Hopi Tribe of Northern Arizona. Term Paper

Total Length: 1043 words ( 3 double-spaced pages)

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The Hopis are one of the few tribes that have not attempted to jump on the Indian gaming bandwagon. They prefer to live quietly on their reservation, and depend on tourism for at least some of their outside income. There is a Hopi-owned hotel, restaurant, and cultural center on Second Mesa, and there are several art galleries and craft shops in many of the villages, as well. However, the tribe's main source of income comes from the Peabody Coal Company, who pays millions of dollars to pump water from underneath the reservation to send coal slurry from their plant near Page, Arizona to New Mexico and Nevada. The Navajo Reservation also has an agreement with Peabody, as well.

Many of the Hopis still live as they did thousands of years ago, while there is another faction of "moderns" that live in modern homes, deal with the tourists, and take jobs off the reservation. The Hopis are adamant about maintaining their culture and beliefs, and this can lead to a dead end for their children and new generations. Many still live in ancient homes, and they are not open to outside input or opinions. There are eleven villages on top of and below the mesas, and there are about 12,000 Hopis left today. Each village specializes in some type of craft, and each village's government is up to them, so all the villages do not use the exact same form of government. Many of the older, traditional villages are completely closed to outsiders.


A visit to the Hopi Mesas is like a step back in time. Because many of the people still rely on dry farming and traditional ways, the tribe is not progressing into the modern world as much as many other tribes, and there are many Hopis who want to keep it that way. They do believe in education for their children, but many children leave the reservation to work in Northern Arizona cities like Flagstaff. A good example is the case of Lori Piestewa, the Hopi mother of two who was the first woman killed in the Iraqi War in 2003. She was born and raised in Tuba City, Arizona, a town outside the Hopi Reservation; in fact, it is located in the Navajo Reservation. She joined the Army because there were few other opportunities for her to take care of her family on either of the reservations.

The Hopi are a peaceful people, but have consistently clashed with the Navajos who surround their reservation, because of land and cultural issues. The Hopis are one of the few remaining traditional tribes in the United States, and they are fiercely proud of their heritage and culture. They maintain a way of life that may seem backward to some, but is ingrained in their being. They are very careful to pass that heritage on to their children, even if the children leave the reservation for the modern world......

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