Self-Determination and the American Indian: A Case Study

This article focuses on the concept of self-determination as it applies to indigenous peoples in general and the Winnebago Tribe in particular. Part II examines the argument that self-determination is a human right to which indigenous peoples are entitled. Part III provides an overview of the history of the repression Indigenous peoples have faced as a result of the European influx into North America and the subsequent problems that indigenous peoples face in their struggles for autonomy. These problems include the tension created by the ruling sovereign governments that have historically repressed, exploited, and sometimes annihilated the American Indian. In Part IV, the article turns to a case study of the Winnebago Indians' efforts to achieve a small measure of self-determination within the framework of the sovereign government of the United States. The long struggle of the Winnebago to reclaim determination of its own destiny represents a victory for all indigenous peoples and their right to self-determination