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$90 million in funds will be available for distressed communities. Of that amount, Native American initiatives are slated to receive $8 million dollars. The catch, if one exists, is that the monetary awards and training programs come via private sector contractors giving them a piece of the proverbial "pie."

Lending institutions on reservations should, in theory, help severely distressed American Indian communities such as Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and other depressed communities. The goal of CDFI is to provide adequate capital to those who need it. Whether it brings successful results in the Native American communities depends to a large degree on the integrity of the administration of programs.

By and large, Native Americans have moved from reservations and work in the mainstream communities. Some estimates place the population on Indian reservations at 800,000 within a two million populace. Numbers for the Native American demographics are estimates due to low census sampling used in various reporting vehicles.

As one who has lived and worked in mainstream American all my life, and with an "identity" card to prove my degree of Indian blood, I sympathize with the problems surrounding the Native American reservation communities. Perhaps the financial environment will change. Yet, in my estimation, there is no greater risk of subservience than to be overly dependent on the US government for optimal health and well being.

Learn more about this author, Mona Gallagher.
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