Native American Independent Living

Abstract

The question of whether independent living (IL) services can be provided to Native Americans with disabilities living on reservations is introduced. Native American history is briefly reviewed. The cultural and practical connections and obstacles to implementing several key components of the IL philosophy are discussed. An actualizing process – one that recognizes the tremendous diversity across reservations and individuals – is discussed as one method for merging these two perspectives and implementing IL services on reservations. This is only the start of a process which will be developed to examine the need for a model which addresses the issues and problems facing American Indians with disabilities.