Indians and the American West in the Twentieth Century

Abstract

As the twentieth century began, Native Americans were reeling from a century of war, forced resettlement, and loss of indigenous control. In a narrative that is compellingly evenhanded and insightful, Donald L. Parman follows the Indians' continuing struggle to hold on to their land, their resources, and their identity. Focusing on the American West, Parman presents twentieth-century Indian history in the context of regional development. Two questions dominate this story: Who will control Indian resources, and who will control Indian affairs? The turning point is World War II, when Indians in considerable numbers left reservations for wartime jobs or military service, leaving a postwar legacy of migration to urban centers, a sharpened sense of racial identity, and a desire for greater tribal autonomy. These changes set the stage for such key events and trends of recent Indian history as the Red Power Movement, tribal development of resources, fights for new legislation and more favorable policies, and the entry of Indians into gambling ventures. Parman details these events and clarifies their historical significance, and he provides a useful assessment of the status of Native Americans in the West as the century comes to a close.