What are the differences between the mainstream culture and Native American culture?

Question

I am doing research and wanted to know about these differences. Also, what specific accomplishments have the Native American people made? What sociopolitical realities affect Native Americans? Please help!!

Answer 1

I am a Native woman. I will do my best to give you an answer to each of your three questions. However they are very large questions so the answers will just be a start. If you would like more information please feel free to email me at [e-mail]

Also, please note that Natives are made up of several tribes with different beliefs.

Question: What are the differences between mainstream culture and Native American culture?

Answer:
-The main difference between these two cultures is an focus on individualism vs. a focus on collectivism. Mainstream culture values the individual over the society whereas Native culture values the community over the individual. That is a simplistic way to put it but you get the idea.
- Another strong difference is the history of trauma and oppression. Native people have suffered a long history of trauma and current oppression at the hands of mainstream culture. This is still in effect today. Natives struggle to fight this oppression while mainstream individuals are able to focus on other purposes in life.
- Respect for nature and elders is predominant in Native cultures while in mainstream culture it is respect for income and the young.
- Native cultures are abound with spirituality and ceremony while mainstream culture has some religion but mostly ceremony is centered on personal accomplishments.


Question: What specific accomplishments have Native people made?

Answer:
- Natives have had many accomplishments in fighting oppression: effectively got rid of mascots in the NCAA, gained freedom of religion, gained rights as U.S. citizens, figured out how to live off reservation land, restored languages and ceremonies, National Indian Child Welfare Act, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, and many more...
- Native people have also contributed extensively to this society both as individuals and as a people: Navajo Code Talkers and Aspirin (White Willow Bark) are two of them.

Question: What sociopolitical realities affect Native Americans?

Answer:
- The struggle for religious freedom. Native people still must fight today to hold ceremony.
- The struggle for subsistence rights. This is land and water rights.
- The struggle for recognition of the past. To have an official government apology
- Highest poverty rates, highest rates of diabetes, highest rates of teen suicide, highest rates of infant mortality, highest rates of violent death, highest rates of death by car accident
- The struggle to end cultural ignorance and oppression in general ( i know you got at least one response that talked about Native casinos when in fact this person knows little about the topic and is just perpetuating cultural stereotypes ).


The truth is that Native people are living a life that has completely different goals from that of mainstream America. Natives have to focus on ending oppression and gaining rights. It is difficult to focus on personal accomplishments when the government is dumping nuclear waste on your reservation.

Hope this helps!

Answer 2

Assuming that you mean the differences between Native American cultures and the dominant, Euro-American culture present in the US today.....

Entire books have been written on the accomplishments of the Native American Peoples. Medicines, foods, "health care", housing, transportation, sports, the list is nearly endless.

As for the cultural differences, often the Native American peoples had a much more 'decentralized" society in that one's first question when contemplating a given course of action would not be "how does it benefit/effect me?", but rather, "How does it benefit/effect my people?" People did things for their tribe. In many Native American languaged the pornoun "I" does not appear. It's only appearance is in the conjugation of a verb.

Native Americans were generous and rarely, if ever, sought to accumulate more than they had a genuine need for. Americans seem to "want" and to "buy" and they spend their entire lives accumulating things. (If you doubt this, just look at the explosion of "storage" spaces for rent....people now have so much "stuff" that their houses cannot contain it all.) The only "real" motivation for accumulation for any traditional Native American would be to give it away to make someone elses life easier. To warm an Elder, to amust a child, that kind of thing.

The remainders of the lists are endless. I could cite endless examples, but this should be sufficient. Email me if you'd like some references. I'll hunt them up for you.

Answer 3

One speaks with a forked tongue. The other has been known to listen. Accomplishments Native people -They are loosing this battle but so far they have kept a lot of there native customs .Sociopolitical realities - The land has owners And they weren't invited
Happy Caving Carroll

Answer 4

Mainstream culture isn't really a "culture," it's more just a form of existence compared to what a real culture is.

Answer 5

You need to say what mainstream culture means first .

Answer 6

Main difference is our people killed their people. Main accomplishment is that a few survived despite our best efforts. Now, most survive on reservations supported by casino gambling, their best revenge!

Answer 7

Night & Day.