Indians in the Curriculum:
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| Canada | 1,000,000 | 3% |
| Greenland | 50,000 | 90% |
| Guatemala | 5,500,000 | 60% |
| Mexico | 11,000,000 | 12% |
| United States | 2,000,000 | 1% |
| Los Angeles | 100,000 | 1% |
| Western hemisphere | 40,000,000 | 6% |
* More Indians live in Mexico than any other country in the Americas.
By Nation or Tribal Group:
Brackets [ ] mean many to most live outside the United States. A second smaller figure shows U. S. members only, if significant. All other groups in the United States and Canada, have less than 50,000 members.
| Apache | 50,000 |
| Aztec | [3,000,000] |
| Cherokee | 310,000 |
| Choctaw | 80,000 |
| Creek | 40,000 |
| Dakota/Lakota | 100,000 |
| Eskimo | 50,000 |
| Iroquois | [60,000] 50,000 |
| Lumbee | 50,000 |
| Maya* | [6,000,000] 100,000** |
| Mixtec | [200,000] 50,000** |
| Navajo | 220,000 |
| Ojibwa | 100,000 |
| Blackfoot | 40,000 |
*A "family" of nearly three dozen related groups.
** From Mexico and Central America since 1970.
Who Is An Indian?
U. S. legal definitions: For the federal census, anyone in the country who regards him/herself as Indian may declare themselves as such. However, for most legal purposes, the federal government recognizes as Indian only members of federally recognized groups. These tribes are required to keep written membership rolls with written requirements (Most use 1/4 degree Indian blood as a minimum standard.) and in similar fashion, states too have bestowed recognition. (States need not require federal recognition in order to extend their own recognition.) Special legal benefits and provisions do apply to members of recognized groups, such as trust lands free of outside taxation and state or federal funding. Sovereignty and treaty rights generally apply only to federally recognized tribes.
While most Indians in the United States are "enrolled members" of over 550 federally recognized groups, there are still others who are racially and culturally Indian, but for a variety of reasons, they are not enrolled. Therefore, they are not legally "Indian." For example:
1. They may belong to a group that is not yet recognized by the government. Federal recognition requires a documented tribal history that is authenticated to the government's satisfaction. The recognition process is generally regarded as inconsistent, expensive, and slow. It is administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and usually requires many years of difficult research and then more years of waiting.
2. Their parent/guardian failed to enroll them or a crucial ancestor was not enrolled and the necessary enrollment documentation is often not easy to find.
3. They may be from a tribe outside the United States or Canada (the only countries that require tribes to keep written rolls) and therefore, not eligible for enrollment. Prospective persons seeking enrollment in a recognized tribe need to inquire through the enrollment office of the tribe in question, because the tribes control their own procedures.
Activities 11: Who is an Indian?
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