Returning land and natural resources
The New Buffalo Many indigenous groups received a new and important income source when congress in the USA legalized gaming on native lands in 1988. The casino business is often referred to as the New Buffalo. By providing work for the people the casino business has helped many groups grow. The new income source has also caused many problems. In several cases the great income has been distributed in the hands of few.
However the casino incomes have made many groups economically independent. The surplus is invested in public services for the group members, new institutions are built and resources are used to maintain parts of a culture that was about to be lost. The incomes also give an opportunity to buy back land areas. In these areas there are many Prairie people who now are about to establish their own bison breeding business. The bison will again be able to roam the prairie.
Comanche Nation
The kingdom of the Comanche people was called Comancheria. The territory was enor- mous and stretched across parts of Texas, New Mexico, Kansas and Oklahoma. As of 2008 Comanche Nation has nearly 15 000 members with their headquarters in Lawton, Oklahoma.
Before there were up to 35 Comanche groups and today there are 19 registered groups. Comanche grew out of the Shoshone people in the Rocky Mountains early in the 1500s and withdrew southward to the prai- rie. They were one of the first groups that began to use the horse in warfare, trade and bison hunting. Under the nickname “The Lords of the Plains” they ruled over the entire plains area in today’s southern USA.
In 1875 the Comanche were forced to live on reservations at Fort Sill in Oklahoma. The number of Coman- che was reduced to 1171. In 1901 the reservation was split up as a result of the governments desire to open up for settlers. Each Comanche family was allocated then a piece of land of 80 acres. Today there is total more than 100 000 square km Comanche land spread out over southwest Oklahoma.
Casino business – income for the common good
Comanche Nation was established with its own constitution in 1966. The governing form is democratic with elections every four years. The main income is the casino business and Comanche Nation has built five casinos. The income from the casinos are used to strengthen and develop Comanche Nation; and bit by bit lost land is bought back and new institutions are being built. They have their own schools, police force, funeral bureau, firefighting force, bison business, orphanage and amusement park.
The Comanche live in many ways very much by their traditional values, and everyone is taken care of through many different measures and programs. There are programs for substance abuse and house build- ing, food delivery, the prevention of diabetes, and legal help.
Native American Church
Religion is practiced individually, but the majority of Comanche see themselves as Christian. Still, the Native American church has growing support. NAC was founded in 1918 to secure religious freedom. In the NAC the tepee is used as a church and medicine men are used as spiritual leaders. The members regularly have meetings that can last all night. NAC has become an important factor in the work with reconstructing and maintaining Comanche culture.
Each weekend at least one pow-wow is arranged. A pow-wow is a social gathering with traditional dance competitions, distribution of gifts, food and festivities. Their yearly festival, Comanche Nation Fair, attracts nearly 40 000 visitors.
We move into the future, just as our ancestors would have expected us to do.
– Wallace Coffey, Chairman in the Comanche Nation
