 
*''[[Irma la Douce]]'' (1963) .... Concierge
Some social scientists relate this uncertainty to the theory of the constructed nature of identity. Many social scientists discuss the construction of identity. [[Benidect Anderson]]'s "[[Imagined Communities]]" are an example. However, some see construction of identity as being a part of how a group remembers its past, tells its stories, and interprets its [[myths]]. Thus [[cultural identity]] are made within the discourses of history and culture. Thus identity may not be a fact based in the essence of a person, but a positioning, based in politics and social situations.<ref>Hall (1997) p53</ref>
*''[[Follow That Dream]]'' (1962) .... George (Vice President & loan officer at bank)
 
*''[[Bachelor Flat]]'' (1962) .... Dr. Dylan Bowman
===Construction by others===
*''[[The Errand Boy]]'' (1961) .... Dexter Sneak
 
*''[[Blue Hawaii]]'' (1961) .... Mr. Chapman
[[Image:Bismarck Indian School.jpg|thumb|left|Students at the Bismarck Indian School in the early twentieth century.]]
*''[[Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea]]'' (1961) .... Congressman Parker
European conceptions of "Indianness" are notable both for how they influence how American Indians see themselves and for how they have persisted as stereotypes which may negatively affect treatment of Indians. The [[noble savage]] stereotype is famous, but [[European colonization of the Americas|American colonists]] held other stereotypes as well. For example, some colonists imagined Indians as living in a state similar to their own ancestors, for example the [[Pict]]s, [[Gaul]]s, and [[Briton]]s before "[[Julius Caesar]] with his [[Roman legion]]s (or some other) had ... laid the ground to make us tame and civil"<ref>quoted from Robert Johnson, promoter for the fledgling Virginia Colony in Dyar (2003) p819</ref>.
*''[[The Last Time I Saw Archie]]'' (1961) .... Gen. Williams
 
*''[[Maverick (TV series)|Maverick]]'' (1961) TV Series Episode: "Dodge City or Bust"
In the nineteenth and twentieth century, particularly until [[John Collier (reformer)|John Collier]]'s tenure as Commissioner of Indian Affairs began in 1933, various policies of the United States federal and state governments have amounted to what some consider an attack on Indian cultural identity. These policies have included the banning of traditional religious ceremonies, forced cutting of Indian boys' hair, forced "conversion" to [[Christianity]] by withholding rations, forcing Indian children to go to boarding schools, boarding schools where the use of [[Native American languages]] was not permitted, freedom of speech restrictions, and restricted allowances of travel between reservations<ref>Russell (2002) p66-67</ref>. This was also true in the Southwest sections of the U.S. then under Spanish control (until [[the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hildago]] in 1848), where the majority (80%) of inhabitants were Indigenous<ref>Russell (2002) p67</ref>.
*''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'' (1960) TV Series .... Floyd Lawson (1960-1962, 1964-1967)
 
Hocus-Pocus & Frisby - Twilight Zone Episode - friend of character played by Andy Devine
===United States government definitions===
*''[[The Big Circus]]'' (1959) .... Mr. Lomax
{{main|Native American recognition in the United States}}
*''[[Anatomy of a Murder]]'' (1959) .... Dr. Dompierre
[[Image:IndianAct2.jpg|right|frame|President Coolidge stands with four [[Osage Nation|Osage Indians]] at a White House ceremony]]
*''[[Good Day for a Hanging]]'' (1959) .... Olson
Some authors have pointed to a connection between social identity of Native Americans and their political status as members of a tribe<ref>Ray (2007) p399</ref>. There are 561 [[List of Native American Tribal Entities|federally recognized tribal governments]] in the United States, and in the eyes of the U.S. federal government, these tribes possess the right to establish the legal requirements for membership<ref>This right was upheld by the US Supreme Court in Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez in 1978, which is discussed in Ray (2007) p403, see also {{cite web |url=http://usinfo.state.gov/eur/Archive/2005/Jan/28-691277.html |work=usinfo.state.gov |title=The U.S. Relationship To American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes |accessdate=February 08 |accessyear=2006}}.</ref>. In recent times, preference is given to "political" definitions where legislation has identified Indians based on their membership in federally recognized tribes<ref>Most often given is the two-part definition: an "Indian" is someone who is a member of an Indian tribe and an "Indian tribe" as any tribe, band, nation, or organized Indian community recognized by the United States</ref>. The government and many tribes prefer this definition because it allows the tribes to determine the meaning of "Indianness" in their own membership criteria. However, some still criticize this as the federal government's historic role in setting certain conditions on the nature of membership criteria means that this definition does not transcend federal government influence<ref>Brownell (2001) p299</ref>. Thus in some sense, one has greater claim to a Native American identity if one belongs to a federally recognized tribe, recognition that many who claim Indian identity do not have<ref>Nagel remarks that 1,878,285 people marked Native American as their ethnicity on the 1990 US Census, while the number of members of federally recognized tribes is much smaller, Nagel (1995) p948</ref>. Holly Reckord, an anthropologist who heads the BIA Branch of Acknowledgment and Recognition discusses the most common outcome for those who seek membership: "We check and find that they haven't a trace of Indian ancestry, yet they are still totally convinced that they are Indians. even if you have a trace of Indian blood, why do you want to select that for your identity, and not your Irish or Italian? It's not clear why, but at this point in time, a lot of people want to be Indian"<ref>Bordewich (1996) 66</ref>.
*''[[The Real McCoys-The Gift]]'' (1958) .... R. Daggett
 
*''[[Bell, Book and Candle (film)|Bell, Book and Candle]]'' (1958) .... Andy White, Shep's Co-Publisher
[[Image:Navajo blanket.jpg|thumb|right|A [[Navajo rug|Navajo blanket]] from the early 20th century.]]
*''[[Leave It to Beaver]]'' (1957) TV Series .... Andy The Barber (1957-1960)
Under the [[Arts and Crafts Act]] of 1990, having the status of a state recognized Indian tribe is discussd, as well as having tribal recognition as an "Indian artisan" independent of tribal membership. In certain circumstances, This allows people who identify as Indian to legally label their products as "Indian made," even when they aren't members of a federally recognized tribe<ref>Brownell (2001) p313</ref>.
*''[[Public Pigeon No. One]]'' (1957) .... Warden
 
*''[[Affair in Reno]]'' (1957) .... James T. James
Using federal laws to define "Indian" signals to some a continued government control over Indians, even as the government seeks to establish a sense of deference. Thus Indianness becomes a rigid legal term defined by the BIA, rather than an expression of tradition, history, and culture. Many groups which claim descendants from tribes that predate European contact not federally recognized. According to Rennard Strickland, an Indian Law scholar, the federal government uses the process of recognizing groups to "divide and conquer Indians: "the question of who is 'more' or 'most' Indian may draw people away from common concerns."<ref>Brownell (2001) p302</ref>
*''[[The Brothers]]'' (1956) TV Series .... Capt. Sam Box (1956-1957)
 
*''[[Bundle of Joy]]'' (1956) .... Mr. Appleby
===Self-identification===
*''[[You Can't Run Away from It]]'' (1956) .... Second proprietor
 
*''[[The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show]]'' (1950) TV Series .... Cuspert Jansen (1955-1958)
In some cases, one's opinion about ones self is sufficient to define one as Indian. One can often choose to identify as Indian without outside verification when filling out a census form, a college application, or writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper<ref>Peroff (1997) p487</ref>. A "self-identified Indian" is a person who may not satisfy the legal requirements which define a Native American according to the United States government but who understand and express their own identity as Native American.<ref>Garroutte (2003) p82</ref> However, many people who do not satisfy these requirements identify themselves as Native American - whether due to biology, culture, or some other reason. The [[United States census]] allows citizens to check any ethnicity without requirements of validation. Thus, the census allows individuals to self-identify as Indian, merely by checking the racial category, "Native American/Alaska Native," <ref>Brownell (2001) p276-277 notes that much of the $180 billion dollars a year in federal for the benefit of Indians are apportioned on the basis of this census population</ref>. In 1990, about 60 percent of the over 1.8 million identifying themselves in the census as American Indian were actually enrolled in a federally recognized tribe<ref>Thornton 1997, page 38</ref>. Using self identification allows both uniformity and includes many different ideas of "Indianness."<ref>Brownell (2001) p315</ref> It also avoids marginalizing the nearly half a million who receive no benefits because they are unenrolled members of a federally recognized tribe, or full members of tribes that have never been recognized or whose recognition was terminated by the government during programs in the 1950s and 1960s.<ref>Brownell (2001) p299</ref> Identity is in some way a personal issue; based on the way one feels about oneself and one's experiences. Horse (2001) describes five influences on self-identity as Indian:
*''[[Drums Across the River]]'' (1954) .... John Stilwell
*"The extent to which one is grounded in one’s Native American language and culture, one’s cultural identity"
*''[[The Long, Long Trailer]]'' (1954) (uncredited) .... Joe Hittaway
*"The validity of one’s American Indian genealogy"
*''[[Escape from Fort Bravo]]'' (1954) (uncredited) .... Watson
*"The extent to which one holds a traditional American Indian general philosophy or worldview (emphasizing balance and harmony and drawing on Indian spirituality)"
*''[[Ranger of Cherokee Strip]]'' (1949) bad guy
*"One’s self-concept as an American Indian"
*"One’s enrollment (or lack of it) in a tribe"<ref>Horse (2005) p65</ref>
 
[[University of Kansas]] Sociologist, Joane Nagel traces the tripling in the number of Americans reporting American Indian as their race in the U.S. Census from 1960 to 1990 (from 523,591 to 1,878,285) to federal Indian policy, American ethnic politics, and American Indian political Activism. Much of the population growth was due to "[[ethnic switching]]," where people who previously marked one group, later mark another. This is made possible by our increasing stress on social constructions role in determining ethnicity<ref>Nagel (1995) p948</ref>.
 
Some Native American groups embrace the idea of self-identification as a primal indicator of Indian identity, even more than cultural identity<ref>Garroutte (2003) p83</ref>. Garroutte identifies some practical problems with self-identification as a policy, quoting the struggles of Indian service providers who deal with many people who had ancestors, some steps removed, who were Indian. She quotes a social worker, "Hell, if all that was real, there are more Cherokees in the world than there are [[Chinese people|Chinese]]." The use of self identification in US censuses has changed since 2000 as now people are allowed to check multiple categories.<ref>Russell 149</ref>
 
Many Individuals seek broader definitions of Indian for their own reasons. In legislative hearings related to the Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, One Indian artist whose mother is not Indian, but whose father is [[Seneca]] and who was raised on the [[Seneca reservation]] said, "I do not question the rights of the tribes to set whatever criteria they want for enrollment eligibility; but in my view, that is the extent of their rights, to say who is an enrolled Seneca or [[Mohawk]] or [[Navajo]] or [[Cheyenne]] or any other tribe. Since there are mixed bloods with enrollment numbers and some of those with very small percentages of genetic Indian ancestry, I don't feel they have the right to say to those of us without enrollment numbers that we are not of Indian heritage, only that we are not enrolled... To say that I am not [Indian] and to prosecute me for telling people of my Indian heritage is to deny me some of my [[civil liberties]]...and constitutes racial discrimination."<ref>Brownell (2001) p314</ref>
 
Native American Literature professor Becca Gercken-Hawkins writes about the trouble of recognition for those who do not look Indian; "I self-identify as Cherokee and [[Irish American]], and even though I do not look especially Indian with my dark curly hair and light skin, I easily meet my tribe's blood quantum standards. My family has been working for years to get the documentation that will allow us to be enrolled members of the [[Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians]]. Because of my appearance and my lack of enrollment status, I expect questions regarding my identity, but even so, I was surprised when a fellow graduate student advised me—in all seriousness—to straighten my hair and work on a tan before any interviews. Thinking she was joking, I asked if I should put a feather in my hair, and she replied with a straight face that a feather might be a bit much, but I should at least wear traditional Native jewelry."<ref>Gercken-Hawkins (2003) p200</ref>
 
Cynthia Hunt, who self-identifies as a member of the non-federally recognized Lumbee tribe, says: "I feel as if I'm not a real Indian until I've got that BIA stamp of approval .... You're told all your life that you're Indian, but sometimes you want to be that kind of Indian that everybody else accepts as Indian."<ref>Brownell (2001) p275</ref>
 
Cherokee/Choktaw author [[Louis Owens]] discusses his feelings about his status of not being a real Indian because he's not enrolled. "Because growing up in different times, I naively thought that Indian was something we were, not something we did or had or were required to prove on demand. Listening to my mother's stories about [[Oklahoma]], about brutally hard lives and dreams that cut across the fabric of every experience, I thought I was Indian."<ref>Eva Marie Garroutte opens with these lines in her book, ''Real Indians: identity and the survival of Native America'' (2003)</ref>
 
Yet, self-identification is problematic on many levels. It is sometimes said, in fun, that the largest tribe in the United States may be the "Wantabes."<ref>Brownell (2001) p315</ref>
 
==Historic struggles==
[[Florida State]] anthropologist J. Anthony Paredes considers the question of Indianness that may be asked about pre-ceramic peoples (what modern archaeologists call the [[Archaic period in the Americas|"Early" and "Middle Archaic" period]]), pre-maize burial mound cultures, etc. Paredes asks, "Would any <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Mississippian culture|Mississippian]] high priest<nowiki>]</nowiki> have been any less awed than ourselves to come upon a so-called [[Paleo-Indian]] hunter hurling a spear at a woolly [[mastodon]]?" His question reflects the point that indigenous cultures are themselves the products of millennia of history and change.<ref>Paredes (1995) p346</ref>
 
The question of "Indianness" was different in colonial times. Integration into Indian tribes was not difficult, as Indians typically accepted persons based not on ethnic or racial characteristics, but on learnable and acquirable designators such as "language, culturally appropriate behavior, social affiliation, and loyalty."<ref>Dyar (2003) p823</ref> Non-Indian captives were often adopted into society, including, famously, Mary Jemison. As a side note, the "[[Running the gauntlet|gauntlet]]" was a ceremony that was often misunderstood as a form of torture, but was seen as a way for the captives to leave their European society and become a tribal member.<ref>Dyar (2003) p823</ref>
 
[[Image:JohnRossC.jpg|thumb|left|Cherokee chief John Ross]]
But since the mid 19th century, things have become more controversial. In the early 1860s, Novelist [[John Rollin Ridge]] led a group of delegates to [[Washington D.C.]] in an attempt to gain federal recognition for a "Southern Cherokee Nation" which was a faction that was opposed to the leadership of rival faction leader and Cherokee Chief [[John Ross (Cherokee chief)|John Ross]].<ref>Christiensen 1992</ref> In the 1920s, a famous case was set to investigate the true ethnic identity of a woman known as "[[Princess Chinquilla]]" and her associate [[Red Fox James]] (aka Skiuhushu).<ref>Carpenter (2005) p139</ref>
 
Chinquilla was a New York woman who claimed to have been separated from her Cheyenne parents at birth. She and James created a fraternal club which was to counter existing groups "founded by white people to help the red race" in that it was founded by Indians. The club's opening received much praise for supporting this purpose, and was seen as very authentic; it involved a Council Fire, the peace pipe, and speeches by [[Robert Ely]], [[White Horse Eagle]], and [[American Indian Defense Association]] President Haven Emerson. In the 1920s, fraternal clubs were fairly common in New York, and titles such as "princess" and "chief" were bestowed by the club to Natives and non-Natives.<ref>Carpenter (2005) p143</ref> This allowed non-Natives to "try on" Indian identities. In 1911, the [[Society of American Indians]] was founded by [[Arthur C. Parker]], [[Carlos Montezuma]], and others as the first national association founded and run primarily by Native Americans. The group campaigned for full citizenship for Indians, and other reforms, goals similar to other groups and fraternal clubs, which led to blurred distinctions between the different groups and their members.<ref>Carpenter (2005) p141</ref> With different groups and people of different ethnicities involved in parallel and often competing groups, accusations that one was not a real Indian was a painful accusation for those involved. In 1918, [[Arapaho]] Cleaver Warden testified in hearings related to Indian religious ceremonies, "We only ask a fair and impartial trial by reasonable white people, not half breeds who do not know a bit of their ancestors or kindred. A true Indian is one who helps for a race and not that secretary of the [[Society of American Indians]]."
 
Just as the struggle for recognition is not new, Indian entrepreneurship based on that recognition is not new. An example is a stipulation of the [[Creek Treaty of 1805]] which gave [[Creeks]] the exclusive right to operate certain ferries and "houses of entertainment" along a federal road from [[Ocmulgee, Georgia]] to [[Mobile, Alabama]], and which went over parts of Creek Nation land purchased as an easement.<ref>Paredes (1995) p357</ref>
 
==Unity and nationalism==
 
[[Image:TecumsehColor.JPG|right|thumb|[[1848]] drawing of Tecumseh was based on a sketch done from life in [[1808]].]]
The issue of Indianness had somewhat expanded meaning in the 1960s with Indian nationalist movements such as the [[American Indian Movement]]. The American Indian Movement unified nationalist identity was in contrast to the "brotherhood of tribes" nationalism of groups like the [[National Indian Youth Council]] and the [[National Congress of American Indians]].<ref>Bonney (1977) p210</ref> This unified Indian identity has been cited to the teachings of 19th century [[Shawnee]] leader [[Tecumseh]] to unify all Indians against "white oppression."<ref>Particularly cited is Tecumseh's concern with the alienation of Indian lands and his 1812 statement about Indian unity as discussed in Bonney (1977) p229</ref> The movements of the 1960s changed dramatically how Indians see their identity, both as separate from Anglos, as a member of a tribe, and as a member of a unified category encompassing all Indians.<ref>Schulz (1998)</ref>
 
==Examples==
Different tribes have unique cultures, histories, and situations that have made particular the question of identity in each tribe. Tribal membership may be based on descent, blood quantum, and/or reservation habitation.
 
===Cherokee===
 
Historically, race was not a factor in the acceptance of individuals into [[Cherokee society]], since historically, the [[Cherokee people]] viewed their self-identity as a political rather than racial distinction.<ref> AIRFA Federal Precedence Applied in State Court http://www.nativeamericanchurch.net/stott.html</ref> Going far back into antiquity based upon existing social and historical evidence as well as oral traditions among the [[Cherokee]] themselves, the Cherokee society was best described as an Indian Republic. Theda Perdue (2000) recounts a story from "before the American Revolution" where a black slave named Molly is accepted as a Cherokee as a "replacement" for a woman who was beaten to death by her white husband. According to Cherokee tradition, vengeance for the woman's death was required for her soul to find peace, and the husband was able to prevent his own execution by fleeing to the town of [[Chota]] (where according to Cherokee Law he was safe) and purchasing Molly as an exchange. When the wives family accepted Molly, later known as "Chickaw," she became a part of their clan (the [[Deer Clan]]), and thus Cherokee.<ref>Perdue (2000)</ref>
 
Inheritance was largely matrilineal, and kinship and clan membership was of primary importance until around 1810, when the seven [[Cherokee clans]] began the abolition of blood vengeance by giving the sacred duty to the new Cherokee National government. Clans formally relinquished judicial responsibilities by the 1820s when the Cherokee Supreme Court was established. When in 1825, the National Council extended citizenship to biracial children of Cherokee men, the matrilineal definition of clans was broken and clan membership no longer defined Cherokee citizenship. These ideas were largely incorporated into the 1827 Cherokee constitution.<ref>Perdue (2000) p564</ref> The constitution did, state that "No person who is of negro or mulatlo [sic]parentage, either by the father or mother side, shall be eligible to hold any office of profit, honor or trust under this Government," with an exception for, "negroes and descendants of white and Indian men by negro women who may have been set free."<ref>Perdue (2000) p564-565</ref> Although by this time, some Cherokee considered clans to be anachronistic, this feeling may have been more widely held among the elite than the general population.<ref>Perdue (2000) p566</ref> Thus even in the initial constitution, the Cherokee reserved the right to define who was and was not Cherokee as a political rather than racial distinction. Novelist [[John Rollin Ridge]] led a group of delegates to Washington D.C. as early as the 1860s in an attempt to gain federal recognition for a "Southern Cherokee Nation" which was a faction that was opposed to the leadership of rival faction leader and Cherokee Chief [[John Ross (Cherokee chief)|John Ross]].<ref>Christiensen 1992</ref>
 
===Navajo===
Most of the 158,633 [[Navajo]]s enumerated in the 1980 census and the 219,198 Navajos enumerated in the 1990 census were enrolled in the Navajo Nation, which is the nation with the largest number of enrolled citizens. It is notable that their is such a small number of people who identify as Navajo who are not registered.<ref>Thornton 2004</ref>
 
===Lumbee===
 
When the [[Lumbee]] of [[North Carolina]] petitioned for recognition in 1974, many federally recognized tribes adamantly opposed them. These tribes made no secret of their fear that passage of the legislation would dilute services to historically recognized tribes.<ref>Brownell (2001) p304</ref> The Lumbee were at one point known by the state as the Cherokee tribe of Robeson County and applied for federal benefits under that name in the early 20th century.<ref>Barrett (2007)</ref> The [[Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians]] has been at the forefront of the opposition of the Lumbee. It is sometimes noted that if granted full federal recognition, the designation would bring tens of millions of dollars in federal benefits, and also the chance to open a casino along Interstate 95 (which would compete with a nearby Eastern Cherokee Nation casino).<ref>Barrett (2007)</ref>
 
==Footnotes==
{{reflist|3}}
 
==External links==
==Bibliography==
*{{imdb name|id=0573830|name=Howard McNear}}
<div class="references-small">
* Barrett, Barbara. (2007) "Two N.C. tribes fight for identity; Delegation split on Lumbee recognition" The News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina) April 19, 2007
 
* Bonney, Rachel A. (1977) "The Role of AIM Leaders in Indian Nationalism." American Indian Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 3. (Autumn, 1977), pp. 209-224.
 
* Bordewich, Fergus M. (1996) ''Killing the White Man's Indian: Reinventing Native Americans at the End of the Twentieth Century''. First Anchor Books, ISBN 0385420366
 
* Brownell, Margo S. (2001) "Who is an Indian? Searching for an Answer to the Question at the Core
of Federal Indian Law." Michigan Journal of Law Reform 34(1-2):275-320.
 
* Carpenter, Cari. (2005) "Detecting Indianness: Gertrude Bonnin's Investigation of Native American Identity." Wicazo Sa Review - Volume 20, Number 1, Spring 2005, pp. 139-159
 
* Carter, Kent. (1988) "Wantabes and Outalucks: Searching for Indian Ancestors in Federal Records". Chronicles of Oklahoma 66 (Spring 1988): 99-104 (Accessed June 30, 2007 [http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/heritage/native-american/ancestor-search.html here])
 
* Cohen, F. (1982) ''Handbook of Federal Indian law''. Charlottesville: Bobbs-Merrill, ISBN 0872154130
 
* Dyar, Jennifer. (2003) "Fatal Attraction: The White Obsession with Indianness." The Historian. June 2003. Vol 65 Issue 4 pages 817–836
 
* Etheridge, Tiara. (2007) "Displacement, loss still blur American Indian identities" April 25, 2007 Wednesday, Oklahoma Daily, University of Oklahoma
 
* Field, W. Les (with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe). (2003) "Unacknowledged Tribes, Dangerous Knowledge, The Muwekma Ohlone and How Indian Identities Are 'Known.'" Wicazo Sa Review 18.2 pages 79-94
 
* Garroutte, Eva Marie. (2003) ''Real Indians: identity and the survival of Native America''. University of California Press, ISBN 0520229770
 
* Gercken-Hawkins, Becca (2003) "'Maybe you only look white:' Ethnic Authority and Indian Authenticity in Academia." The American Indian Quarterly 27.1&2 pages 200-202
 
* Hall, Stuart. (1997) "The work of representation." In ''Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices'', ed. Stuart Hall, 15-75. London: Sage Publications, ISBN 0761954325
 
* Horse, Perry G. (2005) "Native American identity" New Directions for Student Services. Volume 2005, Issue 109 , Pages 61 - 68
 
* Lawrence, Bonita. (2003) "Gender, Race, and the Regulation of Native Identity in Canada and the United States: An Overview" Hypatia 18.2 pages 3-31
 
* Morello, Carol. (2001) "Native American Roots, Once Hidden, Now Embraced". Washington Post, April 7, 2001
 
* Nagel, J. (1995) "Politics and the Resurgence of American Indian Ethnic Identity," American
Sociological Review 60: 947–965.
 
* Paredes, J. Anthony. (1995) "Paradoxes of Modernism and Indianness in the Southeast." American Indian Quarterly, Vol. 19, No. 3. (Summer, 1995), pp. 341-360.
 
* Peroff, Nicholas C. (1997) "Indian Identity" The Social Science Journal, Volume 34, Number 4, pages 485-494.
 
* Peroff, N.C. (2002) "Who is an American Indian?" Social Science Journal. Volume 39, Number 3, pages 349
 
* Pierpoint, Mary. (2000) "Unrecognized Cherokee claims cause problems for nation". Indian Country Today. August 16, 2000 (Accessed May 16, 2007 [http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=703 here])
 
* Porter, F.W. III (ed.) (1983). "Nonrecognized American Indian tribes: An historical and legal perspective." Occasional Paper Series No. 7. Chicago, IL: D’Arcy McNickle Center for the History of the American Indian, The Newberry Library.
 
* Ray, S. Allan. ''A Race or a Nation? Cherokee National Identity and the Status of Freedmen's Descendents''. Michigan Journal of Race and Law. Vol. 12, 2007 (Accessible as a working paper as of July 12, 2007 [http://law.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7231&context=expresso here]).
 
* Russell, Steve. (2004) "Review of Real Indians: Identity and the Survival of Native America" PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review. May 2004, Vol. 27, No. 1, pp. 147-153
 
* Russell, Steve (2002). "Apples are the Color of Blood". Critical Sociology Vol. 28, 1, 2002, p. 65
 
* Schulz, Amy J. (1998) "Navajo Women and the Politics of Identity." Social Problems, Vol. 45, No. 3. (Aug., 1998), pp. 336-355.
 
* Sturm, Circe. (1998) "Blood Politics, Racial Classification, and Cherokee National Identity: The Trials and Tribulations of the Cherokee Freedmen". American Indian Quarterly, Winter/Spring 1998, Vol 22. No 1&2 pgs 230-258
 
* Thornton, Russell. (1992) ''The Cherokees: A Population History''. University of Nebraska Press, ISBN 0803294107
 
* Thornton, Russell. (1997) "Tribal Membership Requirements and the Demography of 'Old' and 'New' Native Americans". Population Research and Policy Review Vol. 16, Issue 1, p. 33 ISBN 0803244169
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* "Census 2000 PHC-T-18. American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes in the United States: 2000" United States Census Bureau, Census 2000, Special Tabulation (Accessed May 27, 2007 [http://www.census.gov/population/cen2000/phc-t18/tab001.pdf here])
[[Category:1905 births|McNear, Howard]]
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[[Category:1969 deaths|McNear, Howard]]
[[Category:American actors|McNear, Howard]]
[[Category:American television actors|McNear, Howard]]
[[Category:People from Los Angeles|McNear, Howard]]