John Collier (Reformer)

John Collier ( * May 4, 1884, † May 8, 1968 in Taos (New Mexico)) was an American social reformer who campaigned for the rights of American Indians.

• 2.1 books (selection)
• 2.2 Papers (selection)

Life

Early years

John Collier grew up in Atlanta, the son of the famous businessman and politician Charles Collier. He studied at Columbia University and at the Collège de France in Paris. Even during his studies in the United States, he began developing a social philosophy that was to characterize his work with Native Americans later, also dealt with the potentially adverse effects of the industrial age. In his view, the company has developed into an embossed to materialistic and individualistic point of direction, and he concluded that the culture of America should return to a sense of community and responsibility. 1908 Colliers article on the socialist-oriented government of Milwaukee (Wisconsin ) in the magazine Harper 's Weekly was published in October 1919 drew the now 35 -year-old to California. There he worked at the organizational level for the California Housing and Immigration Commission with institutions about teaching immigrants American culture and way of life ( Americanization ).

Use rights for Indians (1919-1933)

During a visit to the people of Taos in Taos (New Mexico) living friend, the artist Mabel Dodge Collier met for the first time in 1919 even the North American Indians. Then he spent the next two years, even in a nearby artist colony and studied history and lifestyle of the Indian people. On his departure in 1921 to take up a job as a teacher in San Francisco, he was firmly convinced that the Indians and their culture is not likely to be lost due to the increasing Americanization of Native Americans. He therefore turned in a row against the then existing traditional assimilation mechanisms and called enabling a stronger cultural pluralism in dealing with the Indian peoples. A key factor for the survival of these peoples he saw in the preservation of their own land and campaigned for the repeal of the Dawes General Allotment Act ( land grant Act) of 1887. By this law, the reserve land of Indian tribes was first divided into plots and were then distributed according to fixed allocation keys as private property within the nations. The aim was to have been the one to break the traditionally strong sense of belonging to the Indians, on the other hand, to Americanize the Indians permanently by forced re-education. The assessment Colliers According to the law had failed and had led to massive loss of land on the part of the Indian tribes. With Colliers intensive use for a reorientation of the Indian policy of the United States is to name 1922 as the turning point of this policy. Formerly been usually directed War criticism against corrupt and less competent officials of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, as Collier attacked now directly present policies and legislation that had the welfare of the North American Indians detrimental. A first breakthrough in a whole decade of the ongoing struggle for Indian rights he finally succeeded, as 1926-1927 on his efforts towards a large study was conducted in which the conditions were examined under which Indians lived in the United States. Through this study, which became known as the Meriam Report and the one published in 1928 under the title The Problem of Indian Administration, the errors of the Indian policy of the United States were visible and realized how much this was partly responsible for serious problems with Indian peoples; mentioned problem areas related most education, health and poverty.

Political career (1933-1945)

Due to the Meriam Report and continued efforts necklaces, Indian Affairs were finally again become a major issue at the federal government level. As a result, the stock market crash on Black Thursday of 1929, the economic and social conditions for the Indian peoples deteriorated significantly, prompting the government's Bureau of Indian Affairs with significantly greater financial resources endowed by President Herbert Hoover than before and also new aufstellte. Real reform successes in Indian politics go but only after the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt as U.S. president in 1932 and the introduction of government programs under the so-called New Deal; it was Roosevelt, who appointed Collier 1933 Commissioner of Indian Affairs (Commissioner of Indian Affairs ) in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. In order to improve the problems caused by the Great Depression poor conditions for Indian tribes, taught a necklace the Indian Civilian Conservation Corps and allowed Indians to take on job creation measures activities in areas such as erosion control and reforestation. Another measure was the adoption of the Indian Reorganization Act (also called the Wheeler - Howard Act or Indian New Deal ) in 1934 at Colliers initiative. With it you finished first, the Indians nations concerned Americanization efforts and stressed at the same time an approach of self-determination, on the other hand sat one 's own efforts in complete contrast to so long followed Indian General Allotment Act of the year 1887. Collier was also instrumental in the successful adoption of the Johnson - O'Malley Act involved, by allowing funding of aid programs of medical, social, and especially technical education for Indians in U.S. states and U.S. territories by the federal government and the responsibility was shared between them. Although Collier clearly turned out his support for Indian self-determination, his Indian New Deal programs were seen by North American Indian tribes often as just another attempt by paternalisation by the policies of the federal government. The efforts Colliers were nevertheless generally successful and far-reaching, also in the case of the Indian Reorganization Act permanent and substantial influence on the subsequent Indian policy of the U.S. government. John Collier himself eventually joined in 1945 by his post, by all officers of Indian Affairs before and after him, he was the longest in office.

After 1945

Collier remained head of the United States National Indian Institute (by Executive Order 8930 of November 1, 1941 set up). He died on 8 May 1968, 84 years in Taos (New Mexico).

Works

Books (selection)

• John Collier: The Indians of the Americas. W. W. Norton and Company, New York, 1947.
• John Collier: On the Gleaming Way: Navajos, Eastern Pueblos, Zunis, Hopis, Apaches, and Their Country, and Their Meanings to the World. Sage Books, Denver 1962.
• John Collier: From Every Zenith: A Memoir and Some Essays on Life and Thought. Alan Swallow, Denver 1963.

Papers (selection)

• John Collier: The Indian in a Wartime Nation. In: Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 223, September 1942, pp. 29-35 ( JSTOR, accessed 16 May 2010 ).