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The Sioux Indians were buffalo hunters accustomed to an abundance of game which became a legend overnight. They then became dependent upon a feeding Government. When the buffalo died, the Sioux died. They found themselves as helpless in their situation as children are in the hands of frustrating parents with whom they refuse to identify themselves. They continue to dream their dreams of restoration. The idea of storage is strange to them and money distasteful. The white teachers complain 'the Indian parents not only allow their children to masturbate, they teach them to masturbate'. And this is answered by the Indians 'the whites not only let their babies cry, but they teach them to cry'. This signifies the correspondence between prejudices and group virtues.
The white teacher has never really been accepted by the Indians and does not represent in any way the parents' philosophy for their children. Indian children may live for years without open rebellion or any sign of inner conflict between two standards which are further apart than are those of any two generations or two classes in our culture. They may show passive resistance; they do not show neurotic tension or 'bad conscience'. Every Indian child has the right to call all sisters of his mother 'mother' and all brothers of his father 'father'. When he feels frustrated in his family he just takes a leave of absence. The basic psychological problem of Indian education by whites is the strange inner security and inner personal harmony of the Indian who submits but does