Native American Feminism

Feminism is not the most important priority of the Native American Indian woman. According to Andrea Smith, “We are American Indian women, in that order. We are oppressed, first and foremost as American Indians, as peoples colonized by the United States of America, not as women.” Some of the oppressions that face these women include communities with high incidents of alcohol and drug abuse, violence, and mental health problems including suicide. 

American Indians have the highest rates of binge drinking, drunk driving, and alcohol-related fatal crashes. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is also a large problem in the American Indian community.  FAS is commonly found in many newborns causing learning, memory, communication, vision, and hearing problems as children grow older and is caused by mothers drinking alcohol during their pregnancy. Native American Women suffer violent crimes at a rate three and half times greater than the national average and suffer high rates of sexual abuse. In tribes that follow tribal rules, the husband is almost always awarded custody of the children so these women often remain in abusive relationships to keep their children. 

Native American women cannot turn to the federal legal system because of the tribal jurisdiction. However, the National Organization for Women (NOW) has donated $4 million dollars to help improve services for Native American women. 

Website references:

http://www.womenshealth.gov/minority-health/american-indians/alcoholism-drug-abuse.html

http://www.now.org/nnt/spring-2001/nativeamerican.html

     http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/america-tonight-blog/2013/8/28/5-huge-native-americanhealthissuesyoudontknowabout.html