Blood

1. Blood Quantum Native American Grant Project Math Department California State University, Fullerton By Roberto Wheaton

2. Session Goals To understand the historical significance of how Mathematics plays a role in tribal identification. To make connections with real life stories related to blood quantum mathematics. Investigate the population dynamic growth rates. Create a formula for tribal extinction.

3. I cut myself into sixteen equal pieces
kept thirteen and fed the other three
to the dogs Excerpt from "13/16," a poem by Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian Sherman Alexie

4. Self Evaluation Think about your own ancestry and create three pie Graphs to represent your history You Native Americans are the only ethnic group that has to prove actual blood Lines to be considered an Native American

5. Virginia adopted laws which limited colonial civil rights of Native Americans and persons of half or more Native American ancestry.[2] The concept of blood quantum was not widely applied until the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. The government used it to establish which individuals could be recognized as Native American and be eligible for financial and other benefits under treaties that were made, or sales of land.[3] Since that time, however, Native American nations have re-established their own rules for tribal membership, which vary among them. In the early 21st century these rules have been used to exclude people who had previously been considered members, such as in the case of the Cherokee Freedmen. What is Blood Quantum? “Blood quantum” refers to describing the degree of ancestry for an individual or specific race or ethnicity. . History How was it used for Native Americans in the United States? Used in 1705 by Virginia to limited colonial civil rights of Native Americans and persons of half or more Native American ancestry. Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 used to establish which individuals could be recognized as Native American and be eligible for financial and other benefits made from sales of land.

6. Native American Population 2.9 million (2010 US Census) Did you know over 150,000 people identified as Blackfeet in the US 2010 census. Only16,000 are actually enrolled members of the Blackfeet Nation

7. Is Native Identity more than a drop of blood? Examples of tribal enrollment cards

8. To be considered for Tribal enrollment Requires minimum blood quantum ¼ Blackfeet Original Members: All persons of Indian blood whose name appears on the official census roll of the Blackfeet Tribe as of January 1, 1935. Descendants: All children born prior to August 30, 1962 to any blood member of the Blackfeet Tribe maintaining a legal residence on the reservation at the time of such birth. (For enrollment purposes, all blood members of the Blackfeet Tribe are considered legal residents of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation if they are away from the reservation for purposes of employment, education, health, or induction into military service.) Descendants: All children having one fourth degree (1/4) or more of Blackfeet Indian blood born to an enrolled member after August 30, 1962.

9. Dawes Act=Allotment=Fractionation Is the practice of creating reservation land based on population. Land identified as reservation land in treaty was allocated to members. Adults were allotted 160 acres. Single less then 18 years of age were given 80 acres and children 40 acres. Excess land not allotted in the boundaries of the reservation were sold off. How much acreage was allotted to the first 2656? 1907 – 1908 – The first allotments were made on the Blackfeet Reservation. Approximately 2,656 individual Blackfeet tribal members received allotments. 1911 – Surplus lands to be opened for sale were estimated at 156,000 acres. 1911 – Children born after the middle of the year were allotted 80 acres. 1934 – Of the 1,785 eligible voters, 994 voted in favor of tribal organization under the Wheeler- Howard Act, commonly known as the Indian Reorganization Act. Ba

10. Original and Present land Original Reservation Present Reservation 1.5 million acres Imagine what life would be for the Blackfeet if they retained their original Land?

11. Predict the consequences of Fractionation of the value of land?

13. What do these numbers represent?

14. Stories Is it possible to be 100 % Native American but not eligible for enrollment in a tribe? Is there a mathematical model that can be Used to

15. Example of Timeline for Blackfeet for tribal enrollment. Brief Timeline 1700s and 1800s: Living in Canada 1837, 1845, 1857, 1869-70: Smallpox epidemics Prior to 1850: moved west and south to the Rocky Mountains and the Missouri River areas They raided the camps of the Crow, Assiniboin, Cree, Kutenai, Kalispel (or Pend d'Oreille) and Flathead tribes in search of horses 
 1855: Treaty (Lame Bull's Treaty) 1865: Treaty at Fort Sully involving the Blackfeet Band of Sioux, often mistaken for the Blackfeet Tribe 1870: Colonel E. M. Baker attacked the Blackfeet winter camp on the Marias River in Montana, killing 173 men, women and children and taking more that 140 prisoners. 1877: ceded land in Canada 1880s: settled on reservations in the United States and Canada 1886: ceded land 1888: gathered to Blackfeet Reservation 1895: ceded land 1907-1911: land on the Blackfeet Reservation was allotted to individual members of the tribe 1935: Adopted Constitution and By-Laws

16. Population Predictionbased on current enrolledpopulation 27% of Blackfeet are 75% degree

17. Future of Native American Tribes usingBlood Quantum Extinction ?