Reservation poverty

rdf:langString Reservation poverty

rdf:langString Reservations in the United States, known as Indian reservations, are sovereign Native American territories that are managed by a tribal government in cooperation with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, a branch of the Department of the Interior, located in Washington, DC. There are 334 reservations in the United States today. As of 2008, almost a third of Native Americans in the United States live on reservations, totaling approximately 700,000 individuals. About half of all Native Americans living on reservations are concentrated on the ten largest reservations. Reservations vary drastically in their size, population, political economy, culture and traditions. Despite such variation, all reservations share similar histories of colonization, and face similar contemporary challenges. One of these challenges is poverty. In 2010, the poverty rate on US reservations was 28.4 percent, compared with 22 percent among all Native Americans (on and off reservations). The U.S. poverty rate among all groups is much lower, at 12.7 percent as of 2016. In addition to poverty rates, reservations are hindered by education levels significantly lower than the national average. Poor healthcare services, low employment, substandard housing, and deficient economic infrastructure are also persistent problems.