You’ve probably seen the tiktok videos or the Instagram posts—someone finds out they’re 3% "Native American" via a spit-in-a-tube DNA test and suddenly they’re buying turquoise jewelry. It’s a trope at this point. But for actual Indigenous people, identity isn’t a hobby or a percentage. It’s often a literal plastic card.
The Indian Card: Who Gets to Be Native in America isn't just a catchy phrase; it's the title of a heavy-hitting book by Carrie Lowry Schuettpelz that pulls back the curtain on a system most Americans don't even know exists. Honestly, the way we talk about race in this country is usually about how you look or what your parents are. But for Native people, it’s about paperwork. Specifically, it’s about tribal enrollment, which is basically the only form of racial "certification" the U.S. government still manages.
Why a Card Matters So Much
Imagine needing a government-issued ID to prove you’re actually you. Not just for driving or buying a beer, but to prove your ancestry. That’s what a Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) or a tribal enrollment card does.
The logic behind it is kinda wild when you think about it. If you’re Black, you’re Black. If you’re white, you’re white. But to be "legally" Indian in the eyes of the feds, you have to navigate a labyrinth of 19th-century rolls and blood fractions.
Schuettpelz, who is an enrolled member of the Lumbee Tribe, dives into how this bureaucratic nightmare started. It wasn't about "preserving culture." It was about land. The government wanted to know exactly who they had to pay—and more importantly, who they didn't have to pay—when they were carving up tribal territories.
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The Ghost of Blood Quantum
You’ve heard the term "blood quantum," right? It sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie, but it’s actually a math problem that determines someone's life.
Many tribes require a certain fraction of "Indian blood" to join. Maybe it’s 1/4. Maybe it’s 1/8.
But here’s the kicker: this math was forced on tribes by the federal government during the 1930s. It was designed to make Native people disappear. Think about it—if you marry someone from outside the tribe, your kids have less "blood." Eventually, the math says the tribe just stops existing.
It’s a "slow-motion genocide," as some activists call it.
Who Gets to Decide?
There’s a huge tension between the government’s rules and tribal sovereignty. One of the biggest takeaways from The Indian Card: Who Gets to Be Native in America is that tribes are starting to fight back by making their own rules.
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Some tribes, like the Cherokee Nation, have ditched blood quantum entirely. They use lineal descent. If your ancestor was on the "Dawes Rolls" (the 1890s census of the Five Tribes), you’re in. It doesn't matter if you're 1/2 or 1/2000th. You’re a citizen.
But other tribes stick to the fractions. Why? Because resources are tight. If a tribe has gaming revenue or health clinics, they have to decide how to split the pie. It’s a brutal, heartbreaking reality where aunts and cousins are sometimes "disenrolled" because of a paperwork error from 100 years ago.
The "Pretendian" Problem
We can't talk about this without mentioning the people who fake it. You’ve probably heard about professors or "healers" who claim Native ancestry only to be outed as completely white. This is why the "Indian Card" is so fiercely guarded.
When identity is a political status and not just a "vibe," someone faking it isn't just annoying—it’s a violation of sovereignty. It’s someone cutting in a very long, very painful line.
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What You Can Actually Do
If you’re trying to be a better ally or just understand the landscape, here’s the "so what" of the whole situation:
- Stop trusting DNA tests for identity. Ancestry.com can tell you where your genes came from, but it can’t make you a citizen of a sovereign nation.
- Acknowledge the political side. Being Native is as much like being a citizen of France as it is about being a member of a race. It’s a legal relationship.
- Support Tribal Sovereignty. The goal for most Indigenous communities is to decide for themselves who belongs, without the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) breathing down their necks.
- Read the source material. Pick up Schuettpelz’s book. It’s not a dry history text; it’s full of interviews with real people who are stuck in this "identity mire."
Ultimately, the card in the wallet is a symbol of survival. It’s a messy, colonially-imposed system, but for now, it’s the shield many people use to protect their community's future.
Actionable Next Steps:
To deepen your understanding of Indigenous sovereignty beyond just identity cards, look into the Land Back movement or research the specific history of the tribes that originally lived on the land where you currently reside. Understanding the legal treaties of your local area provides the necessary context for why these enrollment cards exist in the first place.