Indian Lives Matter

American Indian people know all too well the impact of pandemics on human populations, having barely survived smallpox outbreaks and other diseases transmitted during the generations of early contact between themselves and Europeans. Modern tribal governments navigate a tricky legal and political environment. While tribal governments have power to govern their own citizens, nonmembers are everywhere in Indian country, and the courts are skeptical of tribal authority over nonmembers. This short Essay argues for tribal regulatory powers over nonmembers in Indian country during a pandemic.

This should be an easy argument, but federal Indian law makes it more complicated than it should be.