Indigenous Peoples of the World (Assignment 2)
The situation of Native Americans in the United States, in relation to how they would avail of their rights as citizens is based on the blood quantum the government has proposed long before. Blood quantum refers to the amount of Indian blood that is present in an individual, which becomes their basis to avail of civil rights. This applies to individuals who do not belong to a recognized tribe. However, due to intermarriage, the amount of Indian blood that can be detected in the biological systems of individuals may continue to decrease, thus, eventually limiting their rights in the state. This is considered to be a major problem that is being faced by Native Americans and all those who are recognized to be part Native Americans, for they are not given their rights due to their ethnicity, which must not be the basis for civil rights. With this, not all citizens having Native American ethnicity are entitled with the rights they are supposed to be getting from the U.S. government.
On the other hand, the situation of Native Americans in Brazil is more favorable compared to the situation of Native Americans in the United States. In Brazil, all Native American are entitled the rights given to other citizens in the country, such as the right to vote, right to be elected, right for a government position, right to use their own native language, right to equal law, right to pay taxes, and right to gain credit or profit, given that they have their own identification cards. In simple terms, a Native American is entitled all the civil rights in Brazil, provided he or she has an identification card, which serves as a proof that the individual is a Brazilian citizen.
With this, it can be understood that more liberty is given to the Native Americans in Brazil compared to the Native Americans in the United States. In the United States, certain conditions, such as the Indian blood quantum must still be met before a Native American is able to attain civil rights and be recognized by the U.S. government. In contrary, the only requirement the Brazilian government call for is the identification card, which also recognizes the ethnicity of a Native American. From this, it can be observed that racism and inequality still exists in the society of the United States, despite their actions and laws on discrimination and inequality. In addition, the rights that can be availed by Native Americans in the United States still depends on the specific laws in particular states, thus, observing inequality and injustice among the Native Americans. Moreover, the U.S. government is also supporting other governments from different parts of the world, which restricts the provision of civil rights to Native Americans through blood quantum. From this, it can be clearly seen that the U.S. government does not completely uphold equality and justice among all the races, cultures, and ethnicities in their nation, which becomes one of the causes of outrage, chaos and disorder in the United States. I believe that for peace and order to be truly upheld in the society, equality and justice must be evidently shown, reinforced, and implemented, regardless of race, culture and native origin. This can be proven with the equal treatment of all citizens residing the United States and other countries, for that matter, without existing conditions and requirements, such as the blood quantum. The rights of any individual must not be dependent on the amount of native blood present in the biological system, but on the services and loyalty, that one renders to a specific country. With this, anyone would be given the chance to become successful and live peacefully and normally in any society.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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