I have written before about the lack of desire for Tribes to welcome home students particularly.  After a good conversation yesterday with a friend who is now running his tribes Cultural programming, I feel I have some further input to the topic.

First, if we look back to federal policy and how NDNs have been treated by the US federal government, and other NDNs working for the US federal government, we can see some concerns.  A group of us refer to those old and new NDNs working for the federal government, as “Hang Around The Fort Indians.”  this reference in time and place reminds many in NDN country of the stories of NDN country settlement by some European groups which felt conquest and elimination or termination were the best policies.  They built Military forts, and often took advantage of NDNs who where disbanded from tribes or had problems with alcohol, in order to gain superior position on their continued efforts to eliminate Tribes.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the economic consequences of this reluctance has negative consequences on Tribes.  The consequences I previously mentioned are similar to the buying local effects of self-sufficiency. Bottom line for that argument is that you lose by paying higher prices, and efficiencies from comparative advantage.

What me and my friend came up additional is that the Tribe will eventually hire the necessary expertise from either a non-native or an NDN from another community.  When doing so it may be important to note that the importation of labor may have a premium attached to its cost.  This premium, if it exists, likely occurs for two reasons; one is that the import sees the rural locations of Tribes as a inherent problem and incorporates a labor premium to cover the cost of relocation (either to the job or from the job or both) while many young NDN men and woman who have not been home since their high school days would love to return to their community at a fair market value, primarily due to the long history and connection with the community; second, is the simple fact that employees in the information age quickly recognize trends.  The current employment trend suggests that the average employee has 3 careers during their life, and the rural and limited economies around the reservation suggest that informed and professional labor will also recognize the limited opportunity to move easily from one job to the next, if any situation would require it, and therefore, incorporate a labor premium (inclusive or exclusive of the aforementioned premium).

Considering this post, I ask for Tribal Leaders to begin to think more progressively about how to attract talented young NDN professional back into NDN country for employment.  The obvious intrinsic value is a preservation of community.