This isolated town nestled in the undulating prairie of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Nation is so small, its only formal sign is a boulder spray-painted with “C. Ball.” But Friday afternoon, it briefly became the center of the American political world when President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama visited.
It was Obama’s first stop as president on an Indian reservation, where he touted the strides his administration has made with Native Americans, unveiled new tribal education and economic measures, and touched on the difficult work that remains to pull many Indians out of crippling poverty and endemic unemployment.
“My administration is determined to partner with tribes,” Obama said. “It takes place every day on just about every issue that touches your lives.”
The president met with Native American children ahead of the tribe’s annual Flag Day powwow. Groups of tribal dancers clad in vibrantly colored costumes performed a traditional dance for him.
The administration announced plans to reform the Bureau of Indian Education to better educate native children and increase tribal control of schools. The White House also plans to remove regulatory barriers to infrastructure and energy development, encourage the use of tax-exempt bonds for economic development and increase the number of veterans that the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Health Services hire.
Many tribal leaders say Obama has done more in six years for Native Americans than all of his predecessors combined. The administration has given land back to tribes and worked one-on-one with tribal governments, and it is cracking down on crime in Indian Country.
“The best thing that’s happened to Indian Country has been President Obama being elected,” said Dave Archambault II, chairman of Standing Rock.
But many Native Americans also retain deep distrust of a federal government that historically has reneged on agreements and, many believe, treated Native Americans as an afterthought for generations.