ANCSA: Caught in the Act

 

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The Alaska Native Foundation is a non-profit corporation designed to enhance the social and economic well-being of Alaska Native people. ANF takes pride in providing instructional materials such as "ANCSA: Caught in the Act."

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 Produced by the Alaska Department of Education through a contract to The Alaska Native Foundation

Television Series
Series Producer and Producer/Director of 3 Programs - Carroll Hodge
Cinematographer and Producer/Director of 3 Programs - Ron Eagle
Executive Producer - Jane Angvik
Writers - Carroll Hodge, Doug Barry, Ron Eagle, Dennis Remick
Music Producer - Surreal Studios
Post-Production Facilities - Nine Star - Red Bradley- Image Productions
Research - Wayne Attla, Leona Johnson, Steve Kakaruk, Carmen Williams

Teacher's Guide
Author- Lucille Frey, Ph.D.
Typist - Gloria Lorah

The Alaska Department of Education, Office of Instructional Services

Administrator - William J. Bramble, Ph.D.
Executive in Charge of Production - Benjamin J. Fewell, Jr.
Program Assistant - Kathleen Berry
Content Advisor - Paul A. Goodwin, Ph.D.

Special Thanks

Alaska Airlines
Choggiung, Limited
CIRI Foundation
Haida Corporation
Jay Hammond
Holmstrom & Associates
Northwest Arctic School District
People of St. Mary's
Piquniq Management Corporation
Tanana Chiefs Conference
Numerous classrooms throughout the state which reviewed the programs.
Content Advisors -Laura Bernhard, David Case, Dennis Demmert, David Maas, Mary Mangusso, Sharon McClintock, Don Mitchell, Paul Ongtooguk, Dalee Sambo, Tony Vaska

This series is designed to invite instructors to explore the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act with students. This Teacher's Guide accompanies six video tapes that vary in length from 14 to 25 minutes. The Programs are:

1. "Common Ground" (25 minutes) - A drama that sets the scene for two young people to discuss the importance of land to rural people. The program is set in St. Mary's.
2. "Losing Ground" (16 minutes) - A documentary, narrated by Jay Hammond, that traces the evolution of American policies toward Indian people with respect to their rights to the lands.
3. "The Struggle" (18 minutes) - A documentary that presents the efforts of Alaska Native people to secure the adoption of ANCSA by Congress.
4. "ANCSA Plain & Simple" (14 minutes) - A documentary that highlights the major provisions of ANCSA - land, money and a corporate structure.
5. "Beyond the Bottom Line" (17 minutes) - A documentary that compares the experiences of two village corporations - one successful and one which has filed for bankruptcy. What decisions had led to such different results?
6. "Land at Risk" (17 minutes) - A documentary that explores perceptions about the future. ANCSA lands are at risk from bankruptcy, take-over and taxation. How do different people view solutions to these problems.

The Guide is organized to provide teachers with the flexibility to use the materials in six days or a full semester. Each program is accompanied by a unit of materials including:

Overview of the Program
Instructional Objectives
Background of the Programs
A Pre-viewing Activity - True/False
A Post-viewing Activity - True/False
Discussion Questions
Vocabulary Worksheet
Activities - Which vary from unit to unit
Bibliography

The teacher is encouraged to mix and match activities that are most appropriate to your particular class. It is recommended that students view each program twice, H possible, to achieve the maximum instructional impact.

Those pages marked "STUDENT WORKSHEET" are designed to be duplicated and put into the hands of the students.

Answer to the objective student worksheets following the program units.

Finally, the Teacher's guide concludes with an "ANCSA Resource Guide," which describes all the available materials that have been produced on ANCSA-oriented topics. The Guide identifies the content as well as the reading level of the materials and where one may obtain the materials.

The following Section describes which materials are designed for different lengths of study:

6-Day Option

If you use this series of 6 videotapes and have only 6 days in which to do it, you may use the True-False exercise as both a pre-test and the post-test. In the pilot classrooms, they became both a way to establish and "anticipatory set," letting students know some of the things to look for in the program, and an entry into the discussion that followed. With shorter programs, there was also time to use a few of the discussion questions.

12-Day Option (2 Weeks)

If you have 2 days to spend on each of the 6 videotapes, there is time to use the True-False exercise, the discussion questions, and the vocabulary exercises.

9-Week Option (1 Quarter)

If you are teaching ANCSA for 9 weeks, or 1 quarter, you have time to use the True-False exercise before and after the videotapes, the vocabulary exercises, and selected activities. For instance, you might use parts of the 5 videotape ANCSA series produced by Northwest Arctic School District and a few of the 15 Audiotapes called Holding Our Ground produced by Western Media from the Berger Hearings. Learning should not be all input to student, so a quarter study should involve 1 or 2 projects by each student. The "Activities" suggestions included for each of the "ANCSA: Caught in the Act" videotapes are rich in possibilities for such projects. All the Northwest Arctic videotapes and the Western Media Audiotapes can be placed in a learning center so that even those not used for full classroom instruction can be used in interested students.

18 Week Option (Semester)

Some districts require a semester of ANCSA studies. That allows the teacher to be sure students have a background in Alaskan history and geography, which is very helpful in understanding ANCSA. The bibliography following Program #1, "Common Ground," offers suggestions of texts, workbooks, and maps that would help provide this background.

In 18 weeks, it would be possible to use not only, "ANCSA: Caught in the Act," but also all 5 of the videotapes produced by Northeast Arctic Schools and most of the Holding Our Ground audiotapes. Many of the activities listed in the teacher's guide for each program can be used in this amount of time.

In 18 weeks, there is time for students to learn through reading as well as viewing. The Lower Kuskokwim School District's ANCSA Curriculum is another excellent resource. Issues are presented with actual news clippings providing the data base. This gives it an immediacy lacking in most text material and also allows for presenting opposing points of view. Though it was prepared to be applicable to the Calista Region, many of the lessons are applicable to all parts of Alaska.

Most communities have resource people active in some aspect of village or regional corporations. Use of these leaders can make ANCSA seem more real to students. Field trips to corporation meetings and other real-life activities can also bring the study alive.

Program 1: Common Ground
Page 1

OVERVIEW:

Paul Sanders, a young man from the city, travels to the small Yupik (Eskimo) village in Western Alaska where his mother was born. He arrives in this community, curious about his grandparents' house, which he has just inherited. A young woman named Anna Peters shows him around and almost immediately they realize how seriously their cultural values conflict. Working through those differences, Paul and Anna reflect many of the pressures that all Alaskans confront in making decisions about their land and their future.

Length - 25 minutes.

OBJECTIVES: With this videotape and its accompanying activities, students will:

1. Explore differences in European-American values regarding land and the Native American view of the land.
2. Gain an introductory glimpse of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act and the issues surrounding it.
3. Begin to develop a vocabulary for discussing ANCSA.
4. Become knowledgeable about rural lifestyles.

BACKGROUND ON THE ACTORS AND ACTRESSES IN PROGRAM #1
"COMMON GROUND."

LINDA AYAGARAK, who plays "Anna" was born and raised in Chevak, Alaska. She attended St. Mary's Catholic High School in St. Mary's, Alaska and has worked with the Perseverance Theatre in Juneau.

She is currently a counselor at a group home in Bethel, Alaska. She also works with Bethel Community College students, developing scripts and writing plays.

WES GOODWIN is "Paul." He was born in Southern California, and at the age of ten moved with his family back to his father's home in Kotzebue, Alaska. He is presently a student at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, where he has been involved with the TUMA Theatre, and the Alaska Native Arts Festival. Concentrating on business courses, Wes plans to work in the travel/tourism business. He also has a personal interest in writing about his experiences.

THE REST OF THE CAST:

(Residents of St. Mary's, Alaska who performed their roles with almost no rehearsal, in the midst of a busy fishing season.)

RON LUND, played the part of the pilot. He is a full time pilot for Herman's Air and lives in St. Mary's full time.

Pilot's Voice - JOHN HALE, City Manager of Mat-Su Borough and valley homesteader.

MOSES PAUKAN plays Ann's father, William Peters. He is the general manager of the Alaska Commercial store in St. Mary's, and a former member of the Alaska Legislature.

JULIAN "SNUFFY" PAUKAN is Anna's young brother "Noah." He attends St. Mary's Elementary School. Snuffy helps his family with seasonal fishing.

FLORA PAUKAN is Paul's "relative" at fish camp. She is a mother of four who, with the help of her children, manages their subsistence and commercial fish camp on the Yukon River. She translated her part in the script into Yup'ik and came up with Paul's Eskimo name, which means "the Traveller."

ANDREW PAUKAN played Paul's male relative at fish camp, who supplied him with a pair of boots. He is the mayor of St. Mary's, a teacher at St. Mary's High School and the President of St. Mary's Native Corporation.

The family at the burned house:

Young boy - Olin Beans
Young women - Elsie Francis and Candy Sipary
Older woman - Theresa Francis

 

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

BEFORE YOU VIEW THE VIDEOTAPE: WHAT DO YOU THINK?

This is not a test but an activity to get you thinking about the ideas in the videotape. The program you are about to see is set in a rural village on the Andreafsky River. Working independently, write TRUE or FALSE in front of each statement below.

WATCH THE VIDEOTAPE: "common ground."

After you watch the videotape, go back again to the worksheet and once more write "true" or "false," this time after the statement. then discuss your answers with your classmates. On which statements did viewing the program make you change your mind?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

VOCABULARY Do you know these words? Before each definition, write the word which it best fits. Use the dictionary if you need it.

Now use the same words in the sentences below.

11. Major league baseball fields must be 325 feet down each foul line, which makes them more than twice the size of an ___________.

12. Originally, one had to be at least 1/4 Native to become a _____________.

13. It is possible for children with only 1/8 Native blood to _________________ Native corporation shares.

14. It is possible to be a shareholder in more than one ________________.

15. Some scholars think _________________ originated from "Cossacks" or "Kazahks," which is what some of the early Russians were called.

16. The _______________ are the most numerous Native group.

17. Many Native people have received more from permanent fund ___________________ than from their corporations.

18. Usually _________________ goes to the next of kin if a stockholder dies.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

For teachers:

1. Add the "Tonnage Test" to your bag of teaching techniques. For instance, give students the instructions, "Write everything you know about the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act." Give them a set period of time, such as 20 minutes. Give them credit for every correct piece of information they write during that length of time. It's called a "Tonnage Test" because some students write a ton in a short period of time. Some teachers like it because it enables students to operate on a higher level of thinking than an objective test usually allows. It works well as a "Pre-Test," or diagnostic tool at the beginning of a unit.
2. Maintain a "Question Corner." Always there are questions from inquisitive youngsters for which answers are not immediately accessible. Post a large piece of butcher paper in a corner of the classroom. Have students write these unanswered questions on the paper with markers and encourage everyone to be alert for the answers.

For Students:

Select one or more of these activities to do.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

VIEW: "COMMON GROUND" A SECOND TIME

As you watch the videotape, identify who said the following statements. Then tell in your own words what you think each statement means.

There were other comments in the videotape that show differing views and differing values. Write down 3 additional quotations, who said each, and what you think was meant.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

FACT OR OPINION?

Can you tell the difference between a fact and an opinion? When you hear people talk about the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, it is important to know the difference.

Webster's New World Dictionary defines a fact as "a thing that has actually happened or that is really true." An opinion on the other hand, is "a belief based on absolute uncertainty or absence of positive knowledge but on what seems true, valid, or probable to one's own mind."

Just for practice, write three statements about Alaska that you know to be facts.

Now go back to the activity on quotations from the videotape. In front of each, write "Fact" or "Opinion." Discuss your responses with classmates.

"THE ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT," Martin Laster, Bob Walker, Paul Ongtooguk, Northwest Arctic School District and Alaska Department of Education, 1986, Includes Teachers Guide and Readings. Deals with some of the details and complexities.

ALASKA NATIVE LAND CLAIMS, by Arnold, Robert D., et al, Alaska Native Foundation, 1976. Good sourcebook for early history and initial outcomes.

ANCSA LEARNING ACTIVITY PACKAGE, Lucille Frey, et al, The Leaming Tree, Alaska Pacific University, 1976. Nine easy-to-read booklets make clear major points of ANCSA. The Teacher's Guide is replete with games and activities to help students understand concepts related to ANCSA.

ANCSA SECONDARY CURRICULUM, Lower Kuskokwim School District, Sue Hare, Superintendent, Laura Bernhard, Curriculum Coordinator, Lucille Frey, Social Studies Specialist, 1986. Model for semester course using news articles as the information base.

ANNOTATED ANCSA, Paul Ongtooguk, Northwest Arctic School District, 1986. The Act, with commentary.

"HOLDING OUR GROUND," Western Media. Anchorage, 15 half-hour audio tapes used on public radio, with Native people's commentaries on dozens of topics, such as subsistence, sovereignty, 1991 issues.

VILLAGE JOURNEY, Berger, Thomas, Alaska Native Review Commission, Hill and Wang, 1986. Written testimony of Natives on ANCSA and other Native issues analyzed.

"HANDBOOK OF NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS," Vol. 5, Arctic, Vol. 6, Subarctic, Smithsonian Institute, U.S. Government Printing Office

USERS GUIDE TO ANCSA. BLM, Anchorage.

INDIAN SELF RULE: FIFTY YEARS UNDER THE INDIAN REORGANIZATION ACT, Kenneth R. Philp, Ed., Howe Brothers, Publishers.

"ALASKA NATIVE MAGAZINE," 600 8arrow Street, #403, Anchorage 99501.

"TUNDRA TIMES," 411 W. 4th Avenue, Anchorage, 99501. These are two of the Native periodicals each school should have available on a regular basis. Daily newspapers are also valuable in order to keep current.

ALASKA LAND STATUS MAP, Bureau of Land Management. Shows Native land selections, state withdrawals, federal holdings to June, 1986.

ALASKA WALL MAP, U.S. Geological Survey, or other good wall maps. Heald markets a large pull-down Alaska map, but it is very costly. The Book Cache stores carry a 3-dimensional map for showing landforms, but it is fragile. Nystrom has a large durable 3-dimensional North America map good for landforms and showing relationships between Alaska and conterminous states.

 Program #2: Losing Ground
Page 15

OVERVIEW:

ANCSA as a land claims settlement in Alaska was preceded by centuries of conflict in the rest of America over land and values. From the arrival of the first "discoverers" on both the east and west coasts, Native Americans and European immigrants have differed in their attitudes toward land and land rights. "Losing Ground" documents the patterns and changes in Federal Government policy as it has attempted to deal with intense competition for Indian land in the continental United States. It also sets the stage for understanding the struggle for Alaska's Native land claims struggle. Length - 16 minutes.

OBJECTIVES: Through viewing this program, students will be able to:

1. Trace the changes in federal policy toward Native Americans throughout the past 200 years.
2. Describe how aboriginal people in the U.S. have struggled to retain their lands.
3. Describe the economic forces that drive the creation of federal policies.
4. Describe how people, events and circumstances influence the design and passage of laws.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The passage of ANCSA in 1971 was preceded by more than 200 years of changes in the United States governmental policy towards Native Americans. There were approximately one million ''Indians" in North America at the time of Columbus. They tended to live in harmony with the land. Europeans had a tendency to change the land by cutting down trees, planting crops, and making roads.

European immigrants had a tradition of holding written title to their land as proof of their ownership. Native Americans believed the land was theirs by right of aboriginal use.

The United States is a nation of laws. Our laws are a reflection of our policies, which change from time to time. The major policies that affect land ownership by Native Americans are reviewed in this program. The first policy towards Indians was stated in the Constitution in 1789. Under the U.S. Constitution, Indian tribes were regarded as separate nations. Later when the State of Georgia tried to remove the Cherokee people, the Supreme Court interpreted the Constitution to mean that only the federal government, not state or local government, could take Indian lands.

The Indian removal policy was in effect from 1830 to 1844. The growing pressure of white settlers east of the Mississippi caused most of the remaining Indians to be forcibly relocated on less desirable land. By 1844, more than 75% of Native Americans were west of the Mississippi.

During the period from 1850 to 1875, Indians were moved onto reservations and the "excess land" was sold to speculators. Indians could no longer live by subsistence, so the U.S. government had to support them. Poverty, disease, and unemployment were prevalent.

In 1887, because they decided the reservations were not working, Congress passed the General Allotment Act. Indians who applied were given land allotments large enough to farm, something like the homesteads that had worked for white settlers. However, without seeds or plows, and knowledge of farming techniques, many Indians sold their land. In 13 years, Indian lands were reduced by half.

John Collier became the Indian Commissioner in 1934. He supported the Indian Reorganization Act, hoping it would strengthen traditional Indian communities. Four million acres were restored to Indian control.

In the 1950's, there was a push to terminate the reservations and to assimilate the Indians into what had become mainstream American life. More land was lost, as was the tribal identity of many groups.

During 200 years of changing U.S. Indian policies, only two things remained constant: (1) the amount of Indian lands was reduced and (2) the Indian culture was changing. How similar events would be played out in Alaska is the topic of the next program.

BACKGROUND OF ADELINE RABOFF AND FORMER GOVERNOR JAY HAMMOND, NARRATORS ON PROGRAM #2 "LOSING GROUND."

When GOVERNOR JAY HAMMOND agreed to narrate this program on ANCSA for the Alaska Native Foundation, he was in the middle of a busy commercial fishing season and monitoring a gubernatorial election year. He flies his own plane out of the family homestead in Lake Clark, Alaska to occasionally host a worthy television program or event but his heart and his home are really in the bush. For over 20 years, he has worked with his wife Bella on her setnet fishing site near Naknek.

His careers have ranged from working for the Fish and Wildlife Service, travelling Alaska as a commercial bush pilot and serving in the Alaska Senate to serving as Alaska's Governor for two terms from 1974 to 1982. He is regarded as the father of the Permanent Fund and a strong advocate of the dividend program. He governed Alaska during the boom years of construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and the flow of oil dollars to the State treasury.

ADELINE PETER RABOFF is a Netsaii Gwitchin Indian born in Fort Yukon, Alaska. She was raised for six years in her Gwitchin language and in the subsistence lifestyle of the late 1940's, early 1950's. Through a variety of unique circumstances, she attended schools in San Francisco, California; Butler, Pennsylvania; and Wrangell Institute in Southeast Alaska as well as Fort Yukon and Arctic Village in Northern Alaska.

She has travelled widely in America, living in Denver, Colorado; Taos, New Mexico; and Los Angeles, California. She has also lived in Israel for three years from 1972 to 1975.

Ms. Raboff is currently pursuing a degree in Business at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, while raising three of her four children. Her career as a television and radio narrator began with public service announcements for Public Health, Anchorage Community Development Corporation and the

Alaska Humanities Forum. Her most recent work can be heard on the radio series "Holding Our Ground" concerning hearings held by Tom Berger on the subject of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

BEFORE YOU VIEW THE VIDEOTAPE: WHAT DO YOU THINK?

This is not a test but an activity to get you thinking toward ideas in the videotape. Working independently, write TRUE or FALSE before each of the statements below.

WATCH THE VIDEOTAPE: "LOSING GROUND." Then go back and answer the questions again, discussing them with your classmates.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. How did the European attitude of land use differ from that of Native Americans?
2. How did each prove ownership of land?
3. According to the U.S. Constitution, how were Indian tribes to be treated?
4. What is meant by "Indian removal" in American history?
5. Why were Indian reservations established?
6. How did reservations affect Indian life?
7. What was the purpose of the Indian Reorganization Act?
8. What were some of the results of the termination of Indian reservations in the 1950's?
9. What were the overall effects of U.S. policies toward Native Americans during the 200 years of rule?
10. Have all the questions toward Indian land been settled in the South 48? Watch for news articles that concern Native Americans today and report back to the class about them.
11. "Ethnocentrism" is an attitude that one's own ethnic group is superior to all others. What is ethnocentric about the statement "Christopher Columbus discovered America?"
12. Feminist historians say that most history is ethnocentric in that it is written by male historians about male culture, ignoring female culture. Is that idea true in relation to this videotape? What were Indian women doing while the struggle for land was going on? What were white female settlers doing? Make some hypothesis. Then check your library and make a list of the books that deal with women in American history. Daughters of Copper Woman, by Ann Cameron, is one such book that might interest you. It is about Northwest Coastal Indian women's culture at the time of the first explorers.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

VOCABULARY: DO YOU KNOW THESE WORDS?

Here are some words that are useful in discussing "Losing Ground." Match them with the definitions. Use a dictionary if you need it.

Now use the same words in the sentences on the next page

11.European settlers who bought land from one another expected a written ____________ of ownership.

12.1ndians on a _______________ were often poor because they could no longer hunt, fish, or gather food.

13.The ________________ of reservations reduced the amount of land owned by the Indians.

14.1ndians who received a land _______________ were given title to their _______________ lands.

5.European _________________(s) felt the land was vacant because the Indians seemed to them to move through the land but not live on it.

16.1n 1832, the Supreme Court interpreted the _________________ to mean that only Congress could take land from Indian tribes.

17.The _______________________, not the state government, could make agreements with Indian tribes.

18.John Collier, as Indian Commissioner, thought the ________________________ of Indian policies would strengthen Indian communities.

19.When reservations ended, many Indians were _________________________ into white culture.

20.President Jackson advocated the ____________________ of Indians west of the Mississippi.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT INDIAN POLICY CHART

What effects did each of these government actions have on Native Americans and their land?

You may consult your American history text and the encyclopedia for additional information beyond that given in the videotape.

DATE........................... ACT OR ACTION

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1787........................... U.S. Constitution

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1830........................... Indian Removal Act

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1850-1870...................... Reservations Established

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1887........................... General Allotment Act

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1934 .............................Reorganization Act

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

1950's......................... Termination of Reservations

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

WHAT EVENTS AFFECTED THE POLICY?

Use your American History textbook. Find out what events were going on in the U.S. or the world that influenced the change of policy toward Native Americans.

Some high school students in Allen Wintersteen's class in Bethel, Alaska invented this game. Its purpose is to give players a feeling about what happened between Indians and white settlers as more and more immigrants moved west.

The game board can be enlarged so that a number of players can sit along each side, half representing Indians and half representing white settlers. They take turns drawing cards which appear on the next two pages. Tokens representing each side may be moved as the cards dictate. Choose your own tokens, such as a buffalo nickel for Indians and a Jefferson nickel for settlers. Or merely write "Indians" on one card and "Settlers" on another and use them as tokens. Play for 30 minutes.

You may make additional cards from the videotape or information you have learned from prior assignments.

After the game, it is important to discuss what happened and how people felt.

DEBRIEFING QUESTIONS:

1. What happened in the game?
2. How do you account for what happened? Is it historically accurate.
3. How do you feel about what happened, Settlers?
4. How do you feel about what happened, Indians?
5. Were there important events in the Westward Movement not mentioned? If so, what events? What point values, positive or negative, would you apply to these events?
6. Can amends be made for what has already happened?

Playing cards. Please xerox and cut apart.

Playing cards. Please xerox and cut apart.

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES

1. Pick one explorer and one exploration. Read in U.S. History books about what he did. Find out which Indians lived in the area. How did the explorer's "discovery" affect Indian life? Write a radio drama of the event.

2. Write individually, without discussion, a paragraph about each of the two most important events that happened at school yesterday.

Read the paragraphs aloud. How many people selected the same events as "most important?"

Do all historians agree on what were the most important events to tell in a history book?

If American History had been told by Indians, what differences would there have been?

It is said that "History is an agreed-upon myth." What do you think is meant by that? Who gets to agree?

3. Historians say that the Egyptians were the first to survey land. When the Nile overflowed each year and washed away the markers, surveyors measured the land to re-establish the boundaries to the fields, so each farmer would know where to plow and plant. Before title can be established with Alaskan land, it must be surveyed. If there is a surveyor in your community, invite him or her to class to explain the work, training, and career opportunities. Would you like to become a surveyor?

4. Research one Indian tribe of the conterminous United States ("South 48"). Find out where that tribe lived when white settlers first came. As farmers filled the continent, where did the tribe move? What were their traditional practices around food, shelter, and clothing? How were these customs changed by the change in their environment? What is the status of the tribe today?

"THE WILSON QUARTERLY," Vol. X, No.1,1986.

TERMINATED INDIANS, Final Report, American Indian Policy Review Commission, #430289, pp. 447-456 

ALASKA NATIVE LAND CLAIMS, by Bob Arnold, et al, Alaska Native Foundation, 1978.

THE NEW COUNTRY, Richard A. Bartlett, New York: Oxford University Press,1974.

SHEPHERD'S HISTORICAL ATLAS, William R. Shepherd, Ninth edition, Barnes & Noble, c. 1964

AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD HISTORY, William L Langer, editor. Fifth edition, Houghton Mifflin, Boston, c. 1972.

THE PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES, Howard Zinn.

THE PEOPLE'S CHRONOLOGY, James Torager, Holt,1975.

HANDBOOK OF NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, William C. Sturtevant, general editor. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution,1978. (A 20 volume encyclopedia summarizing knowledge about all Native peoples north of Mesoamerica, including linguistics.)

DAUGHTERS OF COPPER WOMEN, Ann Cameron, Press Gang Publishers.

Program #3: Struggle
Page 31

OVERVIEW:

Alaska, like the continental United States, experienced the same conflict between newcomers hungry for their own land, and Alaska Natives eager to protect their traditional lands. Decades of Federal Indian policy implied that Alaska Native people had rights to their lands but the government had not transferred the written, legal title for those lands. "The Struggle" follows Federal policy in Alaska from the Treaty of Cession with Russia in 1867 through the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1971. The focus is how ANCSA was achieved through the personal commitment and struggle of Alaska Native people. Length -18 minutes.

OBJECTIVES: After viewing the videotape, students will be able to:

1. Summarize historical events that led to the Congressional passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
2. Describe the legal basis for Native land claims in Alaska.
3. Describe and compare several points of view regarding Native land claims -- i.e., Natives, oil companies, the federal government, and the State of Alaska.
4. Describe the process of developing a federal law.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Federal Policy Towards Alaska Natives

The U.S. purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867 for $7,200,000. The Native people who lived on the land were not consulted. The Treaty of Cession made it clear that the U.S. government would expect Natives to be subject to American law even though they were not American citizens.

In the 1800's many white settlers came to Alaska because of gold and fishing. The Organic Act of 1884 made Alaska a territory with its own legislature. Under the Organic Act, miners and missionaries could gain title to their land but could not, disturb Natives in the use and occupancy of their lands.

In Southeast Alaska, the Alaska Native Brotherhood and Sisterhood were established in 1912 and 1915 respectively. They advocated citizenship and land rights for Native people.

The U.S. Citizenship Act was passed in 1924. Finally, all Native Americans could vote. In Alaska, William Paul, a Tlingit lawyer, became the first Native legislator.

By 1900, white settlers outnumbered Natives in Alaska. World War II caused an additional influx of settlers. The Alaska Statehood Act passed Congress in 1959 and was signed by President Eisenhower. Under the Statehood Act, the State was to select 104,000,000 acres of land, almost 1/3 of Alaska, for use or sale. (Actually, the acreage eventually amounted to 105,000,000 when measured with modern surveying techniques.) The law said the State could not claim land whose right or title "may be held by Eskimos, Indians, or Aleuts." But it provided no legal way to protect those rights.

Events Leading to ANCSA

When the largest oil field in North America was discovered on the North Slope, oil companies wanted the land claims to be settled so they could build a pipeline across the state.

Howard Rock, an Inupiat Eskimo, started the Tundra Times, a statewide newspaper, in 1962 to give Natives a voice. The Alaska Federation of Natives was organized in 1966 to fight for land rights. In 1968, Secretary of Interior Udall declared a land freeze until there was a settlement to Native claims. Eventually, Natives, oil companies, the State and environmental interests came together to support ANCSA.

ANCSA Adopted

When ANCSA was passed in 1971, it established corporations to administer the money and lands. In exchange for extinguishing all future claims to lands in Alaska, Native people received 44 million acres of land (actually, 43,700,000) and $962,5000,000. That meant they would now own 11% of Alaska. The State would own 28%, and the federal government would retain 59%. The remaining 2% was already privately owned.

BACKGROUND ON DIANE BENSON, NARRATOR ON PROGRAM #3
"THE STRUGGLE."

DIANE BENSON grew up in Southeast Alaska (Sitka, Ketchikan); moving from logging camps to fishing boats to boarding school at Mt. Edgecumbe and finally went to the Interior to attend Lathrop High School in Fairbanks.

After three years as a truck driver on the Alaska pipeline, she worked for Alaska Federation of Natives as a counselor for Upward Bound. A stint of commercial fishing in Bristol Bay came next, then the birth of a son and a job as production manager for the Tundra Times. Since then, she has received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Alaska, Anchorage and is now writing, acting and directing in the Alaska/Anchorage theatre community. She also works full time as a paralegal aide for Alaska Legal Services, Inc. Her first love is still writing, and her new play "Sister Warrior" is currently in production at the Anchorage Theater Guild.

PARTICIPANTS:

EMIL NOTTI, President of the Alaska Federation of Natives from 1967 through early 1971, helped to create the organization that was to move the land claims struggle through Congress. He also served as the President of the Alaska Native Foundation from 1971 to 1978 and was the Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs from 1982 through 1986.

Born in Ruby, Alaska, he is a shareholder in the Doyon region. He attended Sheldon Jackson where he met many of those who would later join him as leaders in the land claims struggle.

WILLIE HENSLEY, President of AFN from 1972-74, grew up in Kotzebue, attended the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and later, George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He has been chairman of the board of the United Bank Alaska, and he served in the Alaska State Legislature from 1970-76. He is currently serving in the State Senate. He the President of the NANA Regional Corporation in Kotzebue and has served on the NANA Board since 1971.

BYRON MALLOT, President of AFN from 1977-79, is the President of the Sealaska Corporation. He grew up in Yakutat, Alaska. He was the first Commissioner of Community and Regional Affairs during Governor William Egan's administration from 1971-74. He is a trustee of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation and serves on several national Boards of Directors.

JOHN BORBRIDGE was the vice-president of AFN and a board member for many years during the land claims struggle. He also served as the first President of the Sealaska Corporation as well as the President of the Tlingit-Haida Central Council. Currently, he works with the Alaska Coalition and is writing a book on ANCSA. He was born, raised and still lives in Southeast Alaska.

JOE UPICKSOUN was an AFN Board member, representing the Arctic Slope Native Association during the land claims struggle. It was his task, along with "Etok" (Charlie Edwardsen) to articulate their region's objections for specific issues involved in the ANCSA settlement. He lives in Barrow and is employed by the North Slope Borough.

FRANCES DEGNAN was an AFN Board member and served as Secretary of the AFN in the late 60's and early 70's. She was born in Unalakleet, Alaska and serves on the state school board and the Board of Bering Straits School District. She is a shareholder in the Bering Straits Regional Corporation.

During the years that AFN was pushing for a settlement, Frances was involved in AFN's fund-raising efforts. When AFN borrowed money from the Yakima (Washington) Nation, they were asked for some kind of collateral or security for the loan. Since AFN had no money or assets, AFN officials said, "Take Frances, she's our secretary!"

ANNA BARNES is the widow of Cecil Barnes, a member of the AFN Board and the first president of Chugach Natives, Inc. Ms. Barnes contributed to the land claims struggle by raising three children in his absences and typing speeches for her husband. Cecil Barnes gave up his job with an airline company to work full time lobbying Congress.

DON WRIGHT was President of AFN from 1971 to 1972, the final days of the push to get ANCSA through Congress. He was instrumental in getting President Nixon's support and lobbied for support from national Indian organizations and the oil industry. Currently he serves as a consultant to Venetie and is a shareholder of Doyon region and a resident of Fairbanks.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

BEFORE YOU VIEW THE VIDEOTAPE: WHAT DO YOU THINK?

This is not a test but an activity to get you to thinking. Working independently, write TRUE or FALSE in front of each statement below.

WATCH THE VIDEOTAPE: "The Struggle." After you watch the videotape, go back again to the worksheet and once more write TRUE or FALSE, this time after the statement. Then discuss your answers with your classmates. On which statements did viewing the videotape make you change your mind?

Even after viewing the videotape did you and your classmates agree on your responses?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. What was the land freeze and what did it accomplish?
2. Why did Alaska Native leaders pick the corporation instead of the reservation model of administering the land and money settlements from ANCSA?
3. Historian Anna Bancroft said, "One flag came down and the other flag went up. One didn't have the right to sell and the other had no right to buy?" In what ways is that statement true in regard to Alaska? Are there ways in which it is not true?
4. It has been said that the U.S. Government's Indian policy in Alaska was a "policy of postponement." What historical events support that statement?
5. What events came together at about the same time to make it possible to get a land claims settlement in 1971?

ACTIVITIES:

1. Pick one of these topics, research it in the ANF textbook, Alaska Native Land Claims, or other sources, and tell what each had to do with the passage of ANCSA.

Tanana Chiefs Conference of 1915
Project Chariot
Rampart Dam Proposal
Minto Recreation Area Controversy
Howard Rock and the Tundra Times
Dot Lake Cemetery
Inupiat Patiot
Write a report and share it with the class.

2. See if you can locate a deed, or title, to a piece of land. Make a copy of it to show the class. (Treat the original with respect. It is valuable.) Study the deed to see what information it gives and how it is worded.

3. Establish a "territorial claims" map of your school, showing where different individuals and groups work, play, or hang out. Claim a piece as yours through traditional use, and attempt to write a title for it. What problems did you run into?

4. For another view of the struggle for ANCSA, watch Northwest Arctic School District's Video No. 1, "History of the Act." What additional information did you gain?

5. Listen to Audiotape No. 14 in the Holding our Ground series, "Other Settlements With Indigenous Peoples." Tell what is being done with the land claims and Native peoples of Canada, Greenland, Australia and Norway.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

VOCABULARY: DO YOU KNOW THESE WORDS?

Write the word from this list beside the definition which fits it best. Use a dictionary if you want to do so.

Now use the same words in the sentences below.

11. Native Americans became ________________ (s) in 1924.

12. Native Alaskans can select 44 million acres of land based on _______________ use.

13. Native groups formed a _____________ in 1966 to fight for aboriginal land rights.

14. Emil Notti and Willie Hensley were _______________ (s) sent to Washington, D.C., to stand up for Native rights before Congress.

15. By 1900 a _______________ of Alaskans were white settlers.

16. The _______________ between the U.S. Government and Natives for land rights took 100 years.

17. In 1867, the Russian Treaty of _________________ transferred all Russian rights in Alaska to the United States.

18. Alaska Natives did not lose their land by ________________ as did many tribes in the United States.

19. The U.S. Government, before ANCSA, had no clear ____________________ regarding Native land claims.

20. As a _________________ , Alaska had a legislature but could not send voting members to the U.S. Congress.

Name ___________________________________ Date _____________________________

DIFFERING VIEWPOINTS: WAS ANCSA A FAIR SETTLEMENT?

Divide the class into 4 groups -- Natives, Oil Company Officials, State of Alaska Representatives, and Federal Government Representatives. Imagine it is the 1960's and that you are really representing that viewpoint. Find all the clues in the videotape that tell what your group really wanted. Write down those viewpoints.

My Group Is (Check One)

What My Group Really Wanted Was:

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