At the dawn of the twentieth century the universal consensus was that the American Indian was about to “vanish.” More than two centuries of devastating wars, forced migrations, confinement, starvation, and disease had cost untold Indian lives, and the Native population was at a historic low. Pressure for land and resources was intense. Advocates and reformers urged the government to “assimilate” Indians by breaking up their remaining land base and stamping out tribal cultures. Yet American Indians did not disappear. Rather, they have adapted and thrived, maintaining much of their cultures, languages, and identities. The Encyclopedia of the American Indian in the Twentieth Century provides a comprehensive overview of this dramatic process through profiles of key individuals, organizations, government policies, and events that have defined Native history since 1900. Providing one-stop alphabetical access to information not readily available in other sources, with extensive cross-references and suggestions for further reading, this authoritative reference work offers the clearest and most unified picture of the American Indian in the twentieth century.

"It seems that we are living in a time of prophesies, a time of definitions and decisions. We are the generations with the responsibility and option to choose the path of life with a future for our children or the life and the path that defies the laws of regeneration". (Oren Lyons)

"These eloquent speeches by 20 native leaders from throughout the world define the precipice upon which the world's indigenous people are teetering. Each speaker addresses survival issues confronting his/her country. In the words of Anderson Muutang Urud from Southeast Asia: 'The world is rushing towards a single culture. We should pause and reflect on the beauty of diversity.'... Recommended". (Library Journal)

Inaugurating the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, leaders from 20 cultures of North, Central, and South America, the Pacific Rim, Eurasia, and the polar regions brought their message to the United Nations for the first time, speaking eloquently on issues affecting their own cultures and populations as well as the global disaster facing humanity. This book makes us keenly aware of the global nature of the disaster facing indigenous people and the human race as a whole: the disappearance of diversity and traditional ways of life, as well as the loss of the vital knowledge of how to sustain equilibrium with our planetary environment.