The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is a Native American organization based in the United States. It was founded in 1944 and its headquarters are in Washington, D.C.

The organization, which has 250 member tribes, monitors U.S. federal policy as it applies to Native Americans, and informs the public and Congress about these issues.

As stated on its official website, its goals are as follows:

• Protection of programs and services to benefit Indian families, specifically targeting Indian Youth and elders
• Promotion and support of Indian education, including Head Start, elementary, post-secondary and Adult Education
• Enhancement of Indian health care, including prevention of juvenile substance abuse, HIV-AIDS prevention and other major diseases
• Support of environmental protection and natural resources management
• Protection of Indian cultural resources and religious freedom rights
• Promotion of the Rights of Indian economic opportunity both on and off reservations, including securing programs to provide incentives for economic development and the attraction of private capital to Indian Country
• Protection of the Rights of all Indian people to decent, safe and affordable housing

History

The National Congress of American Indians was first established in 1944 "as a national pan-Indian organization that campaigned fervently and, on the whole, successfully against the termination policy." The first convention in 1944 included Indian delegates from twenty seven states and representatives of more than fifty tribes and associations. In about a year's time members the NCAI accounted for nearly all U.S. tribes. Prominent tribal leaders were always part of the NCAI; they acknowledged the danger that termination created for Indians' legal rights and cultural identity and worked to uphold the well-being and identities of the Indian community on a national scale. The assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November of 1963 greatly affected the NCAI. Strong factionalism between 1962 and 1963 had just about obliterated the organization; Kennedy’s death also killed any "NCAI leaders' hopes for an 'Indian Camelot'" as well. The NCAI desperately sought new leadership and management; the selection of Vine Deloria, Jr. as executive director in 1964 brought about a modern and fresh era for the NCAI. The appointment of Deloria as executive direction did not mean that the NCAI would face no problems and run seamlessly, however. By 1964 there were no major legislative battles, such as the first termination laws, for which NCAI could rally its members. Although the termination policy did not officially come to an end until 1972, the NCAI was already experiencing heavy criticism and fading support by the late 1950s and 1960s. The founding of new national intertribal organizations, such as the National Indian Youth Council, and others in the early 1960s helped the Native American self-determination cause but not the stability of the NCAI. Soon the NCAI lost its unique position as the sole voice of the Indian people in Washington.

References

1. History. National Congress of the American Indian. (retrieved 25 June 2009)
2. Cowger, Thomas W., The National Congress of American Indians: The Founding Years. (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1999) 3, Questia, 1 Dec. 2008

External links

• National Congress of American Indians official site