US Presidential Candidate Barack Obama's Policy on Native American

The United States presidential elections will take place on Nov. 4th, only a few days away. Both presidential candidates are in their final phases of campaigning. On Oct. 23rd, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama released his policies on Native Americans through the Internet. Obama talked about the preservation of indigenous languages and cultures. More importantly, he said the federal government and Native Americans should maintain a Nation-to-Nation Relationship.

The U.S. presidential election is only a few days away. Both Barack Obama and John McCain are trying to win votes in the final stage of campaigning with proposed healthcare plans, economic policies and other tactics including attacking each other. Both sides are giving it their all. On Oct. 23rd, Obama used the Internet to share his policies on Native Americans. This makes Obama one of the few presidential candidates to present indigenous policies during campaigning.

“Few have been ignored by Washington for as long as American Indians. Too often, Washington pays lip service to working with tribes while taking a one-size-fits-all approach with tribal communities across the nation. That will change if I am honored to serve as president of the United States.”

In this four-minute YouTube Video, Obama talked about his policy for Native Americans if he became president. The most important part was when he mentioned that the relationship between the federal government and the Native Americans should be a Nation-toNation relationship. Furthermore, Obama said he would hold an annual summit at the White House with tribal leaders for the process of decision-making.

“My American Indian policy begins with creating a bond between an Obama administration and the tribal nations all across this country. We need more than just a government-to-government relationship; we need a Nation-to-Nation relationship, and I will make sure that tribal nations have a voice in the White House.” said Obama. “I’ll appoint an American Indian policy adviser to my senior White House staff to work with tribes, and host an annual summit at the White House with tribal leaders to come up with an agenda that works for tribal communities. That’s how we’ll make sure you have a seat at the table when important decisions are being made about your lives, about your nations and about your people. That'll be a priority when I am president."

Apart from stressing the Nation-to-Nation relationship, Obama said if he was elected to the White House, he would abide by treaty commitment that the previous governments have signed with Native Americans and keep the promises the governments have made. Obama praised the treaty commitments “a paramount law”.

Obama's white paper has impressed some Native Americans, especially when he talked about Nation-Nation relationship between the Native Americans and the federal government and proposed annual White House meetings between leaders from the two sides. At the end of his speech, Obama said that his family background has made him more active in formulating indigenous policies and that he would make it one of his focuses during his term in the White House.

Recent polls show that Obama is leading McCain. Now in the last moments of the campaigning, both candidates are bringing up different topics to attract voters. It is uncertain if Obama's speech on Native American policy will attract more support from states where Native Americans comprise a larger part of population. Most importantly, will they keep their words?
We certainly hope.