Introduction to the Special Issue: The Native American Languages Act of 1990/1992 — 20 Years of Federal Support for Indigenous Language Revitalization

Abstract

Introduction to the Special Issue The Native American Languages Act of 1990/1992 - 20 Years of Federal Support for Indigenous Language devitalization LarisaWarhol This commemorates (NALA) special of1990/1992 issue the20th of and anniversary the attendant Journal of federal the of Native American support American for Indian Native Languages Education American Act commemorates the20th anniversary oftheNative American Languages Act (NALA) of1990/1992 andattendant federal support for Native American languages. Begun asa grassroots effort byNative language activists andeducators inthelate1980s,NALA affirmed thefederal government's roleinpreserving andprotecting Native American languages. Thepolicy alsoestablished a grant program through theAdministration ofNativeAmericans (ANA) that serves as a primary resource forcommunityand school-basedNativelanguage revitalization programs. NALA has servedas a foundation formorerecent federal, stateand community-based policiesencouraging Nativelanguage education. Language andeducation policy intheUnited States, though, remains challenging and oftencontradictory, as the articlesin thisspecial issue demonstrate. Following NALA's passage, someargued that itcametoolate, with many communities already experiencing languageshift. Moreover, thepolicywas inherently limited as itwasa declaration lacking anyenforcement plans, andthe funding foritsprograms hasbeenmeager (Romaine, 2002;Schiffman, 1996). While these arguments reveal thelimitations ofofficial policy, NALAnonetheless reversed centuries ofsystematic linguistic andcultural eradication, demonstrated theself-determination of Nativecommunities to establish policydirectly in support oftheir goals,andcreateda foundation forNativecommunities to continue to buildpoliciesand changeideologiesabouttheimportance of strenthening Indigenous languages. NALAalsostands as theonly official stance thefederal government hastaken onlanguage todate.Itspassagemarks a shift inideology instate andfederal language andeducation policy, andintheways that Native communities viewthemaintenance oftheir languages as wellas in other socialdomains andinstitutions suchas schoolsanduniversities, many of Journal of American Indian Education -51,Issue3,2012 1 which havechosen tosupport communities' revitalization efforts. Whilemany communities hadbeenengagedinrevitalization work formany yearsprior to NALA,thelaw's passageheralded increased scholarly attention tolanguage revitalization within thefields oflanguage planning andpolicyandAmerican Indianeducation. Thus,NALA's importance to thelanguagerevitalization movement cannotbe over-emphasized. The remainder of thisintroduction provides background andcontext onNALA,including itsadministration bythe ANAfor thepast18years, andsituates thearticles inthisspecialissueas they address policyconsiderations andcurrent language revitalization activities in Indigenous communities throughout theUnited States. The NativeAmericanLanguagesActof1990/1992 NALAwaspassedbytheU.S. Congress in1990as a federal policy declaration insupport ofthepreservation andprotection ofNative American languages. The policy wasunprecedented for a variety ofreasons. First, historically federal policy hadaimedtoeradicate thesesamelanguages. Second,NALA recognized the connection between language andeducation achievement, andthird, itestablished anofficial federal stance onlanguage despite thefederal government's refusal toacknowledge anofficial U.S. language. NALAreaffirmed federal recognition ofthestatus ofNativelanguagesintheU.S. anditsposition towards those languages andtheir speakers. Simultaneously, thestatute reaffirmed Native American rights toself-determination andsovereignty as wellas theimportant connections between language, culture andchildren's academic achievement. (See policytextincludedin thisspecial issue.) NALA established thefederal government's responsibility inensuring thecontinuation ofNativelanguages, calledfor evaluation ofcurrent government programs inorder tofurther support Nativelanguages, and encouraged statesto use Nativelanguagesin state institutions, including schools. In 1992 NALA was amendedto includefinancial appropriations and provisions forcommunity languageprograms, training programs, materials development and language documentation. These grantprogramsare administered bytheANAwithin theAdministration for Children andFamilies. TheANAcurrently hastwotypes ofgrant programs: onefor assessing, planning orimplementing a community-based language project orprogram, andanother specifically for Native language immersion survival schools. Funding for the latter beganin2008 as an outcome ofthe2006 Esther Martinez NativeAmerican Languages Preservation Act(seethearticle byWarhol andthetext ofthislaw inthisspecialissue) - theresult ofanother grassroots movement tofurther amend NALAtoprovide for immersion schools asthey haddemonstrated success with both language revitalization andacademicachievement. Development ofNALA Theimportance ofNALAislargely connected totherationale for itsgenesis by Native language activists andeducators inthe1980s.Whilethepolicy beganas 2 Journal of American Indian Education -Volume 51,Issue3,2012 a resolution emerging from the1988Native American Language IssuesInstitute (NALI)/American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI) conference inTempe, Arizona (McCarty, 1993),itsdevelopment andpassagewerea result ofa convergence ofefforts bybilingual educators andlinguists, theHawaiian language revitalization movement andtheinterests oftheSenateCommittee on Indian Affairs tofight a growing tideofstate-level English-only initiatives. NativeAmerican bilingual education beganinthe1960sontheNavajo reservation atRoughRock,Arizona andother community-controlled bilingual schoolssoonsprang upintribal communities throughout theU.S. (McCarty, 2002;St.Clair& Leap,1982;Watahomigie & Yamamoto, 1992).Thisadvent ofbilingual education established early collaborations between academic linguists andlocal Nativeeducators, leadingtothecreation ofregional institutes and national organizations thatbothreflected and lentcrucialsupport to these collaborations. Institutes andorganizations that emerged from federal policies suchas the1968Bilingual Education Actandthe1972IndianEducation Act includeAILDI, NALI, andtheshort-lived NationalIndianBilingualCenter (NIBC). The hallmark goalsoftheseorganizations weretosupport andtrain Nativeeducators andlinguists, provide professional development toschools servingNativestudents, and produceNativelanguageteachingmaterials (McCarty etal.,2001).Theseorganizations alsobecame important sites for tribal policydevelopment in support ofNativelanguageeducation andtheywere instrumental inestablishing a foundational network oflanguage educators and activists acrossIndianCountry. Concurrently, the Hawaiian...