The First Nations Development Institute and Echo Hawk Consulting released a report this week entitled “Reclaiming Native Truth: A Project to Dispel America’s Myths and Misconceptions.”

Their findings were not surprising. They congregate around 3 themes that are embedded in the American story as deep as apple pie and the flag.

Discrimination
The privilege most Americans exhibit regarding American Indians is deafening. Only 34% of these folks think American Indians face any type of discrimination despite every socioeconomic indicator suggesting otherwise.
 
Much of this bias was rooted in long standing myths about American Indians rolling in the dough from casino gaming and living on the tit of government benefits. The fact of the matter is only half of Indian county has gaming operations and only a handful of those ventures are profitable.

Yes, federally recognized tribes receive federal assistance through legal contracts called treaties which made them wards of the USA. In return, the federal government received land in exchange for these services. Many of you who are reading this post are probably standing on land that once belonged to indigenous people. You got a great deal
 
Narrative
The research indicated that many Americans have little or no personal experience with American Indians in their day-to-day lives. As a result, they have made up their own erroneous opinions about our first citizens or relied on the negative perceptions of others just as blind to the American Indian experience as they are.
 
The closer a respondent lived to Indian Country the less likely they were to say the USA should do more to help American Indians.
 
The more distant a respondent lived from Indian Country the more likely they were to say the USA should help American Indians.
 
I guess perception is everything.
 
Invisibility
Most Americans hold a romanticized opinion about American Indians stuck in the past. As a result, it makes it difficult for contemporary American Indians to be successful in the present. The erasing of most American Indian culture, language, heritage and tradition feeds this narrative that American Indians do not even exist anymore.
 
Most USA citizens do not recognize American Indians. No real surprises here. Most American Indians are blind as well. Blind to the benefits of a privileged country that continues to pass them by.