Thanx.
Folks here still eat the same as then, though theyhunt with modern equipment and means, the hunt, the camping, the weather, the danger, the cold the skins and the meats , as well as berrys, fish and greens still feeds us good, so the hunting/fishing/gathering is still viable and needed.
You cant fly or barge everything up here...LOL!!
Yep, when whites ("non Natives", 'round here'came) , they were inundated with western goods and ways. They kept the best of what worked and discarded the rest.
The Flu of 1918 wiped out 1/2 of the folks south of here, and lots were raised in orphanages/boarding schools, as well, many went into the military and lots left later looking for work.
The biggest blow was allowing churches to dole out the education, and Inupiaq was deemed "Heathen" and English only was taught in schools, 'Christians' were the only Eskimo allowed to attend, and then mandatory schooloing came.......... the language is dying out now , as most all younger than 30 speak only English.
South of here, among the Yupik were Moravians and Catholics who learned the language, read the bible to folks in it and taught that in school, and they still speak fluent Y'upik and Siberian Y'upik........
Now the state mandates that Native Language, Arts and Dancing is just fine, and no longer think 'Devil Driving' is going on when they do......
Fact is, these folks around here are very patriotic, proud Americans. Most men have been in the military, and are proud of that, as well many have served in Iraq and Afgahanistan recently. As a people, They were never defeated in combat, never ceceeded lands or tital on ownership untill statehood when they made claim to what was theirs and setttled for what the state and feds assumed. They build self sucfficent companys (hopefully)to manage the lands and its resources, the tribes own and with the Reddog lead and zink mine, the locally owned Northwest Alaska Native Association,'NANA' corperation (all tribal memebers are "Shareholders" in the Capitalist way) pays the Northwest Arctic Bourough (our local gov.) 96% of its tax base from the mines proceeds, funds our school system, trails, S&R, fire depts and such, and as well, for better health care than the BIA, they made "Maniilaq association" for healthcare needs.
No prisoners of war here, no reservations.
These folks have choice, and keeping thelands wild and unfenced, unraoded is a very HARD thing to do with all the pressure to develope everything......but folks here would rather have 400,000 Caribou, Streams full of Fish and Seammamles to hunt, or they can get a job, either way, we can make a living, and few complain about the way it happennd, and even my Father inlaw, who was born here to his parents who were born here, whos parents were born here, in 1903 wasnt a "citizen" untill 1924, and didnt vote untill 1928 anyway. He couldnt own land either, untill equal rights were established, but he was never bitter for it, just figured hed make his living his way, and did, as a Hunter, and men his age , who were hunter made the decisions to NOT develope the lands that were awarded to the Corperations, and keep the Hunters Hunting, and familys fed in this land of 12$ bread and 8 $pG Gasoline...........I think they pulled that off just fine
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