Many colonial commentators noted the engaged democratic processes of Indigenous Peoples. Some wrote about indigenous democracies as a critique of the centralized, undemocratic, absolutist governments of Europe. By showing that absolutist states were not the sole divine political order for all humans, critical writers could undermine the cultural foundations of centralized and authoritarian governments. New forms of government slowly emerged with greater emphasis on individual freedom and rights. It is no accident that the first modern democracy emerged in the United States. The new nation and its political culture was deeply embedded in long-term relations with Indian nations.
While Indians continue to insist on equal access in tribal political processes, the basis of Indian individual group autonomy was eroded by colonial relations through the loss of land and sustainable economies. Indians were not individually engaged only because it was a traditional right, but because individuals, families, clans, and other groups had rights to land and economic resources within the tribal nation. Each individual and local Indian groups controlled their own gathering of food, and had an economic independence that avoided material dependence. People who are economically self-sustaining, as were Indians in traditional times, have the power to act politically without economic retaliation. In some sense, Indians were like contemporary rich people or medieval nobles, because they were not dependent on governments or aristocracies, who could extend control over their land and exploit their labor.
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